DUTIES OF THE HEART
by Sherrill Burns
In Burns’ fantasy novel, romance and rebellion take center stage.
The land of Lavitia is in turmoil, as it has been since the death of King Hector Covax and the subsequent ascension of his son, Marsalis, to the throne. Those in power have long enslaved the Veagan people. Blaming the Veagans for his father’s assassination, Marsalis intensifies their oppression. A rebellion forms, and the Veagans secede from Lavitia to form the independent kingdom of Theslia. The king and queen of Theslia are murdered shortly after the birth of their child, Saroja Minunette Shakur. A queen’s attendant hides the child in the forest away from the castle to raise her in secret under the name Mirage until she is old enough to rule. In the meantime, King Marsalis (who ordered the assassinations of the rival king and queen and all of the children in the castle after his oracle foretold a child being born who would kill him) continues his campaign against the Veagans, who are now led by Benjamin Casesar, formerly a knight, whose son, Alexander, was one of the few survivors of the massacre. When Alexander and Mirage (a budding sorceress) reach adulthood, they meet and fall in love, a situation complicated by King Marsalis’ continued assault on the Veagans and Alexander’s obligation to marry the woman his father has selected for him. The narrative plays out predictably and is bogged down by problematic elements such as Orientalism (“He wore a white turban on his head…a fancy burgundy tunic that was left open to display a round hairy stomach, big billowy gold pants, and shiny gold shoes that turned up in the front. Mirage had never seen such clothes; she thought he looked very funny”), a stereotypical portrayal of a gay villain who molests young boys, and excessively descriptive (and in some case romanticized) rape scenes. Though somewhat scattered in execution, the worldbuilding and romance may be appealing to readers, and the story’s cast is refreshingly made up of predominantly Black and brown characters.
A standard fantasy tale hampered by objectional details.