COMMUNITY READALONG WEEK SEVEN: Chapters 6-10.

[tearoha]

Time is ticking on, and there are already less than three weeks until CofK - the anticipation is killing me! And there's nothing, short of inventing time-travel, I can do except to patiently wait... and read.

And so we come to the fabulous middle section of KoA! I was very excited to get to do the post on such an action-packed section of the book,

Comments

[tearoha]

And one more thing I wanted to say, but probably shouldn't in the main post. That kiss on the stairs, when Gen rests his head on Attolia's shoulder like a man seeking respite, reaching home at the end of the day, reminds me so much of a moment in Busman's Honeymoon, but I have neither my copy of BH or my little list of cross-over similarities with me, so I can't check! Does it ring a bell for anyone else familiar with the Wimsey books?

[freenarnian]

Oh, oh! That DOES ring a very distant bell. If I had a copy of either book available to me, I'd look into it...

[tearoha]

I even went to Waterstones the other day to see if I could look for the line, but the only DLS they didn't have was Busman's Honeymoon. I used to have a list written out of all the parallels I'd found between Harriet an Peter and Attolia and Gen, and I'm pretty sure there was a line in BH that almost exactly paralleled the "respite/coming home" one. It might be right at the end of BH, during that awful scene.

[freenarnian]

I'd like to see that list. =)

[spellcoats]

There's a line near the end of QoA about how the Attolian's don't believe in their gods, which makes me think Costis's faith is singular and uncommon, perhaps because he's from the country.

I think if anything, chapter nine is the turning point in the book. Costis finally realizes he does, in fact, care about the king, because the king is a person just like everyone else. And it gives Gen the opening he needs to set up Sejanus and drag Erondites down.

Also I think Costis's conversation with Aris about whether the Thief wanted to be King is significant because it allows Costis to relate to Eugenides as someone who was profusely loyal to his own queen, the way Costis is to his.

[spellcoats]

Also, hands up who thinks Heiro has a crush on Gen.

/keeps her hand down :|

Heiro's line seemed nothing more than an echo of Phresine's after the dance scene earlier in the book. (Elia: "Well, that was revealing." Phresine: "Only to those with eyes to see.")

Interesting that thus far the most insightful members of Attolia's court seem to be the women.

[tearoha]

I like this echo - I'd never picked up on that bfore. See, that's why read-alouds are awesome, because everyone's ideas get pooled :D

I think the insight of the women in the court is probably because they are all Attolia's women; they attend to the Queen personally, and so have much better information on which to judge Eugenides and the king and queen's relationship on than the rest of the palace.

[spellcoats]

Heiro is not one of the queen's women, nor I would assume are Eunice and the other ladies whose names Heiro gives Gen.

[freenarnian]

When Costis tells Eugenides that he was asked for, and gave, information to Susa, Eugenides immediately dismisses him. Why? Is this a cruel or a kind thing to do?

I interpreted it as Gen accepting both the information and the implied apology from Costis, and then dismissing the matter. Or, Costis's involvement in the matter anyway. An instance in which we get to see Gen's hidden kingliness.

[tiegirl]

Ahh. I took it as Gen being kind. He wants to save Costis from being used as a "spy" {unwittingly) because of his closeness to the King. He also saves him from being a target of those who wish to harm the King (easier to harm the King if his pet bodyguard is out of the way). Otoh, it's cruel because he doesn't tell Costis why he is being dismissed.

[tearoha]

I think it was a formal dismissal, not just a momentary one - Costis is detached from his position as special lieutenant and may be sent elsewhere for service.
I agree with TG though - Gen did this to save Costis from becoming further entangled in court intrigue, and keep him safe, but because he didn't explain any of this to Costis, it was a bit cruel. It's a very Gen way to solve the problem :)

[hazelwillow]

Maybe he wants Costis to look like he was dropped, like he does again later? Gen says "I had hoped that your very obvious outrage at being dropped like a used glove would have protected you, but obviously it hasn't" (p. 342) later on, but that's referring to when he dismisses Costis in the Queen's bedroom later on. Are both dismissals for the same reason?
Hm. And why, once he'd dismissed Costis after the incident with Susa, did Gen ask for Costis again? Had anything changed? (maybe the answer to this is obvious and I'm just not thinking... it would have been the assassination attempt that brought them back together, no?)

[rosaleeluann]

If you're doing a shout-out to those of us whose names are from these chapters, don't forget in_my_niteshirt :-).

[tearoha]

Ooh, thanks! I did quickly go through the embers, but I'm sure I missed some. Will do! :-)

[tearoha]

*members.

*shakes head at typots*

[elvenjaneite]

I went through the questions in order, but I skipped a whole bunch

[rosaleeluann]

Secret Poison... you mean Strong Poison?

[elvenjaneite]

Good grief. Yes. This is a sign of Not Enough Tea.

[ninedaysaqueen]

Not enough caffeine?