kerravonsen | This Crumbling Pageant by Patricia Burroughs

For the first time in a while, I've started reading a novel as soon as it arrived in my post-box, rather than adding it to my to-be-read pile. More of a matter of timing, really, the fact that I'm on holidays and had just finished re-reading "The Twenty" when it arrived.

This fantasy novel was recommended as something that an SS/HG fan would like, and I can certainly see the resemblance.

Vespasian Wyltt (aka Vespasian Jones), dark, despicable, thin, ugly, bastard (literally as well as figuratively), brilliant, driven, wielder of dark magics.
They would all be kindling to the fire of his ambition, and he would glory in their burning.

Persephone Fury, thin, plain, bluestocking, defiant, brave, troubled by dark and powerful magic that she cannot control.

This must be good, because I am only up to chapter nine, and I want to make notes!
So here follows my very SPOILERY notes, ponderings and speculations about the book so far.

I think it's very telling that Persephone's request to Nemesis was for justice, for "giving Vespasian his due", because that could turn out to be the opposite from what Persephone was expecting; giving justice to Vespasian rather than extracting it from him. But of course I'm just speculating here.

I like Sir Robin, but I'm also glad that his interest in Persephone is more brotherly than loverly... because if this is going to end up being SS/HG-like, then if he was in love with Persephone, then he'd end up breaking his heart, and I wouldn't want that to happen to him. Though it does make things awkward when he realizes what the family's expectations are, because he'd always thought that Persephone would get over her crush on him, especially when she was presented to Society. What he doesn't realize is that her family... want to present a china doll; that's more than clear, not only from the fact that they are drugging her to suppress her magic, but even more so from the dress-fitting, where they cover her sallow skin with powder and "her skin was like porcelain". She really would look better in Aubergine than in pale blue, I expect.

Her family are reacting like Elsa's parents in "Frozen"; suppressing her powers rather than enabling her to learn to control them... of course this is going to go all pear-shaped.
Not to mention offering this fake china doll on the marriage-mart for purely political reasons... this is a Really Bad Idea.

What are these Shadows that surround Persephone? Because they don't seem to be evil per se, just... elemental. I think elemental is definitely the word, considering how her power reverted the glass in the conservatory into sand.

So, Vespasian is a follower of Elen Of The Ways, one of the "old" gods. I wonder if this has any relation to Elen of the Hosts, since a Welsh saint who is known for road-building isn't that far from a Welsh Goddess who is "of the ways".
And he's obsessed with a Prophecy of Merlin about the "True King"... and he sees Persephone as a way of bringing that about, somehow. Which gets back to the politics, except that he is on the "side" of the "rebels".
Which makes me wonder who the True King is (because, heck, this is fantasy, and there's a prophecy about a True King, there's got to be a True King turning up at some point). Because I don't think Vespasian is the king, no; he's a kingmaker, not a king. But he might fancy himself the king, though. I'm not sure about that.

And what's with Lysander and Rue? Did the healer trick him, or are they really in love? Or did Lysander see which way the wind was blowing and get out before his family started getting so involved in politics? Insufficient data at this point.

Has anyone else around here read this novel? What did you think?