Paladin of Souls

By: Lois McMaster Bujold

Narrated by: Kate Reading

Length: 16 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's summary

Three years have passed since the widowed Dowager Royina Ista found release from the curse of madness that kept her imprisoned in her family's castle of Valenda. Her newfound freedom is costly, bittersweet with memories, regrets, and guilty secrets, for she knows the truth of what brought her land to the brink of destruction. And now the road, escape, beckons...A simple pilgrimage, perhaps. Quite fitting for the Dowager Royina of Chalion.

Yet something else is free, too, something beyond deadly. To the north lies the vital border fortress of Porifors. Memories linger there as well, of wars and invasions and the mighty Golden General of Jokona. And someone, something, watches from across that border: humans, demons, gods.

Ista thinks her little party of pilgrims wanders at will, but whose? When Ista's retinue is unexpectedly set upon not long into its travels, a mysterious ally appears, a warrior nobleman who fights like a berserker. The temporary safety of her enigmatic champion's castle cannot ease Ista's mounting dread, however, when she finds his dark secrets are entangled with hers in a net of the gods' own weaving.

In her dreams, the threads are already drawing her to unforseen chances, fateful meetings, fearsome choices. What the inscrutable gods commanded of her in the past brought her land to the brink of devastation. Now, once again, they have chosen Ista as their instrument. And again, for good or for ill, she must comply.

Don't miss Lois McMaster Bujold's first book about Chalion, The Curse of Chalion.

©2003 Lois McMaster Bujold (P)2005 Blackstone Audiobooks

Critic reviews

• Romantic Times Award Winner - Best Fantasy Novel, 2003
• Hugo Award Winner, Best Novel, 2004
• Nebula Award Winner, Best Novel, 2004

" "Rich in sumptuous detail and speculative theology....This engaging installment of Chalion's mythical history whets the appetite for new marvels yet to come." (Publishers Weekly)
"Bujold couldn't characterize badly if threatened with a firing squad, and what really keeps one turning the pages is the fascinating cast of characters, not that the plot is anything to sneeze at." (Booklist)

This is a beautiful book.

Paladin of Souls is gorgeously written and narrated. It tells the story of a high born woman who's gifts make her seem mad to those around her. She's kept 'safe' for her own good, but she contrives to escape her gilded cage and travel. The story is filled with action and magic, and while it's not necessary to read the first book (Curse of Chalion), to enjoy this one, it's highly recommended. (Besides, the first book is just as amazing, so why would you want to miss it?)

For those who haven't read Lois McMaster Bujold, I'm a newbie, too. I started with her Sharing Knife series, which is exquisite. After 6 books, I've fallen hard for her prose. She is now one of my top five favorite writers of all time.

I've heard so much about her Vor books in other reviews, I almost started them, but I've had a difficult time figuring out which book comes first. A kind reviewer provided a list (sorry, don't know his name). I insert it here. (Miles, here I come!)

- The Warrior's Apprentice
- The Vor Game
- Cetaganda
- Brothers in Arms
- Mirror Dance (1994)
- Memory (1996)
- Komarr (1998)
- A Civil Campaign
- Winterfair Gifts
- Diplomatic Immunity

Page Turning Demon Eating and Autumn Romancing

Paladin of Souls is an engaging and interesting novel! I found it increasingly difficult (impossible) to stop listening to it the deeper I got into it.

Clear voiced, thoughtful, and sensitive Kate Reading does a fine job reading it, doing a light British accent for the main narration and the protagonist Ista and just gruff enough voices for men and just high enough voices for younger women and just cracked enough voices for old people.

