#lymond chronicles

[softieghost]

I need a Thady Boy Ballagh world tour t shirt

#lymond #lymond chronicles

[cassandrva]

let's talk about the fish/water/christ symbolism in the game of kings. with spoilers

fish (as ιχθυς) is an acronym for christ, and it's the first food jesus eats after being resurrected, right? it symbolizes rebirth, life, and christ himself. i personally think fish are slippery and cold-blooded too, but that's neither here nor there.

now look at how the game of kings starts: "lymond is back". we immediately know this book is about returning, it's about rebirth. in fact, the first thing we see is the man himself submerged in a body of water and coming out on the other side, after a baptism of sorts, as the character he will play for most of the book: lymond the outlaw, lymond the traitor.

the first words out of his mouth are "i am a narwhal": he identifies himself as a fish right away, and not just any fish but the unicorn fish; the unicorn of course being scotland's national animal. in perspective, he tells us everything we need to know about him: his status as a christ figure, his destiny to be reborn, his complicated relationship with his country.

the next time he's in a body of water, it's the second chapter and he's dying from a head injury in a bog. he's washed clean, this time, too: from his own identity. he's free to inhabit another character from the lymond constellation. it's also pretty funny that he's found by sym while he's going fishing ("you’ve hooked a twenty-pounder this time, my lad"), and he's nursed back to health by someone named Christian. not subtle.

lymond seems to be pretty into this whole fish and rebirth thing, does he not? he wouldn't lie to us. he wouldn't pretend to embrace life while actively seeking death, right? anyway, no relation at all, when the baby queen mary tries feeding him a fish he pretends to eat it and secretly throws it away. the fish is described as struggling and barely alive, which again i am sure is a coincidence.

then some stuff happens, and the next time lymond is offered fish he doesn't have it in him to keep pretending. he doesn't want the damn fish. newsflash, asshole (richard): he really, really wants to die. this is my favorite scene for many reasons, and one of them is the perfect juxtaposition of its literal and symbolic meanings: richard says he wants to see lymond hanged, but what he does is to drag him away from the tomb-like dovecote and towards running water, makes him eat the damn fish again and again until the miracle is complete. he's holding on to his brother with both hands and teeth before he even realizes he's doing it.

when it comes to an end the fish is off the hook, christ is off the cross and for once he's not sacrificed for the sins of others, and we close on him in his mother's arms in a beautiful literary pietà.

there's so much stuff i purposefully didn't mention and probably didn't notice, this is just a tiny example of the gorgeous figurative and thematic cohesion in this novel. i love it. thank you dorothy dunnett.

#lymond chronicles #the game of kings #the amount of symbolism in 4.3 knight adversary makes it almost look like a tarot card #something between the star and the knight/king of cups #i have a lot to say about tarot too #probably for a later post #i seems like you can't run out of things to say about the game of kings it's sooo well done #dorothy “three meanings at least per line” dunnett #if you think i'm annoying just know i've been talking like this on discord with the book club for the last two months and a half #thank you book club #anyway this is a rambling mess but you get it. you get it #ughhh lymond my brain will never be the same #lymond #the lymond chronicles

[thecrenellations]

Oh, you married the older sister (?) of the friend/crush you connected with on a dangerous adventure as a teenager? She has some gender stuff going on and was pretty much the only person who could get through to him when he was extremely ill after one of the most traumatic experiences of his life? On a scale of Jerott Blyth to Sounis Sophos, how well did it go?

#these four are VERY different people #WITH VERY DIFFERENT MARRIAGES #and yet #lymond #lymond chronicles #the queen’s thief #sophos #eddis helen #marthe #jerott blyth #something i #mwt #dangerous adventure is a weird way to describe a battle but I couldn’t think of anything better #lymond chronicles spoilers #hi qt fandom … sorry for potentially spoiling you for several lymond plot points when mwt reblogged this #amazing

[presidential-raven-boy]

Captive Prince Vol 2 is one of THE BOOKS of all time !!! genuinely. Laurent sword fight scene ,the balcony and rooftop chase??? lamen becoming friends. THE KISS. all the tension and plotting and clever maneuvering it makes my brain cells fire deliciously. CS Pacat you are so loved. This is makes me immediately want to read the Lymond Chronicles to see what its all about. sooon 😁

#captive prince #lamen #lymond chronicles #laurent of vere

[unhelpfulfemme]

#lymond chronicles #if no one's gonna do it I'm taking one for the team lol

[oldshrewsburyian]

...this is it, this is their relationship

#pawn in frankincense #lymond chronicles #currently reading #guess what? i'm reading the lymond chronicles

[venndaai]

I finished Checkmate recently, which means I can finally go ahead and write a very important post!

Lymond Characters Ranked By Their Degree Of Transgender Swag*

Danny Hislop: listen to me. Listen. I 100%, no joke, believe that Daniel Hislop is canonically AFAB. There is zero evidence to contradict this and considerable evidence for it, if you count up every time Danny's small stature and beardlessness is pointedly mentioned, and also if you just look at how much swag he has.

