The Dancers Of Arun (Book Two of the Chronicles of Tornor)

Like one reviewer below, I read this book over 20 years ago now, in my late teens, and it's stayed with me. I re-read it last week as an adult and still love it and realise how good the writing is. I loaned my old copy to a friend 20 years ago and never got it back -- so I was glad to be able to get hold of a copy again now, as I believe it was now out of print for a long while. This is the story of Kerris, a young man come of age but out of place in Tornor Keep, the fortress at the edge of the northern border of Arun. Though he is cared for, as the nephew of the keep's lord, he is less-than-loved, a mis-fit, whose crippled arm (amputated in a battle that raged when he was a child) and burgeouning psychic/so-called 'witch' powers only make him more of an outcast among his peers, who are hardy warriors on the verge of their civilisation. He almost resigns himself to his life when a band from the South, a cadre of mysterious, semi-mythical dancing warriors, the 'chearis', arrive at Tornor to take him back to his birthplace and help him fulfil his destiny. The world of Arun is deftly developed and sublte, which allows Lynn to weave in the subplot of unconditional, uncovetous love between the two main characters and all of the chearis. Lynn's writing is very fluid and you quickly get comfortable and lost in the world of Arun. That, to me, is the mark of a great sci-fantasty writer (which is why Lynn won such acolades for this book and the entire trilogy a few decades back). But if you yank your head out of the world of Arun too quickly -- where the force of love and the force of life bridge and forge relationships that would be taboo in our own world -- then you could be shocked by the love that grows between Kel and Kerris. But Arun is not Earth, and there is a different ethic and set of morals there -- the lovers do not breach the ethics/morals of their world. Lynn handles the relationship (which is at the heart of Kerris's maturing into his new life, but not the entirety of the novel) with sublty and care... nothing graphic about the love scenes between the men (of which there are only two). Despite the impression given in other reviews (which seem to have gotten stuck on one issue), there is nothing salacious in how Lynn handles the relationship. Basically, the romance aside, this is a story of this band of brothers/sisters forging something new in a world where the characters are forced to choose between love/pacifism and hatred/suspicion/war... the choice is not always easy... some live, some die... this is a land whose culture is in transition. This is a story about transitions. When I was younger, I didn't know that this was part of a triology. Now, as an adult, I have read all three books (The Watchtower and The Northern Girl). Though they do stand alone (each story does refer to the history established by the previous one, but is set generations apart), the trilogy certainly deserves the awards it earned long ago -- the writing ge

The middle and best book of one of my favorite trilogies, it's exactly what I want: no stock characters or swashbuckling, but lots of interesting, different, people. I did find the beginning disconcerting (unlike some other readers, I'm NOT good with incest involving children), but the action was instigated by the child, and was not portrayed as abusive. The fragility of the people, the village, and the world seems very real to me. The originality of these books is great, and they seem to me to be beautifully written. I only with Ms. Lynn would write MORE!

Kerris does not fit in at Tornor Keep and he never really has, but he has no where else to go. After all, who else would want a one-armed boy who has an alarming tendency to have fits at any give time or place. The only skill that Kerris has is that of a scribe. He has spent a great about of time developing this skill in the hope that one day he will be hired at a rich house and spend time writing and reading. But all of his dreams change when his older brother, Kel, comes with the fabled Dancers of Arun to collect him. Kerris is not sure what to think of his brother and is alternately repulsed and attracted to him. As they journey to Kel's home, Kerris learns that all of the dancers have "gifts" just like Kerris does. For Kerris doesn't really have fits, he just sees life through other people's eyes and leaves his body for a time. He is what the dancers call a farspeaker, like Kel's lover, Sefer. However, even though Kel repeatedly tells Kerris that he is welcome at his home and that he belongs there, Kerris doesn't feel that he really has a place. It will take a terrible tragedy to help Kerris realize that he does have worth and that he is important in the lives of those around him...For the first time, the second book in a series is far better than the first or the third (Watchtower & The Northern Girl, respectively)! I thought that this book was beautifully written and have owned an old tattered copy for a long time. Kerris' growth as a character is fascinating, as is the world in which he lives. I loved all of the characters in the book and could identify with all of them because they all have weaknesses and they all struggle, some more than others, but life is not easy for any of them. The only caution that I would offer is that the love between Kerris and Kel is sometimes physical and sex between brothers is not a common thread in books so if you feel this would upset you, read another fantasy (probably not by Lyn, though, as most of her books deal with homosexuality).

This is one of the first fantasy novels I read as a teen, so this reprint has been around for awhile, but I loved it alot, enough to come back after all these years and tell the rest of the world how much I enjoyed it! Think of this book as a character study. If you are looking for an action-oriented adventure fantasy, then you won't find it here, but you will find very well-realized people who are both attractive and interesting. I enjoyed this look at another world and it's traditions. It didn't leave me rushing to the end or dancing with excitement, but it did leave me wanting to know more about these people and their world. A sensitive gay romance is one of the highlights of this book and it is beautifully done.

A refreshing change from all other fantasy books. For once, a book about war in which war never really happens, but where its implications shadow the skirmishes which often take place. The main characters are painted with sufficient depth, although we don't really get to see much of Calwin the cheari, do we? (Not that he was all that important...) The book expound on the psychic gifts that were hinted at in the first book, and one can guess at the events that occured that gave birth to the rise of the red clan between the time of "Watchtower" and of "Dancers of Arun". Most of all, Kel and Kerris fascinate me to no end. Seriously. I haven't read the third book yet, but Dancers of Arun seems to be a logical, surprising, and beautiful sequel to the first book. A step up.