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-->'''Mathew:''' I'm sorry. And Zohra, [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming you have been speaking my name... just fine.]]
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-->'''Mathew:''' I'm sorry. And Zohra, [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming you have been speaking my name... just fine.]]
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* TheDragon: [[spoiler:Kaug serves as one to Quar, being one of his most potent tools both in the mortal world and in the realm of the immortals. By the third book, Quar is strong enough that the combined might of all of Ahkran's Djin (and likely any other deities immortals) isn't enough to slow him down.]]
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* TheDragon: [[spoiler:Kaug serves as one to Quar, being one of his most potent tools both in the mortal world and in the realm of the immortals. By the third book, Quar is strong enough that the combined might of all of Ahkran's Akhran's Djin (and likely any other deities immortals) isn't enough to slow him down.]]]]
* EnemyMine: The Hrana and the Akar are bitter enemies united solely by Akhran's command, and they make only the most token of efforts to get along.
* EnemyMine: The Hrana and the Akar are bitter enemies united solely by Akhran's command, and they make only the most token of efforts to get along.
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-->There were times, however, when he admitted to himself that the eyes of the sparrow were dull and lackluster after one as looked into the fiery black eyes of the hawk.
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* AffablyEvil: Auda Ibn-Jad.
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* DealWithTheDevil: Mathew deals with an Imp of Astafas in ''The Paladin of the Night'' [[spoiler: and nearly loses his soul before he finally rejects it.]]
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* DealWithTheDevil: DealWithTheDevil:
** Mathew deals with an Imp of Astafas in ''The Paladin of the Night''[[spoiler: and [[spoiler:and nearly loses his soul before he finally rejects it.]]
** Mathew deals with an Imp of Astafas in ''The Paladin of the Night''
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* {{Expy}}: While a lot of the setting has similarities to real world cultures and religions, Promenthas is in almost all respect the New Testament Judeo-Christian God, complete with a hierarchy of angels and tenets of love, peace and universal brotherhood.
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* {{Expy}}: {{Expy}}:
** While a lot of the setting has similarities to real world cultures and religions, Promenthas is in almost all respect the New Testament Judeo-Christian God, complete with a hierarchy of angels and tenets of love, peace and universal brotherhood.
** While a lot of the setting has similarities to real world cultures and religions, Promenthas is in almost all respect the New Testament Judeo-Christian God, complete with a hierarchy of angels and tenets of love, peace and universal brotherhood.
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* FemmeFatale: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
* FishOutOfWater: Mathew.
* FishOutOfWater: Mathew.
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* GuileHero: Pukah, although he has a tendency to [[HilarityEnsues stuff up hilariously.]] Also Matthew to an extent; while a powerful sorcerer in his own land, he's bereft of most of the tools he needs to work his magic for the majority of the story and has to survive on his wits.
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* GuileHero: GuileHero:
** Pukah, although he has a tendency to [[HilarityEnsues stuff up hilariously.]] Also Matthew to an extent; while a powerful sorcerer in his own land, he's bereft of most of the tools he needs to work his magic for the majority of the story and has to survive on his wits.
** Pukah, although he has a tendency to [[HilarityEnsues stuff up hilariously.]] Also Matthew to an extent; while a powerful sorcerer in his own land, he's bereft of most of the tools he needs to work his magic for the majority of the story and has to survive on his wits.
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* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Asrial makes one to let Pukah win his bet with death, taking his form and dying in his place. She survives.]]
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* HeroicSacrifice: HeroicSacrifice:
** [[spoiler:Asrial makes one to let Pukah win his bet with death, taking his form and dying in his place. She survives.]]
** [[spoiler:Asrial makes one to let Pukah win his bet with death, taking his form and dying in his place. She survives.]]
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** This is a fairly common attitude in the setting, particularly among the nomads.
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* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Although much of it can be attributed to her being the {{Tsundere}} [[RebelliousPrincess Rebellious]] TomboyPrincess of [[DeliberateValuesDissonance a harsh people in a harsh land]] who [[MissingMom grew up without her mother's guidance]] to boot, Zohra really can be unnecessarily nasty sometimes. She does truly love her people though, even if she holds most of them in contempt (to be fair, she holds almost EVERYONE in contempt).
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* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: JerkWithAHeartOfGold:
** Although much of it can be attributed to her being the {{Tsundere}} [[RebelliousPrincess Rebellious]] TomboyPrincess of [[DeliberateValuesDissonance a harsh people in a harsh land]] who [[MissingMom grew up without her mother's guidance]] to boot, Zohra really can be unnecessarily nasty sometimes. She does truly love her people though, even if she holds most of them in contempt (to be fair, she holds almost EVERYONE in contempt).
** Although much of it can be attributed to her being the {{Tsundere}} [[RebelliousPrincess Rebellious]] TomboyPrincess of [[DeliberateValuesDissonance a harsh people in a harsh land]] who [[MissingMom grew up without her mother's guidance]] to boot, Zohra really can be unnecessarily nasty sometimes. She does truly love her people though, even if she holds most of them in contempt (to be fair, she holds almost EVERYONE in contempt).
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* LastWords: "Many fine sons..."
* LoveAtFirstSight: Pukah towards Asrial.
* LoveAtFirstSight: Pukah towards Asrial.
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* TheMole: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
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* {{Tsundere}}: Zohra, like you would not BELIEVE. Khardan too.
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* TheVamp: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
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* WickedCultured: Auda again.
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* TheDragon: [[spoiler:Kaug serves as one to Quar, being one of his most potent tools both in the mortal world and in the realm of the immortals. By the third book, Quar is strong enough that the combined might of all of Ahkran's Djin (and likely any other deities immortals) isn't enough to slow him down.]]
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** Pukah sure thinks he is, but for the most part each of his schemes either fails, makes things worse, or works only due to the intervention of others. He does however get to redeem himself with a single spectacular triumph near the end.
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** This is a fairly common attitude in the setting, particularly among the nomads.
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* BlondesAreEvil: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
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* HeroicSacrifice: [[spoiler:Asrial makes one to let Pukah win his bet with death, taking his form and dying in his place. She survives.]]
** [[spoiler:Pukah in turn makes one to defeat Kaug, luring the efreet into the ColdIron mountain of Sul's Curse and ordering Asrial to shut the gates, locking them both in together. Somewhat subverted in that we last see him hiding from the raging Kaug in a secret grotto at the heart of the mountain, smugly making plans for what he's going to do when he eventually escapes, although he doesn't have a firm plan for doing so.]]
** [[spoiler:Pukah in turn makes one to defeat Kaug, luring the efreet into the ColdIron mountain of Sul's Curse and ordering Asrial to shut the gates, locking them both in together. Somewhat subverted in that we last see him hiding from the raging Kaug in a secret grotto at the heart of the mountain, smugly making plans for what he's going to do when he eventually escapes, although he doesn't have a firm plan for doing so.]]
