The Paladin

By: C. J. Cherryh

Narrated by: Stephen Bowlby

Now betrayed by the Emperor he once protected, master swordsman Saukendar leaves the way of the sword behind him forever - so he thinks. When a headstrong peasant girl burning to avenge her murdered family demands that he train her, Saukendar is faced with a momentous choice. Send Taizu away, never see her again - or join her and destroy the tyrant who has nearly destroyed them both.

©1988 C. J. Cherryh (P)2020 Tantor

Karate kid, paladin style

C J Cherryh’s The Paladin is an enjoyable tale of a disgraced older paladin, living in exile, who is approached by a teenage girl asking for training to avenge her family’s murder. There’s quite a bit of reluctance, but eventually he relents. He accompanies her on her quest for revenge, but both of them get wrapped up in larger political machinations occurring throughout the region.

Cherryh offers a well-designed tale of the classic master / student relationship. The setting appears to be an amalgam of both medieval chivalry and Japanese samurai bushido. There’s quite a bit of introspection as well as lamentation on the part of the paladin.

The narration is excellent with solid character distinction. Pacing is uniform and a bit on the slower side.

Paladin

Gives a small,( tiny) window into what ancient Asia might have been like.
love the intrigue and combat theories, plus the world build was so great, one could almost see it out the window

needs more voices for a full dramatic reading to give it justice

All this time

I read this story yearly for thirty years. The audio is a nice adaptation. Still a great favorite.

Utoo movement needed in science fiction !

he never took no for an answer and she had to submit to get the training.

Engaging Story / Narration Lacking

Full disclosure I am a huge CJ Cherryh fan. I read this book when it was first released. I have been waiting for an audiobook version for a long time.
For me the story was just as engaging as the first read. A full world with it’s own culture and customs.
That said; the narrator was not the best match for this particular book. His northern North American accent, tone, meter, do no service to a story set in what reads as a far East location. A more neutral accent would have served the story better. Also, a little more care in audio editing would have caught the varied pronunciations of main character names. I am sure the narrator would be better served by more modern books set in New York. Anything 20th century or forward . It is a voice made for PI novels.