King of Battle and Blood

“‘If you wanted a wife, why did you wait until now to ask for my hand?’ 

‘I did not know I wanted one until today,’ he replied.”

In this brief exchange, St. Clair utilizes heavy foreshadowing that nonetheless remains obscure until much later in the novel. When the full details of the pair’s past relationship remain hidden, this dialogue sounds as though Adrian is using cheap flattery to endear himself to Isolde. In reality, however, he is hinting that Isolde is the wife he has long been waiting for: the reincarnation of Yesenia.

“Queens do not rule alone. Queens do not rule at all, she’d say. They held no power beyond what they could do for their king. I was supposed to change that. I’d felt as though that was my purpose, a feeling so strong, it had filled my whole heart with excitement and determination.”

Even though Isolde is uncertain about what marriage to Adrian would require of her, she is excited about the possibility of gaining further autonomy and escaping the restrictions of her current role in Lara. She sees her new life as an opportunity to increase her own political power. By invoking multiple descriptions of Isolde’s inner emotional maelstrom, St. Clair emphasizes just how strongly Isolde clings to her independence.

“I did not know Adrian well, but I did not think his reason for leaving Lara quickly was to isolate me. That seemed more like something Killian would do.”

In this passage, Isolde considers Adrian and Killian and reveals that she holds a far more favorable opinion of the “monstrous” Blood King than she does of her former lover, whose abusive and manipulative actions soon reveal that he harbors monstrous traits of his own. Her innate trust in Adrian also hints at her past-life knowledge of his true character.

“Instead, she told me stories about how my mother’s marriage had been arranged—a bridge between the inlands and the islands. How nervous my mother had been to marry my father, but how confident she had been that she would love him, because he had been kind—and because her people believed in fate and destiny. I believed in neither.”

Isolde’s perception of her parents’ marriage changes radically by the end of the narrative. She initially views their marriage as one that was built on a solid foundation of kindness and shared respect, as this passage indicates. However, this idealized view is destined to be shattered when she discovers that her father has long been aware of the enslavement of her mother’s people. In the process of casting off old illusions, Isolde will undergo The Evolution of Identity Within Constraining Circumstances.

“I understood that as much as this had been about pleasure, it was more about power.”

During the consummation of her marriage to Adrian, Isolde still regards their relationship as a power struggle, viewing Adrian’s desire to give her pleasure as an attempt to exert power over her. However, Adrian’s desire for Isolde is not rooted in a yearning for power; instead, he simply yearns for her. Because Isolde has not yet recovered her memories of her past life as Yesenia, she does not understand his true intentions.

“‘You ride beside me,’ he said. ‘It is where you will be safest.’ My brows drew together. ‘I am safe with my people.’ ‘Perhaps you were as princess of Lara,’ he said. ‘But today, you are queen of Revekka.’”

With this terse exchange, Adrian seeks to acquaint Isolde with harsh political realities that she has yet to face. Convinced that her people’s loyalty will not waver amidst her new circumstances, she fails to foresee their willingness to forsake her entirely. The scene also reflects The Effects of Political Power on Personal Relationships, as Isolde still regards herself as a princess, and Adrian must gently remind her that she is now a queen of a conquering nation. This moment marks the true beginning of her shift in identity—a dynamic that will continue throughout the narrative.

“‘Were you Revekkian?’ I asked. ‘Before you were cursed?’ 

‘I am Revekkian,’ he said and added, ‘And I am not cursed.’ His comment made my heart beat harder in my chest, and I had the thought that if he was not a curse to be broken, what was he? How had he become this?”

Isolde’s uncritical use of the word “curse” in this scene reveals that she still has little understanding of Adrian’s true nature, and she unthinkingly condemns what he is with the casual tone of her question. In the aftermath of his reply, her rhetorical questions also demonstrate her lack of understanding of history. At this point, however, Adrian is not yet free to explain his past or her true connection to him, and his cryptic answer leaves Isolde with even more uncertainty.

