Tanith Lee seems to be a "love her or hate her" kind of author. While I haven't enjoyed all of her books, there are 3 that made strong impressions on me as a young 20-something. One was Delusion's Master, which is really the third in that series but I mistakenly read it first. (The other two are The Silver Metal Lover and Electric Forest.) While I also enjoyed Night's Master and Death's Master, they didn't live up to this one. Never before had I seen characters with such depth of emotion and quiet drama (just perfect for dramatic 20-year old me). It was a stunning entree into the world of fantasy for this reader. ( )