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ars-matron · 8 months

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The Tarot Sequence Reread

Nothing has given me brain rot in a long while like the Tarot Sequence by K D Edwards has. And since I just finished reading all the supplemental stuff right when my hold for The Last Sun came back up I thought I would do something I have only done once before-and in a much less flattering way for a book I hated-and live blog my reread.

There's just so much in this series I need to pay closer attention to. And usually I would go on here and read some metas, but there is literally nothing!! The only things in the tags for this series is people wishing there were more people reading it, a handful of very wonderful fanarts, and an account of the decline of a discord that evidently used to exist for it. So, maybe this will encourage some people to read the books too.

Because there are some heavy topics in this series anytime I talk about such topics I will tag for them, but if they don't come up in the chapters I'm reviewing, I won't. So if you have certain things back listed you might not see all my posts on it. Anyone who is reading along and is curious about it can DM me.

NOW! Predictions and things I want to pay attention to under the cut for spoiler reasons.

The Tower. At the end of the prologue of the first book my thoughts were, " So we trust NO ONE!!" Except Queenie, because why would Rune and Brand live with her if she was evil? Then the children showed up and I had to trust them, they were too young to be part of the, whole thing, plus they are so cute. You have to trust them. And then Addam came along, and of course we trust him, he's an Addam, he's a giant dancing teddy bear and I love him! So I read the whole series (that's out so far) expecting we would find out the Tower was an evil guy, that he had had something to do with the fall of the Sun Throne. Honestly by the end of the third book I didn't think that any longer, and I was starting to before that after finding out he was also Qunn's godfather because!!! There is no way Qunn wouldn't have seen if the Tower revealed he had been a part of all that. (I'm still asking myself HOW exactly he or Mayan wouldn't have noticed an astral projection listening device being installed in Rune's room at their freaking tower that is super locked down! But then it happened for two other locations that were supposed to be super warded and protected my other companions too. So maybe it isn't his fault. I do think he might blame himself, I do think that some of his stand-offishness might also be guilt for not being able to stop the attack on the Sun Throne to start with. We will see...) I'm going to go into this read through with the assumption he is just lonely and sad and not a bad guy.

QUEENIE!!!! Because, WHO THE FUCK IS QUEENIE!? I was already suspicious because every time someone asks Rune and Brand where she came from, or how long she's been with them, they say "She's been with us forever." Every time! It reeks of mind fuckery. Then Eidolon and the epilogue that wasn't came along. Current theory is that she is the Empress, and also that she's probably Rune's mother. I would be willing to bet she was the woman at the end of the third book who spoke up to the river after everyone else. Edwards did a good job of making her disappear in the background, but I'm gonna be hunting for every mention of her and how she acts around everyone.

Ciaran, just because I love him and at first also suspected him of evil deeds. But he's just your gay vodka uncle and he loves all his adopted family so much and I just want to keep a closer on him at the start of the series.

Kellum. We only see him once in the second book, but he's mentioned in Eidolon by the Fool (Or Queenie pretending to be the Fool, again I'm not sure, there's Queenie interference for sure) And he was in one of the supplemental novellas. I think he will be making a bigger appearance in the next book.

Quinn's prophecies. I'll probably make a list of those for a separate master post.

Tallas. The Atlantean soul mates. This is a MAJOR spoiler. Rune says that Brand and he formed a talla bond the night of the attack. That it was what brought Brand out of the geas and got them to safety. The bond was gone when he woke up in the hospital and he's spent this whole time thinking he's somehow broken their talla bond. Something definitely happened between him and Addam in the Westlands, and I don't think Addam was wrong in assuming it was the budding of a talla bond. Because something sort of bond-like is also there now after the Hourglass Throne, after he used his bond with Brand to get him and Addam back to their time. My theory here is that they might be each other tallas, all three of them. Together. We know that it doesn't have to be a sexual relationship, though I don't think Addam would mind that one bit. Everything is pointing to the three of them being tied together somehow, and my theory is mostly that, before they were together together, no one talla bond could form and take precedence over the other. Now that they are together all the time, going on missions, living together, they have more opportunities for a bond to fully form and take hold. Assuming it involves all three of them.

And with that, I'm going to go read!

