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***spoilers***I first came across Crown Duel in my 6th grade library, in roughly 2003 or 2004. I lost count of the number of times I checked it out from the school library before finally convincing my mom to drive to the next town over that had a Hastings so I could purchase my very own copy. Like so many of us I entered a reading drought in high school and college, and sadly, my love for Crown Duel/Court Duel was forgotten. I never lost my copy though. I got back into reading several years ago and this book was one of the first I picked up again. Imagine my surprise and joy to discover that not only was there a sequel, A Stranger to Command, but several short stories written from Vidanric's POV (found in the Kindle version of Crown Duel, which I purchased for this specific reason) as well as several about their children (found in Remalna's Children). I gobbled them right up.Fast forward to the beginning of this year, 2022, I decided that I would read through the entire Sartorias-deles arc before partaking in another reread of Crown Duel/Court Duel. Four and a half months later (they are not short books) I finally started Crown Duel/Court Duel again.Friend, let me tell you - I fangirled SO hard. I tried to read it through the lens of all the historical context I'd been reading the last couple of months, but I fell so easily back into Mel's and Vidanric's story. A couple of things became clear to me pretty early on. One, Vidanric was my first (and probably still favorite) book boyfriend. Two, Mel is the OG YA heroine. And three, I think I understand where my love of enemies to lovers comes from.While we don't get Vidanric's POV, so many more things make sense once you've read A Stranger to Command. I know where that black cloak comes from. I know where that gray horse comes from. I know his carefully cultivated persona has everyone fooled. I know how he got so good at throwing knives. I know that at least part of the reason he likes Mel is because she’s unpretentious and straight forward, like the Marlovens. I can only assume when he he expresses distaste at the mention of public execution, he's thinking of when Forthan and the other seniors were caned at the Academy.I think what I love most about their dynamic is how Vidanric puts up with all of Mel's shit. She literally threw a candlestick at him. Which he caught mid air, because he's a badass.She is so blinded by her ignorance and disgust of the nobles that she cannot see the truth, about her political situation or her feelings for him. I got series second hand embarrassment for Mel throughout Crown Duel, especially when she said Vidanric shouldn’t be king. Like honey, he’s literally been training for that his whole life. Don't worry, he can definitely take on three soldiers at once.It really all comes down to Mel not wanting to look foolish or be pitied. She feels deeply embarrassed about how her and Bran’s ignorance nearly ruining all the Renselaeus' careful planning. It was basically like a giant Leeroy Jenkins.This is what makes Mel unique as a YA protagonist. Not only is she aware of her flaws, but she readily admits them and works to overcome them. Crown Duel was published in 1997, so step aside Katniss, that chick for Allegiant, all the other run of the mill YA heroines, and bow down to your queen - Meliara Astiar.Crown Duel does an excellent job of setting up the central relationship, but Court Duel is by far my favorite. It doesn't get better than political machinations, court intrigue, and romance.Sadly, my fangirling kicked into overdrive and my meaningful insights were few and far between:Wagering a kiss on who wins a race. Classic enemies to lovers. Or when Vidanric tries to make Mel not nervous at the ball by saying it’s like a battle. And then he says that he knows she doesn’t like battles but that she’s used to them. He knows her so well. He gets that's why she’s always fighting with him.I cannot tell you how much I loved the letter writing and the gift of the ring. Vidanric is legit the only person who could carry on a courtship via letters and give nothing away. That ole court mask. When I first read this as a 6th grader, I think I assumed this was his personality rather than his court mask. Now being a mature woman and having read A Stranger to Command, it’s evident just exactly how much emotion he’s capable of hiding behind said mask. It’s not really his personality at all.Mel's realization that she has feelings for Vidanric was as much a surprise to me as it was to her when I first read Crown Duel/Court Duel a decade and a half ago. I was just as young and naive as she was. Reading again, it's pretty obvious fairly early on in the book. The signs are all there.I was equally clueless about him being her unknown pen pal on my first read. Now the scenes of them at the inn (pre and post reveal) are some of my favorites. Pre: when Mel notices that Vidanric almost pulls off his glove but then puts it back on and thinks fidgeting is so out of normal for him, he must be really stressed. But he’s really just hiding the fact that he’s wearing the ring she gifted him. And he put it on because he’s about to go into danger and wanted to feel close to the one he secretly loves.And now is facing the agonizing choice of deciding if she’s with the enemy or not. And the servants arranged for them to meet at this inn all along because THEY know Mel and Vidanric are on the same side. And of course, he just had to ask her opinion on Flauvic. Seizing up the competition. And then he gave her his cloak. His waterproof cloak. One of his most prized possessions from his time in the Academy. Just so she wouldn’t get wet. Even though she still might be the enemy. Post: He saw Mel afterwards and his face relaxed because he knew she was safe. And then they finally have their first kiss.I freaking love the ending, it perfectly captures the essence of the book:Somehow it doesn't seem appropriate to detail for you how to properly go about organizing a revolt-and likewise it seems kind of silly to exhort you to look, if you should suddenly start receiving mysterious letters of courtship, for possible inkstains on the fingers of the fellow you quarrel with the most.Sherwood Smith is a real one. She knew all good romances need an epilogue with an HEA. And maybe a pregnancy announcement for good measure. Technically it's not part of the original story, but Vidanric's Birthday surprise is pure gold. Their fight after the party where Mel did magic has got to be one of the best written scenes ever. I can see it all so clearly.Sidenote: she also knew Flauvic had real potential as a morally gray MMC. This becomes exceedingly evident in Vidanric's POV short story The Wager is Won - And So is the Duel and in Beauty in Remalna's Children.This book has such a different feel from the rest of the series. It’s much more immersive; not just in Mel’s POV but in her world. There's a lot of description of settings. There's also a stronger focus on emotions- her emotions about herself and others. In comparison, the Inda and Time of Daughter books could almost feel like one Erik Larson’s narrative nonfictions at times.One similarity between all her books in this series is Sherwood's inclusion of a female bully/trouble maker. We have Tamara here, but Dannor/Mudface in Inda and Pony Yvanavayir in Time of Daughters. Granted, Tamara's impact is minimal compared to her cohort. It's refreshing to find a woman writing about the female experience.It's rare to find a book that is just as capable of capturing your imagination at age thirty as at age twelve. Crown Duel/Court duel is one of them.I could keep going on about how fantastic this book is, but I'll save it for another time.
