History Characters / KushielsLegacy

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseCourcel House Courcel]] [[labelnote:Characters]]Ganelon • Benedicte • Lyonette • Rolande • Ysandre • Imriel • Sidonie • Alais • Daniel • Thierry • Desirée[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseLEnvers House L'Envers]] [[labelnote:Characters]]Barquiel • Isabel • Valère • Nicola[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseMontreve House Montrève]] [[labelnote:Characters]]Sarafiel • Anafiel • Alcuin • Phèdre • Joscelin • Imriel[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyCourtOfNightBloomingFlowers Court of Night Blooming Flowers]][[labelnote:Houses]]Alyssum • Balm • Bryony • Camellia • Cereus • Dahlia • Eglantine • Gentian • Heliotrope • Jasmine • Mandrake • Orchis • Valerian[[/labelnote]] [[labelnote:Characters]]Miriam Bouscevre • Jareth Moran • Suriah • Cecilie Laveau-Perrin • Jehanne nó Cereus de la Courcel • Favrielle nó Eglantine • Raphael Murain • Mierette nó Orchis • Didier Vascon[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyFhaliarBan Fhaliar Ban]] (Folk of the White Mare) [[labelnote:Characters]]Eamonn mac Conor • Grainne • Brennan • Eamonn mac Grainne • Mairead • Caolinn • Conor[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyMaghuinDhonn Maghuin Dhonn]] (Folk of the Brown Bear) [[labelnote:Characters]]Berlik • Morwen • Fergus • Oengus • Fainche mac Eithne • Moirin mac Fainche[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyStregazza Stregazza]] [[labelnote:Characters]]Cesare Stregazza • Dominic Stregazza • Thérèse de la Courcel Stregazza • Marco Stregazza • Marie-Celeste de la Courcel Stregazza • Severio Stregazza • Ricciardo Stregazza • Allegra Stregazza[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyOtherMediterraneanCharacters Other Mediterranean Characters]] [[labelnote:Characters]]Ptolemy Solon • Melisande Shahrizai de la Courcel • Leander Maignard[[/labelnote]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseCourcel House Courcel]] [[note]]Ganelon de la Courcel, Benedicte de la Courcel, Lyonette de Trevalion, Rolande de la Courcel, Ysandre de la Courcel, Imriel de la Courcel, Sidonie de la Courcel, Alais de la Courcel, Daniel de la Courcel, Thierry de la Courcel, Desiree de la Courcel[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseTrevalion House Trevalion]] [[note]]Marc de Trevalion, Lyonette de Trevalion, Baudoin de Trevalion, Bernadette de Trevalion, Ghislain no Trevalion, Bertran de Trevalion[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseLEnvers House L'Envers]] [[note]]Barquiel L'Envers, Isabel L'Envers de la Courcel, Valere L'Envers, Nicola L'Envers y Aragon[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseMereliot House Mereliot]] [[note]]Roxane de Mereliot, Gerard de Mereliot, Jeanne de Mereliot, Eleanore de Mereliot, Laurentine de Mereliot, Raphael de Mereliot[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseMontreve House Montrève]] [[note]]Sarafiel Delaunay de Montreve, Anafiel Delaunay de Montreve, Alcuin no Delaunay, Phedre no Delaunay de Montreve, Joscelin Verreuil, Imriel no Montreve de la Courcel[[/note]]
** [[Characters/KushielsLegacyMontreveRetainers Montrève Retainers]] [[note]]Guy, Remy, Fortun, Ti-Philippe Dumont, Hugues, Gilot, Eugenie, Gemma, Chlorie, Purnell Friote, Richeline Friote, Denis Friote, Katherine Friote, Charles Friote[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseShahrizai House Shahrizai]] [[note]]Duc Paragon Shahrizai, Melisande Shahrizai de la Courcel, Marmion Shahrizai, Persia Shahrizai, Mavros Sharizai, Roshana Shahrizai, Jean-Baptiste Shahrizai, Balthasar Shahrizai[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseVerreuil House Verreuil]] [[note]]Chevalier Millard Verreuil, Ges Verreuil, Luc Verreuil, Jehane Verreuil, Joscelin Verreuil, Mathieu Verreuil[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyOtherNobility Other Nobility]] [[note]]Baron Jean le Blanc, Baronesse Isabel de Bretel, Childric D'Essoms, Denise Fleurais, Denise Grosmaine, Claude de Monluc, Thelesis de Mornay, Gilles Lamiz, Raife Laniol, Tibault de Toluard, Lelahiah Valais, Isidore D'Aiglemort, Maslin de Lombelon, Tarren D'Eltoine, Lianne Tremaine[[/note]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyCourtOfNightBloomingFlowers Court of Night Blooming Flowers]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyPriesthoodsOfEluaAndHisCompanions Priesthoods of Elua and his Companions]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyCullachGorrym Cullach Gorrym]] (Folk of the Black Boar) [[note]]Necthana, Drustan mab Necthana, Breidaia mab Necthana, Sibeal mab Necthana, Moiread mab Necthana, Talorcan mab Breidaia, Dorelei mab Breidaia[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyTarbhCro Tarbh Cro]] (Folk of the Red Bull) [[note]]Foclaida, Maelcon the Usurper[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyFhaliarBan Fhaliar Ban]] (Folk of the White Mare) [[note]]Eamonn mac Conor, Grainne mac Conor, Brennan mac Grainne, Eamonn mac Grainne, Mairead mac Grainne, Caolinn mac Grainne, Conor mac Grainne[[/note]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyMaghuinDhonn Maghuin Dhonn]] (Folk of the Brown Bear) [[note]]Berlik, Morwen, Fergus, Oengus, Fainche mac Eithne, Moirin mac Fainche[[/note]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyStregazza Stregazza]] [[note]]Cesare Stregazza, Dominic Stregazza, Therese de la Courcel Stregazza, Marco Stregazza, Marie-Celeste de la Courcel Stregazza, Severio Stregazza, Ricciardo Stregazza, Allegra Stregazza[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyPriestessesOfAsheratOfTheSea Priestesses of Asherat-of-the-Sea]] [[note]]The Oracle, the Priestess of the Crown, the Elect[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyOtherSerenissimans Other Serenissimans]] [[note]]Benito Dandi[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyTiberians Tiberians]] [[note]]Master Piero, Deccus Fulvius, Anna Marzoni[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyLuccans Luccans]] [[note]]Gallus Taddeus, Lucius Taddeus de Lucca, Claudia Fulvia, Helena Corregio[[/note]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacySkaldi Skaldi]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyOtherMediterraneanCharacters Other Mediterranean Characters]] [[note]]Ptolemy Solon, Melisande Shahrizai de la Courcel, Leander Maignard[[/note]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyAkkadians Akkadians]] [[note]]Uru Azag, Lugal[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyDrujani Drujani]] [[note]]Markaghir, Tahmuras, Daeva Gashtaham, Tizrav[[/note]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyCarthaginians Carthaginians]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyMenekhetans Menekhetans]] [[note]]Ptolemy Didaikos, Clytemne, The General, Fadil Chouma[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyJebeans Jebeans]] [[note]]Queen, Ras Lijasu, Safiya, Kaneka, Shoanete[[/note]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacySabaeans Sabaeans]]
[[/index]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyPeopleOfChin People of Ch'in]]
* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyBodhistani Bodhistani]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyNativeAmericans Native Americans]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyTsingani Tsingani]]

* [[Characters/KushielsLegacyHouseCourcel House Courcel]] [[note]]Ganelon de la Courcel, Benedict de la Courcel, Lyonette de Trevalion, Rolande de la Courcel, Ysandre de la Courcel, Imriel de la Courcel, Sidonie de la Courcel, Alais de la Courcel, Daniel de la Courcel, Thierry de la Courcel, Desiree de la Courcel[[/note]]

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder: '''Phèdre's trilogy''']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Kushiels_Avatar_front_cover-TheOtherWiki_4081.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Phèdre]]

''Includes the novels '''Kushiel's Dart''', '''Kushiel's Chosen''' and '''Kushiel's Avatar''' ''

!!Hyacinthe

A Tsingano (Roma) who is Phèdre's oldest and dearest friend. Hyacinthe and Phèdre meet as children and stay friends well into adulthood. Hyacinthe has the ability to see the future (called the ''dromonde''), which his mother taught him despite it being forbidden to men by Tsingano law. Towards the end of ''Dart, '' [[spoiler:Hyacinthe takes Phèdre's place to become the new Master of the Straits so that the Alban army can reach Terre d'Ange. Phèdre spends the next two books searching for a way to free him from his curse, which she eventually does in what is both a CrowningMomentOfAwesome and a CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming.]]
----
!!Tropes applying to Hyacinthe:

* AdultFear
* AwwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther
* BabiesEverAfter: Has two children with Sibeal.
* {{Badass}}
* BadassInDistress: In ''Dart'' he becomes the apprentice to the Master of the Straits, and is subject to a geis which binds him to the Third Sister for all enternity. Twelve years later Hyacinthe is Master of the Straits and is forced to wait as Phedre travels across the earth to find the Name of God, which she claims will save him from his fate.
* BlackSheep: He ends up being rejected and disowned by his long-lost family when he speaks the ''dromonde'' in front of them. The ''dromonde'' is strictly forbidden to men in Tsingani culture.
* CheerfulChild: Was this when he was younger.
* ChildByRape: His mother was raped and impregnated by a Bryony House patron who was paid to seduce a Tsingani virgin.
* ChildhoodFriend: He and Phedre are this to one another.
* CompellingVoice
* {{Curse}}: Inherits the curse of the Master of the Straits. He has power over the sea, but he is bound to the Three Sisters and can never leave.
* ElementalPowers: His are water/air.
* FateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler: But he gets better!]]
* FirstLove: He and Phedre are this for each other.
* FortuneTeller: His mother was one. She passes her skills on to him, despite it being forbidden for a male Tsingano to prophesy.
* HappilyMarried: To Sibeal, after the events of ''Kushiel's Avatar''.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Taking Phèdre's place and becoming the new Master of the Straits, condemning himself to a cursed, miserable and lonely existence.]]
* HopeSpot
* IHaveManyNames: The Prince of Travelers, Master of the Straits, Younger Brother, Elder Brother, sea kralis.
* InSeriesNickname: The Prince of Travelers, Master of the Straits, Younger Brother, Elder Brother. Hyacinthe has a lot of nicknames.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With the old Master of the Straits, who Hyacinthe viewed as a sort-of father figure to him.
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Hyacinthe's reason for wedding Sibeal (aside from what is listed below) is that he sees how happy Phedre is with Joscelin and doesn't want to get between them in any way.
* LastGirlWins: Sibeal is the last girl Hyacinthe is introduced to before he is islanded, and he later chooses to marry her due to their common interests and his own love for her.
* LongLostRelative: He meets his grandfather and many other family members while traveling to Alba. They welcome him into their midst, but it unfortunately doesn't last long, as Hyacinthe speaks the forbidden ''dromonde'' in front of them, causing them to cast him out.
* LoveableRogue
* ManlyTears: Weeps when hearing the story of Phedre and Joscelin's quest to find the Name of God and realising how much hell they went through for him.
* TheOnlyPersonICanTrust
* OracularUrchin
* ParentalSubstitute: He hoped to see Manoj as this, but was cast out of the kumpania before he could get the chance. Later while trapped on the Third Sister he comes to view the old Master of the Straits as a father figure to him.
* ThePowerOfFriendship: [[spoiler: He takes Phèdre's place to become the next Master of the Straits. She spends years of study and faces countless dangers to find a way to free him.]]
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Is considered this after becoming the Master of the Straits. Though he seems fearsome and can control the elements and oceans, he is also fair and reasonable.
* ResignedToTheCall: Hyacinthe is resigned to his fate as Master of the Straits and all that comes with it, and is fully prepared to let himself wither away into eternity to prevent anyone else from taking his place. He even begs Phedre (in a round about way) to forget about him and stop trying to break the curse. Luckily Phedre refuses to give up on him.
* UsefulNotes/{{Romani}}: The Tsingani are a FantasyCounterpartCulture to the Roma.
* ScrewDestiny: [[spoiler: Phèdre saves him from his destiny as the Master of the Straits.]]
* SecondLove: [[spoiler: With Sibeal, the second of Drustan's sisters.]]
* {{Seer}}: Uses the ''dromonde'' to see into the future.
* TakeMeInstead: [[spoiler: He offers to take Phèdre's place and become the next Master of the Straits. The Master accepts. It's eventually revealed that he meant to take Hyacinthe all along anyway.]]
* ThousandYardStare: Has shades of this after he is trapped on the Third Sister and takes on the burdens of being the Master of the Straits.
* TookALevelInBadass: He goes from being an ordinary Tsingano in the City of Elua to a man who can control the weather and the oceans. With the sheer amount of power he has he can sink entire cities beneath the waves.
* TrueCompanions: Him and Phèdre.
* UnluckyChildhoodFriend: [[spoiler: He and Phèdre end up being this to one another. They aren't too unhappy about it, since they have their own lives to lead and their own romantic interests. But there will always be a place in their hearts for each other.]]





[[folder: ''' Imriel's trilogy''']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Kushiels_Justice_front_cover-from_Amazon_website_7179.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Imriel]]

'' Includes the novels ''' Kushiel's Scion''', '''Kushiel's Justice''' and '''Kushiel's Mercy''' '

!!Waldemar Selig

A Skaldi warlord who is able to unite all of the various Skaldi tribes under him. In addition to being a fearsome warrior, he is also a cunning leader. He tries to invade Terre d'Ange. [[spoiler: It doesn't go well.]]
----
!!Tropes applying to Selig:
* AffectionateGestureToTheHead: Constantly strokes Phedre's hair to emphasize his ownership of her.
* {{Badass}}
* BarbarianHero
* BraidsOfBarbarism
* DuelToTheDeath: Has them with both [[spoiler: Joscelin and Isidore d'Aiglemort.]]
* FamedInStory: The Skaldi have many songs about him.
* GenghisGambit: Uses one to unite the Skaldi.
* IHaveYouNowMyPretty
* TheLostLenore: Once had a wife he loved dearly, but she got with child quickly, took septic and died. He was never the same afterward.
* MasterSwordsman: Manages to disarm Joscelin in the heat of battle, but [[spoiler: is killed by Isidore d'Aiglemort at Troyes-le-Monte, another master swordsman.]]
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy
[[/folder]]

[[folder: '''Moirin's trilogy''']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Naamahs_Blessing_front_cover_9800.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Moirin]]

''Includes the books '''Naamah's Kiss''', '''Naamah's Curse''', '''Naamah's Blessing''' ''

This trilogy takes place 100 years after the events of the first two trilogies.





!! Queen Jehanne

King Daniel's considerably younger second wife and step mother to Prince Thierry. She was once a famed courtesan in Cereus House before giving up her profession to become queen. At first at odds with Moirin due to a shared rivalry over Raphael de Mereliot, she later becomes a friend and trusted confidante as well as lover to Moirin.
----
!!Tropes applying to Jehanne:

* [[spoiler: DeathByChildBirth]]: [[spoiler: Dies giving birth to a baby daughter by Daniel de la Courcel, named Desiree.]]
* EveryoneLovesBlondes
* HighClassCallGirl: She was an adept of Cereus House before marrying Daniel and becoming queen.
* TheHighQueen
* HotConsort
* GirlsLove: With Moirin
* GoldDigger: Averted. Some of the citizens in the City of Elua think this of her but she and Daniel truly love each other.
* InLoveWithLove
* LoveYouAndEveryBody: She even states that she follows the Elua's precept to the letter, in that she loves as she wilt but cannot continue to do so after getting pregnant for Daniel, as per their arrangement.
* ManipulativeBitch: Less of a bitch than the trope suggests, but she is skilled at using manipulation to get what she wants.
* MsFanservice
* SecondLove: For Daniel
* SexyMentor: Becomes this for Moirin during Kiss.
* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: Said in Kiss to be the most beautiful woman in Terre d'Ange of the generation.
* YourCheatingHeart: On arrangement with her husband no less!
* YuriGenre: The first book in the third trilogy is all about her relationship with Moirin with several detailed sex scenes between the two.
[[/folder]]





[[folder: Other Characters and Groups]]


! The Unseen Guild
The Guild does not directly appear in the novels, but references to them and members of the Guild turn up throughout the first two trilogies. They are based in Caerdicca Unitas and were the ones who taught both [[spoiler: Anafiel Delaunay and Melisande Shahrizai]] their skills. Imriel encounters them in Kushiels Mercy and Kushiels Justice.

* SchoolForSpying
* ShroudedInMyth





[[/folder]]

!! Grainne and Eamonn mac Conor of Eire

The twin rulers of the Dalriada, a tribe in Eire. They are allied with the Alban rebels and later help Phèdre, Drustan and the d'Angelines against the Skaldi invasion.

!!Tropes applying to Grainne and Eamonn:
* CharacterDeath
* FieryRedHead: Grainne
* PolarOppositeTwins
* RedOniBlueOni: Hot tempered Grainne is the red oni while the calmer more rational Eamonn is the blue oni.
* SiblingYinYang


!!Waldemar Selig

A Skaldi warlord who is able to unite all of the various Skaldi tribes under him. In addition to being a fearsome warrior, he is also a cunning leader. He tries to invade Terre d'Ange. [[spoiler: It doesn't go well.]]
----

!!The Mahrkagir

-->''"Ill thoughts, ill words, ill deeds."''

The ruler of Drujan, the Mahrkagir is extremely sadistic and completely evil. Imriel is sold to him, and he subjects the boy to horrific abuse. [[spoiler:Phèdre comes to save him, and the Mahrkagir ends up falling in love with her (although his definition of love is rather different from most people's). She kills him with a hairpin.]]
----
!!Tropes applying to the Mahrkagir

* AlasPoorVillain: Despite the horrific things he does, Phèdre still feels pity for him when she [[spoiler: kills him.]]
* BadIsGoodAndGoodIsBad: The religion of Angra Mainyu is based on this, as illustrated by the quote above.
* BloodSplatteredInnocents: His backstory reveals that he was the only member of his family to survive a particularly brutal massacre.
* DarkMessiah: The followers of Angra Mainyu believe he is this.
* IHaveYouNowMyPretty
* RapeIsLove: [[spoiler: His idea of love is to rape Phèdre with a spiked rod.]]
* ReligionOfEvil: The religion of Angra Mainyu, which the Mahrkagir is head of.
* TortureTechnician
* WouldHurtAChild: He abuses Imriel in some very horrific ways.

!! Gonzalo d'Escabar

!! Eamonn mac Grainne

Son of Grainne mac Conor and Quintilius Rousse. Imriel befriends him when he comes to Terre d'Ange to be fostered briefly by House Montreve.

!!Tropes applying to Eamonn:

* BoisterousBruiser
* IWillFindYou: Falls in love with Brigitta, a Skaldic woman in Imriel's trilogy and after she leaves for Skaldia with her brother, Eamonn vows to find her.

!! Conor mac Graine

Son of Grainne with an unamed lover, later revealed to be of the Maghuin Dhonn. The third trilogy reveals that he later married [[spoiler: Alais de la Courcel]].

!! General Astegal

The Carthaginian general who tried to make Sidonie his wife via means of a magic spell cast over Terre d'Ange.

!! Ptolemy Solon aka ''The Wise Ape'' of Cythera

[[spoiler: Melisande's]] lover and governor of the Hellene island of Cythera. Imriel travels to meet him in Kushiel's Mercy.

* {{ChekhovsGunman}}: [[spoiler: his study of magic is essential to Imriel being able to change his face to look like Leander Maignard and enter Carthage unknown.]]
* [[FanNickname Detractor Nickname]]: He's known as ''The Wise Ape'' in-universe.
* TheSmartGuy
* [[UglyGuyHotWife Ugly Guy Hot Consort]] [[spoiler: Cytheran opinion of his relationship with Melisande, to the extent that they compare it with that of the [in-universe] Greek god Vulcan and his wife the Greek goddess Venus.]]

[[folder: '''Moirin's trilogy''']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Naamahs_Blessing_front_cover_9800.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Moirin]]

''Includes the books '''Naamah's Kiss''', '''Naamah's Curse''', '''Naamah's Blessing''' ''

This trilogy takes place 100 years after the events of the first two trilogies.

