#The Last Herald-Mage Series

[queer-book-character-tournament]

Character, book, and author names under the cut

Thaniel Steepleton- The Watchmaker of Filigree Street by Natasha Pulley

Iäna Pel-Thenhior- The Witness for the Dead by Katherine Addison

Murderbot- The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells

Vanyel Ashkevron- The Last Herald-Mage Series by Mercedes Lackey

[falconfate]

Had to doodle some horses, so of course I made them Companions… I’ve had Van’s little saddle nap pose stuck in my head ever since I read that scene, desperately wish I was riding often enough to try it out for myself lmao (don’t try sleeping in the saddle at home).

Anyway. Helloooooo Valdemar series fandom. I’m currently devouring these books as fast as I possibly can.

Also I gave Sayvil a Roman nose because even in reincarnation I don’t think you can ever be rid of the Ashkevron nose. (And who would want to be? (can you tell I love a good distinctive nose))

[meat-loving-meat]

I want to write a Vanyel/Stefen modern-with-magic AU soooo bad but I don’t know Valdemar lore like at all. There are six books standing between me and feeling comfortable enough in the lore to imagine what Valdemar might look like with the internet and planes

[guillermodelacross]

When shadow-lover promised Vanyel he wouldn’t be alone 😭

[bluewingedcoyote]

Chapter 7: Truth and Consequence

Lissa had been with them a week now and the girl was an absolute godsend. Practical and unflappable, she had refused to let her brother wallow in self pity after Withen’s disastrous visit, brushing it off as ‘good riddance’ and assuring Vanyel of her unwavering support. Savil wasn’t sure what she would have done without the girl’s steadying presence. It wasn’t just that Vanyel had the support of someone else in his family, the one person who had always supported him, she was also better at dealing with his worst moods. Lendel was quickest to predict when his bond-mate was going into a downturn, but it was his sister who was able to deftly handle what was apparently a common refrain to her ears.

Lissa had the ability to pick through his surface complaints to cut through to what was actually bothering him underneath it. And she was unafraid to call Van out when he was being particularity bratty, whereas Lendel felt far to guilty to ever complain about anything Vanyel did or said. It probably helped a great deal that she had concrete examples of the good in his life to point out to him as balm to his father’s rejection. He had received a nigh-hysterical letter from Teresa trying to warn him that his father was coming for him and assuring him that her love for her firstborn son was undying.

Savil had also received a letter from her sister-in-law, while not noticeably any less hysterical, it had however contained some vital pieces of information. First of which was the enclosed letter of ‘anonymous concern’ that had sent Withen off in such a frothing fury it had terrified even those who were used to his temper. Second was that Withen had been convinced by the household priest to send Vanyel away to a remote monastery of his order to ‘purify’ him of the perverted taint that had led him astray and into a life of sin. Teresa had begged her to use whatever power was at her command, to use her position, her magic, anything to keep Withen from Vanyel. Begged her to take him far away and hide him if necessary, that she feared for her son’s life should Withen get his hands on him.

Teresa had also confessed to how much casual abuse Vanyel had suffered while at Forst Reach; the daily sword practices that were little more than public beatings, how any prank committed on him by his cousins or brothers, no matter how cruel or dangerous, was always brushed off as ‘boys being boys’. How all her protests were put down as feminine hysteria and motherly softness, how any attempt to complain to her husband that he was too hard on Vanyel had only led to harsher treatment of the boy.

It had sickened her to realize just how bad it had been for her nephew there, and for her niece as well. Lissa had gotten the opposite side of that clipped coin, constantly dismissed and diminished, too unkempt and uncouth, never feminine enough, never going to get a good husband the way she was. Barred from the sword-lessons that her brother had so hated, she had taught herself in secret, with help from rapier manuals bought without her father’s knowledge and with Vanyel as her secret sparring partner. The two of them had banded together as the black sheep of the family and been each other’s only support until Lissa had the chance to go foster with Lord Trevor.

