Hey guys,

As I said earlier, posting is open-forum, so feel free to rec away! I just wanted to add that I've gone through and added tags to the current entries, so please tag any future posts you make as well. Tag with genre (however many apply; there's a list on the userinfo, and if you think you need a new one, just tag it and let me know) and author. In the case of request posts, please tag as "request". And if you think I've mistagged or am missing a tag on one of your old entries, feel free to change it. ^_^

Title: The Quartered Sea
Author: Tanya Huff
Genre: Fantasy
Warnings: ...I don't remember? Some violence, nothing excessive for your basic fantasy novel. Benedikt.

Summary: "Queen Jalena of Shkoder has decided to start her reign by commissioning a ship to undertake the exploration of uncharted waters and see if it is possible to circumnavigate the world. When disaster strikes, the sole survivor is the bard Benedikt who Sings only One Quarter, that of Water. Found by the people of a Mayan-like civilization, he becomes a pawn between the brother and sister who are the most powerful people in their culture." - lifted from Amazon, because I am lazy and do not have the book with me to provide the back-cover summary

Recommendation: This is the fourth book in Tanya Huff's Quarter series; however, you don't need to have read the others to understand what's going on (I haven't). The protagonist is, to my understanding, a new character who had not been introduced previously; rather, the other books in the series focus on Bannon, the king's assassin, who plays a... well, a more-minor-than-we'd-like role in The Quartered Sea. Nonetheless, he does a damn good job of keeping Benedikt on his toes when he is around.

Benedikt, in the words of my beloved konitsu, "suffers from dependancy issues, self-esteem issues, sex with water issues, and being a tard issues." And yet somehow we love him anyway. He is ridiculously angsty, but apparently to the point where you no longer take him seriously, because it becomes a source of fondness rather than annoyance. Don't ask me how. I have no idea. He believes no one loves him, no matter how obvious things are to the contrary, and thus we have all the more love for Bannon, who shows up with his stealth and sarcasm and just generally enjoys tormenting the bard to get him out of his funk. Sadly, Huff never goes into this relationship as much as one would like; it's definitely there, but she leaves you without any conclusive evidence that it's going to go anywhere. This book TAUNTS YOU WITH THE GAY without ever really delivering. Mostly we just gawk at Benedikt's crazy (again, Koni's words).

I fear this is a negative-sounding review, when I really don't intend for it to be. It's a great book, with plenty of Tanya Huff-trademarked snark and whacky hijinks and adventurous spelunking and crazy psychos and pretty boys who angst far beyond their quota until some other pretty boy comes along and gives them a predatory grin. Then they make an "eep" noise and shut up, if they haven't already been made otherwise occupied. XD

And now, because this book gave us the fantastic potential but ended rather two pages too early, I offer you the conclusion that it should have had - compliments, once again, of the illustrious konitsu. To the fic, maties!

Title: Mélusine
Author: Sarah Monette
Genre: Fantasy
Warnings: rape (not graphic, but definitely present) and major mindfuckery

Summary: (back-cover blurb)
A dashing and highly respected wizard, Felix Harrowgate thought he had eluded his dark past. Within the walls of the Mirador - Mélusine's citadel of power and magic - Felix believed he was free of his abusive former master, a wizard who had enslaved him, body and soul, and trained him to pass as a nobleman. He was wrong.
Raised as a kept-thief and trained as an assassin, Mildmay the Fox is used to being hunted. Having slipped his Keeper long ago, he survives as a cat burglar - until he's caught by a mysterious magician using a powerful calling charm. And yet the magician was looking not for Mildmay - but for Felix Harrowgate...
Bound by fate, the broken wizard Felix and the wanted killer Mildmay will journey far from Mélusine through lands thick with strange magics and terrible demons of darkness - but it is the secret from their pasts that will either save them or destroy them.

Recommendation: ( Cut to save your friendlists! )

Also, I'm sorry this comm has been so dead, guys. I'm going to try to do a little revamping this week, and I've got another book review to write up, but mostly we need people to contribute! If you've got anything to recommend, please do! It doesn't have to be very long. And pimp nonconformities to anyone who'd be interested. =D We are a user-based system, so more members who contribute = better for everyone.

