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Tales of MU
Tales of MU
Tales of MU is a fiction series... or perhaps a serial novel... or perhaps a webcomic without any pictures... about Mackenzie Blaise, an eighteen year old freshman girl living in Harlowe Hall at Magisterius University. It's partly a slice-of-life story, inspired by my own college experiences and those of people I've known, but Magisterius University is not exactly an ordinary school... and Harlowe Hall is not a normal dormitory... and Mackenzie Blaise is certainly not an average girl.
- GenresFantasy
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
March 6, 2018
Tales of MU (short for Magisterius Univeristy) is a web series that has kept me up far too late for far too many late nights. Damn those cliffhangers. I'm not all the way through, but at this rate I never will be, so now's as good a time as any to leave a review.
If I had to describe it, the closest I could get would be "a Discworld-style affectionate parody and deconstruction of fantasy tropes, with a lot of queer kinky sex". The protagonist, Mackenzie Blaise, is an awkward, shy half-demon attending college to learn magic, and her life is one disaster after another.
I really love the thorough worldbuilding, and the amount of thought that went into the magic system. I loved the details about thaumatology and enchanting, the chapters devoted to lessons, and the spells and theories Mack works out. Really, you can't do a magic school story without that, and Alexandra Erin does it masterfully. Unlike Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London, where Peter Grant tries his hardest to measure and dissect magic, Mack lives in a world that does not obey the rules of science, and is actively hostile to minmaxing and rules lawyering. It's a fascinating system, where science is considered fantasy, including the goofy little cult of "scientists" in the woods trying to map the moon with a telescope.
Mack lives in a dorm full of non-humans, and not just ye olde elves'n'dwarves, a whole range of fantasy species, most of which haven't been treated well by their original writers. It's so refreshing to see a non-evil drow who doesn't have special-colored eyes and hate her own race, traditionally sexy species who have characterization beyond fanservice, and kobolds and goblins having complex conversations about sexism and racism. It's fascinating and thought-provoking to see so many perspectives handled with such nuance and respect.
The real core of the story is the characters - their relationships, their characterization, and their character arcs. Mack is perilously close to too dumb to live, but thankfully she has almost-invulnerable skin and a lot of friends and lovers looking out for her and challenging her to learn and grow. Reminds me a lot of Kate Kane in Alexis Hall's Iron & Velvet - a superpowered disaster on legs thrashes her way through diverse and complicated urban fantasy politics and bad situations she kinda brought on herself, and makes a lot of friends because she's a really nice person who looks out for others. It's hard to play favorites with such a solid cast! Two the newly-freed golem navigating society and free will, Steff the trans half elf determined to live life on her own terms, Amaranth the nymph trying her hardest to love everyone, and Delia Daella the drow doing her best to keep it together as a telepath living in the worst dorm in the world. And Ian the human is there too. Guess I can play favorites after all.
A couple of content notes - there are some abusive relationships, and several sexual assaults, rapes, and attempted rapes. They're handled seriously, but not satisfyingly - it's unfortunately realistic how little closure there is. The fantasy-racism, bullies, and abusive families are the same - there are no hero moments that make all the horrible stuff stop forever. It's not that kind of power fantasy. People just live their complicated lives.
As for the sex, if you're into D/s with humiliation, a lot of spanking, and a side of cannibalism, this will be entirely up your alley. If this is not in fact your alley, you have been warned.
If I had to describe it, the closest I could get would be "a Discworld-style affectionate parody and deconstruction of fantasy tropes, with a lot of queer kinky sex". The protagonist, Mackenzie Blaise, is an awkward, shy half-demon attending college to learn magic, and her life is one disaster after another.
I really love the thorough worldbuilding, and the amount of thought that went into the magic system. I loved the details about thaumatology and enchanting, the chapters devoted to lessons, and the spells and theories Mack works out. Really, you can't do a magic school story without that, and Alexandra Erin does it masterfully. Unlike Ben Aaronovitch's Rivers of London, where Peter Grant tries his hardest to measure and dissect magic, Mack lives in a world that does not obey the rules of science, and is actively hostile to minmaxing and rules lawyering. It's a fascinating system, where science is considered fantasy, including the goofy little cult of "scientists" in the woods trying to map the moon with a telescope.
