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Clash of Kings
The reread continues. Note: although I mostly talk about Clash of Kings here, I have some mild spoilers for books three and four and some speculation about Dance With Dragons. And now, onwards!
This is my least favorite of the series, for varying reasons. Part of the problem is that so much of this book belongs to Jon and Arya and Catelyn, three of the characters that do the least to engage me. I don't dislike Jon, even with the emo and angst, but for whatever reason, the storyline in the north just never enthralled me until the third book – and even then, the parts that enthralled me involved Bran, Sam and Stannis, not Jon.
Arya, I realize, is a fan favorite. I liked her in the first book, liked her rebelliousness and insight and sense of justice. She was someone I could identify with – although, to be truthful, I'm far more like Sansa – someone who felt like an outsider in her world, someone terrible at doing the things her world wanted her to do. This is all great stuff. But in this book, she begins to turn into a sociopath, and I like her a lot less. Not to mention that her storyline here is relentlessly depressing, what with rapes and murders and Vargo Hoat.
And Catelyn – well, I went into that last post. I like her more in this book, partly because I can understand and forgive her more. Like Arya, she is in shock and grief at the changes of the world. But. Catelyn. Yes, I know you think Robb needs you; he's fighting a war. I know you think you have two daughters in King's Landing that need rescue.
You also have two children up in Winterfell, not to mention a castle without a strong leader. Given that in the previous book you'd already decided that Ser Rodrik and Maester Luwin couldn't handle delivering a message to King's Landing, what on earth made you think that they could handle remaining in charge of Winterfell and the North, without adequate troops, during a war? Robb has Edmure and the Blackfish. Sansa and Arya are unreachable. Go to Winterfell. Heading to meet with Renly instead (an expedition that easily could have and should have been given to Edmure or the Blackfish or even one of the Freys)….
….well, we know how that turned out.
Which leads me to Theon.
Theon is my least favorite character in the series, bar none. Oh, yes, I have moments of sympathy for him. After all, he's been a hostage, exiled from his family, and as he says – and this rings very true, especially when combined with Jon's comments – that he was never accepted at Winterfell; that he was always aware of his untrustworthy status. We only get hints of this in Game of Thrones, where he is introduced as a long standing member of the household and a close friend of Robb's, but also someone who, as Ned notes, needs to be watched.
And does he.
Not surprisingly – Aside. I keep finding myself using that "not surprisingly" term everywhere in these posts, and it brings up something that I think Martin does very well: you pretty much always know where the main characters are coming from, what drove them to be the people that they are. It's not just solid worldbuilding, but character building. Anyway, back to Theon – he's grown up to be a complete asshole. It's the little things, again, the kicking of the head of the executed guy, way back in the second chapter of the series. The arrogance. The attitude. (Although he's right: Robb should have thanked him for saving Bran.)
And yet.
Having done nothing to make me like him in the first book, Theon begins by ruining a girl and possibly getting her pregnant on the way over to the Iron Islands, then callously abandons her. He follows that up with being rude to his uncle (who, ok, is kinda creepy) and, upon seeing his father, pretty much immediately launching into Hi, I'm Theon and Awesome without a single word of, so, how have things been in the castle? What's up with Victarion and so on? Given that his father has three living brothers, not to mention a daughter, Theon's assumption that he remains the heir is….well, questionable. He knows enough history to know better. And then of course he follows this up by failing to recognize his sister (well, it's been awhile) failing to notice that the islanders are bowing to her, not him, failing…yeah. It's annoying.
And then he attacks Winterfell. That, actually, is a shining moment. Oh, yeah, it sucks for the Starks – but it grants Theon the revenge he so desperately needs. It's his moment to prove himself, and it works, and despicable and traitorous though it was I got a glimmering of approval for him –
-- and then he kills two little kids just to keep himself from looking bad.
