A
Stolen Heart by Kayelle Allen
Luc
Saint-Cyr is an immortal warrior, a master thief, a savvy
businessman, and the loyal supporter of Pietas, king of the Ultras.
He plays the role of dedicated Sen’dai – teacher and guide – to
his Deshai, young apprentices in the Thieves’ Guild. One thing he’s
never been, though – has never considered being – is a father.
When
he rescues a kidnapped half-human, half-alien three-year-old from the
clutches of corrupt officials within the Guild, however, he can’t
resist the desire to protect and nurture the brave, clever and
endearing child. For centuries, Pietas has been promising Luc a
lifetime he can live for himself alone. Gradually he comes to realize
that he wants that life to include being “Senthys’ Daddy”.
The
Half-Kin child, spurned by the feline mistresses of his native
planet, turns out to be a pawn in a desperate intergalactic plot that
involves Luc’s oldest enemy. Immortals know that loving a Mundane
will only bring eventual pain when the human’s short life is over.
If his ambitious nemesis Phrei has her way, though, Senthys might not
live beyond his childhood.
Kayelle
Allen has been writing tales of the Tarthian empire for at least
fifteen years. One of her earliest novels in this universe, At the
Mercy of Her Pleasure, featured Senth as a young man, an
exceptionally adept thief practicing his craft in the service of a
sexually enhanced “Better”. In her recent work, Ms. Allen has
been filling in the back stories of Senth, his half brother Khyff,
and Luc Saint-Cyr himself. She has woven a complex set of
relationships with Pietas, the “Bringer of Chaos” and his
domineering sister Destroiya. I don’t know this for sure, but I
have a sense that the author is continually discovering, or creating,
these connections as she explores her own fictional worlds.
The
results are sometimes fascinating, but equally often struck me as
confusing and distracting. The core conflict in this book is the
disconnect between who Luc is and the feelings he has for Senthys.
Ms. Allen does a wonderful job depicting the child’s remarkable
abilities and winning ways, and exposing Luc’s softer side as he
falls in love with the boy. Obviously she needed an external threat
as well, and Phrei’s attempts to obtain the technology for
teleportation fills the bill. However, many of the scenes between
Pietas and Luc seemed gratuitous. Their centuries-old relationship
and the ambiguous feelings they have for one another are interesting
in their own right, but did not seem to belong in this book. Even
more aggravating were the repeated references to Six and Mahikos
(characters from the Bringer of Chaos series). I haven’t read those
books, though I’ve followed Ms. Allen for a long time and indulged
in many excerpts. The relevance to this novel seemed tenuous.
Balanced
against these annoyances is the author’s skill at developing
complex and satisfying characters. I particularly enjoyed Shohn
Lexius, the full Kin security agent who has left Felidae because she
doesn’t agree with its gender politics. Flea and Gnat, two senior,
veteran human members of the Guild whom Luc enlists in the fight
against Phrei, are equally delightful. Ms. Fasra, Senth’s beloved
teacher from Felidae makes a late but memorable appearance. Even the
androids have surprisingly well-defined personalities.
Overall,
I enjoyed A Stolen Heart. However, I think I would have liked
it even better if the author had been more selective about dragging
in references to other tales of the Tarthian empire. The richness of
her fictional world is impressive. An attempt at tying all the
historical threads together in a single book is bound to fall short.
