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i_read_whatSo last time, we started the story proper, but we haven't actually met our hero yet.
Well, we've seen Aidan as a child in the prologue, but the first chapter was from Aileen's point of view. We've heard her concerns ABOUT Aidan, but we haven't seen Aidan himself. So this will be our first meeting.
I'm optimistic. The early leads of this series were less satisfying: I liked the idea of Alix, but her treatment in the narrative tended to hover between sexy lamp and victim of narrative. Carillon was interesting but very flawed. The less said about Donal the better.
The later leads though have been pretty interesting: Niall was pretty good. Brennan and Corin were likable and interesting. I was less fond of Hart and Keely, but I can't deny that they were well-written. Their personalities annoyed me but that was because those personality types in real life tend to annoy me.
But now we get to meet Aidan!
This is a nostalgia read, of course, and I remember liking him reasonably well in the past. So hopefully that will hold.
Anyway, we start out with a pretty compelling set of paragraphs:
He was up and out of his bed before he knew who or where he was; before he knew what he wanted. The need drove him to it. The compulsion preempted everything: thought, logic, comprehension, much as lir-sickness had. It overtook his body and carried him to the door, where he pressed himself against it in mute appeal for passage.
Inside his head tolled a certainty tainted with a plea:. This time I can touch it… this time it will be real—THIS time, I know—
But the declaration faded, along with certainty, as he came sluggishly to himself from the depths of unsettling dreams. He realized, in despair, it had happened yet again.
Well, he's definitely still prone to disturbing dreams, from the sound of it.
That said, on immediate glance, there doesn't seem to be anything off or alarming about his narration.
We're told that Aidan tends to sleep nude, by the way, and without bedclothes. He's cold now, due to night sweats and seems rather annoyed by his own choices.
"Why?" he whispered raggedly, through the headache only beginning. "Why does this happen to me?"
In the darkness, something stirred. But no answer was offered him; after too many years of the asking, he no longer expected one.
The pounding of his heart slowed. He swallowed heavily twice, disliking the bitter aftertaste of the dream, and scratched irritably at a scalp itchy from dream-fear and reaction. He shivered once, controlled it, then stood up at last from the door.
Last chapter, we heard a lot about Aileen's fears regarding Aidan's mental state. We're still only in the first page or so, but thus far, there doesn't seem to be anything particularly off or alarming about his thought process.
The nightmare seems very unpleasant, and from the sound of it, it happens a lot. But his reaction seems reasonable. I'd be upset too.
Aidan considers going back to bed, but apparently tends toward insomnia after his nightmares, and puts some pants on instead.
Then we get an odd sort of foray into Aidan's sexual history here:
It would not be so bad, he thought wryly, if at least I dreamed of women. They are worth the discomfort of a night become too hot.
He had been a man, as manhood is reckoned, for nearly eight years. He had dreamed, and spilled his seed, into women and into his bed. But it was not of women he dreamed when the dreams were sent by gods.
I mean, I'm glad to see Roberson isn't going the whole neurodivergent = sexless route. I'm a little nonplussed to see him consider it so frankly, but it makes for an interesting contrast with his predecessors. It may also be relevant that, at 23, Aidan's the oldest protagonist we've had since Donal. Niall was nineteen. The boys were 21 and 20. Keely was about 21 in her book too. Two years isn't a huge difference, but at that age, it can make a difference.
Maybe I spoke too soon about Aidan's mental state, because this is interesting:
"Leave it alone—ignore it—" Aidan bit into his lip. "Who is in control: a piece of wood, or you?"
Inside his head, the Lion roared. Aidan's belly knotted.
"Leave it alone," he repeated. "Gods—leave me alone—"
Time to go, someone said. How can you turn back now? It has become ritual… and you are not the kind who changes anything regardless of the need.
Stung, Aidan turned to glare through darkness at the rustling in the corner. "What am I to change? Would you have it be my tahlmorra?"
Now the tone was scornful. You do not even have an inkling what your tahlmorra IS.
Through the link, he lashed out. I know very well what it is—
Do you?
I have known all along. What do you think I am? Are YOU not proof that my tahlmorra is undertaken?
Because I exist? No. The tone, now, was cool. I exist because I am. Because the gods created me.
To be my lir.
The tone spilled into smugness. Or you to be mine.
Nah, he's okay. The voice in his head is just his lir. And Aidan's lir, Teel, seems to be of the provocateur type.
It's also worth noting that Teel is a raven. I don't remember all of Aidan's storyline but I immediately realize this means some amount of it will take place in Atvia. Because, if you recall, Bronwyn was killed in raven form because they're cursed omens there.