If the kids had been Bran and Rickon, that would have been bad enough – as his sister and Maester Luwin point out, Theon's actions inflame the country against him and pretty much ensure that the Iron Islanders are about to have a considerably rougher time in the North. But killing two other kids? Without verifying that Bran and Rickon were dead? It's not just a despicable action (and Martin's hint that the second boy may actually be Theon's son just makes matters worse). When and if the Stark boys are found – and Theon has no reason to think they won't – his limited credibility vanishes.
It's all the more frustrating because Theon does display moments of intelligence here and there, and I guess he can't be expected to recognize that Reek is Ramsey Bolton – frankly, even once Reek identified himself, I was still a bit lost on that in my first reading. But he's annoying, he's whiny, he's arrogant, he rapes women and treats them terribly, and he kills little kids just to save his pride.
Incidentally, as soon as I read that Robb was sending Theon to the Iron Islands – in Game of Thrones, actually, since that chapter was attached to the end of my paperback copy – I said to myself, ok, so, Robb's rule, not going to go well. And that was before Theon attacked Winterfell. Ok, sure, you can argue that nothing in the entire series is going to go well, but Robb trusting Theon is such a monumental mistake, especially since Robb knows Theon can be a jerk and knows Theon has not seen his father for years and should know that the Iron Islanders are not exactly going to be gung-ho about allying with people they were fighting with not so long ago….auugh. AUUGH.
I was not at all thrilled to learn that Theon's reappearing in Dance of Dragons. And I fear – I very much fear – that he's going to make it through the entire series. I don't have a good basis for this, just a hunch, and the growing importance of the Greyjoys in the fourth book, and the fact that Martin went out of his way to introduce him and establish him as a complete jerk in the second chapter of the series. I hope I'm wrong.
I also hope he gets eaten by a dragon. Slowly.
Anyway.
Which is not to say this book doesn't have moments of greatness. It does, and by the second half of the book, I was riveted again. Davos – who doesn't have nearly enough time in this book, alas – is a welcome addition, the viewpoint of someone fully aware of just how fragile the political system is, and, despite his disclaimers, one of the few genuinely moral people in the book – even if he was a smuggler. Melisandre fascinates me: a misguided fanatic shaping what she sees to meet her prophecies – although to be fair, she is also one of Stannis' best and most clear sighted advisors when not giving birth to creepy shadow children that run around killing things. I can't wait to read her viewpoint chapters in Dance to see just how she justifies herself.
And as much as I've complained about the focus on other characters, in a small way, this is Tyrion's book as well, the first – and last – book where he is able to shine, to be a hero, even if nearly no one remembers (except Garlan Tyrell, one of the very few decent people in Westeros.)
I'd forgotten how well the Battle of Blackwater is conveyed: I don't typically like battle scenes/war scenes in books, but this is one of the few that doesn't make my eyes glaze over. The moment when Davos sees the explosions and the firetraps; Cersei sitting with her women and courtiers in the castle, talking openly to Sansa at long last; Tyrion realizing that he can be braver than the Hound; the Hound's moment with Sansa; Lancel telling Cersei just how wrong she is to pull Joffrey back at this moment – it's riveting. And the scene that follows, so rich with irony and lies: "Margaery has heard tales of your courage and has come to love you from afar…" and the little incident with Tywin's horse…
Great stuff.
Other bits:
1) GRRM continues to drop hints to the real identity of Jon Arryn's murder even here, although astute readers (I wasn't one of them, although I did guess other matters) could have seen this in the last book. Fascinating, because by this time, who killed Jon Arryn hardly seems to matter.
2) And the Dorne plot is slowly sucked into the books…although as we find out later, the Dorne plot has really been there all along. Anyway. Bye, Myrcella! So sorry about the later ear issue. She does seem like one of the more competent potential rulers, doesn't she?
3) It occurs to me that although we have seen Ned's bones reach Riverrun and leave, we have never seen them reach Winterfell. And although Winterfell is gone, its crypts are not. Meanwhile, GRRM has very carefully included in each and every appendix post Clash of Kings a nice list of the people accompanying Ned's bones up to Winterfell.
