Interesting! I never really thought that Rae might have demon blood because she frets, but her grandmother seemed so certain about what was going on. Sure, she might be trying not to frighten the small child, but I definitely got the impression that demon blood was a lot less predictable than that, even when you get the crosses that everyone clearly has heard of. And there seems to be enough going on with the Blaises that I don't know if Rae's mum or her family would need another reason to drag her away. But it isn't entirely ruled out, it's true!
I love how complicated SOF politics are. There's the high-minded crusade part, and it's not that that sounds insincere exactly, but then "we're losing this war" is such a cop thing to say in general, which muddies the waters about how true it is, and the concentration of part-bloods in the system can certainly be both people sincerely feeling that this is their chance to end discrimination and also part-bloods helping each other out because at this point it's clearly pretty straightforward for them to get just about anyone subtle enough onto the team and it's pretty clear that there isn't any other job where that's true. It's so recognisable as a strategy. It's an interesting trope moment too because it's definitely a fantasy quest staple, the part where someone says to the protagonist that their special powers could be so helpful to our important cause, but Rae gets to be suspicious and unhelpful without anyone ever saying that the cause itself is not important.
No, it never is really ruled out, which causes me to waffle back and forth on the issue. Also, I love Rae's mother. A whole lot. One of my favorite lines is the one where Rae's describing her and saying that she'd make Atilla the Hun look wishy-washy - Rae has a really great turn of phrase. :D
SOF politics are so much fun! Even though Rae obviously either understands them well enough to not bother explaining them super clearly or doesn't have that much interest in them (why no sequel whyyyy, the whole SOF thing would probably be a major focus in a sequel). Pat's wholehearted belief in his cause is great, especially since he's also pretty self aware about it.
As a side note, all the headcanons in the world about Mel, please.
Yeah, it's so clear that it matters less why Rae's mum decided to take that step because once she'd done so, it was a done deal. What do you think about it? Or at least, which things make you waffle most?
I think it's a mix of those two things? But I like it so much because it's a more subtle way of getting across the difference between Rae's interest in trashy books about Others and actual political involvement. It's not just that she's read books about sexy vampires and is now learning firsthand that that's wrong, but it's also clear that knowing a bunch of types of demons is nothing whatsoever like knowing about their problems in society, even if she can be glib about the major news stories. It both makes her more relatable - because who hasn't been politically inactive about something serious that they're technically interested in before? - and also emphasises how different her world is because it's not different from us because they have more trashy supernatural fiction, but because these are their political issues.
Oh, gosh, yes. I don't have so many exactly, but that's mostly because there are so many options I find it hard to pin down what I really believe about his past? But there's definitely a ton there!
Okay so I waffle most because while it's never really explained why Rae has the vampire affinity, it's definitely at least implied that the Blaises may have had dealings with vampires in the past, and therefore it's possible that it's just a magic handler thing. On the other hand, she can definitely do things no magic handler has ever done before (possibly that none of them have ever tried before, but I think the point still stands), which could be an indication that there's something else there. I don't know - I've never managed to pin down a coherent headcanon for Rae's heritage.
The thing I have the most questions about is whether or not Mel is a sorcerer of some kind. Can you retire from being a sorcerer and become a cook? If he's not a sorcerer, what is he (besides being a cook, and an ex-motorcycle tough)? I find Mel super fascinating because he and Rae know each other pretty well but then they also. . . .don't, and I am so curious all the time!
Interesting! I don't really think of it as the vampire affinity so much as her having a sun affinity that she can accidentally turn to this purpose? Because the sun seems the stronger motif and pretty much the only thing we learn about her magical training is that she was able to do a ridiculous number of things as long as she wasn't told she shouldn't be able to. So my headcanon is definitely that the thing that's different about her is that she has strong magic, but wasn't trained to think of herself as any particular variety of magic user (plus I suspect that if she'd been sat down peacefully in SOF the first time and asked to sun-proof a vampire she'd never met, she simply wouldn't have been able to: the stress and panic did a lot), though I could probably be convinced of other things because it is fairly vague.
He might be? I mean, the main thing we learn about sorcerers is that they usually have to do something with the magic and that it's hard to be a known one in public, but he's certainly determined (and leery enough of authority) to go well underground, and it's hard not to see his motorbikes/bike painting as something magical. I do love how Rae and Mel get to keep secrets from each other and that's not a negative part of their relationship at all and doesn't prevent them from being close and loving, but it is frustrating how little Rae can tell us about his past!
I love how complicated SOF politics are. There's the high-minded crusade part, and it's not that that sounds insincere exactly, but then "we're losing this war" is such a cop thing to say in general, which muddies the waters about how true it is, and the concentration of part-bloods in the system can certainly be both people sincerely feeling that this is their chance to end discrimination and also part-bloods helping each other out because at this point it's clearly pretty straightforward for them to get just about anyone subtle enough onto the team and it's pretty clear that there isn't any other job where that's true. It's so recognisable as a strategy. It's an interesting trope moment too because it's definitely a fantasy quest staple, the part where someone says to the protagonist that their special powers could be so helpful to our important cause, but Rae gets to be suspicious and unhelpful without anyone ever saying that the cause itself is not important.
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SOF politics are so much fun! Even though Rae obviously either understands them well enough to not bother explaining them super clearly or doesn't have that much interest in them (why no sequel whyyyy, the whole SOF thing would probably be a major focus in a sequel). Pat's wholehearted belief in his cause is great, especially since he's also pretty self aware about it.
As a side note, all the headcanons in the world about Mel, please.
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I think it's a mix of those two things? But I like it so much because it's a more subtle way of getting across the difference between Rae's interest in trashy books about Others and actual political involvement. It's not just that she's read books about sexy vampires and is now learning firsthand that that's wrong, but it's also clear that knowing a bunch of types of demons is nothing whatsoever like knowing about their problems in society, even if she can be glib about the major news stories. It both makes her more relatable - because who hasn't been politically inactive about something serious that they're technically interested in before? - and also emphasises how different her world is because it's not different from us because they have more trashy supernatural fiction, but because these are their political issues.
Oh, gosh, yes. I don't have so many exactly, but that's mostly because there are so many options I find it hard to pin down what I really believe about his past? But there's definitely a ton there!
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The thing I have the most questions about is whether or not Mel is a sorcerer of some kind. Can you retire from being a sorcerer and become a cook? If he's not a sorcerer, what is he (besides being a cook, and an ex-motorcycle tough)? I find Mel super fascinating because he and Rae know each other pretty well but then they also. . . .don't, and I am so curious all the time!
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He might be? I mean, the main thing we learn about sorcerers is that they usually have to do something with the magic and that it's hard to be a known one in public, but he's certainly determined (and leery enough of authority) to go well underground, and it's hard not to see his motorbikes/bike painting as something magical. I do love how Rae and Mel get to keep secrets from each other and that's not a negative part of their relationship at all and doesn't prevent them from being close and loving, but it is frustrating how little Rae can tell us about his past!
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