Title: Cry To Heaven
Author: Anne Rice
Genre: Historical fiction
Warnings: Some scenes are rated NC17, fairly explicit but brief sex scenes or allusions to intercourse. Overall, I'd rate it R for mature content.
Summary: It is Italy in the eighteenth century. The atmosphere is wonderfully Baroque; Scarlatti is played on harpsichord, the men's fashions of the age embody the delicacy of rococo, and all of Europe is fast in love with a phenomena sweeping the operatic stage - the castrati. Young boys, castrated before puberty in order to preserve the heavenly soprano of their singing voices, are trained in droves at music schools with the hopes that they will rise to become a beau of the opera house, and earn the fame and income associated with that lofty position. The story follows Antonio Treschi, born a Venetian nobleman, destined to be a castrato. It is a difficult destiny to accept, to be marked as a half-man, a creature gelded, a eunuch. Only through the tenuous chance at fame can recognition and respect be regained. It is a battle for a sense of self-respect and pride, cast against the dazzling and well-written backdrop of many Italian cities.
Recommendation: Although I'm certainly not the first to say it, I believe this is one of Anne Rice's best books, if not her absolute best. The detail is exquisite without being overbearing, and all of the characters are intriguing and compelling in their own way. Tonio's affair with the beguiling Domenico occupies a fair portion of the pages, though by no means is Tonio's experience restricted to that one fellow castrato. It is not a elevated romance, but a realistic torrent of relationships of all sorts. I haven't read it in a while, but I do remember that I enjoyed it enough to read it twice back-to-back, and it was definitely engrossing. The author's treatment of the both open and secluded aspects of male-male relationships is definitely appealing to the slash reader.

Wow, this comm died. Please feel free to rec, guys! Open to anyone, just as long as it's slash!

That said, I come bearing rec. I finally stopped being a chicken-wuss and finished reading Drawing Blood after, what, five months? Go me. XD

Title: Drawing Blood
Author: Poppy Z. Brite
Genre: Horror... ish?
Warnings: Sex, violence, and drug use, but nothing really graphic.

Summary: "In the house on Violin Road he found the bodies of his brother, his mother, and the man who killed them both - his father. From the house on Violin Road, in Missing Mile, North Carolina, Trevor McGee ran for his sanity and his soul, after his famous cartoonist father had exploded inexplicably into murder and suicide. Now Trevor is back. In the company of a New Orleans computer hacker on the run from the law, Trevor has returned to face the ghosts that still live on Violin Road, to find the demons that drove his father to murder his family - and worse, to spare one of his soons... But as Trevor beings to draw his own cartoons strip, as he loses himself in a haze of lines and art and thoughts of the past, the haunting begins. Trevor and his lover plunge into a cyber-maze of cartoons, ghosts, and terror that will lead either to understanding - true understanding - or a blood-raining repeptition of the past."
- blurb on the back cover, because I am lazy and haven't read 3/4 of this book in half a year. ^^;

Recommendation: Actually, the blurb doesn't give Zach, the hacker, enough credit, because the book is just as much about him as it is about Trevor. They're both very compelling characters, and though there are one or two scenes or traits in the novel that smell strongly of fangirl, it's overall very well written and these don't detract from the story much at all. In terms of horror, it was relatively creepy (but I'm a pansy, and it's not so creepy now that I've started House of Leaves because everything, yanno, is relative) and it's a little gorey (but Laurell K. Hamilton is worse and besides, I rather like my gore), but the plot is great, with plenty going on outside so that though the haunted house is the focus, it's not claiming a monopoly on the story. Trevor's actively searching for something from the haunting, too, playing a game of give-and-take with the house, which is much more fun and interesting to read than your basic B-rate horror. Zach and Trevor's relationship, though it seems rushed into, winds up developing very nicely, and their interactions with each other are thoroughly varied in expression. Plus the climax is just a... wonderful examination of love. I can't say any more, but... wowz. *shiver* I stink at recommendations, but if it sounds at all interesting to you, I'd say it's worth your time. I loved it.