...I wonder if Aidan, or anyone else, will be smart enough to send him with actual GUARDS, since he probably won't be able to have the protection of his lir.
But I'm jumping ahead.
We get an idea of how Aidan perceives himself, or at least his dreams:
He had known, for as long as he could remember, he was different. The dreams of childhood had faded during adolescence, dissipated by the intense need for and the bonding with his lir, but once adulthood was reached the dreams returned in force. Now, at twenty-three, he was accounted a warrior in the clans and a full-grown man by the Homanans who called him a prince, but he was still plagued by dreams. By the vision of the chain. By the substance of the chain—until he put out a hand to touch it, and the links dispersed into dust.
As a child, it had frightened him. Growing older, he believed it merely a manifestation of a want and desire he could not fully understand. But of late the dreams had worsened. The desire had become a demand. And Aidan fully believed, with a dreadful certainty, he was somehow, someway, tainted.
Well, dude, from the perspective of someone who knows what genre they're reading, I'm thinking that you're probably dealing with some prophetic dreams or something. We've never encountered this before, but considering that there IS a prophecy, it's not altogether strange to think it could happen.
But we are dealing with Cheysuli culture here, and by now, we have a pretty good idea about how great they are with any kind of issue - mental or physical. I wonder if Hart's been un-excommunicated yet, for example.
Teel is interesting as he's not exactly reassuring. He points out the obvious question, "why would the gods choose a tool that is tainted - unless they forgot..."
I rather like this bit:
There are times, the raven commented, even Cheysuli are fools.
Aidan, searching for release from the tension, settled on irony. It is because of the other blood.
Teel considered it. I think not, he replied. I think it is merely you.
Heh, I read Shapechangers. And I've read the rest of this series. The Cheysuli are fools pretty damn often. But I appreciate the back and forth.
Anyway, Aidan heads to the Lion Throne, against Teel's advice. (Apparently if he ignores the dream, it gets worse.) He seems to have a vision of some kind of chain, but when he reaches for it, it dissolves into dust.
Aidan wants to cry, but he's a Cheysuli warrior and prince, so he can't.
He asks aloud why he keeps coming back when he knows what will answer. And he gets an answer:
"Because the gods, when they are playful, are sometimes cruel instead of kind."
It's Niall, actually. He immediately reassures Aidan that he has the right to be in the throne room no matter what hour it is. Niall may have been listening for a while, because he asks Aidan why Aidan hasn't told him about the dreams.
We get a description:
Aidan stared at the man who, by right of gods and men, held the Lion Throne of Homana. He, like Deirdre, was past sixty, yet as undiminished by age. Still tall, still fit, still unmistakably regal, though no longer youthful. Tawny hair had silvered, fading like tarnished gilt; Homanan-fair skin had creased, displaying a delicately drawn fretwork born of years of responsibility; of the eyes, one was blue and bright as ever, the other, an empty socket couched in talon scars, was hidden behind a patch.
I admit, now that I'm 43 myself, "past sixty" doesn't feel THAT old. I do feel like they should have given us an actual age for Niall. It's not that hard to do the math. He was 19 at the beginning of White Wolf, and about 20 when the twins were born. Brennan was 21 during Pride of Princes, and Aidan was born some nine months to a year after that. Now Aidan's 23. So Niall is approximately 65.
Aidan asks how Niall has time, since he's the Mujhar. But Niall points out that he's sired five children, and is now "reap[ing] the benefits of [his] children's fertility." He notes that while he knows Aidan better than the others, since Aidan's in Homana, there are times that he feels that he knows him least of all.
Aw.
I like this though. Niall, like Carillon, kind of suffered when he went from protagonist to parent. Not to the same extent, of course. There's no "you should rape my daughter" bullshit here. But he definitely had let a lot of things, like Hart and Corin's complete lack of preparation to rule, slip completely out of his notice.
It seems like he's making up for that now. (Actually, I feel like that's an amusingly consistent trait once we have main characters that survive long enough to be grandparents. Aileen and Brennan are having their issues as flawed parents here, but will, as I recall, be really good grandparents in Tapestry of Lions.)
Anyway, Aidan tries to demur, but it sounds like the servants have been gossiping. Niall notes that he thinks Aidan should speak to someone about it, if not to his parents, than to his grandfather.
I like this bit too:
Aidan glanced only briefly at the Lion. Then sat down on the dais next to Niall, putting his back to the beast. He felt a vast impatience—how could he share what no one would believe?—but attempted to honor his grandsire by fulfilling part of the request. "This has nothing at all to do with unworthiness. I promise, grandsire, I know who I am and the task I am meant for: to rule as Mujhar of Homana." Easily, he made the palm-up Cheysuli gesture denoting tahlmorra, and his acceptance of it. "I think I will do as well as the next man when my time comes—you and my jehan have taught me very well; how could I not be worthy?" He flicked fingers dismissively, thinking it enough.