---Read it on Ao3!---

Link to Chap Seven- Truth and Consequence

Link to Chap One- Darkest Night

[ryah-wolfe]

Why is being a book lover so expensive 😩 how do I explain to my family that I don’t have too many books, I don’t have enough book! I have another 15 sitting in my Amazon cart just calling to me

[enbyboiwonder]

Y’know, it’s kinda funny that the only two series in the Heralds of Valdemar series that have actually stuck with me at all are The Mage Wars and The Last Herald-Mage, both of which have a main character who went completely silver due to magic. The gryphon had his feathers dyed black though, though he stopped at some point. Vanyel never bothered to disguise his hair going white, and even enjoyed at times that it made him look older and thus more respectable. I don’t remember The Mage Wars being as tragic as The Last Herald-Mage, though. But then, all I really remember are the gryphons (though it would be pretty hard not to, considering I don’t have it as an omnibus and the books are called The Black Gryphon, The White Gryphon, and The Silver Gryphon) and that it’s set in a time before Valdemar

[beyondthisdarkhouse]

Having read some of your older posts on Mercedes Lackey (and thus going in with mostly-full knowledge of Everything), I want to give her books a try…but there are so many of them. Any you recommend as a starting point?

Hmmm. I've probably only read one-fifth of her bibliography, so other people might have different suggestions. Speaking personally, the series of hers I think holds up best is the Tarma&Kethry&Kerowyn arc - Oathbound, Oathbreakers, Oathblood, and By the Sword. The last one technically stands alone, but it's fun to know the backstory.

I think they're some of Lackey at her best - a blend of worldly cynicism and deep moral ideals, willing to let her characters be a bit messy and interesting.

If you want to get into the Heralds of Valdemar... God knows. There was originally a trilogy of trilogies that had the big plot (OG Heralds of Valdemar/Arrows of the Queen, Mage Winds, Mage Wars) but now there are so many prequels and sequels and tie-ins, I think you could potentially pick a series that sounds interesting and dive in there. I personally don't like anything she's written in the last 20 years, but her new books still have an audience.

Other series I know people still love after all this time are Elemental Masters and Bedlam's Bard, though I haven't read them myself.

Other people will, of course, have their own opinions to contribute. That's what we do on Tumblr. Do hot takes and piss on the poor.

[griseldagimpel]

Media Recommendations for Harry Potter Fans

Alright. So you’re a Harry Potter fan. You’re a Harry Potter fan because you love Harry Potter and you love the community you’ve built with your fellow fans, but J. K. Rowling is using her vast fortune to harm people and she says asinine shit about how anyone who likes Harry Potter agrees with her transphobia, and you know that’s not true, but maybe you’re wondering if there’s a different fandom you and your friends could go to, where if nothing else the creator isn’t using a massive platform and massive amounts of money to harm transgender people. This is a guide for you.

You really wish you could have a Harry Potter that’s just not Harry Potter. You want a magical school and aerial sports games and fighting a tyrant and the equivalent of Hogwarts Houses.

Check out The Owl House. It’s about a girl named Luz who wanders into another world and attends a magic school.

You can watch it on YouTube: Link.

You like the idea of a modern-ish fantasy book series (British, pre-Smart Phone technology age) with a big, rambling world to play around in.

Check out The Chronicles of Chestomanci by Diana Wynne Jones. It’s set across a multiverse and follows the lives and trials of young magicians.

Start with Charmed Life, which can be purchased on Amazon: Link.

You want a fantasy series with chosen ones, suffering, and sacrifice where anyone can die. Also, you like magical animal companions.

Check out The Last Herald Mage Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey, which is part of the broader Valdemar series. It’s about the life of Valdemar’s greatest – and last – Herald-mage.

You can find it on Amazon: Link.

You love Harry Potter for the mysteries. You’d be fine with something for a bit of an older demographic, and you love supernatural horror and angst. You want to see the protagonist go through it. But you’d also love it if there was something akin to the Hogwarts Houses that you could define yourself by.

Check out The Locked Tomb series by Tamsyn Muir or The Magnus Archives. The Locked Tomb series is science-fantasy set in the far-flung future and has necromancy. The Magnus Archives is a podcast about an institute in London that takes down statements from people who have had encounters with the paranormal.

The Locked Tomb series begins with Gideon the Ninth: Link.

The Magnus Archives can be listened to on YouTube: Link.

Your favorite part of the Harry Potter series is the wizarding war, and your favorite house is Slytherin.

Check out The Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation by Mo Xiang Tong Xiu. It’s about a necromancer who’s been resurrected. The necromancer in question is like 95% brat-turned-cool-uncle and 5% evil-necromancer.

The volumes are numbered and can be found on Amazon: Link.

There is also an adaptation entitled The Untamed that I have not watched yet, but it can be found on Netflix.

