Talyn: A Novel of Korre

by Holly Lisle

Book Overview

The Tonk and the Eastil have always been at war, not a war with front lines and swords, but a war of magic. Talyn, a soldier trained from childhood to protect her country, had resigned herself to her fate, to die in battle. But the Feegash come to negotiate peace, Talyn is out of a job and at a loss for what to do with her life.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 076534873X
• ISBN13: 9780765348739
• Release Date: November 2006
• Publisher: Tor Books
• Length: 576 Pages
• Weight: 0.64 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.3" x 4.2" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

Fresh, fast-paced and thrilling

Intriguing Original Utterly engrossing Penetrating Masterfully characterised Realistic .... Count the adjectives, sure, but they don't do justice to Talyn. Adjectives cannot tell you how powerfully Lisle's imagination creates the sense of being surrounded by the time and space and culture of this novel. Adjectives are impotent in describing how this novel digs its hooks into you as surely as any Feegash flesh-magery, and holds you helpless in its thrall as it unleashes terror after terror, twist after plot twist, revelation after startling revelation. Talyn (her full name is longer, and much harder to spell) is a soldier in the Tonk Confederacy, a nation that has been at war with its neighbour, the Eastil Republic, for the better part of three centuries. It's a war that's fueled by the forces of habit and mischaracterisation of the enemy more than anything, and though as a reader, it is easy to see that the Tonks and the Eastils have a lot in common, Lisle to her credit does a superb job of keeping this realisation from her characters without dumbing them down in contrived ways. Talyn is committed to her enimity with the Eastils, and remains so for more than three-quarters of the book, in spite of her alliance with and love for an Eastil prisoner of war. The alliance is one that is anything but welcome to both Gair, the Eastil prisoner, and Talyn. But they alone among all their kinsmen are free of the deadly magic that the outsider race called the Feegash have cunningly unleashed upon their shared land. Now, to save their kinsmen, their way of life, and everything they love, they must work together on a mission that rides on but a fool's hope, each trusting the honour of the other, the enemy. Lisle unflinchingly puts her characters through hell and worse, over and over again, and still brings them out each time damaged, but shining brighter than before with the light of people whose honour has been tested and forged stronger. The Feegash villains are the embodiment of an insidious, convincing evil. Lisle's grasp of the intricacies of diplomacy and politics is once again evident in this latest work, and as usual, she shines as she deals with the plots and intrigues of war in her world. But Lisle's true strength lies in her world-building. Talyn's despair at seeing her people's culture being thrown up in flames is our own, because by then, we are able to appreciate its beauty and rarity. In Lisle's commentary and descriptions of the differing Tonk and Eastil cultures, we gain a better understanding of our own world and our own societies... and in the end, that's what good fantasy should do.

Awake All Night

I tried, oh how I tried to read this book in one sitting. But it was just too long and my eyes failed well before my mind was willing to let go. Talyn is a novel rich with characters, feelings, drama, romance, action all set in a world so well developed you could step into it at any second. Holly Lisle has always impressed me with the quality of her fiction. This book goes above and beyond anything I've ever read by her. By kicking it up a notch she has crafted the best example of her work next. Pick up a copy - you will not be disappointed! In the meantime I'm eagerly looking forward to her next offering.

If I could give 6 Stars...I would

I do not give spoilers in my reviews, so this will be pretty generic. This is, without being too over the top, probably the best book I have read all year long. The world you end up living and breathing in and the characters you are sure you know intimately. This is a hard book to read if you speed read. There is sooooo much detail. I normally read a book this size in about 2 days - this one took me about a week. This is a major compliment in and of itself. I didn't want to speed read. I wanted it to last and was sad when I was done. This is a book I will read again. Holly, you are the best.

Excellent stand-alone fantasy

The alternating first- and third-person narration didn't bother me at all; it's not the first book I've read with that style. I think it makes for a more effective telling of this tale. The protagonists are well-drawn, interesting, and sympathetic. The villian is spooky and powerful. The supporting players are just right. Dark, deep, and just the right level of erotic, TALYN is my favorite fantasy so far this year.