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* WeddingDay: The biggest fiasco this side of the ''Ranma1/2'' finale, with both parties constantly insulting each other, the bride having to be dragged to the altar bound and gagged, the groom made to attend literally falling down drunk, the bride attempting to gut the groom as soon as the knot is tied before [[RunawayBride fleeing]] and the entire affair breaking out into a bloody brawl until Sond brings the tent down on everyone to prevent casualties.
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* WeddingDay: The biggest fiasco this side of the ''Ranma1/2'' ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'' finale, with both parties constantly insulting each other, the bride having to be dragged to the altar bound and gagged, the groom made to attend literally falling down drunk, the bride attempting to gut the groom as soon as the knot is tied before [[RunawayBride fleeing]] and the entire affair breaking out into a bloody brawl until Sond brings the tent down on everyone to prevent casualties.
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* FemaleAngelMaleDemon: The only named angel of Promenthas is Asrial, although she does mention male angels (and a few nameless ones are seen [[spoiler:in Serinda]]; the only example of one of her evil counterparts we see (an Imp of Astafas) is male.
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* FemaleAngelMaleDemon: The only named angel of Promenthas is Asrial, although she does mention male angels (and a few nameless ones are seen [[spoiler:in Serinda]]; Serinda]]); the only example of one of her evil counterparts we see (an Imp of Astafas) is male.
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** [[spoiler:He eventually realises how badly he fell into this trope, how much trouble he caused and how even his successes were largely due to others and redeems himself with a truly ''brilliant'' ThanatosGambit HeroicSacrifice that ''defeats Kaug the Efreet'' and single-handedly turns the war in the heavens against Quar.]]
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** [[spoiler:He eventually realises how badly he fell into this trope, how much trouble he caused and how even his successes were largely due to others and redeems himself with a truly ''brilliant'' ThanatosGambit HeroicSacrifice that ''defeats Kaug the Efreet'' and single-handedly turns the war in the heavens against Quar. Ironically, this actually makes him famous across the heavens- Quar curses his name daily and [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming the immortals of Akhran (as well as Asrial) from then on refer to the mountain of Sul's Curse as 'Pukah's Peak']].]]
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* NoGuyWantsAnAmazon: The reason Zohra remained unmarried for 22 years before her enforced union with Khardan was that as soon as her father announced her eligibility for marriage all the single young men of the tribe either hastily married or headed for the hills and didn't come back until she'd publically sworn that no man would have her. [[spoiler:Khardan eventually comes to see that Amazons have their good points. (Auda also finds her incredibly attractive.)]]
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* NoGuyWantsAnAmazon: The reason Zohra remained unmarried for 22 years before her enforced union with Khardan was that as soon as her father announced her eligibility for marriage all the single young men of the tribe either hastily married or headed for the hills and didn't come back until she'd publically sworn that no man would have her. [[spoiler:Khardan eventually comes to see that Amazons have their good points. (Auda ([[AmazonChaser Auda]] also finds her incredibly attractive.)]]
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* IdiotHero: Pukah often drifts into this while trying to be a GuileHero. He isn't stupid, but his ego and overestimation of his own ideas cause him to carry the IdiotBall on a regular basis.
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* IdiotHero: Pukah often drifts into this while trying to be a GuileHero. He isn't stupid, but his ego and overestimation of his own ideas cause him to carry the IdiotBall on a regular basis. His problem is largely that he always tries to set up elaborate {{Xanatos Gambit}}s when what he's actually ''good'' at is [[IndyPloy thinking on his feet]].
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* GreyAndGreyMorality: Despite gods and their followers in the world of Sularin being openly ''labelled'' as good, evil and neutral, almost nothing is as simple as it seems. Khardan notes [[spoiler:Zhakrin's]] Paladins of the Night initially seem to be cruel and heartless monsters, but are caring and loyal to each other; Auda Ibn-Jad is unquestionably an almost immeasurably evil man but [[spoiler:risks his life to protect Khardan when they become BloodBrothers, even though Khardan tricked him and eventually sacrifices his life to avenge his earlier brother Catalus.]] Most notably, the final conflict isn't between the forces of good and evil, but the forces of chaotic neutral (Akhran) and lawful neutral (Quar).
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* GreyAndGreyMorality: Despite gods and their followers in the world of Sularin being openly ''labelled'' as [[BlackAndWhiteMorality good, evil and neutral, neutral,]] [[SubvertedTrope almost nothing is as simple as it seems. seems]]. Khardan notes [[spoiler:Zhakrin's]] Paladins of the Night initially seem to be cruel and heartless monsters, but are caring and loyal to each other; Auda Ibn-Jad is unquestionably an almost immeasurably evil man but [[spoiler:risks his life to protect Khardan when they become BloodBrothers, even though Khardan tricked him him, and eventually sacrifices his life to avenge his earlier brother Catalus.]] Most notably, the final conflict isn't between the forces of good and evil, but the forces of chaotic neutral (Akhran) and lawful neutral (Quar).(Quar), with the protagonists on the side of ''chaotic'' (usually considered the "bad guys" side in fiction).
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* GratuitousForeignLanguage: Khardan and Zohra's people are {{Foreign Culture Counterpart}}s to the Middle East like Arabia, Iraq, etc, and their language is obviously a take-off of Arabic. The word "jihad" is thrown around and stated to mean "holy war". Jihad actually translates as "struggle", and has a fairly in-depth amount of context, though it can be used to mean holy war in very specific circumstances.
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* GratuitousForeignLanguage: Khardan and Zohra's people are {{Foreign Culture Counterpart}}s {{Fantasy Counterpart Culture}}s to the Middle East Eastern ones like Arabia, Iraq, etc, and their language is obviously a take-off of Arabic. The word "jihad" is thrown around and stated to mean "holy war". Jihad actually translates as "struggle", and has a fairly in-depth amount of context, though it can be used to mean holy war in very specific circumstances.
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A little-known and underrated fantasy trilogy by Margaret Weis and Tracey Hickman, ''Rose of the Prophet'' manages to transcend its genre and create a beautiful and believable [[CrossoverCosmology world/cosmology]], memorable and lovable characters, and an entertaining and quite moving story--all while conforming to the rules and structure of your standard ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''-style role playing game. Really--has to be read to be believed.
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A little-known and underrated fantasy trilogy by Margaret Weis Creator/MargaretWeis and Tracey Hickman, Creator/TracyHickman, ''Rose of the Prophet'' manages to transcend its genre and create a beautiful and believable [[CrossoverCosmology world/cosmology]], memorable and lovable characters, and an entertaining and quite moving story--all while conforming to the rules and structure of your standard ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''-style role playing game. Really--has to be read to be believed.
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[[quoteright:300:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rose_of_the_prophet.jpg]]
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* ItsAllAboutMe: Khardan's FatalFlaw. He eventually realizes it and overcomes it.
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* GodsNeedPrayerBadly: One facet of the conflict.
