Seanan McGuire (seanan_mcguire) wrote,
Seanan McGuire
seanan_mcguire
  • Mood: sick
  • Music: Vixy and Tony, "Trouble."

ASHES OF HONOR open thread!

To celebrate the release of Ashes of Honor, here. Have an open thread to discuss the book. Judging by the comments I'm seeing, you've had time.

THERE WILL BE SPOILERS.

Seriously. If anyone comments here at all, THERE WILL BE SPOILERS. So please don't read and then yell at me because you encountered spoilers. You were warned. (I will not reply to every comment; I call partial comment amnesty. But I may well join some of the discussion, or answer questions or whatnot.) I will be DELETING all comments containing spoilers which have been left on other posts. No one gets to spoil people here without a label.

You can also start a discussion at my website forums, with less need to be concerned that I will see everything you say! In case you wanted, you know, discussion free of authorial influence, since I always wind up getting involved in these things.

Have fun, and try not to bleed on the carpet.
Tags: ashes of honor, geekiness, open thread, toby daye
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tsukara

September 6 2012, 07:55:58 UTC 4 years ago

I love everything about this one, it's just so good! In so many ways!

(And it's completely dorky of me but a character named Anne! With an e! It's just that there aren't many of those even if she doesn't show up and ♥)

seanan_mcguire

September 16 2012, 04:09:11 UTC 4 years ago

Aw, yay.

<3

baimellon

September 6 2012, 09:51:45 UTC 4 years ago

Read it all in one go. Great story. Would have liked to have seen the goblin fruits subplot tied up a bit but that's very minor. I suppose the whole Toby/Tybalt thing was inevitable but I can see it is only going to lead to more trouble. As Toby is the central character of the series, then I guess Tybalt is going to have a very nasty ending somewhere down the line.
I really love the Luidaeg now - don't know why but I'm just so intrigued by her character and she's so cool. I can just imagine her.

hoppytoad79

September 10 2012, 20:03:35 UTC 4 years ago

I absolutely love the Luidaeg. She is such a fascinating, nuanced character and there is so much going on under the surface I'd love to know. That her apartment is actually neat and tidy when no one else is around totally threw me and made me love her even more.

A world of trouble is going to come from Toby/Tybalt, because that's the only possible outcome. Not like Toby ever goes for what's neat and easy, though. ;D

hoppytoad79

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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amazon_syren

September 6 2012, 15:22:57 UTC 4 years ago

Re: Toby + Tybalt: Freaking finally. Hoy. :-) Finding out about his wife and miscarried(?) daughter was nice. It helped explain why he'd initially (pre-pond) been unpleasant.

Re: Officer Stalker: Er... Wow... He's a manipulative twerp, isn't he? Ick. None the less, I'm sorry that he's probably going to die in Anwnn (sorry... spelling...) in a probably fast but also unpleasant way. :-\

Is Treasa Riordan still in Anwnn? (And alive?)

I'm glad May had a sharp word with Toby. And I like the descriptions of May's facial expressions as being a mix of toby-face and dare-face and other faces she's worn before. I think that's cool.

alicetheowl

September 7 2012, 21:55:37 UTC 4 years ago

Officer Stalker appears to be under someone else's influence. I don't know if we're dealing with a spell, a mind-wipe, or what, but his confusion about why he was so interested in her and why he had to follow her were interesting.

I also speculated about the possibility of his being someone's disguise, but I'm unaware of Fae being able to entirely mask their magical natures. Toby can tell when people are wearing disguises, and, in Sea-Salt Tears, Liz notes that human disguises shimmer. Shapeshifting is a possibility, but, as I don't know of any shapeshifters who don't like Toby, that leaves it wide open.

amazon_syren

4 years ago

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alicetheowl

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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sleightedge

September 6 2012, 17:51:26 UTC 4 years ago

Damn. Just damn. Each book keeps getting better and better. I love how Toby and Tybalt finally got together. I love how the Luidaeg's home is actually a clean and spotless place (I can just see her cackling over everybody's adverse reaction to the illusion). I'm loving the idea implied by Quentin being Canadian that he could be the son of the King and Queen in Toronto (especially since it make getting the pardon for Toby make so much sense!).

Dammit, I just love the book.

Also, thank you for creating my favorite new way to summon pretty much anyone: "Quentin! Wherever you are, stop being there, and get in here!"

seanan_mcguire

September 16 2012, 04:23:21 UTC 4 years ago

Aw.

Thank you.

evaleastaristev

September 6 2012, 17:53:41 UTC 4 years ago

Almost read it through in one day. Had to stop at chapter 24 when I read the first page three times without comprehension. Finished it this morning. And there is so much Squee!