Also, I got The Center of the World for Christmas on Sparrowette's rec, which I'm very much looking forward to reading. I'll throw my two cents in when I do (though not in another review; you can see hers for that). XD Happy reading, yo!

Hey all, I just joined this community a few days ago. Here's my first review. Sorry if it's not too well-written, I'm very sleepy.

Title: At Swim, Two Boys
Author: Jamie O'Neill
Genre: Historical (sorta kinda a little)

Recommendation: I read this book a few months ago, and it was nothing short of incredible. It takes place in Ireland in 1915 and 1916. The main character is Jim Mack, a high school boy who lives with his father and his aunt. The other main character is Doyler Doyle – his father and Jim’s father were army buddies, and Jim and Doyler knew each other a bit when they were little boys. Now, however, Doyler’s much more politically-minded...his family’s very poor and Doyler’s all about rebellion against the British. Jim, on the other hand, is pretty clueless when it comes to matters of class and politics. His father’s a shopkeeper with aspirations to work his way higher in society, but daddy is essentially pretty stupid and shallow. Class, politics, and war are all strong undercurrents to the story.

Near the beginning of the story, Doyler decides he’s going to teach Jim how to swim, and eventually they’re going to swim out to this rock out in the bay as a culmination of their efforts. As their friendship grows, so do deeper feelings for each other. Doyler’s eager to act on his feelings, but Jim’s much more timid and unsure, and this eventually drives Doyler away temporarily. The other man in both their lives is Anthony MacMurrough, in his late twenties, with an eye towards younger boys. This character was fascinating. He started off pretty loathsome and really grew into a pretty admirable guy by book’s end. He originally seduces Doyler, ends up in love with Jim, but then tries to help Jim and Doyler get together once he finally sees how much they mean to each other. All the while he serves as a sort of mentor to them both, leading them to see that how they feel for each other isn’t wrong. Overall, this is primarily a story about friendship, as there really isn’t much sex in the book at all, and what there is isn’t particularly explicit.

What really makes this book is the superb writing and the skill of the author in character development and in really making you feel and care about the characters. It takes a while to get into at first because of the diction – the author writes (his characters’ dialogue, at least) with the diction of early twentieth century Ireland, and it’s pretty different. Once you figure out what they mean when they say certain things, though, it gets much easier.

I don’t really want to say too much more because I don’t want to give anything away, but do yourself a favor and read this book. On a scale of 1 to 10, it’s a 10. Five stars. You get the picture.

Amazon link.

Edit: Do read the reviews of this book at Amazon. They do it much more justice than I have here.

Clay's Way, by Blair Mastbaum.

...Whoa.  This book is good.  At first, I didn't think it would be--the whole 'teenage hormone' thing doesn't tend to appeal to me...but this is so much more than hormones--it's about love versus lust, confusion, maturing, growth, life...it's one helluva novel.

"A wanna-be punk rocker who writes bad haiku poetry, 15-year-old Sam is fed up with his middle-class parents, his geeky best friend, and his inability to do the raddest skateboard tricks.  Then he meets Clay.  Mistaking lust for fate, Sam becomes obsessed with the 17-year-old surfer boy, whose island cool masks an internal conflict even darker than Sam's.  Directing his furious energy toward winning Clay's heart, Sam goes on a reckless odyssey to become everything Clay seems to be.  Through hurricanes, car accidents, teenage parties, and monster waves, they ricochet off each other until one night on a remote beach, in the flickering light of torches and campfires, the violence and tumult of Clay and Sam's dynamic propels them both through the hardest decisions and obstacles of their young lives.

"Set against the dazzling backdrop of Hawaii's Oahu and Kauai islands, Clay's Way seethes with the energy and hormonally charged nihilism of its characters.  Twenty-four-year-old first-time novelist Blair Mastbaum has written a startlingly authentic account of 21st-century teens who are careening toward adulthood, fueld by alcohol, drugs, and rage, while seeking escape from the banality that surrounds them."

