I’m now about halfway through Red Queen! Through this block of chapters, it seems that Mare is realising just how dangerous politics and intrigue can be. Even if it’s not directly with physical harm… yet. Her position in the court and with the nobility is precarious and she needs to find a way to navigate it. To save herself, her family and the rest of the Reds.
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Maven tightens his fingers in mine, willing me onward. “It’s almost over,” he whispers as we near the far end of the hall. “Almost there.”
I’m glad that, even in an unfamiliar place with unfamiliar people, with people who very well may kill her if slighted, the princes seem to treat her kindly. Even though Maven was just as forced into this as she was, he is being kind.
The king shrugs. “Let them, Elara. The girls need a good night of sleep, and Sentinels would give any lady bad dreams.” He chuckles, tossing a playful nod at the guards.
This is unsettling to me. All we’ve seen of King Tiberias so far is a very cold and calculated mask, cruelty and sweet words when a crowd is near. Seeing him as being playful just doesn’t sit right.
“You know people, you understand them, you see through them.”
“I did a great job of that last night. I definitely knew you were the crown prince the whole time.” I still can’t believe it was only last night. What a difference a day makes.
“You knew I didn’t belong.”
I’d think it would be hard not to tell that he didn’t belong, to be honest. Cal has grown up in the palace. Regardless of whether or not he has been out of it, multiple times, he wasn’t born outside of it. You can acclimatize to an environment, but that would take months to years. We don’t know how long he has been doing this.
How can I explain this to him, if he doesn’t already know? How can I tell him I feel energy in the air like a pulse, like another part of me? Like another sense? Would he even understand?
These people are born with magic. It’s unlikely that there is much that they either wouldn’t understand or wouldn’t be willing to believe.
“Here’s to a long and happy friendship, Officer Samos.”
“Likewise, my lady.”
“Don’t call me that.”
“Whatever you say, my lady.”
I like Lucas, he’s very professional, but cheeky within his job’s bounds. I hope he sticks with Mare, this could be a really good dynamic for the both of them.
Evangeline scoffs at me, brushing off the insult. “Only children take Protocol.”
To my surprise, the queen takes my side. “Lady Mareena has grown up in terrible circumstances. She knows nothing of our ways, of the expectations she must fulfil now. Surely you understand her needs, Evangeline?”
Much like the king’s playfulness, this is unsettling. These royals are supposed to hate her and her people. But they are playful and they are willing to defend her? I can understand the political implications if they don’t in a crowd, but it’s just the three of them in this scene, why would it matter?
He takes my hand gently. The gold I felt on his skin before is gone, replaced with a delightful heat. Before I get a chance to pull away, he leaves me standing alone.
Lucas gives me a moment to collect myself before noting, “You know, we’d get there much faster if you actually moved.”
“Shut up Lucas.”
Lucas and I would be friends.
“Mare, when a Silver says ‘power’, they mean might, strength. ‘Ability,’ on the other hand, refers to all the silly little things we can do.”
If the distinction was worth noting, I think it’s worth highlighting here. I want to see how much this difference is mentioned because I doubt it will matter.
“Thinking all Silvers are evil is just as wrong as thinking all Reds are inferior.”
This is true for most demographics, I would think. But wise words regardless of the fantasy setting or the real world.
A few other ladies wear uniforms as well, but hers shines with the most medals and ribbons. The ugly scar down her freckled face says she might actually have earned them.
So, contrary to what Mare and the other Reds have thought, the Silvers do fight. I don’t imagine it’s many of them and I wonder where in the war they fight. I don’t think it’s the frontlines.
In a fair fight, Macanthos could probably tear Elara apart with her bare hands. But instead, Elara tore the colonel apart with nothing but words. And she’s not even finished. Julian’s words echo in my head – words can lie.
Macanthos may be a colonel, but Elara is a queen and while the queen has not seen physical battle, the court is her battlefield. And Macanthos just got struck with a bomb.
“Let me go.” The command is weak, almost a whisper. I gulp down air like I’m drowning. “Just give me a few minutes, please-“
At this point, it has been a few weeks and Mare is now starting to panic and freak out. The adrenaline would have worn off the same day she became a princess. Shock probably wouldn’t have and her survival instincts wouldn’t have either. It’s understandable as to why she is feeling this way now.
“You better hide that heart of yours, Lady Titanos. It won’t lead you anywhere you want to go.”
Harsh, but not necessarily untrue. Though I think it is more about outweighing the impulsiveness of the heart with the calculatedness of the head. The heart is implusive and the head makes you think before you do, a vital skill in this world.
“We’ve taken everything from her, brother,” Maven murmurs, drawing close. “Surely we can give her this?”
I really like it when I see the princes showing her kindness, not because it’s, well, kind, but because it’s so different to what she was expecting and different to what she has seen in people like the nymph and Queen Elara.
“A king should know his people. That’s why I sneak out,” he murmurs. “I do it in the capital too, and at the war front. I like to see how things really are in the kingdom, instead of being told by advisors and diplomats. That’s what a good king would do.”
That is what a good king would do, but not every king or leader is good and not every king or leader can see beyond their court or their power.
“Changing the world has costs, Mare”
For a girl that said she knew that everything comes at a cost earlier in the book, she has lost a little of that, I think. She’s lost a little of her history in the time she has been in the palace.
“Heard you caved and got a job,” Tramy teases, poking me in the ribs.
Bree chuckles, ruffling my hair. “The army wouldn’t want her anyway, she’d rob her legion blind.”
I shove him with a smile. “Seems the army doesn’t want you either. Discharged, eh?”
I’m glad that we get to see an exchange between Mare and 2 of her 3 brothers before she leaves for the capital. It makes her feel more human and multi-dimensional because, at the moment, she is wrapped in a whirlwind of intrigue. It’s hard to see anything other than her panic and transformation at the moment, let alone who she is at her core.
Kilorn’s frown deepens. “Are you one of them?” I’ve never heard so much anger, so much disgust, forced into a single sentence. It makes me feel like dying. “Are you?”
To Kilorn, the Silvers are other. He enjoys them during the staged fights, but really doesn’t seem to have much of an understanding or exposure to who or what they are at a personal level. It’s easy to hate something with such vitriol when all you know is that they keep you segregated. It can be hard to see that there are other sides to it all. He also has no idea that she is absolutely a Red, but has no way to reconcile that a Red can have power, just as the royal Silvers found it hard too.
Conclusion
It was good to see that Mare was able to get out of the palace with Cal’s help and to see her family because she has been away from them for a few weeks at this point and she knows she will be leaving for the capital soon too. Another good thing to see for the world and character formation was how intense the politics can be and how much it can actually affect the lives of those around Mare, not just her own. I’m looking forward to her becoming the Red Queen that the title promises
If you’d like to follow along or fill in the gaps, you can get the book here!
Bookish Mumma 
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