!! Moirin mac Fainche

The protagonist of the third trilogy. She begins the story as something of a WildChild, living with her Alban mother in the wilderness. She discovers that she is half Alban and half d'Angeline and that her heritage has given her access to powers outside of the Maghuin Donn. In the first book she travels to Terre d'Ange to find her father and as a result finds herself torn between her desires and her duty.
----
!!Tropes applying to Moirin:

* [[spoiler: BabiesEverAfter]]
* BiTheWay: Most of her relationships in the Naamah novels involve women but her two most recurring paramours are both men.
* CosmicPlaything
* DeclarationOfProtection: Becomes Desiree's oathsworn protector
* EthicalSlut
* FishOutOfWater: Her status during Kiss.
* GirlsLove: Has notable relationships with several women, most importantly Jehanne & Snow Tiger
* GreenEyes: Inherited from her father.
* GreenThumb: One of the abilities her bloodline gives her is the ability to talk to plants and make them grow.
* HeroicSeductress: What her powers from Naamah give her. Every time she feels the pull of her ''diadh-anam'' towards a certain person she ''will'' end up having sex with them.
* HotWitch
* IGaveMyWord: She cannot break an oath sworn on her diadh-aman without losing her powers & connection to the Maghuin Dhonn.
* IWillFindYou: With Bao in ''Curse'' & Thierry in ''Blessing.''
* {{Invisibility}}: Can make herself invisible by summoning the twilight, but can't do it if someone's watching her.
* LineageComesFromTheFather: Inverted. In Alban custom children inherit through the female line. This is why her surname is mac Fainche, meaning ''"from Fainche"''. However, her father's lineage is just as important as it's the source of her powers from Naamah and Anael.
* MagicalGirl: Compared to Phèdre at least. Moirin has a lot more access to magic than the former.
* [[spoiler: MemoryWipingCrew: Becomes the Ch'in emperor's one-woman memory wiping crew at the end of ''Kiss.'']]
* MixedAncestry: Half Alban and half D'Angeline.
* [[AliensMadeThemDoIt My Diadh-Anam Made Me Do It]]: This is often the reason for starting a quest.
* NaiveNewcomer: When she leaves Alba for Terre d'Ange to find her father in Kiss, she's bewildered by d'Angeline customs and almost makes a fool of herself at court.
* PsychicLink: [[spoiler: With Bao after his resurrection]]
* RagsToRiches: Spent her childhood in a cave, then becomes the Queen of Terre d'Ange's lover.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: Her looks are commented on as "exotic" by the d'Angelines and supernatural by the Albans, due to her mixed blood status.
* ReallyGetsAround: And ''how''. Lets put it this way. Phèdre and Imriel from the first two trilogies were either a magically induced to enjoy pain courtesan or an issue-ridden, angsty prince. Both encountered problems directly related to their attitudes about sex (more on Imriel's side). Moirin has [[AnythingThatMoves no such hang ups]]. She may possibly be the protagonist that has the most sex of the three. Judging by the [[JustifiedTrope theme]] of Moirin's trilogy this is probably because her gifts come from Naamah rather than Kushiel.
* RomanticTwoGirlFriendship: Her relationship with Jehanne develops into this by the last third of ''Naamah's Kiss''.
* SuperPowerLottery: Her mother's line is descended from Princess Alais of the second trilogy, giving her the powers of an ''ollamh'' a type of combined seer and priestess. On that note, she also has descent from fallen angels Elua and Naamah through Princess Alais' own combined Courcel/L'Envers heritage. Her father's line is descended from Anael, the fallen angel who gave d'Angelines their farming skills. This gives Moirin the power to turn herself invisible, talk to plants, incite lust in other characters and access the powers of the ''Maghuin Dhonn'' or "bear-witch" in the Alban language.
* TalkingToPlants
* WildChild: At the beginning of the first book.

!! Bao

The apprentice to Master Lo Feng and a former slave. He and Moirin do not get along at first and he spends the first book being a JerkAss. Later on readers learn his tragic backstory and he becomes more sympathetic. Serves as Moirin's protector and [[spoiler: later her lover]] throughout the Naamah trilogy.
----
!!Tropes applying to Bao:

* {{Badass}}: Most fans agree on this.
* [[spoiler: BackFromTheDead]]
* BodyGuardCrush
* CantStandThemCantLiveWithoutThem
* ChildByRape
* [[ChineseGirl Chinese Boy]]
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Was sold into a circus by his parents when he was 3.
* DistressedDude: In ''Curse,'' when he is held in Kurugiri by Jagrati.
* EarnYourHappyEnding: Boy does he ever.
* GrumpyBear
* JerkAss later develops into a JerkWithAHeartOfGold
* AManIsNotAVirgin
* MouthyKid
* PsychicLink: [[spoiler: With Moirin after his resurrection]]
* TheQuietOne: Hardly says a word in Kiss. He [[CharacterDevelopment begins]] to talk more from Curse onwards.
* SexForServices: Offered himself as a sex slave to a man in the circus in exchange for stick fighting lessons.
* SimpleStaff: Is a very skilled staff fighter
* StarCrossedLovers: [[spoiler: Again, with Moirin.]]
* TheStoic
* [[spoiler:UnwantedRevival: Is none too happy about being brought back from death, but eventually comes to accept it.]]

!! Master Lo Feng
----
!!Tropes applying to Lo Feng:

* BadAssGrandPa / RetiredBadAss
* CoolOldGuy
* OldMaster
* TricksterMentor

!! Queen Jehanne

King Daniel's considerably younger second wife and step mother to Prince Thierry. She was once a famed courtesan in Cereus House before giving up her profession to become queen. At first at odds with Moirin due to a shared rivalry over Raphael de Mereliot, she later becomes a friend and trusted confidante as well as lover to Moirin.
----
!!Tropes applying to Jehanne:

* [[spoiler: DeathByChildBirth]]: [[spoiler: Dies giving birth to a baby daughter by Daniel de la Courcel, named Desiree.]]
* EveryoneLovesBlondes
* HighClassCallGirl: She was an adept of Cereus House before marrying Daniel and becoming queen.
* TheHighQueen
* HotConsort
* GirlsLove: With Moirin
* GoldDigger: Averted. Some of the citizens in the City of Elua think this of her but she and Daniel truly love each other.
* InLoveWithLove
* LoveYouAndEveryBody: She even states that she follows the Elua's precept to the letter, in that she loves as she wilt but cannot continue to do so after getting pregnant for Daniel, as per their arrangement.
* ManipulativeBitch: Less of a bitch than the trope suggests, but she is skilled at using manipulation to get what she wants.
* MsFanservice
* SecondLove: For Daniel
* SexyMentor: Becomes this for Moirin during Kiss.
* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: Said in Kiss to be the most beautiful woman in Terre d'Ange of the generation.
* YourCheatingHeart: On arrangement with her husband no less!
* YuriGenre: The first book in the third trilogy is all about her relationship with Moirin with several detailed sex scenes between the two.

!! Snow Tiger

The daughter of the Ch'in Emperor who is believed to have been possessed by a supernatural creature. If she sees her reflection in anything she goes on a killing spree. On the day of her wedding to a Ch'in nobleman she went on a rampage and killed her betrothed and most of his party. Since then she has been locked away in a tower by her father in the hope of keeping her violent sprees under control.
----
!!Tropes applying to Snow Tiger:

* BadassPrincess: Can casually bend steel bars as if they were made of rubber.
* ChineseGirl
* DemonicPossession: What everyone thinks happened to her. [[spoiler: This is only half right, she was possessed by a mythical dragon.]]
* GirlsLove / LesYay [[spoiler: With Moirin when the latter travels to Ch'in]].
* GirlInTheTower
* LadyOfWar
* RavenHairIvorySkin
* SheIsTheKing: Was raised as a son due to her father's lack of a male heir & will rule Ch'in after his death.
* YamatoNadeshiko [[spoiler: was this before getting possessed by the Celestial Dragon]].

!! The Rani Amrita

The Rani (aka queen) of Bhodistan. Moirin travels to meet her in Naamah's Curse.
----
!!Tropes applying to Amrita:

* GlamorousSingleMother
* TheHighQueen
* HundredPercentAdorationRating

!! Temilotzin

A Nahuatl warrior from Terra Nova, (analogous to undiscovered North America)with whom Moirin meets during her travels in Blessing.
----
!!Tropes applying to Temilotzin:

* {{Ambadassador}}: Travels to Terre d'Ange as an ambassador at the end of ''Blessing.''
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy


!! Fainche mac Eithne

Moirin's mother and a [[{{Seer}} seer]] of the Maghuin Dhonn tribe of Alba.
----
!!Tropes applying to Fainche:

* OpenMindedParent
* SomeoneToRememberHimBy: Moirin was the product of a one night stand with Phanuel. Fainche didn't even know his name, just that he was a D'Angeline.

[[/folder]]

! The Tsingani
Notable Tsingani:

!! Anasztaizia

Hyacinthe's mother, a former Tsingani princess who was cast out of the nation when her cousin Csavin gambled away her virginity to a D'Angeline nobleman when gambling in the Night Court. Hyacinthe was born as a result.

!! King Manoj

!! Csavin

! The Yeshuites
Notable Yeshuites:

* Pyotr Rostov
* Leba Rostov - Pyotr's wife
* Valentina Rostov - Pyotr's sister, mother of Aleksei
* Aleksei Rostov - Son of Valentina, nephew of Pyotr

!! Micah ben Ximon

!! Eleazar ben Enokh

!! Seth ben Yavin

!! Liliane de Souverain and Pierre Cantrel

The biological parents of Phèdre nó Delaunay. Liliane de Souverain was part of a long line of women who served Naamah as adepts of the Night Court, namely Jasmine House. Due to the exotic tenets of Jasmine House, she is honey skinned, dark haired and black eyed. Pierre was the third son of a merchant of blond hair and blue eyed persuasion. Liliane ran away to elope with Pierre Cantrel because the Dowayne of the House forbade her marriage to Pierre on the basis that a child from their union would not fit the standards for Jasmine House and because Pierre could not afford to buy her marque. Phèdre was born as a result of their union, but was "too pale for Jasmine House and too dark haired and dark eyed for Cereus House". Before the discovery of Kushiel's Dart, the mote in her eye is seen as a blemish and thus made Phèdre unfit for any of the Houses in the Night Court. When the two are too poor to settle their debts, they sell Phèdre as an indentured servant to the Dowayne of Cereus House.

!!Tropes applying to Pierre and Liliane:

* HotGypsyWoman: Liliane. One of the reasons Phèdre as a child noticed Hyacinthe was because he resembled her mother complexion wise. Most adepts of Jasmine House are rumoured to have Bhodistani (analogous to Indian) ancestry in their heritage.
* ParentalAbandonment: Phedre's parents sold her into indenture in the Night Court, just so Pierre would be able to regain money which he had squandered in his attempt at trading in Caerdicca Unitas.


!!Hyacinthe

A Tsingano (Roma) who is Phèdre's oldest and dearest friend. Hyacinthe and Phèdre meet as children and stay friends well into adulthood. Hyacinthe has the ability to see the future (called the ''dromonde''), which his mother taught him despite it being forbidden to men by Tsingano law. Towards the end of ''Dart, '' [[spoiler:Hyacinthe takes Phèdre's place to become the new Master of the Straits so that the Alban army can reach Terre d'Ange. Phèdre spends the next two books searching for a way to free him from his curse, which she eventually does in what is both a CrowningMomentOfAwesome and a CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming.]]
----

!!Melisande Shahrizai

-->''"Elua cared naught for mortal politics, nor did Kushiel."''

The main villainess of the series. Melisande is ambitious, sadistic, and utterly lacking in any sort of conscience. Her great ambition is to be queen, and so she concocts several Machiavellian plots to help her achieve this. She becomes a patron of Phèdre's, and Phèdre falls in love with her. Phèdre, as an ''anguisette,'' is the perfect outlet for her sadistic desires.

Imriel is her son.

!!Tropes applying to Melisande:

* AffablyEvil: Though she is the main antagonist of the first trilogy and poses a huge danger to Phedre and Terre D'Ange, she is cool and collected and acts cordially to most people (even her ''enemies'') even at the worst of times.
* BeautyIsBad: Melisande is exceptionally beautiful, even among D'Angelines. There have beden a lot of poems and songs written about her.
* BigBad: Of the first two books of the first trilogy.
* BlackWidow: Averted. Melisande is rumored to have killed the men she married, but really, she just made a habit of marrying very old men so she could wait and inherit their money when they died.
%%* BrainsAndBondage
%%* TheChessmaster
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Later in the series, Melisande starts claiming that she always keeps her promises. [[ExactWords Like many things she says,]] [[FromACertainPointOfView this statement should]] [[BlatantLies be taken with a pinch of salt.]]
* TheCorrupter: She excels at manipulating powerful people around her into committing treason.
* DepravedBisexual: As a member of House Shahrizai, this is a given. However, Melisande takes this trope UpToEleven, going to such lengths during assignations with Phedre that Phedre's other patrons wouldn't dream of. She is the only one to use flechettes on Phedre. Shortly before selling Phedre and Joscelin to the Skaldi, she tortures Phedre in an attempt to find out what Rousse's message to Delaunay was, in such a way that Phedre is heartsick and numb afterwards.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Imriel.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: She won't stoop to blasphemy and claims to always keep her promises (though both statements should be taken with a [[FromACertainPointOfView grain of salt]] and [[LoopholeAbuse then some]]. Also, she ''[[MamaBear really]]'' [[PetTheDog loves her son.]]
%%* EvenTheGirlsWantHer
* EvilPlan: Most of her plots can be categorized as this.
* ForTheEvulz: When Phèdre asks her why she did it, she replies, "Because I could."
** It's a little bit more complicated than that. Melisande describes herself as being incapable of caring about the pieces in her games, while simultaneously loving the games she plays. Why does she play? She's D'Angeline.
* FreudianExcuse: Its a minor excuse, but in the second trilogy she appears to have some remorse for her actions and its suggested-that the reason she is the way she is-is because of her father Casimar.
* [[YuriGenre Girls Love]]: With Phèdre.
* [[spoiler:HeelFaceTurn: Debatable, but she does appear to have some remorse for her actions later on in the series. And she does help save Terre d'Ange in ''Mercy.'']]
* InTheBlood: It's implied that her father's method of raising her deeply affected her character. As seen above its a minor excuse.
* JediTruth: Melisande claims she'd never commit blasphemy personally, but [[spoiler: looks the other way when Marie-Celeste corrupts the Serenissiman priestesses. She's also forbidden by Kushieline doctrine to kill the bearer of Kushiel's Dart, but has no problem sending Phèdre into dangerous situations where she'd be indirectly responsible for her death.]]
* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler: Manages to escape all punishment, and gets to live out her days in a villa on a Mediterranean isle. Although it is implied that Imriel's torture at the Mahrkagir's hands is Kushiel's punishment for her.]]
* LackOfEmpathy
* LadyMacbeth: Melisande manipulates both Isidore d'Aiglemort and Prince Benedicte into committing treason in order to further her own ambitions.
* LikableVillain: A large portion of the fandom loves her despite her actions. In ''Kushiel's Avatar'' and the Imriel trilogy, she is painted in a more sympathetic light, and understandable reasons are given for her crimes.
* LoopholeAbuse: See the Jedi Truth section.
* MamaBear: Do not attempt to harm her son. There will be serious consequences if you do.
* [[ManipulativeBastard Manipulative Bitch]]
* PetTheDog: She loves her son more than anything else. Imriel later sees that he is her main weakness, and that her enemies would be able to hurt her by hurting him.
* TheQuisling: Collaborated with Waldemar Selig to orchestrate the Skaldi invasion. If it had succeeded, she would've married Selig and ruled as Queen over a united Terre d'Ange/Skaldia.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: Like all Shahrizai.
%%* {{Romanticized Abuse}}
* {{Sadist}}: Naturally. She revels in Phedre's humiliation and pain during their assignation on the Longest Night, and finds pleasure in watching Suriah squirming in Baudoin's arms during Baudoin's party in Cereus House. However, even she has lines she would never cross.
* SexIsViolence: That's how she likes it.
* WomanInBlack: Wears black when she attends the Midwinter Masque with Phèdre.
* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: Not explicitly described as such, but her beauty is constantly commented on in a nation full of beautiful people.

!! Persia and Marmion Shahrizai
Brother and sister pair who help to bring Melisande to trial for treason at the end of Dart.

!!Ysandre de la Courcel

-->''"Steel beneath a fragile bloom."''

Queen of Terre d'Ange, daughter of Prince Rolande de la Courcel and Isabel L'Envers. Both of her parents die when she is very young, and she inherits the throne after her grandfather's death. She has to deal with numerous plots to overthrow her (mostly orchestrated by Melisande) and family members who want to take her place. Ysandre is a lot tougher than she appears, which frequently causes people to underestimate her. She marries Drustan mab Necthana, the Cruarch of Alba, and they have two daughters: Sidonie and Alais.

!!Tropes applying to Ysandre:

* BabiesEverAfter: In ''Kushiel's Avatar'' Ysandre and Drustan are seen to have two daughters, Alais and Sidonie.
* BigScrewedUpFamily: Other members of House Courcel attempt to take her throne ''twice''.
* [[spoiler:BodyguardBetrayal: One of her Cassiline guards, David de Rocaille, tries to assassinate her to avenge his sister, who was killed by Ysandre's mother.]]
* CelibateHero: Ganelon forbid her from visiting the Night Court so he could make her a foreign alliance through marriage. Justified in that while Terre d'Ange is very liberal about sex, other countries are not. Naturally this trope no longer applies once she marries Drustan.
* TheChainsOfCommanding: Ysandre has to fight to retain her throne on multiple occasions and the strain begins to show in later books.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Her father died when she was just a baby; her mother died when she was seven. She had to live under the shadow of being named a murderess' get because of the actions of her own mother, which killed Rolande's first betrothed. Because she was a woman, nearly every male noble was plotting to steal her throne from her, including her own great-aunt Lyonette and cousin Baudoin, and she was expected to wed strategically and for foreign alliance one day, and it wouldn't have mattered if she liked the match or not. The one match she did like was cancelled, and she had to fight for her chance to actually wed the man she loved. And she also grew up alone in the palace with only an old man for company.
* DefrostingIceQueen: She uses a cold and icy front as a defense mechanism to mask her true feelings. With those she trusts she's much warmer.
** Phedre notes that she rarely loses her temper in public, and considers it a huge sign of trust that Ysandre chooses to do so in front of her and Joscelin.
* {{Determinator}}: After the betrothal between herself and Drustan is cancelled, Ysandre does everything she can to make her dream of wedding himn come true.
* FragileFlower: Appears to be this, but she's actually a case of SilkHidingSteel.
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: She is generally a wise ruler and beloved by her people, but in ''Mercy'' [[spoiler:she declares war on them while under Carthage's spell.]]
* {{GoodParents}}: Both she and Drustan are this to their children.
* HeroicBSOD: Has this in bucketloads after the Carthaginian spell over the city is broken. She is guilt-stricken at the knowledge that she declared war on her own people and her daughter and almost tore apart the country, and tries to abdicate the throne in favour of Sidonie, believing that she is no longer fit to rule as queen. Sidonie refuses to accept the abdication, however, and only agrees to act as reagent for a month as the nation recovers.
* TheHighQueen: Becomes this after the events of ''Dart''.
* HundredPercentAdorationRating: She is well-loved by the D'Angeline people.
* IceQueen: Can be this at times.
* LongDistanceRelationship: She and Drustan only spend half the year together because his duties require him to spend the other half of the year in Alba. They manage to get by like this quite happily.
* MarryForLove: What Ysandre and Drustan end up doing, after the war against the Skaldi has been won.
* [[spoiler:OffingTheOffspring: While enchanted during ''Mercy,'' she declares war on her daughter Alais.]]
* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: Her engagement to Drustan started out as a political match, but they happened to fall in love.
* PoliticallyActivePrincess: She sat with her grandfather during Parliament sessions as Dauphine. She also rules as regent when Ganelon is dying.
* PurpleEyes: Inherited from her mother, Isabel L'Envers.
* RaisedByGrandparents: Her grandfather, King Ganelon, raised her after her parents died.
%%* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* RulingCouple: She and Drustan rule their respective nations side-by-side.
* SilkHidingSteel: Ysandre is made of this trope (see: quote). Phedre notes when she first meets her that she is like those of Cereus House--she appears to be fragile, but underneath she is strong and made of steel.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: Much is made of how greatly she resembles her L'Envers mother, from her blonde hair to her purple eyes.
* WinterRoyalLady: Wears white at the Midwinter Masque in ''Chosen.''
%%* TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask

!! Rolande de la Courcel

Crown prince or ''dauphin'' to the throne of Terre d'Ange in Phèdre's trilogy and father of Ysandre. He was killed during the Battle of the Three Princes twenty or so years before the main action of ''Dart.'' [[spoiler: He and Delaunay were lovers.]]

