Read-Along: The Republic of Thieves, Part Two

It's time to rejoin Locke, Jean, and the Bondsmagi for week two of the read-along of Scott Lynch's Republic of Thieves!  This weeks questions extend through the Interlude "Bastards Abroad", and were provided by Lisa of Over the Effing Rainbow.  

There are spoilers past this point, so beware!

Blood And Breath And Water: Patience tells Locke that the ritual to save him is serious business. She wasn't kidding... What did you make of this scene, and do you think any of it might (perhaps literally) come back to haunt Locke?

I’m not sure if I believe his vision of Bug was real or a hallucination, but the story of the series does seem to be edging towards the more magical side (Bondsmagi, the Eldren, etc.).  I think that the doubt about the trustworthiness of his God that this vision planted in Locke’s mind will not go away quickly, at least.  I am wondering if the gods of this world are real, and if so, if we’ll see more about the role of the Crooked Warden.

Orphan's Moon: Back to the childhood of the Gentlemen Bastards, and here we get another ritual, this one in service to the Nameless Thirteenth. It looks as though it might be Locke vs. Sabetha, round two - but this time Locke seems to be a little slow on that uptake... Who do you think deserves to be given the final oath? Locke or Sabetha?

This is going to echo some stuff Sabetha said later, but based on their deeds, Sabetha.  Sabetha got a ridiculously dangerous and impressive offering for the ceremony, just to make sure she would be noticed.  Locke just brought some money.  I think Locke was chosen because Chains and the others are grooming him for leadership, and they don’t have similar plans for Sabetha.  I don’t know if that’s because she’s a girl, or just because Locke is overwhelmingly charismatic.

Across The Amathel: This chapter takes a breather for quite a bit of Eldren history, while Locke starts recovering. What do you think of the history lesson, and Patience's ominous speculation regarding the Eldren? Is this something you'd like to know more about?

This was a pretty blatantly infodumping section, but we needed some background on Karthain and the Bondsmagi.  I am very curious about whether the Bondsmagi know more about the Eldren than Patience is telling here.  Also, I’m not sure what to make of the memory she shared with Jean and Locke.  I’m surprised they weren’t angrier, honestly.  Patience could have stopped the Falconer from going to Camorr, and she didn’t.  She couldn’t have known that he would murder Locke and Jean’s friends, but she did know that many people would end up dead (or as good as dead). 

Striking Sparks: The gang's off to Espara, after a bad summer and a pretty thorough dressing-down from Chains, and we finally get to the source of the book's title - they're bound for the stage! What are your thoughts on this latest 'challenge' and the reasons for it?

It makes me think that perhaps they are the first group of thieves Chains has raised—he may have not really been ready for dealing with four teenagers being whiny, lazy and irritable at the same time.  At this point, it really doesn’t seem like this is a disguised lesson.  It seems like he really just needs a break from all these kids, and maybe some travel will break them out of their patterns.

The Five-Year Game: Starting Position: The election gets underway with a party (as you do) and before it's even over, the Deep Roots party has problems - and not just thanks to Sabetha. What do you make of Nikoros and his unfortunate habit?

First off, congrats to the people who predicted Sabetha would be heading up the other side! Given all the flashbacks we’ve seen so far, I think Locke and Jean’s victory is far from assured.  However, given how emphatically they’ve been warned not to collude with Sabetha, I’m also wondering if they’ll end up doing just that.  Sabetha may have parted ways with the Gentlemen Bastards, but I still think she would not think highly of the Bondsmagi who murdered her old friends.

As for Nikoros, there is yet one more handle Sabetha can use to control the Deep Roots side.  I don’t know what Locke and Jean can really do about it.  Assuming it’s an addiction, insisting he break it could well make him completely useless for the duration.  I guess the best thing to do in their situation would be to ac         quire however much he will need for the 5 weeks, and instruct him to be discreet about taking it.

Bastards Abroad: The gang arrives in Espara, and already they've got problems (nicely mirroring the Five Year Game!)... This aside, we've also seen some more of what seems to be eating at Sabetha. Do you sympathise with her, or is Locke right to be frustrated with her?

I was mostly coming over in her favor in the first section, and it’s no different here.  She’s in a very difficult position, and I think it is a testament to her strength of character that she isn’t taking it all out on Locke. First off, she has some legitimate concerns about Locke’s ‘love’ for her. She is only the best of limited options, since she is the only woman he’s spent much time in proximity to.  He has put her on a pedestal in his mind, which generally means the ideal of her that he fancies is mostly imaginary. 

In addition, there’s the whole primacy and power issue.  In the Gentlemen Bastards, Locke just naturally gets everything Sabetha wants, and doesn’t even really notice that it’s happening (or when it’s unfair).  If Sabetha allows herself to be charmed by him, how does she keep from becoming just one more thing that Locke gets because he wants it?  Of course, the fact that she likes him complicates things a bit, since rejecting him would also harm her… I don’t envy her situation, and it is a bit frustrating that Locke doesn’t really get the problem.  I can see why Sabetha would later choose to break off from the Gentleman Bastards.    

Other bits!

We get to see the origins of the “Thorn of Camorr”!  While that was neat, it also made me cringe a bit.  It’s just one more instance of what Sabetha was talking about.  She suggested it would be neat if they had names by reputation, everyone pretty much laughed at her, and then they decided to give one to Locke (even though he didn’t want it).  Fast forward a few years, Locke is the “Thorn of Camorr”… and I think Sabetha is still Sabetha (I could be wrong there, maybe her reputation name just hasn’t come up).

Other answers!
Violin in a Void
Lynn's Books
Theft and Sorcery
Over the Effing Rainbow
Dab of Darkness 
Little Red Reviewer
Genkinahito 
Just Book Reading 
Joma's Fantasy Books
Coffee, Cookies and Chili Peppers
All I Am - A Redhead