You really enjoy the social satire aspect of Harry Potter and think Hermione was right about House Elf liberation. Also, you’re okay with science fiction instead of fantasy.

Check out The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells. It’s about an enslaved cyborg finding freedom, making friends, and healing from trauma.

The first book is All Systems Red: Link.

You like Harry Potter because it’s comfort media. Life is rough, and you want a piece of media that’s engaging but gentle.

Check out the podcast Welcome to Night Vale. It’s presented as the community radio broadcast out of a small, deeply weird town in the American southwest.

You can listen to it on YouTube: Link.

If you want something in print form, there’s The Lord of the Rings: Link.

If you like movies, there’s Jupiter Ascending: Link.

Don’t hesitate to ask if you want more information (such as content warnings) for any of the above.

[elvishdemigod]

Happy Pride to all those black-haired canonically queer characters! Gotta be one of my favorite genders! (I couldn't find art of just Johann, and no art of Miles as far as I could find)

From Left to Right, Top to Bottom:

Nico di Angelo (Gay) [PJO, HoA, ToA, & TS&TS]

Marceline Abadeer (Bisexual) [Adventure Time]

Marshall Lee vampire & Marshall Lee human (Bisexual) [Adventure Time]

Vanyel Ashkevron (Gay) [The Last Herald-Mage series]

Lysander (Gay) [Silk & Steel series]

Johann (Gay? I think?) [Monster of Elendhaven]

Princess Dennaleia (Lesbian) [Of Fire & Stars duology]

Miles Yoon (Gay) [Lore]

Alec Lightwood (Gay) [Mortal Instruments series]

Magnus Bane (Bisexual) [Mortal Instruments series]

Valentine (Gay) and Spelldon (Bisexual) [Monster High]

Piper Wright (Bisexual) [Fallout 4] (Yes, she counts, since she's romancable by both player genders, and I think made a mention of dating a girl once?)

Zagreus (Bisexual) [Hades game]

Bonus: David Williams (Bisexual [Fallout 4 oc]

[queer-book-character-tournament]

Character, book, and author names under the cut

Neek (NYC)- The Great Cities Duology by NK Jemisin

Celie- The Color Purple by Alice Walker

Carter Bennett- Green Creek Series by TJ Klune

Vanyel Ashkevron- The Last Herald Mage by Mercedes Lackey

[do-you-know-this-queer-character]

Do you know this queer character?

Vanyel is Gay and uses he/him pronouns!

[shift-shaping]

on the same side

enaste and her companions enter the duke's manor and learn what happened at the party.

rating: t

pairing: solavellan

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first fic in this series

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Under the rain and the darkness and the emptiness of the city streets, it was surprisingly easy for Enaste and her companions to reach the servants' entrance without notice. Emilie was briefly lost as they navigated the tangling alleyways of the alienage, but once they reached the market district she knew the way. The rain was heavier now, keeping all but the most determined souls indoors, yet still they gave the Duke's party a wide berth once they entered his estate.

Emilie explained that there were several servants' entrances, as well as tunnels under and throughout the estate. The one she chose to take them to was on the manor's north side, a nondescript door half-hidden by an unidentifiable topiary.

This door lead into the kitchen of the main house, and Emilie gave them directions on how to reach the Duke's personal quarters, the main halls, and the guest rooms from there. Enaste hoped they wouldn't need to do much exploring before meeting Bran's people, but did her best to commit the information to memory regardless. Emilie also gave Enaste a key that, according to her, opened "most" of the doors on the estate.

"Is that enough?" Emilie asked. She huddled by the door, keeping out of the rain. Unlike everyone else she lacked a hood, and was using her jacket to cover her head.

Enaste looked to Jester, who nodded their confirmation. "Yes. And thank you."

Emilie looked off into the darkness from which they came. She started to speak, then stopped. Rain dripped from her messy orange braids.

"Gentle music, soft hands, the fire is warm against my skin. Mother, mother, I know she's out there, somewhere, safe, seeking sense and solace, seeing signs, searching the same stars." Cole's voice came from that same eerie place it always did, like it was echoing inside Enaste's head. But it couldn't be, because these words weren't for her.  

Emilie's eyes widened and she took a half step back. "How did you..."

"He's... Perceptive," Jester explained, frowning at the spirit. Evidently Cole had subjected Jester to his mind reading as well.

"You don't have to be afraid. We're going to make things better," Cole pleaded. "For her, for you."

