The Dancers of Arun

Chronicles of Tornor #2

by Elizabeth A. Lynn

Watchtower was the first in a breathtaking fantasy trilogy...now the Chronicles Of Tornor continues. Kerris has spent seventeen years training his mind as scholar and scribe of Tornor. His brother Kel is one of the chearis - the dancing warriors of Arun - who teaches him the beauty of patterning. This gift has given order, peace and beauty fo the cheari culture. But all too soon will Kerris need to draw upon his talents. The city of Elath is in the throes of psychic warfare - and as he learns the ways of the warrior of the battlefield, he will also discover what it means to love.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, M M Romance, LGBT, Speculative Fiction, Romance

245 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

Elizabeth A. Lynn is a US writer most known for fantasy and to a lesser extent science fiction. She is particularly known for being one of the first writers in science fiction or fantasy to introduce gay and lesbian characters; in honor of Lynn, the LGBT bookstore "A Different Light" took its name from her novel.

Reviews

[Helene · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could point to just one book and say "That book made a mark on me", it would be The Dancers of Arun.

Yes, Lynn has a choppy style of writing (which didn't bother me as much at 13 when I first read it as it does today). But she also created a world in this series that I didn't want to leave (and that I would still love to crawl into). Part renaissance, part Asian, part fantasy with a heavy focus on the links between art and war, it is Lynn's characters and, more importantly, her messages of tolerance and acceptance that guide each of these books (set in the same world but over the course of more than a century).

Okay so...yes, her books have gay themes. And yes, in this one, there is a pair of (consensually) incestual brothers. That sounds way more sorted than it is (seriously...prime time TV has relationships that are significantly more offensive and graphic than this one). There is, however, nothing gratuitous in the relationships of Lynn's characters (although I'd guess that no one who hasn't read these will believe me).

Ultimately, her message is this: Love is what's important. Not gender. Not race. Not even necessarily monogamy. What matters is honesty and the ability to open your heart to another person. To use whatever skills you have at your disposal to help and to heal.

And that, I think, is a message worth sharing.

[DivaDiane SM · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have incredibly mixed feelings about this book. There are many aspects that I really enjoyed: It was a fast read and I enjoyed Lynn's style of writing. I liked the development of Kerris' feelings of self-consciousness to a sort of self acceptance through the acceptance and support of the chearas. How Sefer helped him through the trauma he suffered as a baby seemed also very true. The "witch" town of Elath seemed to be an incredible place of acceptance and love and honor for his talent (as a scribe) . I loved the school of "witchcraft" and the variety of "gifts" that were explored there. I would've loved to learn more about the other gifts, especially patterning and healing.

There is one point that kind of ruined the whole thing for me. I get that Lynn was making a point that people in this world, at least among the people of Elath, were free to love whomever they pleased without judgement. Homosexuality, bisexuality and polyamory were handled as they should be; as something normal and not worth other commentary. I agree with the sentiment, but I think she took it too far to include incestuous relationships. I think the book would've been so much better without that aspect and would've been just as clear on that point.

So, basically, this is a book written in the 70's, complete with that 70's subversive attitude toward sexuality, which in this case simply went too far. At least for me. That is the main reason for my 3 stars rather than 4.

[Juushika · Rating 4 out of 5]

2020 reread: I like this a little less than I did the first time around, maybe because I knew what to expect from the interpersonal elements and so was seeing more of the larger plot.

But those interpersonal elements are still what interest me, particularly Lynn's variety of wish fulfillment. Everyone is bi, polyamory is unremarkable, and, in case you were wondering if that was an oversight, incest is fine, too: it's an intentional blanket acceptance of all attractions and relationships which pointedly contrasts the other forms of social strife (xenophobia, ableism) which motivate plot and character developments. This differs from the internalized homophobia in Watchtower, and Lynn interrogates the limits of acceptance via the non-consensual desires in The Sardonyx Net. These exceptions and limits serve to make the acceptance in books like The Dancers of Arun and A Different Light feel particularly intentional. The scene where the protagonist here wonders whether his attraction is permissible is charming because his doubts are so easily pacified. There's conflicts, sure, but not about this, not in this place--it's a relatable queer fantasy which makes for lovely comfort reading without fluffy escapism.


