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queensthiefI’ve been scrounging through past posts and comments looking for discussions of a few ideas and haven’t found quite what I was looking for, so here they are:
1. Back in The Thief, when Eugenides tells the Magus and company the stories of his god, he says that he leaves something out. Have we ever been told what he left out?
Kamet says that part of a tablet is missing from the story of Immakuk and Ennikar—the part that explains exactly how they stole the oil of immortality. Is it possible that these two missing pieces could be connected? Is there a reason why sandal-polisher Eugenides was so interested in Kamet’s Mede mythology? Did the god Eugenides help Immakuk and Ennikar steal (key word: steal) the oil of immortality and does said oil have anything to do with Hamiathes’ Gift?
2. When Kamet has to change his shirt in front of Costis he says something to the effect that “for a moment my secret was visible” (I don’t have the book in front of me now so that might not be an exact quote). On my first reading I assumed he meant the scars on his back from being whipped, but I think he had already said that the scars were visible at the neck of his shift, so maybe he has some other secret? For a few crazy hours I theorized that Kamet might be a woman—after all, the entire book is written in first person so he calls himself “I” not “he,” but then I found the line where he says “I could have been the most powerful man in the empire,” so that theory is probably not true. Any other ideas?
1. Back in The Thief, when Eugenides tells the Magus and company the stories of his god, he says that he leaves something out. Have we ever been told what he left out?
Kamet says that part of a tablet is missing from the story of Immakuk and Ennikar—the part that explains exactly how they stole the oil of immortality. Is it possible that these two missing pieces could be connected? Is there a reason why sandal-polisher Eugenides was so interested in Kamet’s Mede mythology? Did the god Eugenides help Immakuk and Ennikar steal (key word: steal) the oil of immortality and does said oil have anything to do with Hamiathes’ Gift?
2. When Kamet has to change his shirt in front of Costis he says something to the effect that “for a moment my secret was visible” (I don’t have the book in front of me now so that might not be an exact quote). On my first reading I assumed he meant the scars on his back from being whipped, but I think he had already said that the scars were visible at the neck of his shift, so maybe he has some other secret? For a few crazy hours I theorized that Kamet might be a woman—after all, the entire book is written in first person so he calls himself “I” not “he,” but then I found the line where he says “I could have been the most powerful man in the empire,” so that theory is probably not true. Any other ideas?
no subject
Date: 7/11/19 11:01 pm (UTC)When Kamet said his secret was visible, I figured he meant the slave chain around his neck. He kept it covered so no one would see it and know he was an escaped slave.
I have a theory of my own about the upcoming book. Some of us have been theorizing that Eugenedies would end up dying in the last book. I am going to guess no on that. MWT stated in an interview about QoA that she liked to get the worst/bad events over in the early part of the book so she could get on with the story (I am paraphrasing so not her exact words). With that in mind, and since the last one is about the Return of the Thief, it doesn't make sense that she would kill him off. He's the main character; the book is about him; why would she write a book about a dead main character. Anyone else have thoughts on this?
no subject
Date: 7/12/19 07:34 pm (UTC)I remember wondering about Kamet's "secret" too, and coming to the conclusion that it could mean his scars or collar, as already mentioned, OR something yet to be revealed. One just never knows with MWT. I can't read TaT without the niggling sensation that there are still things I'm not catching.
no subject
Date: 7/13/19 04:25 am (UTC)The only way immortality or deification would make me happy would be if Gen and Irene achieve it together. Then they could throw divine ink pots at each other for eternity, and no one would be lonely.
Kamet’s secret could have been the chain, I hadn’t thought of that. I still kind of like imagining that it’s something yet to be explained.
no subject
Date: 8/3/19 05:46 am (UTC)Um, maybe I should stop and say I think this might be serious. Is it weird to say “spoiler alert” before a book comes out? I don’t want to ruin any surprises for anyone so read on at your own risk.
Eugenides (the god) asked the Sky for a “drink from the wellspring of immortality.” I’m betting the wellspring is the same well that Costis and Kamet visited. I wonder if Eugenides (Attolis) had yet another motive for sending Costis to Mede. Stealing something from the well? Scouting it out?
In chapter eight Gen does say, before telling the story of Eugenides and the great fire, “I abbreviated it a bit,” but then he never explains how he abbreviated it! There would be no point for MWT to write that he had abbreviated it unless the deleted part is important.
In the story, it says that Eugenides traveled “across the world” to avoid his half brother Lyopidus’ hatred. Then the Sky appears as a charioteer and takes Lyopidus across the middle sea in his chariot, to Eugenides’ new home. There, the whole fire drama occurs. The fire obviously happened in the dystopia, which means that Eugenides was born and raised across the middle sea, probably somewhere in the Mede Empire! That just about blew all the little minds of all the little birds in my stomach.
The Sky’s chariot reminds me of Anet’s chariot and I suspect that Anet is just another name for the same god. This might shed some light on the nature of the gods in this universe. Unlike the gods in, say, Percy Jackson, whose existence depends on people’s belief in them or in the concepts they stand for, these gods seem solid. They don’t care what name humans call them by, they don’t care about geographical or political boundaries. While in the moment, Costis (on the wall), and Sophos (in his dream) felt like the gods were even more real than anything in the mortal world. Wouldn’t it be interesting if there are other Mede gods or new gods who are the same as Eddisian gods?
Can’t wait to see if I’m on the right track with this!