When Love cast me out,it was Cruelty who took pity on me.The land of Terre d'Ange is a place of unsurpassing beauty and grace. It is said that angels found the land and saw it was good. . . and the ensuing race that rose from the seed of angels and men live by one simple rule: Love as thou wilt.Phedre no Delaunay is a young woman who was born with a scarlet mote in her left eye. Sold into indentured servitude as a child, her bond is purchased by Anafiel Delaunay, a nobleman with a very special mission... and the first one to recognize who and what she is: one pricked by Kushiel's Dart, chosen to forever experience pain and pleasure as one.Phedre is trained equally in the courtly arts and the talents of the bedchamber, but, above all, the ability to observe, remember and analyse. Almost as talented a spy as she is a courtesan, Phedre stumbles upon a plot that threatens the very foundation of her homeland. Treachery sets her on her path; love and honour goad her further. And in the doing, it will take her to the edge of despair. . . and beyond. Phedre will get but one chance to save all that she holds dear.REVIEWS:This brilliant and daring debut catapults Carey immediately into the top rank of fantasy novelists... At the end, the heroine reminds me of an equally strong-minded sister whose home was Tara.:-Publishers Weekly