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The Lords Of Harbendane
Rogan Dahl and Tristan Carlin meet by chance on a rainy night, and are soon caught up in the storm of events leading to the greatest battlefield of their time. Their accidental encounter is the pivot-point around which the future revolves, for the great land of Harbendane - and for their own lives. The fortified city of Althea is treasured as the living, beating heart of Harbendane ... and the plans have been meticulously drawn for its downfall. The wild, savage tribes of the far north are in league with the cruel, ambitious warlord of Galshorros, and Althea lies almost undefended before massed armies. In the midst of this, Rogan and Tristan are caught up in an illicit love affair that could be death for them both. Read free
- GenresFantasyM M Romance
298 pages, Paperback
First published April 18, 2009
2 people are currently reading
35 people want to read
About the author
Mel Keegan
54 books71 followersA self-confessed science fiction and fantasy devotee, Keegan is known for novels across a wide range of subjects, from the historical to the future action-adventure. Mel lives in South Australia with an eccentric family and a variety of pets.
Every Mel Keegan book is strong on gay or bisexual heroes (also, often, on gay villains), and some of these heroes are the most delicious in fiction: Jarrat and Stone from the NARC series, Bill Ryan and Jim Hale from The Deceivers, Neil Travers and Curtis Marin from Hellgate, and many more unforgettable characters. Because Mel's books feature the same sex relationships, the partnership at the core of each book is integral: this is the relationship driving the story, and it can be very powerful indeed.
Every Mel Keegan book is strong on gay or bisexual heroes (also, often, on gay villains), and some of these heroes are the most delicious in fiction: Jarrat and Stone from the NARC series, Bill Ryan and Jim Hale from The Deceivers, Neil Travers and Curtis Marin from Hellgate, and many more unforgettable characters. Because Mel's books feature the same sex relationships, the partnership at the core of each book is integral: this is the relationship driving the story, and it can be very powerful indeed.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 30, 2010
Beautifully crafted world with complex characters and an epic story compressed into a few days of intense action and danger. A gripping read.
August 5, 2018
This novel should carry a warning: do not start reading when you get home from work at 7:00pm, even if the book is sitting on your doorstep ... because you're going to be a zombie tomorrow, after having read till four in the a.m. to finish.
There's a certain "something" we've come to expect from a Keegan novel. Whatever it is, The Lords of Harbendane has it by the truckload. It's Keegan pure and simple, with qualities that remind you of Fortunes of War and Swordsman, Nocturne, Dangerous Moonlight, Home from the Sea ... What qualities? Truth. Passion. Intelligence. Vision. Lyricism. (Also the "A-list" skill of a writer who's been on top of this game for decades.)
Picture, if you will: a dark, dirty night, bucketing down, muddy, cold. The quintessential tall, dark, handsome warrior is on a mission when he gets waylaid in a nasty little town. He's aided by one of the most enigmatic and irresistible of Keegan's heroes ... the story explodes from a chance event into the fantasy-scenario equivalent of World War Three.
"Tall, dark and smoldering" is Rogan Dahl, who's been a prince, hostage, soldier, cavalry colonel. "Drop dead gorgeous" is Tristan Carlin, who's been a peasant, warrior, scribe, and wedlocked husband. Life is a rocky road for these two; put them together and you get a inferno waiting to go up.
And Keegan is going to make you wait! Everything you can imagine (and a bunch you absolutely can't) gets between them, and when they finally get it together it's as exhausting for the reader as for the characters. Keegan manages to do this while staying on "this side of the line" that divides Legitimate Fiction from erotica. Harbendane will stand your hair on end -- at the same time as being absolutely legit.
The backstory is huge. It spans centuries of history, generations of the Halloran family. The Hallorans are Rogan's adoptive clan. He was sent to them as a hostage when he was a tot (in the traditional sense of the word "hostage," which meant the guarantee of someone's good behavior). The Hallorans are the clan at the head of the great kingdom of Harbendane, and as the story opens, Harbendane is up for grabs. They're beleaguered, surrounded by enemies on three sides, nowhere to run, no one to turn to. They're fighting at capacity in the north, and when the ambitious, murderous chief from the next neighboring "superpower" takes them on, they're hanging by a thread. The freedom of a whole people depends on tactics, strategy, the willingness to take outrageous risks.
