Book Review
Feb. 20th, 2026 07:16 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kenjariThe Green Pearl
by Jack Vance
This is the second book in the Lyonesse trilogy. This one focuses on Aillas, king of Troicinet and South Ulfland as he wages war against the Ska in order to secure South Ulfland and consolidate his power. The last third of the book brings in a second plot in which Glyneth, Aillas' love interest, is kidnapped into another world by a mage working for Aillas' rival, King Casmir. Framing this narrative is the story of the green pearl, a cursed gem that brings out the greed of its bearer and brings them bad luck.
I enjoyed this book as much as I did Suldrun's Garden. Aillas is a fair and capable ruler. He's also quite clever in his approach to the Ska. I found his brief captivity of Tatzel, a Ska princess, to be a pretty interesting episode. Aillas' motives are complex, born of both his attraction to Tatzel and his desire for retribution for his time as a slave to the Ska. Yet he does not subject Tatzel to assault or cruelty, and they end up feeling some grudging respect for each other.
by Jack Vance
This is the second book in the Lyonesse trilogy. This one focuses on Aillas, king of Troicinet and South Ulfland as he wages war against the Ska in order to secure South Ulfland and consolidate his power. The last third of the book brings in a second plot in which Glyneth, Aillas' love interest, is kidnapped into another world by a mage working for Aillas' rival, King Casmir. Framing this narrative is the story of the green pearl, a cursed gem that brings out the greed of its bearer and brings them bad luck.
I enjoyed this book as much as I did Suldrun's Garden. Aillas is a fair and capable ruler. He's also quite clever in his approach to the Ska. I found his brief captivity of Tatzel, a Ska princess, to be a pretty interesting episode. Aillas' motives are complex, born of both his attraction to Tatzel and his desire for retribution for his time as a slave to the Ska. Yet he does not subject Tatzel to assault or cruelty, and they end up feeling some grudging respect for each other.
