#terapsina reads the queen's thief

[terapsina]

Things that brought me great joy in Return of the Thief.

Spoilers

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BIG SPOILERS

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That scene with the 'did you spend the whole night prying the rubies out of the crown?' 'nope... but one of my ancestors did' 😁😅

And 'those diamonds were lost during the Amanix uprising' 'they were stolen by my great-great-grandfather during the Amanix uprising, yes'.

'Run.'

'If I'm not allowed to kill him then neither are you'.

'Costis's ship has been sighted off the coast.'

Gen feeding melons to the Mede empire's elephants.

Gen wanting an elephant.

Irene getting Gen a few elephants 🐘❤️

KAMET.

'If we order Costis to remain with the guard his heart is unlikely to be in his work' ❤️

'Tell me how you see Kamet captured and dead and Costis nowhere in his story?'

Pheris being a precious sweetheart getting adopted by basically everyone around him.

Eddis SO RELIEVED to dream about running through her city as the mountain erupted and finding every street empty.

'Hector.' 💔💔❤️

Eugenides holding Eugenia in his arms.

'The king and his thief.'

The God Eugenides twisting two strands into a knot while the fates weren't looking. 'Let it stay.' 'It looks better, this. Doesn't it? Say it does.'

'I RESIGN!' *throws signet ring in the faces of the barons* *horrified silence*

'If he resigns I'll go with him' *the sound of the selfish barons experiencing a nervous breakdown*

Irene has FRIENDS NOW😭😍.

Everyone dancing on the palace rooftops with the gods.

Sophos pouring water on Gen's head.

Gen almost pulling Sophos out the window because they are clearly CHILDREN.

All the moments Pheris was given new math.

THE ENTIRE 352 PAGES.

[andsuddenly-meow]

Get to know you meme

I was tagged by @terapsina. Thanks! It’s the first time I got one of these :)

1. Relationship status: Single

2. Lipstick or chapstick: Chapstick

3. Three favorite foods: Is breakfast a food? No? Pizza, roast chicken with fries, donuts (though I mean not the ones with the holes in the middle. I am talking about jam filled and sugar covered donuts, aka Pfannkuchen)

4. Song stuck in your head: Islands in the stream (I seriously hope that will fade as soon as we’re done singing it today...)

5. Last movie you watched: ?? why all these hard questions. I think it was “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” (i’m mostly watching shows and currently the volleyball women’s world championship)

6. Top three shows: Xena, Legend of Korra, Brooklyn Nine-Nine

7. Books I’m currently reading: Licht wirft keinen Schatten (it takes me so long to read this one through, help), also need to continue reading the queens thief series

8. Last thing I googled: ... the queens thief series (because I am never 100% sure what this series is called)

9. Time: 10:04 (am)

10. Dream trip: Roadtrip through New Zealand

11. Anything you want: this might sound selfish and superficial, but I want to have a really comfortable amount of money to, you know, not worry about money stuff. But also because I could help and support so many things, people, projects etc. I really want to do better by this world (and while you can do a lot without/little money, it certainly would help to have more)

Rules: Tag 15 people you want to get to know better.

lmao I don’t know that many people. So I will tag: @thegirl20, @alsopretty-gay and @redlance

[terapsina]

I am so happy that my maybe most favorite book series received my absolute favorite ending ever.

So guess who just read the entirety of Megan Whalen Turner's 'Return of the Thief' in one sitting despite starting way too late and finishing it at 3am despite knowing she'd have to wake up in two hours?

Yes, me.

And I don't regret it at all. AT ALL.

It was everything I hoped for and more. I haven't felt this satisfied with an ending since Leverage. My trust in the author was great but somehow all my hopeful expectations were still obviously too low because she delivered something that is just... pure magic.

And now all I can say is that anyone who is worried about finishing The Queen's Thief series out of nervousness: DON'T BE! And anyone who didn't want to start reading these beautiful books out of fear that the ending would be weak: FEAR NOTHING!

Years ago these books and the characters in them stole my heart and I have never been so happy to lose it.