Niall waited in silence.
Discomfited, Aidan stirred. "No one can understand. Why should I speak of it? When I was a child, I tried to tell them about it. But neither of them believed me."
Aw, poor kid.
I like though that he genuinely doesn't seem to lack confidence. The dreams are a personal issue, but everything else is fine.
Poor Aidan expands a little about the issue: as a child, he'd tried to talk to his parents about the dreams, but they dismissed them and believed he'd outgrow them. (Or more likely were really hoping they would.)
Aidan feels like they believed he was a liar. And I like the nuance of this:
Aidan grimaced. "Not them, perhaps… not so obviously. But what is a child to feel when his parents call him a liar?"
Niall's brows knit. "I have never known you to be that. I doubt they have, either; nor would ever say such a thing."
"There is such a thing as implying—"
"They would not even do that."
They're both kind of right here. Brennan and Aileen wouldn't have said so aloud. Or even intentionally implied. But, as we saw in the flashback, Aidan was a very perceptive and observant child, who may well have picked up on his parents' doubts.
And as we've seen from the first chapter, Aileen at least has MANY doubts.
Anyway, Aidan starts to describe the dream - very defensively. And Niall has to tell him to stop trying to look through Niall's eyes and just tell him the facts.
He explains: there's a chain, made of gold, in the lap of the Lion. Aidan has to have it, and if he doesn't get it, the world ends.
Aidan can't explain the compulsion very well, and tangents into some familiar worries:
But Aidan knew better than to say it. Niall would only deny it; or, rather, deny its cause as anything other than accident. He had said, time and time again, the madness of Aidan's Atvian granddame, Gisella, was induced by an early, traumatic birth—but Aidan sometimes wondered. He was capable of intense thoughts and impulses, sometimes as disturbing as his dreams, though he always suppressed them. He had heard the same said of Gisella. And he knew from repeated stories his su'fala, Keely, had never been fully convinced the madness was not hereditary.
Seriously, Keely. Can you really not shut the fuck up for ONCE in your life???
Anyway, Aidan compares the compulsion for the chain to the need of a man for a woman or a warrior for a lir. And for once, I'm not that weirded out by the comparison. I don't think Aidan wants to fuck the chain. (And we haven't seen enough to determine if he'd be inclined toward BDSM. I don't get that impression at the moment, but give it time...)
(Brennan on the other hand does kind of read like someone who'd enjoy getting chained up for sex. But that's a tangential observation...)
ANYWAY. Niall does make an effort to understand. Aidan seems to get some results when he says that the feeling of the chain dissolving in his hands is like if Niall had taken Deirdre in his hands and if SHE dissolved into dust.
...maybe he DOES want to fuck the chain?
Oh, we actually get a hint about Homanan religion for the first time in seven goddamn books, when Niall asks if Aidan ever spoke to the priests:
Niall's single eye was steady. "Have you seen the priests?"
Aidan grinned derisively, slapping his hand down. "They are Homanans."
A silver brow arched. Mildly, the Mujhar said, "They are also men of the gods."
So it sounds like Homanans and Cheysuli worship the same gods after all? Interesting!
Aidan thinks they'll laugh, but Niall points out that no priest of Homana would laugh at the man who will eventually rule them.
But Aidan's probably right that they'd tell stories. And with the servants already gossiping. That's not a great thing.
We get ANOTHER bit about Aidan's sexuality here:
"So it shows…" He had known it did, to him; he had hoped others were blind to it. "I have done so many things, trying to banish the dreams. Petitions to the gods. Even turning to women." His mouth twisted in self-contempt. "I have lost count of how many women… each one I hoped could do it, could banish all the feelings by substituting others. It is a sweet release, grandsire, but it gave me no freedom." He sighed heavily. "None of them was ungrateful—it was the heir to the Prince of Homana, grandson to the Mujhar!—and I like women too much to cast them off indiscreetly… but after a while, it palled. Physical satisfaction was no longer enough… all the dreams came back."
I mean, okay, we get it, he's straight?
I really do feel like there's an odd emphasis on Aidan's sexuality in this chapter. And again, while I appreciate the subversion of the usual sexless autistic/neurodivergent trope, I don't think any of that was really being talked about much in 1990.
Aidan's also tried alcohol to banish the dreams, but that didn't really work either. Fortunately, it doesn't sound like he's inherited his uncle's addiction issues. Apparently the dream is actually WORSE when he's drunk.
Niall has another suggestion though, the shar tahls at Clankeep.
