The Worlds of Katherine Kurtz

Jerry Maher and Linda Cheshire-Whitson both have questions about Bishop Cardiel. Jerry simply comments that "in the book High Deryni, it mentions that Bishop Cardiel was Richenda's mother's uncle. Wouldn't this make Richenda a half, maybe three quarters, breed like Morgan and Duncan?"Linda says, "One of my favorite Human characters in the Deryni novels is Bishop Thomas Cardiel. His courage & faith under all circumstances make him a good example for any devout person. Plus, his sense of wonder (not to mention ineptness at skin-diving!) makes him a delight. So how is this very human prelate related to Richenda? In High Deryni she tells Kelson & Alaric that he is her mother's uncle (when she is trying to talk Kelson into letting her go along on campaign to try and persuade Bran Coris to mend his treasonous ways)."


Katherine answers: There's a very simple explanation for this. Cardiel is not a blood relative in any way, shape, or form. He's actually a great-uncle by marriage. Tracing back from Richenda herself: Richenda is the daughter of Richard of Rheljan and Michendra of Andelon, who is the younger sister of Sofiana. (These sisters are, quite unmistakably, full Deryni, as we've seen in KKB.) Michendra and Sofiana are the daughters of Mikhail of Andelon and his first wife, Ysabeau of Jaca. But Ysabeau died in childbirth with Michendra, so Mikhail married secondly Alinor Cardiel, a human, whose much younger brother was Thomas Cardiel, later to become a priest and bishop.