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fandomhigh_ooc2009-07-19 11:36 pm
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Spotlight on Fandoms: Keeper Chronicles
The Keeper Chronicles by Tanya Huff
In a world much like ours (except all Canadian and stuff) bad events make holes in the fabric of reality. Typically, the wholes close up on their own without any kind of bother. But sometimes, the hole refuses to close (sometimes helped along by Hell) and then more of an interference is needed. And that's when the Keepers step in.
The Hansen Sisters
"I have a job. Family business. Pays well, chance to travel, making the world a better place and all that."
Claire and Diana Hansen are daughters of Cousins (not quite Keepers) and are themselves Keepers. They've been in the family business their entire lives and both have no problems staying in the family business. That's pretty much the only thing they agree on. The series focuses on their adventures and mis-adventures as they try to do right in the world without strangling each other.
Claire Hansen
"You trap Imps with marshmallows?" Dean asked.
""We've discovered they work as well as newt tongues and get you into a lot less trouble with Greenpeace."[Claire]
The older, by-the-book sister. Claire likes to get in, get the job done, and move on. Sadly, the universe had other plans for her. Due to a minor misunderstanding about housing, she found herself the owner of a Guest House with an interesting patronage (read: vampires, werewolves, and a mummy oh my). She still works as an active Keeper, but she also runs the Inn along side Dean. When she gets in trouble or in over her head, she tries to get information about the situation and possibly call home for advice. The age gap between Diana and Claire means that Claire has no problems telling Diana what to do. Not that she ever gets listened to. She always believes that she's right and it's very hard to convince her that she's wrong, even when what she's right/wrong about happens to be her love life.
Diana Hansen
The writing across her chest-red on black- said, 'My sister’s boy toy went to Hell and all I got was a lousy T-shirt'. She seemed to be the only one in the family who found it funny.
As all stories go, the younger sibling is the more powerful one. However, Diana and Claire are the only Keeper's with siblings, meaning that Diana is the most powerful Keeper in the world. Her childhood and puberty were a lot of fun for her parents and sister. Not that she was better as a teenager. If Claire always thinks she's right, Diana knows that she's always right. She has tons of power and all the arrogance of youth and having tons of power. The only thing that limits Diana is that she plays by the rules. Always.
Hell
STOPPING THE SEEPAGE WON'T WEAKEN THE SHIELD, Hell told itself sulkily.
Hell talks in ALL CAPITALS and has multiple-personality disorder. It's the Big Bad in all three books (though it takes different forms) and is always trying to get a foot-hold in the world. Diana and Claire (and all the other Keeper's) work on keeping the balance in the world and keeping Hell (and invading mini-vans) out. Often, bits of HELL have a sense of humor.
Austin and Samuel
Austin
"You look like a nice guy, why don't you feed me?"
Austin is an elderly cat who will take every single opportunity to remind you that he's elderly and smarter than you. He's also going to be the first to remind you that he's hungry and his cat food is tasteless and really, are you going to eat that? Austin takes care of Claire as much as she takes care of him. He also likes to snark at Dean, because it's so easy sometimes.
Samuel
“It’s important you follow the rules.” [Samuel]
She [Diana] snorted. “That’s something I never thought I’d hear a cat say.”
“I meant you specifically.”
How Samuel came about is a plot line on its own. It basically boils down to an incident that included Claire and Dean finally having sex, Diana casting a large happy snowflake in her high school gym, and a high school student who really wanted an angel. So she got Samuel. It helped that it was Christmas. Due to even more chaos and plot, Samuel became a cat. He's trying to navigate the human world and keep Diana out of trouble. He has equal luck with both.
Martha and John (Possibly Norman, depending on which book you're reading) Hansen
Her father sighed. “Diana, are you suggesting that Santa was spying on Claire and Dean?”
“No!” And then less emphatically. “Although there is that whole sees you when you’re sleeping, sees you when you’re awake schtick, which I strongly suspect is not entirely legal.”
Both are well meaning Cousins who only want what's best for their daughters. They had a lot more luck with Claire than Diana, possibly because Diana has the power to destroy all the wards they put up without even blinking. Partly because Claire is the older and more obedient daughter. (For various values of obedient.)
Dean McIssac
"So retired Olympians meant a bunch of old Greek Gods? The real ones?" [Dean]
"Some of them, yes." She [Claire] grabbed a handful of cutlery.
"Like in myths and stuff?"
"Post-myth but essentially, yes."
"Forks go on the left."
Though closer to Diana's age than Claire's, he is the older sister's love interest. He's so well grounded that when Cousins and Keepers meet him for the first time, they glance down to make sure that he isn't sprouting roots. After facing any and all of the weird things that living with Claire throws at him, he generally reacts very calmly and rationally. With one exception, HELL has pretty much giving up trying to tempt him.
Summon the Keeper
Claire Hansen and her cat Austin find themselves in charge of The Elysian Fields Guest House. It just happens to also have a portal to HELL in the basement and an evil Keeper in Room 6. It also has a very hunky young man already working there and the ghost of a French Sailor living in the attic. Well, sort of living.