And that actually is a pretty good idea and one that gets my attention. The shar tahls have been a presence in the book series since the beginning, or close enough, but we never really get to see them or understand what they actually do.
Aidan is hesitant though, and expresses a sentiment that seems to crush Niall a bit: Homana-Mujhar is his home. Clankeep is just a place.
Niall's reaction is...something:
His tone was ragged. "So, it comes to pass… Teirnan was right after all." He slumped back in the throne, digging at the leather strap bisecting his brow. "All those times he said we would be swallowed up by Homanans; are you the first, I wonder? Is this the Homanan revenge; if Cheysuli must hold the Lion, we make the Cheysuli Homanan?"
I mean, dude. He just said he didn't think of Clankeep as home. That doesn't make Aidan not Cheysuli.
...that said, you know, it might have been good if, at some point in this ridiculous breeding program, you actually DID start marrying Cheysuli women?
I've done the ancestral math before.
Brennan's ancestry as of Pride of Princes is: 3/8 Cheysuli, 1/4 Atvian, 1/8 Solindish, 3/16 Homanan, and 1/16 Erinnish. (of course, Roberson forgets about the Erinnish, but that's not relevant here.)
Aileen is pretty much 100% Erinnish. Actually that's not true. IIRC, Deirdre and Liam's mother was Alaric's sister. So, she's 3/4 Erinnish, 1/4 Atvian.
This means that Aidan is 3/16 Cheysuli, 1/4 Atvian, 1/16 Solindish, 3/32 Homanan and 13/32 Erinnish.
And I feel like these numbers are a little unnerving when we consider that Aidan's grandson is meant to be the savior of the Cheysuli race. He's more fake Irish than anything else. He doesn't even have that big a percentage of common ancestry to the people he's supposed to rule!
Look obviously, culture is more complicated than ethnic percentages. But there's still something that feels off here. Especially when we consider all of the racism in Shapechangers specifically. Especially how Alix gets her "Old Blood" from her white mom. When we consider that we haven't seen a full blooded Cheysuli woman since the first fucking book, or the fact that the only female lead characters who are expressly described as having non-white features are either insane or a villain (...we'll get to this point again later.)
Keely is a particularly annoying example for me because so much is made of her ties to her Cheysuli heritage. She has brothers who look very Cheysuli. AND she's contrasted with her very blond, very white-looking sister. It would have been very easy to have Keely look as Cheysuli as she acts, but no, she's tawny and blond TOO. And it just adds to the discomfort.
I'm probably too white for this discussion and it's possible that I've got completely the wrong take. But I do resent the linkage of Teirnan's idiot nonsense to what is actually an interesting problem: that the royal family of Homana is growing more separated from the people they're supposed to rule and save.
It's also annoying because this is the perfect time to FIX this issue. The ridiculous breeding program is pretty much done. Aidan's got all the blood but Ihlini. If there was an age-appropriate female Ihlini available right now he could father the goddamn Firstborn.
(I mean, technically, he could fuck Lilith or Rhiannon, but it's a bit much to expect him to bang his great-uncle or father's rapist. And while there IS a female Ihlini his age, she's actually his half-sister and even Roberson's penchant for cousin fucking doesn't go that far...at least not this generation...)
Aidan could marry a Cheysuli woman though. They could send him to the Keep so he can get more in touch with his culture and he could meet a beautiful dark skinned, yellow eyed woman there. And then some of these misgivings could be very easily addressed.
Do we think this will actually happen?
Anyway, they now discuss Teirnan in a way that makes it clear that he's going to be an obstacle in this book as well:
Aidan frowned faintly. "I know who he is. We all know who Teirnan is—or was." He shrugged. "How many years has it been since anyone has seen him? Fifteen? Twenty? He may well be dead."
Niall's expression was pensive. "He took his clan into the deepwood somewhere in Homana… he is still out there, Aidan—he still plots to take the Lion."
Aidan did not really believe his grandsire was too old to rule, or growing feeble in his wits, but he did think perhaps too much weight was given to a man no one had seen for too many years. The Ihlini were past masters at waiting year after year to strike at their enemies, but from what he knew of his kinsman, Teirnan was not that kind.
Yep.
But anyway, Niall decides that Aidan should go to Clankeep and discover his true heritage before it's too late. Which is a great idea. I should have thought of that! (So now, let's introduce him to a nice Cheysuli girl, and maybe remove some of the bad taste in my mouth? Please?)
Teel also thinks it's a good idea. And the chapter ends here.
Well, we've seen Aidan as a child in the prologue, but the first chapter was from Aileen's point of view. We've heard her concerns ABOUT Aidan, but we haven't seen Aidan himself. So this will be our first meeting.
