quick The King of Attolia rundown
I also finished The King of Attolia yesterday...yesterday morning? On the Sunday, in the morning when I woke up, because the night before I got to the second-last chapter and was both tired and suddenly sad that it was almost the end. Then there would be nothing left! Noooo. Since then I have been re-reading almost at every chance I get, because I'm still putting together all the pieces.
For some books, I would like the ability to read a book as though I had never read it before--totally unknowing and fresh. I don't want a prequel or a sequel or a short story set inside the main timeline or a novel telling it from the antagonist perspective or an extension or a retelling or any modification. I want to read the book as I did the first time, that's all. Fortunately, some books can be re-read many many times and gain from it.
I'm really enjoying putting together stuff.
[Massive spoilers for the first three books. If you haven't read them, I don't recommend clicking; it's not very coherent without context anyway.]
How Eugenides gets around Sounis = how he gets around Attolia = his family was the architects, oh my god whose idea was this?! It's a hereditary title, they must have known s/he was a thief, and not a thief but the Thief. Maybe they didn't know.
I didn't understand why Gen's attendants were so horrified by the phrase "as if you cared", after he destroys Erondites via Sejanus. But then I realized he first says (approximate) "[my attendants] just try to humiliate me" and the queen responds "as if you cared" and she's right. OH, OUCH. The private joke that they thought was clever for months was not anything they had imagined.
The coin-toss "lilies I rule, reverse you do" and the coin coming up persistently lilies even though he tosses it casually--I also missed this significance in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern but I digress--is the same as the oracle tearing up his paper and giving him back without looking the section that says "ATTOLIA". Again it's the gods basically telling him to stop balking and basically be king. AHHHHH. Also explains why Attolia was unruffled while Gen got more and more agitated with the coin tosses.
The epithets work for me here, I think. Especially from Costis' perspective, because to him Attolia is his queen and nothing else.
I also realize that Erondites had been mentioned as a powerful baron earlier, in the Queen of Attolia. I don't mentally award points for foreshadowing within a novel, because that's easily doable; write the book, edit. But to have pre-planning for the next novel--that's well-done. I still really like how JKR did this, though the theories these days twist her cleverness into absurdity.
Did not understand why the Relius subplot at all the first time round, nor the part with bridge building (and that Gen wanted to be seen as inept--as he says later, did Costis ever consider that his defense was partly because others thought he couldn't hold a sword?)
I wonder what Eugenides said to Dite?
When Eugenides tells everyone to get out, I wonder if he spends all his time staring out the window (;__;) or possibly visiting the queen or spying. I think it might be all three.
I need to re-read The Thief to re-assess everything. EVERYTHING. And possibly so that I can pretend that the amputation bit doesn't happen and will never happen.
When Attolia (from the Queen) thinks to herself that the Medean ambassador's hair oil reminds her of her childhood amphora of perfume, what does she mean? Is it connected to her rather unhappy childhood? Coincide with her marriage? Something I'm missing? Must re-read The Queen of Attolia more closely. Do you know what part I haven't re-read closely? The part where Eugenides gets his hand cut off. I can't do it yet.
Still some really nice writing in there. "There were three people between Costis and the queen. Costis knocked all three of them aside like pegs in a counting game and dropped to his knees in time to catch the queen as she collapsed into his outspread arms."
Oh god, Teleus' discipline re: making the Guard parade from dawn to dusk in front of the palace. He clearly hates Eugenides (I can't imagine the Ephrata incident helped) and I love that when Gen is down in the prisons rescuing Relius, Teleus just loses it--his world has just been capsized yet again and he just reaches the end of his tether; I think it's also implied that Relius and Teleus are friends? Which makes the reversal worse; that pent up anger and hurt had to go somewhere. Then they have a screaming match.
I'm sad that there wasn't much of Eddis/Helen! She shows up a few times but it's too bad there isn't much mention of her. Other characters I really liked: Phresine, Eugenides' father, of course Costis. This entry is long enough as it is though.
