Now Mara, a young, untested Ruling Lady, is called upon to lead her people in a heroic struggle for survival. But first she must rally an army of rebel warriors, form a pact with the alien cho-ja, and marry the son of a hated enemy. Only then can Mara face her most dangerous foe of all -- in his own impregnable stronghold.
My Review: We first got a glimpse of Kelewan in the Riftwar Saga. In Daughter of the Empire, the first book in the Empire Trilogy, Raymond Feist and Janny Wurts team up to explore it even further. The books are set during the time of the Riftwar, so we get to see what's going on on the other side of the rift. And the truth is, the Tsurani are a people so used to war that it barely even fazes them. After the war is used to kick things off at the beginning of the book, it is barely mentioned, except when it affects the ever-precarious political situation. I haven't read the other two books of the trilogy yet, so it may come into play more later on, but in Daughter the war is downplayed in light of Mara's struggle.
This was the first of Feist's books that I'd read since the Riftwar Saga, and it really surprised me. First of all, to put it gently -- if this book were a movie, it'd be rated R. I would not be comfortable recommending this book to anyone under the age of 15. There's quite a bit of violence and a lot of sex. It's treated in a very cold-hearted manner, as Mara uses her feminie-wiles to lure, trick, and dishonor several men. But in Tsurani culture, this is perfectly acceptable, even commendable, if such actions happen to advance your family's position in the Great Game at the expense of another's.
Despite the above-mentioned "surprises," I felt that Daughter of the Empire was very well-done. It is the only one of Feist's books in which the protagonist is a woman (which is possibly why he enlisted the help of Janny Wurts), and while Kelewan is not as "enchanted" as Midkemia (there are no elves or dwarves or anything such as that), there is plenty of magic. If you enjoyed the Riftwar Saga you will not be disappointed with Daughter of the Empire. Three and a half stars.
Sample Passage:
Mara eased the last bit of jomach into Ayaki's eager mouth. Aware that her hands were shaking, she made a show of blotting her sticky fingers just as Buntokapi reached the far side of the sacred pool.
He stopped on the walk, his sandals showering a fine spray of gravel into the water. Reflections shattered into a thousand fleeing ripples, and the li birds fell silent in the branches overhead. "Wife, you are like the pusk adder of the jungles, whose markings are pretty enough to be mistaken for a flower when it lies at rest. But its strike is swift and its bite is fatal."
Slowly Mara rose. She turned reluctantly, her fingers stained red with jomach juice; and she looked upon the face of her husband.