I'm optimistic. The early leads of this series were less satisfying: I liked the idea of Alix, but her treatment in the narrative tended to hover between sexy lamp and victim of narrative. Carillon was interesting but very flawed. The less said about Donal the better.
The later leads though have been pretty interesting: Niall was pretty good. Brennan and Corin were likable and interesting. I was less fond of Hart and Keely, but I can't deny that they were well-written. Their personalities annoyed me but that was because those personality types in real life tend to annoy me.
But now we get to meet Aidan!
This is a nostalgia read, of course, and I remember liking him reasonably well in the past. So hopefully that will hold.
Anyway, we start out with a pretty compelling set of paragraphs:
He was up and out of his bed before he knew who or where he was; before he knew what he wanted. The need drove him to it. The compulsion preempted everything: thought, logic, comprehension, much as lir-sickness had. It overtook his body and carried him to the door, where he pressed himself against it in mute appeal for passage.
Inside his head tolled a certainty tainted with a plea:. This time I can touch it… this time it will be real—THIS time, I know—
But the declaration faded, along with certainty, as he came sluggishly to himself from the depths of unsettling dreams. He realized, in despair, it had happened yet again.
Well, he's definitely still prone to disturbing dreams, from the sound of it.
That said, on immediate glance, there doesn't seem to be anything off or alarming about his narration.
We're told that Aidan tends to sleep nude, by the way, and without bedclothes. He's cold now, due to night sweats and seems rather annoyed by his own choices.
"Why?" he whispered raggedly, through the headache only beginning. "Why does this happen to me?"
In the darkness, something stirred. But no answer was offered him; after too many years of the asking, he no longer expected one.
The pounding of his heart slowed. He swallowed heavily twice, disliking the bitter aftertaste of the dream, and scratched irritably at a scalp itchy from dream-fear and reaction. He shivered once, controlled it, then stood up at last from the door.
Last chapter, we heard a lot about Aileen's fears regarding Aidan's mental state. We're still only in the first page or so, but thus far, there doesn't seem to be anything particularly off or alarming about his thought process.
The nightmare seems very unpleasant, and from the sound of it, it happens a lot. But his reaction seems reasonable. I'd be upset too.
Aidan considers going back to bed, but apparently tends toward insomnia after his nightmares, and puts some pants on instead.
Then we get an odd sort of foray into Aidan's sexual history here:
It would not be so bad, he thought wryly, if at least I dreamed of women. They are worth the discomfort of a night become too hot.
He had been a man, as manhood is reckoned, for nearly eight years. He had dreamed, and spilled his seed, into women and into his bed. But it was not of women he dreamed when the dreams were sent by gods.
I mean, I'm glad to see Roberson isn't going the whole neurodivergent = sexless route. I'm a little nonplussed to see him consider it so frankly, but it makes for an interesting contrast with his predecessors. It may also be relevant that, at 23, Aidan's the oldest protagonist we've had since Donal. Niall was nineteen. The boys were 21 and 20. Keely was about 21 in her book too. Two years isn't a huge difference, but at that age, it can make a difference.
Maybe I spoke too soon about Aidan's mental state, because this is interesting:
"Leave it alone—ignore it—" Aidan bit into his lip. "Who is in control: a piece of wood, or you?"
Inside his head, the Lion roared. Aidan's belly knotted.
"Leave it alone," he repeated. "Gods—leave me alone—"
Time to go, someone said. How can you turn back now? It has become ritual… and you are not the kind who changes anything regardless of the need.
Stung, Aidan turned to glare through darkness at the rustling in the corner. "What am I to change? Would you have it be my tahlmorra?"
Now the tone was scornful. You do not even have an inkling what your tahlmorra IS.
Through the link, he lashed out. I know very well what it is—
Do you?
I have known all along. What do you think I am? Are YOU not proof that my tahlmorra is undertaken?
Because I exist? No. The tone, now, was cool. I exist because I am. Because the gods created me.
To be my lir.
The tone spilled into smugness. Or you to be mine.
Nah, he's okay. The voice in his head is just his lir. And Aidan's lir, Teel, seems to be of the provocateur type.
It's also worth noting that Teel is a raven. I don't remember all of Aidan's storyline but I immediately realize this means some amount of it will take place in Atvia. Because, if you recall, Bronwyn was killed in raven form because they're cursed omens there.
...I wonder if Aidan, or anyone else, will be smart enough to send him with actual GUARDS, since he probably won't be able to have the protection of his lir.
But I'm jumping ahead.