I spent almost all of yesterday in idleness, after Saturday evening's also idleness (the archery club had a fancy dinner). Sunday I spent a couple hours sitting outside in the sun with a friend, talking, because the sun was out and it felt almost like spring, if you ignored the little cold breeze. But it was worth it, because the day before was cold, and today it's been raining nonstop. I seized the day! *pats self on back*
For some books, I would like the ability to read a book as though I had never read it before--totally unknowing and fresh. I don't want a prequel or a sequel or a short story set inside the main timeline or a novel telling it from the antagonist perspective or an extension or a retelling or any modification. I want to read the book as I did the first time, that's all. Fortunately, some books can be re-read many many times and gain from it.
I'm really enjoying putting together stuff.
[Massive spoilers for the first three books. If you haven't read them, I don't recommend clicking; it's not very coherent without context anyway.]
How Eugenides gets around Sounis = how he gets around Attolia = his family was the architects, oh my god whose idea was this?! It's a hereditary title, they must have known s/he was a thief, and not a thief but the Thief. Maybe they didn't know.
I didn't understand why Gen's attendants were so horrified by the phrase "as if you cared", after he destroys Erondites via Sejanus. But then I realized he first says (approximate) "[my attendants] just try to humiliate me" and the queen responds "as if you cared" and she's right. OH, OUCH. The private joke that they thought was clever for months was not anything they had imagined.
The coin-toss "lilies I rule, reverse you do" and the coin coming up persistently lilies even though he tosses it casually--I also missed this significance in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern but I digress--is the same as the oracle tearing up his paper and giving him back without looking the section that says "ATTOLIA". Again it's the gods basically telling him to stop balking and basically be king. AHHHHH. Also explains why Attolia was unruffled while Gen got more and more agitated with the coin tosses.
The epithets work for me here, I think. Especially from Costis' perspective, because to him Attolia is his queen and nothing else.
I also realize that Erondites had been mentioned as a powerful baron earlier, in the Queen of Attolia. I don't mentally award points for foreshadowing within a novel, because that's easily doable; write the book, edit. But to have pre-planning for the next novel--that's well-done. I still really like how JKR did this, though the theories these days twist her cleverness into absurdity.
Did not understand why the Relius subplot at all the first time round, nor the part with bridge building (and that Gen wanted to be seen as inept--as he says later, did Costis ever consider that his defense was partly because others thought he couldn't hold a sword?)
I wonder what Eugenides said to Dite?
When Eugenides tells everyone to get out, I wonder if he spends all his time staring out the window (;__;) or possibly visiting the queen or spying. I think it might be all three.
I need to re-read The Thief to re-assess everything. EVERYTHING. And possibly so that I can pretend that the amputation bit doesn't happen and will never happen.
When Attolia (from the Queen) thinks to herself that the Medean ambassador's hair oil reminds her of her childhood amphora of perfume, what does she mean? Is it connected to her rather unhappy childhood? Coincide with her marriage? Something I'm missing? Must re-read The Queen of Attolia more closely. Do you know what part I haven't re-read closely? The part where Eugenides gets his hand cut off. I can't do it yet.
Still some really nice writing in there. "There were three people between Costis and the queen. Costis knocked all three of them aside like pegs in a counting game and dropped to his knees in time to catch the queen as she collapsed into his outspread arms."
Oh god, Teleus' discipline re: making the Guard parade from dawn to dusk in front of the palace. He clearly hates Eugenides (I can't imagine the Ephrata incident helped) and I love that when Gen is down in the prisons rescuing Relius, Teleus just loses it--his world has just been capsized yet again and he just reaches the end of his tether; I think it's also implied that Relius and Teleus are friends? Which makes the reversal worse; that pent up anger and hurt had to go somewhere. Then they have a screaming match.
I'm sad that there wasn't much of Eddis/Helen! She shows up a few times but it's too bad there isn't much mention of her. Other characters I really liked: Phresine, Eugenides' father, of course Costis. This entry is long enough as it is though.
I spent almost all of yesterday in idleness, after Saturday evening's also idleness (the archery club had a fancy dinner). Sunday I spent a couple hours sitting outside in the sun with a friend, talking, because the sun was out and it felt almost like spring, if you ignored the little cold breeze. But it was worth it, because the day before was cold, and today it's been raining nonstop. I seized the day! *pats self on back*