[terapsina]

After some thought I’ve decided I’m actually fine with there not being like an absolute moment where it’s clearly stated that Kamet and Costis share a romantic love story (even though their journey was absolutely the romantic sort). 

You know why?

[spoilers]

First, because of the perspective the story is written from.

It’s written as an account of events that Kamet puts to paper with the intention of sending it to someone else. For a former slave just outright saying that he’s in love with Costis would be far too personal, hell it would probably be far too personal for just about everyone.

And second, because of the way these entire series are written.

I mean we know Eugenides has loved the Attolian queen since childhood, but during Gen’s account of ‘The Thief’ we never actually guessed that. And that’s because like for Kamet, Gen just never added that to his account of the events.

Actually Kamet puts a lot of stuff in that paints the picture of what Costis means to him (like for example referring to him as ‘my Attolian’ on one occasion and ‘my Costis’ later on another).

That’s not even touching on the fact that through the entire story they compare themselves to Immakuk and Ennikar on multiple occasions (who I might point out at one point share a happier version of the story of Orpheus and Eurydice, I mean going into the Underworld to fetch back their other half because living without them was impossible? Exactly).

And the fact that Immakuk and Ennikar seem to share that view of the comparison (after all the Gods in this series tend to interfere in the lives of the people that are ‘theirs’ in some way) rather proves the point.

Also Kamet describes Costis as handsome at one point I think?

Hell at the end of the book he actually tries to take the full fall to protect Costis, which is huge.

Plus there’s the notable moment with Goddeker right after he figures out that Costis isn’t an escaped slave like him and Kamet, where he starts spitting out all those ugly insults and thinks that Costis has been lying to Kamet and promising him love.

And not once is there a line that would imply that Kamet doesn’t ‘see him that way’ or anything like it.

And anyway, this series follows a certain pattern.

The Thief introduced Gen, while The Queen of Attolia introduced his love story with Irene.

The Thief also introduced Sophos, while A Conspiracy of Kings introduced his love story with Helen.

The King of Attolia introduced Costis and Thick as Thieves DEFINITELY introduces his love story with Kamet.

(but I do feel that a future story should at some point confirm the relationship to make this feel complete)

[terapsina]

I love that we finally find out why Eugenides kept being fed sand and that it was not for the reasons he thought he was being fed sand.

[terapsina]

Also that scene in the gardens between Kamet and Irene where she asked him to recite that poem almost made me cry.

[terapsina]

Eugenides wasn’t the Attolian (on reflection I don’t know what I was thinking there), but I’m pretty sure I’m right about my new prediction.

That ‘work-dogging kitchen boy’ that Kamet described was DEFINITELY Eugenides.

When he made it home, he recopied one of his brother’s scrolls and sent it to me.” The handwriting had been atrocious—I could see why the scribes hadn’t let him work with the rest of the queen’s indentured—but the text had been by Enoclitus, and I’d never seen it before.

^^^ that part totally clinches it.

First of all the handwriting, because this would have been right after he lost his hand and was writing with his left one.

And that copy being unfamiliar would make sense considering the fact that the scroll was coming from the Eddis library.

[terapsina]

“If you like. First, tell me—how did you come to Ianna-Ir?” 

He misunderstood. With a tilt of his head and a wince, he said, “I punched the king in the face.”

Oh thank god, I can finally stop circling this question.

Hello Costis :)

(though I was already pretty sure when the Attolian was fondly remembering his King’s habit of walking on palace walls (sometimes drunk) and Kamet misinterpreted it as him wishing for the King to fall to his death)

[terapsina]

The fact that the Attolian isn’t being called anything other than the Attolian is suspicious and probably important.

So I’m guessing it’s either Costis or Teleus? Or Gen himself (though I can’t really see it being Gen himself).

[terapsina]

And the more I read the more certain I am that my first first prediction is right and Nahuseresh wasn’t actually assassinated.

Because Kamet keeps fearing that the Attolian will come across the information about him having ”killed” his (!former!) master, but doesn’t seem to realize that very suspiciously there’s actually no such information floating around.

