Kushiel's Dart
First edition cover
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| Author | Jacqueline Carey |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | John Jude Palencar |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Kushiel's Legacy |
| Genre | Fantasy novel |
| Publisher | Tor Books |
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Publication date
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2001 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 701 pp (first edition, hardback) |
| ISBN | (first edition, hardback) |
| OCLC | 45890435 |
| 813/.6 21 | |
| LC Class | PS3603.A74 K8 2001 |
| Followed by | Kushiel's Chosen |
Kushiel's Dart is Jacqueline Carey's first novel and the first of the novels in her Kushiel's Legacy series. The idea for this book first came to Carey when she was reading the Biblical Book of Genesis, and specifically a passage about "sons of God" coming into the "daughters of Men". Later, when she was writing a coffee table book, she encountered Jewish folklore, which paralleled the story in greater detail. The fictional nation of Terre D'Ange in the story was founded by a rebel angel.
The Kushiel's Legacy series takes place in a medieval world that is modeled on Earth (the map at the beginning of the novels is a map of Earth, with creatively historically named countries). The main characters are from Terre d'Ange, which occupies the area of France.
Terre d'Ange was founded by Elua and His Companions and is thereby a nation of progeny of fallen angels.
Each of Elua's companions founded a province of Terre d'Ange, except Cassiel, who chose to remain loyal to the commandments of the One God and not 'commingle with mortals'.
Elua's motto was "Love as thou wilt". This results in the fact that love and physical pleasure is a central aspect of society in Terre d'Ange. Although marriage exists in Terre d'Ange, it is viewed equally with other forms of love, including dalliance, taking a lover or , etc. It likewise engendered an acceptance of any form of love, be it reverent or harsh, heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual. Usually, as part of a marriage, a D'Angeline lights a candle to Eisheth, asking her to "open the womb" of the woman so that she may be able to become pregnant.
One of the central institutions of Terre d'Ange is service to the angel Naamah. As such, her adepts are courtesans who prostitute themselves in a sacred service that honours Naamah's similar sacrifice to Elua. Naamah was said to have 'la[in] down with strangers in the marketplace for coin' in order that Elua could eat when the Companions had no money. She also, according to legend, offered herself to the King of Persis in exchange for Elua's freedom. In Naamah's honour, Servants of Naamah provide sexual services to paying clients (which goes to the owner of their marque, or into the pockets of the courtesans who have earned their marques) and an optional 'patron gift' freely offered in honour of Naamah (which pays for the marque to be tattooed onto the courtesans' backs).
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