#volo samos

[lucy-the-cat]

My Goodbye from Epic but it's Evangeline talking to her parents

[imjulia-andilikecats]

HotTake (My Unresolved/One-Sided Beef with War Storm)

Iris should never had a POV, as cool and mysterious as her introduction was in King's Cage. Her POV negatively affected the overall impact of the plot in War Storm.

Let me explain:

Since she was a new character with unknown goals and motives, she was shrouded in mystery, with some readers even hoping that maybe she would be an unlikely ally. It would have been interesting to figure out who she is.

Instead, her POV was an exposition/info dump about the Lakelands, added too many eyes on the OPPOSING SIDE of the war, and diminished the possible impact and tension of the plot twists that happened in War Strom such as;

Anabel and Julian offer Salin Irial to Iris without ANYONE of the Main Characters knowing directly (Not even Cal, who is heir to the throne and their close family).

Iris BETRAYING the Great Betrayer Maven. The moment I read her thoughts about Maven, where he is constantly undermining and dismissing her. I knew Iris was gonna betray her husband.

Volo's Death at the hands of Anabel and Julian. The fact that only Evangeline picked up on her father being offered to the Cygnets when Julian and Anabel gave Salin in exchange for Maven was heartbreaking and conflicting, but it would have been so much more dramatic if we didn't see it from a mile away.

Adding Iris' POV also took away space for more Cal and Maven POVs which are the characters that the fandom was excited to read when Aveyard informed which characters will be having their POVs in War Storm.

Overall, Iris had one of the coolest character introductions in the RQ series, but it went tank when her POVs gave away too much too soon, and for me, the story suffered because of it.

[king-maven-calore]

I agree with the Volo Samos anon abt his close mindedness. If Volo was a real life person, do u think he would be racist?

he is a racist in canon, or a "Bloodist" (?) to be more precise. He thrives on oppression and social division.

[hannaharies]

[of-the-way-and-wildflowers]

Completed Book Aesthetics

The Battle of Corvium ~ Kings Cage

[memoryarchaeologist]

Common enemies make strange allies, but we are allies all the same.

Victoria Aveyard, King’s Cage

[elliemarchetti]

Would write a fanfic about cal and mare going on first date and accidentally see elane and Evangeline

A Ray of Sunshine

Words: 1262

In the first photo they had together, Ptolemus was only three years old and sitting on a black designer armchair in which he seemed to be sinking, trying to hold both Cal and his sister Evangeline in his arms. In the next, the two peers were still wearing diapers and they were all sitting on a shiny white marble floor trying to build a crooked brick tower that was destined to fall ruinously. The third was the first where Maven appeared: he was just two years old and struggled to keep up as they all played in the Samos estate’s garden. Shortly after the photo was taken, Maven fell, scratching his knee, and all four did their best to keep it hidden from his overprotective mother. From that moment on, as tied by a blood pact, the four children backed up each other for every mischief, and while growing up, as they saw their families fall apart, they went on certain they still had someone who would always be there to support them, so Cal didn't ask too many questions when Ptolemus went to his house asking him if he could pretend  he started dating his sister Evangeline.

"I wouldn't ask if it wasn't really important," said the older one, and Cal agreed to go with them for a month to the country estate together with Volo and Larentia, who although were still married, it was evident they couldn't stand each other anymore. The news brought a semblance of joy to the family, and the three almost forgot about that little lie as they spent their time divided between elegant brunches, long horse rides and provincial pubs. It was in one of these that things started to get complicated. As soon as they had entered the tavern, Cal had noticed her: surrounded by boys hanging from her lips, she looked like a small Aphrodite with brown hair and shrewd eyes. He hadn’t been able to take his eyes off her all evening and had carefully studied her movements and those of her companions, to understand if one of them was her boyfriend. Two were undoubtedly her brothers and he had a doubt about the third guy with darker complexion since his hair were red, while the fourth, a blond boy, a little younger than the others, could definitely not be her relative but she seemed to treat him just like everyone else. He took advantage of the opportunity when she went to the counter to order drinks. The place was full, so she had sat down at one of the high stools to wait for her turn, her slender legs dangling.