We get an idea of how Aidan perceives himself, or at least his dreams:
He had known, for as long as he could remember, he was different. The dreams of childhood had faded during adolescence, dissipated by the intense need for and the bonding with his lir, but once adulthood was reached the dreams returned in force. Now, at twenty-three, he was accounted a warrior in the clans and a full-grown man by the Homanans who called him a prince, but he was still plagued by dreams. By the vision of the chain. By the substance of the chain—until he put out a hand to touch it, and the links dispersed into dust.
As a child, it had frightened him. Growing older, he believed it merely a manifestation of a want and desire he could not fully understand. But of late the dreams had worsened. The desire had become a demand. And Aidan fully believed, with a dreadful certainty, he was somehow, someway, tainted.
Well, dude, from the perspective of someone who knows what genre they're reading, I'm thinking that you're probably dealing with some prophetic dreams or something. We've never encountered this before, but considering that there IS a prophecy, it's not altogether strange to think it could happen.
But we are dealing with Cheysuli culture here, and by now, we have a pretty good idea about how great they are with any kind of issue - mental or physical. I wonder if Hart's been un-excommunicated yet, for example.
Teel is interesting as he's not exactly reassuring. He points out the obvious question, "why would the gods choose a tool that is tainted - unless they forgot..."
I rather like this bit:
There are times, the raven commented, even Cheysuli are fools.
Aidan, searching for release from the tension, settled on irony. It is because of the other blood.
Teel considered it. I think not, he replied. I think it is merely you.
Heh, I read Shapechangers. And I've read the rest of this series. The Cheysuli are fools pretty damn often. But I appreciate the back and forth.
Anyway, Aidan heads to the Lion Throne, against Teel's advice. (Apparently if he ignores the dream, it gets worse.) He seems to have a vision of some kind of chain, but when he reaches for it, it dissolves into dust.
Aidan wants to cry, but he's a Cheysuli warrior and prince, so he can't.
He asks aloud why he keeps coming back when he knows what will answer. And he gets an answer:
"Because the gods, when they are playful, are sometimes cruel instead of kind."
It's Niall, actually. He immediately reassures Aidan that he has the right to be in the throne room no matter what hour it is. Niall may have been listening for a while, because he asks Aidan why Aidan hasn't told him about the dreams.
We get a description:
Aidan stared at the man who, by right of gods and men, held the Lion Throne of Homana. He, like Deirdre, was past sixty, yet as undiminished by age. Still tall, still fit, still unmistakably regal, though no longer youthful. Tawny hair had silvered, fading like tarnished gilt; Homanan-fair skin had creased, displaying a delicately drawn fretwork born of years of responsibility; of the eyes, one was blue and bright as ever, the other, an empty socket couched in talon scars, was hidden behind a patch.
I admit, now that I'm 43 myself, "past sixty" doesn't feel THAT old. I do feel like they should have given us an actual age for Niall. It's not that hard to do the math. He was 19 at the beginning of White Wolf, and about 20 when the twins were born. Brennan was 21 during Pride of Princes, and Aidan was born some nine months to a year after that. Now Aidan's 23. So Niall is approximately 65.
Aidan asks how Niall has time, since he's the Mujhar. But Niall points out that he's sired five children, and is now "reap[ing] the benefits of [his] children's fertility." He notes that while he knows Aidan better than the others, since Aidan's in Homana, there are times that he feels that he knows him least of all.
Aw.
I like this though. Niall, like Carillon, kind of suffered when he went from protagonist to parent. Not to the same extent, of course. There's no "you should rape my daughter" bullshit here. But he definitely had let a lot of things, like Hart and Corin's complete lack of preparation to rule, slip completely out of his notice.
It seems like he's making up for that now. (Actually, I feel like that's an amusingly consistent trait once we have main characters that survive long enough to be grandparents. Aileen and Brennan are having their issues as flawed parents here, but will, as I recall, be really good grandparents in Tapestry of Lions.)
Anyway, Aidan tries to demur, but it sounds like the servants have been gossiping. Niall notes that he thinks Aidan should speak to someone about it, if not to his parents, than to his grandfather.
I like this bit too:
Aidan glanced only briefly at the Lion. Then sat down on the dais next to Niall, putting his back to the beast. He felt a vast impatience—how could he share what no one would believe?—but attempted to honor his grandsire by fulfilling part of the request. "This has nothing at all to do with unworthiness. I promise, grandsire, I know who I am and the task I am meant for: to rule as Mujhar of Homana." Easily, he made the palm-up Cheysuli gesture denoting tahlmorra, and his acceptance of it. "I think I will do as well as the next man when my time comes—you and my jehan have taught me very well; how could I not be worthy?" He flicked fingers dismissively, thinking it enough.
Niall waited in silence.
Discomfited, Aidan stirred. "No one can understand. Why should I speak of it? When I was a child, I tried to tell them about it. But neither of them believed me."