** Actually the main cause of the conflict- Quar wants all the Prayer for himself.
** Actually the main cause of the conflict- Quar wants all the Prayer for himself.
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* GodsNeedPrayerBadly: One facet of the conflict.
** Actually theThe main cause of the conflict- Quar wants all the Prayer for himself.
** Actually the
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* NayTheist: Downplayed with the Aran, Hrana and Akar. As Akhran can rarely be bothered to do anything for them, they've learned not to rely overmuch on his rules and most days are just as likely to ignore him as worship him. It takes a prolonged bout with the GodzillaThreshold for Majiid to agree to Akhran's order for Khardan and Zora's ArrangedMarriage.
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* TreacherousAdvisor: When the other gods try to defend Quar from Arkhan's early accusations, they point out how Quar had tried to keep peace between the two warring dieties. Arkham points out that Quar's peacemaking seemed to always 'accidently' bring up some atrocity or dispute between the two, leading to more fighting.
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* TreacherousAdvisor: When the other gods try to defend Quar from Arkhan's Akhran's early accusations, they point out how Quar had tried to keep peace between the two warring dieties. Arkham Akhran points out that Quar's peacemaking seemed to always 'accidently' bring up some atrocity or dispute between the two, leading to more fighting.
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* TreacherousAdvisor: When the other gods try to defend Quar from Arkhan's early accusations, they point out how Quar had tried to keep peace between the two warring dieties. Arkham points out that Quar's peacemaking seemed to always 'accidently' bring up some atrocity or dispute between the two, leading to more fighting.
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* IdiotHero: Pukah often drifts into this while trying to be a GuileHero. He isn't stupid, but his ego and overestimation of his own ideas cause him to carry the IdiotBall on a regular basis.
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* NarrativeProfanityFilter: Used frequently during some of the arguing among the djinn (and to a lesser extent, others), with the text noting such things as one questioning if the other's ancestry included a goat and such.
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not a trope
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A little-known and underrated fantasy trilogy by Margaret Weis and Tracey Hickman, ''Rose of the Prophet'' manages to transcend its genre and create a beautiful and believable [[CrossoverCosmology world/cosmology]], memorable and lovable characters, and an entertaining and quite moving story--all while conforming to the rules and structure of your standard [[DungeonsAndDragons Dungeons & Dragons]]-style role playing game. Really--has to be read to be believed.
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A little-known and underrated fantasy trilogy by Margaret Weis and Tracey Hickman, ''Rose of the Prophet'' manages to transcend its genre and create a beautiful and believable [[CrossoverCosmology world/cosmology]], memorable and lovable characters, and an entertaining and quite moving story--all while conforming to the rules and structure of your standard [[DungeonsAndDragons Dungeons & Dragons]]-style ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons''-style role playing game. Really--has to be read to be believed.
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* DungeonsAndDragons: The cosmology is based on a twenty-sided die, with references to D&D character alignments.
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* RealWomenNeverWearDresses: Zohra is of this opinion for much of the series, and treats the women of her tribe with at best derision, preferring to dress as a man and go horse riding and hunting and what have you. She eventually realizes that this is not the case. See SilkHidingSteel below.
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* SmallNameBigEgo: Pukah is convinced he's the cleverest and most handsome of all immortals... and causes ''no end'' of trouble as a result. He's not entirely without talent, being cunning, quick-thinking and daring, but his abilties don't even come ''close'' to his overinflated opinion of himself.
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* SilkHidingSteel: The women of the Akar, Hrana and Aran, much to Zohra's ignorance. It's a major turning point for her to realize that just because they aren't bloodthirsty and waving swords around like the men that doesn't mean they are weak by any measure.
* SmallNameBigEgo: Pukah is convinced he's the cleverest and most handsome of all immortals... and causes ''no end'' of trouble as a result. He's not entirely without talent, being cunning, quick-thinking and daring, but hisabilties abilities don't even come ''close'' to his overinflated opinion of himself.
* SmallNameBigEgo: Pukah is convinced he's the cleverest and most handsome of all immortals... and causes ''no end'' of trouble as a result. He's not entirely without talent, being cunning, quick-thinking and daring, but his
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* GratuitousForeignLanguage: Khardan and Zohra's people are {{Foreign Culture Counterpart}}s to the Middle East like Arabia, Iraq, etc, and their language is obviously a take-off of Arabic. The word "jihad" is thrown around and stated to mean "holy war". Jihad actually translates as "struggle".
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* GratuitousForeignLanguage: Khardan and Zohra's people are {{Foreign Culture Counterpart}}s to the Middle East like Arabia, Iraq, etc, and their language is obviously a take-off of Arabic. The word "jihad" is thrown around and stated to mean "holy war". Jihad actually translates as "struggle"."struggle", and has a fairly in-depth amount of context, though it can be used to mean holy war in very specific circumstances.
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* {{Tsundere}}: Zohra, like you would not BELIEVE.
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* {{Tsundere}}: Zohra, like you would not BELIEVE. Khardan too.
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* TheGrimReaper: Death in the series takes the form of [[spoiler:a classically beautiful woman with 2 empty voids where her eyes should be.]]
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* TheGrimReaper: Death in GratuitousForeignLanguage: Khardan and Zohra's people are {{Foreign Culture Counterpart}}s to the series takes the form Middle East like Arabia, Iraq, etc, and their language is obviously a take-off of [[spoiler:a classically beautiful woman with 2 empty voids where her eyes should be.]]Arabic. The word "jihad" is thrown around and stated to mean "holy war". Jihad actually translates as "struggle".
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* TheGrimReaper: Death in the series takes the form of [[spoiler:a classically beautiful woman with 2 empty voids where her eyes should be.]]
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* GuileHero: Pukah, although he has a tendency to [[HilarityEnsues stuff up hilariously.]]. Also Matthew to an extent; while a powerful sorcerer in his own land, he's bereft of most of the tools he needs to work his magic for the majority of the story and has to survive on his wits.
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* GuileHero: Pukah, although he has a tendency to [[HilarityEnsues stuff up hilariously.]]. ]] Also Matthew to an extent; while a powerful sorcerer in his own land, he's bereft of most of the tools he needs to work his magic for the majority of the story and has to survive on his wits.
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* TomboyPrincess: Zohra; her character introduction notes that her father indulged her and let her run wild in his grief over her mother's death and by the time he tried to reign her in it was far too late. (The one time he threatened to beat her she snatched the stick from his hand and threatened to beat ''him'' instead!)
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* TomboyPrincess: Zohra; her character introduction notes that her father indulged her and let her run wild in his grief over her mother's death and by the time he tried to reign rein her in it was far too late. (The one time he threatened to beat her she snatched the stick from his hand and threatened to beat ''him'' instead!)