Ordinarily, I wouldn't think much of this. But…this is a series where the dead return to life, and apparently are doing so more frequently just now. So….I'm bracing myself for a possible return of Dead Ned.
4) Ah, Dany's prophecies:
. . . three fires must you light . . . one for life and one for death and one to love . . .
. . . three mounts must you ride . . . one to bed and one to dread and one to love . . .
. . . three treasons will you know . . . once for blood and once for gold and once for love . . .
So, on the basis of no evidence whatsoever, I've decided that an upcoming scene will involve Dany desperately lighting a fire as a signal in the desperate hope that this will save someone she loves. Maybe Jon. Maybe not Jon.
Otherwise, I'm inclined to think that any of my interpretations will be as flat out wrong as Cersei's, except that I'm not entirely convinced that the three mounts are all husbands/lovers. It's entirely possible that the one to bed was Khal Drogo, the one to dread is Drogon the dragon (because, you know, he can presumably burn down buildings and eat people) and the one to love is her silver horse. After all we do keep hearing about how much she loves her silver.
Ahem.
Only one of the treasons seems clear: the one for blood, the only one that seems to have already occurred. I know Dany thinks that Jorah's spying is the one for love, except for one slight problem: Jorah loves her. He isn't committing treason to save someone else that he loves, which is how I presume that particular treason will go. But he did initially agree to spy on her and betray her for gold. So. Maybe he's the treason for gold. Or, you know, maybe not.
One minor correction: in rereading this, I realized that I was wrong in one of my comments on the HBO show. Tyrion did tell Shae the entire story as part of his, "Look, working in the kitchens so you can continue to sleep with me is so going to work out for both of us" pitch. So….that was just moved to the first season and told to Bronn and Shae at the same time to save repetition. HBO, you are forgiven, and Shae…you suck. I understand that you're upset about being a kitchen/maid servant instead of a high class, pampered prostitute, but that very true story was meant to tell you that hey, yes, life is really dangerous even apart from the upcoming attack on the city.
This is my least favorite of the series, for varying reasons. Part of the problem is that so much of this book belongs to Jon and Arya and Catelyn, three of the characters that do the least to engage me. I don't dislike Jon, even with the emo and angst, but for whatever reason, the storyline in the north just never enthralled me until the third book – and even then, the parts that enthralled me involved Bran, Sam and Stannis, not Jon.
Arya, I realize, is a fan favorite. I liked her in the first book, liked her rebelliousness and insight and sense of justice. She was someone I could identify with – although, to be truthful, I'm far more like Sansa – someone who felt like an outsider in her world, someone terrible at doing the things her world wanted her to do. This is all great stuff. But in this book, she begins to turn into a sociopath, and I like her a lot less. Not to mention that her storyline here is relentlessly depressing, what with rapes and murders and Vargo Hoat.
And Catelyn – well, I went into that last post. I like her more in this book, partly because I can understand and forgive her more. Like Arya, she is in shock and grief at the changes of the world. But. Catelyn. Yes, I know you think Robb needs you; he's fighting a war. I know you think you have two daughters in King's Landing that need rescue.
You also have two children up in Winterfell, not to mention a castle without a strong leader. Given that in the previous book you'd already decided that Ser Rodrik and Maester Luwin couldn't handle delivering a message to King's Landing, what on earth made you think that they could handle remaining in charge of Winterfell and the North, without adequate troops, during a war? Robb has Edmure and the Blackfish. Sansa and Arya are unreachable. Go to Winterfell. Heading to meet with Renly instead (an expedition that easily could have and should have been given to Edmure or the Blackfish or even one of the Freys)….
….well, we know how that turned out.
Which leads me to Theon.
