History Literature / ChroniclesOfTheKencyrath

** The Kencyr creator deity is the Three-Faced God, personifying respectively creation (Torrigon), preservation (Argentiel) and destruction (Regonoreth). The three Objects of Power (The Book, the Cloak and the Knife) are each aligned with one of the faces, and the Chosen Ones, the Tyr-ridan, are too.

** The Kencyratb are domes called the Three People because they're made up of three races: Highborn, Kendar and Arrin-ken.

* BelligerentSexualTension: Jame and Tori -- although unlike a lot of cases of this trope, their attraction is not the ''primary'' cause of their fighting. {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d by Adiraina.
-->'''Adiraina''': I could not see how you looked at one another when you first met tonight, but I could hear. You cut, so as not to kiss.

* BrotherSisterIncest: Shanir powers were historically bred for by pairing close relatives because inbreeding is the best way to produce powerful Shanir, and they were trying to breed the Chosen Three. Twincest was particularly favored for this (see {{Twincest}} below). Because of Gerridon and Jamethiel's infamy, they've ''mostly'' stopped inbreeding since the Fall--although the Ardeth still do. But because of the old tradition, the Kencyrath now see incest as--at worst--a bad idea, not creepy or immoral.

** Jame has {{UST}} with [[spoiler:''both'' her half-brother Bane and her twin brother Tori (see {{Twincest}} below).]]

* {{Twincest}}: In earlier times when Highborn were trying to breed Tyr-ridan, twin marriage was especially valuable for this since it reinforced traits so strongly in offspring. Because of Gerridon and Jamethiel we're twins, twincest now has some mixed connotations.

** Jame and Tori are a case in the making. They have {{UST}}, including various fantasies, an EroticDream or two, and a BigDamnKiss Mother Ragga's house in ''To Ride a Rathorn'' (though Tori's emotions and his issues--his fear of and jealousy of Jame, among others--get in the way, and he runs away). The idea of being her brother's consort clearly arouses Jame at one point. Later, the two of them dance together and obvious, magical sexual power builds between them. After everything that happened with Gerridon and Jamethiel, Jame wonders at one point if anyone knew they were twins, would they [[InvokedTrope throw them together]], or [[DefiedTrope never let them meet again]].

* ShownTheirWork: P. C. Hodgell knows her stuff, about both making stained glass, and horses.

* CoversAlwaysLie: With Jame being ''repeatedly and emphatically'' described as a flat-chested girl in the text, one has to wonder what part of "skinny elf-girl" the [[http://img1.fantasticfiction.co.uk/images/n65/n328827.jpg latest]] [[http://img1.fantasticfiction.co.uk/images/c4/c22449.jpg cover]] [[http://img1.fantasticfiction.co.uk/images/c4/c23468.jpg artist]] is having so much trouble with.

* ParentalIncest: When you've lost one parent, and ''you'' resemble said lost parent very closely, and the parent you still have ''completely adored'' the lost parent, it gets... weird.
** [[spoiler:Jame looks just like her mother, as well as sharing many of her Shanir traits. Her mother vanished. This leads to her heartbroken father kissing her once... and then [[PunchAWall punching a wall]] and storming out, because {{Averted Trope}}s.]]

* BrotherSisterIncest: Shanir powers were historically bred for by pairing close relatives because inbreeding is the best way to produce powerful Shanir, and they were trying to breed the Chosen Three. Twincest was particularly favored for this (see {{Twincest}} below for the twin cases). Because of Gerridon and Jamethiel's infamy, they've ''mostly'' stopped inbreeding since the Fall--although the Ardeth still do. But because of the old tradition, the Kencyrath now see incest as--at worst--a bad idea, not creepy or immoral.
** Timmon's parents, Pereden and Distan, were half-siblings. They seem to have been pretty happy together--Distan loved him, to the point of SingleTargetSexuality. He [[ReallyGetsAround Really Got Around]] though, and that still clearly hurts her, even after his death.

* GoodIsNotNice: Probably the most charitable interpretation of the Three-Faced God, which could also be seen as a NeglectfulPrecursor, a JerkassGod, or even a (relatively benevolent) EldritchAbomination. In any event, it doesn't seem to expect its followers to ''like it'', so long as they get the job done.

* HaveYouSeenMyGod: At the beginning of the series, the Kencyrath have not heard anything from their God in thousands of years, but it's implied that this is not the first time this has happened.

* MeaningfulEcho: In ''To Ride a Rathorn'', variations on the words "Stay with me… Stay." Timmon asks Jame on two occasions to stay with him, and both times she doesn't. Later, it's reversed, with ''her'' being the speaker, and offering--not asking--"stay" to Tori… but like the other examples, he doesn't stay.
** When Jame meets Timmon for the first time:

** And then with Jame and Torisen, in Mother Ragga's lodge, just after their kiss and before Tori bolts, Jame says it to him:

[[OnlyKnownByInitials P. C.]] Hodgell's ''Chronicles of the Kencyrath'' HighFantasy series consists of seven novels and a short story collection so far:

** Hatch thinks Jane is the exciting, exotic Veronica to Prid, while he--her cousin and DoggedNiceGuy--is the Betty. Prid's own feeling are rather ambiguous, but she seems to kind of like both Hatch and Jame, which would make it a [[TriangRelations Type 10 triangle]].

--->--'''Jame''', ''To Ride a Rathorn''

[[caption-width-right:314:[-P.C. Hodgell's own artwork depicting heroine Jame atop the Tower of Bats in the city of Tai-tastigon.-] ]]

[[OnlyKnownByInitials P.C.]] Hodgell's ''Chronicles of the Kencyrath'' HighFantasy series consists of seven novels and a short story collection so far:

** Hatch thinks Jane is the exciting, exotic Veronica to Prid, while he--her cousin and DoggedNiceGuy--is the Betty. Whether Prid's own feeling are rather ambiguous, but she seems to kind of like both Hatch and Jame, which would make it a [[TriangRelations Type 10 triangle]].

* BelligerentSexualTension: Jame and Tori--although until a lot of cases of this trope, their attract is not the ''primary'' cause of their fighting. {{Lampshade|Hanging}}d by Adiraina.

* AutomatonHorses ({{Averted|Trope}}): Hodgell became an equestrian in order to write about horses accurately, and lessons in the care and tending of horses feature fairly prominently at Tentir, especially for originally horse-phobic Jame.

* {{Twincest}}: Shanir powers were historically bred for by pairing close relatives--especially twins--because inbreeding is the best way to produce powerful Shanir. Twin marriage was especially valuable for this, since it reinforced traits so strongly in offspring. It's also worth noting that among the Kencyrath, inbreeding sometimes produces crazies, but it doesn't produce sickly or deformed children. Because of Gerridon and Jamethiel's infamy, they've ''kinda'' stopped inbreeding since the Fall--although the Ardeth still do. But because of the old tradition, the Kencyrath now see incest as--at worst--a bad idea, not creepy or immoral.