by Otter » Thu May 29, 2008 7:17 am
SPOILERS AHEAD
This fic is seriously awesome. I love it when new bards come out of nowhere and blow us away with amazingly well-written fics. I went in with some scepticism about the sort of quality to expect, but it was fantastic! Not your generic: Conq. meets slave Gabrielle, who ends up as a body slave, then they fall in love, only to be torn apart because of riots/crucifixions/betrayals/pregnancy etc. Gabrielle is a strong character to start with, and remains that way throughout. The Conqueror's equal in most ways (except for being a slave of course), and is just kick-ass throughout the piece.
I did find a few things a little disappointing. I don't know if I just smikked some important pieces, but I didn't really understand why Gabrielle was so 'loyal' to Ceaser. What hold did Rome have on her, and why was she so conflicted when she was helping the Conqueror defeat the nation that she'd been a slave to? I don't know if I just missed the explanation somewhere, but I'd been expecting some sort of tangible hold over her head. Her family, a child, some sort of crucial information that she had to have that made it easy for Ceasar to keep a firm hold on her. But, I did read the ending pretty fast, so maybe I missed it. *shrugs*
Anyhoo, that's all from me on this amazing fic. Go read and enjoy!!
Otter.
"'Uh oh'?! Vampires aren't supposed to say 'uh oh'!"
- Sookie Stackhouse, True Blood