Eugenides and Lyopidus

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I had to stop my re-read of The Thief to catch up on my reviews for my blog, but when I picked it back up again this week, I caught something I hadn't before. Remember the story Gen tells about Eugenides and his brother Lyopidus and the fire?

  For a time, Eugenides evaded his request [to do something awesome], but Lyopidus built up his arrogance, telling him over     and over how clever he had been to defeat the Sky God, how much more clever he could be if he just put his mind to it. For instance, he could steal the thunderbolts again, just for a lark, and then return them to Hephestia. (p. 118 of my edition)

I read this and thought, gosh, this sounds familiar. In QoA, Gen is his own Lyopidus. He stole the Gift; therefore, he's a master thief. He keeps telling himself he'll never be caught, never be outmaneuvered. He toys with Sounis, with Attolia, "just for a lark."

In the legend, Lyopidus' pushing sets the world on fire and he dies. In QoA, Gen's bravado and Attolia's subsequent actions set the countries on fire with the flames of war. Gen's cousins die, leaving him as bereft as Eugenides over Lyopidus. And the gods have their hands in both stories.

Clearly, it's not a perfect analogy (no god was "out to get" Gen like the Sky was after Eugenides, etc.), but it did give me a pause.

Minor Character Challenge Prize Banners

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Here are the prizes for the Minor Character Challenge. openedlocket deserves a big thank you for making these.