“Ana Maria looked at me, and as she did, she slid her palms together. ‘You’re wrong,’ she said, and her voice shook, but not from nerves. She seemed almost frustrated with me. ‘It could have only been you. There is no one else.’ I stared, confused, both by her reaction and her words. Then she took a deep breath and swallowed, and I thought she was trying to hold back tears.”

Ana Maria’s deeply emotional reaction in this scene is another instance of foreshadowing, as the intensity of her response does not fit the external circumstances of the exchange. Ana implies that she possesses a privileged knowledge of Adrian’s true feelings for Isolde, even though Isolde has only just met Ana. Although Isolde does not yet realize it, Ana’s deeper emotions are fueled by her constant awareness of her past friendship with the protagonist when she lived as Yesenia.

“‘Give me time,’ he said. ‘Soon you will beg me to conquer the land you wish to save.’”

With this emphatic comment, Adrian hints that many aspects of the current political situation remain unknown to Isolde. In reality, his comment foreshadows Isolde’s coming desire to wage war against Cordova. This decision on her part will be inspired by King Gheroghe’s harsh treatment of her mother’s people and her anger over her father’s lies. Although these things have not yet come to light, Adrian knows that Isolde will soon change her stance on the issue of conflict. This shift will allow St. Clair to explore new avenues of The Moral Complexities of Wartime Leadership.

“I thought all vassals agreed to offer their blood in hopes that they too would one day know immortality. ‘She offered her blood to show me she loved me,’ Ana said. ‘And that is enough.’”

With this explanation, Ana adds further nuance to Isolde’s still-limited view of bloodletting, illustrating that her vassal donates blood freely because she loves Ana. In this moment, Isolde is forced to recognize that the practice she was taught to revile as monstrous is instead rooted in the truest depths of love. Because she and Adrian are destined to experience this ritual together, the exchange also foreshadows the genuine bond that the two will eventually form.

“I was beginning to see how they worked to care for their people, and I stayed, continuing to read until my eyes grew weary.”

Isolde’s research into the High Coven leads her to empathize with their morals and practices. Her eagerness to continue learning about the witches despite her exhaustion hints at her past identity as Yesenia, as she clearly feels a sense of kinship with these long-dead women who exhibited the very same values that she holds dear.

“But it had felt so real—the cold, rough stone against my skin, the pain and the thick blood in my mouth, the feel of Adrian’s hair against my bruised fingers. Even now I could feel the claws of guilt twisting in my chest, because though I did not know how, Adrian had been in that cell because of me.”

The vivid nature of Isolde’s visions is the clearest hint of her past identity as Yesenia. In essence, she retains the emotional residue of the events that occurred while lacking the full context. The sensory details make the scene come alive for her, and she begins to suspect that her visions are not visions at all, but memories.

“Everything must be strategic, and nothing can be personal until victory is near. Do you understand?”

Isolde desires to wage war in order to free her mother’s people. However, Adrian has more experience with war and therefore urges her to temper her emotions. Her newfound passion and her desire for war fulfill Adrian’s earlier prediction that she would ask him to invade other kingdoms, and it is clear that as she adapts to her new life, she is beginning to embrace Revekka’s norms and values as well.

“‘I miss you,’ he whispered. At least that was what I thought I heard, but those words did not make any sense. I was right here. I did not ask him to repeat himself, and we did not speak as we descended stair after stair.”

Though Adrian is physically present with Isolde, he misses the relationship that they once had when she lived as Yesenia. However, Isolde is not yet privy to this vital aspect of their shared history, and because she lacks her past-life memories, she cannot understand what his words truly mean. The suppressed longing in his tone also hints at his emotional anguish as he endures Isolde’s frequent distrust and attempts to keep her distance.

“It was then I realized how wrong I’d been about Adrian. He was a god.”