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A little-known and underrated fantasy trilogy by Margaret Weis and Tracey Hickman, ''Rose of the Prophet'' manages to transcend its genre and create a beautiful and believable [[CrossoverCosmology world/cosmology]], memorable and lovable characters, and an entertaining and quite moving story--all while conforming to the rules and structure of your standard [[DungeonsAndDragons Dungeons & Dragons]]-style role playing game. Really--[[BetterThanItSounds has to be read to be believed]].
to:
A little-known and underrated fantasy trilogy by Margaret Weis and Tracey Hickman, ''Rose of the Prophet'' manages to transcend its genre and create a beautiful and believable [[CrossoverCosmology world/cosmology]], memorable and lovable characters, and an entertaining and quite moving story--all while conforming to the rules and structure of your standard [[DungeonsAndDragons Dungeons & Dragons]]-style role playing game. Really--[[BetterThanItSounds has Really--has to be read to be believed]].believed.
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Namespace move.
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A little-known and underrated fantasy trilogy by Margaret Weis and Tracey Hickman, ''Rose of the Prophet'' manages to transcend its genre and create a beautiful and believable [[CrossoverCosmology world/cosmology]], memorable and lovable characters, and an entertaining and quite moving story--all while conforming to the rules and structure of your standard [[DungeonsAndDragons Dungeons & Dragons]]-style role playing game. Really--[[BetterThanItSounds has to be read to be believed]].
Most of the action takes place within the cities and deserts of an [[ArabianNightsDays Arabian Nights-esque]] land in a [[LiteralMetaphor multi-faceted]] [[ConstructedWorld world]] of [[VancianMagic magic]] and adventure. There is crisis among the [[FantasyPantheon One-And-Twenty Gods]] and their attendant Immortals; two Gods have [[GodsNeedPrayerBadly diminished into non-existence]], the gods all blame each other, and one God fears the conflict will soon spread to the human realm as ''jihad,'' holy war.
The Wandering God Akhran tries to unite two feuding tribes of his desert nomads against the threat, by commanding the marriage of Princess Zohra, of the shepherding Hrana tribe, to Prince Khardan, Caliph of the horse-herding Akar...but seeing as Chaos and Impatience are two of Akhran's attributes (and his people are faithful followers indeed), it doesn't go as well as Akhran might have wished.
Akhran convinces Promenthas (a God of a [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy medieval-Europe style]] land across the ocean) to ally with him, and they arrange for the young wizard Mathew (lone survivor of a slain ambassadorial party) to wind up among the feuding nomads. Khardan, Zohra and Mathew, along with their tribes' [[OurGeniesAreDifferent djinn]] and a [[OurAngelsAreDifferent guardian angel]], must somehow prevent a massive army from conquering the mortal world, a vastly overpowered efreet from banishing all other Immortals, and one god from eliminating all the others--and shattering the cosmic balance forever.
The three books are:
* ''Volume 1: The Will of the Wanderer''
* ''Volume 2: The Paladin of the Night''
* ''Volume 3: The Prophet of Akhran ''
----
!! This book series provides examples of:
* ActualPacifist: Mathew considers all life sacred. [[spoiler:When he's forced to kill Meryem to save Khardan's life he suffers a minor [[HeroicBSOD BSOD]] but that's ''nothing'' compared to his shock when an out-of-control spell accidentally kills ''thousands!'']]
-->'''Auda:''' There is no war in your land? The magi do not fight?
-->'''Mathew:''' ''I'' do not fight!
* AffablyEvil: Auda Ibn-Jad.
* {{Asexuality}}: Mathew can feel love for both men and women, but never experiences sexual desire for any of them. This is something the people of Akhran find difficult to understand.
* AttractiveBentGender: Mathew is mistaken for an extremely beautiful woman.
* ArabianNightsDays: The setting, mostly. When it's not wandering entirely off the planet or into time-travelling dream cities.
* ArbitrarySkepticism: A lot of characters drift close to this sometimes, most [[{{Egregious}} egregiously]] Mathew, who despite being a sorcerer doesn't believe in the existence of djinn- and even after he accepts their existence (having been witness to their powers multiple times) still doubts the existence of angels, who are part of his ''own'' religion! (Oddly, even though he doubts the existence of angels, he's fully prepared to believe in the existence of devils, although admittedly [[spoiler:he ''had'' just summoned one at the time]].)
* BeingTorturedMakesYouEvil: "The Rebirth", the procedure the Paladins of the Night use to replenish their depleted ranks; captured {{Worthy Opponent}}s are tortured by [[TortureTechnician the Lifemaster]] until they are utterly broken and pray to [[spoiler:Zhakrin]] to accept their loyalty in exchange for release from their torment. [[spoiler:Khardan thwarts this due to the similarity in the sounds of "Zhakrin" and "Akhran".]]
-->'''Auda:''' Naked, covered with blood, we are born into this world...
* BelligerentSexualTension: Zohra and Khardan. The highlight of their wedding night is Zohra stabbing Khardan. [[spoiler:And it doesn't improve by much.]]
* BlondesAreEvil: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
* BloodBrothers: One of the traditions of the Paladins of Zhakrin. Catalus was the brother of Auda, obligating Auda to [[spoiler:fulfill the death curse Catalus placed on Feisal. Auda taking Khardan as his new brother is the defining point in their relationship for the rest of the series.]]
* ButtMonkey: Usti, the comically overweight, much-abused djinn assigned to Zohra by Fedj (who actually does so as an act of ''revenge'' against Usti for [[NoodleIncident some unspecified slight]]).
* CainAndAbel: Sort of. [[spoiler:Khardan and Achmed eventually end up on opposite sides of the conflict when Achmed becomes Qannadi's adopted son and most loyal general, but neither is considered the "bad" one.]]
* ChessWithDeath: [[spoiler:Pukah challenges Death to a bet- if he can survive one day in Serinda, the city she rules where all the imprisoned Immortals die and are resurrected every day, she must free them all. He wins, thanks to Asrial.]]
* ChekhovsGun: Other that more powerful magic (such as that which allows the holder of their mortal dwelling place to command a djinn) ColdIron is the only thing than can restrain an immortal. [[spoiler:Like Kaug.]]
* ColdIron: The main weakness of all Immortals- it can't ''hurt'' them, but it can bind them and render them powerless. A common threat used against the djinn is being locked in an iron box and put somewhere nasty where they'll never be found. [[spoiler:Pukah defeats Kaug by tricking him into entering an entire ''mountain'' made of the stuff.]]
* DealWithTheDevil: Mathew deals with an Imp of Astafas in ''The Paladin of the Night'' [[spoiler: and nearly loses his soul before he finally rejects it.]]
** Asrial makes a deal with [[spoiler:Death]] to [[spoiler:betray Pukah]] in exchange for letting her go free to protect Mathew in his darkest hour. [[spoiler:Or at least it ''seems'' like she does- although she delivers Pukah's protective amulet to Death, instead of leaving she takes Pukah's place and sacrifices herself to let him win his bet with Death.]]
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Prevalent throughout the story. Mathew is shocked and bewildered by the brutal and simplistic worldview of the people of Akhran, who have little regard for the sanctity of life, even though they are generally good honourable people.