Mack lives in a dorm full of non-humans, and not just ye olde elves'n'dwarves, a whole range of fantasy species, most of which haven't been treated well by their original writers. It's so refreshing to see a non-evil drow who doesn't have special-colored eyes and hate her own race, traditionally sexy species who have characterization beyond fanservice, and kobolds and goblins having complex conversations about sexism and racism. It's fascinating and thought-provoking to see so many perspectives handled with such nuance and respect.
The real core of the story is the characters - their relationships, their characterization, and their character arcs. Mack is perilously close to too dumb to live, but thankfully she has almost-invulnerable skin and a lot of friends and lovers looking out for her and challenging her to learn and grow. Reminds me a lot of Kate Kane in Alexis Hall's Iron & Velvet - a superpowered disaster on legs thrashes her way through diverse and complicated urban fantasy politics and bad situations she kinda brought on herself, and makes a lot of friends because she's a really nice person who looks out for others. It's hard to play favorites with such a solid cast! Two the newly-freed golem navigating society and free will, Steff the trans half elf determined to live life on her own terms, Amaranth the nymph trying her hardest to love everyone, and Delia Daella the drow doing her best to keep it together as a telepath living in the worst dorm in the world. And Ian the human is there too. Guess I can play favorites after all.
A couple of content notes - there are some abusive relationships, and several sexual assaults, rapes, and attempted rapes. They're handled seriously, but not satisfyingly - it's unfortunately realistic how little closure there is. The fantasy-racism, bullies, and abusive families are the same - there are no hero moments that make all the horrible stuff stop forever. It's not that kind of power fantasy. People just live their complicated lives.
As for the sex, if you're into D/s with humiliation, a lot of spanking, and a side of cannibalism, this will be entirely up your alley. If this is not in fact your alley, you have been warned.
August 8, 2015
Tales of Magisterius University is a piece of ongoing crowd-funded serialized web literature. It can't properly be called a novel for a number of reasons. It eschews things like 'the traditional Dramatic mode of story-telling' and it is designed to be read in a serial format - there are more frequent cliffhangers than you would see in a novel. It is also, at the time of this writing, over 1.1 million words long (assuming an average of ~2000 words/chapter, which seems reasonable).
The setting begins as an answer to 'what would happen if a D&D-esque high fantasy setting and our world were smashed together'. As the story progresses it is refined and takes on shape and character of its own, but the author makes frequent parallels between the history and geography of this world and ours.
It is not a story or a format for everyone. There are two major points that anyone going in should know:
1. It is smutty. Very, very smutty. Of the many things the story can be said to be 'about', it is undeniably and unabashedly about a bunch of college kids, and moreover about the protagonist's coming of age and sexual awakening. The author doesn't shy away from descriptive scenes here, either. So if any sort of sexual experience or language is likely to be icky to you, you're probably better off skipping this.
If, on the other hand, this is the sort of thing you really enjoy reading, AE is really good at writing it.
Another warning: in the first volume of the story there are at least two descriptions of sexual assault. They are well-written, which is to say they are handled realistically and sensitively. But if this is possibly triggering for you, it is probably best to pass on at least the first volume.
2. The pacing is unusual. The first 23 chapters describe *a single weekend*. The story is very micro-paced, and includes *lots* of inner monologue. If you're not sure whether you'll like this sort of pacing, my obvious recommendation is to give it a try. But it's a good thing to be aware of going in.
Now, as far as an actual *review* goes... I'm afraid I would sound like at utter fangirl if I just listed everything I like about it. So let's just start with 'I really like it'. AE manages to balance humor (much of which is geek humor), emotive stories and scenes, outstanding world-building, and social commentary. On that latter topic I'll add that this story is easily in the running for the most thoughtful portrayal of a transgender character I've ever seen in a piece of media.
So, I gave the story 5 stars. But don't take that as a recommendation - the story aligns with my interests on so many levels that any rating I give it can only be a reflection of how much I liked it personally.
My recommendation, instead, is to give it a try - read a few chapters at the start of either volume 1 or volume 2. See if it works for you. And if it does, maybe donate a few dollars. Because, well, that's how crowd-funding freely available art works.
The setting begins as an answer to 'what would happen if a D&D-esque high fantasy setting and our world were smashed together'. As the story progresses it is refined and takes on shape and character of its own, but the author makes frequent parallels between the history and geography of this world and ours.