Isolde previously mocked Safira for regarding Adrian as a god, but in this scene, she rethinks her position and realizes that she also thinks Adrian is a god. The goddesses are potent symbols of magic, and Adrian’s magical powers stem from the goddesses themselves.

“I’d grown so comfortable with Adrian. I liked him despite what he was. I’d grown to appreciate his past, even understand High Coven and despise King Dragos. I had changed. But I wasn’t sure how to be this person around my father or even if I could.”

In this moment, Isolde must once again contend with the effects of political power on personal relationships as she realizes that she can no longer pretend to be the person she was in Lara. As she realizes that she is now much more closely aligned with her husband than her father, this crisis of identity reveals that she still needs to reconcile the conflicting elements of her past and current life.

“‘You are queen of Revekka, soon to be queen of Cordova. You get to decide what world you live in.’ I returned his gaze, my chest tightening. If that was the case, why did I feel so powerless?”

Although Adrian encourages Isolde to step more fully into the power of her current role, she nonetheless feels a discrepancy between the political power she supposedly wields and her ability to access it. Even as a queen, she does not believe herself capable of living in a world in which she can love both her father and her husband.

“I thought I knew myself, but I didn’t. I’d once been Isolde, princess of Lara…A woman who would not marry and would rule just as well. Then I’d been betrayed by my people, and I’d come to rule a land of monsters—a sparrow among wolves indeed.”

In this passage, Isolde succinctly summarizes the change in her identity that has taken place during her journey to Revekka. She is no longer a princess and no longer feels loyal to those she once trusted. Instead, she gives her allegiance to those she once called monsters. Caught up in the intensity of this transformation, she acknowledges that she can never return to her former state and has no desire to do so.

“‘She has a choice, just as you.’ 

‘You make a mockery of the legacy of this castle.’ 

‘And what is that legacy, King Henri? One of mass murder and the persecution of innocents?’”

In this hostile exchange with Henri, Adrian directly references the Burning, obliquely declaring his awareness of Henri’s lies to Isolde. As the narrative ultimately reveals, Henri is duplicitous to his core and has long concealed brutal political truths from Isolde in an attempt to control her. His deceptive nature and his complicity are also revealed in his failure to free his wife’s people from enslavement.

“‘Yesenia,’ Adrian whispered, then begged. ‘Please. Please. Please.’ I shook my head and spoke words that ripped my heart in two. ‘All the stars in the sky are not as bright as my love for you.’”

The words that Adrian said to Isolde even before their wedding now come back to her in one of Yesenia’s memories. In this scene, the statement is now complete as Yesenia says this to Adrian. As Isolde beholds her past memory in full detail, she finally understands the depths of her history with him.

“I did not want to die a hero. I wanted to live as a conqueror.”

With this declaration, Isolde fulfills Adrian’s prediction that she will join him in his goal of conquering Cordova. Her words also indicate that Isolde has fully embraced her inner transformation, shedding her old inhibitions and stepping fully into her new role. She no longer wishes to be a self-sacrificing princess; instead, she accepts her destiny as a reigning queen.

“There, I sank to the ground to rest beneath the red sky of Revekka, and I knew this was the pain that would make me into a monster.”

The word “monster” appears many times throughout the narrative, usually as a slur against Adrian and his vampires. However, Isolde now deliberately refers to herself as a monster, allying herself with Adrian and declaring her loyalty to the nation of Revekka. By “resting” beneath the blood-red sky that once repulsed her, she powerfully expresses her complete acceptance of her new role.

“The sparrow is sought after by many monsters, but she is cunning and resourceful, and she always wins.”

In this passage, Adrian finally explains his repetitive use of the word “sparrow” to describe Isolde. Notably, he remains ambiguous about the identities of the “monsters” seeking the sparrow. He could be referring to those like Ravena, who seek to hurt Isolde, or he could also be referring to himself: the mislabeled monster who only seeks to love and protect her.