Also? Initially, Toby pegged Quentin's accent as Toronto. And now....I think this is the first time we've been told that the High King and Queen hold court in Toronto. Wait a second....if Quentin is the High Prince.....

And Tybalt! Yes, his declarations were a bit on the corny side. But he's from a different time. When things were done like that. Kinda. I just about melted, since I've been watching this coming for a very long time. And he'll have more time with Toby than he did with Anne.

There is so much to love about this book, including Etienne having a "human" side, and a daughter. And how quickly he tuned to Daddy by following her everywhere around the world. Yay Chelsea! Yay Bess!

Okay, I'm done squeeing now. And no, I don't really want an answer about Quentin's parents. I'm sure that's coming in a book down the road.

seanan_mcguire

September 24 2012, 17:49:03 UTC 4 years ago

Good things come to those who wait!

catsittingstill

September 6 2012, 19:11:58 UTC 4 years ago

I wrote another song. I'm kind of a sucker for Tybalt, it turns out.

bercilakslady

September 9 2012, 16:32:25 UTC 4 years ago

I adore your Toby world filks. :)

catsittingstill

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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kveberle

September 6 2012, 20:12:45 UTC 4 years ago

I'm interested to hear more about the benefits of mixing magics...thus far, all we have heard is how mixing magic leads to insanity.

seanan_mcguire

September 24 2012, 17:48:04 UTC 4 years ago

Mixing magics...?

Do you mean mixing bloodlines?

kveberle

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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Colette Miranda

September 6 2012, 23:19:09 UTC 4 years ago

Thank you, that was wonderful.

seanan_mcguire

September 16 2012, 03:51:36 UTC 4 years ago

Very welcome.

ambermoon

September 7 2012, 01:08:13 UTC 4 years ago

I really liked how the end of the book mirrored the previous one, but this time with everything going right. (And I think I've re-read the last chapter about a zillion times. Yes, that's now a number.)

Also, "weird and irritating." That might now be my favourite exchange in the whole series.

alicetheowl

September 7 2012, 21:58:44 UTC 4 years ago

It also mirrored the beginning of Rosemary and Rue, when Toby was almost caught out in the dawn and happened on Tybalt's hiding place. I loved that ending scene.

ambermoon

4 years ago

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alicetheowl

4 years ago

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ambermoon

4 years ago

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ambermoon

4 years ago

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alicetheowl

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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ambermoon

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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alicetheowl

4 years ago

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ahr2006

September 7 2012, 02:54:47 UTC 4 years ago

I LOVED it, the whole book was great, especially the Tybalt/Toby thing, I've been waiting for this since book one.

I have a question though, I don't have the previous books on hand so I can't check, but I could have sworn that Toby mentions Tybalt being taller than Connor more than once in past books, but in this one it's the total opposite. Obviously this isn't a big thing, but I've always pictured Connor being on the shorter side, and Tybalt being on the taller side, and I'm probably going to continue picturing them this way. It's hard to change how a character looks like to you when you already have a picture of them in your head. So anyway, yeah, just curious, am I right? Is Tybalt mentioned as being taller in previous books, or am I just crazy, and like taller men so much I deluded myself into thinking Tybalt was the tall one? :D

seanan_mcguire

September 16 2012, 03:47:01 UTC 4 years ago

I don't think that was ever stated? I actually just searched the text of all six books, and didn't find it. But I could be wrong. Sometimes I forget how tall I am.

ahr2006

4 years ago

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notalwaysweak

September 7 2012, 09:56:51 UTC 4 years ago

I hadn't realised how much I wanted Toby and Tybalt together until it happened.

Win and awesome as usual!

seanan_mcguire

September 16 2012, 03:51:15 UTC 4 years ago

Thank you!

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hoppytoad79

September 10 2012, 20:06:11 UTC 4 years ago

I loved the comment about tea! Laughed muchly. What a fabulously descriptive way to express her dislike. I enjoy tea, so I have to disagree with Toby, but I don't mind if she's wrong as long as she doesn't mind that she's wrong.

dornbeast

4 years ago

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hoppytoad79

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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alicetheowl

September 7 2012, 22:20:41 UTC 4 years ago

It had escaped my notice that we don't know the mother of the Dochas Sidhe, but Toby mentions offhandedly (twice!) that only Oberon claims them. After all the times the Luidaeg referred to her being a child of Oberon, you'd think it would get through my head.

Now I can't help but speculate who Amandine's mom was. My husband mused, based on the nature of the Dochas Sidhe, Amandine may be a Firstborn Changeling. Wouldn't that be interesting.