Emilie stared at him in silence for a long moment. Elion shifted impatiently behind Enaste.

"You said it yourself. 'You help people. Mages and elves,'" he went on. "If you stay safe, we will keep you that way." He paused. "Probably."

Emilie looked from Cole to Enaste. She reached up and wiped rain out of her eyes as it dripped off her jacket and down her forehead. Her dark eyes traced Enaste's features, as if searching for something.

"Are you really the Herald of Andraste?" She asked quietly.

Enaste swallowed. She always cringed at this line of questioning. "No. I'm not a herald of anything." 

"I... I don't think that's true," Emilie replied. She closed her eyes and shook her head. "I don't know you. I just know --I know the Inquisition is supposed to help people. To put the world back to normal. That's what everyone says. And if the Herald of Andraste, the leader of the Inquisition, can be an elf, maybe... I don't know." She sighed. "Maybe that means you are the herald of something. Maybe not Andraste, but... Something."

'Putting the world back to normal' was a tall order, and one Enaste wasn't even sure she wanted to follow. 'Normal' hadn't been kind to people like her. "I hope it's something good, then," she replied warily.

Emilie nodded. "Yeah. Me too." She took one last, long look at the castle, squinting up through the rain. It was steady, the drops small but cold, the kind of rain that could last all night.

Then she exhaled, turned around, and vanished into the darkness.

"She has family here, but also elsewhere," Cole said. "She doesn't know where. She only knows here."

"Well, if we see any elven servants that don't look like Bran's people, we'll make sure they're safe." She watched the shadows for a moment longer, then turned towards the door. "Let's see what sort of mess we've gotten ourselves into."

The key worked, after some wiggling, and the door opened with a creak. Torches inside lit a long, stone tunnel, with a larger room beyond.

Enaste crossed the threshold into a dry, comforting warmth. She took down her hood and ran her hand over her hair, flattening the wet, unruly strands against her head. Everything was damp, nearly to her underclothes. Unfortunately, if there was a spell to dry her things quickly, she didn't know it.

They ventured deeper into the tunnel, dripping water, walking slowly. Low, tense voices carried from the room at the end. Based on Emilie's directions, that ought to be the kitchen.

As they approached, the voices hushed.

The instant Enaste set foot inside the kitchen, two servants --both elves, a man and a woman, facing each other across a counter-- froze and stared at her. "Andara--" she started, but one of them cut her off.

"Maker's breath, wh-- who are you?" The woman spoke first. "How did you get in here?"

Enaste held up her hands. She measured her words carefully and spoke in a clear, even tone. "I am Enaste Lavellan. I'm here on behalf of my clan, and--"

The man gasped. His eyes turned to saucers. "You're Enaste Lavellan? You're the Inquisitor?"

Enaste gave up trying to explain herself, and let her hands drop to her sides. "Yes." The servants looked at each other in panic. Enaste frowned. "Are you from the alienage?"

"It, it wasn't our fault!" The woman said quickly. Her voice was suddenly much louder. "It wasn't supposed to happen this way. We had everything under control."

This was not the reaction Enaste anticipated. She waited for an explanation, but neither offered one. "What are you talking about?" They hesitated, shrinking back from her. An icy chill raced down her back. "Where is my ambassador?"

"I-in the guest rooms, under guard," the woman explained. "The Tevinter took her, but, but-- she should be okay."

Enaste's heart dropped like a stone. Fear pulsed in her chest. She advanced towards them. "And the man who was with her, the elf?" Neither of them answered her. "Where is he?" They looked at each other. Her skin was suddenly very cold, as if she was still outside. "Where is he?”

"He's with her, with the ambassador," the man said finally, quickly. "Please, let me explain, it wasn't supposed to happen like this."

"You said that before." Her voice was icy and hard. Terror bubbled at the base of her throat. "Is he okay?"

"He's... Probably still alive," the man admitted finally. He looked to his companion, who was avoiding Enaste's gaze.

"Probably?" Enaste's pulse pounded in her skull. No no no no no. "What do you mean, probably?"

The woman flinched back from Enaste, but managed to find her voice. "The glass he drank from wasn't meant for him. It was for the Tevinter's servant, but your ambassador's servant took it instead."

"What was in the glass?" Each word left her lips like an arrow piercing its target. The servants shrank back. "Poison?"

"Y-yes," the man admitted. "It's a specialty poison, called--"

"Whiteflare?"