2013 review: Crippled as a child, Kerris lives in Tornor Keep and trains as a scribe. But he's long had an unusual psychic link to his older brother Kel--and one day Kel comes to him and offers to take him away with his chearis, a group of dancing warriors. The Dancers of Arun is a distant, indirect sequel to Watchtower, and each book stands alone; it's similar to its predecessor in all the best ways, and improves on some of that book's flaws. Characters and their relationships star, with plot serving only as a vehicle towards character growth (the plot here is both more local and unique than in Watchtower). Kerris is a superb protagonist, a convincing young adult--immature but not petty, with distinct potential for growth--whose disability is important but not exploited. Unusual, intriguing, and beautifully rendered relationships abound: Lynn violates almost every heteronormative expectation without fetishizing the violations, and the emotional landscape that grows around Kerris is varied and vibrant, ranging from friendship to romance, from a chosen family of intimate friends to joyful polyamory; there's enough situational difficulty and character depth that it doesn't read as a wish-fulfillment fantasy. Lynn's prose remains somewhat stilted, and while functional the plot is far from memorable. But this is what my id is full of--troubled characters, complex emotions, unusual and lovely interactions--and so I find it hard to view The Dancers of Arun objectively and I certainly don't mind its flaws. I recommend it enthusiastically to any reader that shares a similar interest in character and relationship.

[Altivo Overo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Elizabeth A. Lynn is a highly nuanced and subtle writer, and in my opinion doesn't receive the acclaim to which she is entitled. Arun is the second book in the Chronicles of Tornor series, and the best of the three. The others are also well worth reading, though, and read in order will provide puzzle pieces that serve to explain events and references that are shared among them.

All three books are coming of age stories (sometimes referred to as bildungsromans,) but this one is the most focused in that respect. We see the medieval world and culture through the eyes of Kerris, a teenage boy who lost an arm as an infant and was fostered and trained as a scribe at Tornor Keep. His older brother Kel is a cheari, one of the highly respected dancing warriors, but Kerris has seen him only rarely when he got as far north as Tornor.

When Kerris begins to manifest psi talents (after puberty, as seems to be traditional in the works of many authors) Kel comes to take him from Tornor to Elath, the home town of their mother and a famed training school for those with the "witch talents." Kel is a patterner, which is to say he can see into the future and sometimes change the course of events by early action. Kerris, however, is an inspeaker, or empathic telepath. His growing ability to link with his brother Kel even at a distance is what awakened the older man to the need for education and fostering among his own people.

The journey through the farmbelt of Galbareth to Elath, as seen by Kerris, reveals a great deal of his own inner turmoil as well as the culture of his world. I am reminded of many of the works of Ursula K. LeGuin, as well as some of Marion Zimmer Bradley's Darkover novels. Readers who have enjoyed either of those authors will almost certainly like Lynn as well. Highly appropriate for teen or adult readers with a sensitivity to subtleties or any interest in non-standard gender roles. The conclusion is bittersweet and hopeful at once, and leaves much open for discussion and speculation.

[Jukaschar · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a bit less enjoyable than the first one for me and I think it all comes down to the age of the main character. At seventeen, Kerris is rather young and while I don't generally dislike books about people in that age range, there is more than one reason why it is of importance in this case. I'll come back to this later.

First off, there's a lot to like. Lynn is extremely progressive in writing a book that portrays as queernormative a world as she does in the trilogy. It was first published in 1979 and it's seriously one of the earliest fantasy books I know that is this uncompromising in its portrayal of queerness. It goes beyond just homo- and bisexual relationships and also includes polyamorous and consensual sibling incest. To me, the book reads very much like a spirit child of the revolutionary movement towards more sexual freedom of the 1970's that was equally as important for feminists and LGBTQIA+ people.

But here's the thing. Let's come back to Kerris' age. He's 17 when he begins a sexual relationship with his brother, who is 27 at the time, 10 years older. The depiction of how this begins isn't entirely clear and the big age gap and obvious financial dependance of Kerris on his brother at the point of the story where this begins, is making me just a bit uncomfortable. As far as I remember and understand (this part of the book made me realise more than anything in a long while that English is not my mother language and I just might be oblivious to some nuance that is evident for a native reader), there was no point where coercion between the brothers was obvious. So that's that.

Another thing is that the age of Kerris just seemed to prevent some deeper insights into the culture of the people he met, but this probably wouldn't have been different with an older main character, if I think about this now.

Another minor detail that was offputting to me was that even though the chearis' philosophy is built around pacifism, it allowed corporal punishment, which wasn't touched upon a lot fortunately. Had that been more prominent, it would've cost the book another star. I dislike the concept a lot.

All in all, this is still a great novel and I'm very interested to see how the story concludes.

