Egan, Doris - The Gate of Ivory

[oyceter]

Theodora Pyrene is a scholar from Athena who, through a variety of circumstances, has ended up on the planet Ivory without the fare to get back home. Eventually, Ran Cormallon, an Ivoran aristocrat or some sort of aristocratic equivalent, finds her reading fortunes in a market and hires her to be his own personal card reader for assorted complex reasons.

For further complex reasons, many people don't like Ran and attempt to get to him by trying to kill Theo.

Generally, I was confused by the plot; apparently my plot-brain has yet to return to me.

I think this is a book that I vaguely like, though I don't love. The assorted bits of Ivoran culture were interesting, but not necessarily memorable or squee-worthy. Also, the romance that came in felt like it was randomly thrown in; I had absolutely no clue that the two people were romantically attracted to each other, or even physically attracted to each other, or anything. I saw it coming, but that was more as a standard plot device than as a romance I believed in, if that makes any sense.

On the other hand, there was an excellent moment in which Theodora gets her period at the worst possible time and then has to get people to explain tampons to her (she used to have an implant, which, by the way, I want). Yay awkward moments! Also, yay for a heroine who is not insanely physical and actually gets really tired during long treks.

Links:
- kate_nepveu's review (entire trilogy, but no spoilers. Also quotes memorable menstruation section)

Comments

[liviapenn.livejournal.com]

I read these books out of order (second, third, and then I finally tracked down the first one.) So I can't really give an unbiased opinion of the first one, since I already adored the characters by the time I read it. Anyway, give the second one a chance, if you feel like it-- I think it's funnier, sexier, and the plot is more exciting. :)

[oyceter]

Oh good. I think I'll look them up eventually, I liked Egan's City of Diamond (written as Jane Emerson), and there were enough nifty bits in this one to follow up on.

[jenfullmoon.livejournal.com]

Yes, the second one is where more romance comes in. Though Ran's not the most romantic guy on the planet anyway, so it's not MAJOR schmoopy, per se. The first book seems like more of a buddy friendship for most of it.

[oyceter]

My brain just boggles at the thought of Ran being romantic!

[jenfullmoon.livejournal.com]

He's surprisingly schmoopy (for him) about their wedding ceremonies.

[kate_nepveu]

It's a memorable bit; I quoted it in my booklog entry.

ISTR that the relationship gets developed more over the next two books, but I could be wrong.

[oyceter]

Oh awesome, thanks for the link.

[rachelmanija.livejournal.com]

I liked City of Diamond better than this series, though I thought it was pretty enjoyable. The romance didn't work for me either, since I didn't really get Ran's personality, and then he was zombified for much of the volume. I did like the martial arts, the believably non-Earth society, Theodora's predicament at the beginning, and the ending, which I had not predicted.

The second book is my favorite, though that may be because it has some favorite elements of mine. In the third, alas, I began to dislike Theodora for her extreme wussiness-- a little of that is realistic, a lot made me feel that she would annoy the hell out of me even on a brief hike.

[oyceter]

I think one thing was that I couldn't quite figure out Ivoran society, except that a) it was bureaucratic and b) it conveniently was such that important pieces of plot or character information could be withheld as that was the Ivoran way.

[jenfullmoon.livejournal.com]

I wasn't as fond of the third either, but I was much more bugged by the reproduction plot. The ending just plain didn't make a whole lot of sense.