The story revolves around the magic-wielder Dylan, who joins the King's Army as a leashed weapon only to have things go horribly wrong when an ambush leaves him unleashed and at the risk of being branded a deserter. In order to return to his old life before the crown discovers his unleashed status, Dylan must rely on the elven man, Tracker, to protect him even when the man’s very presence awakens Dylan’s long-repressed desire.
The main works are:
In Pain and Blood (2022, revised edition)
Tracking Trouble (2022) a prequel about Tracker
And The World Crumbled (2023) a sequel which picks up where ''In Pain and Blood" left off
"In Love and Death" (2024, upcoming)
Additionally, the short stories "The Leap to Freedom" and "Willow" are set in the same universe but follow different characters, as does the novella "Someone Else's Shoes", a take off of Cinderella.
Tropes in the Spellster series:
- Action Girl: Authril is a female soldier whom Dylan connects with. They are joined by Marin, who's a very skilled archer. Other minor female characters are also soldiers and guards.
- Acquired Poison Immunity: The King's Hounds, along with Tracker, are dosed from the age of five until they gain this trait.
- After-Action Patch-Up: When Tracker is cut across the arm during a skirmish, Dylan tends to the man's wound.
- Anti-Magic: The King's Hounds are immune to magic. Even the beneficial kind.
- Arrow Catch: Multiple times Tracker plucks arrows which are loosed his way from right out of the air.
- Badass Bookworm:
- Dylan, what with being locked away and with little do but read and practice magic.
- Also Katarina, being an archaeologist type character more than capable of fending for herself.
- Barrier Warrior: A lot of the mages in the story are this, but Dylan is amongst the more competent.
- Bathtub Bonding: Tracker and Dylan. Once in a pond. Another time in an actual bath. They grow closer as a result of this, before having sex.
- Battle Couple: Tracker, being a skiller fighter and hunter, along with the mage Dylan, become one over time while fighting against enemies together. Authril and Dylan could also count before Tracker appears, as she's a soldier as well, and they had been sleeping together (but are more Friends with Benefits).
- Bigger Is Better in Bed: A prostitute refuses to have sex with Tracker as he's an elf, whom she believes have small penises that wouldn't please her. He flirts back by saying that his is the same girth as hers, since the prostitute's trans, although they don't end up having sex.
- Bi-Wildered: Bisexuals are called "indecisives" and mostly mocked among the trainees, who generally don't get bisexuality at all, seeing them as confused.
- Book Burning: Dylan sets the tower's library on fire to start a pyre for those murdered inside at the end of In Pain and Blood. He regrets it due to the books destroyed, but this works the best as it's very flammable. A few books are saved, but he's well aware they can't take them all.
- Braids of Action: Tracker's hair is described as being in one long, thick braid. He is a very skilled fighter.
- Brawn Hilda: Izzy is a very large, muscular woman who's a bouncer at a brothel which Tracker visits.
- Brought Down to Normal: The collars spellsters in the story are leashed with strips them of the ability to use their magic.
- Cannot Spit It Out: Definitely describes Tracker's inability to tell Dylan how he feels.
- Cast Full of Gay: In Pain and Blood has a mostly LGBT+ cast.
- Dylan's journey of self-discovery to realizing that he's bisexual forms a long arc.
- Tracker is openly bisexual meanwhile.
- Authril also turns out to be bisexual, sleeping with Dylan and also a female prostitute.
- Marin is a lesbian.
- Casual Kink: Tracker with practically anything involving sex except for whips-he draws the line at those.
- Child Mage: Spellsters can start to use magic even while young children. It's one reason they're put in the tower, as this can lead to inadvertently killing them and other people.
- Children Forced to Kill: The King's Hounds are trained to fight and kill any mage they deem dangerous. Or each other if ordered.
- Closet Key: Dylan never really was attracted to men before Tracker. Though he had found some a bit interesting, those feelings never went further or clicked with him.
- Coitus Uninterruptus: Treasure talks with Tracker to give him information even as Authril is eating her out at the same time.
- Covered with Scars:
- Not only does Tracker have a Storyboard Body, but has a multitude of scars from his Hound training.
- Authril, too, is shown to have her fair share of them.
- Curtains Match the Window: Dylan is described as having black hair and dark eyes. Katarina has brown hair and eyes.
- Dark and Troubled Past: Tracker was torn from his mother at birth, trained to kill, poisoned, beaten, made to kill his past lovers and then whored out. All before he hits his twenties.
