#Jeanne Dombegh

[glisselda-of-uplands]

have a low-effort totr meme. as a treat.

[incorrect-seraphina]

Jeanne: Let’s do this! *cracks knuckles*

Tess: Your knuckles are so quiet.

Jeanne: My hands are polite.

[imagine-lilareads]

TESS OF THE ROAD, SPOILERS!!

[sdombegh]

Rachel Hartman characters as RPDR gifs

Od Fredricka

Glisselda

Blanche

Jeanne

Dionne

Tess

Dame Okra

Anne Marie

Abdo

[rotzaprachim]

three chapters and im just crying about tessie dombegh, about what is imho one of ya/fantasy’s most painful depictions of abuse and rape culture. it would have been so easy to write a world where tessie was straight up killed or fell into the more physical gutter as a fallen woman. and while those are both realities that did and do absolutley happen and i think historically flavoured fantasy could do to more strongly address, hartman went this different direction by showing tessie back in with her family. How generous they were, to let her back in, to provide for her! the fact that tessie’s life at the start is not on the surface the Worst Thing Imaginable and has many material comforts is to me so important because it underlines the emotional complexity to which tessie has been made to internalise that she should be greatful to her family, that her suffering is her own fault, that something is wrong with her. The fact that she loves some members of her family, like Jeanne, and that she is in some ways being offered seemingly better routes by well meaning people but that because of what she did Wrong her life is sublimated under her family is just so much, and so important to unpack in a genre that tends towards the idea of the Hearth the Birth Mother as ultimate comfort and good. because Yeah the outside world is big and scary to trssie! but she needs to go out and face the road to be able to walk on and comprehend how shes been abused

[foxingfae]

Tess of the Road by Rachel Hartman

Goodreads rating: 3.92

My rating: 4/5 stars

Full review below:

Tess Dombegh is far too big for the box the world has tried to squeeze her into. She is expected to be a proper lady and fit in at court and, at the very least, not embarrass her twin sister at her wedding. Unfortunately Tess is a young girl with a lot of hurt in her heart. She is weighed down by the decisions she has made and the consequences she’s been forced to face as a result. She’s rude, crass, angry, and selfish. At first, anyway.

Tess of the Road is a very grown-up young adult fantasy that is character driven more than anything else. Over the course of 500+ pages, we follow Tess as she unravels the events that led to her family all but disowning her and trying to send her off to a convent. Along the way she sorts out her personal responsibility and begins to heal by digging out a niche for herself in this life that she never really fit into before.

The medieval fantasy land of Goredd is filled to the brim with unique lore and world-building. Humans live alongside dragons who are a bit high and mighty at times. The World Serpents who created the earth might be sleeping below somewhere, just out of reach.

Yet as fantastical as this world is, Rachel Hartman gives Tess a voice that is so true to life and relatable that we can all find ourselves right at home on the road with her.

In particular, I loved the way this story illustrated the personal struggles Tess has with her family. Her mother can be cold and cruel and she makes no attempts to understand her unruly daughter. Tess’ twin sister Jeanne is sweet and kind, but also self serving in her own right. Tess’ half sister Seraphina is quite literally a Saint and so can do no wrong in the eyes of society. All of this serves to isolate and frustrate Tess (understandably, so). It makes it very hard for her to wrestle with her own shortcomings and move on to become a better person. All of these things help to humanize this character who might otherwise come across as overly bitter and catty (though I know this was exactly the reason why some readers didn’t click with Tess. For me, it worked.).

There are some interesting plot elements as well. Tess and her Quigutl friend Pathka experience no shortage of adventures over the course of this book, but Tess herself truly is under the spotlight the whole time.

Tess is a character I won’t soon forget and I really cherished my time with her. Tess of the Road is a spin-off of the bestselling books Seraphina and Shadow Scale. It’s recommended that you read Seraphina first to get a better understanding of the world of Goredd, however I didn’t read Seraphina prior to Tess and I didn’t have too much trouble with it. Just thought I’d mentioned that in case you would rather not jump in totally blind.

[ao3feed-seraphina]

by prin_zyth

A chatfic (or whatever that's called) centering on our fav high schoolers.

Words: 1529, Chapters: 1/5, Language: English

Fandoms: Seraphina - Rachel Hartman, Shadow Scale - Rachel Hartman, Tess of the Road - Rachel Hartman

Rating: Not Rated

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: F/F, F/M, M/M

Characters: Seraphina Dombegh, Guntard, Scrawny Sackbutist, Lars, Viridius, Josquin, Princess Glisselda, Lucian Kiggs, Tess Dombegh, Jeanne Dombegh, Maurizio Foughfaugh, Lady Miliphrene (mentioned), Princess Dionne (mentioned)

Relationships: Seraphina Dombegh/Princess Glisselda, Seraphina Dombegh/Lucian Kiggs (past), Maurizio Foughfaugh/Lucian Kiggs, Josquin/Seraphina Dombegh (one-sided), Lucian Kiggs & Princess Glisselda, Seraphina Dombegh & Lucian Kiggs, Josquin/Guntard (implied), maybe more

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Chatting & Messaging, Texting, Aromantic Asexual Tess, Bisexual Seraphina Dombegh, Bisexual Lucian Kiggs, Lesbian Princess Glisselda, Gay Maurizio Foughfaugh, Canon Character of Color, (Maurizio is canon non-white but I'm not going to go into it), No Orma or Linn or Claude as well I'm sorry to say, I love them all but they're not relevant, Abdo may be mentioned (he's Seraphina adopted brother) but probs not, No Sex, Author is aroace and can't write fluff, but they're sure as hell going to try, Gender-Neutral Pronouns for Tess, Alright that's enough for now I'd say, enjoy, OH BTW THE SCRAWNY SACKBUTIST'S NAME IS JEFFREY

[incorrect-seraphina]

Tess: Hey, do you think I could fit fifteen marshmallows in my mouth?

Jeanne: You're a hazard to society.

Pathka: And a coward. Do twenty.

[incorrect-seraphina]

Tess: Jeanne, tell him where he can stick his grapes!

Jeanne: In the fridge!

Tess: No, Jeanne...

[incorrect-seraphina]

Tess, her entire childhood: I have good news and bad news. Which do you want to hear first?

Jeanne: ...Good?

Tess: It is very unlikely that I will ever, EVER do it again.

[incorrect-seraphina]

Jeanne: What's in the suitcase?

Tess: Vodka.

Jeanne: You brought an entire suitcase full of vodka?

Tess: No!

Tess: There's mixers as well. I'm not a savage.

[incorrect-seraphina]

Tess: Sisi, I screwed up big time.

Jeanne: Tessie, given your daily life experiences, you're going to have to be more specific.

[incorrect-seraphina]

Tess: I thought we were going to be individuals this year!

Jeanne: I wanted to, Sisi, but Mama wouldn't let me.

Tess:

Tess: Well, I'm not being an individual on my own!

[incorrect-seraphina]

Jeanne, after Tess runs away: What happened?

Anne-Marie: Tess may have died.

Jeanne: Tess MAY have died?!

Claude: We’re looking into it.

[incorrect-seraphina]

Jeanne, to Tess: A guy walked up to me and asked if you were my sister. He shook his head and said, "I'm so sorry," when I said yes. What did you do?

[incorrect-seraphina]

Tess: I'm really stressed out right now.

Jeanne: I think you're confusing "stressed" and "sober."