The woman blinked at her. "How do you know what that is?"

"Bran told me. I met him. I'm... supposed to help you." She felt stiff and strange, like her body wasn't really hers. Panicked thoughts swarmed like flies on rot inside her mind. She saw him in the bad future of Redcliffe, heard the pain in his voice from another world, watched his dead body drop to the cold stone before her.

"You must understand that people are already dying for you," he'd said to her in Haven.

But not him. Not again. Not so pointlessly and stupidly. He was the reason she was still alive, the reason her mark hadn't killed her, the reason she'd made it back to this timeline, the reason she'd survived so many battles, even the reason she could speak without pain. He couldn't die. It wasn't supposed to be like this –he had so much to teach her, and she had so much to tell him, and the very idea of returning to that big cold empty castle without him collapsed her vision to a pinprick. 

"Do you have the antidote?" Jester asked, and their voice dragged Enaste back from her spiraling panic.

"Yes!" The man said quickly. "And we would have given it to him, but after he collapsed the Magister blamed us and won't let any of the servants into the guest quarters. We're all scattered about the castle now, most of us are hiding, but I'm sure some of us escaped."

"Do you have a leader?" Enaste asked through the cotton in her mouth.

The woman nodded. "Her name is Shora. Brownish-blonde hair, missing an ear, lots of tattoos --um, not like yours though." She pointed to one of the room's exits. "She's upstairs with a few of our other people. She took the Duke hostage and the Magister wants him back."

"So you have the Duke, and the Venat-- the Magister has our Ambassador, correct?" Jester clarified. The servants nodded. "Why not make a trade?"

"And give the Duke back to the Magister?" The man asked incredulously.

“I'm sorry?” Enaste asked, incredulous. They couldn't be serious. "You think it's more important to keep the Duke out of this Magister's hands than it is to protect my ambassador?"

Both servants hesitated, glancing at each other. "I-isn't it?" The woman replied. "We're doing the right thing, and you're doing the right thing, so we should be on the same side even if not everything goes to plan."

Enaste blinked. She wanted to scream, but instead the tightness in her throat kept her words low. "You would sacrifice my people for your stupid coup? Are you out of your fucking minds?”

"It's not stupid!"

"I've heard enough." Enaste nearly spit the words at the other elf. "Give me the antidote. I will deal with this myself." They hesitated. Rage boiled in Enaste's blood and she sneered at them. "Is this what you want to do right now?" She'd never heard her own voice sound so cold. She didn't care. "Give it to me, now. Or I will take it from your corpse." Her hand shook when she held it out to them.

They looked at each other again, then finally relented. Both servants handed Enaste a small vile of clear liquid.

"How is it administered?"

"The same way as the poison." The man sighed. "Just drink it."

"And this is enough to reverse the effects?"

"Yes. More than enough, you only need one vial. And it works quickly, too."

"How long do we have?"

"It... Depends." He shifted nervously. "But unless he has an especially bad reaction, he should still be alive for a while longer. Maybe a few hours? It's hard to say."

"Bran said it causes immense pain." Enaste tucked the two vials carefully into the small bag at her hip. She looked over the two servants, and they withered under her gaze. "I know you think we made a mess of your perfect plan." She raised her eyebrows at them. "I don't care. And if my friend is dead, know that I will never forget who was responsible." She pointed to the door she'd come in from. "Go. Get yourselves to safety. And get out of my sight."

The servants heeded her warning. Their quick, frightened footsteps echoed down the hall. Enaste looked up towards the stairs Emilie said led to the guest quarters. “We are finding Solas and Lady Volant first.” She took her staff from her back. It crackled with freezing magic, but it was warm beneath her touch. She glanced over her shoulder at her companions. “Any objections?” Elion and Jester shook their heads. Cole did nothing. “Good. Let’s go.”

<- prev fic | next fic ->

follow on ao3 here!

[isnt-it-pretty]

Fandom: Valdemar - Mercedes Lackey (The Last Herald-Mage)

Relationship: Vanyel Ashkrevon/Bard Stefen

Characters: Vanyel Ashkrevon, Stefen

Additional Tags: Pre-relationship, hurt/comfort, chronic pain

Summary:

Randale nodded thoughtfully. “May I ask a favour of you then, Bard Stefen? Pay a visit to Herald-Mage Vanyel. I know the two of you are friends, and I believe he may have use of your abilities.” Stef froze. “Vanyel is hurt?” he asked sharply

[wetcatspellcaster]

Same BG3-> dragon age anon: you said you liked to talk about it last time so please give me your full opinion if you are passionate🫶🏽 many thanks

hello anon!

this is a very open-ended, and dangerous question! to be honest, there is a lot to dismantle and unpick about Dragon Age until there's nothing left to enjoy (I actually love critiquing it though, jokes on them I love to be a hater). But! If I'm focusing on the positives!