* DoesNotLikeMen: Zohra holds all men in contempt, although she gets along well with Mathew [[spoiler:and eventually warms up to Khardan.]]
* DungeonsAndDragons: The cosmology is based on a twenty-sided die, with references to D&D character alignments.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: The [[spoiler:Paladins of Zhakrin]] are about as evil as they come, but they set a GREAT store by loyalty, family and brotherhood.
* ExactWords: Fedj convinces Zohra to stick out her marriage to Khardan by pointing out that while it is Akhran's will that they remain married until the Rose of the Prophet blooms, he did ''not'' specify that the marriage had to be consummated.
* {{Expy}}: While a lot of the setting has similarities to real world cultures and religions, Promenthas is in almost all respect the New Testament Judeo-Christian God, complete with a hierarchy of angels and tenets of love, peace and universal brotherhood.
** Additionally, while he's only a single god in a pantheon rather than the almighty power above all, he's notable for being one of the few gods whose followers don't even believe in the ''existence'' of other gods apart from Astafas, Promenthas' evil opposite and Sularin's version of {{Satan}} (other gods' followers at least acknowledge the existence of the pantheon, even if they only worship their own god) making the Promenthan religion fundamentally monotheistic.
* FemaleAngelMaleDemon: The only named angel of Promenthas is Asrial, although she does mention male angels (and a few nameless ones are seen [[spoiler:in Serinda]]; the only example of one of her evil counterparts we see (an Imp of Astafas) is male.
* FemmeFatale: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
* FishOutOfWater: Mathew.
* TheFundamentalist: Many of the characters in the series are driven by their beliefs to some extent or another, but Feisal the Imam of Quar is utterly devoted, body and soul, to his god.
* GodIsFlawed: Pretty much all of them are to some extent, some more than others. For example Akhran, despite being a noble and honourable warrior god, couldn't organise his followers into an egg-and-spoon race (unsurprising considering he's the god of Faith, Impatience and Chaos).
* GodsNeedPrayerBadly: One facet of the conflict.
** Actually the main cause of the conflict- Quar wants all the Prayer for himself.
* TheGrimReaper: Death in the series takes the form of [[spoiler:a classically beautiful woman with 2 empty voids where her eyes should be.]]
* GreenEyedMonster: Zohra hates Meryem from the moment Khardan brings her back to camp with the intent of adding her to his harem [[spoiler:even before Meryem tries to murder her and she and Mathew realise Meryem is a spy for the Amir.]]
* GreyAndGreyMorality: Despite gods and their followers in the world of Sularin being openly ''labelled'' as good, evil and neutral, almost nothing is as simple as it seems. Khardan notes [[spoiler:Zhakrin's]] Paladins of the Night initially seem to be cruel and heartless monsters, but are caring and loyal to each other; Auda Ibn-Jad is unquestionably an almost immeasurably evil man but [[spoiler:risks his life to protect Khardan when they become BloodBrothers, even though Khardan tricked him and eventually sacrifices his life to avenge his earlier brother Catalus.]] Most notably, the final conflict isn't between the forces of good and evil, but the forces of chaotic neutral (Akhran) and lawful neutral (Quar).
* GuardianAngel: Every follower of Promenthas has one and they are the lowest tier of the angelic hierarchy. Asrial is Matthew's. Apparently a demon of [[{{Satan}} Astafas]] is legally obligated to warn you if they are not present before you make any [[DealWithTheDevil deal with them regarding your soul or its ownership.]]
* GuileHero: Pukah, although he has a tendency to [[HilarityEnsues stuff up hilariously.]]. Also Matthew to an extent; while a powerful sorcerer in his own land, he's bereft of most of the tools he needs to work his magic for the majority of the story and has to survive on his wits.
* HonorBeforeReason: Khardan shifts around this trope a bit, ranging from simple Pride Before Reason to a steadfast Faith Before Reason.
* ILoveYouBecauseICantControlYou: This is what keeps drawing Khardan back to Zohra despite everything she does that antagonises him- with every woman in his tribe willing to throw themselves at his feet, Zohra is the one woman who never gives him a inch. The story even mentions as such when Khardan refuses to take another wife after marrying her, noting that Zohra makes other women seem boring by comparison.
-->There were times, however, when he admitted to himself that the eyes of the sparrow were dull and lackluster after one as looked into the fiery black eyes of the hawk.
* IOweYouMyLife: Mathew decides after Khardan saves his life that even if his life isn't worth living for himself, he'll live to pledge it to Khardan's.
* ItIsPronouncedTroPAY: At once point when Mathew snaps in his frustration at how much he misses his home he goes off at Zohra for constantly pronouncing his name "Mat-hew". While attempting to calm and console him she tries pronouncing it "Matchew", which touches him and when he calms down he apologizes to her.
-->'''Mathew:''' I'm sorry. And Zohra, [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming you have been speaking my name... just fine.]]
-->'''Zohra:''' Of course. I knew I was saying it right, Mat-hew. It was you who were not hearing it right.
* {{Jerkass}}: Meelusk the fisherman, a miserable, shrivelled, selfish old bastard who is described as being so low that even the followers of Benario the Thief God spit on him in contempt.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Although much of it can be attributed to her being the {{Tsundere}} [[RebelliousPrincess Rebellious]] TomboyPrincess of [[DeliberateValuesDissonance a harsh people in a harsh land]] who [[MissingMom grew up without her mother's guidance]] to boot, Zohra really can be unnecessarily nasty sometimes. She does truly love her people though, even if she holds most of them in contempt (to be fair, she holds almost EVERYONE in contempt).
** Likewise, Khardan is honourable, noble and honest, but he's also capable of being a ''real ass'' sometimes. His cluelessness about Zohra's feelings gets him into NO end of trouble when he brings [[TheVamp Meryem]] back to camp for the first time (he [[WhatAnIdiot thought she'd be PLEASED that he wanted to take another wife]], assuming that he'd "tamed" her as a result of their last ShipTease moment).
** Between the two of them they take BelligerentSexualTension to the level of actually ''wanting to see the other die in pain and disgrace!'' [[spoiler:It's little short of a miracle that they finally admit their love for each other once and for all.]]
* LastWords: "Many fine sons..."
* LoveAtFirstSight: Pukah towards Asrial.
* MagicMusic: Asrial has the ability to sing a beautiful song that puts those who hear it to sleep. Whether any other Immortals share this ability is unknown as the only time it is used in the series is when [[spoiler:Asrial puts Pukah to sleep so she can take his form and die in his place, allowing Pukah to win his bet with Death.]]
* TheMole: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
* NoGuyWantsAnAmazon: The reason Zohra remained unmarried for 22 years before her enforced union with Khardan was that as soon as her father announced her eligibility for marriage all the single young men of the tribe either hastily married or headed for the hills and didn't come back until she'd publically sworn that no man would have her. [[spoiler:Khardan eventually comes to see that Amazons have their good points. (Auda also finds her incredibly attractive.)]]
