Review: Great world building, no romance
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 10 15, 2011
I have to admit that after the first chapter and a half I thought I wouldn't like this story at all. Tam is a slave in a world where people are taught that slaves have no soul. Master Lucan is a mage whom Tam desires more than anything else. The mage doesn't treat Tam with a special regard, he is not gentle or caring, there's nothing of that. Tam is a tool he uses for his pleasure and to perform the material tasks a slave must perform. Nothing romantic.It was difficult to accept Tam's devotion for this ruthless being, so I had to change my expectations. I focused on the beautiful and evocative writing and on the dark world building. I also understood that I couldn't judge Tam's feeling from an ordinary point of view, but that I had to accept Tam's feelings and needs. His relationship with Lucan is not balanced, it's not a two-way relationship were there's something given and something taken, but Tam finds a way to be fulfilled, he sets his eyes and his needs and his heart on Lucan and pursues the man in the only way he can: by servicing him.Even if he is at the bottom of that society, Tam is attached to life and he takes his decisions knowing very well the dangers and punishments he will face. He doesn't shy away from them, on the contrary, he is brave and courageous. At the end, that bit of recklessness, that molecule of freedom he snatches away, earn him what he craves for.When compared to him, the tall, dark and dangerous mage seems a bit dumb. So at the end what I have to say is: Go Tam!