Oonagh O'Dwyer: canonically was happy for exactly one afternoon in her whole life, and that was because she was passing as a boy during it. I am just saying.

Francis Crawford of Lymond and Sevigny: canonically extremely good at drag. Is God's specialest princess. Is apparently physically nearly identical to his half-sister, including their voices. High levels of transgender swag.

Robin Stewart: is canonically not trans, but a lot of his issues would be even worse if he was, nice, and he is also my favorite poor little meow meow so I'm claiming him.

Marthe: already has Gender Trouble up the wazoo, why not add a bit more. Is apparently physically nearly identical to her half-brother, including their voices.

Mikal: is already fem, bisexual, and the swaggiest character on this list. He could be anything he wants to be baby.

Adam: soft gentle bisexual artist who can also Murder. Decent amount of transgender swag.

Christian Stewart: pretty sure she's a cis lesbian and that's why marriage feels like death to her, but it could absolutely be because she's an egg!

Will Scott: again, very much a cis gay man, but AU transgender Will would be delightful.

Archie: I feel like Archie transcends gender, tbh.

Philippa Somerville: no trans swag but she'd definitely be an Ally.

Jerott: he's already confused about enough, let's not make it worse.

Margaret Lennox: my favorite failgirl villainess has zero swag of any kind.

Richard Crawford: always and forever the token cishet. Transgender swag levels terminally in the negative.

(*obligatory "just, like, my opinion, man" disclaimer goes here)

#lymond #the lymond chronicles #hello. i have only the most highbrow contributions for this fandom. #lymond chronicles #i forget what tag i was using

[leojurand]

a list of some of the amazing, hilarious gay shit that happens in the lymond chronicles because everyone wants to fuck lymond so bad:

will thinking he's going to have sex with lymond when lymond takes him to a room in the brothel, but it was a meeting with an informant, so will sulks in a corner

when lymond and will are wrestling and will can't stop thinking about how lymond's body feels on top of his, and he suddenly interrupts his thoughts with "no! he's a murderer!"

lymond and jerott's bickering and one-sided flirting in TDK they're both like children with a crush in that book

strozzi saying he's heard the rumours that lymond fucks like an angel and no wonder jerott left the knights of st john for him asfgjsfghj??

when jerott can't sleep because lymond isn't on the bed next to his and when he gets up, clearly to look for him, he out of nowhere tells himself that it's marthe who occupies his thoughts

míkál waiting naked on lymond's bed (legend)

jerott thinking that marthe's eyes are a shade of blue that he's never seen before and he'll fight anyone about it, when marthe has the exact same cornflower eyes as lymond

míkál's beef with jerott because he sees jerott as a rival for lymond's love and attention lol

danny asking if lymond is gorgeous and moaning the first time he sees lymond (i love u dannyyy)

lymond's ‘The beauty of worthy things is not in the face but in the backside, endearing more by their departure than their address.’ about jerott (best ass in europe!)

lymond again mentioning jerott's ass by saying ‘Caffa and purled lace and pinking, and a butt on him like one of Shah Mahmút the Ghazněrides’ elephants.’ #normalboybestfriendthings

rare non-lymond gay shit, danny being a fan of jerott because he's hot and dumb

... etc!

#dorothy dunnett #lymond chronicles #lymond #sorry to QP i forget everything that happens in it when i'm not reading it lol #there is a LOT of gay shit not mentioned here. dramatic gay! emotional gay! even scary gay! #there's something for everybody :) #dorothy was so crazy for writing all of that in the 60s i love her

[magpiefngrl]

“It was one of the occasions when Lymond asleep wrecked the peace of mind of more people than Lymond awake.”

-Queen's Play

Happy Birthday, Francis!

#lymond #lymond chronicles #wei wuxian yesterday and francis today #it's back to back fave-blorbos here #tiny fandom

[semicolonsandsimiles]

#“Hannah where did these ships even come from?” #out of my brain please indulge me #lymond chronicles

[softieghost]

Tramp stamp idea

#lymond #lymond chronicles #dorothy dunnett

[cassandrva]

and sure there are other babygirls but are they being hunted by every crown in europe for mass homicide and high treason while also being described as having "eyes like a kitten's"?

#it's insane to me that this was published in 1961 #winning the ante litteram blorbo awards by unimaginable margins #if he came out now all my mutuals on twitter and tumblr would do unspeakable things to this guy's cervix i can tell you that much #lymond chronicles #francis crawford of lymond

[thecrenellations]

Silence, broken by three golden notes of a lute: her own, she remembered, left on the bottom step. She said, "If you play, please go on. Music's my joy and my obsession."

Christian Stewart and her mysterious prisoner; Christian Stewart and her friend.

A moment from The Game of Kings and a childhood memory, drawn for @semicolonsandsimiles for Candy Hearts Exchange!

