The Paladin By C.J. Cherryh

An intense but fun novel about a young woman in a Japan-ish fantasyland and her relationship with the retired swordsman who reluctantly trains her. Nowhere near as cliched as you might imagine, and full of marvelous training sequences. Not a fantasy except in the sense of taking place in a country that doesn't exist. Science Fiction Fantasy I forced myself to finish this one because it counts for my WWE Women of Genre Fiction challenge, but I wasn't very happy about it. This isn't a great introduction to C.J. Cherryh's work, I think: it's a standalone fantasy-ish alternate history-ish story, which would normally be right up my alley. It's even a break from the medieval European fantasy that gluts the genre, based on Chinese culture and history (so far as I can tell). It has a strong female protagonist who becomes a swordswoman. And if she'd been the main character -- or more accurately, the point of view character -- I'd have loved it, I think.

I was encouraged to finish reading it, anyway, by Jo Walton's positive review. I do like her point about turning the traditional story around -- telling it from the female protagonist's point of view would be the expected way to do it. I like the realism of it, the military training that is described in a way that makes you feel it, but without detail where it can slip from lack of research. I did enjoy the world, the training, Taizu's determination, the details of caring for horses and sleeping on the ground and snatching sleep for fear of bandits.

But I didn't find the love story Walton mentions nearly so compelling. From the start, Shoka thinly veils from himself and the reader that he wants to rape Taizu, and that he believes it won't be his fault if he does. It's all the male excuses for rape ever -- she tempted me just by existing, I haven't had sex in so long I need it, what did she expect when she shacked up alone with a lonely guy? (despite his promise to her that he's not expecting her to have sex with him) -- and, just, ugh. A certain amount of it I can put down to culture, and a certain amount I can see as part of a character's journey, but I don't feel like Shoka really made that journey. He did develop as a character somewhat, becoming part of the world again, but his attitudes to women didn't change, only his attitude to a single woman.

Taizu is an amazing character in herself -- dogged, intelligent, brave, and at the same time not perfect, struggling with herself and with Shoka and with her past. She does have a journey, going from being a farmer-girl bent on revenge to being a swordswoman who is, quite honestly, more suited to the Way Shoka talks about than he is. He worries about her dishonouring him, but she would never. All the dishonour comes from Shoka himself.

Anyway, once I got about two thirds of the way through, I began to enjoy it more. As Shoka begins to trust Taizu, he becomes that bit more likeable, the story that bit more dynamic, though I could've lived without him constantly calling her a fool or acting like she can't take care of herself. Clearly, she can.

So, in summary, it's worth reading for Taizu, if you like slow building stories about military training and eventual revenge. I think the closest comparison is to Across The Nightingale Floor (Lian Hearn), which I loved when I read it. But be warned: rapey! Science Fiction Fantasy At first, I thought this was written prior to the first Foreigner book, as the pacing and language were quite similar, but less fully developed. This is basically a Mulan story told from the perspective of her mentor. The first two thirds were immersive, balancing her training and his desire to remain isolated from the world. The setting and backstory are revealed slowly, each piece falling into place smoothly.

The final third switches to the actual challenge, and unfortunately, the young woman gets set to the side for much of it. The tactics and intrigue were first rate, but Taizu is missing. The resolve is clever, but way too simple.

This is a one-off, and worth reading if you enjoy Cherryh's unique writing, but this is not her best story-telling. Science Fiction Fantasy Cherryh is one of my favourite authors, and this is one of my favourites of her (many) books.

In some ways it's not a typical Cherryh book, as some of the usual characteristics of her style are absent or muted: most noticeably there's far less emphasis than usual on the internal thought processes of the protagonists. Most of her books could never be described as action-oriented - even the more recent volumes in the Foreigner series, which have tended towards more excitement, are still built around the evolution of Bren's thinking as he puzzles out what is happening and what his next steps should be; and some such as the famous Cyteen consist of almost nothing else.

Which is not a criticism - I've read and enjoyed virtually everything Cherryh has written and automatically pick up her new stuff as it comes out.