[Adele · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished about my 20th reread of this and bumped it up a star. Anything I read every word of that many times deserves five stars, right? Also, on this particular re-read I didn't mind the ending, which is different from the first time I read the book when I found it a tiny bit unsatisfying because I was hoping for more.

Brothers, love, adventure, chosen family, strong, likeable female characters - this book really does have it all.

TW: Accepted incest between two brothers who were not raised together.

[charlotte, · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rep: amputee bi mc, bi characters

CWs: incest

[liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Goddamnit, what IS it with fantasy authors and incest?

[Nathaniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The old northern runes (which were really a corruption of the southern runes, Josen said) went up and down on the scrolls. Kerris could not read them. Josen had taught him the southern script. Everyone used it now. The old records in the Keeps were the only examples left of the northern script, and when these were all copied into the southern script then no one would remember that there had ever been another way to write, except a few scholars like Josen.”

*

“The rain was cold. They shivered under it. Kerris heard Jensie swear. He crouched beneath the wet. The world dissolved, changed, and blurred away. He was lost in a country he did not know, and the people around him were insubstantial as shadows, ghosts—strangers. He did not know them. He did not know where he was. He was small, and alone.The mountains had vanished and he was lost without them. His hand cramped painfully on Magrita’s rein. He was afraid. He was afraid.”

*

“He went into the street without looking at the upstairs windows of the house. He’s not blind, said Elli in his memory. He knows what you are. Kerris rubbed his hands over his face, feeling stubble. He would need to shave soon. What am I, then? Kerris thought.”

*

this was in so many ways a very good book (thus the five stars). there is, however, the incest thing, which just...seems like it could have been handled in a different way.

[Douglas Milewski · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Dancers of Arun (1979) by Elizabeth A. Lynne continues her Tornor series. Way back in the day, this had been a book that I'd seen but was never interested in. I now understand why.

In this book, a one-armed scholar goes to live with his brother, a dancer and a knower of magic. Trouble ensues, and so does some trigger warning sex. The homosexuality I was fine with, but not the incest.

I can't say that this book was for me, which is fine. Overall, it's something of a romance, with a meeting in the beginning, hot stuff in the middle, and a continuation of the relationship by the end.

I found the text far wordier than I liked, bloating an already lean story into an even longer story. Even so, the tale moves at a good enough pace that it's not a total slog-fest, but it does plod. I found the plodding dull, so I skimmed vast section of the novel.

Like all of Lynn's novels, I feel that vast tracks of her ideas and characters were vastly under-explored, if not under-developed. I just don't get a sense of character for most of the characters. They seemed to be more a set of traits with names attached, those the traits no mattering very much.

I found that the descriptions themselves very information oriented, but mostly immemorable. It's this vast amount of information without any sort of discussion of that information which leaves the book feeling so padded. I definitely wanted far more explored.

[Althea Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Time has passed since the events of 'Watchtower', and Van's groups of dance performers/martial artists, known as chearis, have spread throughout the nation of Arun, becoming respected as bringers of peace and balance, although already their inception and history are passing into legend, details forgotten.
Kerris, a young man crippled as a child in a violent raid, is suddenly picked up by the older cheari brother that he never knew, but whom he has always had a confusing and intimate mental bond with. Brought from the only house he can remember into a group that has many mental talents, he realizes that he may have more options than just that of being a scribe. He is trying to figure out what to do, both about his future and his feelings for his brother, when the chearis' village is overrrun by raiders of the same ethnicity as those that crippled him years ago. However, these are outlaws, exiled for the same mental gifts that the chearis share.

This book does a good job of portraying the classic 'talents' such as telekinesis, telepathy, etc, in a believable way, and in portraying a society without taboos which are deeply ingrained in ours in an interesting, non-condemning way.

[Lara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay.

A) It's really good, as good as Watchtower.

B) There is an incestuous relationship between Kerris and his brother Kel. I can see why it developed; Kel is ten years older than Kerris, they weren't raised together and don't really think of themselves as siblings, Kerris' gift of Inspeech means he has periodically been tangled up in Kel's thoughts and feelings since he hit adolescence, and a lot of his emotional and sexual development is tied up in what he unwittingly learned from Kel. It is an affectionate relationship, Kel would never do anything to harm Kerris, Kel's love is what gives Kerris the strength to leave Tornor and travel with the chearas. BUT. It is still 100% an incestuous sexual relationship between brothers, and I understand if that's a hard line.

