derangedpracticality

[derangedpracticality]

Have you done a reread since book 5? Or one after Turning Darkness Into Light? Because they both wildly change your read through, and now I'm burdened with an abundance of theories and possibly a conspiracy board with string.

@talysia

I have at least closely followed a friend's way through the series since, and re-read passages.

And yes they absolutely turn the world on its head, and make some hints from the earlier books make sense. (On that note, I love it when the major reveals of a series are so clearly plotted from the beginning.)

What are your theories?

That little note Isabella writes in her 2nd memoir shortly after they arrive in Eriga, about how she had thought that her stay in the region wasn't political, and that the reader may continue reading once they finished laughing is SO MUCH FUNNIER if you know the plot of that book.

On my re-read of the series I often find myself assuming the perspective of a potential reader from her times, and how it must look like to them. Very good re-read value.

[derangedpracticality]

Five of my Favorite Characters

@beatrice-otter tagged me for this game, thank you!

I'm using this as an opportunity to ramble about why these characters are among my favourites below the cut.

But first I'm tagging: @hermitknut, @bumblebee-and-tea, @caffeespresso, @freizusein, @shakespearerants, @biacetenebrae and @cleargreyskies. Anyone who wants to do this, feel free!

Karigan G'ladheon

She rides horses, she fights with a sword, she has the magic ability to cross boundaries of time and space, she's the avatar of the God of Death. She just wants a normal life. She refused the (literal) Call of adventure after getting home from her first one for as long as was humanly possible. She's a sometimes reluctant heroine, but also she does the things that fate asks of her because they are important even though it costs her a lot. I related a lot to her as a teenager.

Isabella Camherst

She has one (1) interest and she follows that interest. She's driven by so much curiosity and the need to know. Her husband describes the things she does in pursuit of said interest as "deranged practicality". In the pursuit of her interest she's absolutely unhinged. She's gender nonconforming not necessarily because gender nonconformity is a gender expression for her, but because the rules for conformity are so strict that she wouldn't be able to follow her one interest if she adhered to them. I just love characters who are very intense about their interests.

Samuel Vimes

I love idealists who are idealistic because of their live experience, and not their lack thereof. I love characters who strive to be better, to do better. I love a character who looks the darkness inside them into the eye and says "no we're not having that". That last part is what sealed the deal for me with Vimes; before reading Thud, I was fascinated by him, after Thud, he's on a whole different level of 'favourite'.

Naomi Nagata

Why I like her is similar to Vimes actually? She has gone through so much even before we meet her, and still believes in making the world kinder. That takes so much strength and conviction, I admire that a lot. Also, her willpower is beyond strong and she's the biggest badass in space.

Chirrut Îmwe

Characters who have a strong faith (that's rewarded by the narrative) often touch me very deeply, mostly because I don't have that; whatever faith I have is neither strong, nor has it so far been rewarded by my narrative, if I can say so. One would think I'd feel closer to Baze Malbus than to Chirrut, but it's the latter who brings me hope. To see a character who's so secure in their faith ... yeah, that touches me.

[derangedpracticality]

I love Isabella Camherst so much

if you're not obsessed with a fucked up female character i hope that changes for you soon. becoming obsessed with a genuinely deranged fictional woman will change your life.

[derangedpracticality]

theres lots of first contact stories, and usually they mostly gloss over the establishment of a pidgin, like theyll mention it but its not the main focus, and thats fine, not every first contact story should be about linguistics, but it fills me with a longing for more stories about trying to bridge a communication gap like that, especially ones that question the ability for advanced abstract translation at all

[derangedpracticality]

#the memoirs of lady trent#voyage of the basilisk#literally!! isabella said she turned to find him taking notes and I went Oh So He's Your Soulmate Then#(not to disregard jacob. my praise of suhail does not diminish jacob's love)

@bookwyrminspiration

YEAH exactly! Isabella has been lucky with the men in her life, and she met all of them at exactly the right time, in the right way.

One of the most romantic moments of all time: Isabella and Suhail in the diving bell, observing tropical sea serpents for the first time ... and when Isabella looks at him she sees that he's been taking notes all this time while she was expressing her observations

[derangedpracticality]

One thing I don't understand and which might be a plot hole is:

Near the end of Voyage of the Basilisk, when Isabella and Suhail land on Lahana and they are taken captive, why is Isabella put in the same hut as Miriam?

Their captors are locals, and just moments before they called Isabella a ke'anaka'i, so by their own customs, they should put her and Suhail together. I get why that doesn't happen for plot reasons (Isabella needs to be able to talk with Miriam), but I don't see a in-universe reason for it.

[derangedpracticality]

One of the most romantic moments of all time: Isabella and Suhail in the diving bell, observing tropical sea serpents for the first time ... and when Isabella looks at him she sees that he's been taking notes all this time while she was expressing her observations

[derangedpracticality]

I'm here! Perpetually tired and thus not very active, but the Lady Trent books are some of my favourite pieces of fiction from the last few years.

I don't know where my post going "i have got to stop reading books with no/dead/inactive fandoms" is, but I need it again. Lady Trent memoir readers I am politely inquiring after your whereabouts

[derangedpracticality]

One of the things The Memoirs of Lady Trent do spectacularly well, and which I value very much in stories, is making me feel like I'm IN the landscape she describes. The mountains, the jungle, the ocean, the desert ... the descriptions are so visceral that it truly feels like they come from someone who has experienced it, under the circumstances she describes, no less, which I think is an impressive feat.

