R- "Camber" series (v,x), "Deryni" series (v,x), "Kelson" series (v,x), "Knights Templar" series (v,x,b), "Adept" series (v,some x,b), "Vampyr-Ss" series (v,some x,b)
Kurtz has an incredibly strong grounding in both general history and in the Christian religion- especially its more occult aspects. Most of her novels make use of this knowledge. She writes from different points of view and includes some violence, but her books are not uncomfortable to read in the psychological sense. They are more sociological and political in orientation. Most of her novels move smoothly through the action, and she almost never spends inordinate amounts of time on rituals or other researched material. She simply incorporates them and moves on. Her characters are also quite sympathetic despite (or perhaps because of) their weaknesses and conflicts. Overall, Kurtz is a fairly good writer.
Kurtz is the author of the Deryni series, a a sequence of trilogies in the same world built around two different time periods. The premise is that a medieval Europe-style world is centered around a few strong nations, including Gwynned. Most of the countries are apparently Catholic. The one major change from medieval Europe (beside the geopgraphy and history) is that there is an additional race of humans with inheritable psi powers. This race is known as "Deryni".
Political, religious, and physical conflict stem from the differences between normal humans and Deryni. Though they are not in any way separate groups (they intermarry and all their physical attributes are the same), one priest explains it best when he warns "Deryni, beware!...The humans kill what they do not understand." But the humans are not the only ones who commit atrocities. By the beginning of the "Camber" series, one family of Deryni and their allies have taken the kingdom of Gwynned in a bloody coup that normal humans still remember with fear.
Yet Kurtz offers a ray of hope: the main characters of her novels may be caught up in political intrigue, but most of them desperately want peace. Thus, though some men seem to lose their souls in the battle for power and ethnic dominance, others do not. The question is how to keep that spirit of hope alive in dark times. Kurtz's background in history and religion is strong and well-displayed in these novels.
One of my favorite two series is the "Camber" series (Camber of Culdi, Saint Camber, and Camber the Heretic). It is a tale set at the end of the Deryni dynasty, about a Deryni lord and his children, who saw the injustices inflicted upon humans by Deryni and who resolved to end the abuse. In the course of this, they start a war, end a war, die, appear to die, marry, have their own children, and set in motion the events that will become myth in generations to come. Camber is the great Deryni lord who offered the throne to a human, the dead man who lived, and the saint who became a heretic. This series is powerful and well-characterized, as well as thoroughly researched. Dark and moody, yet with faith and optimism driving them onward, these books will not leave you thinking much of the human race as a whole, but it will help you have faith in individuals and their infinite capacity for trying.
The first series in Kelson's time, "Deryni" (Deryni Rising, Deryni Checkmate, and High Deryni), is not as good in my opinion, though it helps set the stage for the next one. 200 years after Camber, King Brion of the line of Haldanes dies, leaving his young son Kelson to take the throne. But Kelson is henpecked by his mother, in danger of his life, and surrounded by people who hate his Deryni friends. Yet it is only through the Deryni, and through the strange interference of Camber the sainted heretic that Kelson may live to sit on his throne and protect both Deryni and humans.
My second favorite series about Kelson, King of Qwynned (The Bishop's Heir, The King's Justice, The Quest for Saint Camber). In the first novel, Kelson deals with a rebellion on his borders. His blood brother and all his counselors are drawn into the battle, though Kelson would give anything to end it bloodlessly. The second novel chronicles the end of that war Kelson's life afterwards, and a renewed crisis for those few Deryni who have managed to achieve positions of power. Conservative elements of the church, though foiled in some of their attempts, can still plague Kelson with their sheer numbers.
Finally, the third novel relates Kelson's quest to find the truth about Camber, the Deryni saint. The quest is almost like a religious pilgrimage, but it doesn't work out the way anyone planned, and suddenly Kelson's throne is once again threatened by an usurper- one who hits a little closer to home than the last. The third novel contains much more explicit sexuality than the first two, and it is not as strongly connected plot-wise. On the other hand, it was my favorite of the three. In sum, this series is strong on plot, fairly strong on characters, well-researched, and set in a clearly conceived world. It's only drawbacks are graphic violence and the occasional tone of a well-written medieval soap-opera. For the romantics out there, Kelson finally gets down to the love-interest business. In all, this trilogy is more strongly political and less obsessed with the survival of the Deryni than previous trilogies.
Kurtz also wrote the "Adept" series, based on a man with psi powers and connections to the Masons in our world. I did not particularly like this one, though my mother did. I don't remember it well enough to review it, so someone else will have to do so.
The Temple and the Stone (co-authored with Deborah Turner Harris) is the story of how one Templar, Frere Arnault de Saint Clair, and his brethren became involved in the politics of Scotland at the end of the thirteenth century. Arnault's public mission is to help facilitate a peace between England and Scotland. This is the time of Edward Longshanks, William Wallace and the Highland insurrection, so this is no easy task! Arnault's other mission is even more important to the Order: He must help his Temple find a new spiritual home. The re-conquest of Acre by the Muslims in 1291 signaled the end of the Crusades and of European power in the Holy Land. With no realistic chance of retaking Jerusalem, the Order needs a new safe haven for its treasures. This hoard includes sacred relics preserved by a secret "inner circle" within the order, to which Arnault belongs. Arnault and his confreres face danger from the armies of two warring nations, from rival factions within the Order itself, and from pagan sorcery.
The first book in this collaborative series with Scott MacMillan is Knights of the Blood, in which detective John Drummond searches for a mysterious killer who leaves stakes through his victim's hearts. Unfortunately, the rest of the book is similarly unoriginal, though parts of it read like a massive conspiracy theory between the Knights Templar, vampires, and the German SS. Part of the problem is that the book shifts in time and has few sympathetic characters. Even the good Christian vampires don't get a whole lot of screen time, and the gore level is impressively high, perhaps unecessarily so. Don't read this book if you are a fan of Kurtz's characters, or her well-researched historical works- this isn't one of them. Also, don't read it if you love vampires a la Anne Rice- the good and the bad are relatively uncomplicated here.
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