Recommendation:  This book was too short.  I love it.  Lots.  *dies*  The plot moves quickly, packing a lot of action and emotional drama into only a couple of weeks.  Sam is an endearing, believable character, and Clay is only unbelievable in the fact that you don't want him to react the way he does.  This story is about growing up--the poses we make and break over time, and sometimes never truly abandon.  You want Sam to find true love, you want him to stop throwing himself around and snog his best friend--or something--but you know he won't, because that's not how things really happen.  The prose is genius and poetic in how crude and in-your-face it can be.  The characters act like the the kids we all run into, every day of our lives, but never stop to think about.  This book makes you think about them. And no one dies!  I'm so sick of reading about teens who go through a bunch of adversity and kill themselves.  That's never any fun, and what does it say about the rest of us?  That we can't survive life?

Warnings:  There's lots of sex, lots of masturbating, loads of violence...and it makes you afraid of Hawaii.  Don't go there--it's evil, you will die.

Avoidance by Michael Lowenthal

Note: Okay, so I said it was Amish pedophilia before...it's actually much, much more than that.  The setting is actually a Vermont summer camp, run by two good friends--Jeremy and Charlie, who were selected by the original counselor Ruff.  Though there are some references to homosexuality, the theme centers more on child abuse--Jeremy strugging with desire, Charlie dealing with the crimes he endured and now has commited.  The Amish theme is woven into the story through Jeremy, who studies shunned/banned Amish when he isn't working at the camp.  It deals with true freedom--to find yourself and live independently, or to lose yourself in safety and community? 

Here, see the summary on the back of the book:  "Try to imageing not even knowing how to fall, because a hand was always, always there to catch you. 

"How does someone, excluded from the only community he or she has ever known, go on living?  Harvard s tudent Jeremy Stull lives with a devout Amish family to observe their faith and their strict shunning of those who breach it.  he befriends Beulah--a banished Amish woman--but comes no closer to understanding her predicament than he is to fathoming his own bitter exile.

"For Jeremy, community means Ironwood, a summer camp in the Vermont woods.  First as a camper, then as assistant director.  Jeremy has found in Ironwood's rituals a sturdy foundation for his life.  But when he is blindsided by the seductive charm of Max, a fourteen-year-old boy from Manhattan, all arms and legs and attitude, Jeremy must confront both his own confusing desires and a legacy of disturbing secrets at his beloved Ironwood.

"In this powerful and daring novel, Lowenthal ingeniously explores and age-old dilemma: individual desire versus the good of the group.  In the words of Chris Bohjalian, "Michael Lowenthal is simply a wonderful storyteller.  He understands both the heart's need for community and the soul's need for seclusion--and the way evil can exist in either place."  "

Recommendation:  Since I cannot really describe my love for this book, with its complex, interwoven plot and wonderful penchant for anecdote, I'm just going to quote one of my favorite passages.

From Chapter Two:  "The talent fo camp counseling, like that for art or sport, can be coached but not truly taught.  It's a gift: instinctual, absolute.  Just as basketball greats have 'eyes in the back of their heads,' the best counselors exert uncanny awareness--not peripheral sight so much as peripheral insight.  I wondered if I had what it takes.

"That first summer, Simon was the youngest boy in camp.  He was in my Advanced Beginner swim class, but I couldn't, for the life of me, focus him.  All he wanted was to writhe endlessly beneath the surface, a manic minnow, holding breath.  He made us time him: forty seconds, fifty-five, a minute ten.  Then he would burst forth, rigid and gasping, his sun-polished hair in his eyes.  He could stay under longer than any other boy, but never did he stop to gloat or rest.  He'd catch his breath, then down again he'd go.

"Simon hardly spoke.  Those lungs that exhibited such remarkable staying power could barely support a brief hello.  But after a month of mornings in the lake--my hands on his hands, teaching strokes--Simon came eventually to trust me.

"One day, as we toweled off after staying overtime to that Simon could attempt to break his record, I asked about the root of his obsession.  Quietly he explained: If he trained himself to  hold his breath for greater and greater spans, then, those evenings when his father came raging, and Simon hid underneath the bed, he'd stay noiseless long enough to go unfound.