It is not a story or a format for everyone. There are two major points that anyone going in should know:
1. It is smutty. Very, very smutty. Of the many things the story can be said to be 'about', it is undeniably and unabashedly about a bunch of college kids, and moreover about the protagonist's coming of age and sexual awakening. The author doesn't shy away from descriptive scenes here, either. So if any sort of sexual experience or language is likely to be icky to you, you're probably better off skipping this.
If, on the other hand, this is the sort of thing you really enjoy reading, AE is really good at writing it.
Another warning: in the first volume of the story there are at least two descriptions of sexual assault. They are well-written, which is to say they are handled realistically and sensitively. But if this is possibly triggering for you, it is probably best to pass on at least the first volume.
2. The pacing is unusual. The first 23 chapters describe *a single weekend*. The story is very micro-paced, and includes *lots* of inner monologue. If you're not sure whether you'll like this sort of pacing, my obvious recommendation is to give it a try. But it's a good thing to be aware of going in.
Now, as far as an actual *review* goes... I'm afraid I would sound like at utter fangirl if I just listed everything I like about it. So let's just start with 'I really like it'. AE manages to balance humor (much of which is geek humor), emotive stories and scenes, outstanding world-building, and social commentary. On that latter topic I'll add that this story is easily in the running for the most thoughtful portrayal of a transgender character I've ever seen in a piece of media.
So, I gave the story 5 stars. But don't take that as a recommendation - the story aligns with my interests on so many levels that any rating I give it can only be a reflection of how much I liked it personally.
My recommendation, instead, is to give it a try - read a few chapters at the start of either volume 1 or volume 2. See if it works for you. And if it does, maybe donate a few dollars. Because, well, that's how crowd-funding freely available art works.
February 3, 2011
Getting up to date on this was something of an epic feat... took me a couple weeks reading at fairly close to top speed. As a reference point, the first Harry Potter book would take me about day at the same rate.
So... some of the sex stuff in this story was a bit disturbing. No, a lot disturbing really. Main character is an invulnerable masochist... I think if you apply your imagination you can see that that would have a lot of potential for ick, and to answer your question, yes the author probably does go there.
I’m not sure that there’s much point in looking for a moral to the story of Tales of MU in general. I could be wrong though… I’m just not sure. Many writers seek nothing more than to explore their imagination. I think this is a worthwhile exercise without the need for moralising because it is an exercise of your morality in and of itself. Imagination isn’t action, but it is useful to anyone and everyone for making choices about your actions. This is just my opinion, but I suspect that imagination has a strong correlation with morality, because it’s how you test your principles without literally putting yourself into a spot where they’re tested.
Meanwhile... well, the rest of the story is pretty innovative. I mean, for a paranormal romance, the essential story line is pretty different. Our heroine, Mackenzie, isn't on a mission to stop some monstrous serial killer, or to save the world... she just wants to get through university and land a job at the end where she can make a lot of money. The fantasy elements come in with the main character being a human/demon hybrid, who lives in a dorm with most of the other non-humans on campus. These consist of nymphs, elves, goblins, half-ogres, mermaids, gorgons... and several others I can't remember. The main character works on her education, which in and of itself is pretty interesting, and via the prejudice aimed at her and her dorm-mates, gets involved in campus racial politics.
It's a pretty bizarre setting. I'm not sure what to make of the issues of cultural rights and equal rights in a world where some races have eating humans as part of their culture. But it's hilarious, and even interesting in a weird way, reading -- for instance -- a myth which basically says that humans were sent by a certain race's deity because they were running out of food.
Finally I should point out that the story is really rather slow. Two weeks of reading got me up to the third or fourth week of Mack's education. A lot of stuff happens in that short period, but the story's pace is a little remniscent of Dragon Ball Z, with a whole chapter being spent sometimes on a single class at the university, or on Mack's lunch with her friends.
So... some of the sex stuff in this story was a bit disturbing. No, a lot disturbing really. Main character is an invulnerable masochist... I think if you apply your imagination you can see that that would have a lot of potential for ick, and to answer your question, yes the author probably does go there.
