Any Anne Bishop fans... (other than Bree)?

[PastMember]

So, any Anne Bishop fans?

I'm asking because Belladonna just came out this week, Ephemera #2, and I'm hoping to be able to discuss once I finish it!

[Vix]

I'm a fan, but I'm behind on her books.

[Yvonne]

*g* I'm going to be the stick in the mud who can't ignore the 'yay fan!' thread and say that I am less than enamoured with Anne Bishop. She's .. all right. But I really don't see why she's so popular.

Anyhoo. Carry on with the lovin'. I'll creep back to my non-Anne section of the internets and keep my mouth shut. *g*

[Dana]

I love Anne Bishop  :D  Her Black Jewels books are my favorites!

And I'm really looking forward to Belladonna since I enjoyed Sebastian so much  

[Bree]

We love you anyway, Yvonne. :D

Dana and I are giddy and giggly much of the time! She's my Anne Bishop buddy. I get to squeal like a little girl and she doesn't laugh!

[Patrick]

I've never read Anne Bishop.  What are her books like?

[Dana]

They're hard to describe--at least for me.  I guess you'd say that The Black Jewels books are in the "dark fantasy" genre.  But Anne writes them in such a way where they're not too heavy of a read, like some of those other dark fantasies out there.  

I recommend them, Patrick, even though I can't explain them!  *g*  Maybe Bree or Cae can explain...

[Bree]

They're very much hit or miss! People I meet seem to reallllly love them, or just not care for them at all.

But they are sorta dark fantasy. You'll know within the first few chapters of the first one what you're getting into, though. If that makes you go "yikes!" you might best run. :p

[PastMember]

Well honestly, I had a hard time getting through Daughter of the Blood, which is the first in the trilogy.

The main character of the books, Jaenelle, has a seriously screwed up, abusive childhood. The first book focuses on this pretty intensely and it can be difficult, but the premise of the world sucked me in. Thankfully, the plot stays dark through the second and third books, but is not so uncomfortable (for me, at least) as Jaenelle is older and better able to deal with what is going on.

Basic plot:
Terreille is a world where magical ability is determined by what color 'jewel' you wear. The dark the color of your jewel, the more magic and more psychic power you have, with Black being the darkest. It's currently torn by war and of course there's the prerequisite corrupted Aristos who want to rule everything by pain, torture and the like. There is a small, but loyal group who believe a prophecy that 'Witch' will be born, emphasis on the capital W. She will bring back the balance between all the peoples, light and dark jewels, and the other realms in their world. The Dark Jewels trilogy is the story of the girl who will be Witch, what she has to face as a child to keep from having her power stripped from her and as she gets older, the trials and sacrifices she has to make to keep the world from being destroyed by those who have been corrupted by power.

Unfortunately this is one of those sets where its nearly impossible to tell more without ruining _something_ about the story. Bree is right though, its very much a love it or hate it series. No in-betweens. My personal highlight of the books are the characters in general. There's a whole shitload of characters (nowhere near as bad as Melanie Rawn though!) and they're all given their own quirks and foibles, and many have subplots of their own involving their own particular histories. It's not until much later that you see how all the sidebars are intertwined.

Note to Bree and Dana: Either of you ever have the urge to shoot Marian so you can have Lucivar all to yourself?  :blob6:

[Dana]

Note to Bree and Dana: Either of you ever have the urge to shoot Marian so you can have Lucivar all to yourself?  :blob6:

Oh, Cae....  I love Lucivar with all my heart  :love5:  He's my favorite Warlord Prince, and my favorite character in the series!

[Bree]

Dana and I are obviously very good friends. We haven't decided to shoot each other yet. :D We share him!

He is the love of my literary life, though. *g*

[Roxanne]

I like her books, but am quite behind. I have Dreams made Flesh (I think that's the title), but haven't had a chance to read it yet.

[Dana]

Oh, that's a good one, Roxanne--especially Lucivar and Marian's story  :love5:

[Bree]

Oh, that's a good one, Roxanne--especially Lucivar and Marian's story  :love5:

 :love7:  

:liebhab:

Not that I have several copies of that hanging around in case of an emergency emotional crisis or anything. That would just be silly.

[Vix]

I've read all of the Black Jewels ones, just missed out on others. However, I started with The Invisible Ring -- a stand-alone and yet containing most of the characters -- and it was difficult to move to the others and keep track of who was who.

And what's wrong with Melanie Rawn?