But The Paladin has a very different feel and satisfies a different mood - it's as close to escapism as Cherryh gets. Much more action than usual, the progression of a novice through combat training, the description of the ad hoc revolt the hero is forced into leading - even a romantic element, though as others have said that does have some elements that can seem creepy (I choose to read it more as a concession to realism). All while still delivering good characterization and believable motivations.

Science Fiction Fantasy I blush to admit it, but I was thinking Andre Norton and her usual coming-of-age female protagonists when I grabbed this book off the “new book” shelf at the library (which is where the librarians put various books on display, whether they are new or not). Consequently, I was a bit surprised as I got into the book about the slightly risqué relationship between the two major figures. To tell the truth, it had been so long since I had read any of Cherryh’s other books (the only one I could think of offhand was Down Below Station) that I had forgotten everything except a general feeling of liking for her work. I have now refreshed my memory by visiting her very interesting Website, however, so I do not expect to make that error again--and I shall be looking for others of her books that I have not read.

Let me start by expressing surprise that this has not been made into a movie. That might be because the action moves slowly for the first half of the book, necessarily. I did not find that at all bad, but I suspect a film director might be looking for more action. The remainder of the book then leaps into full action, however, for as much as any film director is apt to want, so I remain puzzled as to why someone has not seen the film potential.

The Paladin of the title is an aging warrior in a far off mythical country that is given an Asian flair and might be China of a bygone age. Now in his forties, Shoka Saukendar has been living alone with his aging horse on top of a mountain on the outskirts of the empire for twelve years, after escaping from repeated assassination attempts when the young emperor assumed the throne and feel under the power of an evil advisor. Because of his great reputation, young men from noble houses all over the empire have come to seek his training throughout the past decade, but he has always turned them away, and no one knows that part of the reason is that he was badly wounded in his last battle and now walks with a limp. Now, however, comes a 16-year-old farm girl, Taizu, who has lost her family in the most recent grab for power by the evil regent, her face horribly scarred by her own close escape, and she has walked half way across the empire, avoiding all the bandits and pitfalls along the way, to seek his training so that she can get revenge. Saukendar is not interested in her plight, but she turns out to be incredibly stubborn as well as resourceful, and the end result is that he agrees to train her for a year, in return for which she will do all the household duties but she adamantly refuses to sleep in his bed. He does not expect this situation to last very long, but--did I say she was incredibly stubborn? At the end of the year, he demonstrates to her that she is not ready to take on the world, so she agrees to stay another year, insisting that he is not teaching her well enough. By the end of the second year, Saukendar is more in love with his student that he is willing to admit, but she adamantly insists on going back to her homeland to seek revenge--and so, of course, nothing will do but that he must put on his old suit of armor and go with her to take on the world.

That’s the first half of the book. The rest tells the story of what happens when a still remembered warrior reappears in the world and starts interacting with bandits, trade caravans, and military groups, all of whom start looking for him as the rumors begin to fly, and all of whom are too quick to overlook the now beautiful young woman who has spent two dedicated years learning how to be a warrior.
Science Fiction Fantasy

The Lord Saukendar, Imperial sword master and stalwart supporter of the Emperor is betrayed, falsely accused of an affair with his childhood sweetheart Lady Meiya, now the Emperor's wife. Meiya is dead, and hostile forces have command of the Emperor's regency. Wounded, desperate and cut off from his supporters, Saukendar runs for the border.

In a homemade cabin high in the hills Saukendar survives crippled and alone, his warhorse Jiro and his regrets his only company, while the empire is bled by the rapacious warlords that are regent to the Emperor. Only occasional assassins dispatched by the Regent disturb his morose existence.

Taizu, a country girl from Hua locates him, demands he teach her sufficient swordsmanship to extract her revenge for her people's suffering. Despite his better judgment and strenuous efforts to discourage her, she forces him to take her on as apprentice swordswoman. Shoka, as he prefers to be known to his friends, becomes fond of the girl.

