# Need help identifying this fantasy book **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 8, 2003, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifying-this-fantasy-book/147275 "2003-01-08T10:57:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Skijumper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3e96dc/32.png) [@Skijumper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skijumper)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 10:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifying-this-fantasy-book/147275/1 "2003-01-08T10:57:58Z")
All I can recall is that the protagonist is a mysterious, androgynous person - some kind of magician or thief on a journey in search of something, and there was some kind of romance subplot woven in with the heroine falling in love with this character. While the gender of the lead character is never revealed, I was under the impression by the end of the story that this was some kind of lesbian fantasy novel. I cannot remember any part of the author’s name, characters’ names or the title, but I’m guessing it was written by a woman. If it helps, the cover of the book had a lone shadowy figure with a hood and a staff. (I know that probably looks like a gazillion fantasy books.) I’ve been thinking about this book for about 10 years now. Last time I read it was in 1992. I’ve searched bookstores everywhere -but nothing looks vaguely like this. Any help would be great. Many thanks in advance. - Skijumper ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifying-this-fantasy-book/147275/2 "2003-01-08T11:07:33Z")
If I said “Mercedes Lackey” would that help? Just a wild guess, really, but might be a clue. ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifying-this-fantasy-book/147275/3 "2003-01-08T14:11:25Z")
You might be thinking of _Lythande_ by Marion Zimmer Bradley. The title character is a female wizard who everybody thinks is male (IIRC this has something to do with the rules of her society); the book is out of print. The character first appeared in Robert Asprin’s “Thieve’s World” series. ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2003, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifying-this-fantasy-book/147275/4 "2003-01-08T18:15:52Z")
Oddly enough, the first thing that came to my mind was also Lythande. The reason everybody thinks she is male is that, in her magical order, mages are required to have some sort of secret in order to fuel their magical power. Her’s was her gender. ---
**Author:** ![Skijumper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3e96dc/32.png) [@Skijumper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skijumper)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifying-this-fantasy-book/147275/5 "2003-01-09T17:12:47Z")
Thank you! Lythande sounds about right. And funnily enough, I’d always assumed it was Mercedes Lackey. Out of print? No wonder nothing in the shops looked familiar. Now to find a copy … Grrr. Thanks again, - Skijumper ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifying-this-fantasy-book/147275/6 "2003-01-09T18:55:18Z")
Lurk–was there a full book out about Lythande, then? Was it an anthology of the stories (like that Tempus novel) or a new storyline altogether (Shadowspawn)? I’m curious because I’ve never run across it in person. If it’s the first case, Skijumper might find it easier just to dig up the relevant Thieves World volumes (and get a lot of other pretty darn good, if bleak, fantasy short fiction in the process). ---
**Author:** ![LurkMeister](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/3da27b/32.png) [@LurkMeister](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkMeister)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2003, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifying-this-fantasy-book/147275/7 "2003-01-09T21:57:20Z")
The book _Lythande_ was a paperback collection of stories where Lythande had been the main character; Lythande also occasionally appeared as a minor character in other stories in the Thieves World series. BTW, I agree with you that the Thieves World series was pretty good & worth looking for. My copies of _Lythande_ and the Thieves World books are buried but I was able to compile this info from various on-line sources, among them the excellent [The Locus Index of Science Fiction](http://www.locusmag.com/index/): LYTHANDE (Marion Zimmer Bradley) Published by DAW in 1986 contains the following stories: The Secret of the Blue Star The Incompetent Magician Somebody Else’s Magic Sea Wrack The Wandering Lute Looking for Satan (by Vonda N. McIntyre) Other Lythande short stories not collected: Bitch F&SF Feb ’87 The Walker Behind F&SF Jul ’87 The Malice of the Demon F&SF Sep ’88 There was also another book (which I’m going to have to look for as I missed it when it came out) The Gratitude of Kings [with Elisabeth Waters] Roc, 1997 ---
**Author:** ![slortar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6bbea6/32.png) [@slortar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slortar)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2003, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-help-identifying-this-fantasy-book/147275/8 "2003-01-10T03:52:47Z")
Very interesting. Thanks for info. Now…to just wait for that new Thieves’ World series I keep hearing rumors about… 🙂