Estri was a daughter of light;
Chayin, a son of darkness;
Sereth, the son of all flesh.
Are they the three foretold who will make the truth of prophecy?
The Carnelian Throne
The Silistra Quartet Book 4
by Janet Morris
Genre: Dystopian Epic SciFi Fantasy Romance
***** “Engrossing characters in a marvelous adventure.” — C. Brown, Locus Magazine
***** “The amazing and exotic adventures of the most beautiful courtesan in tomorrow’s universe.” — Frederik Pohl
***** “The best single example of prostitution used in fantasy is in Janet Morris’ Silistra series: High Couch of Silistra (originally entitled Returning Creation), The Golden Sword, Wind from the Abyss, and The Carnelian Throne.” — Anne K. Kaler, “The Picara: From Hera to Fantasy Heroine.”
“[…] today I thought I’d look at one of the most successful fantasy debuts of all time, a series that became a huge international hit with its first release, launching the career of one of the most prolific fantasy writers of the late 20th Century: Janet Morris’ The Silistra Quartet.
“The Silistra Quartet began with Janet’s first novel, High Couch of Silistra […] from Bantam Books in 1977 [, ] the far-future tale of the colony planet of Silistra, still recovering from an ancient war that left the planet scarred and much of the population infertile. With a dangerously low birth-rate, it’s not long before the human colonists of Silistra develop a new social order, with a hierarchy based on fertility and sexual prowess.
— John O’Neill in Black Gate Adventures in Fantasy Literature
Estri was a god, and the daughter of light.
Chayin was a god, and the son of darkness.
Sereth was hase-enor, the son of all flesh.
Lovers and friends, could they be the prophesied three
who would wield the Sword of Severance, Se’Keroth,
and bring light out of dark?
“One from the east, born of ease and destined,
“One from north of south, divine, exempt of question;
the third from out the west,
Astride a tide of death,” quoted Chayin. He was not
smiling. It is a long epic. All has been foreseen. We
all know that tale’s end.”
— Estri Hadrath diet Estrazi, in “Wind from the Abyss.”
“Gate!” he bellowed over the storm, his dripping lips at my ear. The deluge had made us sparing of words. Under leathers soaked to thrice their weight, I shivered in spasms. Arms clutched to my sides, I stared into the rain. The driven sheets slashed me for my audacity. Lightning flared, illuminating the riverbank white. A moment later, the bright noise cracked through my head. The hillock trembled.
Over the gate danced the lightning. Its crackling fingers quested down thick-crossed slabs of iron, seared flesh. Emblazoned as they tumbled were those six-legged amphibians, their streamered tails lashing, scaled, fangful heads thrown back in dismay. I saw their afterimage: beryl and cinnabar, aglow upon the storm. Then their charred remains splashed into oblivion, spun away on the fast current.
“Down!” One man shouted, the other shoved me, and as I staggered to kneel in the sedges, the god that washed this land shook it, grumbling. I crouched on my hands and knees on the bucking sod, between them. Little protection could they offer up against shaking earth and searing sky, not even for themselves, without divorcing themselves from the reality they had come here to explore. And that they would not do.
Wind From the Abyss
The Silistra Quartet Book 3
Dystopia. Fantasy. Science fiction. Allegory. Political.
Wind from the Abyss is the third volume in Janet Morris’ classic Silistra Quartet, continuing one woman’s quest for self-realization in a distant tomorrow.
Aristocrat. Outcast. Picara. Slave. Ruler …. She is descended from the masters of the universe. To hold her he challenges the gods themselves.
Praise for Janet Morris’ Silistra Quartet:
“The amazing and erotic adventures of the most beautiful courtesan in tomorrow’s universe.” — Fred Pohl
“Engrossing characters in a marvelous adventure.” — Charles N. Brown, Locus Magazine.
“The best single example of prostitution used in fantasy is Janet Morris’ Silistra series.” — Anne K. Kahler, The Picara: From Hera to Fantasy Heroine.
This Perseid Press Author’s Cut Edition is revised and expanded by the author and presented in a format designed to enhance your reading experience with larger, easy-to-read print, more generous margins, and covers designed for these premium editions.
Wind from the Abyss starts with this . . .
