Enjoyable, if completely forgettable fantasy

Thornlost is the third book in a fantasy series by Melanie Rawn, and that cover makes it look so much more exciting then it actually is. The cover makes it look like evil knights, fierce battles, lost jewels, you know typical fantasy excitement. But in actuality the series is basically troubadours in Tudor England with magic.

The series follows a group of these troubadours as they progress from basically unknown to one of the more renowned groups in the kingdom. In this kingdom the various magical species (of the British folklore variety) have come to seek refuge years and years ago and so they’ve interbred. Because of this, no one is quite sure if someone will have magic, or not, or whether that magic will be of the pixie variety, or the elf variety, or the wizard variety, etc. Meanwhile, plays are a huge source of entertainment, and a troupe of four is needed to put these plays on, the writer, the actor, the person creating the magical effects, and the person controlling the magical effects so the audience doesn’t get overwhelmed (some of the magical effects are emotions, or the feeling of being wet).  In addition to all of that Cade, this particular group’s writer and one of our POV characters, has the ability to see glimpses into the future.

As for what this particular book is about? Um… they tour the country. There are pranks. Cade slowly comes to realize how he can control his future seeing. There are miniscule advancements to the overarching plot. If I were to say this book had as much plot as meringue has substance that would be far too much credit. And yet, it’s completely enjoyable. A slice of life kind of book. There is some kind of evil lurking in the background and I’m sure at some point there will be a confrontation, but mostly it’s just following our four characters through their lives. They talk about the plays, and art. They get married, they have arguments amongst themselves. They get political influence by being awesome, certainly not because they want it (these are the good guys see, good guys don’t want political influence with the king).

I read the first two books of this series two years ago, enjoyed them and thought, “oh I should get the next ones when they come out” and then completely and totally forgot about it. It’s non stressful, light fantasy reading.