Hello, fellow prisoners (whether your prison is existential, the world or the
Incarceron)We're back again with our thoughts. We're both still enjoying the book quite a bit. But we'd also like to hear your thoughts.
Shel: I would have expected the prison to be more of a character. It fusses with the weather and trees every now and then, but I want to see more...personality.
Monica: We've still got quite a bit of book left... maybe it's just waiting to make its move? I'm kind of liking it being not-so-sentient, but if it whips out the vocal cords and starts being all, "I'm sorry, I can't do that, Finn," I'll be equally pumped. (I'm also secretly hoping that it speaks through something else -- like, if one of the crazy cyber-horses suddenly swings around and tries to engage them in conversation....)
Shel: I keep asking "what if" type questions with this story, like, "what if Giles hadn't been "killed," and Claudia was being forced to marry him. Would she still like him so much?
Monica: Definitely not. I 100% bet she'd be freaking out just as much now about him... and, let's be honest, there would easily be enough political intrigue that probably she'd be involved in another potential coup as well. "The Crown Prince has many enemies," and all that. But luckily we don't need to worry! Through sheer plot twisting alone, Giles is going to be an awesome future hubby!! (Assuming Incarceron doesn't eat him....)
Shel: I liked the hint into Sia's past. It's interesting with a bit of fairy tale whipped cream on top.
Monica: Seriously, and with "strange eyes, with pale irises," I've got a very Fae feeling about her. Are there elves in this Era?
And as long as we're on the subject, can we go over how much I like Gregor Bartlett? That narrative was fantastic! I'd kill for my diary entries to be that engaging! I'm really kind of bummed he got offed before we actually got to meet him.
Shel: There we have it. Page 203: Finn's voice "seems familiar."
Monica: GASP NO! WHO WOULD HAVE GUESSED!?
Shel: Would you have given Keiro the key? I may have at least tried to hand it to Attia. She seems like the smart and loyal type.
Monica: I think Finn's sort of trapped. He has only known Attia for a very, very brief while, and prior to that he wasn't thinking of her as human. Keiro, on the other hand, is his bondbrother... so even though he probably knows way deep down that Keiro is less than trustworthy, tossing him the key might have seemed like the only option.
Or... maybe he has another copy? It's a fake key!? It's... no, I think he's just desperately hoping Keiro won't betray him....
Shel: My oh my, how exactly did the Fates from Greek myth wind up stuck in the Incarceron?
Monica: Was it you that I was having the conversation with, about how there are only approximately thirty stories in existance, and they all just keep being twisted and turned about and made into new stories with the same core ideas? Maybe "Three ancient creeptastic ladies with a string fetish and a strong belief in their own superiority" is one of those stories! And it lives on even in Incarceron!
Shel: I like, "He was a master chess player at the Court. She was a pawn on his board, a pawn he would make a queen, despite everything" (p. 223). Well put.
Monica: Hmm. Methinks her dad should remember that once she's a queen, she can probably pretty much trample him....
Shel: I always loved the Queen in Chess. She kicks so much bum-bum. I keep asking myself if I could write something like this. And I think the resounding answer is no, no, I could not. I couldn't manage as many plot twists. I suppose I could just say that I tend towards a more "gentle" writing style....
Monica: Ditto -- I'm being pulled so many ways in this that I'm confused sometimes just reading it, let alone trying to write something similar.
So, that's it for now kiddies. We'll be back on Thursday to discuss chapters 18-23. We hope to hear from you before then!!!!!
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