Throughout Summon the Keeper, Claire and Dean deal with the various highly unusual guests that find their way to the Inn (like vampires, ancient gods, and a little girl who happens to be a demon). They also try to keep Diana as far away as possible since having a very powerful teenager who thinks she can handle everything anywhere near HELL and an evil Keeper is a very, very bad idea. They kind of fail at that one and things kind of get messy. There's also the love triangle between Claire, Dean, and Jacques - the ghost.
The Second Summoning
This time around, both Claire and Diana are acting as Keepers. Claire and Dean finally hook up and well, Samuel gets "born". But since the good guys got a leg up, now so does HELL. And since Samuel is a guy due to an interference from an angry father, HELL's agent is a young woman who likes to wear black. And then Claire and Diana really butt heads.
Most of the Keepers - Claire included - want to send both Samuel and Goth!chick back to their perspective areas of residence. However, one specific Keeper named Diana thinks that Samuel should stick around. And that's the very condensed story of how Samuel went from being an angel to being a cat.
The Long, Hot Summoning
The last book in the series so far (it's not officially over, but it's probably over) is the most Diana centric one. Diana finds a bracelet from the Otherside and finds out that HELL is trying to take over the world via a shopping mall. When she, Claire, and Samuel go down to explore just how bad the problem is, they also stumble across a band of shopping mall elves led by King Arthur. Yes. King Arthur. Except now he's got a skateboard and is an anime character.
In the sub-plot of the book, Dean and Austin deal with a mummy and the doctor who has fallen madly in love with her. Don't ask how that leads to a basilisk in the bedroom. There's also a mummy hunter who everyone expects to be Australian. Don't ask about that either.
By the end, Diana finally gets a love interest of her own in the form of Kris, one of the mall elf girls.
Why You Should Read It
It's awesome.
It's very funny and hilarious. Between the bickering sisters, bickering cats, random pop culture references, and the fact that HELL is a character the whole thing is very, very funny and well written.
The plot twists and turns in ways you both expect and don't. King Arthur rules over teenage elves, werewolves run races, and did I mention that HELL has multiple-personality disorder and likes to talk to himself?
The characters are cool and very genre savvy to the point that Diana gets herself out of trouble by using the rules of the genre to her advantage.
The reason this post is so late? I got distracted re-reading the books. Totally a reason, yo.
Where Can you Get It
Amazon has all three books, reasonably prices.
In a world much like ours (except all Canadian and stuff) bad events make holes in the fabric of reality. Typically, the wholes close up on their own without any kind of bother. But sometimes, the hole refuses to close (sometimes helped along by Hell) and then more of an interference is needed. And that's when the Keepers step in.
The Hansen Sisters
"I have a job. Family business. Pays well, chance to travel, making the world a better place and all that."
Claire and Diana Hansen are daughters of Cousins (not quite Keepers) and are themselves Keepers. They've been in the family business their entire lives and both have no problems staying in the family business. That's pretty much the only thing they agree on. The series focuses on their adventures and mis-adventures as they try to do right in the world without strangling each other.
Claire Hansen
"You trap Imps with marshmallows?" Dean asked.
""We've discovered they work as well as newt tongues and get you into a lot less trouble with Greenpeace."[Claire]
The older, by-the-book sister. Claire likes to get in, get the job done, and move on. Sadly, the universe had other plans for her. Due to a minor misunderstanding about housing, she found herself the owner of a Guest House with an interesting patronage (read: vampires, werewolves, and a mummy oh my). She still works as an active Keeper, but she also runs the Inn along side Dean. When she gets in trouble or in over her head, she tries to get information about the situation and possibly call home for advice. The age gap between Diana and Claire means that Claire has no problems telling Diana what to do. Not that she ever gets listened to. She always believes that she's right and it's very hard to convince her that she's wrong, even when what she's right/wrong about happens to be her love life.
Diana Hansen
The writing across her chest-red on black- said, 'My sister’s boy toy went to Hell and all I got was a lousy T-shirt'. She seemed to be the only one in the family who found it funny.
As all stories go, the younger sibling is the more powerful one. However, Diana and Claire are the only Keeper's with siblings, meaning that Diana is the most powerful Keeper in the world. Her childhood and puberty were a lot of fun for her parents and sister. Not that she was better as a teenager. If Claire always thinks she's right, Diana knows that she's always right. She has tons of power and all the arrogance of youth and having tons of power. The only thing that limits Diana is that she plays by the rules. Always.
Hell
STOPPING THE SEEPAGE WON'T WEAKEN THE SHIELD, Hell told itself sulkily.
Hell talks in ALL CAPITALS and has multiple-personality disorder. It's the Big Bad in all three books (though it takes different forms) and is always trying to get a foot-hold in the world. Diana and Claire (and all the other Keeper's) work on keeping the balance in the world and keeping Hell (and invading mini-vans) out. Often, bits of HELL have a sense of humor.
Austin and Samuel
Austin
"You look like a nice guy, why don't you feed me?"