!!Tropes applying to Rolande:

* AllThereInTheManual: His relationship with [[spoiler: Delaunay]] is fully explained in the short story "You, and You Alone."
* DeathByOriginStory: [[spoiler: Rolande is this for Delaunay.]]
* DisappearedDad: Died at the Battle of the Three Princes, when Ysandre was a baby.
* HeroesWantRedheads: [[spoiler: Fell in love with the redheaded Delaunay.]]
* HundredPercentAdorationRating: He was well-loved by the d'Angeline people.
* LoveTriangle: First with Edmee and Isabel, then with Isabel and [[spoiler: Delaunay.]]
* TheOneThatGotAway: [[spoiler: For Anafiel Delaunay.]]
* PosthumousCharacter: Most of what we know about him comes from other characters, mainly Delaunay. We only officially meet him in "You, and You Alone".
* WarriorPrince: He was a capable warrior, but died in battle against the Skaldi.
* TheWisePrince: Everyone thinks he would've made a great king if he had lived to succeed Ganelon.
* YaoiGuys: [[spoiler: He and Delaunay. He would've made Delaunay his official consort if it weren't for Isabel's jealousy.]]

!! Isabel L'Envers

Sister of Barquiel L'Envers and wife of Prince Rolande. Isabel had the girth of Edmée de Rocaille's saddle tampered with before a hunt, causing her to fall to her death. Delaunay wrote a poem implicating Isabel in the incident, which led to her being called a murderer by some. She and Rolande had one daughter, Ysandre. She is poisoned by Dominic and Therese Stregazza.

!!Tropes applying to Isabel:

* BettyAndVeronica: The Veronica to Edmée's Betty.
* BlondesAreEvil: While not exactly evil, platinum blonde Isabel doesn't come off very well from the limited information we get on her. Even Barquiel, who [[BigBrotherInstinct doesn't respond well]] to anyone insulting his sister, admits she was responsible for Edmee's death.
* ClingyJealousGirl: Was very possessive of Rolande
* GreenEyedMonster: She was bitterly jealous of Edmée because Rolande chose her to be his betrothed, and it was because of this that she orchestrated the hunting accident which led to her death. She also felt this way about Anafiel Delaunay, Rolande's lover.
* LoveTriangle: First with Rolande and Edmée, then with Rolande and [[spoiler:Delaunay.]]
* MissingMom: To Ysandre, who's only 7 when she dies
* MurderTheHypotenuse: Accidental example. She had the girth of Edmée's saddle cut as a means of petty revenge on her rival, but Edmée ended up falling off her horse and snapping her neck as a result.
* PosthumousCharacter: Most of what we know about her comes from other characters.
* PurpleEyes: Like all of House L'Envers.
* TheRival: To Edmée and [[spoiler: Delaunay]], her competitors for Rolande's affections.


!!Drustan mab Necthana

Drustan is the Cruarch of Alba and husband of Ysandre. In ''Kushiel's Dart,'' his throne is usurped and he fights to regain it. Afterward, [[spoiler:he leads an army to Terre d'Ange to fight the Skaldi. His army, along with Isidore d'Aiglemort's, breaks the siege of Troyes-le-Mont and defeats the Skaldi.]] He typically spends half the year in Alba and half in Terre d'Ange. He and Ysandre have two daughters: Sidonie and Alais.

!!Tropes applying to Drustan:
* BabiesEverAfter: He and Ysandre have two children together-- Alais and Sidonie.
* BadassInDistress
* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler: He and the Albans come to the aid of Terre d'Ange during the Skaldi invasion. They defeat the Skaldi by joining up with Isidore d'Aiglemort's army to relieve Troyes-le-Mont.]]
* DarkAndTroubledPast
* DisappearedDad: His father was killed by Maelchon after the latter usurped the Alban throne.
* FacialMarkings: Has woad patterns tattooed on his face.
* FamedInStory: He asks Phèdre to make sure the deeds of the Albans are remembered, in case they die during the battle of Troyes-le-Monte.
* GoodParents: He and Ysandre and very good parents towards their two daughters.
* HandicappedBadass: Drustan has a lame foot, causing him a limp and great pain as he walks. Despite this he is a strong fighter and his men are extremely loyal to him.
* HappilyMarried: To Ysandre, after the events of ''Dart''.
* TheLadysFavour: Phèdre gives him a ring from Ysandre, which he wears into battle.
* LongDistanceRelationship: He and Ysandre spend half the year apart because his duties require him to split his time between Alba and Terre d'Ange.
* LoveRuinsTheRealm: Inversion- his love for Ysandre actually ''saves'' the realm.
* ObfuscatingDisability: Has a clubfoot, but it doesn't hinder his fighting ability.
* NobleSavage: D'Angelines see him as this due to their tendency to look down on non-D'Angeline peoples.
* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: When Ysandre was sixteen years old they were betrothed to one another, and ended up falling in love. [[spoiler: However, after the Alban throne was usurped Ganelon called off the betrothal, thinking it to be not worth it. This resulted in Ysandre searching for a way for them to marry and be together.]]
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: The Albans are a proud warrior race, but Drustan is quiet and thoughtful rather than bloodthirsty.
* TheQuietOne: He doesn't say much, but when he does speak he says much.
* RightfulKingReturns: Has his throne usurped by his cousin. [[spoiler: He regains it with the aid of Phèdre and the Dalriada.]]
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* RulingCouple: He and Ysandre rule their respective nations side-by-side.

!! Grainne and Eamonn mac Conor of Eire

The twin rulers of the Dalriada, a tribe in Eire. They are allied with the Alban rebels and later help Phèdre, Drustan and the d'Angelines against the Skaldi invasion.

!!Tropes applying to Grainne and Eamonn:
* CharacterDeath
* FieryRedHead: Grainne
* PolarOppositeTwins
* RedOniBlueOni: Hot tempered Grainne is the red oni while the calmer more rational Eamonn is the blue oni.
* SiblingYinYang

!! Necthana

Sister of the former Cruarch and the mother of Drustan and his sisters.

!!Isidore d'Aiglemort

Duc of the province of Camlach and a skilled warrior. He plots with Melisande to betray Terre d'Ange to the Skaldi by letting them in the mountain passes of Camlach. [[spoiler: He later learns that Melisande double crossed him, and joins up with the Alban army to defeat the Skaldi and get back at Melisande. He slays Waldemar Selig in battle, but dies shortly afterward, thereby redeeming himself.]]

!!Tropes applying to Isidore:

* AmbitionIsEvil: Melisande was able to use Isidore's ambition to push him into committing treason.
%%* {{Badass}}
%%* TheCorruptible
* [[spoiler: DeathEqualsRedemption: Phèdre informs him that he's dead no matter who wins the war, which leads to his HeelFaceTurn.]]
* DeathSeeker: [[spoiler:He knows he's dead no matter who wins the war, so he chooses a hero's death to avoid being remembered as a traitor.]]
* [[spoiler:DefeatingTheUndefeatable: Selig was believed to be immune to weapons. Isidore killed him anyway.]]
* DisappearedDad: To Maslin.
* TheDogBitesBack: [[spoiler: After finding out Melisande betrayed him, he switches sides in order to get back at her.]]
* DuelToTheDeath: With Selig at Troyes-le-Monte.
* [[spoiler: DyingMomentOfAwesome: Manages to kill Selig before dying himself.]]
* FallenHero: Was a war hero before he turned traitor. He regains his hero status after his HeroicSacrifice, though.
* [[spoiler:HeelFaceTurn: He rejoins the side of the heroes after discovering that Melisande played him for a fool the whole time.]]
* [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice: Dies in the battle of Troyes-le-Monte in his attempt to kill Waldemar Selig.]]
* [[InSeriesNickname In-Series Nickname]]: The Skaldi call him ''Kilberhaar'' in reference to his silver hair.
* MasterSwordsman: One of the most skilled in the series. Being descended from the angel of war definitely helps. He's so good that he managed to [[spoiler: kill Waldemar Selig after fighting through hordes of Skaldi to get to him.]]
* MeaningfulName: Aiglemort means "eagle death" in French. Isidore's standard is a silver eagle.
* NewChildLeftBehind: Left behind a pregnant lover when he went off to war.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Subversion. The Camaelines are a proud warrior race, which leads everyone to downplay Isidore's intelligence due to the belief that they all "think with their swords." As a result, everyone underestimates him.
* [[spoiler: RedemptionEqualsDeath: He duels and kills Selig, taking his death wound to do it, atoning for his role in orchestrating the invasion.]]
* [[WhiteHairBlackHeart Silver Hair, Black Heart]]: Isidore has silver hair (hence his Skaldic name, Kilberhaar) but unlike Alcuin he is a traitor of Terre D'Ange.
* TakingYouWithMe: Manages to kill Selig alongside himself.
* ToxicFriendInfluence: Melisande is this to him, encouraging his ambitions and ultimately leading him to commit treason.
* UnwittingPawn: Was played for a fool by Melisande, who was only using him as a distraction to allow the Skaldi to invade unnoticed. Once the Skaldi won she had planned for D'Aiglemort to be executed as a traitor to the country to tie up any 'loose ends'. Once Isidore found this out, he was furious and decided to get back at Melisande in whatever way he could.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Betrayed Baudoin de Trevalion, who'd been his close friend for years, by exposing his treasonous plans.

!!Waldemar Selig

A Skaldi warlord who is able to unite all of the various Skaldi tribes under him. In addition to being a fearsome warrior, he is also a cunning leader. He tries to invade Terre d'Ange. [[spoiler: It doesn't go well.]]

!!Tropes applying to Selig:
* AffectionateGestureToTheHead: Constantly strokes Phedre's hair to emphasize his ownership of her.
* {{Badass}}
* BarbarianHero
* BraidsOfBarbarism
* DuelToTheDeath: Has them with both [[spoiler: Joscelin and Isidore d'Aiglemort.]]
* FamedInStory: The Skaldi have many songs about him.
* GenghisGambit: Uses one to unite the Skaldi.
* IHaveYouNowMyPretty
* TheLostLenore: Once had a wife he loved dearly, but she got with child quickly, took septic and died. He was never the same afterward.
* MasterSwordsman: Manages to disarm Joscelin in the heat of battle, but [[spoiler: is killed by Isidore d'Aiglemort at Troyes-le-Monte, another master swordsman.]]
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy


!!The Mahrkagir

-->''"Ill thoughts, ill words, ill deeds."''

The ruler of Drujan, the Mahrkagir is extremely sadistic and completely evil. Imriel is sold to him, and he subjects the boy to horrific abuse. [[spoiler:Phèdre comes to save him, and the Mahrkagir ends up falling in love with her (although his definition of love is rather different from most people's). She kills him with a hairpin.]]

!!Tropes applying to the Mahrkagir

* AlasPoorVillain: Despite the horrific things he does, Phèdre still feels pity for him when she [[spoiler: kills him.]]
* BadIsGoodAndGoodIsBad: The religion of Angra Mainyu is based on this, as illustrated by the quote above.
* BloodSplatteredInnocents: His backstory reveals that he was the only member of his family to survive a particularly brutal massacre.
* DarkMessiah: The followers of Angra Mainyu believe he is this.
* IHaveYouNowMyPretty
* RapeIsLove: [[spoiler: His idea of love is to rape Phèdre with a spiked rod.]]
* ReligionOfEvil: The religion of Angra Mainyu, which the Mahrkagir is head of.
* TortureTechnician
* WouldHurtAChild: He abuses Imriel in some very horrific ways.

!! Thelesis de Mornay

The former King's Poet to Ysandre's grandfather, King Ganelon, now Queen's Poet to Queen Ysandre. She has a beautiful voice and her poetry is famed throughout Terre d'Ange.

!!Tropes applying to Thelesis de Mornay:

* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: Despite being seen as the most skilled poet across the kingdom (and possibly in-universe too) she is said to have always thought that Anafiel Delaunay was the better poet.
* TheConfidante: To the Dauphine Ysandre.
* TheExile: At some point in her life she was exiled to Alba, for reasons unknown. It was there she wrote her famous poem ''The Exile's Lament''. It is mostly because of her exile in Alba that she is trusted with Ysandre's and Delaunay's secret plan to bring Drustan onto D'Angeline soil so Ysandre can marry him.
* IllGirl: Thelesis falls ill with the fever sickness during the Bitterest Winter, and never fully recovers from it.
%%* [[MrExposition Mrs Exposition]]
* OddFriendship: She becomes one of Phèdre's closest allies after the events of Dart.
* PlainJane: One of the very few examples in the whole of Terre d'Ange. Phèdre notes that her voice however makes up for her lack of beauty.
* ThePowerOfTrust: Thelesis is so trusted by Ysandre and House Courcel that none of the palace guards bother checking her for weapons. As the Dauphine's confidante and the King's (later Queen's) Poet, she is above suspicion.

!! Gonzalo d'Escabar

!! Quintilius Rousse

Admiral of the Royal Navy and a good friend of Delaunay.

!!Tropes applying to Quintilius:

* BoisterousBruiser
* FatherNeptune
* FieryRedhead


!! Miriam Bouscevre

The Dowayne of Cereus House early on in Phèdre's trilogy. It is she who introduces Phèdre to Anafiel Delaunay.

!!Tropes applying to Miriam:

* CoolOldLady
* IronLady

!! Cecilie Laveau-Perrin

A widow and former adept of Cereus House and friend of Anafiel Delaunay. Anafiel hires her to teach Phèdre and Alcuin how to be courtesans in the first trilogy.
----
!!Tropes applying to Cecilie:

* HighClassCallGirl: Was one of the top courtesans in Terre d'Ange in her heyday.
* ProfessionalSexEd: Teaches Phèdre and Alcuin Naamah's arts
* SilkHidingSteel: Like many Cereus adepts.

!! Favrielle no Eglantine

Dressmaker and designer. She fashions most of Phèdre's clothes during Avatar and Imriel's trilogy. By the time of Moirin's trilogy her business Atelier Favrielle is the most popular dress maker in Terre d'Ange.
----
!!Tropes applying to Favrielle:

* TheFashionista
* FieryRedHead
* GrumpyBear
* InsufferableGenius

[[folder: ''' Imriel's trilogy''']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Kushiels_Justice_front_cover-from_Amazon_website_7179.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Imriel]]

'' Includes the novels ''' Kushiel's Scion''', '''Kushiel's Justice''' and '''Kushiel's Mercy''' ''
!! Dorelei mab Breidaia

Drustan's niece and Imriel's later wife. [[spoiler: She is killed by Berlik of the Maghuin Dhonn in order to prevent a prophecy that her son with Imriel would grow up to destroy the Maghuin Dhonn.]]
----
!!Tropes applying to Dorelei:

* ArrangedMarriage: Between her and Imriel. [[spoiler: It doesn't work out.]]
* BettyAndVeronica: The Betty to Sidonie's Veronica.
* [[spoiler: CharacterDeath/DeathOfTheHypotenuse]]: She is killed by Berlik to prevent an unwanted future from coming true-- namely that her and Imriel's son would cause the end of the Maghuin Donn and their culture.
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: She makes Urist promise to see Imriel safely back to Sidonie's arms if anything should happen to her, because she truly loves Imriel and wants him to be happy, and also does not want him to succumb to the grief, guilt and bitterness she knows he will feel if she ever dies.
* LoveTriangle: Between her, Imriel, and Sidonie.
* NiceGirl: She is very kind-hearted and warm, and never has it in her to be mean to others.
%%* NiceJobBreakingItHero
* SilkHidingSteel: She appears to be kind and simple on the outside, but as Imriel finds out there is much more to her than that.


!!Maslin de Lombelon

Bastard son of Isidore d'Aiglemort, who [[spoiler: dies before he can acknowledge him.]] Maslin serves as a foil to Imriel, since they are both sons of traitors but they are treated very differently. Because of this, Maslin holds a lot of resentment toward Imriel. [[spoiler: They eventually do become friends when he shows up in Vralia to rescue Imriel during ''Kushiel's Justice.'']]
----
!!Tropes applying to Maslin:

* BastardBastard: Starts off as this due to his resentment/jealousy of Imriel.
* BetterAsFriends: He and Sidonie.
* DeadGuyJunior: Was named after his grandfather, Maslin d'Aiglemort.
* DeclarationOfProtection: He becomes the captain of Sidonie's guard.
%%* DontYouDarePityMe
* [[spoiler:FireForgedFriends: He & Imriel become friends during their time together in Vralia.]]
* {{Foil}}: To Imriel. Both are sons of traitors, but Imriel is welcomed into the royal family while Maslin's parentage went unacknowledged. Imriel is a prince and Maslin works as a servant on the estate he was supposed to inherit.
* GreenEyedMonster: Maslin is very jealous of Imriel due to the differences in their circumstances.
* HeroicBastard: Eventually becomes this.
* InTheBlood: Like his father, he's a skilled swordsman.
* LoveTriangle: With Imriel and Sidonie.
* MasterSwordsman: Inherited his father's skills, though he started learning late.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Imriel gives Maslin his estate of Lombelon and Maslin deeply resents him for it.
* [[spoiler:PutOnABus: Chooses to stay in Vralia and serve as ambassador at the end of ''Justice.'' He isn't seen again until the very end of the trilogy, when he shows up for Imriel and Sidonie's wedding.]]
* RagsToRiches: Starts out as a laborer in the orchards that were supposed to be his inheritance, ends up [[spoiler:ambassador to Vralia.]]
* ReassignedToAntarctica: He's sent to spend time with the Unforgiven after beating Raul L'Envers y Aragon badly in a duel.
* RelationshipUpgrade: He and Sidonie begin sleeping together in ''Justice'' after Imriel marries Dorelei and goes to Alba.
* TheRival: To Imriel, though it's rather one-sided since Imriel would rather befriend him.
%%* RomanticRunnerUp
* TellMeAboutMyFather: Maslin is very interested in his father and eagerly listens to any memories of Isidore anyone shares with him.





!! Eamonn mac Grainne

Son of Grainne mac Conor and Quintilius Rousse. Imriel befriends him when he comes to Terre d'Ange to be fostered briefly by House Montreve.
----
!!Tropes applying to Eamonn:

* BoisterousBruiser
* IWillFindYou: Falls in love with Brigitta, a Skaldic woman in Imriel's trilogy and after she leaves for Skaldia with her brother, Eamonn vows to find her.

!! Conor mac Graine

Son of Grainne with an unamed lover, later revealed to be of the Maghuin Dhonn. The third trilogy reveals that he later married [[spoiler: Alais de la Courcel]].

!! General Astegal

The Carthaginian general who tried to make Sidonie his wife via means of a magic spell cast over Terre d'Ange.

!! Ptolemy Solon aka ''The Wise Ape'' of Cythera

[[spoiler: Melisande's]] lover and governor of the Hellene island of Cythera. Imriel travels to meet him in Kushiel's Mercy.

* {{ChekhovsGunman}}: [[spoiler: his study of magic is essential to Imriel being able to change his face to look like Leander Maignard and enter Carthage unknown.]]
* [[FanNickname Detractor Nickname]]: He's known as ''The Wise Ape'' in-universe.
* TheSmartGuy
* [[UglyGuyHotWife Ugly Guy Hot Consort]] [[spoiler: Cytheran opinion of his relationship with Melisande, to the extent that they compare it with that of the [in-universe] Greek god Vulcan and his wife the Greek goddess Venus.]]

!! Leander Maignard

A kinsman of House Shahrizai, albeit a few generations removed. He is living with the rest of his family in Cythera with Melisande as her retainers. Imriel meets him in Kushiel's Justice.

* WildMassGuessing : Fans theorised that [[spoiler: Melisande used a shapeshifting magic to use his form to go to Terre d'Ange and see Imriel (her son) get married, as she is in exile]]. Jacqueline Carey has flat out denied this on her blog, saying that it was "a good idea", but that "[[spoiler: Melisande]] is the sort to see her games to the end and that she would rather show her face than hide in the shadows".

[[folder: '''Moirin's trilogy''']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Naamahs_Blessing_front_cover_9800.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Moirin]]

''Includes the books '''Naamah's Kiss''', '''Naamah's Curse''', '''Naamah's Blessing''' ''

This trilogy takes place 100 years after the events of the first two trilogies.