Aw, poor kid.
I like though that he genuinely doesn't seem to lack confidence. The dreams are a personal issue, but everything else is fine.
Poor Aidan expands a little about the issue: as a child, he'd tried to talk to his parents about the dreams, but they dismissed them and believed he'd outgrow them. (Or more likely were really hoping they would.)
Aidan feels like they believed he was a liar. And I like the nuance of this:
Aidan grimaced. "Not them, perhaps… not so obviously. But what is a child to feel when his parents call him a liar?"
Niall's brows knit. "I have never known you to be that. I doubt they have, either; nor would ever say such a thing."
"There is such a thing as implying—"
"They would not even do that."
They're both kind of right here. Brennan and Aileen wouldn't have said so aloud. Or even intentionally implied. But, as we saw in the flashback, Aidan was a very perceptive and observant child, who may well have picked up on his parents' doubts.
And as we've seen from the first chapter, Aileen at least has MANY doubts.
Anyway, Aidan starts to describe the dream - very defensively. And Niall has to tell him to stop trying to look through Niall's eyes and just tell him the facts.
He explains: there's a chain, made of gold, in the lap of the Lion. Aidan has to have it, and if he doesn't get it, the world ends.
Aidan can't explain the compulsion very well, and tangents into some familiar worries:
But Aidan knew better than to say it. Niall would only deny it; or, rather, deny its cause as anything other than accident. He had said, time and time again, the madness of Aidan's Atvian granddame, Gisella, was induced by an early, traumatic birth—but Aidan sometimes wondered. He was capable of intense thoughts and impulses, sometimes as disturbing as his dreams, though he always suppressed them. He had heard the same said of Gisella. And he knew from repeated stories his su'fala, Keely, had never been fully convinced the madness was not hereditary.
Seriously, Keely. Can you really not shut the fuck up for ONCE in your life???
Anyway, Aidan compares the compulsion for the chain to the need of a man for a woman or a warrior for a lir. And for once, I'm not that weirded out by the comparison. I don't think Aidan wants to fuck the chain. (And we haven't seen enough to determine if he'd be inclined toward BDSM. I don't get that impression at the moment, but give it time...)
(Brennan on the other hand does kind of read like someone who'd enjoy getting chained up for sex. But that's a tangential observation...)
ANYWAY. Niall does make an effort to understand. Aidan seems to get some results when he says that the feeling of the chain dissolving in his hands is like if Niall had taken Deirdre in his hands and if SHE dissolved into dust.
...maybe he DOES want to fuck the chain?
Oh, we actually get a hint about Homanan religion for the first time in seven goddamn books, when Niall asks if Aidan ever spoke to the priests:
Niall's single eye was steady. "Have you seen the priests?"
Aidan grinned derisively, slapping his hand down. "They are Homanans."
A silver brow arched. Mildly, the Mujhar said, "They are also men of the gods."
So it sounds like Homanans and Cheysuli worship the same gods after all? Interesting!
Aidan thinks they'll laugh, but Niall points out that no priest of Homana would laugh at the man who will eventually rule them.
But Aidan's probably right that they'd tell stories. And with the servants already gossiping. That's not a great thing.
We get ANOTHER bit about Aidan's sexuality here:
"So it shows…" He had known it did, to him; he had hoped others were blind to it. "I have done so many things, trying to banish the dreams. Petitions to the gods. Even turning to women." His mouth twisted in self-contempt. "I have lost count of how many women… each one I hoped could do it, could banish all the feelings by substituting others. It is a sweet release, grandsire, but it gave me no freedom." He sighed heavily. "None of them was ungrateful—it was the heir to the Prince of Homana, grandson to the Mujhar!—and I like women too much to cast them off indiscreetly… but after a while, it palled. Physical satisfaction was no longer enough… all the dreams came back."
I mean, okay, we get it, he's straight?
I really do feel like there's an odd emphasis on Aidan's sexuality in this chapter. And again, while I appreciate the subversion of the usual sexless autistic/neurodivergent trope, I don't think any of that was really being talked about much in 1990.
Aidan's also tried alcohol to banish the dreams, but that didn't really work either. Fortunately, it doesn't sound like he's inherited his uncle's addiction issues. Apparently the dream is actually WORSE when he's drunk.
Niall has another suggestion though, the shar tahls at Clankeep.
And that actually is a pretty good idea and one that gets my attention. The shar tahls have been a presence in the book series since the beginning, or close enough, but we never really get to see them or understand what they actually do.
Aidan is hesitant though, and expresses a sentiment that seems to crush Niall a bit: Homana-Mujhar is his home. Clankeep is just a place.
