“He could tell her he loved her. He ached to shout it out loud for the gods and everyone to hear. Little good it would do. Better to trust in the moon’s promises than in the word of the Theif of Eddis. He was famous in three countries for his lies”
- Megan Whalen Turner, The Queen of Attolia
I know this quote doesn’t match up with the scene but it’s so sweet and one of my favorite lines from this book which is truly one of my favorite books and I have read more times than I can count!
I was rereading all the Kamet scenes in QoA because I was sure they would be more upsetting post-TaT, and this one in particular really got to me
“I hadn’t expected to see you fall victim to a pretty face” has like three additional layers of meaning once you know about Marin. There’s the implication of “I hadn’t expected to see you fall victim to a pretty face AGAIN, after what happened last time.” He still seems like he’s teasing Kamet here, but in a far more cruel and personal way.
And the fact that Nahuseresh just assumes that Kamet has a crush on the queen of Attolia gives Kamet a perfect excuse for feeling some sympathy towards her. Nahuseresh doesn’t find it implausible that he and Kamet would be attracted to the same woman, because it’s happened before, but he also doesn’t see it as a problem this time, because the circumstances are so different and because Kamet knows better now. It seems so obvious to the reader that Kamet has no romantic interest in Irene at all, but the fact that he and Nahuseresh have this history allows him to use that assumption to cover up his real, far more dangerous feelings.
I have been re-reading the Queen’s Thief series by M.W. Turner lately because I’m still salty about the delay of the last book (…I’d already ordered it! from Germany because they don’t sell it here! I had already paid and had to cancel!) and it made me wonder about a few issues the fandom has been speculating about. I have my own theories and I’m going to make several posts about it.
Firstly - who will be the next Thief?
Many readers seem to think it will be Costis because he has already acted as the Thief by stealing Kamet from the Mede in ‘Thick as Thieves’. I don’t really agree with this theory and here’s why:
1. In general, Costis „doesn’t have the temperament” (to use Helene’s words) to be the Thief. Thieves of Eddis are independent souls and outsiders – Costis is a team player at heart. He didn’t take it well when Gen separated him from the rest of his squad in the Royal Guard.
2. Thieves of Eddis like to play by their own rules – Costis is a natural follower. When he stole Kamet from the Mede he was following his King’s orders. What’s more, while Thieves of Eddis act on behalf of their monarchs they swear no oaths and might choose to go against the throne should they consider the person sitting on it unworthy. Costis, on the other hand, has already sworn an oath of loyalty and takes it so seriously that he couldn’t act against Gen even when he’d hated him and considered him the worst king ever.
3. Thieves of Eddis need to be sneaky and conniving, and lying bastards at times – Costis is honest. He can lie when he has to but he doesn’t like to and is bad at it. He doesn’t like intrigue and it took him some time to realise someone was trying to kill him and make it look like an accident. He also had to be kept in the dark about some aspects of the „steal Kamet” plan for it to work.
4. Lastly, Costis is too old - Gen started his training when he was still a kid. While Costis’ exact age (nor anyone else’s ) is never stated, I think it’s safe to assume that in ‘King of Attolia’ he must be in his late twenties at least.
To sum it up, I believe that Costis’ role in the ‘Thick as Thieves’ is not to be the Thief in his own right but to be Gen’s proxy – to act on Gen’s behalf, carry out his plans and go where Gen himself cannot go due to his obligations as a monarch. This is even stated in the book: Costis’ earring with his King’s personal coat of arms means that he’s Gen’s man and acts as an extension of Gen’s will.
But if not Costis, then who?
Well, I believe that a suitable candidate for the role has already been introduced. Someone of appropriate age to begin training, someone intelligent (but hiding it behind an obnoxious facade) and thinking „outside the box”; someone who – like Gen – doesn’t have much respect for authority, likes riling people up and yanking their proverbial chains for the heck of it, and who isn’t above snooping around in other people’s correspondence if need be (the need being his curiosity that is).