And that's just the scenario, not the plot! Against this monster backdrop, Keegan's story is about individuals, how lives are twisted by duty, how dreams and desires are wrenched away, how people struggle to make something of themselves, how they interact as they play their parts in a strategy that might keep Harbendane out of the hands of its enemies.
I can't say much regarding the details of those personal stories, because I'm in plot spoilers instantly. Most readers hate to be told, "Tristan's real problem is..." and "Rogan's plan is..." I can say, the book is written with a great lyricism, imagery that comes to life, characters you'll love, others you're going to hate. Obviously I adored Rogan and Tristan, but I also loved Damiel and Morgan Halloran, which is a bit unusual for me: I rarely "identify" strongly with female characters. These two are just amazing -- particularly Morgan, who blew me away.
The book is thrilling in many places, intriguing in others ... and keep the Kleenex handy, because there's a couple of spots where you might need them. Fair warning: one of the major characters gets killed. (NOT Rogan or Tristan; but Keegan will make you care a lot about most of these characters, and one of them doesn't make it to the end.)
Does the book have a downside? If it does, I didn't find it. The cover art is among the best DreamCraft has ever done. Jade must have been inspired. (You get used to digital "art" ... but this is a painting, the way books used to have real artwork covers years ago. You feel spoiled with the luxury.) The production values are very high throughout, and CreateSpace does a fantastic job with the paperbacks. I read a lot of e-thingies, but I do love my paperbacks.
Highly recommended. AG's rating: 5 out of 5 stars, and a gold sticker added on for excellence of presentation: that cover is amazing.
There's a certain "something" we've come to expect from a Keegan novel. Whatever it is, The Lords of Harbendane has it by the truckload. It's Keegan pure and simple, with qualities that remind you of Fortunes of War and Swordsman, Nocturne, Dangerous Moonlight, Home from the Sea ... What qualities? Truth. Passion. Intelligence. Vision. Lyricism. (Also the "A-list" skill of a writer who's been on top of this game for decades.)
Picture, if you will: a dark, dirty night, bucketing down, muddy, cold. The quintessential tall, dark, handsome warrior is on a mission when he gets waylaid in a nasty little town. He's aided by one of the most enigmatic and irresistible of Keegan's heroes ... the story explodes from a chance event into the fantasy-scenario equivalent of World War Three.
"Tall, dark and smoldering" is Rogan Dahl, who's been a prince, hostage, soldier, cavalry colonel. "Drop dead gorgeous" is Tristan Carlin, who's been a peasant, warrior, scribe, and wedlocked husband. Life is a rocky road for these two; put them together and you get a inferno waiting to go up.
And Keegan is going to make you wait! Everything you can imagine (and a bunch you absolutely can't) gets between them, and when they finally get it together it's as exhausting for the reader as for the characters. Keegan manages to do this while staying on "this side of the line" that divides Legitimate Fiction from erotica. Harbendane will stand your hair on end -- at the same time as being absolutely legit.
The backstory is huge. It spans centuries of history, generations of the Halloran family. The Hallorans are Rogan's adoptive clan. He was sent to them as a hostage when he was a tot (in the traditional sense of the word "hostage," which meant the guarantee of someone's good behavior). The Hallorans are the clan at the head of the great kingdom of Harbendane, and as the story opens, Harbendane is up for grabs. They're beleaguered, surrounded by enemies on three sides, nowhere to run, no one to turn to. They're fighting at capacity in the north, and when the ambitious, murderous chief from the next neighboring "superpower" takes them on, they're hanging by a thread. The freedom of a whole people depends on tactics, strategy, the willingness to take outrageous risks.
And that's just the scenario, not the plot! Against this monster backdrop, Keegan's story is about individuals, how lives are twisted by duty, how dreams and desires are wrenched away, how people struggle to make something of themselves, how they interact as they play their parts in a strategy that might keep Harbendane out of the hands of its enemies.
