A review from Orson Scott Card
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queensthiefI stumbled across this old review and found it very interesting.
It's a really bad idea to start a trilogy with the second volume. But I was traveling and desperate for something good to read. The bookstore didn't have the first volume; the third volume was only out in hardcover, and why spring for that when you don't even know if you like the series yet?
So I bought volume two.
The author is Megan Whalen Turner. The first volume is The Thief. The third volume is The King of Attolia. And the book I read is The Queen of Attolia.
The titles notwithstanding, all three books are mainly about the thief, though he's no ordinary cutpurse or burglar. This young adult fantasy is set in an ancient Greek land where one of the kingdoms has a semi-hereditary office called "the Queen's (or King's) Thief." He's a one-man intelligence service, creeping into other kings' palaces and eavesdropping, stealing documents, or (occasionally) conducting "diplomacy with prejudice" -- i.e., assassination.
This is a world with little magic, and what there is comes from the workings of the gods. They are not the familiar gods of Greek mythology, just as none of these little kingdoms corresponds with any real city-state of ancient Greece. The Thief is named Eugenides, which is the same name as the god of thieves whom he serves. He is downright pious about it -- but in the process of the story he begins to have good reasons that the very gods he serves have come to hate him.
He is caught by an enemy and, in the traditional (but rarely used) punishment for thieves, his right hand is cut off. And that's only the beginning of his troubles. By the end of the fascinating, compelling story, he has a very long list of complaints against the gods.
In fact, because I read this just before rereading C.S. Lewis's finest novel, Till We Have Faces, it seemed obvious to me that Turner has to be familiar with Lewis's work, which is also set in an imaginary kingdom in the vicinity of ancient Greece, with imaginary gods, and with a main character who has a long list of complaints against the gods who have, she believes, used her ill.
It might be coincidence. It doesn't really matter. What does matter is that Turner's novel is, for me at least, even more emotionally effective than Lewis's, if only because the writing is less distant and we rather like the main character better.
Turner's handling of personal politics and diplomacy in an era when kingdoms were very small is as accurate as I think a modern writer can achieve. More to the point, she creates intriguing characters who grow more important to us as they become more complex.
Sometimes she seems to cheat a little, withholding from us information that is perfectly well known to the main characters. But in fact she's quite careful not to use the viewpoint of the character who knows the secret during the time she's keeping the secret from us. It's a deft juggling act, but she pulls it off with flair.
Needless to say, I'll be reading The Thief and The King of Attolia as soon as I can lay hands on copies of them. Still, I'm happy to report that you don't have to have read the first book to understand -- and enjoy -- the second.
For me, Turner joins the very small pantheon of strong, realistic fantasy writers who are making of this genre something very fine indeed.
*
Since writing the above, I bought and read King of Attolia. It is, if anything, even better.
Though the same characters continue from the previous story, this is a different kind of book. The magical element in this "fantasy" is very, very slight. Instead, this is a Graustark novel -- a story set in an imaginary kingdom -- and it focuses on political intrigue, threatened assassination, trust, and personal relationships.
Another thing this book isn't is "young adult." Yes, a couple of main characters are young -- but in an era when they could already function in adult roles. And I wonder if this book might be too sophisticated for a lot of young readers. Not because of sex, for the book shows none, but because Turner writes about small-kingdom politics at a very high level.
But then, there is no place in our society where personal politics is carried on with more ruthlessness and intensity than junior high school. No matter how much childish behavior you find in Congress or university faculties, image-building, character-assassination, and jockeying for position reach their peak among seventh and eighth graders. So this novel may be exactly right for that age group.
It's also an adult book, however -- an unusually entertaining and intelligent one -- and I recommend it highly. Give the gross-out thrillers a break and pick up something that will actually exercise your brain and leave you feeling rather good about being human.
And one for The Thief:
For the past two weeks, I've reviewed books by Megan Whalen Turner. I read them in a weird order -- the second book in the series first (Queen of Attolia), then the third one (King of Attolia). Now I finally got to read the first book, The Thief, which was a Newbery Honor Book in 1997. It's quite different from the latter two, and not just because it's told in first person.
It's a smaller book. The intricate politics of the sequels is there, but it is concealed behind the adventure; and I suspect that if I had not already known the things I learned from the sequels, I would have been annoyed at how much key information, fully known to the narrator from the start, was withheld from the reader.
But ... not to worry. It's a wonderful book, and I'm looking forward to reading more by her.
Source: http://www.hatrack.com/osc/reviews/everything/2006-02-12.shtml
It's a really bad idea to start a trilogy with the second volume. But I was traveling and desperate for something good to read. The bookstore didn't have the first volume; the third volume was only out in hardcover, and why spring for that when you don't even know if you like the series yet?
So I bought volume two.
The author is Megan Whalen Turner. The first volume is The Thief. The third volume is The King of Attolia. And the book I read is The Queen of Attolia.
