"Jennifer Roberson - CotC 6 - Daughter of the Lion" - читать интересную книгу автора (Roberson Jennifer)

Gisella, but falls in love with the princess of a neigh-
boring kingdom, Deirdre of Erinn. Lirless, and with
Gisella under the influence of Tynstar's Ihlini daugh-
ter, Lillith, Niall falls prey to sorcery. Eventually he
links with his lir and assumes the full range of Cheysuli
powers, but he pays for it with an eye. His marriage
to Gisella is disastrous, but two sets of twins are bornтАФ
Brennan and Hart, Corin and KeelyтАФwhich gives
Niall the opportunity to extend his range of influence
via betrothal alliances. He banishes Gisella to Atvia
after he foils an Ihlini plot involving her, and then
settles into life with his mistress, Deirdre of Erinn, who
has already borne Maeve, his illegitimate daughter.
A Pride of Princes tells the story of each of Niall's
three sons. Brennan, the eldest, will inherit Homana
and has been betrothed to Aileen, Deirdre's niece, to
add a heretofore unknown bloodline to the proph-
ecy. Brennan's twin, Hart, is Prince of Solinde, a
compulsive gambler whose addiction results in a tragic
accident involving all three of Niall's sons. Hart is
banished to Solinde for a year, and the rebellious
youngest son, Corin, to Atvia. Brennan is tricked
into siring a child on an Ihlini-Cheysuli woman; Hart
loses a hand and nearly his life in a Solindish plot; in
Erinn, Corin falls in love with Brennan's bride, Ai-
leen, before going to Atvia. One by one each is
captured by Strahan, Tynstar's son, who intends to
turn Niall's sons into puppet-kings so he can rule
through them. All three manage to escape, but not
after each has been made to recognize particular
strengths and weaknesses.
PART
I
 One

I was aware of eyes, watching me. Marking every
step, every feint, my every riposte with the sword.
Thinking, no doubt, I was mad; or did she wish she
were in my place?
She had come before to watch me practice against
the arms-master. Saying nothing, sitting quietly on a
bench with heavy skirts spilling over her legs.
Before, it had not touched me, because I can be
deaf and blind when I choose, so focused on the
weapons. But this time it did. It reached out and
touched me, and held me, with a new intensity.
In the eyes I saw desperation.
It was enough to pierce my concentration. Enough
to get me killed, had it been anything but practice.
As it was, Griffon's blade tip slid easily by my guard