Mortal Suns

October 1, 2003
Set in a world resonant with the myths and legends of ancient Greece, Tanith Lee's latest fantasy, Mortal Suns, tells the tale of Sirai, a princess born with a terrible deformity-no feet. After a slow start, the story gathers momentum to reach an enthralling conclusion that holds the promise of further adventures for Sirai.

July 1, 2003
Fantasy author Lee (White as Snow) excels at creating exotic worlds similar to our own but different enough to jar our perception and entice us. Some of her creative spark infuses this latest novel, but unfortunately it is not strong enough to sustain a mediocre story. Deformed at birth, Callistra is sent by her mother, one of King Akreon's young wives, to the Temple of Thon, god of the underworld, where she is expected to perish. Instead, Callistra survives and is eventually brought back to the kingdom of Akhemony. Magic and reality work side by side at the Court of the Great Sun. For a brief time, Callistra herself is a consort to her brother/king. But tragedy stalks the heirs of the kingdom, and in the end, the dynasty is doomed. The plot itself is not particularly involving, but the book still contains strong elements of Lee's mesmerizing prose. Because Lee is quite popular among fantasy readers, her book should be considered for purchase by public libraries where fantasy is in demand.-Patricia Altner, Information Seekers, Columbia, MD

Copyright 2003 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2003
Lee presents the marvelous world of Akhemony, where the sun is worshiped and the Heart Drum of the kingdom is never silent, lest the heart of the kingdom cease to beat. One of the queens of Akhemony struggles to give birth to the king's child, a beautiful but seriously crippled girl--she is born without feet. Her mother immediately consigns her to the Temple of Death. Yet, later, the girl is retrieved from doom, raised as a princess of the kingdom, and eventually chosen as consort to its king. From that station, she witnesses the downfalls of the kings and of traditional ways. Lee embellishes this reasonably simple plot with great richness of detail, and she makes Akhemony, though it calls to mind a number of places in our world's history, a unique place. As is her wont, Lee weaves style, subject, and characters into a seamless whole.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)