I want to read a book that

[mer]

...is without cynicism
...is wildly romantical without being romance-focused
...is entanglingly character-driven
...has characters with swords
...has mysterious religions
...is written with transparent prose so I don't have to fight my way through it going, "Wait, this is what I wanted, but it's not."
...has assassins. Good assassins.
...and gruff old men with hearts of gold
...and lost heirs in disguise
...and is basically all wish-fulfillment fantasy, all the time, but for girls who used to like unicorns but don't anymore
...and maybe there's a desert. And if there's no desert, there's a mountain fastness. And if there's no mountain fastness, there's a some other fancy, dominating landscape.

I want, basically, The Blue Sword again for the first time. Plus a little Seven Daughters for Seven Sons and a lot of Crown Duel, and maybe even a tiny bit of Dragonsong, with a dash of David Eddings and Mercedes Lackey (no really). And little tiny bit of I Capture the Castle, but only in the voice.

Anyone know where I can find that?

Comments

[penmage.livejournal.com]

Have you read Dreamhunter and Dreamquake by Elizabeth Knox? They don't fit in all your criteria, but they do follow some. And they are unlike anything else I have ever read (in a very very good way.)

I also recommend you not read any blurbs or summaries, because they are the hardest books to blurb ever. I have tried about a hundred times, and nothing ever makes them sound as good as they actually are.

They are:
...is without cynicism (very yes)
...is wildly romantical without being romance-focused (yes yes yes)
...is entanglingly character-driven (sweet baby jesus yes)
...has characters with swords (There might be swords. Am not sure. Can't promise.)
...has mysterious religions (sort of)
...is written with transparent prose so I don't have to fight my way through it going, "Wait, this is what I wanted, but it's not." (yup)
...has assassins. Good assassins. (do conspiracies count?)
...and is basically all wish-fulfillment fantasy, all the time, but for girls who used to like unicorns but don't anymore (yes yes yes)
...and maybe there's a desert. And if there's no desert, there's a mountain fastness. And if there's no mountain fastness, there's a some other fancy, dominating landscape. (oh baby, are you in for some dominating landscape)

[merriehaskell.livejournal.com]

SOLD.

[penmage.livejournal.com]

I cannot wait to see what you think of them. (It's basically one book in two physical volumes, FYI.) They are in my Top Ten of 2007 list. I love them to itty bitty pieces.