* ObfuscatingInsanity: Khardan decides that the only way to spare Mathew's life (the people of Akhran consider him an abomination for dressing in women's clothing) is that he is insane (they believe insane people saw the face of Akhran just before they were born and are blessed by the god). Mathew goes along with it to save his life and ultimately finds a way to use it to his advantage.
* OurGhoulsAreCreepier: Classic Arabian ''ghuls'', man-eating shapeshifters who [[spoiler:man the ship leading to the island fortress of Zhakrin's paladins and take their payment in human flesh,]] although clearly distinct from djinn.
* PreMortemOneLiner: [[spoiler:Auda]] gets a good one.
-->'''[[spoiler:Feisal]]:''' Give me a knife...
-->'''[[spoiler:Auda]]:''' [[InTheBack Here, my lord.]]
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: This is more or less the hat of the people of Akhran- the horse-riding Akar are the most warlike, but even the sheep herding Hrana have their pride and will fight at the drop of a hat and the camel-riding Aran are pretty much the same.
* RunawayBride: Zohra ''tries'' to flee her marriage to Khardan (after failing to disembowel him at the altar) but is coerced into sticking it out by Fedj.
* SaveYourDeity: At the climax of ''Prophet of Akhran'', Khardan [[spoiler:decides that even if he dies and his people are exterminated, he can save Akhran by reaffirming his faith in him when tempted by Feisal.]]
* ScaryBlackMan: Raja, Sheykh Zeid's gigantic ebony-skinned djinn.
* SheCleansUpNicely: Zohra usually doesn't make any effort with her appearance, considering her femininity more of a curse than a blessing. But the story notes that when she does go to the effort she's ''stunningly'' beautiful and she knows how to use it.
* SmallNameBigEgo: Pukah is convinced he's the cleverest and most handsome of all immortals... and causes ''no end'' of trouble as a result. He's not entirely without talent, being cunning, quick-thinking and daring, but his abilties don't even come ''close'' to his overinflated opinion of himself.
** [[spoiler:He eventually realises how badly he fell into this trope, how much trouble he caused and how even his successes were largely due to others and redeems himself with a truly ''brilliant'' ThanatosGambit HeroicSacrifice that ''defeats Kaug the Efreet'' and single-handedly turns the war in the heavens against Quar.]]
* ThreatBackfire: Khardan walks right into this one when, during a fight between his people and Zohra's, he calls off one of his men attacking her to take her himself:
-->'''Khardan:''' [[TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou Death will not rob me of my chance to see you humbled, wife!]]
-->'''Zohra:''' Oh, won't he? ''(slashes his leg with her dagger)''
* TomboyPrincess: Zohra; her character introduction notes that her father indulged her and let her run wild in his grief over her mother's death and by the time he tried to reign her in it was far too late. (The one time he threatened to beat her she snatched the stick from his hand and threatened to beat ''him'' instead!)
* {{Tsundere}}: Zohra, like you would not BELIEVE.
* TwoLinesNoWaiting: There are at least three plots that intertwine, affect each other, and sometimes reflect each other.
* UnresolvedSexualTension: Good ''grief'' do Zohra and Khardan keep it up for along time -- [[spoiler:''the entire trilogy'', only being brought together by Mathew on the very last page of the third book.]]
* TheVamp: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
* WeddingDay: The biggest fiasco this side of the ''Ranma1/2'' finale, with both parties constantly insulting each other, the bride having to be dragged to the altar bound and gagged, the groom made to attend literally falling down drunk, the bride attempting to gut the groom as soon as the knot is tied before [[RunawayBride fleeing]] and the entire affair breaking out into a bloody brawl until Sond brings the tent down on everyone to prevent casualties.
* WhamLine: At the end of the first book when the man in the white palanquin catches up with Mathew again.
-->'''Auda:''' In the name of [[spoiler:Zhakrin, God of Darkness and All That Is Evil]], I command you all- sleep...."
* WickedCultured: Auda again.
----
Most of the action takes place within the cities and deserts of an [[ArabianNightsDays Arabian Nights-esque]] land in a [[LiteralMetaphor multi-faceted]] [[ConstructedWorld world]] of [[VancianMagic magic]] and adventure. There is crisis among the [[FantasyPantheon One-And-Twenty Gods]] and their attendant Immortals; two Gods have [[GodsNeedPrayerBadly diminished into non-existence]], the gods all blame each other, and one God fears the conflict will soon spread to the human realm as ''jihad,'' holy war.
The Wandering God Akhran tries to unite two feuding tribes of his desert nomads against the threat, by commanding the marriage of Princess Zohra, of the shepherding Hrana tribe, to Prince Khardan, Caliph of the horse-herding Akar...but seeing as Chaos and Impatience are two of Akhran's attributes (and his people are faithful followers indeed), it doesn't go as well as Akhran might have wished.
Akhran convinces Promenthas (a God of a [[MedievalEuropeanFantasy medieval-Europe style]] land across the ocean) to ally with him, and they arrange for the young wizard Mathew (lone survivor of a slain ambassadorial party) to wind up among the feuding nomads. Khardan, Zohra and Mathew, along with their tribes' [[OurGeniesAreDifferent djinn]] and a [[OurAngelsAreDifferent guardian angel]], must somehow prevent a massive army from conquering the mortal world, a vastly overpowered efreet from banishing all other Immortals, and one god from eliminating all the others--and shattering the cosmic balance forever.
The three books are:
* ''Volume 1: The Will of the Wanderer''
* ''Volume 2: The Paladin of the Night''
* ''Volume 3: The Prophet of Akhran ''
----
!! This book series provides examples of:
* ActualPacifist: Mathew considers all life sacred. [[spoiler:When he's forced to kill Meryem to save Khardan's life he suffers a minor [[HeroicBSOD BSOD]] but that's ''nothing'' compared to his shock when an out-of-control spell accidentally kills ''thousands!'']]
-->'''Auda:''' There is no war in your land? The magi do not fight?
-->'''Mathew:''' ''I'' do not fight!
* AffablyEvil: Auda Ibn-Jad.
* {{Asexuality}}: Mathew can feel love for both men and women, but never experiences sexual desire for any of them. This is something the people of Akhran find difficult to understand.
* AttractiveBentGender: Mathew is mistaken for an extremely beautiful woman.
* ArabianNightsDays: The setting, mostly. When it's not wandering entirely off the planet or into time-travelling dream cities.
* ArbitrarySkepticism: A lot of characters drift close to this sometimes, most [[{{Egregious}} egregiously]] Mathew, who despite being a sorcerer doesn't believe in the existence of djinn- and even after he accepts their existence (having been witness to their powers multiple times) still doubts the existence of angels, who are part of his ''own'' religion! (Oddly, even though he doubts the existence of angels, he's fully prepared to believe in the existence of devils, although admittedly [[spoiler:he ''had'' just summoned one at the time]].)
