Susan Wright, To Serve and Submit

I started my WebMaster course a few months ago and although I

had a basic/intermediate knowledge of HTML already, I must say

that I hugely expanded on that knowledge and gained a whole lot

more. My confidence has grown with regards to web design and I

can´t wait to start the next course (WebMaestro). Thank you for the

help received Susan Seccombe - I would like to thank all the team

at the Distance Learning College for their support whilst completing

the Webm@ster Course. The course provided me with further

knowledge on HTML and CSS. I also had a brief but clear view of

JavaScript. I would recommend the course to anyone looking for an

insight to webpages and the internet as a whole. I am now looking

to complete the webm@estro course. Once again a big thanks to

Mike and the team at the Distance Learning Centre. Kyle Hussey,

Norfolk\

To Serve and Submit

Susan Wright

At birth Marja was touched by the Otherworld growing up able to see the tiny magical beings the olfs and being able to commune with the water spirits. One day, Lexander the slave procurer and trader, who teaches young folks to give pleasure in Vidaris, spots Marja and offers two cows for her. A year later he returns and the deal is made with Marja's agreement. Marja takes to the exotic arts like a duck in water. On the day she graduates, a winged boat comes for her but Lexander stops her from boarding.

He tells Marja he loves her and he wants to be with her forever away from his evil consort Helenas. He sends her to stay with Silveta in Markland until he comes for her. Silveta owes Marja because she was raped by Birgin who wants to have relations with Silveta and would have if the two women hadn't changed places. When she arrives at Silveta's estate, she is the reason that Birgin and Silveta's husband dual. Her husband dies and Birgin becomes the leader of Markland but Silveta is determined with Marja's help to find a band of warriors who will fight on her side in return for land. Marja is reunited with Lexander and together they seek to defeat Birgin even though Marja fears him. He admits though he walks among man, he is not a man but an entity more powerful and intends to put a stop to the buying of slaves for his masters.

Although there are many graphic sexual scenes in TO SERVE AND SUBMIT they blend in nicely to the storyline and are sensual rather than pornographic. This spellbinding fantasy has plenty of political intrigue and battle scenes. The heart of this work lies in the characters of Marja who accepts her sensual nature as a normal personality trait and Lexander who realizes what he is doing is wrong and hopes to rectify it in the second of this two book romantica fantasy series.

Roc, April 2006, $14.00, 304 pp.

ISBN 0451460685

Harriet Klausner