The Privilege of the Sword

By: Ellen Kushner

Narrated by: Ellen Kushner, Barbara Rosenblat, Felicia Day, Joe Hurley, Katherine Kellgren, Nick Sullivan, Neil Gaiman

Length: 15 hrs and 36 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Nominee, Multi-voiced Performance, 2013

Award-winning author, narrator, and screenwriter Neil Gaiman personally selected this book, and, using the tools of the Audiobook Creation Exchange (ACX), cast the narrators and produced this work for his audiobook label, Neil Gaiman Presents.

The Privilege of the Sword tells the tale of a young girl who risks everything to go live with her eccentric, litigious - and extremely rich – uncle Alec in the colorful city Kushner has created, a city where elegant nobles can mingle with raffish actors one moment and deadly swordsmen the next. Fans of Kushner's first book, Swordspoint, will already be familiar with Alec as the angry young scholar with mysterious origins, living in the city’s Riverside district with a notorious killer swordsman. Now, in The Privilege of the Sword, some years later, Alec is the Mad Duke Tremontaine, living in a mansion on the Hill, still tortured by his past….

But you don’t need to have read Swordspoint to enjoy The Privilege of the Sword. This is the story of Katherine herself, a girl who starts out imagining her life will be a sort of Jane Austen-style romance, full of dances and dresses and parties - but finds that her iconoclastic uncle has other plans. When she gets to his house in the city, the Mad Duke dresses Lady Katherine in men's clothes, gets her a first-rate tutor in swordplay, and sets her loose on a traditional world that is not really ready for her…. Nor, at first, is she ready for it.

A few words from Neil on Privilege of the Sword: "Life hands us so many moments when we hover between who we were raised to be, who the people around us are trying to make us, and who we are trying to become. In Katherine's case, that means encountering a range of people and behaviors her mother never prepared her for - including some shocking acts of violence, both physical and emotional. As one of Kushner’s most charming characters, an actress known as 'The Black Rose', sighs, 'It's all so very difficult, until you get the hang of it.'"

In this exciting new "illuminated production", the author herself reads her own work, supported by a full cast. Author Ellen Kushner is also a popular performer and National Public Radio host (Sound & Spirit). As with her previous audiobooks, the award-winning Witches of Lublin and Swordspoint, Ellen teamed up with Sue Zizza of SueMedia Productions to illuminate certain key scenes with some truly stunning sound elements, including original music commissioned just for this book (!) by composer Nathaniel Tronerud. Ellen Kushner reads all of the first-person narration from Katherine’s own point of view. In scenes where an omniscient narrator takes over, we’ve called on the amazing talents of the award-winning actor Barbara Rosenblat, a woman who's been called "the Meryl Streep of audiodrama". The cast also features Joe Hurley (Alec Campion: the Mad Duke Tremontaine), Felicia Day (Katherine Talbert), Nick Sullivan (Lord Ferris; Arthur Ghent), Katherine Kellgren (Lady Artemesia Fitz-Levi; Teresa Grey; Flavia "the Ugly Girl"), and Neil Gaiman himself (Rogues' Ball Artist)! The artwork used here is an original painting and design by Thomas Canty created exclusively for the Neil Gaiman Presents audiobook edition of The Privilege of the Sword.

To hear more from Neil Gaiman on The Privilege of the Sword, click here, or listen to the introduction at the beginning of the book itself.

Learn more about Neil Gaiman Presents and Audiobook Creation Exchange (ACX).

©2006 Ellen Kushner (P)2012 SueMedia Productions

Critic reviews

"One of the most gorgeous books I've ever read: it's witty and wonderful, with characters that will provoke, charm, and delight." (Holly Black, coauthor of The Spiderwick Chronicles)

"Unholy fun, and wholly fun… and elegant riposte, dazzlingly executed." (Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked)

Great Fun

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I highly recommend this audiobook for listeners with a sense of humor and a flare for the dramatic. This is a unique spin on a relatively familiar story. Those with an open mind will be richly rewarded.

Who was your favorite character and why?