"On visiting day, Simon's parents arrived from Kennebunk at noon, but they couldn't find their son anywhere: not in his cabin, not the Lodge, not the road.  When word came that the lake was the last place he'd been seen, a full-scale alert was raised.  Ruff blasted the air horn to clear the waterfront.  Rescue poles and backboard were laid out.  Counselors readied for a snorkel sweep.

"I stood on the lakeshore, trying to calm the campers, but my mind was intractable with dread.  How could I have condoned Simon's antics?  I watched the boy's mother, hysterical with sobs; his father, fists holstered at his sides.

"Of course.  I ran, pulse galloping, to our cabin, and pulled Simon's trunk from underneath his bed.  Nothing but dust mice and dirt.  I did the same at all the other bunks.  I searched on my hands and knees.  No luck.

"With a sore heart, I returned to Simon's bed, replaced his trunk.  I was almost at the door when it came to me. I went back, hauled out the trunk and pried the lid.  He was folded up in a human origami of fear, bloodless cheeks drawn, lips blue.

"I lifted him onto the bed.  Mouth-to-mouth worked in less than a minute.  Simon coughed and then cried in my arms.  The next day I phoned a family social worker."

AND THAT IS WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK.

The Last Herald Mage Trilogy, by Mercedes Lackey  Genre:  Fantasy/Romance/Drama/ AND ANGST LIKE YOU WOULDN'T BELIEVE.

Magic's Pawn, Magic's Promise, Magic's Price

~The Intro~
These books were the first slash I'd ever encountered.  Ever.  I was the most sheltered child in existence, until, after moving at the age of nine, I explored the adult section of my local library.  (I thought it was better than the kid's section, where things weren't as well-organized.)

Now, I didn't really understand/get into the slash until I was twelve.  I seemed to understand a lot of things better at that age--like William Golding's Lord of the Flies.  I guess the moral of that small story would be--reread all the books you read as a kid when you're older, because you probably missed quite a few things.

Another moral would be--don't reread those same books too many times.  While great works of literature (like ANYTHING Golding ever wrote) are amazing every time you pick them up, I must sadly say that this series loses its luster with age.  Perhaps this is not the case for everyone, but is is with me.  LHM didn't make a lot of sense the first time I read it.  It made me weep and feel all fuzzy inside the second time.  I was entertained and thought-filled the third time...but after each dip into the rapidly cooling waters of this series, I found myself noticing how...well, bored I was with it.  It wasn't the book really, it was me.  As I'd matured as a person and grown as a writer, I realized that something about these books bothered me...that they were -le gasp- suddenly below my standards. 

I became a literary snob.  I haven't turned back since.  But that doesn't mean the rest of you have to follow my sordid path of poetic prose and realistic fiction.  Fantasy is a lovely thing, that I desperately want to appreciate once more.  I'm sure it's just some weird symptom of needing to get laid. 

~Important Information~
For those of you not familiar with the Heralds of Valdemar Series, quite a few bits of this review will be confusing.  If you are familiar with the series...well...you've probably already read these books. 

Valdemar:  This is a country in a ficticious world.  It borders several other countries--Karse, which is it usually at war/on the brink of war with, for they're a country full of religious fanatics.  During the series, they decide that all magic not performed for their God is evil, and start killing off their own mages.  Rethwellen borders both Karse and Valdemar, but if I recall correctly, has little to do with this trilogy.  They are usually allies of Valdemar.  The smaller countries that play a larger part in this story are Lineas and Baires.  Their borders are located near Forst Reach, home of the main character Vanyel.  They two have a grudging alliance with Valdemar, for they are a bit distrustful of magic, and especially shaych (homosexual) people. 

Haven City:  The capital of Valdemar, where many of the books in the series are set.  It is the hub of activity, where the queen and her heralds reside, and where all formal training is located. 

Government:  The country is ruled by its king or queen, with the Heralds (explained later) acting as messangers, parlaiment, military, judges, etc.  There is also the Guard, which is like a police/task force.

