>Actually, this sounds precisely like my sister's taste in music. If
>that pattern holds, you may be interested in European symphonic
>metal--Nightwish, Within Temptation, Kamelot, bands like those.
>(Actually, I'll be going to see Kamelot and Dragonforce co-headlining
>next April.)

Seconding this -- sounds like one of the branches in my particular musical preference tree almost exactly.

Look also into Tempest, if you haven't already stumbled over them via the Leslie Fish-Heather Alexander*-Mercedes Lackey connection.

-- Bob
* Hand over heart for the former Heather's now-lost voice. One must do what is right and true for oneself, but Heather's gender reassignment stole that voice from us and replaced it with one not quite so wonderful; for that reason alone I allow myself to occasionally wish she had not undergone reassignment.
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My race is pacifist and does not believe in war. We kill only out of personal spite.