In the process of teaching her and supporting her cause, they become embroiled in the affairs of empire, becoming the spearhead of a revolt that rescues the Emperor from his Regent and his people from the clutches of the warlords. The Paladin

Moment of shame as I admit I have never read anything by C.J. Cherryh! I picked up a whole stack of her paperbacks from the used bookstore; I decided to start with The Paladin because the internet told me that it was a good standalone work. No lies! Now, it took me over a week to read this little story because I was distracted and, perhaps, not in the mood for exactly this type of tale. Nevertheless, while I didn’t love this book, it showcased Cherryh’s writing skills in a way that left me wanting to read more of her work.

Shoka, once Lord Saukendar and swordmaster to the Emperor, lives in self-imposed exile on a mountain on the outskirts of Chiyaden while the young Emperor continues to be overshadowed by a tyrannical regent. His peace is disturbed by Taizu, a peasant girl on the cusp of womanhood. She has crossed the empire in search of the fabled Saukendar and is determined to have him teach her the art of the sword, despite her unfortunate gender and Shoka’s own desire for solitude. Taizu’s goal is no less than the killing of Gitu, the Emperor, and Ghita, the Regent. As you might imagine, she gradually wins over Shoka, but things don’t quite turn out the way either would expect.

I loved the start of this book. It feels a bit like an ancient legend, you know? Determined, plucky youth convinces the grouchy old master to take her on so that she can train for her revenge. All the ingredients are here. Cherryh’s style, at least in this novel, is incredibly lush and descriptive—the dialogue is sparse, but she spends a lot of time on setting, as well as on what’s going through Shoka’s head. The narrator is quick to highlight that Shoka is past his prime, both in age and in political will. Similarly, Taizu’s revenge plot is absolutely bananapants—something Shoka never fails to point out to her—and the way Cherryh handles this later in the story is pretty good.

I could have done without all the lust on Shoka’s part. I have come to expect that from fantasy novels written by men, and perhaps from Tanya Huff, so this was a bit of a surprise. It’s not quite lechery, I suppose, on Shoka’s part, but it just weirds me out, the way it goes beyond addressing the elephant in the room and turns into a kind of fixation for him.

Nevertheless, the first half of the book is quite the training montage. The second half turns into what I can only describe as military fantasy, and that’s where the novel starts to lose me. I had trouble following some of what was going on—there were a lot of names of people and places, a lot of discussion of tactics and difficult situations, and not a lot of moments for our protagonists to pause and work things out. When we finally get to meet the Emperor and his evil Regent, it feels hollow because we don’t really know either of these people. They were just names to us, and then their encounter with Shoka and Taizu is all too brief.

At the same time, as I said earlier, I really respect Cherryh’s storytelling chops. Even as I felt my interest flagging, I could see the wonderful story structure and thematic elements at play. The way that Shoka must shift back into his old persona of Saukendar, how his legend precedes him as he and Taizu travel towards the capital, his awareness that this is a double-edged sword that might get others killed … it’s very good. It’s a slick commentary on the issues with placing our faith in legends who turn out just to be men—with all the fallibility and foibles of age!

I doubt The Paladin will sit with me for a long time. We’ll see how I feel about the other Cherryh novels I pick up in the months to come! But it’s an example of how a novel can still be a solid work of story even when it doesn’t personally grab me the way I want.

Originally posted on Kara.Reviews, where you can easily browse all my reviews and subscribe to my newsletter.

Science Fiction Fantasy I wanted to like this book, but I just couldn't.

All I'll say here is, I don't exactly feel flattered by Cherryh's view of men in general. The old paladin spends half the book considering forcing the heroine to have sex with him...for her own good of course.. Sheesh. Talk about a really tired stereotype. I suppose the constant idiocy of the male character in this novel is to show the female character's struggle to be taken as an equal, but it just doesn't work. Well, it doesn't work unless you have a very warped view of males in general.

