Wow, this chapter is amazing and gorgeous.

So beautiful. I can't stop reading, I just had to pause and say how wonderfully beautiful your language (and especially Jade's, of course) is.

a truly wonderful story. Thank you. I loved Wes.

Okay, I loved this! Your characterizations and descriptions are always so perfectly constructed that I really feel as if I know the people and places in your story first hand. This is beautifully written.

There were a couple things I found a bit perplexing. I think they might be part of your new edits, so that's why I'm confused, but I want to bring them up anyway.

At first I had a hard time seeing Jade as the character brought in from the storm. The flowery language didn't seem to match at first and I missed the Jade who pulled tricks on his coworkers. Later on when I saw the same sulky/happy personality from the Crowned Jewel I knew it was Jade, but it took me a bit.

Also, having all the courtesans wearing masks was a bit confusing as well. I understand your explanation why they do, but found it a bit odd. In the Crowned Jewel the fact that the Viper and the Viper alone wears a mask is a big plot point. His mask is practically its own character and its purpose to keep his curse from hurting him is further explained by the presence of the mask. I'm not sure I like the need to have all the courtesans wear masks, particularly since things like Diamond and Lavender's beauty cannot be explained through the veil of a mask. In fact, the reason you stated in this book about why Jade wears a mask is the reason Sebastian feels he wears a mask, but the plot behind it for Sebastian is so much more intense. Anyway, that's my thoughts on the issue.

Overall, I love this story and will be rereading it a number of times. I had hoped to see Lavender's child or see how Cameo is after its time with the Emperor, but the epilogue closed this story very nicely. I hope you post the stories for your contest winners soon so I can read them!

Westar and Jade as a couple are freakishly adorable. There is no other way to describe it. Because sex scenes should not make you smile, but that one did. Goodness. Fantastic story.

And I won! WOOHOO! *Happy dance*

Oh God. The possibilities!

I really liked seeing the aftermath of Sebastian and Adrian's story in this epilogue~ And hee, Wes is so awkward and sweet. Lovely fic. I'm looking forward to more in this universe!

~fd97

That ending was absolutely perfect. I'm glad you decided to write the sex after all; I don't think it would have worked as well if you'd left it out or glossed over it. I really enjoyed this story. Thank you.

you know, i'm still not sure how to express the utter warm and fuzzy sense of happiness that this story inspires in me. i know i've said it many times before, but there's just something about this story that resonates with me in a way i don't often find. it's really quite wonderful.

more to the point, this was quite a charming epilogue. i loved your solution for keeping the family together and yet also giving wes the opportunity to go to school (and be near jade). it still amuses me how intelligent wes seems (and is said to be by everyone else) but how endearingly hopeless he is so often. and somehow every stumble (and subsequent) he and jade make with each other just makes me love all this even more; i love that they struggle, but they also succeed, and the open ending is wonderful for that sense of 'mostly-happily ever after' you convey with those last couple of sentences.

lovely, lovely, lovely. thank you for this!

Yay! I won! um. is it entirely embarrassing if I forgot what I've won? I'll go look that up when I'm done with this here review.

First, I'd like to thank you for the Best Line Ever Read. I don't think I will ever read anything to top this quote: "It was also so thin that it would be less embarrassing to go naked altogether. At least then it'd be over and done with." EVER. I'm still snickering over it.

This was an awesome and perfect end to an amazing story, thanks for sharing it with us!

Qui

SO LOVELY. This is my favorite story of yours, which is rather impressive because I love every story of yours. Sad to see it end.

Can't find the picture - no actual link?

What another great story. I will admit you had my heart breaking a few times for the two of them, but in the end... I'm very satisfied. I believe you did a great job of avoiding the cliches. I'm also thinking that you should definitely put up the epilogue because I imagine that warm fuzzy feeling in my chest will only grow and make me that much happier. And I think Pit was a cute character though he still baffles me a bit, and I think seeing Jade with him was just too cute. I honestly was waiting on you to kill off Wes's parents, have Jade and Wes take over the parenting of Pit and have Lee and Sasha run off together. Okay, well not really, but it still wouldn't have surprised me too much if you'd had that horrible twist in there. Because I'm thinking they could've figure it out somehow, though probably not by living in the same place. And along those lines, I'm glad you found a place that could compromise the important things in their lives and be believable. Had Wes just up and moved to the city by himself, it'd have been unreal and the same with Jade, though perhaps a tiny bit more believable but not really.

So yeah, great story. I'm glad that things worked out well, especially for poor Jade. And I can't wait to see the epilogue and even the redone Jewel. :)

Will you marry me?

I definitely enjoyed the evolution of Wes's relationship with Jade, from acquaintance, to friend, to something more. :) There's something about this story that makes me inexplicably happy, yet wistful at the same time.

As for a title... Chasing Shadows? LoL The best that I could come up with (which is actually a pretty crappy title).

i really, really love this story. there's just something so genuine and compelling about it. granted, i felt similar while reading the jewel, so perhaps it's just your special brand of storytelling. as to your concern about being cliche, i'd say you did a nice job of balancing things. yes, it is obvious there are opportunities in the city that are not in the country (like advanced education), but you handled the rural side of things with respect. i think there were elements of both cliches (which makes it totally original, in my opinion) because jade certainly learned from his time with wes' family just as wes learned from jade.

seriously, i just love this story to pieces. i'm definitely hoping wes and jade et al make further appearances in your writing.

I didn't know that Adrian was as skinny as a scarecrow.

WOOHOO HAPPY ENDING!

Happy endings make me smile. Though there is still so much potential chaos, what with his family and Lee and all. But I am content.

Thanks for a great read! Now I'll just wait for that epilogue.