Heralds/Healers/Bards:  Here's where the magic comes in.  Herald possess certain heraldic gifts--foresight, fetching, firestarting, mindspeech, etc.  Herald Mages are those who can do real magic, and are seen as greater/ more powerful than the regular Heralds.  Healers have a healing gift, in which they can use magic to repair wounds/fight sickness.  There are even special healers/heralds who can help mental illness, though not much is revealed about them.  Bards are...well, bards, but they sometimes possess the Bardic Gift, which allows them to manipulate a person's emotions when they play. 

Companions:  To become a Herald, a person with heraldic gifts must first be chosen.  This is done by the Companions--magical beings in the shapes of white, blue-eyed horses.  They can speak to their chosen through a mindlink, and generally are only ridden by their chosen.  THEY ARE NOT HORSES though.  They simply take that form out of convenience.  Little is known about their true selves.

Tayledras: These are...Valdemar's version of elves, you might say.  They're actually human, but their role is similar to an elves--they preserve nature using their magics, don't associate much with those outside their clan, have bondbirds, which are similar to companions, though they are not on the same intelligence level.  Though they can be of any race or species, Tayledras tend to have features that are bleached--white hair and blue eyes similar to a companion's--due to the magic they work with. 

Lifebonds: The...I will now say cheesy, but really, don't take my word for it--lifebond is stressed a LOT in these books.  It's a special link between two people who are pretty much meant to be together.  If one dies, the other one usually follows, blah blah, troo wuv, Romeo-and-Juliet-esque, but without the hormones and stupidity, and feuds.  Oh, wait, there IS one of those in the first book, my mistake.

~The Summary~
Magic's Pawn:  The first book of the series introduces the main character--Vanyel Ashkevron, the young, angsty, artsy-fartsy son of an overmasculine ruler of Forst Reach.  His father, Withen, wants for him to be a man--to fight and swear and have lots of unprotected sex, eventually leading to him taking over as head of the household.  Vanyel, on the other hand, loves music and reading, wants to be a Bard or Minstrel, and finds bedding women to be 'about as mechanical as dancing'.  These two clash often for the first few chapters, until Withen decides to send his dramatic, petulant child off to his Aunt Savil, a Herald living in Haven City.

While there, he meets Tylendel, and finds out that he prefers men to women.  There is much freaking out and angst, including nightmares that lead to a fun and angsty comfort-scene, which leads to sex that we don't get to read much about.  The two angst over having to keep the relationship secret, lifebond, and then..Bad Stuff Happens.

Tylendel, it turns out, has a twin.  They have a magical bond.  His twin Staven is head of their family, which is locked in a feud with another.  Staven is killed, 'Lendel feels it and goes crazy, more bad stuff follows, 'Lendel jumps off a building and goes splat right before Vanyel's eyes.  Some bad mojo-magicness goes down, and suddnely all of Vanyel's latent heraldic gifts are triggerd, making him one messed up, bad-assed mage of doom.

The rest of the book is all about keeping him alive, making him sane, and helping him get control of his abilities.

Magic's Promis:  This has very little slash, so I don't read it very often or thoroughly.  Thinking back though, I should--it's probably the best of the three.  There's more angst here, more Bad Stuff happening that sets up book three.  Vanyel meets his nephew Medren, who ends up at Bardic college in Haven, which is important later.  This middle book is like a middle child--overlooked, easily forgotten, and with low self-esteem.  Well, maybe not that last one.  Its character have low-self esteem--does that count?

Magic's Price:  I think this is my favorite of the three, since it includes Stefen.  He's...apparently thought to be Tylendel's reincarnation, but he doesn't know it, Vanyel doesn't know it, and neither of them need to.  Plot:  The king is dying of some unknown, cancer-like disease.  Stefen has a unique ability--he can use his bardic gifts to ease pain.  Like all horny young hoodlums, he uses his new status in court to get into Vanyel's pants.  Then, oops, he falls in love with him, and then, oops again, they lifebond even though Vanyel, now middle-aged, feels like a horrid ickle cradle-robber. 

And through all of that, Herald Mages are dying, and no new ones are being found.  (Ah, now the title is beginning to make sense, eh?) When only Savil and Vanyel are left after a string off odd accidents, Savil is worried...blah blah, she dies, Vanyel feels guilty for not listening to her worries, and he and Stefen go on a search for her killer.