OMG, so, SO happy about Tybalt and Toby. Their courtship is utterly adorable.

celticdragonfly

September 16 2012, 12:26:36 UTC 4 years ago

After some of the bits in Late Eclipses, I'm wondering if Lily was Amandine's mother. Amandine is who brought her to San Francisco, we're told the story of undines and that they can't mate with *humans* but nothing is said about fae. Amandine always brought Toby to see Lily. And one of the bits of I think it's Japanese that Lily is saying as she dies - if I toss it at Google translate with the phonetic typing on, came out to something like 'didn't even know that you are my own...' or something like that.

alicetheowl

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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celticdragonfly

4 years ago

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celticdragonfly

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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jammiesest

September 8 2012, 00:46:11 UTC 4 years ago

You know that perfect, satisfied, happy sigh you give when you've eaten an amazing meal without overeating? That's the sigh that emerged from me as I closed this book. Thank you, Seanan.

seanan_mcguire

September 17 2012, 17:05:25 UTC 4 years ago

Very welcome.

markbernstein

September 8 2012, 14:27:10 UTC 4 years ago

I loved it. Seanan's writing just keeps getting better. It's a pleasure to see Toby mature, to see her let other people into her life, and especially to see the moments when she can laugh at what's going on. The only thing that really annoyed me was when Tybalt insulted Connor, saying Connor had loved the girl Toby was, not the woman she became. To be clear, I was annoyed with Tybalt, not on a meta level, as it was a perfectly in-character thing for Tybalt to say.

I'm guessing/hoping that at some point (perhaps a few books from now) we'll hear from Riordan (and Thornton?) again, and learn why no one was supposed to go to Annwn.

Prediction: The next book will take place less than a year after AoH, and at some point within it, Toby will be in a situation where not having access to a teleporter makes her life a lot more difficult.

weasel_of_d00m

September 9 2012, 23:10:45 UTC 4 years ago

<< The only thing that really annoyed me was when Tybalt insulted Connor, saying Connor had loved the girl Toby was, not the woman she became >>

I had a totally different reaction - for me, Tybalt summarized EXACTLY what was wrong with Toby/Connor relationship. Of course, I was 'shipping Tybalt and Toby from book 1, so I biased in Tybalt's favor :)

hoppytoad79

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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thedragonweaver

September 8 2012, 23:59:55 UTC 4 years ago

Got it yesterday & started it at 10PM because I'm stupid that way. Miracle of miracles, my boy decided to sleep in today (so hard that he woke up, used the bathroom, and fell asleep before he got his shirt on.) This meant that getting to sleep at 1AM didn't hurt me that much. Yay for minor preschooler miracles!

Anyway, thoughts. 1) No major heartbreaks! Nice to have a changeup after the last book. Not that that ending was a bad idea, just that Gloom and Doom all the time would get wearing. Crazy to think that getting disemboweled—twice—makes for a comparatively relaxed novel. 2) Thank you, Toby*, for finally realizing that you like Tybalt. 3) Thank you, Toby, for finally deciding that self-destructive behavior isn't all that great an idea. 4) Barb is going to be an interesting character in future novels. 5) We're going to get slapped in the face by the next novel. Looking forward to it.

*I am thanking Toby because I realize that though Ms. McGuire writes her, she has to write Toby, so as Toby is the one who has to make certain decisions.

seanan_mcguire

September 26 2012, 18:01:48 UTC 4 years ago

I'm so glad you liked it. :)

anne_d

September 9 2012, 00:16:04 UTC 4 years ago

Got it yesterday and started reading, finished this afternoon. Housework? What is this "housework"? I enjoyed the book hugely. I must admit to reading the last chapter twice.

Toby and Tybalt... I'm vacillating between, "well, it's about time Toby caught on" and incoherent wibbly noises of happiness.

I shall now return to my grand reread of the entire series (as is my custom), greatly enriched by knowing that all those little clues here and there really did mean something.

anne_d

September 9 2012, 00:21:32 UTC 4 years ago

Replying to myself because I always forget things:

The interpersonal relationships are always well-written, but it was particularly interesting to watch Etienne, who has always seemed so rules-bound, bending the rules all over the place when it had to do with his daughter and her mom.

It looks like Faerie and our world may be starting to merge into each other a bit more, if that makes sense - Bridget is going to be living in the knowe, but still teaching her folklore classes, and then there's that poor cop, stuck in Anwin, if he's still alive. The more people who know, the harder it's going to be to stay hidden...

seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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dragonsally

September 9 2012, 03:17:22 UTC 4 years ago

At last - Toby and Tybalt.
So much love for this universe.

seanan_mcguire

September 13 2012, 18:43:11 UTC 4 years ago

Yay!

myuki_chan

September 9 2012, 03:25:42 UTC 4 years ago

Picked up the book yesterday after some fantastic customer service from Chapters (it wasn't on the shelf but the friendly manager got it for me from the back).