Niall's reaction is...something:
His tone was ragged. "So, it comes to pass… Teirnan was right after all." He slumped back in the throne, digging at the leather strap bisecting his brow. "All those times he said we would be swallowed up by Homanans; are you the first, I wonder? Is this the Homanan revenge; if Cheysuli must hold the Lion, we make the Cheysuli Homanan?"
I mean, dude. He just said he didn't think of Clankeep as home. That doesn't make Aidan not Cheysuli.
...that said, you know, it might have been good if, at some point in this ridiculous breeding program, you actually DID start marrying Cheysuli women?
I've done the ancestral math before.
Brennan's ancestry as of Pride of Princes is: 3/8 Cheysuli, 1/4 Atvian, 1/8 Solindish, 3/16 Homanan, and 1/16 Erinnish. (of course, Roberson forgets about the Erinnish, but that's not relevant here.)
Aileen is pretty much 100% Erinnish. Actually that's not true. IIRC, Deirdre and Liam's mother was Alaric's sister. So, she's 3/4 Erinnish, 1/4 Atvian.
This means that Aidan is 3/16 Cheysuli, 1/4 Atvian, 1/16 Solindish, 3/32 Homanan and 13/32 Erinnish.
And I feel like these numbers are a little unnerving when we consider that Aidan's grandson is meant to be the savior of the Cheysuli race. He's more fake Irish than anything else. He doesn't even have that big a percentage of common ancestry to the people he's supposed to rule!
Look obviously, culture is more complicated than ethnic percentages. But there's still something that feels off here. Especially when we consider all of the racism in Shapechangers specifically. Especially how Alix gets her "Old Blood" from her white mom. When we consider that we haven't seen a full blooded Cheysuli woman since the first fucking book, or the fact that the only female lead characters who are expressly described as having non-white features are either insane or a villain (...we'll get to this point again later.)
Keely is a particularly annoying example for me because so much is made of her ties to her Cheysuli heritage. She has brothers who look very Cheysuli. AND she's contrasted with her very blond, very white-looking sister. It would have been very easy to have Keely look as Cheysuli as she acts, but no, she's tawny and blond TOO. And it just adds to the discomfort.
I'm probably too white for this discussion and it's possible that I've got completely the wrong take. But I do resent the linkage of Teirnan's idiot nonsense to what is actually an interesting problem: that the royal family of Homana is growing more separated from the people they're supposed to rule and save.
It's also annoying because this is the perfect time to FIX this issue. The ridiculous breeding program is pretty much done. Aidan's got all the blood but Ihlini. If there was an age-appropriate female Ihlini available right now he could father the goddamn Firstborn.
(I mean, technically, he could fuck Lilith or Rhiannon, but it's a bit much to expect him to bang his great-uncle or father's rapist. And while there IS a female Ihlini his age, she's actually his half-sister and even Roberson's penchant for cousin fucking doesn't go that far...at least not this generation...)
Aidan could marry a Cheysuli woman though. They could send him to the Keep so he can get more in touch with his culture and he could meet a beautiful dark skinned, yellow eyed woman there. And then some of these misgivings could be very easily addressed.
Do we think this will actually happen?
Anyway, they now discuss Teirnan in a way that makes it clear that he's going to be an obstacle in this book as well:
Aidan frowned faintly. "I know who he is. We all know who Teirnan is—or was." He shrugged. "How many years has it been since anyone has seen him? Fifteen? Twenty? He may well be dead."
Niall's expression was pensive. "He took his clan into the deepwood somewhere in Homana… he is still out there, Aidan—he still plots to take the Lion."
Aidan did not really believe his grandsire was too old to rule, or growing feeble in his wits, but he did think perhaps too much weight was given to a man no one had seen for too many years. The Ihlini were past masters at waiting year after year to strike at their enemies, but from what he knew of his kinsman, Teirnan was not that kind.
Yep.
But anyway, Niall decides that Aidan should go to Clankeep and discover his true heritage before it's too late. Which is a great idea. I should have thought of that! (So now, let's introduce him to a nice Cheysuli girl, and maybe remove some of the bad taste in my mouth? Please?)
Teel also thinks it's a good idea. And the chapter ends here.
no subject
Date: 2026-02-23 08:38 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2026-02-23 08:57 pm (UTC)I admit to some vague sadistic satisfaction at the unfortunate fates of the characters in the earlier books, who were generally terrible. But I actually LIKE the current batch of characters. Even the ones I don't like, it's more because I just find them irritating, not because they're terrible people. It's frustrating to know that they're pretty much cursed to suffer because some stupid greater plan that may not be a good idea.
Teirnan's whole "losing the lir" argument is stupid and baseless. But I would love to see someone go "hey, maybe breeding up an infant demigod is a bad idea?"