Red Seas Under Red Skies Readalong Week 3

Week three of the Red Seas Under Red Skies Readalong hosted by the Little Red Reviewer is upon us and the readers have seen Locke and Jean finally take to the water with their pirate ship. This week’s questions come from Ashley of SF Signal who is available on twitter at @ohthatashley.

Was anyone else tired after reading this section?

No! I’m a veteran of the Monkey Island campaigns! I made the mistake of watching one of those awful Pirates of the Caribbean films which never seem to have a beginning or end. Or good story. Or acting.

1. Locke and Jean’s ability to find themselves at the center of a serious mess seems unparalleled. At this point, do you think that Stragos will get the return he expects on his investment in them?

Locke and Jean’s abilities to get stuck in a huge mess is where the entertainment comes in. The fact that the people involved in these schemes have audacious plans make the adventures so exciting. I’m beginning to wonder whether Stragos wants them to be successful pirates or if there’s something else afoot. Is there something up with the ship that Drakasha now owns? A concealed bomb?

 

2. Merrain’s activities after our boys leave Windward Rock are interesting. What do you think her plans are?

Didn’t I say there was something suspicious about her last week? My opinion is split as to whether she’s an agent of the Bondsmagi or she’s loyal to Selendri (sisters in arms as members of the Archon’s eyes) which would make Requin and Selendri much more devious and better connected than Locke and the Archon have given them credit for and much more formidable.

3. Does anyone know why having cats aboard the ship is so important?
As Allie and I both discovered last week, cats on ships was quite common in the past since they were used to kill vermin.

Red Seas Under Red Skies Readalong Week 2

This is the second week of the Red Seas Under Red Skies readalong and this week’s questions come from our host and leader The Little Red Reviewer. Here are my answers.

Now that we know a little more about Selendri and Requin, what do you think of them? I worry Locke is suddenly realizing this con might be a bit tougher than he expected.

I like the relationship between Selendri and Requin. It seems to be one with strong loyalty and love and they seem devoted to each other. There backstory was really well laid out and I can see why Selendri would stick closely to Requin. I cannot see how Locke can come between them at the moment but the fact that she used to be one of th Archon’s minions might come into play – let’s hope that Locke’s silver tongue keeps him ahead of her mechanical arm.

Isn’t the Artificers’ Crescent just amazing?  If you could purchase anything there, what would it be?

A clockwork automaton monkey butler. Or maybe a clockwork automaton maid like Nano in the videos below who is weapons-grade cute with a gun arm who can cheer me up when I’m feeling down and blow stuff up on request.

 

You said I could purchase anything.

The Lies of Locke Lamora Readalong Part 4

This section of The Lies of Locke Lamora was intense. I read most of it in two sittings and was totally floored by what took place. In other Locke Lamora news I got my hands on a copy of Red Seas Under Red Skies. Check out the other conversations taking place.

1.      In the chapter “A Curious Tale for Countess Amberglass” we
learn of the tradition of the night tea in Camorr. I found that not so
much fantastical as realistic – how about you?

It was interesting to read about the whole tradition of night tea and it seemed believable. Real life aristocracy have indulged in all sorts of crazy fashions so the effort made to bring together a night tea complete with overly stylised cakes is not so far fetched. The difference between reality and this book is the fact that this particular tea party takes place at the top of a high tower. The length of the journey up the tower just reinforces the power of the person you are going to meet.