The titles notwithstanding, all three books are mainly about the thief, though he's no ordinary cutpurse or burglar. This young adult fantasy is set in an ancient Greek land where one of the kingdoms has a semi-hereditary office called "the Queen's (or King's) Thief." He's a one-man intelligence service, creeping into other kings' palaces and eavesdropping, stealing documents, or (occasionally) conducting "diplomacy with prejudice" -- i.e., assassination.
This is a world with little magic, and what there is comes from the workings of the gods. They are not the familiar gods of Greek mythology, just as none of these little kingdoms corresponds with any real city-state of ancient Greece. The Thief is named Eugenides, which is the same name as the god of thieves whom he serves. He is downright pious about it -- but in the process of the story he begins to have good reasons that the very gods he serves have come to hate him.
He is caught by an enemy and, in the traditional (but rarely used) punishment for thieves, his right hand is cut off. And that's only the beginning of his troubles. By the end of the fascinating, compelling story, he has a very long list of complaints against the gods.
In fact, because I read this just before rereading C.S. Lewis's finest novel, Till We Have Faces, it seemed obvious to me that Turner has to be familiar with Lewis's work, which is also set in an imaginary kingdom in the vicinity of ancient Greece, with imaginary gods, and with a main character who has a long list of complaints against the gods who have, she believes, used her ill.
It might be coincidence. It doesn't really matter. What does matter is that Turner's novel is, for me at least, even more emotionally effective than Lewis's, if only because the writing is less distant and we rather like the main character better.
Turner's handling of personal politics and diplomacy in an era when kingdoms were very small is as accurate as I think a modern writer can achieve. More to the point, she creates intriguing characters who grow more important to us as they become more complex.
Sometimes she seems to cheat a little, withholding from us information that is perfectly well known to the main characters. But in fact she's quite careful not to use the viewpoint of the character who knows the secret during the time she's keeping the secret from us. It's a deft juggling act, but she pulls it off with flair.
Needless to say, I'll be reading The Thief and The King of Attolia as soon as I can lay hands on copies of them. Still, I'm happy to report that you don't have to have read the first book to understand -- and enjoy -- the second.
For me, Turner joins the very small pantheon of strong, realistic fantasy writers who are making of this genre something very fine indeed.
*
Since writing the above, I bought and read King of Attolia. It is, if anything, even better.
Though the same characters continue from the previous story, this is a different kind of book. The magical element in this "fantasy" is very, very slight. Instead, this is a Graustark novel -- a story set in an imaginary kingdom -- and it focuses on political intrigue, threatened assassination, trust, and personal relationships.
Another thing this book isn't is "young adult." Yes, a couple of main characters are young -- but in an era when they could already function in adult roles. And I wonder if this book might be too sophisticated for a lot of young readers. Not because of sex, for the book shows none, but because Turner writes about small-kingdom politics at a very high level.
But then, there is no place in our society where personal politics is carried on with more ruthlessness and intensity than junior high school. No matter how much childish behavior you find in Congress or university faculties, image-building, character-assassination, and jockeying for position reach their peak among seventh and eighth graders. So this novel may be exactly right for that age group.
It's also an adult book, however -- an unusually entertaining and intelligent one -- and I recommend it highly. Give the gross-out thrillers a break and pick up something that will actually exercise your brain and leave you feeling rather good about being human.
And one for The Thief:
For the past two weeks, I've reviewed books by Megan Whalen Turner. I read them in a weird order -- the second book in the series first (Queen of Attolia), then the third one (King of Attolia). Now I finally got to read the first book, The Thief, which was a Newbery Honor Book in 1997. It's quite different from the latter two, and not just because it's told in first person.
It's a smaller book. The intricate politics of the sequels is there, but it is concealed behind the adventure; and I suspect that if I had not already known the things I learned from the sequels, I would have been annoyed at how much key information, fully known to the narrator from the start, was withheld from the reader.
But ... not to worry. It's a wonderful book, and I'm looking forward to reading more by her.
Source: http://www.hatrack.com/osc/reviews/everything/2006-02-12.shtml
no subject
Date: 11/24/09 09:00 pm (UTC)He has some surprising insights that I haven't really seen anywhere else: that the third book is so complicated it really *isn't* appropriate for young readers, but also, then, that it very well might be after all, considering what the young readers' school cultures are like. (Contradictory but sense-making. I'm pretty sure I get what he meant.)
One thing, though...I can understand why he would feel the way he did about the secrets in the first book, but I have to say I think someone who read the first book *without* knowing all the tricks beforehand would not be annoyed by the secrecy, but flabbergasted by what was, to them, a stunning revelation. (At least that's how I felt.)
One step closer to world domination!
no subject
Date: 11/24/09 11:31 pm (UTC)I hope you're happy
Because I am :D
no subject
Date: 11/25/09 08:30 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 11/25/09 05:52 am (UTC)I also see his point, but if I may disagree a little, since I first read QT when I was a young adult.
If all young adults thought "Twilight" (sorry if you like "Twilight") was excellent literature, then yeah "The King of Attolia" would make almost no sense to people in the 14-18 age range. But... I wrote a 20 page paper discussing the intrigue and history of the Tudor Court when I was 14. By the time I read "The King of Attolia" when I was 15, I was well prepared to understand and appreciate it. Even if a young adult is not mature enough to fully appreciate the book, that does not mean they can't enjoy it.