I know I'm not supposed to spoil things for y'all, but I think it's pretty obvious what happens.  Vanyel gives his life to save the world, Herald Mages disappear, Stefen is sad.  There is much angst.  Oh, but then he eventually dies and they get to magically be together forever, so the ending is...angsty too.

Hm.  I think I just realized why I no longer worship these books. 

~The Review~

Alright, here's where I tell you why you should read these books if you already haven't.  They're good the first couple of times. 

Though meant for an older audience, the fact that the first book is about a teenager helps us connect to the characters.  Vanyel's plight of 'don't put me in a mold I won't fit' is realistic and easily understood by our generation.  His love of Tylendel is TRAGIC and very Shakespearean. 

The magic is well-explained, logical, and just plain cool.  There's plenty of politics throughout the series, which is really what holds me to 'em nowadays.  The discrimination against regular Heralds is interesting, especially in how it effects the Heralds themselves. 

There is boyxboy love.  If you like that, you'll like this book. 

Mercedes Lackey walks the line of Gary-Stu when you first meet Vanyel.  He's very much the 'I am a pretty, talented boi who gets all the guys and girls steamed and yet, NO ONE UNDERSTANDS MY PAIN.  Then he gets magical powers. 

Yet, as the story progresses, we see that such things are merely the surface.  When his life becomes too much for him, Vanyel's withdrawl into himself, his selfish, icy exterior, are all wonderfully human reactions that we can relate to and love him for. 

My recommendation:  Pick up these books if you can.  Read them a couple of times, and then spend the rest of the time remembering them fondly.  Read them too many times, and you end up bitter and resentful like moi.  I only keep up with 'em because they have sentimental value--to you new readers out there, I'm pretty sure you've read other slash novels previously, so your opinions of it will be based solely upon the actual story.


Sorry if that wasn't very praise-filled.  I'm just giving my honest opinion here...I think Eva Kasumi should do her own review of these books, they might be less negative. 

Luck in the Shadows, Stalking Darkness, and Traitor's Moon by Lynn Flewelling
Genre: Fantasy

Summary: Alec had no idea why he was thrown in prison for trying to trap some game in the woods by his hometown of Kerry. He also had no idea that his cellmate would turn out to be Seregil of Rhiminee, a thief and spy who was more than capable of getting them both out alive. But most of all, when he agrees to apprentice himself to Seregil and accompany him south to the most interesting city on the continent... he has no idea what he's getting himself into. There are rumblings of war from outside, political intruige within the city, and plenty of adventure to go around. Okay, so my summary sucks. The blurbs on amazon can give you more details on the plot, but I'm here with a review. XD (Note: the book titles listed above are links to the books on amazon.)

Recommendation: Personally, this is the best fantasy I've ever read. The first book, Luck in the Shadows, absolutely blew me away with the sheer brilliance of it. This isn't just about wizards and magic and necromancers, about armies and evil and war; this is about politics, loyalty, and underhanded tactics. This isn't a quest; this is a way of life. And it's amazing. I know the spy angle has been used in fantasy before, but I've never seen it done this well. LitS is by far my favorite of the three, and it doesn't even have any slash in it!

But don't worry. Alec and Seregil's relationship is also a strong focus in the books, even though nothing romantic begins to develop until the second book. But developed it is. Their friendship is very solidly established before it becomes something more, and the way Lynn draws it out and portrays the development of interest and the reserves of both of the characters is absolutely wonderful. There's Alec's naivety on the subject, as in his homeland in the north such relationships are frowned upon and therefore rare; and Seregil's reserves given Alec's background and Seregil's own luck with relationships in the past. But even simply their friendship is just too beautiful for words.

I can't rave about this enough. I don't know what else to say, except that if you have ANY interest in the fantasy genre you should read this, because it's spectacular. I might come back and add more to this later, but if I keep going now I'm just going to drool and drivel all over the page and not actually say anything useful. If anyone else wants to add to this review in a comment, feel free to do so. Nightrunner needs LOVE. (What am I talking about? Nightrunner IS love!)