Recent reading

[luzula]

Tiger's Daughter by Arsenault K. Rivera (2017)
For my fannish book club. I expected to enjoy this based on the elements of the story, but I did not. I didn't even finish it. /o\ The style just did not work for me--there was so much over the top melodrama that I kept rolling my eyes.

Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik (2018)
This, on the other hand, I really enjoyed! It was a compelling read that was hard to put down. There's one thing about the ending I wanted to talk about, though. The book has two marriages that neither husband nor wife actually wanted to enter into. Despite that, both of them are presented as happily ever after at the end. I do buy Miryem/the Staryk king, it feels like the book earned that one. But Mirnatius suddenly being starry-eyed at Irina? I don't buy that. Seems like he'd be overjoyed to be free of the demon, sure, and be grateful to Irina for that, but it doesn't follow that he'd suddenly be in love with her given his earlier thoughts about her. Maybe the book is intended to be closer to the romance-novel genre than I was reading it as? But it annoyed me a bit - I don't see why the book should be invested in making forced marriages work, anyway.

Comments

SPOILERS

[green_grrl]

I recently read Spinning Silver, too, and also couldn't put it down!

My take on Mirnatius was that while the demon possessed him he could not see the Staryk glamor while Irina was wearing her silver ring—it frustrated him that everyone else found her beautiful. Once the demon left him, he was as susceptible as everyone else.

It was also odd to me that these women who were so obviously not in need of men in general remained married off. Interestingly, neither of the marriages had been consummated. (The Staryk king using answers as his “marital duty” was an amusing way around that!) I assume Miryem and the Staryk king will continue as before, just with greater respect on his side. For Irina it was hinted that she would respond to lovemaking, but her husband had been literally monstrous.. Even if he’s not possessed now, he’ll still be a spoiled brat. But the glamor would make him attentive to her in bed? She set up a line of succession outside of them, so it’s an open question whether she’ll remain a virgin tsarina or not.

Re: SPOILERS

[green_grrl]

I meant to add, one of the main themes of the book was that women were so incredibly trapped by social expectations of the time. It was a constant theme that most women could expect forced marriages. That these two ended up in marriages where they had control and respect, and not having to marry some random brute out of family necessity, was the happy ending. :-/

Re: SPOILERS

[luzula]

Yeah, I do get that a lot of it's about women forced into situations and then making the best of them - and both Miryem and Irina very much do that, and wrest away a lot of agency for themselves. But the book did to me seem invested in a happy ending to those marriages, as well. If you're right about Mirnatius suddenly falling for the glamour, though, that would be a lot more complicated. Didn't think about that.

And to be fair, Wanda does escape her forced marriage and get another sort of happy ending.

Re: SPOILERS

[green_grrl]

I think the marriages were “as happy an ending as you could get.” The Mirnatius situation is weird. It almost might have been better if her original plan for him had succeeded.

Wanda has the best life—a successful land holding, the “male protection” of her brothers, no politics or attention, and no need for marriage ever.

[aria]

I literally just finished reading Spinning Silver too, and as I put it down I said aloud "Wow I could have used at least one more scene with Mirnatius and Irina" because yes, exactly, I don't see the throughline from Irina rescuing him from the demon to them being in love or even having a really functional marriage.

I did end up being really there for Miryem/the Staryk king, though! The story did show its work there, I can see how it's going to work out, and I liked that rather than the original forced marriage he actually asked and she accepted properly.

[luzula]

Glad it's not just me who thought Irina and Mirnatius were neglected at the end! And yeah, I liked Miryem/the Staryk king, too, that was definitely earned.

Now to see if there is any fic...

[scribe]

I agree about Spinning Silver! It seemed rather "this is a fairy tale so everybody's got to get married at the end" formulaic to me, which I guess didn't bother me a ton because I'm just so used to it, but it certainly didn't add much. That said, I am a sucker for platonic political marriage, I would love to see some fic that took Irinia and Mirnatius in that direction.

[luzula]

I guess it did surprise me? I mean, there was such an emphasis on women managing things on their own (and together with each other) that the happy marriages at the end felt a bit out of the blue. But maybe I just wasn't genre-savvy enough.

[scribe]

I mean, I definitely agree that it didn't make a ton of sense with the story up to that point, and I would have liked it better if she hadn't gone in that direction! I've just...come to resignedly expect all fairy tale-ish books to end with "and then everyone got hetero married and lived happily ever after". Sigh.