Paladin of Souls has plenty of action (demonic attacks and desperate raids) and romance (dashing lords and resurrecting kisses). It goes well with Bujold's The Curse of Chalion. Both novels stand fine separately, but both are complementary, well-written, engrossing, and exciting stories with interesting depictions of gods and demons and free will, the earlier novel from a male perspective (with grizzled ex-soldier, ex-slave Caz the hero) and the later book from a female perspective (with self-denying but life-affirming Royina Dowager Ista the heroine). Ista is such a strong and sympathetic female character, and even the supporting characters like Foix, Goram, Liss, and dedicate dy Cabon are appealing and convincing. And the situation involving the brothers Arhys and Illvin, Arhys' wife Catty, a demon, and Ista, is fascinating and moving.

A great listen.

Kate Reading Brings An Award-Winning Novel to Life

I'd read the novel before, but Kate Reading's narration brought to life several portions I'd forgotten or missed the first time. Ista is a challenging, nuanced character, who goes through a personal conversion, and Reading makes her, and the other characters, come to life. The novel itself follows the wanderings of Ista, a minor character in the previous novel (The Curse of Chalion), who has set out on a religious pilgrimage in order to escape the restraints of life in other later mother's estate. Though her faith in the gods is deeply shaken, she comes to enjoy the wandering and care for the young men and women who attend her, and dreads the return to home. Before that can happen, an unexpected encounter with a raiding force leads her to meet the son of a man she once assisted in killing, and the gods call on her talents again.

What a lovely surprise

The second time through I have enjoyed each moment! I hope to hear more in future.

Sweeping adventure; happy ending

A great book to listen to while driving. A sweeping fantasy adventure with subtle romance which supports the heroine (rather than being the point of the story). And, finally, a happy (if strange) outcome.

Beautiful writing, strong complex female lead

This second book in the Chalion series picks up a bit after the previous book (The Curse of Chalion) leaves off. The focus, however, is on the dowager Rowena Ista (sort of the queen mother) and her own adventure in middle age, some of it extremely unwillingly after so much turmoil in her younger years (as mentioned in the previous book). A number of the previous characters appear here but she is the focus and many new characters are folded in. It is a sort of coming of age story but not for a young person, rather for a middle-aged person who is discovering her new purpose in life.

It is beautifully written and covers all the emotions and actions that can be imagined in a fantasy world of strange four and five godhead religion and powerful but strange magic. It was a joy to listen to the audiobook via Audible. Since the story is told from the female protagonist's view, the narrator is different from the excellent male narrator of the first novel in the series. Kate Reading delivers a fantastic read, indeed.

Lois, I love you!

Lois is my current author crush. She's got this great combination of elegant language, crushing wit and subtle humour. She writes in such a sympathetic style that you can suspend all belief and really imagine the place, time and even the gods described in the story. It was well read (thank goodness) and holds up well to being told aloud (despite having read this book before I still really enjoyed listening to it). Her book 'Curse of Challion' is still my all time favourite, but this is a very close second.

Really enjoyed this one

Likeable main protagonist and a good story backed up by a fine narrator made this a very pleasant audiobook. I wasn’t sure how Bujold would tackle a non SF story as I have only known her writing through the Vorkosigan series of books but I really enjoyed it.

Solid Sequel to Curse of Chalion

Good follow on work one of my favorite characters from the first book. My only concern is the obvious setup for additional books.

A wonderful story, beautifully narrated

After I read The Curse of Chalion last year, it became one of my all-time favorite fantasy novels. Paladin of Souls is a fitting sequel; it was a delight to visit this world again.

Lois McMaster Bujold's characters are well-drawn and believable. Ista's struggles to find the meaning in her life after the tragedies she has gone through will resonate with anyone who has gone through a similar experience, and the brothers who are central to the story are both honorable men trapped in a horrendous situation that's not of their making.

I like the fact that these books are character-driven; many fantasies have turned me off with their long, drawn out, chapter-after-chapter descriptions of battles. There are battles in this book, but descriptions are kept to a reasonable length.

Narrator Kate Reading does her usual masterful job in bringing these characters to life.

If you enjoy fantasy, do yourself a favor and read/listen to Curse of Chalion and then Paladin of Souls. I'm going to buy the final book set in this world with my next credit.