(no subject)

[skygiants]

Back in June I reread A Bad Spell in Yurt, the most heartwarming cheesy nineties fantasy novel of my youth, and since then I've been rereading all the books in the series that I had in my possession . . . except then the series did that thing where it turns out that there was A SURPRISE NEW BOOK, which I did not own because it had not been published when I was reading them back in the day, and which I could not seem to acquire ANYWHERE until the lovely cahn kindly came to my rescue.

The complete set of Yurt books, as I am now aware, consist of:

A Bad Spell in Yurt, the first and most adorable, which I've already talked about and which is about your first job out of college

The Wood Nymph and the Cranky Saint, which is about when you've been at your job for a few years and your mentor is starting to get old and also some bright-eyed college graduate is hanging around and you feel like you need to impress them. Also including, in addition to the titular wood nymph and cranky toe-less saint, a bevy of hermits, some zombie rabbits, and a prince-in-disguise rom-com

Mage Quest, which is about when you've been working in the same place for a while and you're full of job ennui so you decide to shake things up, in this case by going on a potentially ill-advised road trip with all your coworkers through a very nineties fantasy novel version of the Exotic Far East, I know, but it could be worse

The Witch and the Cathedral, which is about figuring out how to get on with your job when your best work friend has left the office and your embarrassing coworker crush doesn't work out

Daughter of Magic, which is about balancing family and career, and juggling parental responsibilities with job responsibilities, especially when your daughter keeps bargaining with demons and turning people into frogs. Possibly the most serious book, including themes of jealousy and religious fanaticism and even more deals with the devil.

Is This Apocalypse Necessary, which ties all the underlying long-running plot threads in the book pretty much up, but is also about when people suddenly think you're an expert in your field and you should be put in charge of things and you're like "NO WAIT WHAT WHY ME I WAS A FRESH-EYED AND INCOMPETENT COLLEGE GRAD JUST FIVE BOOKS AGO"

I am always going to love the first book best, and some of my favorite characters from Bad Spell, especially Lady Maria and the Duchess, fade disappointingly into the background as the series progresses. (Also, I am not sure how I feel about the explicitly Christian cosmology, especially since the fifth book features a five-second cameo by an Jewish student wizard named Levi so that he can translate some Hebrew letters and then disappear from the story again. I mean, I laughed. LEVI. But how do you reconcile that in a book that also features Christian saints taking an active role and a trip to an exceedingly Dantean afterlife? Handwave, handwave.)

Still, all the books are really enjoyable, and it just continues to be so refreshing to read a fantasy series in which nothing is grimdark and everyone pretty much means things for the best! Daimbert is the MOST MAGICAL GIRL of wizards; in the last book, various people come out and explain in detail that his only power is the POWER OF FRIENDSHIP. There's a great scene in the last book when he meets a creepy dark wizard with a man-eating pet and he's like "wait, Daimbert, let's not judge, MAYBE HE JUST WANTS TO BE FRIENDS." And indeed, creepy dark wizard and his man-eating pet named Bone DO IN FACT just want to be friends with Daimbert and they have a very nice conversation. Even the series villain, megalomaniac wizard Elerius, really just wants to be friends (or possibly more, I don't know):

ELERIUS: So Daimbert, this is like the fifth time you've thwarted my plans.
DAIMBERT: Um...
ELERIUS: And I think that's just so charming. I would love it if you would rule the world with me. How about you come to dinner with me tonight? There's this great little place in this city I'm planning to take over, they do a fantastic lobster.
DAIMBERT: Greetings and defiance -- wait, what?
ELERIUS: We can talk about our kids! Your daughter is adorable. Maybe she can marry my son when they're both a little older! Seriously, I would love to be her other dad.
DAIMBERT: ...

Also, I would probably read the Daimbert/Joachim/Theodora AU where Joachim the priest does take Daimbert up on his offer to run away from all their responsibilities and live in a cart.

Comments

[jinian]

DAIMBERT: Greetings and defiance -- wait, what?

Cereal + uncontrollable giggling is not actually a good combination.

[skygiants]

YOU'RE WELCOME. No, but this is honestly how all their conversations go! Daimbert is trying earnestly to stick to the script and Elerius is just RELENTLESSLY AFFABLE.

[cahn]

THIS IS ALSO THE PART WHERE I STARTED TO GIGGLE UNCONTROLLABLY. Well, okay, I wasn't eating cereal at the time, but my three-year-old was all "...mommy, why are you laughing so hard at your computer?"

So then I had to read it to her, but she was not nearly as impressed!

[bookblather]

I started giggling uncontrollably too and now I want to write the AU where the villain and the hero decide to fuck all of this and run off to live together in homosexual bliss. Heterosexual bliss is also okay. And there should be baby somethings in there. Humans, animals, reanimated abominations against nature, I don't care, as long as it's a baby.

[skygiants]

You've seen D.E.B.S., right? D.E.B.S. is pretty much this EXACTLY, except without a baby. But with space wide open for babyfic!

[bookblather]

I HAVE NOT. What is D.E.B.S.? Because need.

[skygiants]

Oh, wow, you need to see D.E.B.S. IMMEDIATELY. D.E.B.S. is a romantic comedy starring a SPY ACADEMY PRODIGY and a CRIMINAL MASTERMIND in a STAR-CROSSED LESBIAN LOVE AFFAIR. Need I say more?

[cahn]

...I would totally read the Joachim-Daimbert-Theodora AU where they both make fun of Daimbert in a cart. WANT.

And yes, I had never really thought about it but Elerius REALLY IS THAT WAY, isn't he? I... now I kind of wonder what happens in Elerius' AU-dream where he finally gets to thwart Daimbert. And have him come to dinner, clearly!

Thanks for turning me on to these! I have really enjoyed them. Um, obviously. (And yay! So glad you finally got to read it!)

[skygiants]

I think it was your idea to begin with! IT'S A GREAT AU. I mean they all go down to hell together, the platonic OT3 is basically canon.

Elerius LOVES Daimbert. I spent the whole last book laughing at how much Elerius loves Daimbert. He wants him to rule the world with him! That's all he's ever wanted! DAIMBERT IS ETERNALLY CONFUSED BY THIS. "Is Elerius trying to threaten me . . .? The threatening is coming ANY MINUTE, right?"

Thanks again for loaning me your copy! :D I SUPER APPRECIATE IT, as you can tell.

[cahn]

YAY! This is, you know, your copy now. I gave up on the ever getting to the post office thing, and got a bonus at work, so I gave up and just got you a separate copy :)

Oh, right, that was my idea! Well, I STILL WANT IT. :)

Also, I reiterate that I SO want the fic set in Elerius' dreamworld where they rule the world together!

[skygiants]

Oh wow, thank you! I am DELIGHTED to have a complete set and will cherish it dearly. :D

It would be a much sweeter and more bumbling world-ruling than I suspect Elerius accounted for...

[lacewood]

This series sounds adorably awesome. Sadly it doesn't seem to be available anywhere I can easily get it... ;_;

[skygiants]

There is always the first book which is available in free e-download! IT'S A START. :D?

[lacewood]

Oooh, it's available free? Where? I took a look at the Amazon listing but it's listed as not available to customers in my region, SIGH.

[cahn]

pssst -- click on the link to "A Bad Spell in Yurt" in the post, and you'll be taken to the free page :)

[lacewood]

I didn't realise that link was different from the other link, good move, self. orz But A+ on free ebooks, thanks for the heads up! XD

[skygiants]

C. Dale Brittain is here to help

[lacewood]

Got it, thanks for the heads up! :D