#the tarot sequence #k d edwards #the last sun #rune saint john #brand saint john #max saint john #quinn saint nicholas #addam saint nicholas #the hanged man #the hourglass throne #the eidolon #booklr #ttsrr

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thetarotsequence · 4 months

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Part Two - Half House and The Tower

✨From here on out, there will be spoilers ✨

Half House:

This chapter is foundational knowledge, in my opinion, on how to build a lovable character and then let them do disagreeable things. Honestly, THE LAST SUN is a masterclass in character building, already, but this chapter is the cornerstone of getting the reader sucked in, and the next chapter (which I'll get to, pinky promise) is the string that tugs the stick out from under the edge of the box, effectively trapping the reader in complete and total love for these stories. I don't make the rules, that's just how it happens.

The key, I think, is how relatable Rune is. From his claim that the stories about the worst night of his life "Just. Won't. Fucking. Die," to the pause he has for the unsettling feeling of did I just fuck up? that he feels after the encounter with Max in the bathroom, Rune is just a regular guy. I mean, yeah, he's technically a fallen prince with the capability to incinerate everything in an as-yet-undetermined radius, but he's a normal dude with a shitty day job, spooky boss, and bills to pay! He worries about his weight and wears laundry of questionable cleanliness! Just me? Listen, once you start having a chair pile, you never go back. But I digress.

I will die on the hill that these books - while fantastic to read - are even better when listened to. Josh Hurley, the narrator, is my dream narrator for my OWN book (if I get lucky enough to be published one day - I hope he can do a British accent). I hated audiobooks, legitimately hated them, until these stories, because the narration just feels like listening to a friend tell you about what's going on in their life, until all of a sudden it doesn't and you're in an epic battle with a lich, or struggling not to cry as your worst fears and biggest hopes are confirmed one right after the other (but that's HOURGLASS THRONE talk). So, if you're a hands-on reader who hates audiobooks, just trust me. I've listened to these books so many times I don't hear my own brain voice when I read them anymore. It's just the incredible talents of Mr. Hurley that have been engraved on my memory like grooves in a vinyl record.

It's the narration, too, that enhances that relatable factor, especially where Brand is concerned. He's definitely doing a violence on Max that would get American CPS called, but the narration makes it funny, the way I think it was intended to be. And again, they all clearly grow from this point over the series, and moreover, no one is perfect, and if you haven't wanted to stick someone's head in a toilet and flush, you're probably a liar.

Speaking of liars - Queenie. Settle in and grab some tinfoil for your hat, because I Have A Theory:

I think Brand went fucking nuts on Max - and granted, this is mild considering what he, a literal sharpshooter mercenary, is capable of - because he was programmed to do so. I have the benefit of having read all the way through the 3rd book and the EIDOLON, so I know that evidence supporting my theory exists, but that's an essay for a different day. What matters now, dear reader, is that I think that Queenie fucked up, and she's realizing it in the background of this scene when she tries to stop Brand, only to have him steamroll the conversation right over her. He goes oddly (and humorously) formal in his recount of what he did and why, and the ferocity of his protectiveness coupled with his recount of events just never sat well with me. It was disproportionate; there's no doubting that. I've always been suspicious of this sequence of events, specifically because this happened on the heels of Rune mentioning that the Empress, in her "unhinged grief" (such a mood) vanished into thin air and obtained Cryptid Status. From the first time I read these books, I thought (and continue to think) this bitch is the Empress, isn't she? Every time.

But! More on that theory soon.

Queenie's gentle manipulation, asking Rune how it was for him, after he lost everything, was masterfully done, Empress or not. It speaks to someone who has been a parent, or at least has been responsible for giving guidance (which, ahem, the Empress is the Mother archetype in the Tarot soooo...I am, as the kids say, standing on business) and knows that a delicate hand is needed. Where she couldn't stop Brand's irate retelling, she is able to successfully pull one of Rune's heartstrings and get him thinking about what she wants him to think about.

Overall, I genuinely enjoyed this passage not only for the breadcrumb trail beginning in front of us as readers, but also for the dynamic emerging between the characters. Especially knowing how much trauma exists between the three of them now, and being a parent of a child with trauma (she's bootleg, don't worry, I didn't give it to her) and being a parental figure with my OWN trauma, I could really relate to the feeling of fucking up because of a trigger being set off when I was unprepared.