- Deader than Dead: Tracker kills an enemy mage, then beheads him too because this insures he can't be resurrected either. It's said burning their bodies also serves the same purpose.
- Deadpan Snarker: A lot of the characters are guilty of this, but Tracker's likely the worst.
- Death Glare: Quite a number of the cast is fond of these. Dylan and Authril being the more notable.
- Distinguishing Mark: Tracker's pawprint tattoo is a symbol of the King's Hounds, who are the kingdom's foremost assassins and trackers of all things magical.
- Distressed Dude: Dylan is at the mercy of Tracker when his female companions Authril and Marin intervene to help him. After clearing things up, later he also is rescued by Tracker from an assassin in the tower.
- Dual Wielding: Tracker, with his sabre and dagger.
- Eating the Eye Candy: Dylan can't help but look at Tracker's nude, muscular body repeatedly when he's washing nearby in the same pool. Tracker notices this and flirts about it, to Dylan's dismay. Even when he accepts that he's attracted to Tracker and has sex with him, Dylan is still drawn by his naked body.
- The Empire: The Undyean Empire is the enemy of Demarn, the country where the story is set. For centuries their forces have attacked others, trying to conquer them. They enslave elves as well.
- Ethical Slut: Tracker might do anything, but he has some standards. It's just a very low bar. He is very observant of consent, always telling partners he'll never do anything except with them willing, while also being ever concerned for their comfort. He also doesn't use whips, as he's been whipped in the past as punishment.
- Exotic Weapon Supremacy: Tracker's sabre is shown to be better than most of the local swords.
- Faking the Dead: Tracker helped a Child Mage to escape by faking her death. It didn't last long however as she killed herself accidentally with her uncontrolled magic.
- Fantasy Metals: Infitialis is a rare, semi-unstable purple metal capable of nullifying magic.
- Fiery Redhead: Tracker has russet hair. Authril's is an orangy-red. Marin is described as being a dark red auburn. All of them are Hot-Blooded and have their separate outbursts throughout In Pain and Blood.
- Fire-Forged Friends: Dylan only really starts to trust Tracker after his home is destroyed.
- Forced Out of the Closet: Early in In Pain and Blood Ceri, a female trainee, is outed as being bisexual, which results in her killing herself. Being outed however in a straight relationship is as bad, as the administration forbids relationships among the trainees generally.
- Friends with Benefits: Dylan and Authril start having sex during In Pain and Blood. Both deny they are lovers though, keeping it casual and having sex with other people too while they stay friendly. Also, this was common practice in the tower.
- Gayngst-Induced Suicide: Ceri, a bisexual trainee, kills herself after she's outed to the administration toward the beginning of In Pain and Blood.
- Glass Cannon: Dylan's magic is battlemage strong, but he's physically very weak.
- Hands-On Approach: Tracker with teaching Dylan how to properly hold a sword.
- Healing Factor: Spellsters have innate healing abilities that repair wounds.
- Healing Hands: Magical healing requires touching a patient's body. The exact spot isn't important though.
- Heal It with Booze: Whilst performing an After-Action Patch-Up, Dylan pours whiskey on the wound. Tracker then proceeds to drink the rest.
- Hidden Depths: Tracker seems to be all about in-the-moment pleasure. We later learn this is due to a Dark and Troubled Past.
- Hot-Blooded:
- Tracker's a pretty laid back guy, but he's just as likely to skewer whoever pushes the wrong button.
- Also don't remind Authril she's an elf. Or hit on her.
- The Immodest Orgasm: Dylan and later Tracker both yell in pleasure as they climax when they're finally having sex together.
- Inappropriately Close Comrades: The administration of the tower forbids relationships between their trainees, a rule which is broken all the time. However, being reported for it results in punishment.
- In It for Life:
- Being a spellster means Dylan cannot leave the tower without being leashed. Even then, his only chance is being a weapon in the army.
- The only way out of the King's Hounds is through death.
- Internal Reveal: The reader knows early on that hounds like Tracker have Anti-Magic. Dylan doesn't learn it until late during In Pain and Blood though.
- Intimate Marks: Tracker is heavily tattooed, which includes over both his thighs and hips near his penis, as Dylan can't help but note when he's naked near him.
- Involuntary Battle to the Death:
- Dylan and the group face a number of these throughout the story, from highwaymen to people actually out to kill them.
- Tracker in his teens. Fighting your equally-reluctant lovers will do that.
- It's All My Fault: Dylan in his belief that he's to blame for the death of his scouting party.