!! Moirin mac Fainche

The protagonist of the third trilogy. She begins the story as something of a WildChild, living with her Alban mother in the wilderness. She discovers that she is half Alban and half d'Angeline and that her heritage has given her access to powers outside of the Maghuin Donn. In the first book she travels to Terre d'Ange to find her father and as a result finds herself torn between her desires and her duty.
----
!!Tropes applying to Moirin:

* [[spoiler: BabiesEverAfter]]
* BiTheWay: Most of her relationships in the Naamah novels involve women but her two most recurring paramours are both men.
* CosmicPlaything
* DeclarationOfProtection: Becomes Desiree's oathsworn protector
* EthicalSlut
* FishOutOfWater: Her status during Kiss.
* GirlsLove: Has notable relationships with several women, most importantly Jehanne & Snow Tiger
* GreenEyes: Inherited from her father.
* GreenThumb: One of the abilities her bloodline gives her is the ability to talk to plants and make them grow.
* HeroicSeductress: What her powers from Naamah give her. Every time she feels the pull of her ''diadh-anam'' towards a certain person she ''will'' end up having sex with them.
* HotWitch
* IGaveMyWord: She cannot break an oath sworn on her diadh-aman without losing her powers & connection to the Maghuin Dhonn.
* IWillFindYou: With Bao in ''Curse'' & Thierry in ''Blessing.''
* {{Invisibility}}: Can make herself invisible by summoning the twilight, but can't do it if someone's watching her.
* LineageComesFromTheFather: Inverted. In Alban custom children inherit through the female line. This is why her surname is mac Fainche, meaning ''"from Fainche"''. However, her father's lineage is just as important as it's the source of her powers from Naamah and Anael.
* MagicalGirl: Compared to Phèdre at least. Moirin has a lot more access to magic than the former.
* [[spoiler: MemoryWipingCrew: Becomes the Ch'in emperor's one-woman memory wiping crew at the end of ''Kiss.'']]
* MixedAncestry: Half Alban and half D'Angeline.
* [[AliensMadeThemDoIt My Diadh-Anam Made Me Do It]]: This is often the reason for starting a quest.
* NaiveNewcomer: When she leaves Alba for Terre d'Ange to find her father in Kiss, she's bewildered by d'Angeline customs and almost makes a fool of herself at court.
* PsychicLink: [[spoiler: With Bao after his resurrection]]
* RagsToRiches: Spent her childhood in a cave, then becomes the Queen of Terre d'Ange's lover.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: Her looks are commented on as "exotic" by the d'Angelines and supernatural by the Albans, due to her mixed blood status.
* ReallyGetsAround: And ''how''. Lets put it this way. Phèdre and Imriel from the first two trilogies were either a magically induced to enjoy pain courtesan or an issue-ridden, angsty prince. Both encountered problems directly related to their attitudes about sex (more on Imriel's side). Moirin has [[AnythingThatMoves no such hang ups]]. She may possibly be the protagonist that has the most sex of the three. Judging by the [[JustifiedTrope theme]] of Moirin's trilogy this is probably because her gifts come from Naamah rather than Kushiel.
* RomanticTwoGirlFriendship: Her relationship with Jehanne develops into this by the last third of ''Naamah's Kiss''.
* SuperPowerLottery: Her mother's line is descended from Princess Alais of the second trilogy, giving her the powers of an ''ollamh'' a type of combined seer and priestess. On that note, she also has descent from fallen angels Elua and Naamah through Princess Alais' own combined Courcel/L'Envers heritage. Her father's line is descended from Anael, the fallen angel who gave d'Angelines their farming skills. This gives Moirin the power to turn herself invisible, talk to plants, incite lust in other characters and access the powers of the ''Maghuin Dhonn'' or "bear-witch" in the Alban language.
* TalkingToPlants
* WildChild: At the beginning of the first book.

!! Bao

The apprentice to Master Lo Feng and a former slave. He and Moirin do not get along at first and he spends the first book being a JerkAss. Later on readers learn his tragic backstory and he becomes more sympathetic. Serves as Moirin's protector and [[spoiler: later her lover]] throughout the Naamah trilogy.
----
!!Tropes applying to Bao:

* {{Badass}}: Most fans agree on this.
* [[spoiler: BackFromTheDead]]
* BodyGuardCrush
* CantStandThemCantLiveWithoutThem
* ChildByRape
* [[ChineseGirl Chinese Boy]]
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Was sold into a circus by his parents when he was 3.
* DistressedDude: In ''Curse,'' when he is held in Kurugiri by Jagrati.
* EarnYourHappyEnding: Boy does he ever.
* GrumpyBear
* JerkAss later develops into a JerkWithAHeartOfGold
* AManIsNotAVirgin
* MouthyKid
* PsychicLink: [[spoiler: With Moirin after his resurrection]]
* TheQuietOne: Hardly says a word in Kiss. He [[CharacterDevelopment begins]] to talk more from Curse onwards.
* SexForServices: Offered himself as a sex slave to a man in the circus in exchange for stick fighting lessons.
* SimpleStaff: Is a very skilled staff fighter
* StarCrossedLovers: [[spoiler: Again, with Moirin.]]
* TheStoic
* [[spoiler:UnwantedRevival: Is none too happy about being brought back from death, but eventually comes to accept it.]]

!! Master Lo Feng
----
!!Tropes applying to Lo Feng:

* BadAssGrandPa / RetiredBadAss
* CoolOldGuy
* OldMaster
* TricksterMentor

!! Queen Jehanne

King Daniel's considerably younger second wife and step mother to Prince Thierry. She was once a famed courtesan in Cereus House before giving up her profession to become queen. At first at odds with Moirin due to a shared rivalry over Raphael de Mereliot, she later becomes a friend and trusted confidante as well as lover to Moirin.
----
!!Tropes applying to Jehanne:

* [[spoiler: DeathByChildBirth]]: [[spoiler: Dies giving birth to a baby daughter by Daniel de la Courcel, named Desiree.]]
* EveryoneLovesBlondes
* HighClassCallGirl: She was an adept of Cereus House before marrying Daniel and becoming queen.
* TheHighQueen
* HotConsort
* GirlsLove: With Moirin
* GoldDigger: Averted. Some of the citizens in the City of Elua think this of her but she and Daniel truly love each other.
* InLoveWithLove
* LoveYouAndEveryBody: She even states that she follows the Elua's precept to the letter, in that she loves as she wilt but cannot continue to do so after getting pregnant for Daniel, as per their arrangement.
* ManipulativeBitch: Less of a bitch than the trope suggests, but she is skilled at using manipulation to get what she wants.
* MsFanservice
* SecondLove: For Daniel
* SexyMentor: Becomes this for Moirin during Kiss.
* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: Said in Kiss to be the most beautiful woman in Terre d'Ange of the generation.
* YourCheatingHeart: On arrangement with her husband no less!
* YuriGenre: The first book in the third trilogy is all about her relationship with Moirin with several detailed sex scenes between the two.


!! Duc Rogier de Barthelme
----
!!Tropes applying to Rogier:

* [[spoiler: AmbitionIsEvil]] / [[spoiler: EvilChancellor]]: Wants to take power by betrothing his young son to [[spoiler: Daniel and Jehanne's daughter Desiree]]
* NumberTwo: For King Daniel.
* RegentForLife
* YaoiGuys: With Moirin's father when they both were younger.

!! Snow Tiger

The daughter of the Ch'in Emperor who is believed to have been possessed by a supernatural creature. If she sees her reflection in anything she goes on a killing spree. On the day of her wedding to a Ch'in nobleman she went on a rampage and killed her betrothed and most of his party. Since then she has been locked away in a tower by her father in the hope of keeping her violent sprees under control.
----
!!Tropes applying to Snow Tiger:

* BadassPrincess: Can casually bend steel bars as if they were made of rubber.
* ChineseGirl
* DemonicPossession: What everyone thinks happened to her. [[spoiler: This is only half right, she was possessed by a mythical dragon.]]
* GirlsLove / LesYay [[spoiler: With Moirin when the latter travels to Ch'in]].
* GirlInTheTower
* LadyOfWar
* RavenHairIvorySkin
* SheIsTheKing: Was raised as a son due to her father's lack of a male heir & will rule Ch'in after his death.
* YamatoNadeshiko [[spoiler: was this before getting possessed by the Celestial Dragon]].

!! The Rani Amrita

The Rani (aka queen) of Bhodistan. Moirin travels to meet her in Naamah's Curse.
----
!!Tropes applying to Amrita:

* GlamorousSingleMother
* TheHighQueen
* HundredPercentAdorationRating

!! Temilotzin

A Nahuatl warrior from Terra Nova, (analogous to undiscovered North America)with whom Moirin meets during her travels in Blessing.
----
!!Tropes applying to Temilotzin:

* {{Ambadassador}}: Travels to Terre d'Ange as an ambassador at the end of ''Blessing.''
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy


!! Fainche mac Eithne

Moirin's mother and a [[{{Seer}} seer]] of the Maghuin Dhonn tribe of Alba.
----
!!Tropes applying to Fainche:

* OpenMindedParent
* SomeoneToRememberHimBy: Moirin was the product of a one night stand with Phanuel. Fainche didn't even know his name, just that he was a D'Angeline.

[[/folder]]



[[folder: '''The Court of Night-Blooming Flowers''']]

! Court of Night-Blooming Flowers

An elite cadre of prostitutes known as ''Servants of Naamah'' that are the highest ranked courtesans in Terre d'Ange. Prostitution is considered a religious act for adepts of the Court, as it is elsewhere in Terre d'Ange, and adepts make offerings to Naamah during their service. All thirteen houses are based in the City of Elua, the d'Angeline capital in the district known as ''Mont Nuit''. Each house has its own motto which both serves to provide their unique theory as to why Naamah offered herself to the King of Persis in d'Angeline folklore and to describe the tenets conveyed by each house.

* BandOfBrothels
* FlowerMotifs
* [[HighClassCallGirl High Class Call Girl/Boy]]: All adepts are this.
* RedLightDistrict: The hill all of the houses are located on is known as Mont Nuit.
* SchoolOfSeduction
* SexAsRiteOfPassage: A visit to the Night Court is a typical part of a D'Angeline noble's sixteenth birthday celebration.
* UnproblematicProstitution
* WorkOffTheDebt: Adepts pay off their debt to their house by making their marque.

!! ''The Houses''
!! Alyssum House

-->''With Eyes Averted''

!! Balm House

-->''Rest and Be Soothed''

House of the Night Court dedicated to healing. Balm adepts are often expert masseurs. Imriel visits Balm for his first assignation during ''Kushiel's Scion.''

* HappyEndingMassage
* HealingHands
* IntimateHealing
* SexForSolace: Imriel visits Balm House for his first trip to the Night Court, where an adept helps heal some of the scars left by his experiences in Darsanga.

!! Bryony House

-->''Wealth Seeks Company''

The house of the Night Court associated with wealth. Byrony caters to patrons who find money and wealth arousing. The adepts are skilled in money management and many go on to work in the royal treasury after making their marques. They are also expert gamblers.

* TheBet: The first rule of Bryony House is never bet against its Dowayne. Also, Bryony adepts are the only ones in the Night Court willing to wager for their favors.
* TheCasino: The house has a casino-like atmosphere.
* GoldDigger: The house caters to those who are attracted to money.
* MoneyFetish
* ProfessionalGambler
* StripPoker: Naturally

!! Camellia House

-->''Without Fault or Flaw''

The House of perfection. Camellia House has no canon save perfection, meaning the only qualification for adepts is that they must be incredibly beautiful.

* TheBeautifulElite: Camellia adepts are extremely beautiful, even among D'Angelines.
* HiredForTheirLooks: While other houses require adepts to have particular skill sets, all Camellia requires is that its adepts be physically perfect.

!! Cereus House

-->''All Loveliness Fades''

The first of the 13 houses, Cereus House celebrates the fragile and ephemeral nature of beauty. Because of its status as the first house, Cereus hosts the Midwinter Masque for the Night Court every year. Phèdre was fostered in Cereus House for six years before joining Delaunay's household. In Moirin's trilogy, Queen Jehanne is a former Cereus adept.

* EveryoneLovesBlondes: Blonde hair is the canon of Cereus House.
* FragileFlower: Cereus House runs on this trope.
* MasqueradeBall: Hosts the Night Court's Midwinter Masque every year.
* PlentyOfBlondes
* SilkHidingSteel: Some Cereus adepts possess an inner core of steel despite their delicate appearance.
* WinterRoyalLady: Cereus always provides the Winter Queen for the Night Court's Midwinter Masque.

!! Dahlia House

-->''Upright and Unbending''

The house of dignity. Dahlia adepts are known for being proud and haughty toward their patrons.

* ProudBeauty

!! Eglantine House

-->''To Create is to Live''

!! Gentian House

-->''Truth and Vision''

The house of spirituality and mysticism. Gentian adepts specialize in mystic disciplines, such as dream interpretation. Phèdre visits Gentian during ''Kushiel's Chosen'' to make sense of her troubled dreams.

* DreamWalker: Adepts are skilled in dream interpretation.
* HigherUnderstandingThroughDrugs
* IntimatePsychotherapy
* PsychicDreamsForEveryone

!! Heliotrope House

-->''Thou, and No Other''

The house of devotion. Heliotrope adepts specialize in creating an illusion of love for their patrons.

* DevotedToYou

!! Jasmine House

-->''For Pleasure's Sake''

The house of pleasure and sensuality. Phèdre's mother was a Jasmine adept before marrying her father. The house caters to sensual pleasure and has an exotic atmosphere. It is even said that there is Bhodistani (Indian) blood in the houses's adepts.

* BellyDancer: Some adepts are this.
* TheHedonist
* RoyalHarem: The house has an Eastern-inspired harem atmosphere, to the extent that the adepts actually dress up as harem members for the Longest Night.
* SexGod: Jasmine adepts are known for their stamina

!! Mandrake House

-->''Yield All''

One of the two houses of the Night Court specializing in BDSM, Mandrake is the house of Dom(me)s.

* AllWomenAreDomsAllMenAreSubs: Averted, as the house has both male & female adepts.
* BrainsAndBondage
* SexIsViolence
* ATasteOfTheLash
* WhipItGood

!! Orchis House

-->''Joy in Laughter''

!! Valerian House

-->''I Yield''

One of the two houses of the Night Court specializing in BDSM, Valerian is the house of subs. Phèdre would've ended up in Valerian House if Delaunay hadn't bought her marque. The Shahrizai have a standing contract with the house, which includes their own private dungeon.

* AllWomenAreDomsAllMenAreSubs: Averted, as the house has both male & female adepts.
* BoundAndGagged
* BrainsAndBondage
* SexIsViolence

[[/folder]]

[[folder: Other Characters and Groups]]


! The Unseen Guild
The Guild does not directly appear in the novels, but references to them and members of the Guild turn up throughout the first two trilogies. They are based in Caerdicca Unitas and were the ones who taught both [[spoiler: Anafiel Delaunay and Melisande Shahrizai]] their skills. Imriel encounters them in Kushiels Mercy and Kushiels Justice.

* SchoolForSpying
* ShroudedInMyth


! The Tsingani
Notable Tsingani:

!! Anasztaizia

Hyacinthe's mother, a former Tsingani princess who was cast out of the nation when her cousin Csavin gambled away her virginity to a D'Angeline nobleman when gambling in the Night Court. Hyacinthe was born as a result.

!! King Manoj

!! Csavin

! The Yeshuites
Notable Yeshuites:

* Pyotr Rostov
* Leba Rostov - Pyotr's wife
* Valentina Rostov - Pyotr's sister, mother of Aleksei
* Aleksei Rostov - Son of Valentina, nephew of Pyotr

!! Micah ben Ximon

!! Eleazar ben Enokh

!! Seth ben Yavin

[[/folder]]

!!Phèdre nó Delaunay de Montrève

-->''"That which yields is not always weak."''

The heroine and narrator of the first three books, her most distinguishing feature is a scarlet mote in her left eye. Phèdre is sold into indentured servitude as a child and her bond is eventually purchased by Anafiel Delaunay. Delaunay recognizes what the scarlet mote in her eye means: Phèdre is an ''anguissette'', one who is cursed to experience pain and pleasure as one. He teaches her how to listen and observe as well as the "arts of the bedchamber." Phèdre frequently uses her skills as both courtesan and spy to save Terre d'Ange from various deadly plots.

!!Tropes applying to Phèdre:

* ActionGirl: Has shades of this. Though Phedre's talent is mainly in the bedroom and the spying game, she also has some ability in self-defense and tumbling. The Night Court taught her the former, and Delaunay taught her the latter. Delaunay also teaches her other skills, such as how to tread quietly and in the dark, which she uses to her advantage in various situations.
** On the eve of the battle at Troyes-le-Monte, Phedre sneaks into the enemy's camp and climbs the battlements of the castle to warn the trapped people there of the coming battle.
** After La Dolorosa falls under attack by Joscelin and the Yeshuites, Phedre manages to escape her cell by tricking the guard Fabron into coming close to her to sexually touch her and kneeing him in the balls while he does so.

