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The Forbidden Game trilogy by L. J. Smith
Aug. 24th, 2010 06:38 pmI should explain that L. J. Smith is not an incredibly good writer. She is not a bad writer (I‘ve read far worse. Some were much more popular.), but, while competent, the first few chapters of each of her three series that I’ve read recently (actually, I've started Dark Visions and it's true there too, though i'm not too far into it) have been rather, uhm, bad. But then the stories kick into gear and the books, though tropey as all get out, become incredibly fun.
Jenny Thornton is shopping for a birthday gift for her boyfriend, Tom, when she notices a strange game store in a bad neighborhood. As she’s being followed by two strange boys, she decides to be a proper gothic heroine and go into the strange store in the strange neighborhood, and buy an unknown game in an unmarked white box from the strange boy who works in the store. Fear not, she does have a brain that functions just fine. I did warn about the first few chapters.
The game turns out to be enchanted, and sucks Jenny, Tom, and five of their friends into the world of the game, where she learns that the boy at the store, Julian, is actually an otherworldly Shadow Man, who wants her to be his bride. But he’s generous, so Jenny and her friends can go if they can escape the house by morning. Otherwise, she’s his and the rest are screwed.
There are two main kinds of Abducted Bride plots. The more common and recognized plot involves a young woman being forced to marry a stranger-often an Other- usually pay repay a debt, fulfill an obligation, follow tradition, or to save a (typically male) family member from wrath. Example: Her father didn’t ay attention to whose garden he stole a rose from. In this type, you usually have a woman in an impossible situation making it work for her. I have a lot of respect for it, though it sadly often ends up represented as a Stockholm Syndrome plot. In my preferred type, the Other is in love with the young woman from afar (possibly for years) and instead of showing up with flowers and going “Hey, how ya doin’? I‘m Joe and we had History together last year.” he expresses his affection by abducting her or a loved one and giving her an impossible task to fulfill or she/they are his forever/doomed. Example: He kidnaps her baby brother and tells her she has 12 hours to get through The Maze of Doom and storm his castle. And then he cheats.
I prefer the latter because it usually results in the heroine thoroughly trouncing the Sexy Other on multiple counts, soundly rejecting him, and going on to be awesome and autonomous. The Forbidden Game is this type of Abducted Bride tale, and Julian apparently likes rejection, because he keeps coming back for more.
The bulk of the character development and creepiness both are in the last volume of the trilogy, which accounts for why I like it best, though once it gets going, I liked all three.
The only real problem that I had with the series was Tom, Jenny’s boyfriend. I liked Jenny and the rest of her friends (especially Dee, who was my favorite) but I disliked Tom even before we met him, because of how Jenny talked about him as if everyone had assigned her identity as being an extension of his, and how she didn’t seem to view herself as a separate being from him. And then he actually showed up and not only do we learn that he really does take her for granted as much as it seemed, but when she asks to talk to him about something important in his first scene, he publicly embarrasses her. LJS is definitely aware of the problems in the relationship and addresses them throughout the series, but sees it as more fixable than I do. I was hoping the series would end with Jenny rejecting both suitors and seeking a future free of the influence of Tom-and-Jenny, but it wasn’t to be, though at least Jenny at the end is determined to no longer be ruled by the assumption of Tom-and-Jenny. I never got over being annoyed at his even being there, though. Like, I don’t like Julian, either, but his character is an essential archetype in a mythic narrative I like, so I’m totally fine with him being there? Put I felt rather put-upon that Tom was there.
That said, it’s actually pretty easy to ignore Tom, especially in the last book, and he and Tom-and-Jenny don’t interfere with the overall enjoyment.
Jenny Thornton is shopping for a birthday gift for her boyfriend, Tom, when she notices a strange game store in a bad neighborhood. As she’s being followed by two strange boys, she decides to be a proper gothic heroine and go into the strange store in the strange neighborhood, and buy an unknown game in an unmarked white box from the strange boy who works in the store. Fear not, she does have a brain that functions just fine. I did warn about the first few chapters.
The game turns out to be enchanted, and sucks Jenny, Tom, and five of their friends into the world of the game, where she learns that the boy at the store, Julian, is actually an otherworldly Shadow Man, who wants her to be his bride. But he’s generous, so Jenny and her friends can go if they can escape the house by morning. Otherwise, she’s his and the rest are screwed.
There are two main kinds of Abducted Bride plots. The more common and recognized plot involves a young woman being forced to marry a stranger-often an Other- usually pay repay a debt, fulfill an obligation, follow tradition, or to save a (typically male) family member from wrath. Example: Her father didn’t ay attention to whose garden he stole a rose from. In this type, you usually have a woman in an impossible situation making it work for her. I have a lot of respect for it, though it sadly often ends up represented as a Stockholm Syndrome plot. In my preferred type, the Other is in love with the young woman from afar (possibly for years) and instead of showing up with flowers and going “Hey, how ya doin’? I‘m Joe and we had History together last year.” he expresses his affection by abducting her or a loved one and giving her an impossible task to fulfill or she/they are his forever/doomed. Example: He kidnaps her baby brother and tells her she has 12 hours to get through The Maze of Doom and storm his castle. And then he cheats.
I prefer the latter because it usually results in the heroine thoroughly trouncing the Sexy Other on multiple counts, soundly rejecting him, and going on to be awesome and autonomous. The Forbidden Game is this type of Abducted Bride tale, and Julian apparently likes rejection, because he keeps coming back for more.
The bulk of the character development and creepiness both are in the last volume of the trilogy, which accounts for why I like it best, though once it gets going, I liked all three.
The only real problem that I had with the series was Tom, Jenny’s boyfriend. I liked Jenny and the rest of her friends (especially Dee, who was my favorite) but I disliked Tom even before we met him, because of how Jenny talked about him as if everyone had assigned her identity as being an extension of his, and how she didn’t seem to view herself as a separate being from him. And then he actually showed up and not only do we learn that he really does take her for granted as much as it seemed, but when she asks to talk to him about something important in his first scene, he publicly embarrasses her. LJS is definitely aware of the problems in the relationship and addresses them throughout the series, but sees it as more fixable than I do. I was hoping the series would end with Jenny rejecting both suitors and seeking a future free of the influence of Tom-and-Jenny, but it wasn’t to be, though at least Jenny at the end is determined to no longer be ruled by the assumption of Tom-and-Jenny. I never got over being annoyed at his even being there, though. Like, I don’t like Julian, either, but his character is an essential archetype in a mythic narrative I like, so I’m totally fine with him being there? Put I felt rather put-upon that Tom was there.
That said, it’s actually pretty easy to ignore Tom, especially in the last book, and he and Tom-and-Jenny don’t interfere with the overall enjoyment.