What Dragon Age is to me, is 'what I wanted skyrim to be when I played it'. This is no shade on Skyrim, it's just that that was the first fantasy rpg I ever tried, and I'm just not a sandbox girlie. I got increasingly frustrated with Skyrim, claiming I wanted to feel like I'd impacted the world and that my decisions had consequences. What I wanted, in hindsight, was D&D, but my friend turned to me and said 'have you played dragon age?' and thus a mental illness was born.

I honestly think BG3 knowingly borrowed many of the things Dragon Age is still loved by its fandom for. I also think it did a lot of them better, simply through the grace of being 10 years newer than Inquisition (and not being owned by EA!) But for me, the split between 'adventuring' and 'home space cutscenes', the focus on companion quests, relationships based in approval, and romances are all things that are done in a clear understanding of what made Dragon Age so popular. BG3's endings for each companion are more starkly contrasted and nuanced, but I liked playing Dragon Age and seeing my games altered depending on my choices. Again, here I'm not saying Dragon Age is perfect! I think the BG3 romances are more solid across the board compared to Dragon Age, and the only game that I think has a comparative '100% hot' rate is Dragon Age Origins. But the reason there's such a huge crossover in the fan bases is bc Dragon Age did a lot of it first! Bioware as a developer is heralded in academic video game criticism for being one of the first studios to encourage parasocial relationships with its fictional characters, and to use affective relationships with these figures as a way of deepening your immersion and the perceived 'realism' of a videogame world.

My other favourite thing about Dragon Age is it's buckwild wizard politics! Mages (in the first three games) are placed in 'circles', which are essentially magic school prisons bc mages are too dangerous to be out in society. The tensions surrounding 'mage rights' are the subject to many memes in the fandom, but I think it's genuinely one of the most interesting parts of the world that runs through all 3 games. The concept of the Circles really appeals to the part of me that occasionally falls prey to Dark Academia (and one of my fave authors NK Jemisin agrees with me, she used them as one of her inspirations for her award winning series The Broken Earth!)

I think the reason I write fanfic primarily for videogames is because the nature of gaming code and the way videogames work as texts means there is always gaps left by the slightly utilitarian approach to storytelling (dialogue options you wish you could change, choices you wish you could make, parts of the world you wish you could explore more directly). My first fic ever (!) was a Dragon Age fic about the Rite of Tranquility, an aspect of the world that is often quite plot relevant but then never really dug into bc of who the protagonists of each game are, where mages are cut off from the dream realm that gives them their magic forcibly, like a cauterised wound. I really loved this element of the story as a fantasy device, and I daydreamed about how that experience would impact an individual... 3 years later, covid hit, and a fic was born!

so yeah! I just think dragon age is neat! and in typical-me fashion, I like the way its wizards work :)

[tigerballoons]

7, 10 and 19 for the book asks! :D

Thank you! <3

7. is there a series/book that got you into reading?

To be honest, no. I've just always been like this. xD I remember back in primary school they had colour coded books that got more complicated as you went through the rainbow, and I was on the purple ones when everyone else was still on green. Probably Horrible Histories has to take some credit for why I like that subject though.

10. do you have a guilty fav?

I've had to think about this. I don't know if it counts, but there are a few books I like because they're kind of fanficcy. As in, yes there's a plot but you're not reading for that. You're reading for the overwrought emotional torments the main character is being put through. MDZS kind of falls into this category, but I was originally thinking of the Last Herald-Mage trilogy. The covers are also very 90s and delightful.

19. most disliked popular books?

Everyone asked this, I'll see if I can come up with enough different responses xD Generally if something doesn't sound like my thing I won't read it no matter how popular it is.

One time that didn't happen was the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society which I only read because I was going there and wanted to read something set there but faffed about too long and had to grab it last minute. As an example of its genre it's probably ok. I maintain that if you look at it from Sydney's perspective it's a psychological horror as he waits to get blackmailed.