“Since, at the beginning of this tale, I did not recollect myself nor retain even the slightest glimmer of such understanding as would have led me to an awareness of the significance of the various occurrences that transpired at the Lake of Horns, I am adding this preface, though it was no part of my initial conception, that the meaningfulness of the events described by “Khys’ Estri” (as I have come to think of the shadow-self I was while the dharen held my skills and memory in abeyance) not be withheld from you as they were from me. I knew myself not: I was Estri because the girl Carth supposedly found wandering in the forest stripped of comprehension and identity chose that name. There, perhaps, lies the greatest irony of all, that I named myself anew after Estri Hadrath diet Estrazi, who in reality I had once been. And perhaps it is not irony at all, but an expression of Khys’ humor, an implicit dissertation by him who structured my experiences, my very thoughts, for nearly two years, until his audacity drove him to bring together once more Sereth crill Tyris, past-Slayer, then the outlawed Ebvrasea, then arrar to the dharen himself; Chayin rendi Inekte, cahndor of Nemar, co-cahndor of the Taken Lands, chosen son of Tar-Kesa, and at that time Khys’ puppet-vassal; and myself, former Well-Keepress, tiask of Nemar, and lastly becoming the chaldless outlaw who had come to judgment and endured ongoing retribution at the dharen’s hands. To test his hesting, his power over owkahen, the time-coming-to-be, did Khys put us together, all three, in his Day-Keeper’s city — and from that moment onward, the Weathers of Life became fixed: siphoned into a singular future; sealed tight as a dead god in his mausoleum, whose every move brought him closer to the sum total, obliteration. So did the dharen Khys bespeak it, himself. . .”
“Morris, so good at giving us characters we can identify with, characters we can love and hate, strikes at the very heart of the human condition and the duality of humanity — both good and evil. Her prose is lean and spot-on, every word carefully chosen to enhance the milieu of her imaginary world and advance the plot, giving us access to the thoughts, emotions and machinations of the people whose stories she is presenting to us. Once again, she gives us a “thinking man’s” science fiction/fantasy that explores the nature of power and sexuality, and how they can be used, misused and abused. This is a brilliant, mature and very adult novel that will not only leave you thinking about your own place in the universe, but questioning the very nature of existence.” – Goodreads reviewer
The Golden Sword
The Silistra Quartet Book 2
Dystopia. Biology shapes reality. The further adventures of the most beautiful courtesan in the galaxies of tomorrow.
She had the power to create planets. The sixty carved bones of the Yris-tera foretold her ancient fate. Her heritage of power took her beyond time and space and stole from her the one man she loved.
Enslaved on the planet Silistra, tomorrow’s most beautiful courtesan unleashes the powers of the gods.
What readers are saying:
“Pure excellence…. A heroic quest of the highest calibre.” – Goodreads
“This is a book which makes one’s blood sing and one’s mind ponder. I loved the first in the series and enjoyed this as much, perhaps more. The ending leaves the reader desperate to know what happens to Estri next – courtesan, slave, warrior, lover, rebel. What is next for our heroine?” – Goodreads
“Call it what you like: science fiction, space opera, sword and planet or erotic fantasy . . . The Golden Sword is all these things, and so much more. A highly intelligent and sensual novel filled with ideas and revelations, this is a gripping story that explores human sexuality and the role it plays in politics. Although the memorable characters are bisexual, toss away all your preconceived notions, for there is a humanity, a strength of will and determination, a realism and depth of emotion to these characters that will have you thinking twice about all you know and all you think you know. This is a book for mature and discerning readers who like some meat on the bones of the books they read. Janet Morris led the way for all the science fiction authors, both male and female, who came after. “ – Joe Bonadonna, Goodreads
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High Couch of Silistra
The Silistra Quartet Book 1
Biology shapes reality…
One woman’s mythic search for self-realization in a distant tomorrow…
Her sensuality was at the core of her world, her quest beyond the civilized stars.
Aristocrat. Outcast. Picara. Slave. Ruler.
“Engrossing characters in a marvelous adventure.” – Charles N. Brown, Locus Magazine
“The amazing and erotic adventures of the most beautiful courtesan in tomorrow’s universe” – Frederik Pohl
“The best single example of prostitution used in fantasy is Janet Morris’ Silistra series… Estri’s character is most like that of Ishtar who describes herself as “‘a prostitute compassionate am I'” because she “symbolizes the creative submission to the demands of instinct, to the chaos of nature …the free woman, as opposed to the domesticated woman”. Linking Estri with these lunar and water symbols is not difficult because of the moon’s eternal virginity (the strength of integrity) links with her changeability (the prostitute’s switching of lovers). […]
Morris strengthens the moon imagery by having Estri as a well-keepress because wells, fountains, and the moon as the orb which controls water have long been associated with fertility, […] In a sense, she is like the moon because she is apparently eternal, never waxing or waning except in her pursuit of the quest; she is the prototypical wanderer like the moon and Ishtar. She is the eternal night symbol of the moon in opposition to the Day-Keepers […]
At her majority (her three hundredth birthday), she is given a silver-cubed hologram letter from her mother, containing a videotape of her conception by the savage bronzed barbarian god from another world. […] If Estri’s mother then acts as a bawd, willing her lineage as Well-Keepress to her daughter, then Estri’s great-grandmother Astria as foundress of the Well becomes a further mother-bawd figure when she offers her prophetic advice in her letter: “Guard Astria for you may lose it, and more. Beware of one who is not as he seems. Stray not in the port city of Baniev …look well about you, for your father’s daughter’s brother seeks you”. Having no brother that she knows of does not stay Estri from undertaking the heroic quest of finding her father.”
