"The beginning is very familiar. In response to a prophecy which encourages that all rulers of his kingdom be female, a ruthless King kills all female members of his family, save his sister, who he loves too dearly. When she bears twins (one a boy and one a girl), a pair of wizards and a witch sacrifice the boy to cast a spell on the girl, switching her and her brother's appearances until such time as the spell is broken. The mother, who is not consulted prior to the ritual, is driven insane by her son's untimely death. The act is justified in the wizards' eyes, by the arrival of the King, who is relieved to see that the girl child was stillborn. He had clearly intended to kill her, anyways.
The girl is called Tobin and raised as a boy. Throughout her childhood, she contends with her crazy mother, her brother's vengeful spirit, and her curiously effiminate preferences (she believes that she is a boy, and therefore strives to behave as one). Tobin almost manages to establish a bond with her mother, when she throws herself out the window at the news of her brother's impending arrival. Tobin's only keepsake from her mother is an ugly doll, which her mother had carried around.
Eventually, Tobin meets up with the witch who had botched the spell. The doll turns out to be a means of comforting the angry spirit of her brother. The witch attunes the doll to Tobin, forming a bond between her and her brother. She then establishes a truce with her brother, since she is now responsible for his "well-being."
With the coming of Tobin's first menstrual cycle, the spell which hid her gender is torn (but not quite broken). "
Bernie Margolis, Resident Lynn Flewelling Scholar
"THE BONE DOLLS TWIN
Bantam, Oct 2001, 6.99, 544 pp.
ISBN 0553577229
The Oracle says that as long as the true-blooded female's of Queen Gherilain's line rule and defend Skala, she will never be conquered. For generations this has come to pass as a queen rules the empire and females serve in the army and other very important positions in the civilian sector. All that changed when Erius takes the throne as he is determined that his son Prince Korin rules after him. To prevent anything from going wrong, all royals of the female gender seem to mysteriously die, save the king's precious sister.
Instead, she gives birth to twins, a girl and a boy. While the male is killed, the female is magically transformed into a male until the time is right to reveal her destiny. He's called Prince Tobin and the soul of his dead brother haunts him. When Tobin's father is killed in battle he becomes a ward of the king and is ordered to the capital city where he meets his cousin. Tobin adjusts to court until he suddenly takes ill and returns to his former home so that the people who know the truth can fix the spell that is dissipating.
THE BONE DOLL'S TWIST is a fascinating epic fantasy that shows the lengths those in power will go in order to determine their successor. Tobin's world is similar to that of medieval Europe so readers will have a good picture of his country life and city adventures. This is the first book in a trilogy so some threads are left dangling, making readers eager for the next novel to appear so as to see what will happens next.
Harriet Klausner
"
Harriet Klausner, Resident Lynn Flewelling Scholar
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Overall Review
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Plot
Composition of Book Descript. of chases or violence - 20% planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 20% Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 50% Descript. of society, phenomena (tech), places - 10%
Tone of book
- suspenseful (sophisticated fear)
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION?
- fantasy world/fantasy past
Coming of age
Yes
Lifeform altered?
Yes
Kind of alteration:
- Magically turned into another being
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Family relations
Yes
Main Character
Identity:
- Male
- Female
Profession/status:
- Prince/Nobleman/King
Age:
- a kid
- a teen
Has magical/special powers?
Yes
Magical/mental powers of main character:
- can see into the future
How sensitive is this character?
- sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Average intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
- average physique
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 40's-50's
Profession/status:
- Prince/Nobleman/King
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- almost none
- a little/some
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- very athletic
- average physique
Setting
Terrain
- Water
- Mountains
- Forests
Earth setting:
- during "Tolkien" (fairytime) times
Takes place on Earth?
Yes
Style
Person?
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- generic/vague references to death/punishment
- moderately detailed references to deaths
scientific jargon? (SF only)
- none/very little science jargon needed
How much dialogue?
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