* AFriendInNeed: After Hyacinthe sacrifices his place in the world to become the next Master of the Straits, thus being put under a horrible geis, Phedre is determined to help him break free of it, and does not stop until she finds a way to save him from his fate.
* AttemptedRape: In Selig's steading, while she is going to farewell Gunter and his household Phedre is almost raped by a group of Skaldi men. It's only thanks to Joscelin that it doesn't happen.
* BabiesEverAfter: Subverted-- Phedre and Joscelin choose not to have children for fear of one of them inheriting Kushiel's Dart. They do raise Imriel, however.
* {{Badass}}: She is a courtesan who is trained to think, and is a Hero of the Realm.
* BadassAdorable: She is incredibly attractive and seems meek and submissive to those who bed her. However, that doesn't mean that she's weak. It's something which her patrons and enemies are completely fooled by.
* BadassBookworm: Phedre is of a very scholarly bent (largely because of Delaunay's influence) and dedicates a lot of her time to learning languages and reading scholarly books. Her motto (also Delaunay's) is 'All knowledge is worth having', which says a lot about her character.
* BadDreams: Phedre is plagued by one in ''Kushiel's Chosen'' which she can't remember; after visiting Gentian's House he realises that it means she must go to La Serinissima and possible danger to hunt for Melisande Shahrizai.
** She is also plagued by a few of these in ''Kushiel's Avatar'', the first of which serves as a plot-triggering event in the novel. The rest show Phedre's stress and fear as her quest continues and her feeling of travelling towards darkness and doom grows, and also serve as guidance from the gods.
* BadassInDistress: After discovering Melisande's treachery, both Phedre and Joscelin are drugged by her and sold into slavery among the Skaldi. They are unable to escape until months later, when they come to Selig's steading and are there almost alone during a stag hunt. Much later, Phedre is held captive in La Dolorosa (again, by Melisande) and only manages to escape from the prison by sheer luck.
** In ''Mercy'', she is put under the Carthaginians' spell like everyone in the city (except Imriel) and has to be saved from it by Imriel and Sidonie.
* BatheHerAndBringHerToMe: When Phedre is held captive in La Dolorosa in ''Chosen'', Melisande visits from time to time. When she does, Phedre is forced to wash don clean clothes.
* BigDamnKiss
* BiTheWay: Like all D'Angelines.
* BlessedWithSuck/CursedWithAwesome: Depends on the situation. Phèdre has very conflicting feelings about being an anguissette. It makes her experience pain as pleasure, which sounds convenient on the surface, but can actually be very complicated. On the one hand, it means she's almost impossible to torture. On the other hand, Phèdre is sometimes frightened by her own needs and desires and doesn't like that she takes pleasure from pain, cruelty, and humiliation.
* BodyGuardCrush: Joscelin is hired to guard Phedre while she goes on assignations. When they first meet one of Phedre's first thoughts is that he is quite handsome.
* BornLucky: Averted, at least according to Phedre herself. She claims that she is unlucky because her parents gave her a cursed name.
* BoundAndGagged: Happens to her a lot, largely during assignations.
* BrainsAndBondage: She's made of this trope.
* BrainyBrunette: Phèdre is a very smart brunette. Justified, since she'd need to be, given her profession as a spy.
* BringNewsBack: Happens in Dart when Phèdre and Joscelin [[spoiler: flee Skaldia in the dead of winter in order to warn Ysandre of the impending invasion]]. Also, Phèdre spends the entire second half of Chosen trying to warn Terre d'Ange of Melisande's plan [[spoiler: to assassinate Ysandre]].
* BrownEyes: But with a red mote in her left iris.
* CatchPhrase: "Ah, Elua!"
* ChildhoodFriends: With Hyacinthe, who is also her oldest friend.
* TheChosenOne: She is Kushiel's Chosen, something which certainly has its upsides and downsides. As frequently mentioned, the gods use their chosen ''hard'', and Phedre is used hardest of all.
* ColdBloodedTorture: Waldemar Selig tries this on Phedre outside Troyes-le-Monte, in an attempt to get information out of her and send a huge message to Ysandre and the other D'Angeline nobility trapped inside the castle. He tries to ''skin Phedre alive''. Though Phedre previously stated that she is impervious to torture, she notes that (like in this case) there are types of pain which she can't gain pleasure from.
* CompellingVoice: A few times Kushiel has made his influence known through her. Generally simple things like getting people to stand down and listen. Also taken to the max when she learned [[spoiler: the name of God]]. In ''Kushiel's Avatar'', this occurs when Imriel is being tormented by Jolanta and her friends in the ''zenana'' (and right after having been raped, too). Phedre is so furious at them that she yells at them to stop, which they do, unsurprisingly.
* TheConscience: To Melisande.
* CunningLinguist: Both meanings.
* DaughterOfAWhore: Her mother was an adept of the Night Court, though she had already left to wed her one true love when she had Phedre. Though 'whore' is not entirely accurate, as Naamah's arts are considered sacred worship, many characters refer to Naamah's Servants as 'whores' (mostly foreigners who do not believe in Elua and his companions being gods). The Dowayne of Cereus House, however, says this trope almost word-for-word when Liliane gives away her daughter to her.
* {{Determinator}}: Phedre never gives up during her quest to warn Ysandre of Melisande's treachery and the invasion that is coming, and also never gives up in trying to thwart Melisande's assassination of Ysandre. She also tries her hardest to rescue Melisande's son from his slavery, going to such levels which only the gods ask of her, and also never falters in her quest to free Hyacinthe from his FateWorseThanDeath. Seeing everything she achieves during her trilogy through sheer stubbornness and force of will, clearly Phedre is the ''queen'' of determinators.
* DiamondsInTheBuff: Melisande gives her a sheer dress studded with diamonds and a matching collar with a diamond to wear when they attend the Midwinter Masque together.
* EthicalSlut: She has other lovers, such as Nicola, but Joscelin is okay with it now and he's still her official consort.
* EvenTheGirlsWantHer: Has female patrons as well as male ones. This is perfectly normal in Terre d'Ange.
* ExpectingSomeoneTaller: When Hugues meets Phedre in ''Kushiel's Avatar'', he is surprised at how short she is. Phedre is annoyed at this, but Joscelin tells her that with all she has accomplished anyone who knows of her expects her to be over fifty feet tall.
* FamedInStory: She becomes famous as a hero of the realm and one of the top courtesans in Terre d'Ange. One hundred years later, Moirin mac Fainche is very familiar with Phèdre's story.
* FamilyOfChoice: Instead of her parents (who abandoned her to be raised in the Night Court), Phedre's family consists of her mentor Delaunay, her foster-brother Alcuin, her consort Joscelin, Montreve's retainers and servants, and her foster-son, Imriel de la Courcel. And Hyacinthe, her oldest friend who is like a brother to her (though the relationship is not entirely platonic). Phedre doesn't even ''think'' much about her parents anymore; to her they are most likely dead.
* TheFashionista: She does care quite a bit about clothing, and eventually becomes a fashion trendsetter.
* FireForgedFriends: With the women of the ''zenana'' and Imriel, during their time in Darsanga. Also Kazan and his pirates in ''Chosen'', and Joscelin in ''Dart''. Phedre makes a lot of friends when she is in dangerous situations and trying to find a solution and thwart Melisande's plans.
* FriendsWithBenefits: Phèdre and Nicola L'Envers y Aragon are essentially this.
* GondorCallsForAid: Phedre goes to Alba with Joscelin, Hyacinthe and Rousse and his men to gain the military help they need to defeat the Skaldi from the Albans and Dalriadans.
* GoodThingYouCanHeal: She heals quickly and cleanly, an added bonus of being an ''anguissette''. Most characters comment upon it throughout the course of the series with some surprise, given Phedre's profession.
%%* GuileHero
%%* HeroicBSOD
* HighClassCallGirl: She's one of the top courtesans in all of Terre d'Ange.
* HookerWithAHeartOfGold: She's a kind person and will go out of her way to help those less fortunate, such as when she paid Favrielle's marque.
* HotBlooded: Very much so as a child, though her experiences mellow her considerably later in her life.
* IHaveNoSon: After Phedre is taken in by Cereus House her family has nothing to do with her (as per the Dowayne's orders). Her mother essentially disowned her by taking up the Dowayne's offer. Since she was only four years old, Phedre is less affected by this than she might have been; it only cements her personal identity as a 'whore's unwanted get'.
* IJustWantToBeNormal: Phèdre goes through a stage in ''Avatar'' when she wishes she were no longer Kushiel's Chosen. There are also other times in the books when she hates the fact that she's an ''anguissette.''
* IndenturedServitude: Was sold into indenture by her mother when she was four years old.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With the Rebbe in ''Chosen'', Cecilie Laveau-Perrin, her cook Eugenie, Anafiel Delaunay, Master Gonzago D'Escarbares.
* ItsAllMyFault: Blames herself for Anafiel Delaunay and Alcuin's deaths, thinking that if she hadn't been stupid enough to give away Rousse's messenger to Melisande (or if she had simply told Delaunany about what had happened when she got back to the house) then it wouldn't have happened.
** Also blames herself for Remy and Fortun's deaths, for a similar reason.
* LadyInRed: Wears red dresses on several occasions, most notably at the Midwinter Masque in ''Chosen.'' There's also her sangoire cloak, made of a special shade of dark red that may only be worn by ''anguissettes''.
* MadeASlave: Sold to the Skaldi in ''Dart'' by Melisande, and to the Margkhagir in Drujan in ''Avatar''.
* MamaBear: To Imriel. [[spoiler: To the point where in ''Avatar'', she offers herself in Imriel's place as a sacrifice after Imriel accidentally spills blood on the island of Kapporeth. To spill blood is death, and Phedre is completely willing to take Imriel's place in this if it means Imriel's survival.]] Also, in ''Justice'', after discovering that Imriel had been wrongly arrested as a Tatar spy she chews out both the captain of the guard in Tarkov and Micah ben Ximon (Micah for not sending a man with proof of Imriel's innocence from the battlefield; the captain for making the mistake of arresting Imriel in the first place. It's clear to everyone involved that you ''do not'' mess with the people Phedre cares about, least of all Imriel.
* MeaningfulName: Phèdre mentions that hers is an "ill-luck" name but says her parents were likely unaware of this connotation.
* MsFanservice: Many of her sex scenes definitely qualify as fanservice. Justified, since she's a Servant of Naamah--it's basically her job to be like this.
%%* MyGreatestFailure
%%* NiceJobBreakingItHero
* OfficialCouple: With Joscelin.
* {{Omniglot}}: Learns many languages over the course of the series, many of them drilled into her by Delaunay. She has a talent for them and often picks them up quickly. So far, she is proficient in Skaldi, Cruithne, Eiran, Caerdicci, Zenyan and Habiru, gets along alright in Aragonian and manages to pick up Je'bez and Vralian as well.
* ParentalAbandonment: When Phedre is four years old, her parents sell her into indentured servitude because they're broke.
* ParentalSubstitute: Is one to Imriel.
* PimpedOutDress: Wears a lot of these, usually to an assignation or at the Midwinter Masque.
* RagsToRiches: She starts out as a "whore's unwanted get" and ends up the Comtesse de Montrève.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: Less so on the covers, but describes herself as this in the books proper.
* ReallyGetsAround: Causes Imriel no small amount of angst when he realizes she's slept with quite a few really important people, including a decent chunk of the D'Angeline aristocracy. Curiously, Phèdre tends towards monogamy when Kushiel grants her peace.
* SexForServices: Phèdre offers herself to the Duc de Morhban in exchange for passage across his lands.
* SexIsViolence: She craves this due to her nature as an ''anguissette'', but can enjoy sex that doesn't involve pain.
* SexSlave: Is sold as a sex slave to the Skaldi and the Mahrkagir. Melisande also wants to keep her as one.
* SexyBacklessOutfit: To show off her marque.
* SheCleansUpNicely: At the Allthing, Gunter orders his women to clean up Phedre nicely so that she can be presented to Selig as a gift.
** Every time Phedre dresses for the Midwinter Masque at the palace everyone in her household is awed by how beautiful she looks in her costume.
* SlaveCollar: Melisande puts a leash and collar on Phèdre when they spend the Longest Night together.
* StartingANewLife: Phedre is abandoned by her parents as a small child to be raised in the Night Court. Years later her bond is sold to Anafiel Delaunay, causing her life to take a very drastic turn as she is taught the arts of the bedchamber and covertsy by her mentor and slowly grows into her full potential as Kushiel's Chosen.
** At the end of ''Dart'' she becomes the Comtess de Montreve, Delaunay having named her as one of his heirs in his will, and the previous Comte having had no heirs to succeed him after his death.
* TooKinkyToTorture: She says in ''Dart'' that she cannot be forced to reveal secrets through torture. [[spoiler: This is proven true when Waldemar Selig tries skinning her alive to make her talk.]]
* TragicKeepsake: Phedre makes a habit of keeping small items as keepsakes, to force herself to remember certain events.
* TrueCompanions: In ''Dart'', with Alcuin and Hyacinthe (and later Joscelin). In ''Chosen'' with Remy, Fortun, Ti-Philippe and Joscelin. In ''Avatar'' with Joscelin and Ti-Philippe, and later the women of the ''zenana''. And in the second trilogy with Joscelin, Imriel, Ti-Philippe and Hugues (as well as others in the Montreve household).
* UnwittingPawn: On Phedre's Longest Night assignation, Melisande parades her around in front of all the peers of Kusheth to find out which one of them is allied with Delauanay. She later tricks Phedre into telling her that Delaunay is waiting for a message from Quintilius Rousse. Phedre is unaware that she is being used until the day Delaunay and is household are murdered and Melisande reveals her treachery to her.
* WhatTheHellHero: Does this to the Yeshuites at Camlach after they provoke an unnecessary fight against the Unforgiven which kills three of their people. If they had agreed to come in for questioning and told the Unforgiven the truth of why they were trying to go north into Skaldia, none of it would have happened.
* WhipItGood: She frequently gets whipped during assignations.
* YuriGenre: Most notably with Melisande and Nicola.

!! Liliane de Souverain and Pierre Cantrel

The biological parents of Phèdre nó Delaunay. Liliane de Souverain was part of a long line of women who served Naamah as adepts of the Night Court, namely Jasmine House. Due to the exotic tenets of Jasmine House, she is honey skinned, dark haired and black eyed. Pierre was the third son of a merchant of blond hair and blue eyed persuasion. Liliane ran away to elope with Pierre Cantrel because the Dowayne of the House forbade her marriage to Pierre on the basis that a child from their union would not fit the standards for Jasmine House and because Pierre could not afford to buy her marque. Phèdre was born as a result of their union, but was "too pale for Jasmine House and too dark haired and dark eyed for Cereus House". Before the discovery of Kushiel's Dart, the mote in her eye is seen as a blemish and thus made Phèdre unfit for any of the Houses in the Night Court. When the two are too poor to settle their debts, they sell Phèdre as an indentured servant to the Dowayne of Cereus House.

!!Tropes applying to Pierre and Liliane:

* HotGypsyWoman: Liliane. One of the reasons Phèdre as a child noticed Hyacinthe was because he resembled her mother complexion wise. Most adepts of Jasmine House are rumoured to have Bhodistani (analogous to Indian) ancestry in their heritage.
* ParentalAbandonment: Phedre's parents sold her into indenture in the Night Court, just so Pierre would be able to regain money which he had squandered in his attempt at trading in Caerdicca Unitas.

!!Anafiel Delaunay

-->''"All knowledge is worth having."''

Phèdre's mentor. Delaunay is a nobleman with a mysterious past and an important mission. He adopts Phèdre into his household, trains her, and uses her to spy on his enemies. Eventually it is revealed that [[spoiler:Delaunay was once the consort of long-dead Prince Rolande. He swore a vow to protect Rolande's daughter Ysandre, the Dauphine. His choice to honor this vow leads to his death at the hands of Isidore d'Aiglemort's men, who botched their orders to watch him.]]

!!Tropes applying to Delaunay:

* AffectionateGestureToTheHead: Delaunay shows his affection for Phedre and Alcuin by stroking their hair.
* AllThereInTheManual: His full backstory and relationship with [[spoiler: Prince Rolande]] was revealed in a short story called "You, and You Alone."
* [[spoiler: AnyoneCanDie: Did ''anyone'' see his death coming?]]
* BatmanGambit: Uses these on several occasions, such as when he told Barquiel the identity of Isabel's poisoners, knowing he'd take revenge and thus remove them as threats.
* BiTheWay: Has relationships with both men and women, but his most important ones are with men.
* [[spoiler:BuryYourGays: He and Alcuin die in the first third of ''Dart.'']]
* [[spoiler: CharacterDeath: Is murdered in his own home by D'Aiglemort's men in ''Dart''.]]
* TheChessmaster: Patiently works behind the scenes to [[spoiler: protect Ysandre]].
%%* DarkAndTroubledPast
%%* DeadpanSnarker
* DeclarationOfProtection: [[spoiler: He swore a vow to protect Ysandre and her claim to the throne of Terre D'Ange. He means to do everything he can to fulfill that promise.]]
* {{Determinator}}: He will stop at nothing to fulfill his pledge to Rolande.
* [[spoiler: DevotedToYou: Was completely devoted to Rolande, so much so that he refused to marry and ended up being disowned for it. His love for Rolande is what drives him to protect Ysandre and work to ensure her succession onto the throne.]]
* EnemyMine: He decides to make peace with Barquiel L'Envers, who's been his enemy for years, since they both have an interest in protecting Ysandre.
* HotBlooded: Very much so, in his youth. His rash decision to write the poem which labelled Isabel L'Envers a murderess (caused in part by grief and rage, as well as a sense of justice needing to be done) had drastic and bitter consequences for him, as his poetry is banned and burned and he gains the enmity of L'Envers and House Courcel. It seems that this is partly why Rolande was so attracted to him.
* IGaveMyWord: Delaunay is hell-bent on keeping his promise to Rolande and ensuring Ysandre's succession to the throne. Though many characters express doubt and disbelief at his determination to fulfill a dead man's wish, he still soldiers on.
* IHaveNoSon: Was disowned by his father when he refused to marry and have children. This is why he's known as Anafiel Delaunay instead of Anafiel de Montrève.
* ItsAllMyFault: He is guilt-ridden after Guy's death, feeling like he should have done more to stop it and the events leading up to it.
* LikeASonToMe: It's revealed in ''Dart'' and ''You, and You Alone'' that he views Phedre and Alcuin as this. Though Alcuin becomes something more...
* LoveTriangle: [[spoiler: Between Delaunay, Rolande, and Isabel L'Envers, which ends tragically.]] A second one occurs between himself, Alcuin and Phèdre, though he's largely unaware of it.
* TheMentor: To Phedre and Alcuin.
* MentorOccupationalHazard: [[spoiler: Dies during ''Dart.'']]
* MysteriousPast: Phèdre, Alcuin, and Hyacinthe spend a lot of time puzzling over Delaunay's past. Eventually they learn the truth. As Hyacinthe's mother predicted, they rue the day(s) which they find out who Delaunay really is.
%%* NiceJobBreakingItHero
* ObliviousToLove: Delaunay has no clue about Alcuin's feelings for him until Phedre tells him of them.
* PapaWolf: Delaunay will do anything to protect those he loves, including Phedre and Alcuin. At Baudoin's party, when two of Baudoin's men assault Phedre he draws his sword at them and with a ''very'' dangerous look on his face reminds Baudoin that Phedre and Alcuin are his invited guests, implying that there will be serious consequences if harm comes to either of them.
* ParentalSubstitute: Is this for Phèdre and Alcuin. Until they both fall in love with him, that is.
* RedheadedHero: Delaunauy is described as having auburn hair. He has a very noble streak and thus ends up playing the hero in a lot of situations.
* SecondLove: Alcuin is his.
* StarCrossedLovers: [[spoiler: He and Rolande, due to Isabel L'Envers' jealousy.]]
* TeethClenchedTeamwork: See EnemyMine example above.
* WarriorPoet: He was one of the most skilled poets in Terre d'Ange, to the degree that the King's Poet thought he was better than her. He's also a capable warrior.
* WifeHusbandry: Unintentional example. He adopts Phèdre and Alcuin and raises them, thinking they see him as a father figure. Instead they both fall in love with him.
* YaoiGuys: [[spoiler: He has long-term relationships with Rolande and Alcuin.]]


!!Alcuin nó Delaunay

Alcuin is Delaunay's other pupil. As with Phèdre, he teaches Alcuin to listen and observe and uses him to spy on his enemies. But unlike Phèdre, Alcuin hates working as a courtesan and does it all out of love for Delaunay. He and Delaunay become a couple once Alcuin has made his marque.

!!Tropes applying to Alcuin:

* [[spoiler:BuryYourGays: Dies alongside Delaunay at the hands of Isidore d'Aiglemort's men.]]
* [[spoiler: CharacterDeath: Is murdered in Delaunay's home by D'Aiglemort's men in ''Dart''.]]
* DeceasedParentsAreTheBest: His parents were killed during a Skaldi raid.
* DoomedHometown: His home village of Trefail was decimated by the Skaldi, just moments after Delaunay took him away from there.
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: Has male patrons as well as female.
* [[FirstGirlWins First Guy Wins]]: Delaunay adopted him first as a very young child. They end up together after Alcuin completes his marque.
* LoveTriangle: Both he and Phèdre are in love with Delaunay. [[FirstGirlWins He wins.]]
* MayDecemberRomance: He and Delaunay.
* NiceGuy: He is generally a nice person.
* SecondLove: For Delaunay.
%%* YaoiGuys


!!Joscelin Verreuil

-->''"In Cassiel's name, I protect and serve."''

Joscelin is a member of the Cassiline Brotherhood, a celibate order of warrior-priests, who is hired by Delaunay to protect Phèdre on her assignations. At first Joscelin is very prudish and uptight, but he gradually relaxes. He and Phèdre dislike each other initially, but they eventually fall in love. He is one of the most skilled and dangerous warriors in the series.