[Edward Champion · Rating 3 out of 5]

So I was nothing less than crazy about WATCHTOWER. But this second volume in the Chronicles of Tornor feels very much as if Lynn is phoning it in. Kerris is simply not that interesting of a protagonist. And even the worldbuilding seems more lackadaisical this time around. Lynn still retains her talent for taut descriptive sentences and for featuring casual gay relationships during a time in which this was frowned upon by the libertarian Heinlein mansplaining bigots. But this seems to have been written too fast and the stakes of this story aren't nearly as compelling as the first volume.

[mark monday · Rating 3 out of 5]

tough guys usually hug things out and are often on the verge of crying. in fact, when a tough guy is angry at you because you've made them feel small or stupid, sometimes they will do this awful crying/yelling combo thing which makes you feel both horrible and like you are about to get your ass kicked. it's the wusses who avoid manly hugs & tears!

[Beth Haymaker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Guilty, guilty childhood pleasure! (Oh so trashy, and yet...) *What was I doing reading this at TWELVE??*

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dancers of Arun. Elizabeth A. Lynn. Great integration of internal & external daily life. Community & prejudice. #LGBT #disability

Reviewed @reallyReads

[R E · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Kerris had heard Josen say it—that the chea was not simply expressed by the chearis but also maintained by them, so that if the dancers of Arun ceased to dance, the world would break into discord….”

This brilliantly conceived, thoroughly rendered book deserves a place alongside LeGuinn’s A Wizard of Earthsea, or even The Left Hand of Darkness. Author Elizabeth A. Lynn, a two-time World Fantasy Award winner, gives us a novel that has a power and gravity all it’s own, a unique vision that challenges received values, very much like LeGuinn’s work, even as it inspires new ones.

The first time I read this book I was 15; it’s one of a handful of books that’s left a mark on my life. Lynn has secured her place in history by being among the first fantasy and science fiction authors to write LGBTQ characters with authenticity and sensitivity, as an unremarkable and normal part of everyday life. I remember reading it many times my freshman year of high school. I rediscovered it a few years ago, 40-some years later, and read it again.

Could I have been sleeping the first times I read this amazing novel? I don’t remember feeling such an intense amalgamation of being wrung out and heart sore, of being swept away and mesmerized, of registering everything Lynn describes in ultra high definition. This is one of those books that gets better with each experience, it’s originality and beauty revealed in greater detail with every reading.

“For a moment he had seen the thing that holds the world together, and had felt himself a part of it, even he, who could not dance a step to save his life, and had never been within the fighting circles of the Yard."

It’s been 100 years since the events of Watchtower, the first book in the Chronicles of Tornor trilogy. A century has passed since the burning of Tornor Keep, when war tore Arun apart, and since the founding of the cheari in the mysterious valley of Vanima. Peace, for most people, now reigns. Trade flourishes, and the majestic dancing warrior clan of the chearis is haled for it’s beauty, grace and art.

The Dancers of Arun tells the story of 17 year old Kerris, and his reunion with his older brother, Kel. It follows his coming to terms with his disability, his feelings, and his ability to share the minds of others. Kerris, an apprentice scribe at Tornor Keep, lost both an arm and his mother when he was 3 to the one remaining blight of war on the land: the struggle against the savage desert riders called the Asech.

At 27, Kel, his brother, is already a legendary chearis, and he takes Kerris on a journey across Arun. Along the way, Kerris succumbs to the disorienting fields of Galbareth, where the land is a menacing, brooding presence; confronts the open intimacy and fluid sexuality of his brother’s chearas, the troop of dancer-warriors Kel leads; and is welcomed by the warm, generous people of Elath, where Kerris discovers he’s not alone in having unusual abilities. Kerris also finds himself confronting his own feelings for Kel and Seffer, the man Kel loves.

I and others have commented on Lynn’s terse writing style, which some experience as choppy. I’ve come to realize that her paragraphs are closer to free verse poetry. There’s a beauty in the way her sentences record the diverse perceptions that Kerris’ mind registers, putting us, the reader, in his shoes, experiencing the often disconnected, momentary sensations that consciousness weaves together into a unitary experience. It’s this attention to detail, of forcing our awareness into the present moment, that gives the novel it’s feeling of vivid high definition, that leaves such a lucid impression. The cumulative effect is a story rich enough to suggest all the stories in Lynn’s fictional world not being told, like we’re glimpsing only part of a much larger tapestry of interconnected lives.

This is one of those books where I wish I were a better writer, so I can leave a review that does justice to the author’s creation. With this most recent reading, I’ve finally outgrown the mark this novel left on my life enough to see more clearly the originality and force of the author’s vision. To think it was written in the 1970’s demonstrates that Lynn was an author ahead of her time.

I give The Dancers of Arun my very highest recommendation. Enjoy.

(Warning: The kindle version of this book, while clear and mostly easy to read, is shoddy, probably due to a rushed OCR/text recognition app and a lazy proof reader. There are missing periods, “I’s” switched to the number 1, and other, mostly minor, errors. My outrage is over the lack of respect for a work of art, in general, and specifically this precious classic. I don’t know much about Open Road Media, the current publisher, other than it was started by a former HarperCollins CEO and that it is now focused on marketing rather than publishing. But, judging from their sloppy, disrespectful handling of the Tornor books, there’s a slimy, used-car/snake oil salesman feel to the company. Lynn’s work deserves to be cherished and managed by people who care about literature and art, not slime ball corporate types).

[Mikko Saari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Watchtower-kirjan jatko-osa sijoittuu aikaan muutaman sukupolven verran edeltäjänsä jälkeen. Edellisen kirjan tapahtumat ovat jo haalistuneet legendoiksi, epämääräinen viittaus aikaisempiin tapahtumiin on hauska yksityiskohta Watchtowerin lukeneelle. Pohjoinen Arun on muuttunut rauhallisemmaksi, kun rauha Anhardin kanssa on pitänyt, eikä uusia sisäisiä vihollisia ole löytynyt.

Seitsemäntoistavuotias Kerris on Tornorin linnan kirjurin oppipoika, joka kokee olonsa jokseenkin tarpeettomaksi. Lapsena menetetty käsi tekee Kerrisistä hyödyttömän soturina. Kaikki kuitenkin muuttuu, kun Kerrisin ainoa elossa oleva lähisukulainen, pitkään maailmaa cheari-tanssijana kiertänyt veli Kel saapuu yllättäen Tornoriin ja vie Kerrisin mukanaan uuteen elämään.

Kerris on perinyt äidiltään psyykkisiä voimia. Hän pystyy aistimaan veljensä kokemia asioita kaukaa ja oppii pian käyttämään taitoaan muihinkin ihmisiin. Kel lupaa viedä Kerrisin kotiin Elathiin, jossa on Arunin ainoa psyykkisiä voimia opettava koulu. Etelässä on myös sotaa, kun Asech-heimot ryöstelevät kaupunkeja. Asechien hyökkäyksessä Kerris menetti kätensäkin.

Oikeastaan paljon tämän enempää kirjassa ei tapahdukaan. Painopiste ei ole tapahtumissa ja toiminnassa, vaan henkilöissä. Kerris kasvaa ja kehittyy ihmisenä, tutustuu menettämäänsä veljeen, jonka on saanut takaisin. Veljesten suhde on läheinen, jopa seksuaalinen. Kirjassa on muutenkin hyvin luontevaa ja vapaamielistä seksuaalisuutta. Lynnillä on mainetta lesbokirjailijana, mutta tämä kirja on lähinnä täysin avoin seksin suhteen — sukupuolella, sukulaisuusssuhteilla tai muilla asioilla ei yksinkertaisesti ole merkitystä.

The Dancers of Arun on edeltäjänsä tavoin kaunis, viehättävä ja epätavallinen fantasiaromaani, joka kertoo mielenkiintoisten ihmisten tarinan. (28.8.2010)

[K.S. Trenten · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a sweetly soothing story of learning to love, of a young man learning what’s he’s capable of. In spite of a lifetime growing up in a much safer Tornor Keep than the one of Ryke’s time, it’s a place where Kerris doesn’t fit in. Singled out for his missing arm and mysterious fits, too often he lives through his beautiful brother. Visions of Kel come to him from far away, along with Kel’s troupe of chearis, sacred dancers revered for the physical and spiritual unity they bring with their art, until that troupe comes Tornor Keep to take Kerris with them on their journey to Elath, the witch town. For Kerris is himself a witch, and what he thought were fits are a power waiting for him to unlock.

This is a journey towards happiness and growing joy for Kerris, as he comes to understand himself, for all tragedy strikes from time to time, often brought about by human frailty. His love for his brother becomes a passion unexpected, yet it brings a gentle sensation of past damage being healed. Overall, there’s a sense of community, of fun. The other members of Kel’s troupe are vibrant characters, particularly Elli, whom brings a sense of warmth and humor, offering Kerris a taste of friendship. Sefer, Kel’s lover and Kerris’s teacher is a striking personality, offering a sense of community in Elath, displaying how strong and fragile that community can be.