And also this is why Costis keeps apologizing.

Also Kamet seems to have forgotten that guy at the beginning who was acting all strange, who brought him to Costis and the initial meeting spot in the first place so... yup.

[terapsina]

I am now reading Thick as Thieves (The Queen’s Thief #5) and I wanted to make a prediction to see if I turn out to be right or not.

(it contains spoilers though so)

So I’m up to where Kamet is just now leaving the city with the Attolian, because his Master was just poisoned and he doesn’t really have a choice.

My prediction: Nahuseresh is FINE. Gen is pulling a trick because Kamet wouldn’t have come willingly for anything other than self preservation.

[terapsina]

My favorite thing about The King of Attolia was that while Eugenides was distracted by puppeteering the ruin of a Baron’s house, Irene had neatly created the tune that made Gen dance himself into the position of a King, and she did it by barely lifting a finger.

It really was well played.

I got confused near the middle of the book because that’s when all the strands started being pulled together. Costis started respecting his king, the attendants got their well deserved dressing down, the court were realizing that their Queen might be in love with her husband after all, the conspiracies were revealed and dealt with... in a word, stuff that usually takes place more near the end.

But then I finished the book and realized that this was because in this book, the point wasn’t about how Eugenides the Queen’s Thief managed to pull the wool over everyone’s eyes until just the right moment, it was about Queen Attolia (and the gods) dragging him into the light of day (whether he wanted to be there or not) because being constantly underestimated is all well and good for a thief but a king needs to be reckoned with (and underestimated only under the right circumstances).

And I rather love that.

Also the romance aspects of it were amazing. And having them be slowly revealed through an outsider POV was brilliant.

And I liked Costis a lot too. Especially the further we got into the story and the more he saw of Eugenides’ true personality. And though I absolutely predicted him ending up attacking his king during practice to force him to show that he wasn’t an inept swordsman it was still really satisfying.

I’m hoping he makes further appearances in the following books too.

So currently this is ABSOLUTELY my favorite book in this series. And I’m more and more sure that this series might become one of my favorite ones ever. The best gem I’ve found in recent memory tbh.

[terapsina]

“When you stop fussing,” Gen had said, slipping to his knees beside her couch, “I will sleep with two knives under my pillow.” 

Attolia had looked down at him and said sharply, “Don’t be ridiculous.” 

Only when Eugenides laughed had Sounis realized her implication: If she ever turned against Eugenides, a second knife wouldn’t save him. He almost swallowed the olive in his mouth unchewed.

My god, I love them so much.

And Attolia is seriously rapidly becoming one of my favorite characters ever, from any story.

[terapsina]

Eugenides loses a sparring match to Melheret, throws a slight tantrum (and two swords) and then there’s this line:

Eugenides tipped his head back to look at the sky. He said, “That was more difficult than I anticipated.”

And you know... something tells me he’s talking not about losing the sword fight to the Mede ambassador but about losing to the Mede ambassador on purpose.

One of these days no one’s gonna believe him anymore when he tries to pull that off again.

(actually the Eddisian and Attolian onlookers were already suspiciously amused, so the pool of people who would buy that is already shrinking rapidly).

[terapsina]

I’m back to guessing that the Attolian is Costis.

[terapsina]

No, the Attolian is starting to feel suspiciously more Gen-like. If it IS Eugenides, then what the HELL is he doing all the way in another empire? Isn’t he kind of busy being king? Doesn’t he have spies for this sort of stuff?

I mean, Irene can take care of the country herself, yes. And this IS exactly the kind of stuff he did for Eddis too. And the name of the book IS Thick as Thieves.

Okay, I’m rapidly convincing myself that it’s Gen. If I’m wrong I’m gonna end up being so confused, because I’ll have projected too much onto the Attolian.

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On the other hand wouldn’t Kamet have noticed a missing hand by now?

So it’s not Gen?

I seriously need to stop trying to guess, I’m just going around in circles.