The Questions I Still Have About Conspiracy of Kings
I want so much to proliferate appreciation and love for Sounis Sophos and the Conspiracy of Kings right now. I feel like a lot of the reason this book doesn't get talked about as much as the others in the series is it's so complex... I have read it multiple times carefully and I think I'm reasonably intelligent... And honestly I'm still not sure
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I agree CoK doesn't get enough love. Getting a Sophos lens on the plot makes it hard to figure out what's going on because kingdom-wide events are treated as background noise to the farm. QT has threads of narrative hinting at the impending "Gen, you viper" 2x4, CoK is more subtle so the rapid-fire big picture action at the end feels more bewildering to me personally.
* If I remember right, Eddis casually suggests Sophos argue for legal possession of Lerna/Hannipus, and it's another of the convoluted conversations passing through multiple people, and that this is Sophos figuring out it was likely Gen's idea (in part) in the first place. I think this will ultimately be another offside like "Build a bridge" where Gen neatly ties off a politically important loose end while also making the solution meaningful to someone he respects, like exiling Dite or reassigning Costis. I wouldn't be surprised if the islands periodically mentioned play a role down the road, or that Lerna/Hannipus make an appearance where we see why it's important Sounis 'possessed' them. I’ve always kind-of thought it was a subtle gesture from Eugenides, that it’s as close to what he can give to Sophos in friendship without drawing obvious attention or playing impossible political favorites.
* I’ve always found Helen’s anger confusing myself, but here’s what I’ve got. The sovereignty issue is a genuine issue to Helen, but I think it's more the final spark igniting her anger than the only issue at hand. Their relationship is a step further than KoA, where two individuals with a history reconcile their relationship with royal responsibilities and unite two kingdoms with a history. It’s similar for Helen and Sophos, but their relationship is further complicated by yielding sovereignty (political necessity and visions from the Gods) and requiring permission to wed from a new king solidifying his own relationship and power (which I suppose he did ask for, wanting his name carved on a stelae). The question of Eddis' marriage has been a pivotal plot point, and Helen has had to yield to Eddis, and Eddis to Attolia out of political necessity, and she's there again as Sophos blunders his way through a sudden kingship.
Helen doesn't seem deeply sentimental, but she feels it ironic to be named Helen, and perhaps she desired some romance (or more than what loomed with Sounis original), and maybe it's a little bitter to accept that their relationship appears more companionable co-students in Sophos' dreams than a passionate 'for you alone I threw off the chains of slavery and took the yoke of kingship' a little like she saw with Gen and Irene.
* I agree that Helen's witholding is her screening Sophos from the knowledge of just how much Eugenides was trying to help his friend, and I absolutely think they were intentionally keeping Sophos in the dark on a lot of subjects. The whole issue is that Attolis cannot be Eugenides to Sophos or Sounis, he has to be Attolis to Sounis and is forced into a position of manipulating a friend because they have to present a united front to the Mede. This also sheds some light on Helen's anger as she's in a similar position, but also with romance.
Sophos grows a lot in this book, but it was still not enough for the critical timeline they had going - there isn't time for Sophos to figure out stabilizing his kingdom and kingship (like teen Irene, QoA Irene and KoA or KoA Eugenides), and it was possible his 'could have won without violence' was Sounis turning to the Mede and destruction. They had to get their ‘chessboard’ set up stat, and they couldn't slowly move Sounis into position. He had to believe the only path was the one they gave him, so there's a lot he wasn't told or didn't see (not being his uncle or a willing/practiced king-in-training). I do love that he manages to surprise them and figure it out a little on his own, showing his barons he's not the Mede's or Attolis's puppet.
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