!!Tropes applying to Joscelin:
* AdultFear: After storming out of their house in La Serenissima with no intent of returning, Joscelin hears news that Phedre, Remy and Fortun have gone missing at the Little Court. He understandably freaks, and after Ti-Philippe joins them they set out to find and rescue Phedre. They try to take La Dolorosa, where Phedre is imprisoned, but in the attempt Phedre falls off the cliff and into the sea (which has very strong currents) and is presumed dead. Joscelin ''majorly'' freaks out at the thought that his rescue attempt accidentally got Phedre killed.
** He also has to endure Phedre being raped and abused in Darsanga by the Markaghir, while being unable to do a thing about it.
* AngerBornOfWorry: Has this in ''Chosen'' toward Phedre after she sneaks out of the townhouse by herself without anyone in the household knowing to rededicate herself to Naamah.
* AwwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther
* BabiesEverAfter: Subverted-- Phedre and Joscelin choose not to have children for fear of one of them inheriting Kushiel's Dart. They do raise Imriel, however.
* {{Badass}}: As a Cassiline, this is a given.
* BerserkButton: Do not, DO NOT try to harm Phèdre near him. Imriel's also off limits.
* BigDamnHeroes: He along with Phedre and the other D'Angelines bring the Alban army to Terre D'Ange to aid the D'Angeline army in expelling the invading Skaldi from the land.
* BigDamnKiss: Phedre gives him one on the battlements of Troyes-le-Monte, after he sees his brother surrounded by Skaldi and is debating whether or not to help him. It's followed by a profession of Phedre's love for him and a threat to never say those words again to him if he chooses his vow over his brother's life.
* CannotStandThemCannotLiveWithoutThem: His relationship with Phèdre.
* CatchPhrase/BadassCreed: "In Cassiel's name, I protect and serve."
* CharacterDevelopment
* CelibateHero: Is this until his first time with Phèdre.
* TheComicallySerious
* CoolUncle: Is this to his nieces and nephews, who think it very awesome that they have a hero of the realm for an uncle.
* DeclarationOfProtection: He vows to protect Phèdre.
* {{Determinator}}
* DuelToTheDeath: See CrowningMomentOfAwesome.
* EvenTheGuysWantHim: In-universe inversion: the Skaldi men think he's a pretty boy and not a real man because he doesn't have a beard, but the Skaldi women certainly find him attractive.
* FireForgedFriends: With Phedre after their time in Skaldia (though their friendship blossoms into something more), and later Ti-Philippe, who he had disliked a little because of their contrasting personalities. While working together after Phedre's disappearance in the Little Court, Joscelin sees a different side to Philippe and begins to like him more. He admits to Phedre later that he owes much to Philippe, who organised their retreat from La Dolorosa and remained steady and reliable while Joscelin was nearly catatonic about what happened to Phedre.
* GetAHoldOfYourselfMan: Phèdre does this to him when they're enslaved in Skaldia.
* HeroicBSOD: Being sold as a slave to the Skaldi nearly kills him, until Phèdre snaps him out of it.
* HonorBeforeReason: Especially in ''Dart''. He gradually relaxes, though.
* InterruptedSuicide: [[spoiler:Joscelin is about to kill himself and Phèdre to save them from Waldemar Selig when Barquiel L'Envers charges in at the last minute to rescue them.]]
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold
* KnifeNut: He typically fights with a pair of daggers. Cassiline Brothers are only supposed to draw their swords to kill.
* LetsGetDangerous: When he gets his sword out, especially if Phèdre is in danger. The same is true of all Cassilines.
* LikeASonToMe: He views Imriel as this, even when ensnared in Carthage's spell.
* MadeASlave: Is sold to the Skaldi as a slave alongside Phedre in ''Dart''.
* AManIsNotAVirgin: Inversion. He's a virgin before his first time with Phèdre, but she isn't.
* MasterSwordsman: Though he relies primarily on his daggers and only draws his sword to kill.
* MercyKill: [[spoiler: He comes to do this for Phèdre when Selig is skinning her alive. Fortunately, he doesn't need to go through with it.]]
** Phedre also believes thatr he is about to perform the ''terminus'' in ''Chosen'', when their group is confronting the Yeshuites and the Unforgiven at Camlach. She never finds out for certain if it really was the ''terminus'' however.
** In ''Mercy'' he promises to deliver one to Ysandre if L'Envers and Alais take the City of Elua.
* MrFanservice: Many women in the series find him attractive, including quite a few of the women in Gunter's steading. Has plenty of fangirls in the fandom as well.
* MyGirlIsASlut: At first, Joscelin is disgusted by what Phèdre's chosen occupation. They nearly break up when she decides to resume working as a courtesan. However, he comes to terms with it eventually.
* NoAccountingForTaste: How most D'Angelines see Phèdre's relationship with him. Phedre and Joscelin do not care.
** Conversely, this is how he feels about Phèdre's attraction to Melisande.
* OhCrap
* ParentalSubstitute: Is one to Imriel.
* {{Pride}}
* StartingANewLife
* TheStoic
* TookALevelInBadass
* UndyingLoyalty: To Phèdre, especially after ''Chosen''. He willingly followed her into [[{{Mordor}} Drujan]] when nobody else would.
* UnresolvedSexualTension: It gets pretty thick between him and Phèdre, but then it gets resolved.
* WarriorMonk: All Cassiline Brothers are basically this.
* WeaksauceWeakness: Gets seasick ridiculously easily.
* YouAreWorthHell: He goes into Darsanga, the Kushielverse's equivalent of hell on earth, for Phèdre.


!!Hyacinthe

A Tsingano (Roma) who is Phèdre's oldest and dearest friend. Hyacinthe and Phèdre meet as children and stay friends well into adulthood. Hyacinthe has the ability to see the future (called the ''dromonde''), which his mother taught him despite it being forbidden to men by Tsingano law. Towards the end of ''Dart, '' [[spoiler:Hyacinthe takes Phèdre's place to become the new Master of the Straits so that the Alban army can reach Terre d'Ange. Phèdre spends the next two books searching for a way to free him from his curse, which she eventually does in what is both a CrowningMomentOfAwesome and a CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming.]]

!!Tropes applying to Hyacinthe:

* AdultFear
* AwwLookTheyReallyDoLoveEachOther
* BabiesEverAfter: Has two children with Sibeal.
* {{Badass}}
* BadassInDistress: In ''Dart'' he becomes the apprentice to the Master of the Straits, and is subject to a geis which binds him to the Third Sister for all enternity. Twelve years later Hyacinthe is Master of the Straits and is forced to wait as Phedre travels across the earth to find the Name of God, which she claims will save him from his fate.
* BlackSheep: He ends up being rejected and disowned by his long-lost family when he speaks the ''dromonde'' in front of them. The ''dromonde'' is strictly forbidden to men in Tsingani culture.
* CheerfulChild: Was this when he was younger.
* ChildByRape: His mother was raped and impregnated by a Bryony House patron who was paid to seduce a Tsingani virgin.
* ChildhoodFriend: He and Phedre are this to one another.
* CompellingVoice
* {{Curse}}: Inherits the curse of the Master of the Straits. He has power over the sea, but he is bound to the Three Sisters and can never leave.
* ElementalPowers: His are water/air.
* FateWorseThanDeath: [[spoiler: But he gets better!]]
* FirstLove: He and Phedre are this for each other.
* FortuneTeller: His mother was one. She passes her skills on to him, despite it being forbidden for a male Tsingano to prophesy.
* HappilyMarried: To Sibeal, after the events of ''Kushiel's Avatar''.
* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Taking Phèdre's place and becoming the new Master of the Straits, condemning himself to a cursed, miserable and lonely existence.]]
* HopeSpot
* IHaveManyNames: The Prince of Travelers, Master of the Straits, Younger Brother, Elder Brother, sea kralis.
* InSeriesNickname: The Prince of Travelers, Master of the Straits, Younger Brother, Elder Brother. Hyacinthe has a lot of nicknames.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With the old Master of the Straits, who Hyacinthe viewed as a sort-of father figure to him.
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: Hyacinthe's reason for wedding Sibeal (aside from what is listed below) is that he sees how happy Phedre is with Joscelin and doesn't want to get between them in any way.
* LastGirlWins: Sibeal is the last girl Hyacinthe is introduced to before he is islanded, and he later chooses to marry her due to their common interests and his own love for her.
* LongLostRelative: He meets his grandfather and many other family members while traveling to Alba. They welcome him into their midst, but it unfortunately doesn't last long, as Hyacinthe speaks the forbidden ''dromonde'' in front of them, causing them to cast him out.
* LoveableRogue
* ManlyTears: Weeps when hearing the story of Phedre and Joscelin's quest to find the Name of God and realising how much hell they went through for him.
* TheOnlyPersonICanTrust
* OracularUrchin
* ParentalSubstitute: He hoped to see Manoj as this, but was cast out of the kumpania before he could get the chance. Later while trapped on the Third Sister he comes to view the old Master of the Straits as a father figure to him.
* ThePowerOfFriendship: [[spoiler: He takes Phèdre's place to become the next Master of the Straits. She spends years of study and faces countless dangers to find a way to free him.]]
* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: Is considered this after becoming the Master of the Straits. Though he seems fearsome and can control the elements and oceans, he is also fair and reasonable.
* ResignedToTheCall: Hyacinthe is resigned to his fate as Master of the Straits and all that comes with it, and is fully prepared to let himself wither away into eternity to prevent anyone else from taking his place. He even begs Phedre (in a round about way) to forget about him and stop trying to break the curse. Luckily Phedre refuses to give up on him.
* UsefulNotes/{{Romani}}: The Tsingani are a FantasyCounterpartCulture to the Roma.
* ScrewDestiny: [[spoiler: Phèdre saves him from his destiny as the Master of the Straits.]]
* SecondLove: [[spoiler: With Sibeal, the second of Drustan's sisters.]]
* {{Seer}}: Uses the ''dromonde'' to see into the future.
* TakeMeInstead: [[spoiler: He offers to take Phèdre's place and become the next Master of the Straits. The Master accepts. It's eventually revealed that he meant to take Hyacinthe all along anyway.]]
* ThousandYardStare: Has shades of this after he is trapped on the Third Sister and takes on the burdens of being the Master of the Straits.
* TookALevelInBadass: He goes from being an ordinary Tsingano in the City of Elua to a man who can control the weather and the oceans. With the sheer amount of power he has he can sink entire cities beneath the waves.
* TrueCompanions: Him and Phèdre.
* UnluckyChildhoodFriend: [[spoiler: He and Phèdre end up being this to one another. They aren't too unhappy about it, since they have their own lives to lead and their own romantic interests. But there will always be a place in their hearts for each other.]]


!!Melisande Shahrizai

-->''"Elua cared naught for mortal politics, nor did Kushiel."''

The main villainess of the series. Melisande is ambitious, sadistic, and utterly lacking in any sort of conscience. Her great ambition is to be queen, and so she concocts several Machiavellian plots to help her achieve this. She becomes a patron of Phèdre's, and Phèdre falls in love with her. Phèdre, as an ''anguisette,'' is the perfect outlet for her sadistic desires.

Imriel is her son.

!!Tropes applying to Melisande:

* AffablyEvil: Though she is the main antagonist of the first trilogy and poses a huge danger to Phedre and Terre D'Ange, she is cool and collected and acts cordially to most people (even her ''enemies'') even at the worst of times.
* BeautyIsBad: Melisande is exceptionally beautiful, even among D'Angelines. There have beden a lot of poems and songs written about her.
* BigBad: Of the first two books of the first trilogy.
* BlackWidow: Averted. Melisande is rumored to have killed the men she married, but really, she just made a habit of marrying very old men so she could wait and inherit their money when they died.
%%* BrainsAndBondage
%%* TheChessmaster
* ChronicBackstabbingDisorder: Later in the series, Melisande starts claiming that she always keeps her promises. [[ExactWords Like many things she says,]] [[FromACertainPointOfView this statement should]] [[BlatantLies be taken with a pinch of salt.]]
* TheCorrupter: She excels at manipulating powerful people around her into committing treason.
* DepravedBisexual: As a member of House Shahrizai, this is a given. However, Melisande takes this trope UpToEleven, going to such lengths during assignations with Phedre that Phedre's other patrons wouldn't dream of. She is the only one to use flechettes on Phedre. Shortly before selling Phedre and Joscelin to the Skaldi, she tortures Phedre in an attempt to find out what Rousse's message to Delaunay was, in such a way that Phedre is heartsick and numb afterwards.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Imriel.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: She won't stoop to blasphemy and claims to always keep her promises (though both statements should be taken with a [[FromACertainPointOfView grain of salt]] and [[LoopholeAbuse then some]]. Also, she ''[[MamaBear really]]'' [[PetTheDog loves her son.]]
%%* EvenTheGirlsWantHer
* EvilPlan: Most of her plots can be categorized as this.
* ForTheEvulz: When Phèdre asks her why she did it, she replies, "Because I could."
** It's a little bit more complicated than that. Melisande describes herself as being incapable of caring about the pieces in her games, while simultaneously loving the games she plays. Why does she play? She's D'Angeline.
* FreudianExcuse: Its a minor excuse, but in the second trilogy she appears to have some remorse for her actions and its suggested-that the reason she is the way she is-is because of her father Casimar.
* [[YuriGenre Girls Love]]: With Phèdre.
* [[spoiler:HeelFaceTurn: Debatable, but she does appear to have some remorse for her actions later on in the series. And she does help save Terre d'Ange in ''Mercy.'']]
* InTheBlood: It's implied that her father's method of raising her deeply affected her character. As seen above its a minor excuse.
* JediTruth: Melisande claims she'd never commit blasphemy personally, but [[spoiler: looks the other way when Marie-Celeste corrupts the Serenissiman priestesses. She's also forbidden by Kushieline doctrine to kill the bearer of Kushiel's Dart, but has no problem sending Phèdre into dangerous situations where she'd be indirectly responsible for her death.]]
* KarmaHoudini: [[spoiler: Manages to escape all punishment, and gets to live out her days in a villa on a Mediterranean isle. Although it is implied that Imriel's torture at the Mahrkagir's hands is Kushiel's punishment for her.]]
* LackOfEmpathy
* LadyMacbeth: Melisande manipulates both Isidore d'Aiglemort and Prince Benedicte into committing treason in order to further her own ambitions.
* LikableVillain: A large portion of the fandom loves her despite her actions. In ''Kushiel's Avatar'' and the Imriel trilogy, she is painted in a more sympathetic light, and understandable reasons are given for her crimes.
* LoopholeAbuse: See the Jedi Truth section.
* MamaBear: Do not attempt to harm her son. There will be serious consequences if you do.
* [[ManipulativeBastard Manipulative Bitch]]
* PetTheDog: She loves her son more than anything else. Imriel later sees that he is her main weakness, and that her enemies would be able to hurt her by hurting him.
* TheQuisling: Collaborated with Waldemar Selig to orchestrate the Skaldi invasion. If it had succeeded, she would've married Selig and ruled as Queen over a united Terre d'Ange/Skaldia.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: Like all Shahrizai.
%%* {{Romanticized Abuse}}
* {{Sadist}}: Naturally. She revels in Phedre's humiliation and pain during their assignation on the Longest Night, and finds pleasure in watching Suriah squirming in Baudoin's arms during Baudoin's party in Cereus House. However, even she has lines she would never cross.
* SexIsViolence: That's how she likes it.
* WomanInBlack: Wears black when she attends the Midwinter Masque with Phèdre.
* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: Not explicitly described as such, but her beauty is constantly commented on in a nation full of beautiful people.

!! Persia and Marmion Shahrizai
Brother and sister pair who help to bring Melisande to trial for treason at the end of Dart.

!!Ysandre de la Courcel

-->''"Steel beneath a fragile bloom."''

Queen of Terre d'Ange, daughter of Prince Rolande de la Courcel and Isabel L'Envers. Both of her parents die when she is very young, and she inherits the throne after her grandfather's death. She has to deal with numerous plots to overthrow her (mostly orchestrated by Melisande) and family members who want to take her place. Ysandre is a lot tougher than she appears, which frequently causes people to underestimate her. She marries Drustan mab Necthana, the Cruarch of Alba, and they have two daughters: Sidonie and Alais.

!!Tropes applying to Ysandre:

* BabiesEverAfter: In ''Kushiel's Avatar'' Ysandre and Drustan are seen to have two daughters, Alais and Sidonie.
* BigScrewedUpFamily: Other members of House Courcel attempt to take her throne ''twice''.
* [[spoiler:BodyguardBetrayal: One of her Cassiline guards, David de Rocaille, tries to assassinate her to avenge his sister, who was killed by Ysandre's mother.]]
* CelibateHero: Ganelon forbid her from visiting the Night Court so he could make her a foreign alliance through marriage. Justified in that while Terre d'Ange is very liberal about sex, other countries are not. Naturally this trope no longer applies once she marries Drustan.
* TheChainsOfCommanding: Ysandre has to fight to retain her throne on multiple occasions and the strain begins to show in later books.
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Her father died when she was just a baby; her mother died when she was seven. She had to live under the shadow of being named a murderess' get because of the actions of her own mother, which killed Rolande's first betrothed. Because she was a woman, nearly every male noble was plotting to steal her throne from her, including her own great-aunt Lyonette and cousin Baudoin, and she was expected to wed strategically and for foreign alliance one day, and it wouldn't have mattered if she liked the match or not. The one match she did like was cancelled, and she had to fight for her chance to actually wed the man she loved. And she also grew up alone in the palace with only an old man for company.
* DefrostingIceQueen: She uses a cold and icy front as a defense mechanism to mask her true feelings. With those she trusts she's much warmer.
** Phedre notes that she rarely loses her temper in public, and considers it a huge sign of trust that Ysandre chooses to do so in front of her and Joscelin.
* {{Determinator}}: After the betrothal between herself and Drustan is cancelled, Ysandre does everything she can to make her dream of wedding himn come true.
* FragileFlower: Appears to be this, but she's actually a case of SilkHidingSteel.
* GodSaveUsFromTheQueen: She is generally a wise ruler and beloved by her people, but in ''Mercy'' [[spoiler:she declares war on them while under Carthage's spell.]]
* {{GoodParents}}: Both she and Drustan are this to their children.
* HeroicBSOD: Has this in bucketloads after the Carthaginian spell over the city is broken. She is guilt-stricken at the knowledge that she declared war on her own people and her daughter and almost tore apart the country, and tries to abdicate the throne in favour of Sidonie, believing that she is no longer fit to rule as queen. Sidonie refuses to accept the abdication, however, and only agrees to act as reagent for a month as the nation recovers.
* TheHighQueen: Becomes this after the events of ''Dart''.
* HundredPercentAdorationRating: She is well-loved by the D'Angeline people.
* IceQueen: Can be this at times.
* LongDistanceRelationship: She and Drustan only spend half the year together because his duties require him to spend the other half of the year in Alba. They manage to get by like this quite happily.
* MarryForLove: What Ysandre and Drustan end up doing, after the war against the Skaldi has been won.
* [[spoiler:OffingTheOffspring: While enchanted during ''Mercy,'' she declares war on her daughter Alais.]]
* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: Her engagement to Drustan started out as a political match, but they happened to fall in love.
* PoliticallyActivePrincess: She sat with her grandfather during Parliament sessions as Dauphine. She also rules as regent when Ganelon is dying.
* PurpleEyes: Inherited from her mother, Isabel L'Envers.
* RaisedByGrandparents: Her grandfather, King Ganelon, raised her after her parents died.
%%* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* RulingCouple: She and Drustan rule their respective nations side-by-side.
* SilkHidingSteel: Ysandre is made of this trope (see: quote). Phedre notes when she first meets her that she is like those of Cereus House--she appears to be fragile, but underneath she is strong and made of steel.
* StrongFamilyResemblance: Much is made of how greatly she resembles her L'Envers mother, from her blonde hair to her purple eyes.
* WinterRoyalLady: Wears white at the Midwinter Masque in ''Chosen.''
%%* TheWomanWearingTheQueenlyMask

!! Rolande de la Courcel

Crown prince or ''dauphin'' to the throne of Terre d'Ange in Phèdre's trilogy and father of Ysandre. He was killed during the Battle of the Three Princes twenty or so years before the main action of ''Dart.'' [[spoiler: He and Delaunay were lovers.]]

!!Tropes applying to Rolande:

* AllThereInTheManual: His relationship with [[spoiler: Delaunay]] is fully explained in the short story "You, and You Alone."
* DeathByOriginStory: [[spoiler: Rolande is this for Delaunay.]]
* DisappearedDad: Died at the Battle of the Three Princes, when Ysandre was a baby.
* HeroesWantRedheads: [[spoiler: Fell in love with the redheaded Delaunay.]]
* HundredPercentAdorationRating: He was well-loved by the d'Angeline people.
* LoveTriangle: First with Edmee and Isabel, then with Isabel and [[spoiler: Delaunay.]]
* TheOneThatGotAway: [[spoiler: For Anafiel Delaunay.]]
* PosthumousCharacter: Most of what we know about him comes from other characters, mainly Delaunay. We only officially meet him in "You, and You Alone".
* WarriorPrince: He was a capable warrior, but died in battle against the Skaldi.
* TheWisePrince: Everyone thinks he would've made a great king if he had lived to succeed Ganelon.
* YaoiGuys: [[spoiler: He and Delaunay. He would've made Delaunay his official consort if it weren't for Isabel's jealousy.]]

!! Isabel L'Envers

Sister of Barquiel L'Envers and wife of Prince Rolande. Isabel had the girth of Edmée de Rocaille's saddle tampered with before a hunt, causing her to fall to her death. Delaunay wrote a poem implicating Isabel in the incident, which led to her being called a murderer by some. She and Rolande had one daughter, Ysandre. She is poisoned by Dominic and Therese Stregazza.

!!Tropes applying to Isabel:

* BettyAndVeronica: The Veronica to Edmée's Betty.
* BlondesAreEvil: While not exactly evil, platinum blonde Isabel doesn't come off very well from the limited information we get on her. Even Barquiel, who [[BigBrotherInstinct doesn't respond well]] to anyone insulting his sister, admits she was responsible for Edmee's death.
* ClingyJealousGirl: Was very possessive of Rolande
* GreenEyedMonster: She was bitterly jealous of Edmée because Rolande chose her to be his betrothed, and it was because of this that she orchestrated the hunting accident which led to her death. She also felt this way about Anafiel Delaunay, Rolande's lover.
* LoveTriangle: First with Rolande and Edmée, then with Rolande and [[spoiler:Delaunay.]]
* MissingMom: To Ysandre, who's only 7 when she dies
* MurderTheHypotenuse: Accidental example. She had the girth of Edmée's saddle cut as a means of petty revenge on her rival, but Edmée ended up falling off her horse and snapping her neck as a result.
* PosthumousCharacter: Most of what we know about her comes from other characters.
* PurpleEyes: Like all of House L'Envers.
* TheRival: To Edmée and [[spoiler: Delaunay]], her competitors for Rolande's affections.