Theon is my least favorite character in the series, bar none. Oh, yes, I have moments of sympathy for him. After all, he's been a hostage, exiled from his family, and as he says – and this rings very true, especially when combined with Jon's comments – that he was never accepted at Winterfell; that he was always aware of his untrustworthy status. We only get hints of this in Game of Thrones, where he is introduced as a long standing member of the household and a close friend of Robb's, but also someone who, as Ned notes, needs to be watched.
And does he.
Not surprisingly – Aside. I keep finding myself using that "not surprisingly" term everywhere in these posts, and it brings up something that I think Martin does very well: you pretty much always know where the main characters are coming from, what drove them to be the people that they are. It's not just solid worldbuilding, but character building. Anyway, back to Theon – he's grown up to be a complete asshole. It's the little things, again, the kicking of the head of the executed guy, way back in the second chapter of the series. The arrogance. The attitude. (Although he's right: Robb should have thanked him for saving Bran.)
And yet.
Having done nothing to make me like him in the first book, Theon begins by ruining a girl and possibly getting her pregnant on the way over to the Iron Islands, then callously abandons her. He follows that up with being rude to his uncle (who, ok, is kinda creepy) and, upon seeing his father, pretty much immediately launching into Hi, I'm Theon and Awesome without a single word of, so, how have things been in the castle? What's up with Victarion and so on? Given that his father has three living brothers, not to mention a daughter, Theon's assumption that he remains the heir is….well, questionable. He knows enough history to know better. And then of course he follows this up by failing to recognize his sister (well, it's been awhile) failing to notice that the islanders are bowing to her, not him, failing…yeah. It's annoying.
And then he attacks Winterfell. That, actually, is a shining moment. Oh, yeah, it sucks for the Starks – but it grants Theon the revenge he so desperately needs. It's his moment to prove himself, and it works, and despicable and traitorous though it was I got a glimmering of approval for him –
-- and then he kills two little kids just to keep himself from looking bad.
If the kids had been Bran and Rickon, that would have been bad enough – as his sister and Maester Luwin point out, Theon's actions inflame the country against him and pretty much ensure that the Iron Islanders are about to have a considerably rougher time in the North. But killing two other kids? Without verifying that Bran and Rickon were dead? It's not just a despicable action (and Martin's hint that the second boy may actually be Theon's son just makes matters worse). When and if the Stark boys are found – and Theon has no reason to think they won't – his limited credibility vanishes.
It's all the more frustrating because Theon does display moments of intelligence here and there, and I guess he can't be expected to recognize that Reek is Ramsey Bolton – frankly, even once Reek identified himself, I was still a bit lost on that in my first reading. But he's annoying, he's whiny, he's arrogant, he rapes women and treats them terribly, and he kills little kids just to save his pride.
Incidentally, as soon as I read that Robb was sending Theon to the Iron Islands – in Game of Thrones, actually, since that chapter was attached to the end of my paperback copy – I said to myself, ok, so, Robb's rule, not going to go well. And that was before Theon attacked Winterfell. Ok, sure, you can argue that nothing in the entire series is going to go well, but Robb trusting Theon is such a monumental mistake, especially since Robb knows Theon can be a jerk and knows Theon has not seen his father for years and should know that the Iron Islanders are not exactly going to be gung-ho about allying with people they were fighting with not so long ago….auugh. AUUGH.
I was not at all thrilled to learn that Theon's reappearing in Dance of Dragons. And I fear – I very much fear – that he's going to make it through the entire series. I don't have a good basis for this, just a hunch, and the growing importance of the Greyjoys in the fourth book, and the fact that Martin went out of his way to introduce him and establish him as a complete jerk in the second chapter of the series. I hope I'm wrong.
I also hope he gets eaten by a dragon. Slowly.
Anyway.
Which is not to say this book doesn't have moments of greatness. It does, and by the second half of the book, I was riveted again. Davos – who doesn't have nearly enough time in this book, alas – is a welcome addition, the viewpoint of someone fully aware of just how fragile the political system is, and, despite his disclaimers, one of the few genuinely moral people in the book – even if he was a smuggler. Melisandre fascinates me: a misguided fanatic shaping what she sees to meet her prophecies – although to be fair, she is also one of Stannis' best and most clear sighted advisors when not giving birth to creepy shadow children that run around killing things. I can't wait to read her viewpoint chapters in Dance to see just how she justifies herself.