I have been kicking my feet in pure glee. I have waited so long for Toby and Tybalt to get together and now it's HERE and this book made me so happy. At the same time, I'm concerned that Tybalt may in fact be out of lives and I'm terrified of what may become of him later on.

Thank you, Seanan! Thank you for sharing this world with us.

kveberle

September 9 2012, 16:35:25 UTC 4 years ago

It seems like Tybalt is grooming Raj to take the crown so that he can resign. I am hoping that this will keep him somewhat safer than he would otherwise be...Seanan has mentioned before that kings and queens can leave the throne when they tire of it...

myuki_chan

4 years ago

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kveberle

4 years ago

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myuki_chan

4 years ago

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kveberle

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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lejays17

September 9 2012, 03:49:12 UTC 4 years ago

I've just finished this, after waiting impatiently for SLOC to finish it himself - the concenred "hmms" making me more anxious to read!

I'm terribly happy (for the moment) about Tybalt & Toby, as I've been hoping it was goign to happen from the first book. Toby was just so utterly clueless about it until now.

And I'm firmly in the camp of Quentin is the High King & Queen's son, it makes lots of sense with various hints and things that have been given.

Thanks ever so for writing, and a year is a long time to wait for the next one. Espceically is because this one has ended happily, the next one is almost guaranteed to be heart-wrenching!

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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taylweaver

September 9 2012, 06:38:08 UTC 4 years ago

I really enjoyed this book - which came as no surprise. And yeah, a happy ending was refreshing.

I was also oddly fascinated by how important the scent of magic can be, and how Chelsea's could be traced so far back. It also made me wonder whether characters whose magic share similar scents would always be related to each other, or whether it's sometimes just coincidence. (There's one character in particular that I'm thinking of here... and it makes no sense unless someone has a really different background than we think they have, but it got me thinking.)

kveberle

September 9 2012, 16:33:46 UTC 4 years ago

I am so curious as to who you are referencing...

swevene

4 years ago

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kveberle

4 years ago

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taylweaver

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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taylweaver

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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taylweaver

4 years ago

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seanan_mcguire

4 years ago

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bercilakslady

September 9 2012, 16:48:10 UTC 4 years ago

The quote of the day on my favorite local bookstore's website was from A of H. Now that we've gotten the owner hooked, it's easy to find Toby (and Verity) on the shelves the day it comes out. :)

So very happy that Toby and Tybalt finally got together. So much cuteness!

seanan_mcguire

September 16 2012, 03:41:51 UTC 4 years ago

That?

Is awesome.

weasel_of_d00m

September 9 2012, 21:33:09 UTC 4 years ago

Awwww! It was so good! Thank you so much for writing such an awesome book! Toby & Tybalt = love :)

seanan_mcguire

September 13 2012, 18:42:22 UTC 4 years ago

Yay!

ahr2006

September 11 2012, 06:25:03 UTC 4 years ago

One of my many favorite quotes from Ashes of Honor was:

“Being a King sort of sucks," I said.

Quentin wrinkled his nose, "So does your outfit."

Is it me, or did Quentin seem a little defensive when he said this? Could it be another clue as to who his parents are? ;)

ironed_orchid

September 20 2012, 10:08:03 UTC 4 years ago

"I'm a lot of things, but rational where the people I love are concerned has never been one of them"

Oh Toby, good to see you getting a bit of insight into yourself.

I really wondered how you were going to pull off Etienne has a changling kid he's kept secret for 16 years... but of course, the only way it could happen is if he didn't know himself. That made a lot more sense. And poor Etienne and Jin having to deal with crazy Sylvester with no Luna or Toby to help.

This one, and A Local Habitation, both strike me as stuff happens while Toby does her job, but the stories are not about Toby so much as things that happen in her general vicinity.

Except for Tybalt.

YAY!TYBALT!

::ahem::

Loved the back story of him taking a human wife. What a great way for him to tell Toby that he's capable of loving someone who isn't Cait Sidhe.

Honestly, I expected a Tybalt romance, but I thought it would not be until at least the next book. I guess I expected a whole book in between Connor's death and Toby figuring out that Tybalt loved her and those complicated feelings she had weren't so complicated after all. But I guess enough time has passed between the end of One Salt Sea and Ashes of Honor for Toby to attempt suicide by proxy several times, and have her family notice it as a recurring pattern, even if we only get to see the incident with the goblin fruit dealers.

Goblin Fruit! ILU.

seanan_mcguire

September 24 2012, 17:20:31 UTC 4 years ago

Yay. :)
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