The course of true love...

[fajrdrako]

30 Day Book Meme: – Day 21 – Favorite romantic/sexual relationship (including asexual romantic relationships)

I'm not clear what an asexual romantic relationship is. Platonic love, or unrequited, or unconsummated? Could someone explain?

Anyway... favourite romantic relationships:

Lymond and Philippa, in the Lymond novels. At first I'd wanted Lymond's romance to be with Kate. I still love Kate more than Philippa. But his romance with Philippa is magnificent.

Eugenides' romance in the Megan Whalen Turner novels is wonderful, too. I'm avoiding names so as to avoid spoilers.

Jane and Mr. Rochester, in Jane Eyre

Emma Frost and Scott Summers, in X-Men

Kitty Pryde and Pete Wisdom, in Excalibur

Comments

[(Anonymous)]

Finally, someone else who understands that although Philippa is awesome and fabulous and deserves everything good in the world, I reeeeeally wish that Dunnett had gone down the Kate and Lymond path. I love Kate more too, which is ridiculous really, as she's only in about 20 scenes in 6 books. It's a testament to Dunnett's writing that even though I would have preferred Kate/Lymond or even Christian/Lymond, I still ship Philippa/Lymond so damn hard.

[fajrdrako]

I love Kate more too, which is ridiculous really, as she's only in about 20 scenes in 6 books.

True, but what magnificent scenes they are.

I agree with every word you say there.

Currently rereading The Game of Kings, I am notcing how much I like Christian Stewart, how she has some of Philippa's strengths without some of her more problematic features. She, too, was quite wonderful.

[(Anonymous)]

GoK is definitely my desert island book !

I think the thing that reconciles me to no Christian/Lymond is that he so clearly wasn't ready to have any sort of relationship at that age/stage. But I *do* think that he had feelings for her (I know this is an area of dissidence in the fandom) and that had she lived and if his life had been slightly more normal they could have had something.

I always feel a sharp twinge of sadness in the scene where Lymond realises he's in love with Philippa, because of the lines, "All that Kate was, she now had. And standing on Kate's shoulders, something more, still growing, blossoming and yet to fruit." To me this is just so sad-recognition that Kate was just too disadvantaged by her setting and position in life, but that she gave her child everything she had and then some and that it was because of Kate that Philippa was worthy of Lymond.

I think I feel a re-read coming on too :). Although i might start with the Blackberry Pie scene!

[fajrdrako]

No, it takes Lymond many years to be ready for a serious relationship, and even when he's ready, he isn't ready - there's a long time between the anvil moment and his acceptance of Philippa in the end!

I think Lymond cared a lot for her but had barred himself from personal feelings, or recognition of them. I think that if she'd have lived, it still would have taken him a long time before he was ready, but she could have eased him into it - though not, I suppose, if she was married to Tom. They each had things to work through, first.

The Blackberry Pie scene is a favourite.