[derangedpracticality]

Re-reading the Voyage, especially with the knowledge of what later happens in Akhia (”temporal is not what I had in mind” etc), was so much fun. Oh, to meet someone as unhinged as you are, and ride sea serpents and discover the forgotten and forbidden mysteries of the world together. They really were made for each other.

[derangedpracticality]

That little note Isabella writes in her 2nd memoir shortly after they arrive in Eriga, about how she had thought that her stay in the region wasn't political, and that the reader may continue reading once they finished laughing is SO MUCH FUNNIER if you know the plot of that book.

On my re-read of the series I often find myself assuming the perspective of a potential reader from her times, and how it must look like to them. Very good re-read value.

[derangedpracticality]

I want to expand on it on a personal note. The romance part is definitely not what I enjoy most about these books, far from it! There's the scientific research, the expeditions, the ethical questions about "how do we do science", etc.

I want to talk about the romance part because it is so rare for me to enjoy a romance sideplot in a story, and here, they actively add to the joy I find in these books.

Part of it is due to what I said above, that the kind of relationship itself sounds perfect to me. So free from the usual narrative of "you fall in love with someone and then marry them" which doesn't work for me personally, at all.

The Memoirs describe a world in which young women have to find a good husband for economic and societal reasons, so of course the falling in love narrative exists as an escape fantasy in that world, too. I don't want to be dismissive of that. The books make a good point about how Isabella is NOT better than other women because she doesn't follow the path her society wants her to take. In her world, the commitment of marriage is at the basis of a relationship, so the big romantic romance is, as I said, an escape fantasy.

The being in love equals getting into a relationship narrative is very predominant in our world too, though, and to a degree that I think is to the detriment of the personal happiness and satisfaction in life of many people who believe in the myth but fail to find happiness in it - because it IS a flawed basis for sharing a life. In my world, it's not just a story trope, instead it's a cultural norm, one I don't like. And so romantic storylines often lean heavily into it, which I don't particularly enjoy.

To see a relationship that has at it's basis companionate friendship, and the romantic attraction is not the driving force for the relationship, is such a delight for me. It feels like the relationships in these books (not just book 1) were written just for me.

I love the way Marie Brennan writes romantic relationships in these books. I'm re-reading book 1 right now and thus thinking specifically about Isabella and Jacob.

There's this quote about friendship/relationships, originally by Albert Camus, which says (paraphrased and translated) "Don't walk in front of me, perhaps I won't follow you. Don't walk behind me, perhaps I won't guide you. Walk beside me and be my friend." It's been my favourite quote about love for years, and it's such a delight to see these characters inhabit the sentiment expressed by these words.

Yes, they walk side by side, and share a vision, and they are friends and partners in the best sense of the word! I enjoy this way of writing relationships so much.

At one point, after the cleansing ritual, when Isabella and Jacob are in Drustanev without Hilford and Tom, she thinks about how unlike her and Jacob's relationship is from everything she was taught to expect from love and marriage, but how real and present it feels. I love that part. This is not only my favourite kind of fictional relationship dynamic, it's also what feels the most real and emotionally raw to me, personally. I relate to it a lot, and it's unexpectedly refreshing and relaxing, even soothing, to see it depicted in a story.

[derangedpracticality]

Thinking about Turning Darkness Into Light again. I love the very realistic depiction of translating old texts, that was fun!

What touched me most in the story were

Kudshayn's thoughts about the new text and how to deal with the emergence of an older and different creation myth for your people than what you know and believe. Very fascinating.

[derangedpracticality]

I love the way Marie Brennan writes romantic relationships in these books. I'm re-reading book 1 right now and thus thinking specifically about Isabella and Jacob.

There's this quote about friendship/relationships, originally by Albert Camus, which says (paraphrased and translated) "Don't walk in front of me, perhaps I won't follow you. Don't walk behind me, perhaps I won't guide you. Walk beside me and be my friend." It's been my favourite quote about love for years, and it's such a delight to see these characters inhabit the sentiment expressed by these words.

Yes, they walk side by side, and share a vision, and they are friends and partners in the best sense of the word! I enjoy this way of writing relationships so much.

At one point, after the cleansing ritual, when Isabella and Jacob are in Drustanev without Hilford and Tom, she thinks about how unlike her and Jacob's relationship is from everything she was taught to expect from love and marriage, but how real and present it feels. I love that part. This is not only my favourite kind of fictional relationship dynamic, it's also what feels the most real and emotionally raw to me, personally. I relate to it a lot, and it's unexpectedly refreshing and relaxing, even soothing, to see it depicted in a story.

[derangedpracticality]

Dragon in Flight // graphite drawing on toned paper

[derangedpracticality]

Marie Brennan didn't just avoid the "not like the other girls" trope in writing Isabella, she examined and broke down the misogynistic aspects of the concept:

But really everyone needs to read Memoirs of Lady Trent. The whole series is amazing.

[derangedpracticality]

oh to be diagnosed as monster dragon gender by the island you shipwrecked on’s genderqueer outcast and prescribed gay marriage. what a delight