!!Barquiel L'Envers

-->''"Didn't you enjoy my largesse in the Khalif's court? I heard I sent you to Khebbel-im-Akkad after paying you to betray your master."''

Duc of the province of Namarre and maternal uncle of Ysandre. He is both a shrewd politician and a feared warrior and general. He and Delaunay were old enemies due to a poem Delaunay wrote implicating his sister Isabel in the death of Edmée de Rocaille. He appears as both antagonist and reluctant ally at different times throughout the series, but he is always loyal to Ysandre.

!!Tropes applying to Barquiel:

* {{Ambadassador}}: Served as ambassador to Khebbel-im-Akkad for several years and won the respect and admiration of the Khalif.
* AnimalMotifs: Is frequently described as "cat-like." Phèdre compares him to a leopard numerous times.
* AwesomeMcCoolname: Barquiel comes from the Hebrew Barkiel, meaning "Lightning of God."
* {{Badass}}
* BadassGrandpa: He is this in later books, once he has grandchildren.
* BigBrotherInstinct: Barquiel doesn't take kindly to anyone insulting his sister or writing poems accusing her of murder.
* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler:Joscelin is about to mercifully end his and Phèdre's lives when Barquiel charges out of besieged Troyes-le-Mont at the last minute to rescue them.]]
* DeadpanSnarker
* [[spoiler: DeclarationOfProtection: He becomes the oathsworn protector of Imriel and Sidonie's firstborn.]]
* EnemyMine: He agrees to make peace with Delaunay for the sake of protecting Ysandre. Also, [[spoiler:he and Imriel work together to defeat the Carthaginians in ''Mercy.'']]
* EvilUncle: Phèdre thinks he's one, but he's actually a subversion. Instead of plotting against his niece, he's one of her most loyal supporters.
* AFriendInNeed: [[spoiler:Phèdre bids him to hold the City of Elua against the traitors using the password of House L'Envers.]]
* GoingNative: He does this during his time as ambassador to Khebbel-im-Akkad. He is frequently seen in a turban or burnouse and is quite fond of Akkadian furnishings.
* HeartbrokenBadass: In ''Mercy.'' He says that seeing Ysandre twisted by Carthage's spell broke his heart.
* HeroAntagonist: In the second trilogy. His hatred of Imriel comes from a fear that he is involved in his mother's plots and wants to steal the throne. This fear only increases after Sidonie and Imriel's affair is made public; as well as believing Imriel to be a traitor, Barquiel is worried about Sidonie's wellbeing and happiness and doesn't like the thought of her being used and hurt by Melisande's scheming.
* HiddenDepths: On the surface he appears to be a coldly ambitious snarky jerkass, but there are moments throughout the series which hint there's more to him than that. He really does love his niece and cares deeply for his family in general.
* HorseArcher: Barquiel loves these, and is one himself.
* {{Jerkass}}: Especially to Delaunay and Imriel.
* MasterSwordsman: He impressed the ProudWarriorRace Akkadians with his skills.
* OnlySaneMan: He is the only great lord who ''isn't'' in the City of Elua when the Carthaginians put their spell on the city.
* ParentalSubstitute: To Ysandre after the deaths of her parents.
* PapaWolf: Barquiel would do anything to protect his family. It's one of the reasons he was so against Imriel and Sidonie's relationship-- he thought that Imriel was seducing Sidonie to get at the throne and would end up hurting her in the process.
---> '''Barquiel ''(to Imriel)'':''' She’s my blood. Why the hell do you think I wanted to protect her from you so badly?
* PoisonousFriend: Is perfectly willing to get his hands dirty & use amoral methods to protect his niece, such as his assassination of Dominic Stregazza.
* PurpleEyes: Like all of House L'Envers.
* {{Revenge}}: Once he finds out who poisoned his sister, he has him assassinated.
* TeethClenchedTeamwork: With Delaunay in ''Dart'' and then again with [[spoiler: Imriel in ''Mercy.'' He comes to respect Imriel during their time working together and realizes he misjudged him.]]
* UnresolvedSexualTension: Between him and Phèdre in ''Chosen''. He insinuates that he'd make a proposal for an assignation if he weren't so wary of her. Phèdre contemplates the possibility, then promises Joscelin she won't accept if he offers.

!!Nicola L'Envers y Aragon

Cousin of Ysandre and Barquiel. Nicola is married to an Aragonian nobleman, but she frequently visits the court of Terre d'Ange. She becomes a patron of Phèdre's, and they have a FriendsWithBenefits relationship.

!!Tropes applying to Nicola:
* AdultFear: One of the worst for Nicola in ''Mercy'', when she finds out that her younger son is trapped and enchanted in the City of Elua, after having had no contact with him for months.
* AFriendInNeed: In ''Chosen,'' [[spoiler: Nicola gives Phèdre the secret password of House L'Envers which compels any member of the house to give aid if it is spoken to them. She does this even though Phèdre does not trust her.]]
** She willingly helps Phedre out in ''Avatar'' while Phedre is trying to find and rescue Imriel de la Courcel, in part because of their long-standing friendship and also because it is illegal to trade in slaves in Aragonia.
** In ''Mercy'' she aids Sidonie and Imriel in escaping from Amilcar and treating with the Euskerri.
* BoundAndGagged: She likes tying people up.
* BrainsAndBondage
* EvenTheGirlsWantHer
* FireForgedFriends: Befriends Phedre after trying to interrogate her about who helped Melisande escape from Troyes-le-Monte. She ends up realising that they are both on the same side and gives Phedre proof of her friendship by giving her the password of House L'Envers, so that she may call upon help when she is most in need of it.
* FriendsWithBenefits: She and Phèdre.
* GirlsLove: Herself and Phedre.
* HappilyMarried: To her Aragonian husband Ramiro.
* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: It doesn't seem this way at first, but she and her husband do love each other.
* PurpleEyes: Like all of House L'Envers.
* YouAreNotAlone: She tries to convince Phèdre to trust her during ''Chosen'' and accept her aid.

!!Drustan mab Necthana

Drustan is the Cruarch of Alba and husband of Ysandre. In ''Kushiel's Dart,'' his throne is usurped and he fights to regain it. Afterward, [[spoiler:he leads an army to Terre d'Ange to fight the Skaldi. His army, along with Isidore d'Aiglemort's, breaks the siege of Troyes-le-Mont and defeats the Skaldi.]] He typically spends half the year in Alba and half in Terre d'Ange. He and Ysandre have two daughters: Sidonie and Alais.

!!Tropes applying to Drustan:
* BabiesEverAfter: He and Ysandre have two children together-- Alais and Sidonie.
* BadassInDistress
* BigDamnHeroes: [[spoiler: He and the Albans come to the aid of Terre d'Ange during the Skaldi invasion. They defeat the Skaldi by joining up with Isidore d'Aiglemort's army to relieve Troyes-le-Mont.]]
* DarkAndTroubledPast
* DisappearedDad: His father was killed by Maelchon after the latter usurped the Alban throne.
* FacialMarkings: Has woad patterns tattooed on his face.
* FamedInStory: He asks Phèdre to make sure the deeds of the Albans are remembered, in case they die during the battle of Troyes-le-Monte.
* GoodParents: He and Ysandre and very good parents towards their two daughters.
* HandicappedBadass: Drustan has a lame foot, causing him a limp and great pain as he walks. Despite this he is a strong fighter and his men are extremely loyal to him.
* HappilyMarried: To Ysandre, after the events of ''Dart''.
* TheLadysFavour: Phèdre gives him a ring from Ysandre, which he wears into battle.
* LongDistanceRelationship: He and Ysandre spend half the year apart because his duties require him to split his time between Alba and Terre d'Ange.
* LoveRuinsTheRealm: Inversion- his love for Ysandre actually ''saves'' the realm.
* ObfuscatingDisability: Has a clubfoot, but it doesn't hinder his fighting ability.
* NobleSavage: D'Angelines see him as this due to their tendency to look down on non-D'Angeline peoples.
* PerfectlyArrangedMarriage: When Ysandre was sixteen years old they were betrothed to one another, and ended up falling in love. [[spoiler: However, after the Alban throne was usurped Ganelon called off the betrothal, thinking it to be not worth it. This resulted in Ysandre searching for a way for them to marry and be together.]]
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: The Albans are a proud warrior race, but Drustan is quiet and thoughtful rather than bloodthirsty.
* TheQuietOne: He doesn't say much, but when he does speak he says much.
* RightfulKingReturns: Has his throne usurped by his cousin. [[spoiler: He regains it with the aid of Phèdre and the Dalriada.]]
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* RulingCouple: He and Ysandre rule their respective nations side-by-side.

!! Grainne and Eamonn mac Conor of Eire

The twin rulers of the Dalriada, a tribe in Eire. They are allied with the Alban rebels and later help Phèdre, Drustan and the d'Angelines against the Skaldi invasion.

!!Tropes applying to Grainne and Eamonn:
* CharacterDeath
* FieryRedHead: Grainne
* PolarOppositeTwins
* RedOniBlueOni: Hot tempered Grainne is the red oni while the calmer more rational Eamonn is the blue oni.
* SiblingYinYang

!! Necthana

Sister of the former Cruarch and the mother of Drustan and his sisters.

!!Isidore d'Aiglemort

Duc of the province of Camlach and a skilled warrior. He plots with Melisande to betray Terre d'Ange to the Skaldi by letting them in the mountain passes of Camlach. [[spoiler: He later learns that Melisande double crossed him, and joins up with the Alban army to defeat the Skaldi and get back at Melisande. He slays Waldemar Selig in battle, but dies shortly afterward, thereby redeeming himself.]]

!!Tropes applying to Isidore:

* AmbitionIsEvil: Melisande was able to use Isidore's ambition to push him into committing treason.
%%* {{Badass}}
%%* TheCorruptible
* [[spoiler: DeathEqualsRedemption: Phèdre informs him that he's dead no matter who wins the war, which leads to his HeelFaceTurn.]]
* DeathSeeker: [[spoiler:He knows he's dead no matter who wins the war, so he chooses a hero's death to avoid being remembered as a traitor.]]
* [[spoiler:DefeatingTheUndefeatable: Selig was believed to be immune to weapons. Isidore killed him anyway.]]
* DisappearedDad: To Maslin.
* TheDogBitesBack: [[spoiler: After finding out Melisande betrayed him, he switches sides in order to get back at her.]]
* DuelToTheDeath: With Selig at Troyes-le-Monte.
* [[spoiler: DyingMomentOfAwesome: Manages to kill Selig before dying himself.]]
* FallenHero: Was a war hero before he turned traitor. He regains his hero status after his HeroicSacrifice, though.
* [[spoiler:HeelFaceTurn: He rejoins the side of the heroes after discovering that Melisande played him for a fool the whole time.]]
* [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice: Dies in the battle of Troyes-le-Monte in his attempt to kill Waldemar Selig.]]
* [[InSeriesNickname In-Series Nickname]]: The Skaldi call him ''Kilberhaar'' in reference to his silver hair.
* MasterSwordsman: One of the most skilled in the series. Being descended from the angel of war definitely helps. He's so good that he managed to [[spoiler: kill Waldemar Selig after fighting through hordes of Skaldi to get to him.]]
* MeaningfulName: Aiglemort means "eagle death" in French. Isidore's standard is a silver eagle.
* NewChildLeftBehind: Left behind a pregnant lover when he went off to war.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Subversion. The Camaelines are a proud warrior race, which leads everyone to downplay Isidore's intelligence due to the belief that they all "think with their swords." As a result, everyone underestimates him.
* [[spoiler: RedemptionEqualsDeath: He duels and kills Selig, taking his death wound to do it, atoning for his role in orchestrating the invasion.]]
* [[WhiteHairBlackHeart Silver Hair, Black Heart]]: Isidore has silver hair (hence his Skaldic name, Kilberhaar) but unlike Alcuin he is a traitor of Terre D'Ange.
* TakingYouWithMe: Manages to kill Selig alongside himself.
* ToxicFriendInfluence: Melisande is this to him, encouraging his ambitions and ultimately leading him to commit treason.
* UnwittingPawn: Was played for a fool by Melisande, who was only using him as a distraction to allow the Skaldi to invade unnoticed. Once the Skaldi won she had planned for D'Aiglemort to be executed as a traitor to the country to tie up any 'loose ends'. Once Isidore found this out, he was furious and decided to get back at Melisande in whatever way he could.
* WeUsedToBeFriends: Betrayed Baudoin de Trevalion, who'd been his close friend for years, by exposing his treasonous plans.

!!Waldemar Selig

A Skaldi warlord who is able to unite all of the various Skaldi tribes under him. In addition to being a fearsome warrior, he is also a cunning leader. He tries to invade Terre d'Ange. [[spoiler: It doesn't go well.]]

!!Tropes applying to Selig:
* AffectionateGestureToTheHead: Constantly strokes Phedre's hair to emphasize his ownership of her.
* {{Badass}}
* BarbarianHero
* BraidsOfBarbarism
* DuelToTheDeath: Has them with both [[spoiler: Joscelin and Isidore d'Aiglemort.]]
* FamedInStory: The Skaldi have many songs about him.
* GenghisGambit: Uses one to unite the Skaldi.
* IHaveYouNowMyPretty
* TheLostLenore: Once had a wife he loved dearly, but she got with child quickly, took septic and died. He was never the same afterward.
* MasterSwordsman: Manages to disarm Joscelin in the heat of battle, but [[spoiler: is killed by Isidore d'Aiglemort at Troyes-le-Monte, another master swordsman.]]
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy


!!The Mahrkagir

-->''"Ill thoughts, ill words, ill deeds."''

The ruler of Drujan, the Mahrkagir is extremely sadistic and completely evil. Imriel is sold to him, and he subjects the boy to horrific abuse. [[spoiler:Phèdre comes to save him, and the Mahrkagir ends up falling in love with her (although his definition of love is rather different from most people's). She kills him with a hairpin.]]

!!Tropes applying to the Mahrkagir

* AlasPoorVillain: Despite the horrific things he does, Phèdre still feels pity for him when she [[spoiler: kills him.]]
* BadIsGoodAndGoodIsBad: The religion of Angra Mainyu is based on this, as illustrated by the quote above.
* BloodSplatteredInnocents: His backstory reveals that he was the only member of his family to survive a particularly brutal massacre.
* DarkMessiah: The followers of Angra Mainyu believe he is this.
* IHaveYouNowMyPretty
* RapeIsLove: [[spoiler: His idea of love is to rape Phèdre with a spiked rod.]]
* ReligionOfEvil: The religion of Angra Mainyu, which the Mahrkagir is head of.
* TortureTechnician
* WouldHurtAChild: He abuses Imriel in some very horrific ways.

!! Thelesis de Mornay

The former King's Poet to Ysandre's grandfather, King Ganelon, now Queen's Poet to Queen Ysandre. She has a beautiful voice and her poetry is famed throughout Terre d'Ange.

!!Tropes applying to Thelesis de Mornay:

* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: Despite being seen as the most skilled poet across the kingdom (and possibly in-universe too) she is said to have always thought that Anafiel Delaunay was the better poet.
* TheConfidante: To the Dauphine Ysandre.
* TheExile: At some point in her life she was exiled to Alba, for reasons unknown. It was there she wrote her famous poem ''The Exile's Lament''. It is mostly because of her exile in Alba that she is trusted with Ysandre's and Delaunay's secret plan to bring Drustan onto D'Angeline soil so Ysandre can marry him.
* IllGirl: Thelesis falls ill with the fever sickness during the Bitterest Winter, and never fully recovers from it.
%%* [[MrExposition Mrs Exposition]]
* OddFriendship: She becomes one of Phèdre's closest allies after the events of Dart.
* PlainJane: One of the very few examples in the whole of Terre d'Ange. Phèdre notes that her voice however makes up for her lack of beauty.
* ThePowerOfTrust: Thelesis is so trusted by Ysandre and House Courcel that none of the palace guards bother checking her for weapons. As the Dauphine's confidante and the King's (later Queen's) Poet, she is above suspicion.

!! Gonzalo d'Escabar

!! Quintilius Rousse

Admiral of the Royal Navy and a good friend of Delaunay.
----
!!Tropes applying to Quintilius:

* FatherNeptune
* FieryRedhead


!! Miriam Bouscevre

The Dowayne of Cereus House early on in Phèdre's trilogy. It is she who introduces Phèdre to Anafiel Delaunay.

!!Tropes applying to Miriam:

* CoolOldLady
* IronLady

!! Cecilie Laveau-Perrin

A widow and former adept of Cereus House and friend of Anafiel Delaunay. Anafiel hires her to teach Phèdre and Alcuin how to be courtesans in the first trilogy.

!!Tropes applying to Cecilie:

* HighClassCallGirl: Was one of the top courtesans in Terre d'Ange in her heyday.
* ProfessionalSexEd: Teaches Phèdre and Alcuin Naamah's arts
* SilkHidingSteel: Like many Cereus adepts.

!! Favrielle no Eglantine

Dressmaker and designer. She fashions most of Phèdre's clothes during Avatar and Imriel's trilogy. By the time of Moirin's trilogy her business Atelier Favrielle is the most popular dress maker in Terre d'Ange.
----
!!Tropes applying to Favrielle:

* TheFashionista
* FieryRedHead

* InsufferableGenius

[[/folder]]


[[folder: ''' Imriel's trilogy''']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Kushiels_Justice_front_cover-from_Amazon_website_7179.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Imriel]]

'' Includes the novels ''' Kushiel's Scion''', '''Kushiel's Justice''' and '''Kushiel's Mercy''' ''
!! Dorelei mab Breidaia

Drustan's niece and Imriel's later wife. [[spoiler: She is killed by Berlik of the Maghuin Dhonn in order to prevent a prophecy that her son with Imriel would grow up to destroy the Maghuin Dhonn.]]

!!Tropes applying to Dorelei:

* ArrangedMarriage: Between her and Imriel. [[spoiler: It doesn't work out.]]
* BettyAndVeronica: The Betty to Sidonie's Veronica.
* [[spoiler: CharacterDeath/DeathOfTheHypotenuse]]: She is killed by Berlik to prevent an unwanted future from coming true-- namely that her and Imriel's son would cause the end of the Maghuin Donn and their culture.
* IWantMyBelovedToBeHappy: She makes Urist promise to see Imriel safely back to Sidonie's arms if anything should happen to her, because she truly loves Imriel and wants him to be happy, and also does not want him to succumb to the grief, guilt and bitterness she knows he will feel if she ever dies.
* LoveTriangle: Between her, Imriel, and Sidonie.
* NiceGirl: She is very kind-hearted and warm, and never has it in her to be mean to others.
%%* NiceJobBreakingItHero
* SilkHidingSteel: She appears to be kind and simple on the outside, but as Imriel finds out there is much more to her than that.


!!Maslin de Lombelon

Bastard son of Isidore d'Aiglemort, who [[spoiler: dies before he can acknowledge him.]] Maslin serves as a foil to Imriel, since they are both sons of traitors but they are treated very differently. Because of this, Maslin holds a lot of resentment toward Imriel. [[spoiler: They eventually do become friends when he shows up in Vralia to rescue Imriel during ''Kushiel's Justice.'']]

