The Undertaker's Gift

[lucy_locket]

Hi lovelies! ♥

So, I started reading The Undertaker's Gift by Trevor Baxendale (love Trev, he wrote my absolute favourite Doctor Who book - Prisoner of the Daleks so the love I have for him is immense. I love Something In The Water as well, probably the only one :p) in the bath earlier this evening. Got out of the bath and then couldn't put the

Comments

[lefaym]

There's an adorable bit right at the end where Jack's holding Ianto and Gwen really close and he kisses them and awww it's lovely.

Awwww. I want me some of that!

[lucy_locket]

It's really, really sweet. I may have actually melted :p

[lefaym]

Anyway, what was the J/I interaction like? Did he seem to be only using Ianto as his second choice after Gwen (which I don't like) or did it seem that he loves both of them, and that both of them would be his first choice (which I do like).

[lucy_locket]

Hmm...I think Jack and Ianto's interaction was rather complicated. I guess it's clear that Jack cares for Ianto a lot, but he doesn't show it a lot. Like, he's kind of more affectionate with Gwen. But yeah, he clearly loves both of them. He says as much at one point I think.

[lefaym]

Ah, cool. At this point, I'm desperate for anything that will allow me to interpret Jack's behaviour towards Ianto in CoE (when his life is not in danger) as anything other than "Jack is an uncaring douche".

[lucy_locket]

Oh, there was quite serious emo going on when Ianto's seriously ill. Ianto actually is the victim of an assassination attempt made on Jack. Ianto's in a bad way for a while, clearly in pain and telling Jack that he doesn't want to die.

Jack was acting that way a bit in this. I suppose the book tries to explain it.

[lefaym]

If the book does explain it effectively, then I will love it forever.

While I love what I've read about the J/I in the other books, I can't reconcile them with the way that Jack behaves towards Ianto in CoE -- I can believe it based on just S1 and S2, but not based on CoE. So if this book can actually explain Jack's behaviour while still letting me believe that he really does care about Ianto's happiness... that would help me quite a bit, I think.

[lucy_locket]

Well, I don't wanna get your hopes up or anything. But Gwen does confront him about why he's being such a grumpy bastard lately.

I'm just not sure the books can do what you want. They're not canon, so I just see them as completely seperate.

[lefaym]

*sigh* Yeah, you're probably right. I think the only thing that could do what I want is retcon, so I could forget that CoE ever happened.

But Gwen does confront him about why he's being such a grumpy bastard lately.

And what does he say to that? :P

[lucy_locket]

He pretty much says he can't bear the thought of losing them.

[lefaym]

Awww.

fide_et_spe is currently hosting a discussion over at her place about how that's sort of how we're supposed interpret Jack's weirdness in CoE, and she makes some very good points -- so maybe this book would help with coming around to that point of view.

[lucy_locket]

Yeah, I definitely get that impression from this book. He and Gwen have a bit of a blazing row when he demands that Ianto goes with her. And I think that's because he wants them safe in a way....away from himself, because of the assassin that's after him. But yeah, they both disregard his orders anyway :p

One thing that really intrigued me was a scene near the end. Ianto (who's terribly ill at the time) being helped/dragged out of this crypt by Jack and Gwen (who's also injured) while the walls are crumbling around them. Reminded me of End of Days really badly.