Friday, October 15, 2010

Elemental Masters books, Timeline

The Elemental Masters books by Mercedes Lackey are an interesting series of books. They are written with the assumption that magic works in our world, and that the wielders of said magic are hiding it from "normal" people. Well, that makes sense.
These Magic-wielders are able to manipulate magic in one of the four "elements": Fire, Air, Water, Earth. Each has their own abilities and Elementals to command, and each can be used for good (Light Path) or evil (Dark Path, usually blood magic). All of these books are actually retellings of Fairy Tales, and take place around the turn of the 20th Century.

I was reading them and started wondering about the timeline for these books, and how they fit together. Here's what I came up with, in chronological order:

Wizard of London, Elemental Masters book 5.
Fairy Tale: The Snow Queen.
Takes place sometime between 1861 and 1880 (or so).
Clues: Queen Victoria is mentioned as "mourning her husband", so obviously it's after Albert's death in 1861. A fraudulent medium is mentioned as well, and that her punishment may be "being sent to Australia". The final shipment of prisoners to Australia took place in 1868, but it's conceivable that this would still be in the minds of people as "something that happens to criminals" much later than that, so I lengthened the timeline. It's conceivable, actually, that it takes place anywhere up to 1901, since that's when Victoria died.

The Fire Rose, Elemental Masters book 1.
Fairy Tale: Beauty and the Beast.
Takes place in 1901 - 1902, as is evidenced by the San Francisco Earthquake near the end of the book.

Reserved for the Cat, Elemental Masters book 6.
Fairy Tale: Puss in Boots.
Takes place between 1907 and 1914.
Clues: The Ziegfeld Follies, started in 1907, is mentioned as the up-and-coming form of entertainment. The protagonist is said to be fleeing Russia and "won't be missed unless she's a favorite of the Empress". The Imperial Family was executed in 1917. However, Britain declared war on Germany in 1914, and certainly the main Mages in the story would have been called up by 1915. Also, there is no mention whatsoever of the war, and at least one character has no problem traveling across Europe by train. Therefore, it must be before 1914.

The Serpent's Shadow, Elemental Masters book 2.
Fairy Tale: Snow White and the Seven Dwarves.
The text itself states it starts in 1909. May take place either slightly before or simultaneously with Reserved for the Cat.

The Gates of Sleep, Elemental Masters book 3.
Fairy Tale: Sleeping Beauty.
This one is the most uncertain. The text does mention Dr. Maya (from The Serpent's Shadow), and one of the characters here, Dr. Andrew Pike, is mentioned in Phoenix and Ashes. So I put it between the two.

Phoenix and Ashes, Elemental Masters book 4.
Fairy Tale: Cinderella.
Dates in the book place it starting at 1914, and the action takes place between 1914 - 1918.

They're an interesting series of books, fascinating retellings of the "classic" fairy tales, and they're an enjoyable read. They are internally consistent, as well - they reference action that has taken place in previous books and it all hangs together nicely.