Interestingly the culture that this seems to be loosely based on (Feudal Japan) was a strange mix of attitudes but in many ways was much freer in it's attitude toward sex than the west. Women of the Samurai Class were well respected and it wasn't unheard of for a woman to take up arms, indeed sometimes it was expected. Of course they were also expected (like the men) to commit seppuku in some cases also.

Cherryh has done better work than this book, far better. Like I said, I wanted to like it, I was hoping to like it, but I don't.

If you do, again I'm happy for you, but it's not for me. Science Fiction Fantasy Looking for a night in shining armor, a paragon of virtue and flawless character? An untarnished hero who is a beacon of light standing against the darkness? Look somewhere else.

In a nutshell we have the main character, and exiled sword master from a china-like fantasy kingdom. A peasant girl whose family have been casualties of the political strife in his former kingdom comes to him and demands that he train her so that she can revenge herself on the Lord responsible. I don't think that it's really a spoiler to tell you that he does so, and that they embark on a quest to get her revenge. All fairly standard stuff.

The entire story is told as a stream of consciousness narrative from the perspective of the aging sword-master, Shoka. He is not always a lovely person, or easy to like. He is impatient, irritable and very much a product of his culture, which is patriarchal and oppressive of women. Several times in the narrative he half-seriously considers raping his student to 'end her foolishness.' He never does of course; regardless of his thoughts he is at his core an honorable and practical man, or at least tries to be. Whether you ever come to like him or not, he is complex, interesting, human and completely believable in context.

In the course of the book we meet Taizu, the peasant girl hell-bent on revenge. We come to know her entirely through Shoka's eyes. It's fascinating to watch her become, not just a nuisance, not just a student and source of sexual frustration, but a complex and interesting person in her own right. One that he comes to value and even love.

Which of these two is the paladin referred to in the title? I've reread this book many times over the years and I still can't decide. Perhaps it is both. Regardless of how many times I read this book I always find it a rich and satisfying experience.



Science Fiction Fantasy Master Shoka (aka Lord Saukendar) fled the intrigues and betrayals of the Imperial Court nine years ago to live a hermit's life beyond its borders & (he thought) beyond its coils. Then Taizu, a peasant girl whose village and family have been slaughtered by vassals of the Imperial Regent, shows up at his door wanting to be trained so she can revenge herself.

The Paladin is one more iteration of the reluctant teacher-determined student story and one's enjoyment of it depends more upon what one thinks of the author's skill than anything else. In this case, Cherryh is a fine writer; anyone who's read my review of Downbelow Station will know she's one of my favorites (half my favorite SF characters are from her books).

The first half of the novel is the best part as we see Shoka and Taizu's relationship develop. The second half follows them as Taizu heads back into the Empire accompanied by a reluctant Shoka. Their appearance is the spark that sets off a long simmering rebellion.

The Paladin was a favorite of mine back in the days of my misspent youth. Today, I'd probably be less generous in my rating - three stars, but I'd still recommend it, especially to Cherryh fans looking to read her earlier and less well known work. Science Fiction Fantasy I'm of two minds about C.J. Cherryh's The Paladin. It starts out promisingly, with the peasant girl Taizu arriving at the mountain hideaway of Saukendar, exiled swordmaster, and begging him to teach her to fight. Unwillingly, he accepts her as a pupil, and the first half of the book explores the training and their growing relationship. I found this section entirely engrossing. It's all from Saukendar's point of view, and it's fascinating to watch him reluctantly grow to accept and even care for Taizu, and to watch her develop from an untrained girl into a woman warrior.

Then, about halfway through, Saukendar and Taizu leave his retreat in order to carry out Taizu's revenge on the Emperor's Regent, who despoiled her homeland. For me, it was all downhill from there. The book lost its tight focus on the relationship which was the center of the first half, and although it remained important, of course, it was replaced with politics and geography that just never made sense to me (though it's perfectly possible that this was merely a visualization problem on my part). I was so enthralled by the beginning of The Paladin that the less focused (or differently focused, I suppose) ending was a disappointment, but I'd recommend it nonetheless, at least for the first half. Science Fiction Fantasy

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