The Pyramid Waltz by Barbara Ann Wright was an interesting fantasy story with a very unique twist.
The book is about Princess Katya Nar Umbriel and her love interest, Starbride.
The princess pretends to be a layabout who is permanently bored, hunts and sleeps with countless women. Secretly, however, she chases traitors and protects her family’s secret that they are all part Fiend.
Starbride was sent to court by her mother in hopes of securing a rich spouse. Starbride is not at all interested in being a courtier. Instead she uses the opportunity to study law in hopes of helping her people.
When the two women meet there is an instant attraction and they cannot stay away from one another.
In the mean time, Princess Katya has uncovered a plot to overthrow her family by exposing her father’s monstrous side.
The Characters
Wright has developed a clear set of characters and some delightful side characters, in cases, I enjoyed the side characters more than the main characters.
The Writing Style
Wright told a good, solid story. The writing was well paced and the plot was unique and interesting enough to keep me reading.
The Pros
This was a decent read. I enjoyed the uniqueness, the setting and some of the characters. I also enjoyed a couple of the side plot elements like Starbride’s exploits at court.
Another plus was that the world Wright created saw same sex relationships and just another type of relationship and it wasn’t a big thing for Katya and Starbride to get together.
The Cons
The book felt a little flat and I would have likes to see Wright amp up the drama. Katya and Starbride got together too easily. The plot twists were there but they all felt a little easy. I would have enjoyed seeing more risk, more danger and more difficulty.
An example of this was that Starbride didn’t want to tell Katya why she was at court. She expressed this enough times to make me feel like it should have been a major event when it did happen. Instead, they all took in stride and it was a non event.
The Conclusion
This was a decent book. If you want a fantasy read then give this one a try. Wright has some beautiful images and a good story. I just wanted more risk for the characters, especially Katya.
Also worth noting is that the book ends with a major plot point not concluded as this is a series of books.
Fantasy fans out there will more likely than not enjoy the book, so give it a read.
Excerpt from The Pyramid Waltz by Barbara Ann Wright
The afternoon air tasted of wood smoke, a sign of autumn Katya would have enjoyed if she hadn’t been hunting a traitor. She crouched among the ferns dotting the forest floor and took slow, deep breaths, the better to hear the slightest movement.
Birds chirped to her left, and she turned to the right where the sounds of the forest had gone quiet.
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Series
Bits and Bobs
- ISBN: 9781602827929
- Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
- Barbara Anne Wright Online
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