* BeingTorturedMakesYouEvil: "The Rebirth", the procedure the Paladins of the Night use to replenish their depleted ranks; captured {{Worthy Opponent}}s are tortured by [[TortureTechnician the Lifemaster]] until they are utterly broken and pray to [[spoiler:Zhakrin]] to accept their loyalty in exchange for release from their torment. [[spoiler:Khardan thwarts this due to the similarity in the sounds of "Zhakrin" and "Akhran".]]
-->'''Auda:''' Naked, covered with blood, we are born into this world...
* BelligerentSexualTension: Zohra and Khardan. The highlight of their wedding night is Zohra stabbing Khardan. [[spoiler:And it doesn't improve by much.]]
* BlondesAreEvil: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
* BloodBrothers: One of the traditions of the Paladins of Zhakrin. Catalus was the brother of Auda, obligating Auda to [[spoiler:fulfill the death curse Catalus placed on Feisal. Auda taking Khardan as his new brother is the defining point in their relationship for the rest of the series.]]
* ButtMonkey: Usti, the comically overweight, much-abused djinn assigned to Zohra by Fedj (who actually does so as an act of ''revenge'' against Usti for [[NoodleIncident some unspecified slight]]).
* CainAndAbel: Sort of. [[spoiler:Khardan and Achmed eventually end up on opposite sides of the conflict when Achmed becomes Qannadi's adopted son and most loyal general, but neither is considered the "bad" one.]]
* ChessWithDeath: [[spoiler:Pukah challenges Death to a bet- if he can survive one day in Serinda, the city she rules where all the imprisoned Immortals die and are resurrected every day, she must free them all. He wins, thanks to Asrial.]]
* ChekhovsGun: Other that more powerful magic (such as that which allows the holder of their mortal dwelling place to command a djinn) ColdIron is the only thing than can restrain an immortal. [[spoiler:Like Kaug.]]
* ColdIron: The main weakness of all Immortals- it can't ''hurt'' them, but it can bind them and render them powerless. A common threat used against the djinn is being locked in an iron box and put somewhere nasty where they'll never be found. [[spoiler:Pukah defeats Kaug by tricking him into entering an entire ''mountain'' made of the stuff.]]
* DealWithTheDevil: Mathew deals with an Imp of Astafas in ''The Paladin of the Night'' [[spoiler: and nearly loses his soul before he finally rejects it.]]
** Asrial makes a deal with [[spoiler:Death]] to [[spoiler:betray Pukah]] in exchange for letting her go free to protect Mathew in his darkest hour. [[spoiler:Or at least it ''seems'' like she does- although she delivers Pukah's protective amulet to Death, instead of leaving she takes Pukah's place and sacrifices herself to let him win his bet with Death.]]
* DeliberateValuesDissonance: Prevalent throughout the story. Mathew is shocked and bewildered by the brutal and simplistic worldview of the people of Akhran, who have little regard for the sanctity of life, even though they are generally good honourable people.
* DoesNotLikeMen: Zohra holds all men in contempt, although she gets along well with Mathew [[spoiler:and eventually warms up to Khardan.]]
* DungeonsAndDragons: The cosmology is based on a twenty-sided die, with references to D&D character alignments.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: The [[spoiler:Paladins of Zhakrin]] are about as evil as they come, but they set a GREAT store by loyalty, family and brotherhood.
* ExactWords: Fedj convinces Zohra to stick out her marriage to Khardan by pointing out that while it is Akhran's will that they remain married until the Rose of the Prophet blooms, he did ''not'' specify that the marriage had to be consummated.
* {{Expy}}: While a lot of the setting has similarities to real world cultures and religions, Promenthas is in almost all respect the New Testament Judeo-Christian God, complete with a hierarchy of angels and tenets of love, peace and universal brotherhood.
** Additionally, while he's only a single god in a pantheon rather than the almighty power above all, he's notable for being one of the few gods whose followers don't even believe in the ''existence'' of other gods apart from Astafas, Promenthas' evil opposite and Sularin's version of {{Satan}} (other gods' followers at least acknowledge the existence of the pantheon, even if they only worship their own god) making the Promenthan religion fundamentally monotheistic.
* FemaleAngelMaleDemon: The only named angel of Promenthas is Asrial, although she does mention male angels (and a few nameless ones are seen [[spoiler:in Serinda]]; the only example of one of her evil counterparts we see (an Imp of Astafas) is male.
* FemmeFatale: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
* FishOutOfWater: Mathew.
* TheFundamentalist: Many of the characters in the series are driven by their beliefs to some extent or another, but Feisal the Imam of Quar is utterly devoted, body and soul, to his god.
* GodIsFlawed: Pretty much all of them are to some extent, some more than others. For example Akhran, despite being a noble and honourable warrior god, couldn't organise his followers into an egg-and-spoon race (unsurprising considering he's the god of Faith, Impatience and Chaos).
* GodsNeedPrayerBadly: One facet of the conflict.
** Actually the main cause of the conflict- Quar wants all the Prayer for himself.
* TheGrimReaper: Death in the series takes the form of [[spoiler:a classically beautiful woman with 2 empty voids where her eyes should be.]]
* GreenEyedMonster: Zohra hates Meryem from the moment Khardan brings her back to camp with the intent of adding her to his harem [[spoiler:even before Meryem tries to murder her and she and Mathew realise Meryem is a spy for the Amir.]]
* GreyAndGreyMorality: Despite gods and their followers in the world of Sularin being openly ''labelled'' as good, evil and neutral, almost nothing is as simple as it seems. Khardan notes [[spoiler:Zhakrin's]] Paladins of the Night initially seem to be cruel and heartless monsters, but are caring and loyal to each other; Auda Ibn-Jad is unquestionably an almost immeasurably evil man but [[spoiler:risks his life to protect Khardan when they become BloodBrothers, even though Khardan tricked him and eventually sacrifices his life to avenge his earlier brother Catalus.]] Most notably, the final conflict isn't between the forces of good and evil, but the forces of chaotic neutral (Akhran) and lawful neutral (Quar).
* GuardianAngel: Every follower of Promenthas has one and they are the lowest tier of the angelic hierarchy. Asrial is Matthew's. Apparently a demon of [[{{Satan}} Astafas]] is legally obligated to warn you if they are not present before you make any [[DealWithTheDevil deal with them regarding your soul or its ownership.]]
* GuileHero: Pukah, although he has a tendency to [[HilarityEnsues stuff up hilariously.]]. Also Matthew to an extent; while a powerful sorcerer in his own land, he's bereft of most of the tools he needs to work his magic for the majority of the story and has to survive on his wits.
* HonorBeforeReason: Khardan shifts around this trope a bit, ranging from simple Pride Before Reason to a steadfast Faith Before Reason.
* ILoveYouBecauseICantControlYou: This is what keeps drawing Khardan back to Zohra despite everything she does that antagonises him- with every woman in his tribe willing to throw themselves at his feet, Zohra is the one woman who never gives him a inch. The story even mentions as such when Khardan refuses to take another wife after marrying her, noting that Zohra makes other women seem boring by comparison.
