When I was a little girl, I used to finish a book and turn around and read it all over again. The Little Princess, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Travel Far, Pay No Fare. I’m not talking about rereading (I still do loads of rereading), but finishing a book and flipping it over and starting all over again, because you can’t stand the idea of leaving it behind right away. And look, I was serious about Megan Whalen Turner before. I loved those books. When I finished the first three and got the fourth from my ever-obliging big sister, I left the fourth one lying around for several days while I reread the first three. All of them. In order. Picking up on details I hadn’t noticed the first time through. Only then did I carry on with A Conspiracy of Kings.
A Conspiracy of Kings is about Sophos – remember Sophos? Darling studious bookworm Sophos from The Thief? Don’t keep reading this review right now, if you haven’t read the foregoing three books, because I can’t really talk about A Conspiracy of Kings without spoiling the books that have come before. Again I say unto you, stop reading this review and go do something else, if you have not read Megan Whalen Turner’s other books.
Are you gone?
Okay then. So Sophos, heir to the king of Sounis, is on the run. The barons of Sounis and the ambassadors of the Mede are making trouble for Sophos, necessitating a flight to Attolia, where his old friend Gen is now the King. The book opens with Sophos, whom Gen has believed dead, finally reaching the sanctuary of Attolia – well, relative sanctuary, given that the country of which Sophos is king is at war with the country of which Gen is king.
I’ve read several reviews of A Conspiracy of Kings that expressed regret at the way the narrative shifts away from Gen. Now look, I enjoy spending time with Gen as much as anybody, but I thought Sophos was a splendid point-of-view character. In this book, Turner deals with the question of choosing the sort of person you want to be: Sophos has the opportunity to decide whether he wants to go back to his old life. Or in fact he has several opportunities, and until he’s practically forced by circumstance, he doesn’t step up and take responsibility. It’s only when he’s got his back against the wall that he makes the decision to grow up. Sophos. Bless him.
(Anyway, there’s plenty of Gen.)
What can I say? Everything I loved about the foregoing books, I loved about this one. I loved seeing Sophos grow up, especially because he comes to terms with doing things he’d rather not do for the sake of his country, without losing his (can I say this and not make you gag? Only I can’t think of any other way of putting it) sweetness of spirit. There were further political machinations, and a gaining-the-throne scene that pleased me by being quite unlike Sophos and yet perfectly in line with the arc of his character development.
Have you read this yet? Do you think it would be a good thing to have one of the queens narrate the fifth book that Megan Whalen Turner is undoubtedly engaged in writing at this very moment so that she can release it tomorrow and fill my life with yet more joy? I suppose it would be tricky to have Attolia as a POV character, given that she’s so buttoned up, but I think Eddis would be an interesting narrator.
Other reviews:
Book Lust & The Written World
Stella Matutina
Charlotte’s Library (incidentally expresses exactly how I felt when I started reading this book!)
Book Nut
Angieville
A Chair, A Fireplace, & A Tea Cozy
Truth, Beauty, Freedom, and Books
Dear Author
One Librarian’s Book Reviews
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