The Bone Doll's Twin (The Tamir Triad #1)- Lynn Flewelling

For centuries, warrior queens protected the land of Skala until the king Erius usurped his younger sister's throne and brought plague and drought upon the land. To make matters worse, the enemy kingdom of Plenimar drains Skala dry. The king fights to ensure that his son and heir is the next to take the throne and to do this, any females born to the royal line have all perished by 'mysterious' means. All except his sister's daughter who was given male form by dark magic to protect her until the time she can ascend the throne. The child, Tobin grows to manhood, ignorant of his true identity and haunted by the demon spirit of the twin whose body he stole. Only, Tobin's father, two wizards, and a forest witch know the truth of his identity and they will have to be enough to protect him until he can stand on his own as the queen of Skala.

Overall Merit: This book is beautiful. I loved this book and read it without stopping for three hours until I was finished. Tobin is a haunting yet bewitching character and your heart bleeds for him as you see him struggle to fit a male mold even though instinctively he wants to play with dolls. Then there is the issue of his deranged mother and the hideous doll she carries around with her that binds the spirit of her child's murdered twin.  The magic is dark and deliciously twisted and the characters are fascinating. Flewelling has created a fantastical story with unique magic. Score- 11.5

Characters: Tobin is wonderful as is his friend Ki, who shows up a bit later in the story. The camaraderie they share is touching and I enjoyed every moment I got to spend with them. Even the antagonists have depth here. The king is a cruel and twisted man, who still has affection for his mad sister even though if he knew the truth of the children she bore he would have executed the girl without a thought. Lhel is creepy, but in a good way, I get a very New Orleans witchdoctor feel from her, which is something I've never gotten in epic fantasy before. The other wizards are interesting I suppose, kind of generic, but perhaps they play a greater role later on in the series. Score- 10

Blush Factor: There is a bit of explicit content here, but I wouldn't exactly call it romance. Score: N/A

Structure: I am not a fan of prophecies in general. However, this novel did something different in that the prophecy had already occurred and it was lack of fulfillment that was causing a problem. Props for that, it didn't make me wince the way most prophecy books do. This was primarily through Tobin's perspective, but it also took a side plot to Lhel and the wizard Arkoniel, which was interesting enough, and I look forward to seeing how that plays out in the next books. Score-10

Plot: The plot didn't progress a ton in this book, but I didn't expect it to. A first in a trilogy is to set the stage, introduce the characters, etc. Flewelling did an excellent job with all the necessary components and I am half-dying waiting for the next books to come in the mail. True the content is a bit twisted and grotesque so if that isn't your thing, too bad, read this book anyway. I got a good feel for the characters and the story kept a good pace. Loved this book, so happy I finally decided to read it. Score-11

Vervain Says: "The reason Tobin's twin haunts him is because the body/soul was not disposed of properly."