I
would like to believe that the life-changing books I discover are
God's way of leading me onto the path of forgiveness. Mine towards
Him. For screwing me over. But alas, there is, of course, no God. And
I have to sublimate my pain over this non-life I live through wonders
like The Captive Prince.
It
piqued my curiousity after the third time I read a fan tribute on
separate book sites, so I downloaded the damn thing just to get over
another disappointment and you know, move on. (It was much like how I
first read Brothers Karamazov:
by stumbling across references to it in practically everything I was
reading at the tender age of 16. And boy, did THAT book screw me
over.)
But
really, S.U.Pacat (not, I am certain, her real name although she may
indeed be a very cool supercat) can write. Practically every page
sings an aria like a stab through the heart, and you read and re-read
immediately, thinking, no, she can't be this good. But she is. She
has created a world from long ago where duelling princes find
themselves and each other, making it so much more than a fascinating
account of war tactics, or good v evil.
Damen
is betrayed by his brother Kastor and lover Jocaste and sent into
captivity where he meets the supercilious Laurent, neighbouring
prince and all-out SOB. No one knows Damen's royal identity and the
revelations of character that follow are utterly absorbing.
The
interesting thing here is that what is 'good' and what 'evil'
disappears like the best intentions when faced with Nutella or Tyler
Hoechlin; with the latter you simply cave in and indulge, with the
former your worldview is wrenched from its moorings.
A
very clever twist to the tale is how Supacat has made heterosexuality
taboo in her world, the norm is gay pairings. How smart is that in an
instinctively homophobic world/readership.
She
may slip now and then, using words like pellucid
and mordant;
they
“gaze at each other” a bit too often,
and
once, shockingly, the phrase
'No kidding' emerged
out of another century, but I will forgive her anything.
The
last word must belong to either Damen or Laurent. Their dialogues are
so clever, so subtle, so funny, so, and this is what kills me every
single time, whether in the real or unreal world, so True.
My
favourite early scene between Damen and Laurent is in the baths
(Volume 1) where Damen senses the danger for the first time, although
Laurent has already done so. He tells Damen: “Don't be
presumptuous”. Damen sneers, “Too late, sweetheart”.
Or
“Is there anyone at this court who isn't my
enemy?"
"Not
if I can help it," Laurent said.
But
the following is powerful as well:
'That
isn't why. She would have chosen him even if you'd had royal blood in
your veins, even if you'd had the same blood as Kastor. You don't
understand the way a mind like that thinks. I do. If I were Jokaste
and a king maker, I'd have chosen Kastor over you too.'
'I
suppose you are going to enjoy telling me why,' said Damen. He felt
his hands curl into fists, heard the bitterness in his throat.
'Because
a king maker would always choose the weaker man. The weaker the man,
the easier he is to control.”
'My
honourable barbarian. I wouldn't have picked that as your type.'
'Type?'
'A
pretty face, a devious mind and a ruthless nature.”
'You're
alive,' Damen said, and the words came out on a rush of relief that
made him feel weak.
'I'm
alive,' said Laurent. They were gazing at one another. 'I wasn't sure
you'd come back.'
'I
came back,' said Damen.”
No comments:
Post a Comment