The last thing I loved about this chapter is how Brand and Rune work a case. It's incredibly smooth, subtle world-building that SHOULD, by rights, feel like an info-dump, but it doesn't, because of how expertly this is written. The personality embedded in Rune and Brand saturates the page and obfuscates any sense of things being spelled out for the reader. Plus, the way Rune and Brand riff off of one another is fun, and funny, and 100% the reason why my wife ships them romantically, because they DO bicker like an old married couple. It feels more than anything to me, like conversations I would have with my wife (if we were magic-case-solving-mercenaries, obviously). It's impossible not to love Rune and Brand. They're iconic.

Favorite Quote:

Not so much a quote, but the way Josh Hurley narrates Rune proudly theorizing "Maybe he wants to give me a big fat check" is stuck permanently in my vernacular, cadence, tone, everything. I have quoted it while opening the mail several times. There is never a big fat check.

The Tower:

This, as I said before, is where the string gets pulled, and we, the readers, get trapped. It's not the hook - that was buried back in the sparkly lure of the Heart Throne chapter - this is us being reeled in so swiftly we can't even struggle on the line. The continued world-building is seamless, concise, and vivid. I love the line where Rune says the rest of the world thought New Atlantis pulled their Gotham out of a cereal box, and the way he follows it up with "not a bad rep to have". This sentence does so many things at once: it establishes how New Atlantis came to be, it establishes what other people thought of it happening, and it establishes that it was costly on multiple levels, AND it establishes that it is incredibly unlikely to happen again. This makes New Atlantis feel more real, to me, because it's the difference between living somewhere and just visiting, or seeing photos online. Y'all might see a picture of bluebonnets in a meadow and think "Wow, so pretty," and I would see it and definitely think "God, it was probably 102 degrees when this was taken."

Speaking of differences in perspectives! When Rune said that Lord Tower and Brand "didn't get along" my first instinct is best described as uh huh...sure, Jan. HOURGLASS THRONE survivors know what I'm talking about.

I also loved the stealth-worldbuilding of wandering the streets of New Atlantis with Rune and Max on their way to the Pac Bell. And did you notice the seamless way Rune interrogates Max? I literally didn't notice that that was what it was, an interrogation, until THIS REREAD, so like...yesterday. And then Rune effortlessly provokes Max to reveal his true feelings about the situation? Slow clap goes here.

Another thing I just realized this reread is that IF QUEENIE IS THE EMPRESS, IS SHE THE ONE WHO TOLD LORD TOWER MAX WAS THERE????? Because who was holding New Atlantis together in her wake? Oh, just good ol' L.T. That takes LOYALTY, a deep kind of loyalty that most political figures don't deserve, and I'm curious to see if I'm right, if the loyalty was reciprocal, or if Queenie/The Empress was still trying to call the shots from behind the scenes instead of stepping back. Also, calling it now: I don't think it was just grief that sent Queenie to ground. I think she had something to be legitimately scared of coming for her, and she bolted for her own survival. I feel this way because New Atlantis, according to Rune, treats grief differently than we might. He refers to himself as a cautionary tale, even - why would a society designed to not support victims have space for grief? So my next question is - did she participate in the raid? Or does she know something about it?

Going back to Lord Tower - this is a weird experience, this reread, because of the loss of my own Dad, but it's even weirder to realize that I can see how Rune identifies L.T. as a father figure, now. It's right there on the page, but in THT, the recognition of that role in his life was a sucker punch for me. So that's interesting. I look forward to seeing what else this reread elicits for me.

Also, what happened to that AI, KD? It's been a while...I'm just saying. Is this Chekov's AI?

Another 'love it' moment for this chapter, to close out my TEDx talk, is yet more casework, this time in the form of Rune getting info from L.T. It initially felt like a mysterious-benefactor-and-protege situation before, but like I said, this reread, I can feel the difference, and like a paperback that's gone soft as fabric from too many rereads, I hear the soft affection in Lord Tower's sigh and "Must you make me so terrifying?" quote. I also hear that paternal vibe in "Addam is special, and I worry." You even hear it in the OBVIOUS (except to Rune) matchmaking energy from Lord Tower calling Addam a "confirmed bachelor, much like you." Which I love, every time.

