shadowfireflame (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
shadowfireflame) wrote2013-11-29 12:24 am
shadowfireflame) wrote2013-11-29 12:24 am
Entry tags:
Lymond-like Characters
Man, I love tricksy thieves...(a.k.a. Lymond, Gen, and Neal Caffrey appreciation post)
I remember reading the entirety of The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett for the first time. I was in high school and stayed up reading until about 4 a.m. every night for at least three weeks just to finish it. I read during breaks at school and during meals when permitted and in the car and just every possible place I could. I was like a slavering zombie by the end of the experience, but I was so very satisfied and proud of myself (even though I didn’t understand a lot of what was going on and had to read with a dictionary beside me and got to practice Spanish, French, and Latin!). I was so in love with Lymond, the wildly complex main character, I can’t even tell you. (I desperately need Benedict Cumberbatch or Tom Hiddleston playing him in a miniseries, but I digress.) Needless to say, I had never read something so engrossing and compelling before, and I kind of doubt I will again, which makes me sad. Not even Dunnett’s other series, House of Niccolò, could measure up, good though it was.
But I have found others in the same predicament in this Goodreads group, so at least I’m not suffering alone in finding that “other books pale in comparison.” And they have some recommendations of other books that might fill the void that Lymond left, so I thought I’d list out some of them here for my future reference and to possibly help others who are in this boat as well.
So far only one series has hit the mark for me, and that’s The Queen’s Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner, and specifically her main character: Gen, the thief, who is indeed very close to Lymond.
The series is semi-historical fiction with a touch of fantasy and concerns the fictional kingdoms of Sounis, Eddis, and Attolia. There are four books:
I polished this series off in about two weeks. Turner does foreshadowing like nobody’s business. And what a delight for hurt/comfort lovers like myself. It even has imprisonment, which all those Draco-in-Azkaban fics have given me quite the kink for. Also, the first novel, The Thief, has an impressive twist that I will not spoil and urge you not to spoil for yourselves if you do choose to read the book.
I can’t help but think that one of the ways in which Turner shows us how far this world expands is by keeping the narrative very small, at least in the first book. Harry Potter did this well at the beginning in a way that, for example, the Mortal Instruments did not: one extraordinary thing at a time, please. For the majority of The Thief there are just five characters in a kind of buddy road trip narrative, very like a condensed version of The Hobbit—a leader, three helpers, one small and unenthusiastic thief, an uncertain treasure, danger plaguing their every step. And then once you’re comfortable with the setup, Turner adds a new complication. It’s just wildly well done, and by the end of it I was gasping for more everything, but specifically more of the main character, Gen.
So I guess for the future, what I’m looking for is a character like Lymond from the Chronicles of Lymond series, or like Gen from Megan Whalen Turner’s Queen’s Thief series, or like Neal Caffrey from TV’s White Collar, or like Loki or even Sherlock or Westley from The Princess Bride. Similar to fanon!Draco from Cassandra Clare’s Draco Trilogy, and a bit like Ender from Ender’s Game or Artemis Fowl from that series. Physically attractive, wildly cocky, scheming little monsters on the wrong side of the law (at least some of the time) with tragic pasts and family histories. Often thieves/con artists. Often get caught and are imprisoned. Expensive tastes. Brutal sarcasm hides an inner vulnerabilily. Whump magnets because they suffer so beautifully. Tend to attract one or two solid best friends but are hated by everyone else who can’t see beyond their prickly facades. Prefer to avoid violence but are experts with weapons when it comes to it.
God, I love characters like that. Is that a TV trope? Is there a name for something that encompasses all that?
Well, if you think of any more examples, please let me know. :)
In the meantime, here are some links I’ve found useful in searching for my next book to read:
And I have a preliminary list of books to check out, so hopefully I'll find something:
Happy Thanksgiving!
I remember reading the entirety of The Lymond Chronicles by Dorothy Dunnett for the first time. I was in high school and stayed up reading until about 4 a.m. every night for at least three weeks just to finish it. I read during breaks at school and during meals when permitted and in the car and just every possible place I could. I was like a slavering zombie by the end of the experience, but I was so very satisfied and proud of myself (even though I didn’t understand a lot of what was going on and had to read with a dictionary beside me and got to practice Spanish, French, and Latin!). I was so in love with Lymond, the wildly complex main character, I can’t even tell you. (I desperately need Benedict Cumberbatch or Tom Hiddleston playing him in a miniseries, but I digress.) Needless to say, I had never read something so engrossing and compelling before, and I kind of doubt I will again, which makes me sad. Not even Dunnett’s other series, House of Niccolò, could measure up, good though it was.
