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crack_van2005-06-10 11:29 pm
marycrawford.livejournal.com) wrote in crack_van2005-06-10 11:29 pm
Entry tags:
Fortunes of War, by Randi DuMois (R)
Fandom: HERCULES: THE LEGENDARY JOURNEYS
Pairing: Hercules/Iolaus
Author Website: The Less Than Legendary Journeys
Why this must be read:
As I mentioned earlier, I do love stories which give an outsider's POV on the heroes' relationship.
The POV character here is Bellerphon, a young prince and soldier-in-training. He meets Hercules and Iolaus as they arrive at an army encampment on the eve of battle, to discuss strategy with allied kings and warriors like Achilles, Philoctetes and Agamemnon. I love the witty contrast between Bellerphon's expectations of famous heroes like Hercules and Iolaus and the somewhat scruffier reality.
The mood of the story slowly darkens as old campaigners are reunited and old grievances aired anew. Bellerphon doesn't know the backstory, but the bits and pieces slowly come together, and Bellerphon's perceptions change.
It's a sparely written story, with excellent eye for detail and characterization, and it brings Homeric myth and Hercules-the-series together in a very plausible way. It's bittersweet, but the ending always lifts me up, and when I finish it I sigh and long for the author to give us the whole story of Hercules and Iolaus at Troy.
Fortunes of War
Pairing: Hercules/Iolaus
Author Website: The Less Than Legendary Journeys
Why this must be read:
As I mentioned earlier, I do love stories which give an outsider's POV on the heroes' relationship.
The POV character here is Bellerphon, a young prince and soldier-in-training. He meets Hercules and Iolaus as they arrive at an army encampment on the eve of battle, to discuss strategy with allied kings and warriors like Achilles, Philoctetes and Agamemnon. I love the witty contrast between Bellerphon's expectations of famous heroes like Hercules and Iolaus and the somewhat scruffier reality.
The mood of the story slowly darkens as old campaigners are reunited and old grievances aired anew. Bellerphon doesn't know the backstory, but the bits and pieces slowly come together, and Bellerphon's perceptions change.
It's a sparely written story, with excellent eye for detail and characterization, and it brings Homeric myth and Hercules-the-series together in a very plausible way. It's bittersweet, but the ending always lifts me up, and when I finish it I sigh and long for the author to give us the whole story of Hercules and Iolaus at Troy.
Bellerphon nodded gravely and decided to stick to his prepared speech. "I greet you on behalf of King Cimon. He has had a tent prepared for you. I--" He hesitated, realizing the prepared speech might not fit the situation. "You have a party of retainers following?" he asked hopefully.
Hercules lifted a brow and exchanged a look with Iolaus that seemed to hold suppressed hilarity. "Ah...that would be me," Iolaus told Bellerphon.
Despite the evidence of his eyes, Bellerphon couldn't believe the greatest hero in Greece travelled to war in this state. He had to ask, "Shieldbearers or a charioteer?"
"That would also be me," Iolaus assured him.
"We travel light," Hercules said, taking pity on Bellerphon and clapping a hand on his shoulder to gently move him along down the road.
Fortunes of War