-->There were times, however, when he admitted to himself that the eyes of the sparrow were dull and lackluster after one as looked into the fiery black eyes of the hawk.
* IOweYouMyLife: Mathew decides after Khardan saves his life that even if his life isn't worth living for himself, he'll live to pledge it to Khardan's.
* ItIsPronouncedTroPAY: At once point when Mathew snaps in his frustration at how much he misses his home he goes off at Zohra for constantly pronouncing his name "Mat-hew". While attempting to calm and console him she tries pronouncing it "Matchew", which touches him and when he calms down he apologizes to her.
-->'''Mathew:''' I'm sorry. And Zohra, [[CrowningMomentOfHeartwarming you have been speaking my name... just fine.]]
-->'''Zohra:''' Of course. I knew I was saying it right, Mat-hew. It was you who were not hearing it right.
* {{Jerkass}}: Meelusk the fisherman, a miserable, shrivelled, selfish old bastard who is described as being so low that even the followers of Benario the Thief God spit on him in contempt.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: Although much of it can be attributed to her being the {{Tsundere}} [[RebelliousPrincess Rebellious]] TomboyPrincess of [[DeliberateValuesDissonance a harsh people in a harsh land]] who [[MissingMom grew up without her mother's guidance]] to boot, Zohra really can be unnecessarily nasty sometimes. She does truly love her people though, even if she holds most of them in contempt (to be fair, she holds almost EVERYONE in contempt).
** Likewise, Khardan is honourable, noble and honest, but he's also capable of being a ''real ass'' sometimes. His cluelessness about Zohra's feelings gets him into NO end of trouble when he brings [[TheVamp Meryem]] back to camp for the first time (he [[WhatAnIdiot thought she'd be PLEASED that he wanted to take another wife]], assuming that he'd "tamed" her as a result of their last ShipTease moment).
** Between the two of them they take BelligerentSexualTension to the level of actually ''wanting to see the other die in pain and disgrace!'' [[spoiler:It's little short of a miracle that they finally admit their love for each other once and for all.]]
* LastWords: "Many fine sons..."
* LoveAtFirstSight: Pukah towards Asrial.
* MagicMusic: Asrial has the ability to sing a beautiful song that puts those who hear it to sleep. Whether any other Immortals share this ability is unknown as the only time it is used in the series is when [[spoiler:Asrial puts Pukah to sleep so she can take his form and die in his place, allowing Pukah to win his bet with Death.]]
* TheMole: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
* NoGuyWantsAnAmazon: The reason Zohra remained unmarried for 22 years before her enforced union with Khardan was that as soon as her father announced her eligibility for marriage all the single young men of the tribe either hastily married or headed for the hills and didn't come back until she'd publically sworn that no man would have her. [[spoiler:Khardan eventually comes to see that Amazons have their good points. (Auda also finds her incredibly attractive.)]]
* ObfuscatingInsanity: Khardan decides that the only way to spare Mathew's life (the people of Akhran consider him an abomination for dressing in women's clothing) is that he is insane (they believe insane people saw the face of Akhran just before they were born and are blessed by the god). Mathew goes along with it to save his life and ultimately finds a way to use it to his advantage.
* OurGhoulsAreCreepier: Classic Arabian ''ghuls'', man-eating shapeshifters who [[spoiler:man the ship leading to the island fortress of Zhakrin's paladins and take their payment in human flesh,]] although clearly distinct from djinn.
* PreMortemOneLiner: [[spoiler:Auda]] gets a good one.
-->'''[[spoiler:Feisal]]:''' Give me a knife...
-->'''[[spoiler:Auda]]:''' [[InTheBack Here, my lord.]]
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: This is more or less the hat of the people of Akhran- the horse-riding Akar are the most warlike, but even the sheep herding Hrana have their pride and will fight at the drop of a hat and the camel-riding Aran are pretty much the same.
* RunawayBride: Zohra ''tries'' to flee her marriage to Khardan (after failing to disembowel him at the altar) but is coerced into sticking it out by Fedj.
* SaveYourDeity: At the climax of ''Prophet of Akhran'', Khardan [[spoiler:decides that even if he dies and his people are exterminated, he can save Akhran by reaffirming his faith in him when tempted by Feisal.]]
* ScaryBlackMan: Raja, Sheykh Zeid's gigantic ebony-skinned djinn.
* SheCleansUpNicely: Zohra usually doesn't make any effort with her appearance, considering her femininity more of a curse than a blessing. But the story notes that when she does go to the effort she's ''stunningly'' beautiful and she knows how to use it.
* SmallNameBigEgo: Pukah is convinced he's the cleverest and most handsome of all immortals... and causes ''no end'' of trouble as a result. He's not entirely without talent, being cunning, quick-thinking and daring, but his abilties don't even come ''close'' to his overinflated opinion of himself.
** [[spoiler:He eventually realises how badly he fell into this trope, how much trouble he caused and how even his successes were largely due to others and redeems himself with a truly ''brilliant'' ThanatosGambit HeroicSacrifice that ''defeats Kaug the Efreet'' and single-handedly turns the war in the heavens against Quar.]]
* ThreatBackfire: Khardan walks right into this one when, during a fight between his people and Zohra's, he calls off one of his men attacking her to take her himself:
-->'''Khardan:''' [[TheOnlyOneAllowedToDefeatYou Death will not rob me of my chance to see you humbled, wife!]]
-->'''Zohra:''' Oh, won't he? ''(slashes his leg with her dagger)''
* TomboyPrincess: Zohra; her character introduction notes that her father indulged her and let her run wild in his grief over her mother's death and by the time he tried to reign her in it was far too late. (The one time he threatened to beat her she snatched the stick from his hand and threatened to beat ''him'' instead!)
* {{Tsundere}}: Zohra, like you would not BELIEVE.
* TwoLinesNoWaiting: There are at least three plots that intertwine, affect each other, and sometimes reflect each other.
* UnresolvedSexualTension: Good ''grief'' do Zohra and Khardan keep it up for along time -- [[spoiler:''the entire trilogy'', only being brought together by Mathew on the very last page of the third book.]]
* TheVamp: [[spoiler:Meryem.]]
* WeddingDay: The biggest fiasco this side of the ''Ranma1/2'' finale, with both parties constantly insulting each other, the bride having to be dragged to the altar bound and gagged, the groom made to attend literally falling down drunk, the bride attempting to gut the groom as soon as the knot is tied before [[RunawayBride fleeing]] and the entire affair breaking out into a bloody brawl until Sond brings the tent down on everyone to prevent casualties.
* WhamLine: At the end of the first book when the man in the white palanquin catches up with Mathew again.
-->'''Auda:''' In the name of [[spoiler:Zhakrin, God of Darkness and All That Is Evil]], I command you all- sleep...."
* WickedCultured: Auda again.
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