She beseeches Solon's aide in casting a spell to cause Imriel to lose his wits-thinking this madness will be a shield against the madness of Carthage's spell. This places her in a dilemma-she can act to prevent the spell, but she knows that the success of the spell will cause Imriel to forget his love for Sidonie and thus forget his mission to find Melisande. Through her connections in the Unseen Guild, she also learns of Carthage's plans to ensorcel the City of Elua.

She learns that Ysandre has challenged Imriel to find Melisande and bring her to Terre d'Ange to receive the death sentence laid upon her in Kushiel's Dart. Melisande is living on Cythera as the mistress of the governor Ptolomy Solon. Canis dies taking a spear meant for Imriel and tells him his mother sends his love. She sends Canis, a member of the Unseen Guild, to watch over Imriel in Tiberium and Lucca. A legend grows around her that she is the Bella Donna, an avatar of Asherat, who has escaped to find her missing son, though Imriel himself had been found for some time prior to her dissapearance. Melisande escapes from her prison/sanctuary of the Temple of Asherat-of-the-Sea.

When Phèdre returns with Imriel, Melisande promises to not act to threaten the rule of Queen Ysandre or her daughters in exhange for Phèdre's promise to raise Imriel. Melisande asks Phèdre to find Imriel, and in exchange, she will provide Phèdre with the location of the lost tribe of Dan. When Phèdre arrives, Melisande tells her that she had hidden Imriel in a Temple of Elua in Siovale but that he had gone missing from there. Melisande sends a message to Phèdre nó Delaunay de Montrève to come to La Serenissima. She has also used her time to research to find the name of God - the information needed to free Hyacinthe from his curse - and learns the location of the lost tribe of Dan, rumored to have the knowledge. Please see Kushiel's Chosen.ĭuring her time spent in the temple, Melisande builds correspondence with at least the Pharaoh of Menekhet. Melisande is a major character in the events of the novel. Her figure is tall and statuesque and even when she is well into her fifties, instead of 'losing' her overly attractive appearance, it 'changes'. With deep twilight eyes that even a sapphire would envy, hair such a true black that it bore a blue tint to it and skin a wonderful shade of alabaster, she truly embodies what it means that D'Angeline beauty is unmatched. Melisande Shahrizai is a breathtakingly beautiful woman and even for her crimes, is still revered as one of Terre d'Ange's greatest beauties. 3 Memorable quotes by or about Melisande.

Kushiel's Mercy by Jacqueline Carey