Question

[telophase]

For those of you who have read Ben Aaronovitch's Foxglove Summer.
Spoilers abound.



I listened to the audiobook version of this, while jetlagged and quite often falling asleep and having to step back several minutes, so it's possible that I missed something, but....

Do we ever get a motivation for any of the Faerie Queen's actions (taking kids and Peter, leaving changelings)? Or are we supposed to just accept that this is a thing that happens? Or does it seem that it will be answered in a future book?

Comments

[chomiji]

I recall no motivation given at all, but I'm so accustomed to the idea that this is What the Faeries Do that in my headlong gallop of finishing the book (Sunday night), I didn't stop to think about that aspect of it at all. I was just thinking Gerda and Kay! Janet and Tam Lin! Polly and Tom! and didn't really analyze.

On the other hand,did I miss somerhing about the massive engine that Beverley used? Was it seen earlier? Because I couldn't remember and I've just started something else, so I won't be re-reading instantly.

[telophase.livejournal.com]

It didn't occur to me until I woke up this morning. (Admittedly, I finished the last chapter at 4AM, because I woke up at 3 and couldn't get back to sleep.) But I woke up and lay there and then went "Wait...why did she do that? Why did she do anything that she did?"

The engine was mentioned once previously, but I don't really remember where...perhaps Melissa's dronesgentleman friends were working on it?

[chomiji]

I'm wondering whether this is something Aaronovitch will come back to later. As Peter was being carried off, he was having thoughts about gathering together all the various magical peoples and actually making proper studies of them, so if the series keeps going, maybe we'll get his view on what it is about fairies and changelings and so on.

I did have some vague thoughts about the father of the two girls (and probably others) and the way he was carrying on, and parallels to the son in Little, Big who trades a family heirloom to the fairies for the ability to have any girl he wanted, any time, and so ended up being involved in the genetics of half the families in the area.

So what was going on with Mellissa's name and the two lls? I've never seen it spelled that way (although a quick peek at Google reveals that is does indeed occur). But it makes sense that the engine would be with them: the bees were avoiding that section of the wood, so there's no love lost between the hives and the faerie host.

[telophase.livejournal.com]

Not to mention that there wasn't much denouement at the end, so it felt to me like the story's not quite finished.

I dunno about Mellissa--as I listened to the audiobook, I don't know how anyone spells their name!

[chomiji]

Yeah. things did just sort of go KAPOOF all the sudden.

Oh, sorry! I never think of audiobooks. *facepalm*

[rushthatspeaks.livejournal.com]

Mellissa's name is because the bee's scientific name is apis mellifera.

[jinian.livejournal.com]

Eh, maybe, but it's "honeybee" with either spelling. Seems a little contrived to reach for the annoying spelling just to echo a binomial not many people know.