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[bookelfe]

I spent many years inexplicably convinced that I had read Caroline Stevermer's A College of Magics as a kid and hadn't much liked it, which explains why it actually took me so long to get around to reading it despite the fact that it is relevant to my interests in a number of ways. Comedy of manners, awesome ladies with an extravance of style,

Comments

[lacewood]

I don't remember a lot from the second book (definitely not as clearly as the first, which to be fair I have reread more often), but I did think it was less awesomely ridiculous and insane. But this is quite likely because she was no longer cramming a 3 volume novel into 1 book, and anyway, the first has a really special place in my heart. XD; Jane is indeed hilarious and awesome in it, and the main character was a sweetheart too. XD (The romance is also a lot less ODD, but then it's hard to out-weird Faris and Tyrian, oh guys, what the hell lolol)

I also heard she might be writing a THIRD book, but man, no idea when that'll actually happen

[bookelfe]

From the summaries and so forth I have read, it seems the plot is a little more compact, so I am curious to see how that works out! (HAHAHAHA YEAH. Their romance: starts with magical transformation into a kitten, ends with magical transformation into a [spoiler]?)

Iiiinteresting! I wonder who it would be about :O

[lacewood]

As a note, there is indeed a brief road trip in the book, and it's set in Glasscastle, the dudely equivalent of Greenlaw, though with less academic hijinks

(YES. And their entire relationship consisted of Tyrian's competency being thwarted on every front because Faris is the WORST bodyguardee. By the time you get there she has already BROKEN SOMEONE'S ARM WITH A POKER. And that ending, oh my god. XD And then she still refused to marry him)

I kind of secretly hope she makes it a quartet, with a book for each Guardian, and that one of them is Asian, but perhaps I hope for TOO much... XD;

[bookelfe]

(HAHAHA IT'S SO TRUE. I love how calmly murderous Faris often is. My favorite though is when her uncle saves her and Tyrian angsts for like weeeeeeeks. ALL HE ASKS FOR IS TO GET TO SAVE HER LIFE ONCE. IS THAT SO HARD. And hah, I also loved that she refused to marry him! It would make her uncle too happy. *solemn* Also, oh my god, the body image/self-esteem issues Tyrian is going to have. FOREVER.)

Oh man, a book about an Asian Guardian would be AWESOME. Fantasy of manners in Singapore! I mean as long as she actually does her research . . .

[peroxidepirate]

OH, this is one of my favorite books, and I love your description of it!

My favorite things about A College of Magics are the three-volume-yness (yes, complete with the disconnected tone), the friendship between Faris and Jane, and the bittersweet ending. The sequel lacks all those things, though it's still a fun book and Jane is as wonderful as you would expect.

[bookelfe]

Hee, thank you!

Yeah, the one thing I am really sad about regarding the sequel is that there will be no Faris-and-Jane! Because I LOVE their friendship.