I love your Calormene stories, Liz! You breathe life into the country with all your astounding worldbuilding, from the geography to the culture and the gods they worship. And your OCs are so real, it's like they have been there all along, right beside the canon characters.
I'm always amazed how some authors can write the maxims and poetry that the Calormenes are known for—it never looks to be an easy task and yet you have Ilgamuth spout them off so easily.
The Tolkheera at Azaroth's temple was a bit creepy, only in that she had sensed something about Rabadash's party and knew they were up to no good. Maybe Azeroth really did send her a warning, and in doing so warned them even though she herself couldn't stop a group of armed men. I also think Rabadash's comment about needing no god's fortune does not bode well for all his future endeavours.
And so soon, we lose Zarman and Kinboor, just when we were beginning to know them.
I found Zubidah Tarkheena's coup to be spectacular, because she IS a woman in Calormene and she managed to do so much even in the limited role she must have had due to her gender. And oh yes, she is very ruthless as well.
I was hoping to get a glimpse of Shezan here, though you had been subtly mentioning her before she finally showed up. :-) And it's nice to see she is able to tease her milk-brother and get away with it, unlike Rabadash's companions.
Oh Ilgamuth, after all this, it seems to harbor some regrets about his decision to follow Rabadash but knows he can't change his mind now. His loyalty to his prince and his oath remain strong but it is nice to see that his poetic self still remains even though he knows his life and his future are on a different path than he once probably longed for.
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I'm always amazed how some authors can write the maxims and poetry that the Calormenes are known for—it never looks to be an easy task and yet you have Ilgamuth spout them off so easily.
The Tolkheera at Azaroth's temple was a bit creepy, only in that she had sensed something about Rabadash's party and knew they were up to no good. Maybe Azeroth really did send her a warning, and in doing so warned them even though she herself couldn't stop a group of armed men. I also think Rabadash's comment about needing no god's fortune does not bode well for all his future endeavours.
And so soon, we lose Zarman and Kinboor, just when we were beginning to know them.
I found Zubidah Tarkheena's coup to be spectacular, because she IS a woman in Calormene and she managed to do so much even in the limited role she must have had due to her gender. And oh yes, she is very ruthless as well.
I was hoping to get a glimpse of Shezan here, though you had been subtly mentioning her before she finally showed up. :-) And it's nice to see she is able to tease her milk-brother and get away with it, unlike Rabadash's companions.
Oh Ilgamuth, after all this, it seems to harbor some regrets about his decision to follow Rabadash but knows he can't change his mind now. His loyalty to his prince and his oath remain strong but it is nice to see that his poetic self still remains even though he knows his life and his future are on a different path than he once probably longed for.