– Anne K. Kaler, The Picara: From Hera to Fantasy Heroine
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Best selling author Janet Morris began writing in 1976 and published more than 30 novels, many co-authored with her husband Chris Morris or others. She contributed short fiction to the shared universe fantasy series Thieves World, in which she created the Sacred Band of Stepsons, a mythical unit of ancient fighters modeled on the Sacred Band of Thebes. She created, orchestrated, and edited the Bangsian fantasy series Heroes in Hell, writing stories for the series as well as co-writing the related novel, The Little Helliad, with Chris Morris. She wrote the bestselling Silistra Quartet in the 1970s, including High Couch of Silistra, The Golden Sword, Wind from the Abyss, and The Carnelian Throne. This quartet had more than four million copies in Bantam print alone, and was translated into German, French, Italian, Russian and other languages. In the 1980s, Baen Books released a second edition of this landmark series. The third edition is the Author’s Cut edition, newly revised by the author for Perseid Press. Most of her fiction work has been in the fantasy and science fiction genres, although she has also written historical and other novels. Morris has written, contributed to, or edited several book-length works of non-fiction, as well as papers and articles on nonlethal weapons, developmental military technology and other defense and national security topics.
Janet said: ‘People often ask what book to read first. I recommend “I, the Sun” if you like ancient history; “The Sacred Band,” a novel, if you like heroic fantasy; “Lawyers in Hell” if you like historical fantasy set in hell; “Outpassage” if you like hard science fiction; “High Couch of Silistra” if you like far-future dystopian or philosophical novels. I am most enthusiastic about the definitive Perseid Press Author’s Cut editions, which I revised and expanded.’
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Sadly, Janet Morris died in August 2024. Perseid Press was her lifelong dream to be able to publish special editions of her own work as well as foster the efforts of new writers struggling to see their first works in print. Perseid’s Heroes in Hell series is just that ‘proving ground’ for new storytellers and we hope they have found their way to larger audiences and fulfilling writing careers. Although she’s gone, she left thousands of pages of exploration of people and places that could exist only in her spirited approach to storytelling. That said, we at Perseid will continue to be the wellspring of all things Janet and want you to read the answers she wrote to the following questions before she departed:
What is something unique/quirky about you?
I breed Morgan horses. I consult with Morgan breeders to help them choose breeding combinations to achieve a desired result.
I am also a song writer; I play bass guitar with my husband Chris who sings and plays guitar. We have an album on MCA records. Look for Christopher Crosby Morris on Soundcloud or N1M.com
Can you, for those who don’t know you already, tell something about yourself and how you became an author?
I wrote my first novel, High Couch of Silistra in 1975; a friend sent it to an agent who chose to represent me; I had already written the second book in the Silistra Quartet and my agent told me not to disclose that until they finalized the contract for the first one. When the publisher learned of the others, Bantam Books bought the succeeding three. When the fourth book was published, the series already had four million copies in print. Suddenly I was a novelist specializing in environmental, gender, historical and political subjects. In the process, Chris became my editor and ultimately a co-writer. Since then, we have co-authored many books.
Who is your hero and why?
Heraclitus of Ephesus, a pre-socratic philosopher, whose Cosmic Fragments foreshadow our knowledge of reality and how to perceive it. Among his precepts is the statement that change alone is unchanging. I’ve worked Heraclitus’ fragments in here and there throughout our books.
Which of your novels can you imagine being made into a movie?
All of them. I write cinematically, our books are vivid adventures I undertake without knowing the destination. I, the Sun, The Sacred Band, and Outpassage are particularly suited to film. The Threshold Series is a feast of opportunities for today’s special effects creators.
What inspired you, to write The Carnelian Throne?
The Silistra series was a unique departure for me and it included issues of women’s rights in the 70’s before Handmaid’s Tale.
Convince us why you feel The Carnelian Throne is a must read.
The Carnelian Throne is the final book in the Silistra series. It gave Janet a chance to talk about her intense interest in environmental issues. True to her nature, Janet tackled this by taking us to a place where environmental concerns had gone off the deep end, where civilization was trying to uncivilized itself and become more animal-like at the expense of rational governance. Although extreme at times, The Carnelian Throne chips away at popular notions on both sides of the issue.
Who designed your book covers?
Most of my covers, including The Carnelian Throne, are realized by Roy Mauritsen, a gifted graphic artist.
Advice to writers?
Janet’s advice to writers:
“As for advice to writers, here is all I know: write the story you want to read. Start at the beginning, go to the end, and stop. Seriously. From start to finish you must inhabit the construct in a manner that makes the reader choose to continue; if I, as the writer, can’t feel what it’s like being there, my readers can’t either. So close your eyes, look at your feet where they are standing on the story’s ground; tell me what you see. Tell me what you hear. Ask at the end of each paragraph ‘what happens next?’. If you lose touch with it, wait until you’re back inside it. Tell the story that comes to you, and from you, to me.”
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Karen J. Mossman – World of Storires
Word Processor, Romance, Cats, Kids and Creed
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