I’m not sure that there’s much point in looking for a moral to the story of Tales of MU in general. I could be wrong though… I’m just not sure. Many writers seek nothing more than to explore their imagination. I think this is a worthwhile exercise without the need for moralising because it is an exercise of your morality in and of itself. Imagination isn’t action, but it is useful to anyone and everyone for making choices about your actions. This is just my opinion, but I suspect that imagination has a strong correlation with morality, because it’s how you test your principles without literally putting yourself into a spot where they’re tested.
Meanwhile... well, the rest of the story is pretty innovative. I mean, for a paranormal romance, the essential story line is pretty different. Our heroine, Mackenzie, isn't on a mission to stop some monstrous serial killer, or to save the world... she just wants to get through university and land a job at the end where she can make a lot of money. The fantasy elements come in with the main character being a human/demon hybrid, who lives in a dorm with most of the other non-humans on campus. These consist of nymphs, elves, goblins, half-ogres, mermaids, gorgons... and several others I can't remember. The main character works on her education, which in and of itself is pretty interesting, and via the prejudice aimed at her and her dorm-mates, gets involved in campus racial politics.
It's a pretty bizarre setting. I'm not sure what to make of the issues of cultural rights and equal rights in a world where some races have eating humans as part of their culture. But it's hilarious, and even interesting in a weird way, reading -- for instance -- a myth which basically says that humans were sent by a certain race's deity because they were running out of food.
Finally I should point out that the story is really rather slow. Two weeks of reading got me up to the third or fourth week of Mack's education. A lot of stuff happens in that short period, but the story's pace is a little remniscent of Dragon Ball Z, with a whole chapter being spent sometimes on a single class at the university, or on Mack's lunch with her friends.
June 12, 2023
HAHAHAHAHA
July 19, 2013
7/14/13
Finally caught up. It took close to two months of reading at my crazy pace, but there are around 480 chapters in Volume 1 and another 170 in Volume 2, and we aren't counting the Other Tales or More Tales of MU which I also read.
Dare I say it? I might like this even better than A Song of Ice and Fire, which has been my favorite series for more than a decade. Alexandra Erin is amazing. and she makes a living, albeit modest, purely out of donations on the strength of this series. That's something to marvel at, I think. I'm having a hard time picking up anything else to read. Everything sort of pales by comparison right now.
6/23/13
I don't know how to praise Alexandra Erin highly enough. I read through thousands of pages worth of words these past few weeks of Tales of MU, and finished the first year. Which was approximately 500 regular chapters, plus all the Other Tales. and nothing out there that I've read is like Tales of MU. AE's worldbuilding and characters are second to none.. in fact, I seriously considered ranking this above my all-time favorite series, A Song of Ice and Fire. Ultimately I think I'll rank it second, for now.. due to some frustrating issues that occurred somewhere in the 400s before AE realized that there were issues, neatly wrapped up Year One, and started anew in Year Two with all the things she's learned.
Yes, there's a lot of sex and a lot of kink here, and I'm not a huge fan of those parts. I could do without, but I also understand that they are an important part of the story and of Mackenzie's growth, and that AE specifically set out to write a story in which sex and story both exist. and, well, she's done that. She's also written fascinating characters. Two's growth in Year One is, hands-down, my favorite part of Tales of MU, but it's closely followed by AE's characterizations of Dee, oh, and well, everyone. I don't know how she manages to write such authentic voices for such different characters. It has to take tremendous intelligence and understanding of human nature. the portrayals of various different forms of abuse, including rape, the treatment of transgender issues, the prejudice, the flaws in each character, the parallels to our own world... there's just so much to love here and so much to be in awe of.
And the world-building! The humor is ever-present, but the history of the world, the magic system, the detailed class lectures..
There are flaws. Especially in the 400s I found myself going glassy-eyed at some of the chapters that contained nothing but back-and-forths between a couple of characters. and I love the details, I love the slow pacing (for the most part), I love that we got reports of every minute of Mackenzie's life, because I love the story and the characters and it felt like the archives would never end. But.. maybe AE did lose her way, just a little bit, sometime before the great finale. I wasn't around for the sporadic and further-apart updates, and I'm glad that things have apparently picked up and turned around for Year Two, of which I've only read a few chapters, but loved even more for the familiarity and maturity of the writing and story.
What can I say? Tales of MU isn't for everyone, and certainly not for everyone on my friends list. But for the people who might love it, there is nothing like it.