But I have found others in the same predicament in this Goodreads group, so at least I’m not suffering alone in finding that “other books pale in comparison.” And they have some recommendations of other books that might fill the void that Lymond left, so I thought I’d list out some of them here for my future reference and to possibly help others who are in this boat as well.
So far only one series has hit the mark for me, and that’s The Queen’s Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner, and specifically her main character: Gen, the thief, who is indeed very close to Lymond.
The series is semi-historical fiction with a touch of fantasy and concerns the fictional kingdoms of Sounis, Eddis, and Attolia. There are four books:
The Thief
The Queen of Attolia
The King of Attolia
A Conspiracy of Kings
I polished this series off in about two weeks. Turner does foreshadowing like nobody’s business. And what a delight for hurt/comfort lovers like myself. It even has imprisonment, which all those Draco-in-Azkaban fics have given me quite the kink for. Also, the first novel, The Thief, has an impressive twist that I will not spoil and urge you not to spoil for yourselves if you do choose to read the book.
I can’t help but think that one of the ways in which Turner shows us how far this world expands is by keeping the narrative very small, at least in the first book. Harry Potter did this well at the beginning in a way that, for example, the Mortal Instruments did not: one extraordinary thing at a time, please. For the majority of The Thief there are just five characters in a kind of buddy road trip narrative, very like a condensed version of The Hobbit—a leader, three helpers, one small and unenthusiastic thief, an uncertain treasure, danger plaguing their every step. And then once you’re comfortable with the setup, Turner adds a new complication. It’s just wildly well done, and by the end of it I was gasping for more everything, but specifically more of the main character, Gen.
So I guess for the future, what I’m looking for is a character like Lymond from the Chronicles of Lymond series, or like Gen from Megan Whalen Turner’s Queen’s Thief series, or like Neal Caffrey from TV’s White Collar, or like Loki or even Sherlock or Westley from The Princess Bride. Similar to fanon!Draco from Cassandra Clare’s Draco Trilogy, and a bit like Ender from Ender’s Game or Artemis Fowl from that series. Physically attractive, wildly cocky, scheming little monsters on the wrong side of the law (at least some of the time) with tragic pasts and family histories. Often thieves/con artists. Often get caught and are imprisoned. Expensive tastes. Brutal sarcasm hides an inner vulnerabilily. Whump magnets because they suffer so beautifully. Tend to attract one or two solid best friends but are hated by everyone else who can’t see beyond their prickly facades. Prefer to avoid violence but are experts with weapons when it comes to it.
God, I love characters like that. Is that a TV trope? Is there a name for something that encompasses all that?
Well, if you think of any more examples, please let me know. :)
In the meantime, here are some links I’ve found useful in searching for my next book to read:
- The community
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
sounis, and in particular their book recommendations tag - From that, this discussion asking for Gen-like characters in other books (thanks,
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
ladyofastolat) - This group on goodreads: Sounis, and from that this thread: Books with Gen-like Characters
- This incredible book list: Charlotte’s Library (even sorted by recced author—wow!)
- The TV Tropes pages for Gentleman Thief and Impossible Thief. Mmm, thieves.
- And finally, this list from goodreads: Recommendations for Megan Whalen Turner Fans
And I have a preliminary list of books to check out, so hopefully I'll find something:
The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
Psion by Joan D. Vinge
Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (EDIT: Yup, this one was great.)
Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta
The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen
Inda by Sherwood Smith
The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold
Nightside: The Long Sun by Gene Wolfe
The Sparrow by Mary Doria Russell
The Religion by Tim Willocks
Lord Peter Wimsey series by Dorothy L. Sayers
Sherwood Ring by Elizabeth Pope
Chronicles of Chrestomanci by Diana Wynne Jones
Crown/Court Duel by Sherwood Smith
The Winter Prince by Elizabeth Wein (Telemakos, starting in #3, Sunbird)
Runemarks by Joanne Harris
Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson (Kelsier and Breeze)
The Spirit Thief by Rachael Aaron (Eli Monpress)
The Quantum Thief by Hannu Rajaniemi (Jean le Flambeur)
Happy Thanksgiving!