Seldom have I read a fantasy novel with such overwhelming optimism as this. It was soothing read, a wonderful landscape to journey with Kerris, growing and discovering his happiness with him.

[Netti · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantasy. First published 1979

Die Tanz-Kampfkunst-Kultur der Chearis, die im ersten Band eingeführt wurde, bildet hier das zentrale Thema. Die friedfertige, auf Harmonie bedachte Weltanschauung der Chearis erinnert an eine Mischung aus Buddhismus, Kommunismus und Hippie-Romantik (einschließlich Heavenweed 😎). Sie wird auf eine harte Probe gestellt, als die Gruppe unaufhaltsam mit Gewalt und Tod konfrontiert wird.

Während es im ersten Tornor-Buch keine magischen Elemente gibt, erfahren wir hier, dass einige wenige Menschen besondere "Gaben" haben, "Hexenkünste": Telekinese, Gedankenlesen und ähnliches.

Es ist ein nachdenkliches Buch, das sich mit ideologischen, gesellschaftlichen und philosophischen Themen auseinandersetzt. Die Gruppendynamik der Chearis ist zu schön, um wahr zu sein: sieben extrem unterschiedliche Charaktere begegnen sich mit Toleranz und Respekt und finden immer wieder einen gemeinsamen Nenner. Was wäre das für eine angenehme Welt, in der dies möglich wäre! Ebenso die selbstverständlich, beiläufig und ohne großes Drama-Gedöns gelebte Sexualität... Sinnenfreude ohne Macht- und Besitzdenken, ohne Manipulationen und Hintergedanken... vergleichbar mit anderen Sinnenfreuden wie einem guten Essen, Spielen und Raufen im Wasser, Musik... DAS WIRKLICH WICHTIGE, Entscheidende in Beziehungen sind jedoch Freundschaft, Vertrauen und Empathie.

[Nathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reading the summary of this book after finishing it is so funny because none of it really happens. "All too soon will Kerris need to draw upon his talents." This makes it sound like his inspeaking will become important in a climactic moment—it never does! "The city of Elath is in the throes of psychic warfare." It really isn't. That sounds exciting though! "As he learns the ways of the warrior of the battlefield" — he briefly is taught knife fighting??? — "he will also discover what it means to love." He has sex with his brother a couple of times. And it doesn't really go anywhere. Because nothing in this book goes anywhere.

[Jordan Bethea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Second story in the series brings more fantasy elements into play, as well as a more interesting plot and characters. It's not a complex story, but the emotional weight of everything happening feels believable and moving. It feels more real, and like less of a morality play than the first book, though elements of that still do persist. The author does a good job of creating a sense of danger and fear without relying too much on a large body count, which makes it feel more like real life than most fantasy stories.

[James]

The epic adventure that began with Watchtower continues in the second breathtaking book in Elizabeth A. Lynn's Chronicles of Tornor--a series that has won unprecedented acclaim: "Astonishing."-- Theodore Sturgeon"Unusual, powerful and beautiful."-- John Varley"A book of depth and vigor and surprises."-- Robert Silverberg"A marvelous blend of fantasy and realism."-- Marion Zimmer Bradley

[Jenise · Rating 2 out of 5]

The brother incest was weird and unnecessary. I liked the rest of it, but it had the same detachment from the main chararcter as the first book, even though it's written from their point of view. I like the world the author has built.

[Benjamin Fasching-Gray · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was more compelling than the first book, with better characterization and more fantasy elements.

I could have done without the spice, though not explicit, it was not my taste. I also had mixed feelings about the disability thing in here.

[Brianna · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was great until it went all "Flowers in the Attic."

[Agnieszka · Rating 2 out of 5]

tw: incest, nc-17.
if it squeaks you, better for you to not read it. I had to skip a LOT of the book as it is very heavy and explicit, unfortunately.

[Althea Hicks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Immersive world. the brother incest was odd and uncomfortable. didn't really add value to the story and felt forced. If you can get past that, its a good read. relaxing.

[Lea · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not into the sexual themes of this book. Incest and age/power inequality are not my thing.

[Jason Hawke · Rating 5 out of 5]

An easy read

I hope you like it as much as I have.
I actually read this book multiple times before buying this e-editon.