"Escaping from the brutality of an arranged marriage, seventeen-year-old Ismae finds sanctuary at the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts - and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must be willing to take the lives of others.
Ismae's most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany, where she must pose as mistress to the darkly mysterious Gavriel Duval, who has fallen under a cloud of suspicion. Once there, she finds herself woefully under-prepared - not only for the deadly games of love and intrigue, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death's vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?"
Review:
This book was extravagant. That is not a word I've ever used to describe the contents of a book. I loved the casting of Death as something with both a bad AND good side. I loved that the story wasn't centered on the budding love Ismae and Gavriel shared, but more of Ismae's struggle to truly see her purpose in life as a "handmaiden", as it was put, of Death. I think the best part though was the length of the book itself. Why? Because authors today are all about getting to the point or getting to the action but its the complexity of the story that really draws people (well I guess I can only speak for myself) in. I also appreciated that the author stuck to the traditions of the era. The Duchess was only thirteen years old and men literally breaking into her castle walls to marry her for political gain. Ismae shows us that we all have a dark side within us, but it's not about choosing to be totally dark or totally pure. It's about being able to weave the two together.
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