I can't say much regarding the details of those personal stories, because I'm in plot spoilers instantly. Most readers hate to be told, "Tristan's real problem is..." and "Rogan's plan is..." I can say, the book is written with a great lyricism, imagery that comes to life, characters you'll love, others you're going to hate. Obviously I adored Rogan and Tristan, but I also loved Damiel and Morgan Halloran, which is a bit unusual for me: I rarely "identify" strongly with female characters. These two are just amazing -- particularly Morgan, who blew me away.
The book is thrilling in many places, intriguing in others ... and keep the Kleenex handy, because there's a couple of spots where you might need them. Fair warning: one of the major characters gets killed. (NOT Rogan or Tristan; but Keegan will make you care a lot about most of these characters, and one of them doesn't make it to the end.)
Does the book have a downside? If it does, I didn't find it. The cover art is among the best DreamCraft has ever done. Jade must have been inspired. (You get used to digital "art" ... but this is a painting, the way books used to have real artwork covers years ago. You feel spoiled with the luxury.) The production values are very high throughout, and CreateSpace does a fantastic job with the paperbacks. I read a lot of e-thingies, but I do love my paperbacks.
Highly recommended. AG's rating: 5 out of 5 stars, and a gold sticker added on for excellence of presentation: that cover is amazing.
November 11, 2012
SlashReaders: As much as I like Keegan's work, I was not overly fond of this book. That is not to say that it was not well written it was; however, I found the beginning of the book somewhat slow. Over all the plot was not overly involved and there was nothing out of the ordinary that happened which surprised me. I like a few surprises here and there, things I don't see coming.
Tristan is an interesting but occasionally annoying angsty character, the married property of a warrior woman and treated as such. Longing for freedom Tristan enlists Rogan's help, after rescuing the island Prince from a mugging one night. Thus the romance between Tristan and Rogan flares along with other problems--such as Tristan's wife and war getting in the way. Through it all they discover a way to make their dreams of, in and for each other come true.
For the most part this was a straight forward warrior's romance. A couple of big battles and then it's all over for the day. If that's what you're looking for it's great. The beginning is a little slow but not overly so. :)
Tristan is an interesting but occasionally annoying angsty character, the married property of a warrior woman and treated as such. Longing for freedom Tristan enlists Rogan's help, after rescuing the island Prince from a mugging one night. Thus the romance between Tristan and Rogan flares along with other problems--such as Tristan's wife and war getting in the way. Through it all they discover a way to make their dreams of, in and for each other come true.
For the most part this was a straight forward warrior's romance. A couple of big battles and then it's all over for the day. If that's what you're looking for it's great. The beginning is a little slow but not overly so. :)
April 21, 2011
I always find Mel Keegan's books so difficult to rate. On one hand, they are intricate and interesting and technically well-written. On the other hand, they tend to be awfully dense and at times, incredibly overwhelming with the details (e.g. lots and LOTS of crazy names and places and unfamiliar words thrown around, lots of action all the time, etc).
The bottom line is, I did enjoy reading this book. I liked the characters, the medieval/fantasy setting, and the action. But it took me all friggin day to read!! I just kept feeling bogged down by its density and was easily distracted by less intense pursuits (such as napping, watching America's Next Top Model, and doing my laundry). So what does that say about the book that I would get distracted by cleaning? (Um, if you knew me, you'd think it didn't say anything good.) But perhaps it says more about my frame of mind. I primarily read to relax, not to think too hard. So in order to get maximum enjoyment here, I'd recommend you to be in a more focused and determined state of mind to tackle this book.
The bottom line is, I did enjoy reading this book. I liked the characters, the medieval/fantasy setting, and the action. But it took me all friggin day to read!! I just kept feeling bogged down by its density and was easily distracted by less intense pursuits (such as napping, watching America's Next Top Model, and doing my laundry). So what does that say about the book that I would get distracted by cleaning? (Um, if you knew me, you'd think it didn't say anything good.) But perhaps it says more about my frame of mind. I primarily read to relax, not to think too hard. So in order to get maximum enjoyment here, I'd recommend you to be in a more focused and determined state of mind to tackle this book.
February 15, 2017
While I really like this book, the one sensible scene in it was when Sybella met Martyn.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews