Chalice [Mass Market Paperback]

Robin McKinley debuted with a fleshed-out retelling of "Beauty and the Beast," and later followed it up with ANOTHER retelling.

And after a few books about dragons and vampires, McKinley returns to her old territory -- she spins up a vaguely medieval tale of a woodland beauty and a charred "beast" entirely out of her own imagination. McKinley's sumptuous prose and her depiction of a "living" land add an extra dimension to a straightforward little love story that drips with sweetness.

Some months ago, the decadent Master of Willowlands and his Chalice were killed in a fire. The new Chalice is Mirasol, whose duty is to fill ceremonial cups and help bind the land.

But then the late Master's little brother arrives from the priests of Fire -- charred black and no longer entirely human. Mirasol is determined to do the best job she can for the new Master, when she isn't tending a woodland cottage covered in bees. Unfortunately the land is still unsettled despite her joint efforts with the Master, especially since his strange behavior frightens his people.

In the course of her duty, Mirasol soon gets to know her new Master -- he's quiet, kind, worried about burning people, and confused by the world he had almost forgotten. But as he struggles to keep his land balanced, the Overlord begins to scheme to put a new Master in Willowlands -- one that will do whatever he wishes. With her role as Chalice and her power over bees, Mirasol must find a way to save her beloved Master...

You wouldn't think that such a slender novel could have such a richly imagined world, where metaphysical bonds link the Master and Chalice to the very land itself. Not only does Robin McKinley conjure such a world in "Chalice," but she also wrought an intricate web of politics and tradition around the ritual roles. Poor Mirasol, trying to navigate her new role.

And McKinley's prose is as sweet and thick as Mirasol's honey ("the great windows were still twilight grey..."), but filled with a slightly bittersweet feeling. And she crams the novel with rural splendour -- trees, little cottages, old dusty books -- as well as anything having to do with bees and beekeeping. When Mirasol is with her books in the woodright, McKinley's writing takes on an exquisitely mystical edge (albeit a quieter one than her Chalice duties).

But once the Overlord's little plan comes into play, McKinley also interweaves a sense of dread and foreboding, which gets worse as the story creeps toward the inevitable clash. If there's a flaw in the story, it's that the bees serve a slightly deus-ex-machinesque function for the Master.

However, the heart of this story is the growing love story between two young people who are unsure how to do their jobs, and fear that they are failing. Mirasol and the Master (whose name is only revealed late in the book) are wonderfully realistic characters, and Mirasol's stumbles and struggles make her seem like a totally realistic country girl suddenly given a great task.

"Chalice" is the sort of story that Robin McKinley has penned before, but the land-mysticism and lush prose make it entirely unique. Definitely a must-read..

Hey sorry folks, I loved Chalice. Yes it is much gentler than her other books but i wouldn't call the heroine weak, she is a loner thrown out of her depth. Not much the hero can do till he gets human again.And naturally it keeps repeating Chalice, it's her name after all, none of the twelve go by their own names. (Incidentally who is the twelth one is it First Houseman, I can only count eleven.) My advice to would-be readers is if you liked Spindle's End you will probably like this too. I did.Spindle's EndSpindle's End

Mirasol is a beekeeper who suddenly inherits one of the most powerful positions on the large estate where she has lived her entire life.
Faced with problems which she alone can solve, but lacking the knowledge or training to understand her role, her support comes from unexpected sources; her bees, a man who is no longer human, and more mystical help from the bees' honey and the land which supports them all...
A woman of quiet strength who learns to believe in herself through the course of the book, Mirasol's character is central both to the storyline and to the tone of the story telling. Animals and even the land itself have strongly drawn personalities which enhance the telling of this beautiful, lyrical tale of the power of nature and goodness.
Different not only from from Sunshine and Dragonhaven, but equally from the Damarian stories, I enjoyed the mediaeval feel redolent of the Outlaws of Sherwood, combining with an original tale of fantasy.