Link: http://www.talesofmu.com/story/about
_________________________________________________________________
An old favorite. A lot of kinky sex, fantasy setting, but the characters are fascinating, personalities are so real, and I'd give my eyes to write as well as Alexandra Erin. This serial web novel is truly a gift among the riff raff on the internet. and I have a lot of catching up to do.
Finally caught up. It took close to two months of reading at my crazy pace, but there are around 480 chapters in Volume 1 and another 170 in Volume 2, and we aren't counting the Other Tales or More Tales of MU which I also read.
Dare I say it? I might like this even better than A Song of Ice and Fire, which has been my favorite series for more than a decade. Alexandra Erin is amazing. and she makes a living, albeit modest, purely out of donations on the strength of this series. That's something to marvel at, I think. I'm having a hard time picking up anything else to read. Everything sort of pales by comparison right now.
6/23/13
I don't know how to praise Alexandra Erin highly enough. I read through thousands of pages worth of words these past few weeks of Tales of MU, and finished the first year. Which was approximately 500 regular chapters, plus all the Other Tales. and nothing out there that I've read is like Tales of MU. AE's worldbuilding and characters are second to none.. in fact, I seriously considered ranking this above my all-time favorite series, A Song of Ice and Fire. Ultimately I think I'll rank it second, for now.. due to some frustrating issues that occurred somewhere in the 400s before AE realized that there were issues, neatly wrapped up Year One, and started anew in Year Two with all the things she's learned.
Yes, there's a lot of sex and a lot of kink here, and I'm not a huge fan of those parts. I could do without, but I also understand that they are an important part of the story and of Mackenzie's growth, and that AE specifically set out to write a story in which sex and story both exist. and, well, she's done that. She's also written fascinating characters. Two's growth in Year One is, hands-down, my favorite part of Tales of MU, but it's closely followed by AE's characterizations of Dee, oh, and well, everyone. I don't know how she manages to write such authentic voices for such different characters. It has to take tremendous intelligence and understanding of human nature. the portrayals of various different forms of abuse, including rape, the treatment of transgender issues, the prejudice, the flaws in each character, the parallels to our own world... there's just so much to love here and so much to be in awe of.
And the world-building! The humor is ever-present, but the history of the world, the magic system, the detailed class lectures..
There are flaws. Especially in the 400s I found myself going glassy-eyed at some of the chapters that contained nothing but back-and-forths between a couple of characters. and I love the details, I love the slow pacing (for the most part), I love that we got reports of every minute of Mackenzie's life, because I love the story and the characters and it felt like the archives would never end. But.. maybe AE did lose her way, just a little bit, sometime before the great finale. I wasn't around for the sporadic and further-apart updates, and I'm glad that things have apparently picked up and turned around for Year Two, of which I've only read a few chapters, but loved even more for the familiarity and maturity of the writing and story.
What can I say? Tales of MU isn't for everyone, and certainly not for everyone on my friends list. But for the people who might love it, there is nothing like it.
Link: http://www.talesofmu.com/story/about
_________________________________________________________________
An old favorite. A lot of kinky sex, fantasy setting, but the characters are fascinating, personalities are so real, and I'd give my eyes to write as well as Alexandra Erin. This serial web novel is truly a gift among the riff raff on the internet. and I have a lot of catching up to do.
June 18, 2018
This is not a book about a magical college. In fact, in the (thirty-ish?) chapters I read, the main character doesn't attend a single class.
There is no plot to speak of really--the story is entirely based around torturing (emotionally and physically) and raping the protagonist. It is a story built upon angst, a book for masochists, or perhaps sadists. The main character is bullied and persecuted, and has the power to stop it in a moment, but refuses to.
If that sounds like your cup of tea, put down the snuff film, and give this work a read!
There is no plot to speak of really--the story is entirely based around torturing (emotionally and physically) and raping the protagonist. It is a story built upon angst, a book for masochists, or perhaps sadists. The main character is bullied and persecuted, and has the power to stop it in a moment, but refuses to.
If that sounds like your cup of tea, put down the snuff film, and give this work a read!
December 17, 2012
I'm not sure why, but I just couldn't finish this book. I picked it up and put it down a number of times. I don't think it ever really caught my interest. I may try again one day, but for right now it's going on my didn't finish shelf.
March 21, 2009
This is a fantasy web serial.
August 5, 2009
Damned good writing. The story is still ongoing, actually, but I've read everything that's up already.
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