Master of Crows

Grace Draven

Master of Crows
Grace Draven
2009

The Summary
"What would you do to win your freedom?

"This is the question that sets bondwoman, Martise of Asher, on a dangerous path.  In exchange for her freedom, she bargains with her masters, the mage-priests of the Conclave, to spy on the renegade sorcerer, Silhara of Neith.  The priests want Martise to expose the sorcerer's treachery and turn him over to Conclave justice.  A risky endeavor, but one she accepts without hesitation--until she falls in love with her intended target.

"Silhara of Neith, Master of Crows, is a desperate man.  The god called Coruption invades his mind, seducing him with promises of limitless power if he will help it gain dominion over the world.  Silhara struggles against Corruption's influence and searches for ways to destroy the god.  When Conclave sends Martise as an apprentice to help him, he knows she's a spy.  Now he fights a war on two fronts--against the god who would possess him and the apprentice who would betray him.

"Mage and spy search together for a ritual that will annihilate Corruption, but in doing so, they discover secrets about each other that may damn them both.  Silhara must decide if his fate, and the fat of nations, is worth the soul of the woman he has come to love, and Martise must choose continued enslavement or freedom at the cost of a man's life.  And love."

The Good
When I first looked at Master of Crows, I wasn't sure I would like it.  It's a little rough around the edges and it seemed a tad different from my usual fare; however, as I set off on a journey through Martise and Silhara's world, I found myself enjoying Grace Draven's novel.  I was immediately captured by the fantasy elements, the magic, the invented cultures and imagined religions.

Personally, I thought Draven did a wonderful job of building her world.  It's full of unique cultural and social groups, each carrying their own distinctive religion, myths and legends, language and more, and it has intricate political undertones.  While defeating Corruption is the ultimate goal, it's fascinating to see how Silhara interacts with the Conclave and vice versa.  There's a thick animosity between them, but it's also a very complicated relationship (like more than I care to get into, right now).

Overall, it's a very interesting novel.  I liked the imagery, and I loved the threads of fantasy spun into each page.  Magic is a curious creature in Master of Crows.  There are rules, of course.  All magic requires a spoken spell; however, it's so intrinsically linked to the individual that emotions and limitations affect the potential of the spell.  Moreover, not all people have Gifts; in fact, a Gift may go undiscovered for years, until called to the surface (usually life-and-death situations).

I liked this portrayal of magic, and I liked how it could be used to influence the world.  Granted, it made individuals, like Silhara, seem very nearly all-powerful, but magic gave the world a greater depth and, in some cases, added layers to characters (i.e. Silhara and Martise) because it helps define them and shape them.

The Bad
Okay, so I both liked and disliked Silhara.  He has his moments when he's sweet, self-sacrificing, honorable, noble and courageous (you know, the qualities that make ladies swoon); however, for much of the novel, he's also a colossal jerk.  (I have other names, but I'll be polite and keep them to myself.)

I say this because he was a complete and utter beast to Martise.  I mean, he basically calls her ugly to her face (in the nicest way possible, of course); he treats her like an extra servant, rather than the apprentice he requested from the Conclave; he gives her back-handed compliments that would sting any woman who felt plain; he frightens her when trying to uncover her Gift, and she subsequently has nightmares about her ordeal; he actually hires a prostitute when frustrated by his attraction to Martise.

I mean, seriously, the man is horrible to her.  Even when he does fall in love with Martise, I can't help but wonder if his attraction is based on the unusual qualities of her Gift.  I don't want to spoil any plot points, so I won't go into detail, but I thought it seemed rather convenient that he began to appreciate her talents for scholarship and her incredible wealth of knowledge and her ability to help maintain his crumbling estate after they discovered her Gift.

It just struck me as something akin to the Florence Nightengale effect, where a patient falls in love with their caretaker and/or savior.  Martise saves his life, and he subsequently begins the long--and, he might argue, arduous--task of falling in love with her.  It just doesn't quite sit well with me, you know?

I mean, no relationship is perfect and, yes, I suppose the outcome is really all the matters.  But I just felt like Martise gave so much of herself, sacrificed so much for Silhara...and it just wasn't quite reciprocated.  It was rather frustrating.

The Ugly
Corruption vs. Conclave politics.

It's a toss up.