I loved Marcus, the loyal partner to our strong female lead. As with most of the characters, his checkered past makes his conflicted present especially compelling.

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

I would recommend this audiobook to listeners who enjoy full cast productions. This presentation offers moments of good campy fun interspersed throughout the lovely story. It took me a moment to get used to the various versions of each character - as several narrators perform each role. This is explained in the introduction.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

It was a book that I simultaneously didn't want to put down, but also did not want to end. Ultimately this led to some disappointment with the ending, but this was likely unavoidable - as any ending would halt this great fun.

Didn't want it to end!

Would you listen to The Privilege of the Sword again? Why?

Yes. The narrators are so wonderful to listen to, and the story is one that I could sink into again.

What did you like best about this story?

It's a great story with intrigue, romance, and sword fighting!

What does the narrators bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

I loved the narration of the Duke by Joe Hurley, because it gave a deeper quality of likeability to the character. And this was my first time listening to Barbara Rosenblat, and she has become one of my favorite storytellers. It was like she knew the book through and through and gave seamless dynamics in telling the story.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Absolutely! So entertaining.

Any additional comments?

This is another reason to trust Neil Gaiman Presents recommendations.

Poor audio editing

I thought this was a very good story and the actors did a nice job giving the reading a play-like feel. However, the editing which joined the different actors' recordings was terrible. Some characters were very hard to hear, so I would turn up the sound, and then the next character would be practically shouting and my ears would get blown out. There needs to be a much better modulation of the sound recording. Be careful when listening. Good book, though.

more flawed than the first with none of the charm

After the book is over, the author talks a bit about writing it and says that it took her a long time to write this book and she started and put it down quite a bit. It shows. The book tries to recapture the plotting and charming romance of the first but really can't pull it off.

The plot is even more disjointed and incomplete than the first book. There are huge plot problems, like the super abrupt ending to the big conflict, and the complete irrelevance of Lucius and his lover to the entire plot. There are small plot problems, like why does Katherine think she's such good friends with Artemesia that she ought to leap to Artemesia's defense when they've only met twice and one of the times Artemesia laughed at her and won't answer any of her letters?

I suppose it's supposed to be a 'tapestry' that shows all the things that go on in Riverside, but it just wasn't my thing. It seemed like just a list of all the ways women are oppressed in the city. I just wanted more.

Leaving aside my general dislike of the whole multi-narrator premise, the production on this wasn't very good. The narration was so quiet I had to turn up the volume as loud as it would go, only to be frequently deafened by the stupid 'sword' sounds which marked breaks in the chapters. There are good narrators out there who can 'whisper' what characters say without actually lowering their voices to an indecipherable level.

wonderful unexpected turns

It isnt often a book has me reacting out loud to surprises. I bought book 3 right as this one was finishing it's credits.

You Should Stand and Fight!

I have a serious complaint about Ellen Kushner's The Privilege of the Sword: it ended. I could’ve happily listened to 100 more hours of Katherine’s Tom Joad-esque mythology as a swordswoman for the disenfranchised and disempowered. But look, I'm getting ahead of myself. But look again, this book is such a delight!

The Privilege of the Sword is a sequel of sorts to Swordspoint, but you need not listen to Swordspoint to enjoy this book. The story is this: Alec Campion, the Mad Duke of Tremontaine, invites his niece to come live with him in the city for six months and take up sword lessons. Katherine, his niece, thinks it’s just an eccentricity of the Mad Duke’s, and expects she’ll spend much of her time dressing up for balls and falling in love.

Kushner creates an incredible supporting cast – including the standout Artemisia, another young woman Katherine’s age – who initially seems like she might become Katherine’s bosom friend, but instead becomes her foil. Artemisia gets the life Katherine thought she wanted – the dresses, the balls, and the suitors, but as she plays out her role in society, she soon finds herself trapped by everyone she thought she loved. Meanwhile, Katherine is trapped training as swordsman and bodyguard, a job only men are generally allowed to perform. But with this more masculine job, she’s given more opportunity to make her own choices. Chief among these is saving Artemisia’s honor, and then defending it. The rest of the supporting characters are great too – from Lucius Perry’s relationship with his mysterious mistress to Marcus – Alec’s servant. They all feel like real characters, with real depths and desires, and I didn’t want to stop spending time with them.