Austin is an elderly cat who will take every single opportunity to remind you that he's elderly and smarter than you. He's also going to be the first to remind you that he's hungry and his cat food is tasteless and really, are you going to eat that? Austin takes care of Claire as much as she takes care of him. He also likes to snark at Dean, because it's so easy sometimes.
Samuel
“It’s important you follow the rules.” [Samuel]
She [Diana] snorted. “That’s something I never thought I’d hear a cat say.”
“I meant you specifically.”
How Samuel came about is a plot line on its own. It basically boils down to an incident that included Claire and Dean finally having sex, Diana casting a large happy snowflake in her high school gym, and a high school student who really wanted an angel. So she got Samuel. It helped that it was Christmas. Due to even more chaos and plot, Samuel became a cat. He's trying to navigate the human world and keep Diana out of trouble. He has equal luck with both.
Martha and John (Possibly Norman, depending on which book you're reading) Hansen
Her father sighed. “Diana, are you suggesting that Santa was spying on Claire and Dean?”
“No!” And then less emphatically. “Although there is that whole sees you when you’re sleeping, sees you when you’re awake schtick, which I strongly suspect is not entirely legal.”
Both are well meaning Cousins who only want what's best for their daughters. They had a lot more luck with Claire than Diana, possibly because Diana has the power to destroy all the wards they put up without even blinking. Partly because Claire is the older and more obedient daughter. (For various values of obedient.)
Dean McIssac
"So retired Olympians meant a bunch of old Greek Gods? The real ones?" [Dean]
"Some of them, yes." She [Claire] grabbed a handful of cutlery.
"Like in myths and stuff?"
"Post-myth but essentially, yes."
"Forks go on the left."
Though closer to Diana's age than Claire's, he is the older sister's love interest. He's so well grounded that when Cousins and Keepers meet him for the first time, they glance down to make sure that he isn't sprouting roots. After facing any and all of the weird things that living with Claire throws at him, he generally reacts very calmly and rationally. With one exception, HELL has pretty much giving up trying to tempt him.
Summon the Keeper
Claire Hansen and her cat Austin find themselves in charge of The Elysian Fields Guest House. It just happens to also have a portal to HELL in the basement and an evil Keeper in Room 6. It also has a very hunky young man already working there and the ghost of a French Sailor living in the attic. Well, sort of living.
Throughout Summon the Keeper, Claire and Dean deal with the various highly unusual guests that find their way to the Inn (like vampires, ancient gods, and a little girl who happens to be a demon). They also try to keep Diana as far away as possible since having a very powerful teenager who thinks she can handle everything anywhere near HELL and an evil Keeper is a very, very bad idea. They kind of fail at that one and things kind of get messy. There's also the love triangle between Claire, Dean, and Jacques - the ghost.
The Second Summoning
This time around, both Claire and Diana are acting as Keepers. Claire and Dean finally hook up and well, Samuel gets "born". But since the good guys got a leg up, now so does HELL. And since Samuel is a guy due to an interference from an angry father, HELL's agent is a young woman who likes to wear black. And then Claire and Diana really butt heads.
Most of the Keepers - Claire included - want to send both Samuel and Goth!chick back to their perspective areas of residence. However, one specific Keeper named Diana thinks that Samuel should stick around. And that's the very condensed story of how Samuel went from being an angel to being a cat.
The Long, Hot Summoning
The last book in the series so far (it's not officially over, but it's probably over) is the most Diana centric one. Diana finds a bracelet from the Otherside and finds out that HELL is trying to take over the world via a shopping mall. When she, Claire, and Samuel go down to explore just how bad the problem is, they also stumble across a band of shopping mall elves led by King Arthur. Yes. King Arthur. Except now he's got a skateboard and is an anime character.
In the sub-plot of the book, Dean and Austin deal with a mummy and the doctor who has fallen madly in love with her. Don't ask how that leads to a basilisk in the bedroom. There's also a mummy hunter who everyone expects to be Australian. Don't ask about that either.
By the end, Diana finally gets a love interest of her own in the form of Kris, one of the mall elf girls.
Why You Should Read It
It's awesome.
It's very funny and hilarious. Between the bickering sisters, bickering cats, random pop culture references, and the fact that HELL is a character the whole thing is very, very funny and well written.
The plot twists and turns in ways you both expect and don't. King Arthur rules over teenage elves, werewolves run races, and did I mention that HELL has multiple-personality disorder and likes to talk to himself?
The characters are cool and very genre savvy to the point that Diana gets herself out of trouble by using the rules of the genre to her advantage.
The reason this post is so late? I got distracted re-reading the books. Totally a reason, yo.
Where Can you Get It
Amazon has all three books, reasonably prices.
no subject
And they *are* awesome and funny, and Hell's MPD cracks me the heck up.
Plus I always imagine Dean as played by a young Paul Gross.
no subject
*pouts* I'm not finding anything.
no subject
Now give me a coconut! *g*
ETA: and I am wrong! Different universe, same writer though.