Mrs. Turner's books tend to attract a rather studious and well-read crowd, and I can vouch for the fact that such people do exist in the young adult group. QT is in the YA classification mostly because of its lack of adult content, and its coming-of-age nature (Gen does mature and grow up as the series continues).
"One thing, though...I can understand why he would feel the way he did about the secrets in the first book, but I have to say I think someone who read the first book *without* knowing all the tricks beforehand would not be annoyed by the secrecy, but flabbergasted by what was, to them, a stunning revelation."
Complete agreement!
My reaction was, "She got me!" I was thrilled by it, but I have heard of people being annoyed or feeling cheated by the withheld information.
(Souji said something like that, right TLE?)
Truth is, when is anyone honest about who they truly are. People don't reveal their life story and the completeness of their personality to ever passing person on the street (Would you even want them to?). Why should Gen? As a reader, we are that random person passing down the street (or by a book in this case). We come to know about Gen's past as we come to know him. Just like with anyone else we meet in this world.
Consequentially, Mrs. Turner's books come a lot closer to real life. You can identify the basics of someone's personality, when you first meet them, but you don't understand the roots of their behavior. You have to figure that out. You have to get to know them first before you discover their past, and as you do so, the person you see in front of you starts to make more sense.
At first Gen didn't make sense to me. He seemed so smart yet why would he boast about stealing the King's Seal in way that he had to have known would get him caught. At first, I attributed it to over-confidence and a lack of maturity; but as I read on, he seemed more intelligent and complicated then that. I also found his motives for wanting to steal the Gift unclear. By the time he said, "I wasn't going back to prison, or Sounis for that matter" I had guessed he wasn't originally from that country and that he might be working for someone. Even so, I never guessed Eddis. It should have been obvious, considering the Magus practically told us when he said that the Thieves of Eddis were named Eugendies.
I was fooled.
no subject
Date: 11/25/09 08:29 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 11/25/09 08:46 pm (UTC)(Eight years and many books later, I still think that.)
~crazyviolin
no subject
Date: 11/26/09 12:53 am (UTC)Yeah, the 10-14 is a little young. That is more the beginning reader stage. QT I better classified in the 14-18 YA section, which is where it is in my local library and bookstores.
"Before that, at least in my own opinion of how *I* was at that age, I don't think a person would have enough sheer experience with human nature to really *get* it. But I still think they'd get that the book was great."
Yep, good point.
no subject
Date: 11/26/09 12:41 am (UTC)I agree with every point you made. Man, I love Sounis!
no subject
Date: 11/26/09 12:49 am (UTC)Hmm... Another essay for Sounis, that will never be graded. This has to be at least the fifth one.
*sigh*
no subject
Date: 11/26/09 01:43 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 11/24/09 09:06 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 11/24/09 09:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 11/24/09 09:49 pm (UTC)Maybe I'll have to move Ender's Game up on my to-read list now. XD
no subject
Date: 11/25/09 10:05 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 11/27/09 03:28 pm (UTC)I haven't written a single short story that's been formally published, and I know a whole lot of other F&SF authors who haven't either.
Though admittedly, I'm in YA and OSC is perhaps talking about the adult SF market; that might be different.
no subject
Date: 11/27/09 10:58 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 11/27/09 11:38 pm (UTC)Admittedly I'm more familiar with the YA side of the market than the adult, so it depends which you're going for -- but even so, I don't think the expectations are so radically different as all that. SFWA probably has good info on what the adult SF&F market is like these days.
no subject
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Date: 11/25/09 02:02 am (UTC)Of course, Orual (heroine of TWHF) isn't as *likable* as Gen (who could be?) But I do think that she is a lot easier to identify with.
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Date: 11/25/09 09:10 pm (UTC)I completely agree!
I read the books this summer and instantly feel in LOVE with them!
For me QoA was the hardest to read, emotionally. What a rollercoster! I have yet to read it again.
I LOVED KoA, knowing that Gen was up to something, but I still felt bad that that he wasn't in Eddis and was in the hated Attolian Court. Honestly, I think I felt worse for Eddis... the bit where she talks about marrying Sounis because Gen would have to make painful decisions in the future between Eddis and Attolia! And she knows he'd be in favor of Attolia. Goodness! I just remember thinking 'where's Sophos when you need him?!"
Kelly
no subject
Date: 11/26/09 01:37 am (UTC)I am so happy to hear that there is a fourth been and who's the central character in there.
SPOILER(I guess?)SPOILERSPOILER
I'm gladder after reading the short little teaser to know that Sophos is alive. I thought his death or whatever would be resolved at the end of KoA but it wasn't, which I didn't really think about until hearing about this fourth book. I am...interested to see how this character is and how big a stake Eugenides takes in it. I just hope it doesn't turn out to be a bust. After four years? It had BETTER NOT.
*If it this explains anything, I read Catching Fire after reading Hunger Games.*