- Jumped at the Call: When the spellster tower requested people to join the army, Dylan couldn't wait for the chance.
- Kill the Ones You Love: The King's Hounds aren't allowed to form romantic attachments, so when they do amongst themselves, only the strongest can survive.
- Mage Killer: The King's Hounds in Demarn hunt down spellsters who aren't under control of the government. Although they're main function isn't killing them, but insuring they serve, Hounds can certainly do that if necessary, as they possess Anti-Magic along with weapons made of a metal that nullifies all spells and are deadly to targets with even small wounds.
- Mage Tower: All of the spellster trainees are housed and instructed in a huge tower, being raised there from birth. Only those chosen to serve with the army ever leave.
- Magical Abortion: It's mentioned that abortion can be induced by a spell, however it's very unpleasant to everyone. Dylan once did this for his former lover Nestria (presumably after impregnating her) but never wants to go through that again. Given this, he carefully practices withdrawal while having sex with Authril so as not to get her pregnant.
- Master Archer: Marin is an expert archer.
- Military Mage: The best spellsters of the tower in Damarn are selected for military service, controlled by their superior officer with a collar. If ordered to, they can use their magic on the Undyeans, their enemies. Undyeans also have many spellsters in their ranks.
- Mugging the Monster: Tracker, a very skilled warrior, is attacked by angry drunks unaware of this on multiple occasions. He beats them with ease of course.
- Multi-Melee Master: The King's Hounds are taught proficiency in a variety of weapons and Tracker's no exception. He's only marginal in archery, though.
- Mundane Utility: Spellsters sometimes do things like make cooking fires with magic, though spells are generally used for more pressing matters.
- Mutant Draft Board: Spellsters in Demarn must be under control of the government by law. Most are taken as babies for training. However, others who don't get detected or escape later are hunted down by the King's Hounds, a group of elite hunters with Anti-Magic, to be killed or else brought back.
- My Greatest Failure: What Dylan considers his inability to warn the army encampment in time to halt their destruction.
- Non-Heteronormative Society: Demarner society entirely accepts LGBT+ citizens and relationships. Although there's some biphobia from spellsters who view bisexuals as "indecisives", gay or trans people aren't shown as having problems. There are people casually revealed as gay or trans multiple times, which no one thinks is wrong or even unusual. Multiple times people are also mentioned as being married to someone of their gender too.
- No Periods, Period: Dylan realizes Authril is having menstrual cramps, and cures them with magic. He had previously learned to for his former lover Nestria, who'd suffered terrible ones.
- Non-Nude Bathing: Dylan's first experience of Bathtub Bonding leads to him keeping his underwear on.
- Only One Name:
- Spellsters aren't given last names in the tower, only first ones. Dylan has only had that one for all his life.
- The King's Hounds name themselves, since originally they're only given a number, and none is shown with a last name.
- Our Dwarves Are Different: Dwarves are arboreal, nature-loving beings here. Further, they're not actually described as looking different from humans, or even shorter than them. Authril wonders at this to Dylan. He explains this is due to dwarves having interbred with humans so long that most look just the same. They also have much better eyesight than most humans.
- Our Elves Are Different: They have the usual long pointed ears, but here their fingers also are far longer than humans'. Also, they have fangs and enhanced eyesight too. Males also cannot grow beards, as is typical.
- Parental Abandonment: A lot of the main cast suffered this.
- Dylan through the tower's separation policy.
- Authril through poverty.
- Tracker through his birth.
- Perma-Shave: None of the elven men can grow beards.
- Physical Scars, Psychological Scars: Both Tracker and Authril. One is Covered with Scars, whilst the other is mainly on one shoulder.
- Pillow Pistol: Tracker sleeps with a dagger at his side.
- Playing with Fire: Spellsters can easily generate fire, though the larger ones take more energy. It's one of the first spells which they learn usually. This can be used as a weapon, but also for ordinary things such as lighting camp fires.
- Polyamory: Tracker once was in a relationship with three other people.
- Porn with Plot: The books have some long, very explicit sex scenes (mostly between Tracker and Dylan), but the plot is definitely not secondary or non-existent, with these having amble set up rather than just being plunked in. Both of them also have explicit sex with other people too, and some supporting characters get in on it also. Many of these sex scenes last entire chapters or nearly that long.
- Power Incontinence: Tracker attempted to aid a very young girl with magic, but when the caravan she had been with was raided by bandits her ability erupted accidentally, killing both her and nearby people. Stopping such occurrences is one reason spellsters are obligated to stay in the tower as they're trained.
