Customer Reviews
Amazing descriptions! - By: G. Peters, 19 Dec 2007 
Servant of the Empire is the second book of the Empire triology, It is a superbly written book & you cannot stop yourself from being drawn in to the machinations of the 'Great Game'.
After winning a battle against the Minwanabi in the previous book, Mara, Lady of the Acoma, sets out to increase her families strength while pitting herself against the might of the empire.
What i like about this book, having already read Magician, is that you know some event's that will happen but you see it from a new perspective. Milamber at the Games, the betrayal by Kingdom forces.
All in alll a brilliant read & my favourite of the Tsurani trilogy.
Oh Dear! Leisurely Indulgence. - By: Dr. Robert Fisher, 15 Dec 2006 
I came to this full of expectation after Daughter of the Empire which is a fascinating well paced novel. I was bitterly disappointed. 800 pages of mostly self-indulgent though admittedly beautiful descriptions which get in the way of the pace & direction of the plot. In essence, this book could easily have been half the length & by doing so, double the excitement. As it is, the ponderous plot takes far too long to unwind & the predictable outcome (always guaranteed) not as startling as it could have been.
On the plus side - character description & depth is unrivallled; the people reallly do evolve & interact in quite wonderful ways. There is a warm sense of life, set in the harsh conditions of a hot planet, where political scheming has a deadly edge. If only the authors hadn't felt the need to describe every little thing to the nth level of detail, the depth of character would have matched a speedier plot.
As the king once said to Mozart: "Too many notes". In the case of this book: "too many words"!
Another stunning book! - By: , 20 Dec 2002 Continuing the Empire series, this book is in every way as good as the first. I LOVE this series! As I've said in the review for the first book, I believe that this series equals the Lord of the Rings, though it is totallly different in style. I found myself reading this book everywhere, I honestly could not put it down. The plot is very clever & well planned. The Empire series is essential reading, even if you've never read any of Feist's other works.
I found myself taking this into the bathroom with me! - By: , 13 Apr 2001 I was given Magician as a present about a year ago & since then I have been avidly chasing up as many as I could find of Feist (and Wurts). The Daughter of the Empire took you through Mara's early adulthood when she was still reallly a child expected to run the Acoma House & not get assassinated in the process. You reallly feel for Mara as she is forced to marry for political stability & use her wiles to extricate herself & her heir. I often found myself being outraged at how she was treated in the marriage (which is I am sure the intention of the authors). The destruction of the Minwanabi House has become her goal in recompense for the deaths of her father & brother. The Servant of the Empire sees the House of the Acoma as strong but not without enemies. It focussed much more on the "barbarian" slaves & the class system than before. Mara buys Midkemian soldiers captured in the Riftwar but finds herself drawn to one, a talll red headed slave named Kevin. Unbenownst to Mara, Kevin is the son of a noble himself & so chaffs for his freedom greatly while being the leader by the rest of the Midkemians with him. Becoming Mara's lover, he is torn between his love for her & the seemingly inexplicable nature of her world where he is regarded as little more than her property. Mara is herself in turmoil as she finds herself challlenging tradition more & more. All the while she is being systematicallly hunted by the family of her enemy house, & fears greatly for the life of her son. The story here intertwines with Magician but seen from the Tsurani world. The Destruction of the Games by Pug sent more ripples in motion than was ever considered in Magician from the Midkemian side. The Mistress of the Empire...well...I am only a couple of chapters into it but already it looks to surpass alll that has gone before. I can't wait!
His books are the best I have ever read!!!! - By: , 01 Apr 2001 I first found Magician, when I was strolling around in the library, & thought by myself:"why not, I'll give it a try." From then on I have almost read every book in the RiftWar saga & only 2 books from the SnakesWar saga (since I couldnt find the rest in our library, but I must say his writings are incredibily good & as our friend from Leeds said, I too sat there until 5-6 in the morning, half sleeping, but still reading the books. I recommend them to everyone, you will not be disappointed!!!