"You really are very small to find yourself in such a place," he had said, and when she had turned and their eyes had crossed, he understood that he was screwed. They talked for a long time, but on the way back Evangeline told him that they had to establish rules.

"In places like this people talk, and I don't want my parents to start hating you just because they are convinced that you’re cheating on me with the first peasant passing by. So, until the end of the month, it's better if we don't see anyone."

Cal accepted, but within a couple of days he realized that he would absolutely not resist the temptation to go out with Mare at least once, especially when she texted him constantly and seemed definitely interested in him. So one night, after everyone had fallen asleep, Cal slipped out of bed, put on something comfortable and walked to her door. Mare was waiting for him curled up on the rocking chair on the porch and gave him a radiant smile when she saw him beyond the gate.

“It’s like I’m in high school again,” she whispered, with a chuckle, climbing over the metal that divided them, silent as a cat.

“You used to do it often?” he asked, amused, as they walked in the opposite direction from which he had come.

“What? Going out with boys already taken or sneaking out in the middle of the night?” she teased him, and even though Cal knew she was only joking, he wanted to specify that Evangeline wasn’t his girlfriend.

“So why are you spending a month with her family?” she asked, genuinely curious.

“It’s complicated,” he replied, determined to remain vague, but a single sideways glance was enough for the stranger to manage to bring out of him even that little secret.

"And you really didn't ask questions?"

She seemed appalled at the idea.

“The blond guy at the tavern is your best friend, right?” he asked, even though he already knew the answer. “If he asked you to lie for him and tell his family you’re his girlfriend, wouldn’t you do it without asking questions?”

Mare shook her head, a mischievous smile slowly opening on her face: "Are you kidding? I would like to know everything! I would probably also ask him for money to be in it, too."

It had to be nice, to have such a simple life.

"It's different between us," Cal explained. "When you have families like ours, you need someone to support you without asking questions."

It was evident that the girl wanted to know more but she must’ve realized that he wasn’t really in the mood to talk about death mothers, bad marriages and painful memories in general, so she stood silent and Cal asked where she was taking him.

"For clandestine encounters like ours, there is only one perfect place here," she replied, vaguely, and unexpectedly, a couple of traverses further on, turned left, in a narrow street that people who didn’t know of it would’ve never noticed.

“Don’t you find it a little disturbing?” he asked, looking sideways at a crumbling building, too little to be a house.

“Is it fear I hear in your voice, little prince?” she teased him, pricking his ribs with her index. Indeed, having grown up in a wealthy family, he had never had the chance to do things like that, and the trees around him, whose luxuriant branches hid the moon in the sky, seemed vaguely threatening to him, but he carried on, which led him to slam against Mare’s back when she stopped abruptly.

“Apparently, the place’s already taken,” she whispered, stepping back a little. Sitting with their legs dangling over what looked like an old power plant, there were two girls, one with long, red hair and skin as white as porcelain and the other… the other one was Evangeline!

“I cannot believe it!” Mare exclaimed, hiding in the thick. “The major’s daughter is kissing you fake girlfriend!”

Cal looked at the girls, stunned. Why hadn't he thought of this before? And above all, why hadn't they told him the truth? Did they really though Cal could judge her? He wasn't that kind of person and he didn't care who Evangeline chose as a partner, as long as they treated her right, and it was difficult not to do so, given her temper and her scary brother.

"I hope you're not too disappointed," Mare teased him on the way back, when silence lasted too long.

“Just by the fact we can’t have the place for ourselves, but the rest makes sense, especially given the Samos are a very conservative family.”

"Oh, but don't worry, I'm always full of crazy ideas!" she exclaimed, hopping on the sidewalk. Cal smiled. She was perfect, a ray of sunshine after a long rain, exactly what he needed to end his teenager years.

[aarcherons]

red queen ♕ victoria aveyard

that’s what we all are.

@vaveyard