Favorite Quote:

"His walkabouts?" (Emphasis to try to capture Josh Hurley's narration). Honestly, Rune's entire snarky commentary is just so funny, especially now that I know what happens, and it's obvious just how not like what he expected Addam turned out to be. But that's another topic for another day.

#the tarot sequence #booklr #books #kd edwards #rune saint john #brand saint john #thetarotsequence #the last sun #addam saint nicholas #lord tower #anton saint joshua #max saint john #matthias saint valentine

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pansexualnoodle5 · 2 years

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SO ATLANTIS WAS REAL AND THERE WAS THIS WAR IN THE 60'S AND THEY LOST SO WE GAVE THEM NANTUCKET WHICH THEY CALL NEW ATLANTIS AND IT'S FILLED WITH MAGICAL CREATURES AND EVERYBODY IS QUEER AND THEY'RE RULED BY THE MAJOR ARCANA AND THERE'S THIS ONE PRINCE NAMED RUNE SAINT JOHN AND HE AND HIS BESTIE/BODYGUARD ARE THE LAST MEMBERS OF THE SUN COURT WHICH WAS DESTROYED DECADES AGO AND THEY'RE FLAT BROKE SO THEY DO THESE JOBS FOR LORD TOWER AND NOW THEY'VE GOTTA FIND THIS DUDE ADDAM AND ALSO EVERYBODY IS QUEER LITERALLY EVERYONE IS SO QUEER

#I WILL GO ALL NIGHT IF I HAVE TO #READ THESE BOOKS GUYS I MEAN IT #the tarot sequence #the last sun #the hanged man #the hourglass throne #rune saint john #brand saint john #addam saint nicholas #max saint john #quinn saint nicholas #corbie dawncreek #layne dawncreek #annawan dawncreek #corinne dawncreek #kd edwards #lgbt books

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ciaranshexthrone · 4 months

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Showing up at the loving Quinn Saint Nicholas competition but your opponents are Max Saint John and Addam Saint Nicholas.

#the tarot sequence #quinn saint nicholas #max saint john #addam saint nicholas

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bcisaidso · 7 months

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I have TTS fever! Editing is a lot more harder than I thought. I could not add Corrine and Mayan in this😮‍💨. Also, could not find a picture of Queenie, so The Empress.

Edited- Okay! The amazing @cysgod found the original artists of almost all the arts used in the video, along with the art links! 🙌🙌 (I just had to copy paste it here😬😬)

Artists are @oblivionsdream @ace-artemis-fanartist @xaviercollette , @glasspunkart, and @krittaart

Would be great if someone could help me track down the artist of the Lord Fool's art

https://oblivionsdream.tumblr.com

https://ace-artemis-fanartist.tumblr.com

https://www.xaviercollette.com/

https://glasspunkart.tumblr.com

https://www.tumblr.com/krittaart

1. Rune (https://oblivionsdream.tumblr.com/post/663393407187795968/rune-saint-john-from-the-tarot-sequence-by-kd)

2. Ciaran (https://oblivionsdream.tumblr.com/post/679437684358479872/ciaran-from-the-tarot-sequence-by-kd-edwards-the)

3. Layne (https://ace-artemis-fanartist.tumblr.com/post/621105772376506369/happy-pride-month-book-the-tarot)

4. The Hanged Man (https://www.bragelonne.fr/auteurs/xavier-collette/)

5. Anna (https://ace-artemis-fanartist.tumblr.com/post/190915606772/its-not-that-they-forgot-its-that-theyd-rather)

6. Lady Death (https://oblivionsdream.tumblr.com/post/677448098543550465/lady-death-from-the-tarot-sequence-by-kd)

7. Addam (https://oblivionsdream.tumblr.com/post/663577408223494144/addam-saint-nicholas-from-the-tarot-sequence-by)

8. Quinn (https://oblivionsdream.tumblr.com/post/670320789764079616/update-a-new-version-of-quinns-card)

9. Lady Time (https://www.bragelonne.fr/auteurs/xavier-collette/)

10. Lord Tower (https://oblivionsdream.tumblr.com/post/664392853265481728/lord-tower-from-the-tarot-sequence-by-kd-edwards)

11. The Empress (https://glasspunkart.tumblr.com/post/634854789656854528/a-character-design-commission-for-kd-edwards-of)