Kushner also weaves in “The Swordsman Whose Name Was Not Death,” a story within the story (as well as a play). Katherine and Artemisia write letters to each other, signing their names as characters to the play – Katherine as the swordsman, Artemisia as the damsel, adding a delicious extra layer of subtext. This story is as much Katherine's coming of age and beginning to understand her desires, as it is a swashbuckling romance.

Both Kushner and Barbara Rosenblat narrate the novel to perfection – Kushner reads the passages that are told from Katherine’s perspective, and Rosenblat reads those from the other characters. They are supported by an illuminated cast, and I think this is the best cast of the Riverside stories. Felicia Day (who unfortunately doesn’t get quite as much time as one would hope) voices Katherine, and shines whenever she's reading. But the absolute stunner is Joe Hurley, who completely captures the Mad Duke of Tremontaine’s drunken, hedonistic, washed-out rock star voice, a wild voice that’s hiding a beautiful soul beneath. Kushner really rounded out Alec’s character in this book, and Hurley is impossible not to love in the role. When he’s verbally sparring with Nick Sullivan’s villainous Lord Ferris, sparks fly. I could listen to them arguing with each other for hours with Kushner’s barbed dialogue. Neil Gaiman’s cameo as a wild artist is an additional delight.

The Privilege of the Sword is just about everything you could ask for in a novel – it’s exciting, funny, sexy, and one of the most fun audiobooks I’ve listened to all year. It’s an empowering story that subverts a lot of society’s gender roles, and it’s also incredibly fun. If this is being preached at, I want to go to church every Sunday, and then every other day of the week too.

(Originally published at the AudioBookaneers)

Wonderful Escape!

What made the experience of listening to The Privilege of the Sword the most enjoyable?

Neil Gaiman productions are always a delight and this one was right on the money! The characters voices were perfect and the Duke especially stole the show! The reading added such depth to the character that I probably would have missed had I read the book myself. I have not read the first book in the series but did not feel that it made any difference. The story and characters were complete without prior knowledge of them. It has, however, made want to find the first book to learn about the Dukes younger years and how he came to be the fascinating character that he is!

Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favorite?

The duke. I could just picture him lounging and appearing disinterested but always thinking behind the facade!

Any additional comments?

I can't praise it enough! It is one that I would listen to again and I NEVER listen to books over again! I can't wait for the next one!

I Want To Be Her

This was a wonderful audio experience and a very enjoyable storyline with a good sense of HUMOR.

It was fun to see the growth of Katherine, the female lead, as she went from utter horror about being made to wear men’s clothing and learn to duel to total comfort and eagerness. The other characters in the story were brought to life brilliantly and the listener was given more than hints as to their past.

The ending was brilliant.

Rich, detailed, and witty.

Would you listen to The Privilege of the Sword again? Why?

Probably, but I'd need to have quiet weekends again

Who was your favorite character and why?

Catherine, without a doubt. Even when I wanted to laugh at her or smack her for wearing her naïveté like armor, she carried the book. And her enjoyment of everything she saw and felt wasn't just part of the description of the scenes, it was her.

Which character – as performed by the narrators – was your favorite?

The Black Rose.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

I don't know, but the sets and costumes would have to be very good indeed in order to live up to their descriptions in the book.

Any additional comments?

Barbara Rosenblat deserves the introduction that Neil gives her here.

The audio created a visual in my memory

If you could sum up The Privilege of the Sword in three words, what would they be?

Lively and unpredictable

Have you listened to any of the narrators’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

This is my first audio with several readers, plus music and sound effects. I felt like I was watching a play and it reminded me of why I enjoyed radio dramas of the past. I am already ordering more productions by Ellen Kushner.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

It was a great moment when the girl defended her friend and beat the swordsman.

Any additional comments?

This audio taught me something about sword fighting and now I feel an appreciation for the art. The characters were very real and drew me into the life of their era.