!!Tropes applying to Maslin:

* BastardBastard: Starts off as this due to his resentment/jealousy of Imriel.
* BetterAsFriends: He and Sidonie.
* DeadGuyJunior: Was named after his grandfather, Maslin d'Aiglemort.
* DeclarationOfProtection: He becomes the captain of Sidonie's guard.
%%* DontYouDarePityMe
* [[spoiler:FireForgedFriends: He & Imriel become friends during their time together in Vralia.]]
* {{Foil}}: To Imriel. Both are sons of traitors, but Imriel is welcomed into the royal family while Maslin's parentage went unacknowledged. Imriel is a prince and Maslin works as a servant on the estate he was supposed to inherit.
* GreenEyedMonster: Maslin is very jealous of Imriel due to the differences in their circumstances.
* HeroicBastard: Eventually becomes this.
* InTheBlood: Like his father, he's a skilled swordsman.
* LoveTriangle: With Imriel and Sidonie.
* MasterSwordsman: Inherited his father's skills, though he started learning late.
* NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished: Imriel gives Maslin his estate of Lombelon and Maslin deeply resents him for it.
* [[spoiler:PutOnABus: Chooses to stay in Vralia and serve as ambassador at the end of ''Justice.'' He isn't seen again until the very end of the trilogy, when he shows up for Imriel and Sidonie's wedding.]]
* RagsToRiches: Starts out as a laborer in the orchards that were supposed to be his inheritance, ends up [[spoiler:ambassador to Vralia.]]
* ReassignedToAntarctica: He's sent to spend time with the Unforgiven after beating Raul L'Envers y Aragon badly in a duel.
* RelationshipUpgrade: He and Sidonie begin sleeping together in ''Justice'' after Imriel marries Dorelei and goes to Alba.
* TheRival: To Imriel, though it's rather one-sided since Imriel would rather befriend him.
%%* RomanticRunnerUp
* TellMeAboutMyFather: Maslin is very interested in his father and eagerly listens to any memories of Isidore anyone shares with him.





!! Eamonn mac Grainne

Son of Grainne mac Conor and Quintilius Rousse. Imriel befriends him when he comes to Terre d'Ange to be fostered briefly by House Montreve.

!!Tropes applying to Eamonn:

* BoisterousBruiser
* IWillFindYou: Falls in love with Brigitta, a Skaldic woman in Imriel's trilogy and after she leaves for Skaldia with her brother, Eamonn vows to find her.

!! Conor mac Graine

Son of Grainne with an unamed lover, later revealed to be of the Maghuin Dhonn. The third trilogy reveals that he later married [[spoiler: Alais de la Courcel]].

!! General Astegal

The Carthaginian general who tried to make Sidonie his wife via means of a magic spell cast over Terre d'Ange.

!! Ptolemy Solon aka ''The Wise Ape'' of Cythera

[[spoiler: Melisande's]] lover and governor of the Hellene island of Cythera. Imriel travels to meet him in Kushiel's Mercy.

* {{ChekhovsGunman}}: [[spoiler: his study of magic is essential to Imriel being able to change his face to look like Leander Maignard and enter Carthage unknown.]]
* [[FanNickname Detractor Nickname]]: He's known as ''The Wise Ape'' in-universe.
* TheSmartGuy
* [[UglyGuyHotWife Ugly Guy Hot Consort]] [[spoiler: Cytheran opinion of his relationship with Melisande, to the extent that they compare it with that of the [in-universe] Greek god Vulcan and his wife the Greek goddess Venus.]]

!! Leander Maignard

A kinsman of House Shahrizai, albeit a few generations removed. He is living with the rest of his family in Cythera with Melisande as her retainers. Imriel meets him in Kushiel's Justice.

* WildMassGuessing : Fans theorised that [[spoiler: Melisande used a shapeshifting magic to use his form to go to Terre d'Ange and see Imriel (her son) get married, as she is in exile]]. Jacqueline Carey has flat out denied this on her blog, saying that it was "a good idea", but that "[[spoiler: Melisande]] is the sort to see her games to the end and that she would rather show her face than hide in the shadows".


[[/folder]]


[[folder: '''Moirin's trilogy''']]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/Naamahs_Blessing_front_cover_9800.JPG]]
[[caption-width-right:350:Moirin]]

''Includes the books '''Naamah's Kiss''', '''Naamah's Curse''', '''Naamah's Blessing''' ''

This trilogy takes place 100 years after the events of the first two trilogies.

!! Moirin mac Fainche

The protagonist of the third trilogy. She begins the story as something of a WildChild, living with her Alban mother in the wilderness. She discovers that she is half Alban and half d'Angeline and that her heritage has given her access to powers outside of the Maghuin Donn. In the first book she travels to Terre d'Ange to find her father and as a result finds herself torn between her desires and her duty.

!!Tropes applying to Moirin:

* [[spoiler: BabiesEverAfter]]
* BiTheWay: Most of her relationships in the Naamah novels involve women but her two most recurring paramours are both men.
* CosmicPlaything
* DeclarationOfProtection: Becomes Desiree's oathsworn protector
* EthicalSlut
* FishOutOfWater: Her status during Kiss.
* GirlsLove: Has notable relationships with several women, most importantly Jehanne & Snow Tiger
* GreenEyes: Inherited from her father.
* GreenThumb: One of the abilities her bloodline gives her is the ability to talk to plants and make them grow.
* HeroicSeductress: What her powers from Naamah give her. Every time she feels the pull of her ''diadh-anam'' towards a certain person she ''will'' end up having sex with them.
* HotWitch
* IGaveMyWord: She cannot break an oath sworn on her diadh-aman without losing her powers & connection to the Maghuin Dhonn.
* IWillFindYou: With Bao in ''Curse'' & Thierry in ''Blessing.''
* {{Invisibility}}: Can make herself invisible by summoning the twilight, but can't do it if someone's watching her.
* LineageComesFromTheFather: Inverted. In Alban custom children inherit through the female line. This is why her surname is mac Fainche, meaning ''"from Fainche"''. However, her father's lineage is just as important as it's the source of her powers from Naamah and Anael.
* MagicalGirl: Compared to Phèdre at least. Moirin has a lot more access to magic than the former.
* [[spoiler: MemoryWipingCrew: Becomes the Ch'in emperor's one-woman memory wiping crew at the end of ''Kiss.'']]
* MixedAncestry: Half Alban and half D'Angeline.
* [[AliensMadeThemDoIt My Diadh-Anam Made Me Do It]]: This is often the reason for starting a quest.
* NaiveNewcomer: When she leaves Alba for Terre d'Ange to find her father in Kiss, she's bewildered by d'Angeline customs and almost makes a fool of herself at court.
* PsychicLink: [[spoiler: With Bao after his resurrection]]
* RagsToRiches: Spent her childhood in a cave, then becomes the Queen of Terre d'Ange's lover.
* RavenHairIvorySkin: Her looks are commented on as "exotic" by the d'Angelines and supernatural by the Albans, due to her mixed blood status.
* ReallyGetsAround: And ''how''. Lets put it this way. Phèdre and Imriel from the first two trilogies were either a magically induced to enjoy pain courtesan or an issue-ridden, angsty prince. Both encountered problems directly related to their attitudes about sex (more on Imriel's side). Moirin has [[AnythingThatMoves no such hang ups]]. She may possibly be the protagonist that has the most sex of the three. Judging by the [[JustifiedTrope theme]] of Moirin's trilogy this is probably because her gifts come from Naamah rather than Kushiel.
* RomanticTwoGirlFriendship: Her relationship with Jehanne develops into this by the last third of ''Naamah's Kiss''.
* SuperPowerLottery: Her mother's line is descended from Princess Alais of the second trilogy, giving her the powers of an ''ollamh'' a type of combined seer and priestess. On that note, she also has descent from fallen angels Elua and Naamah through Princess Alais' own combined Courcel/L'Envers heritage. Her father's line is descended from Anael, the fallen angel who gave d'Angelines their farming skills. This gives Moirin the power to turn herself invisible, talk to plants, incite lust in other characters and access the powers of the ''Maghuin Dhonn'' or "bear-witch" in the Alban language.
* TalkingToPlants
* WildChild: At the beginning of the first book.

!! Bao

The apprentice to Master Lo Feng and a former slave. He and Moirin do not get along at first and he spends the first book being a JerkAss. Later on readers learn his tragic backstory and he becomes more sympathetic. Serves as Moirin's protector and [[spoiler: later her lover]] throughout the Naamah trilogy.

!!Tropes applying to Bao:

* {{Badass}}: Most fans agree on this.
* [[spoiler: BackFromTheDead]]
* BodyGuardCrush
* CantStandThemCantLiveWithoutThem
* ChildByRape
* [[ChineseGirl Chinese Boy]]
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Was sold into a circus by his parents when he was 3.
* DistressedDude: In ''Curse,'' when he is held in Kurugiri by Jagrati.
* EarnYourHappyEnding: Boy does he ever.
* GrumpyBear
* JerkAss later develops into a JerkWithAHeartOfGold
* AManIsNotAVirgin
* MouthyKid
* PsychicLink: [[spoiler: With Moirin after his resurrection]]
* TheQuietOne: Hardly says a word in Kiss. He [[CharacterDevelopment begins]] to talk more from Curse onwards.
* SexForServices: Offered himself as a sex slave to a man in the circus in exchange for stick fighting lessons.
* SimpleStaff: Is a very skilled staff fighter
* StarCrossedLovers: [[spoiler: Again, with Moirin.]]
* TheStoic
* [[spoiler:UnwantedRevival: Is none too happy about being brought back from death, but eventually comes to accept it.]]

!! Master Lo Feng

!!Tropes applying to Lo Feng:

* BadAssGrandPa / RetiredBadAss
* CoolOldGuy
* OldMaster
* TricksterMentor

!! Queen Jehanne

King Daniel's considerably younger second wife and step mother to Prince Thierry. She was once a famed courtesan in Cereus House before giving up her profession to become queen. At first at odds with Moirin due to a shared rivalry over Raphael de Mereliot, she later becomes a friend and trusted confidante as well as lover to Moirin.

!!Tropes applying to Jehanne:

* [[spoiler: DeathByChildBirth]]: [[spoiler: Dies giving birth to a baby daughter by Daniel de la Courcel, named Desiree.]]
* EveryoneLovesBlondes
* HighClassCallGirl: She was an adept of Cereus House before marrying Daniel and becoming queen.
* TheHighQueen
* HotConsort
* GirlsLove: With Moirin
* GoldDigger: Averted. Some of the citizens in the City of Elua think this of her but she and Daniel truly love each other.
* InLoveWithLove
* LoveYouAndEveryBody: She even states that she follows the Elua's precept to the letter, in that she loves as she wilt but cannot continue to do so after getting pregnant for Daniel, as per their arrangement.
* ManipulativeBitch: Less of a bitch than the trope suggests, but she is skilled at using manipulation to get what she wants.
* MsFanservice
* SecondLove: For Daniel
* SexyMentor: Becomes this for Moirin during Kiss.
* WorldsMostBeautifulWoman: Said in Kiss to be the most beautiful woman in Terre d'Ange of the generation.
* YourCheatingHeart: On arrangement with her husband no less!
* YuriGenre: The first book in the third trilogy is all about her relationship with Moirin with several detailed sex scenes between the two.


!! Duc Rogier de Barthelme
----
!!Tropes applying to Rogier:

* [[spoiler: AmbitionIsEvil]] / [[spoiler: EvilChancellor]]: Wants to take power by betrothing his young son to [[spoiler: Daniel and Jehanne's daughter Desiree]]
* NumberTwo: For King Daniel.
* RegentForLife
* YaoiGuys: With Moirin's father when they both were younger.

!! Snow Tiger

The daughter of the Ch'in Emperor who is believed to have been possessed by a supernatural creature. If she sees her reflection in anything she goes on a killing spree. On the day of her wedding to a Ch'in nobleman she went on a rampage and killed her betrothed and most of his party. Since then she has been locked away in a tower by her father in the hope of keeping her violent sprees under control.
----
!!Tropes applying to Snow Tiger:

* BadassPrincess: Can casually bend steel bars as if they were made of rubber.
* ChineseGirl
* DemonicPossession: What everyone thinks happened to her. [[spoiler: This is only half right, she was possessed by a mythical dragon.]]
* GirlsLove / LesYay [[spoiler: With Moirin when the latter travels to Ch'in]].
* GirlInTheTower
* LadyOfWar
* RavenHairIvorySkin
* SheIsTheKing: Was raised as a son due to her father's lack of a male heir & will rule Ch'in after his death.
* YamatoNadeshiko [[spoiler: was this before getting possessed by the Celestial Dragon]].

!! The Rani Amrita

The Rani (aka queen) of Bhodistan. Moirin travels to meet her in Naamah's Curse.
----
!!Tropes applying to Amrita:

* GlamorousSingleMother
* TheHighQueen
* HundredPercentAdorationRating

!! Temilotzin

A Nahuatl warrior from Terra Nova, (analogous to undiscovered North America)with whom Moirin meets during her travels in Blessing.
----
!!Tropes applying to Temilotzin:

* {{Ambadassador}}: Travels to Terre d'Ange as an ambassador at the end of ''Blessing.''
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy


!! Fainche mac Eithne

Moirin's mother and a [[{{Seer}} seer]] of the Maghuin Dhonn tribe of Alba.
----

[[folder: '''Blessed Elua and his Companions''']]

! Elua and his Companions

The deities of the D'Angeline pantheon. The people of Terre d'Ange are descended from them. Blessed Elua is the misbegotten grandson of the One God of the Yeshuites, born from the mingled blood of Yeshua ben Yosef and tears of the Magdalene. His eight Companions are angels of God who came to earth to join him in his wanderings.

* AscendToAHigherPlaneOfExistence: Elua and his Companions departed Terre d'Ange to enter a new heaven, which D'Angelines call the Terre d'Ange-that-lies-beyond.
* DivineParentage: All of the noble families of Terre d'Ange are descended from Elua and his Companions.
* FallenAngel: The Companions
* FantasyPantheon
* InterfaithSmoothie: D'Angeline religion contains both Pagan and Christian elements.
* OurAngelsAreDifferent
* FounderOfTheKingdom: Together they founded Terre d'Ange. Seven of the Companions also founded their own provinces within it.
* SacredScripture: The Eluine Cycle
* TrueCompanions

!! Elua

Chief god of the D'Angeline pantheon. Elua was born from the blood of Yeshua ben Yosef and the tears of the Magdalene nurtured in the womb of the earth. After his birth Elua began wandering the earth aimlessly until being captured by the King of Persis. His distress caught the attention of eight angels, who decided to come to earth and aid him. Eventually they came to Terre d'Ange, where the people welcomed them. Elua claimed no territory for himself, but founded the City of Elua. He gave the people of Terre d'Ange one commandment: ''Love As Thou Wilt.''

* FertileFeet
* FleurDeLis: His symbol
* FlowerMotifs: Is associated with flowers, especially lilies.
* FriendToAllLivingThings
* [[LoveGoddess Love God]]: His sole divine attribute is love.
* OurFounder: Founded the City of Elua in the only place where he paused during his wanderings.
* ThePowerOfLove
* WalkingTheEarth: What he did before coming to Terre d'Ange.

!! Anael

Companion who taught D'Angelines agriculture and animal husbandry. He is commonly known as the Good Steward.

* FriendToAllLivingThings
* GreenThumb
* TalkingToPlants: Made an acorn sprout by blowing on it, which he and Elua planted to become Elua's Oak.

!! Azza

Companion responsible for teaching D'Angelines about ships and navigation. The Yeshuites identify his sin as pride, a trait that is consistently associated with him.

* FatherNeptune: The closest thing to a god of the sea in the D'Angeline pantheon.
* MagicCompass: Is usually depicted holding a compass or sextant.
* TheNavigator
* {{Pride}}

!! Camael

Companion who taught D'Angelines the art of war and created the first D'Angeline armies. He chose to found his province on the Skaldi border because it was the area most in need of his martial hand.

* FlamingSword: His symbol.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: The progenitor of a ProudWarriorRace
* WarGod
* WarriorMonk: His priests carry swords.

!! Cassiel

Known as the Perfect Companion, Cassiel joined Elua in order to take up the duty of loving him that the One God neglected. He remained by Elua's side throughout all of his wanderings. He was only one of the Companions to obey the One God's laws by claiming no territory and fathering no children. He has no temples and is not commonly prayed to. The Cassiline Brotherhood was founded in his honor.

* BlackSheep: Of Elua and his Companions.
* CelibateHero
* ConflictingLoyalty: Stayed by Elua's side, though he believed he was damned for it. He was the only Companion to look back in regret as they ascended to the Terre d'Ange-that-lies-beyond.
* HeterosexualLifePartners: With Elua
* KnifeNut: Carried a dagger, which he loaned to Elua at one point. This is the origin of the Cassiline Brotherhood's dagger-based fighting style.
* UndyingLoyalty
* WarriorMonk: The Cassiline Brotherhood, who serve as his priests.

!! Eisheth

Companion associated with healing, music, and storytelling. In addition to being the goddess of healing in general, Eisheth is particularly concerned with womens' health. In order to become pregnant, D'Angeline women must light a candle to Eisheth and pray for the goddess to open her womb.

* FantasyContraception
* HarpOfFemininity: Usually depicted with one.

* MedicalMonarch: Was this when she was ruling in Marsilikos. Many of her descendants in House Mereliot also qualify.
* TheStoryteller
* WomensMysteries: The candle-lighting ritual is forbidden to men.

!! Kushiel

God of justice and punishment. Kushiel was once the One God's punisher, charged with administering punishment to sinners. He understood that the chastisement he gave them was an act of mercy. They came to love him for it, so much that when given a chance to repent they refused out of love for their lord. Kushiel joined Elua because he felt Elua understood what he did. He will occasionally mark a mortal as his own with a red mote in his/her eye. These are known as ''anguissettes'', Kushiel's Chosen who are cursed to feel pain as pleasure.

* BrainsAndBondage
* TheChooserOfTheOne: Will mark a mortal as his own in order to redress an imbalance in the world.
* CompellingVoice: Occasionally makes his will known by speaking through Phèdre.
* TheConscience: It tempers his sadistic side.
* CoolMask: Is depicted wearing a bronze mask. His priests wear them as well.
* CruelMercy: Kushiel is made of this trope.
* ThePenance: Delivers penance to the souls of D'Angelines in the afterlife.
* {{Sadist}}: Though tempered with a conscience and compassion. He believes that imparting suffering without compassion is an abomination.
* ATasteOfTheLash
* WhipItGood

!! Naamah

Goddess of sexuality, prostitution, and desire. Naamah was the first of the Companions to join Elua. She gave herself to the King of Persis for a night in exchange for Elua's freedom. While traveling in Bhodistan, she lay with strangers so that Elua might eat. It is because of this that prostitution is referred to Naamah's Service and considered a sacred calling in Terre d'Ange. The thirteen houses of the Night Court are considered the most elite of these. Her clergy practice sacred prostitution.

* AnythingThatMoves
* HeroicSeductress: She slept with the King of Persis in exchange for Elua's freedom
* HookerWithAHeartOfGold
* LivingAphrodisiac
* LoveGoddess
* {{Lust}}
* ReallyGetsAround
* SexForServices
* [[SexGod Sex Goddess]]
* UnproblematicProstitution: Naamah's actions are the reason why prostitution is sacred in Terre d'Ange.

!! Shemhazai

God of wisdom and knowledge. He taught D'Angelines how to write. He is associated with knowledge of all kinds as well as engineering. A common phrase associated with Shemhazai is "All knowledge is worth having."

* {{Bookworm}}
* CoolTeacher
* TheEngineer
* GreatBigLibraryOfEverything: His province of Siovale is known for its libraries.
* TheSmartGuy


[[/folder]]

[[folder: '''The Court of Night-Blooming Flowers''']]

! Court of Night-Blooming Flowers

An elite cadre of prostitutes known as ''Servants of Naamah'' that are the highest ranked courtesans in Terre d'Ange. Prostitution is considered a religious act for adepts of the Court, as it is elsewhere in Terre d'Ange, and adepts make offerings to Naamah during their service. All thirteen houses are based in the City of Elua, the d'Angeline capital in the district known as ''Mont Nuit''. Each house has its own motto which both serves to provide their unique theory as to why Naamah offered herself to the King of Persis in d'Angeline folklore and to describe the tenets conveyed by each house.

* BandOfBrothels
* FlowerMotifs
* [[HighClassCallGirl High Class Call Girl/Boy]]: All adepts are this.
* RedLightDistrict: The hill all of the houses are located on is known as Mont Nuit.
* SchoolOfSeduction
* SexAsRiteOfPassage: A visit to the Night Court is a typical part of a D'Angeline noble's sixteenth birthday celebration.
* UnproblematicProstitution
* WorkOffTheDebt: Adepts pay off their debt to their house by making their marque.

!! ''The Houses''
!! Alyssum House

-->''With Eyes Averted''

!! Balm House

-->''Rest and Be Soothed''

House of the Night Court dedicated to healing. Balm adepts are often expert masseurs. Imriel visits Balm for his first assignation during ''Kushiel's Scion.''

* HappyEndingMassage
* HealingHands