12. Corbie (sadly no direct link to artwork https://www.tumblr.com/krittaart)

13. Brand (https://oblivionsdream.tumblr.com/post/666333865274671105/brand-saint-john-from-the-tarot-sequence-by-kd)

14. Max (https://oblivionsdream.tumblr.com/post/673914066533810176/max-saint-valentinesaint-john-from-the-tarot)

15. Lord Fool (source not found – maybe someone else can help?)

#the tarot sequence #kd edwards #rune saint john #cairan #Layne Dawncreek #the hanged man #lady time #lord tower #queenie #corbie dawncreek #brandon saint john #brand Saint John #addam saint nicholas #quinn saint nicholas #max saint john #matthias saint valentine #lord fool #the last sun #the hourglass throne

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queer-book-character-tournament · 2 years

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#nina zenik #six of crows #king of scars #grishaverse #leigh bardugo #Callum Nova #The Atlas Six #olivie blake #Max Saint John #The Tarot Sequence #kd edwards #Kit Herondale #Queen of Air and Darkness #the shadowhunters chronicles #the dark artifices #cassandra clare #polls #lgbt books

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waytointothetarotsequence · 6 months

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So we all know that one of the arcana was involved in the fall of the sun throne so here's my current thoughts:

First, either they have a way of hiding their involvement from Quinn, or Quinn isn't telling yet for Quinn reasons.

Now the arcana:

Death. Zurah is definitely not involved. She's too nice, and Quinn likes her. Her mother, however, is a possibility. Enough of a reason, and she'd take part. Her interactions during The Hourglass Throne with Rune and Brand were weird too.

Judgement. He wouldn't do an un sanctioned raid. Also, I don't get the vibe.

Justice. Definitely not, Lady Justice may not always like Rune, but she has too many morals to help. Also, Quinn.

Strength. I think Ashton would have had a different approach if him and his Dad were involved. He can be a dick to Rune, but I don't see the attack as his vibe.

Temperance. I just don't see any of the moral certainties being involved.

The Chariot. I don't think I know enough to have a vibe, but I think hints would have been dropped if it was him.

The Devil. He's definitely got some bad vibes. He could be involved, but he seems to have his own problems.

The Emperor. Dead, so very unlikely.

The Empress. It's possible, but I'm leaning more towards her and Queenie having a link.

The Fool. I don't think so, unless it is some prophetic long game, where the fall has to happen to cause Rune to become what he will.

The Hanged Man. He'd do it, but I think he would have used it against Rune in the second book, used it to mess him up during their final talk.

The Hermit. I think he has better things to do. He doesn't seem to be the type. He wants to be left alone.

The Hierophant. I just don't get the vibe it's him.

The High Priestess. I think she has strong morals and wouldn't be involved.

The Lovers. Their location makes them a possibility, along with the weird shit they were doing. From the interactions between her and Rune in the first book, though, I don't think she would. He court, however, might be involved.

The Magician. Ciaran definitely wasn't involved. The 'other' Magician, however, he seems possible and doesn't seem to like Rune. However, he'd need to get it past Ciaran, and that would be very hard.

The Moon. The fact she didn't react when one of their power block fell makes me suspicious.

The Star. The Anchorite is a strong possibility. We know he's a bad guy, and he's been discussed throughout. Also, old technology was used to communicate. Maybe that's how he keeps up to date from his prison. Also, what's with the tooth pick, is there some meaning behind that?

The Sun. Seems very unlikely.

The Tower. Definitely not.

The World. I don't know enough to form an opinion, which makes me think it's not, I think hints will have been dropped.

Time. I think she had some involvement, but definitely not the main bad, just involved in order to further her own plans and to arrange Runes personal hell.

Wheel of Fortune. From what I've heard about the next book and other parts KD Edward's posted, this seems very unlikely.

So overall, I'm still not sure. I bet I'll look back at this in a few books time and have very different opinions. I've read the first three and the eidolon a few times along with as much as I can find, including the extras on KD Edwards Google Drive and the extra content posts on Twitter.

#the hourglass throne #the hanged man #the last sun #the tarot sequence spoilers #the tarot sequence #rune saint john #brand saint john #adam saint nicholas #quinn saint nicholas #max saint john #the tower #the arcana

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