Series: The Queen's Thief #5
Author: Megan Whalen Turner
Genre: YA Fantasy, Adventure
Publication date: May 16, 2017
Format: Audiobook
Publisher Harper Collins Audio
Narrator: Steve West
Book Description: Deep within the palace of the Mede emperor, in an alcove off the main room of his master’s apartments, Kamet minds his master’s business and his own. Carefully keeping the accounts, and his own counsel, Kamet has accumulated a few possessions, a little money stored in the household’s cashbox, and a significant amount of personal power. As a slave, his fate is tied to his master’s. If Nahuseresh’s fortunes improve, so will Kamet’s, and Nahuseresh has been working diligently to promote his fortunes since the debacle in Attolia.
A soldier in the shadows offers escape, but Kamet won’t sacrifice his ambition for a meager and unreliable freedom; not until a whispered warning of poison and murder destroys all of his carefully laid plans. When Kamet flees for his life, he leaves behind everything—his past, his identity, his meticulously crafted defenses—and finds himself woefully unprepared for the journey that lies ahead.
Pursued across rivers, wastelands, salt plains, snowcapped mountains, and storm-tossed seas, Kamet is dead set on regaining control of his future and protecting himself at any cost. Friendships—new and long-forgotten—beckon, lethal enemies circle, secrets accumulate, and the fragile hopes of the little kingdoms of Attolia, Eddis, and Sounis hang in the balance.
Thoughts:
This installment once more focuses on other character's POV. It can fill at the beginning like is more of a companion novel. We do see the main cast show up eventually, it's just that Gen is not directly involved for most of the story. Don't get me wrong we still have political machinations and strong character dynamics. As it's characteristic of Megan, the details and the plot continue to feel purposeful, everything is thought out, and we do not see a wasted page here. And perhaps even more importantly, the character work here is incredible.
The setting shifts away from the peninsula where Eddis, Attolia, and Sounis are, to the Mede Empire and it's not-so-secret plans to conquer and annex the peninsula. We see Kamet, the secretary and slave of Nahuseresh, the former Mede ambassador to Atolia. When Nahuseresh's scheming backfired and caused the waste of great amounts of coin with nothing to show for it, well he lost face. Now that's he's back in the Mede Empire. He is trying to regain his former political standing. Kamet has what he feels is a close and valued relationship with his master, despite Nahuseresh’s volatility and brutal beatings when slaves make a mistake or displease him, and the hope of an even greater position of power and influence in the future. So initially Kamet laughs it off when an Attolian soldier offers him an escape from slavery and freedom in Attolia. He abruptly changes his mind a few minutes later, however, when another slave, Laela, tells him that Nahuseresh has been poisoned, almost certainly by the emperor’s command. She urges Kamet to go on the run immediately to save himself. This happens to be important because the self-centered bastards have a demented custom; When a Mede master dies murdered, his slaves are 'questiones' which is just another word for tortured until the culprit is found. And if it's a natural death, then the slaves are executed and buried with the master. We continue to get more tidbits of the world and cultures, and once more I am amazed at how well this world-building is. Why is Megan Whalen Turner, not a more known author?
Kamet suddenly changes his mind and decides to take the Attolian's offer. With his escape, he wishes the suspicion to fall on him and save his slave companions the torture. The only comfort he can provide is a quick death. Together the slave and Attolian embark on a journey filled with deception, betrayal, and a lot of bromance. The forced closeness and their journey force them to open their eyes and actually see beyond their stereotypical beliefs. Kamet looks down on Attolian as barbarians with no education or manners, he believes himself above them even as a slave due to their backward ways. And the Attolian soldier, whom you will recognize as a returning character from previous installments- well he doesn't understand how anyone could just accept their fate as a slave. As events conspire to keep them in each other’s company and they go through harrowing experiences together, they gain a greater respect for each other and even begin to develop a friendship.
The Quee's thief shows up in the last part of the story and of course, he puts a new spin on several key elements of the tale. Gen will not disappoint. The story is holding up strong. This is quickly becoming one of my favorite series.
The Queen's Thief series of YA fantasy novels, with allusions to Greek and other ancient mythologies, they're alluded to and gives the cultural background to this richly embroidered world.
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#AYearaThon: Theme mythology, retelling and fairytales
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