And as much as I've complained about the focus on other characters, in a small way, this is Tyrion's book as well, the first – and last – book where he is able to shine, to be a hero, even if nearly no one remembers (except Garlan Tyrell, one of the very few decent people in Westeros.)
I'd forgotten how well the Battle of Blackwater is conveyed: I don't typically like battle scenes/war scenes in books, but this is one of the few that doesn't make my eyes glaze over. The moment when Davos sees the explosions and the firetraps; Cersei sitting with her women and courtiers in the castle, talking openly to Sansa at long last; Tyrion realizing that he can be braver than the Hound; the Hound's moment with Sansa; Lancel telling Cersei just how wrong she is to pull Joffrey back at this moment – it's riveting. And the scene that follows, so rich with irony and lies: "Margaery has heard tales of your courage and has come to love you from afar…" and the little incident with Tywin's horse…
Great stuff.
Other bits:
1) GRRM continues to drop hints to the real identity of Jon Arryn's murder even here, although astute readers (I wasn't one of them, although I did guess other matters) could have seen this in the last book. Fascinating, because by this time, who killed Jon Arryn hardly seems to matter.
2) And the Dorne plot is slowly sucked into the books…although as we find out later, the Dorne plot has really been there all along. Anyway. Bye, Myrcella! So sorry about the later ear issue. She does seem like one of the more competent potential rulers, doesn't she?
3) It occurs to me that although we have seen Ned's bones reach Riverrun and leave, we have never seen them reach Winterfell. And although Winterfell is gone, its crypts are not. Meanwhile, GRRM has very carefully included in each and every appendix post Clash of Kings a nice list of the people accompanying Ned's bones up to Winterfell.
Ordinarily, I wouldn't think much of this. But…this is a series where the dead return to life, and apparently are doing so more frequently just now. So….I'm bracing myself for a possible return of Dead Ned.
4) Ah, Dany's prophecies:
. . . three fires must you light . . . one for life and one for death and one to love . . .
. . . three mounts must you ride . . . one to bed and one to dread and one to love . . .
. . . three treasons will you know . . . once for blood and once for gold and once for love . . .
So, on the basis of no evidence whatsoever, I've decided that an upcoming scene will involve Dany desperately lighting a fire as a signal in the desperate hope that this will save someone she loves. Maybe Jon. Maybe not Jon.
Otherwise, I'm inclined to think that any of my interpretations will be as flat out wrong as Cersei's, except that I'm not entirely convinced that the three mounts are all husbands/lovers. It's entirely possible that the one to bed was Khal Drogo, the one to dread is Drogon the dragon (because, you know, he can presumably burn down buildings and eat people) and the one to love is her silver horse. After all we do keep hearing about how much she loves her silver.
Ahem.
Only one of the treasons seems clear: the one for blood, the only one that seems to have already occurred. I know Dany thinks that Jorah's spying is the one for love, except for one slight problem: Jorah loves her. He isn't committing treason to save someone else that he loves, which is how I presume that particular treason will go. But he did initially agree to spy on her and betray her for gold. So. Maybe he's the treason for gold. Or, you know, maybe not.
One minor correction: in rereading this, I realized that I was wrong in one of my comments on the HBO show. Tyrion did tell Shae the entire story as part of his, "Look, working in the kitchens so you can continue to sleep with me is so going to work out for both of us" pitch. So….that was just moved to the first season and told to Bronn and Shae at the same time to save repetition. HBO, you are forgiven, and Shae…you suck. I understand that you're upset about being a kitchen/maid servant instead of a high class, pampered prostitute, but that very true story was meant to tell you that hey, yes, life is really dangerous even apart from the upcoming attack on the city.