- Power Nullifier: Infitialis metal blocks all use of magic. Cells to hold spellsters are those made using it.
- Power Perversion Potential: Dylan conjures a low electrical charge which he uses on his lovers' genitals to stimulate them while having sex.
- Protective Charm: Spellsters often create magical shields to stop offensive spells. Dylan uses them multiple times to protect himself or other people.
- Queer Establishing Moment:
- Tracker is shown early on as attracted to people irrespective of gender, with his preference being for ones with penises. He doesn't care what their gender is however besides that, and is shown being with trans women or cis men mostly.
- Authril later turns out to be bisexual when after having had sex with Dylan she beds a woman.
- Marin tells Dylan she is a lesbian when he makes a pass at her.
- The Red Mage: Unlike most of the mages sent into the army, Dylan is equally capable of healing and fighting.
- Resignations Not Accepted: The King's Hounds are enlisted forever. Leaving whilst alive is not an option.
- Restraining Bolt: Dylan's collar permits him to use magic only at the behest of his handler.
- Scarily Competent Tracker: Each member of the King's Hounds is named for their talent. Tracker is very good at finding people.
- Screw You, Elves!: Whilst the elves in the kingdom aren't enslaved like in other lands, they're largely considered lesser than the humans and dwarves.
- Seme: Tracker states he prefers to be the top during sex. He isn't completely averse to bottoming though, doing so with Dylan and also mentions it as well with his previous trans lover Rhiannon. He's more masculine than Dylan, though the contrast isn't huge.
- Sex God: Tracker is quite skilled at sex, especially with people who have penises (which he prefers, whether cis men or trans women), making Dylan climax easily more than once in succession when the two have sex.
- Sex Slave: Tracker visits a brothel where it's soon revealed the prostitutes are all held against their will through threats by the madam, who has armed thugs to enforce her rules. After he easily kills the thugs who attack him when Tracker says he'll report it, the city guard is called and they're liberated. It's made clear most brothels are not like this, and the situation's quite illegal. The madam is later hanged for her crimes too.
- Shock and Awe: Lighthing bolts are the most common battle spell that Dylan uses, and other spellsters do also.
- Slave Collar: Collars are the most logical method to apply the Restraining Bolt to mages in the army.
- Sorry, I'm Gay: Marin politely tells Dylan she's a lesbian when he hits on her.
- Storyboard Body: Tracker is described as having multiple types of tattoos on both arms, a sword running down his spine and a pawprint behind his ear.
- Stop Drowning and Stand Up: Dylan during his first ever attempt to swim. To be fair, before then, the deepest water he'd ever seen was a bathtub.
- Supernatural Sensitivity: King's Hounds can sense magic and they track spellsters using this.
- Superpowerful Genetics: Magical ability is usually hereditary, and spellsters have at least one parent who also had it in most cases. Hounds are also born from one spellster parent too, and though they can't do magic they have natural Anti-Magic as a result.
- A Taste of the Lash: Tracker reveals he was beaten and whipped multiple times during his childhood as punishment.
- A Threesome Is Hot: Tracker briefly has sex with Treasure, with them inviting Authril to join in. She accepts, and has much lengthier sex with Treasure after this.
- Torture Always Works: Slightly subverted in that Tracker doesn't believe the guy he tortures. Until he gains extra information from a more reliable source.
- Underestimating Badassery:
- Given Tracker and Authril's short stature and pointed ears, a lot of folk underestimate their abilities until they taste their own spine.
- Dylan, too, being that the mage is often mistaken for a priest.
- Understanding Boyfriend: Considering his Dark and Troubled Past, Tracker is more than understanding when things go south for Dylan.
- UST: For much of In Pain and Blood after meeting him Dylan is shown increasingly attracted to Tracker, whose flirting spurs him on. He resists it for a long time however, partly as he's in denial about finding a man attractive, until they finally have sex near the end of the book and enjoy this greatly.
- Verbal Tic: Tracker often ends his sentences with "Yes?" even when they aren't meant as questions.
- Violence is the Only Option: The group will do their best to talk their way through, but that often leads them right back to cracking skulls.
- What Beautiful Eyes!: Elven eyes are often described in words such as sea-green and honey-coloured.
- Wizarding School: The tower is the training facility for spellsters, who are raised there too.
- Wound That Will Not Heal: Blades made from infitialis metal cannot be magically healed, since it blocks magic. Even minor wounds inflicted with them will continue bleeding until the person expires.