#the game of kings #christian stewart #francis crawford #lymond chronicles #lymond #something i #my art now #lymond art

[sugarbabywenkexing]

Literally just imagine it though, you're about to blow the guy who a) you're trying to assassinate and b) you're in love with and then his boss who hates him (and shares a bed with him when he's not fucking his way through the French court) shows up and cockblocks you

#katherine reads queen's play #again #lymond chronicles #robin stewart #francis crawford of lymond #katherine reads lymond

[unhelpfulfemme]

I think Lymond's early scenes with the Somervilles gain a lot more nuance and impact and emotional punch when you reread them.

Because, okay, on the first read they seem like kind, intelligent, respectable people who love each other very much - the warmth and connection and the instinctual wordless understanding between Gideon and Kate is immediately palpable - but at that point you don't really know enough about Francis to understand how they appear to him specifically. At this point he just seems like a callous cunt who takes pleasure in offending anyone who isn't Christian.

But think about it - artistic, intellectual boy grows up in a family full of constant acrimonious conflict (Mother bought a crate of books, Father burned it, they fought over it, Father drank...), his interests cnstantly belittled as too soft and his things smashed against walls until he learns to be vicious enough to defend himself. Father seems resentful about his very existence, angelic little sister has suicidal tendencies, Mother loves him but can be a manipulative bitch. He's a POW at sixteen, then groomed by an older woman, then sent to a probable death by that same woman. He's accused of treason over an incident that killed the sister, spends years as a slave suffering through every kind of abuse imaginable, tries coming back home but Father kicks him out because he doesn't believe him.

Ends up running a band of outlaws and considering how he later admits to hating the St. Mary's lifestyle - where his officers are all middle class intellectuals handpicked by himself - because he misses his music and his clever conversation and being friends with women? Can you imagine how he must have felt with the outlaws, where he, who used to read books on ethics for fun, had to constantly keep them entertained so they don't rape and pillage their way across their own countryside?

And then he goes to Flaw Valleys and sees a music room? And one of the first things to come out of Kate's mouth is how must not get many opportunities to play the harpischord with his kind of lifestyle, and how he must miss it a lot? She has no idea how much she's hit it right on the head.

And then he gets to know them, and they're... probably his Platonic ideal of a perfect family? He probably didn't think families like that existed outside of his own imagination (just compare them to every other family we see in the series). And then compare them to Francis's own interests and personality.

The husband is an accomplished musician, and the wife adores him for it and begs him to play every opportunity she gets. When he's in a mood, she knows how to draw him out of it skillfully and subtly and wittily and without being too intrusive. He, in turn, knows her well enough to anticipate her every need and delights in making her happy and giving her everything he can. There's palpable love and respect and understanding between them - they seem to understand each other wordlessly. They're both kind and empathetic and well-educated and keep themselves up-to-date on current events, on which they have nuanced and insightful opinions beyond picking a side. The wife is a master of witty conversation and enjoys and can keep up with Francis's own barbed back-and-forth. The husband and Francis come to an immediate understanding over politics despite technically being on opposite sides of a very complicated war. The husband's managed to keep his hands clean throughout it. Their daugher is already growing up to be a person of intellect, talent, and bold personality, because she's growing up surrounded with love and care and support and books and music and opportunities to be carefree and make messes and run around with the village boys.

He's barely twenty and he's been to hell and back so many times that he feels subhuman, and these picture perfect people take him in even though he's done nothing but treat them like shit, and they offer him their kindness and care and support and try to help him every way they can despite having zero reason to trust him or like him.

Can you imagine the kind of pedestal he'd put them on? It's no wonder he keeps coming back and maintains that friendship through everything. They're like the only stars he can see from his pitch-black gutter.

And I think this makes all his hand wringing over Philippa a lot more understandable, especially considering how he now sees himself as subhuman in ten additional ways after the extra trauma of the intervening years? On the first read you kind of just want to smack him because he's being so unreasonable, but really at that point you've spent so much time in Philippa's head and so little in Francis's that she's just Philippa to you (despite all the admiration she gets), while Francis is the one everyone is constantly panting over.

But to him she's part of a family so perfect and loving and healthy and aligned with all his ideals that he can't quite bring himself to believe that not only do they exist but they also like his miserable self, a family to whom he owes a great personal debt he can never repay (as he tells Kate in RC) and Philippa's the brightest and most impressive and accomplished member of that family. She is on a pedestal so high there's literally nothing he can do to measure up to what she means to him short of becoming a god.

And then consider how he later thinks that she's broken herself beyond repair over him. They're the only pure and flawless thing he knows of, the literal embodiment of how he dreams of people being in an ideal world, and he's destroyed it.

#lymond chronicles #I'm on a roll these days I guess #francis crawford of lymond #philippa somerville

[oldshrewsburyian]

I have started Pawn in Frankincense, and my two main observations so far are:

I understand why the entire fandom loves Philippa now

How, in the name of all that is reasonable, is it possible for Lymond to just keep getting weirder? (affectionate, derogatory, baffled)

#pawn in frankincense #guess what? i'm reading the lymond chronicles #dorothy dunnett #lymond chronicles