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I found myself getting angry with them, especially Aunt Emily. She could have helped him more. I didn't like how evasive she was when he would ask her questions. I think it would've added more meat to the story if pieces were given to him by his aunt and father. They basically said, "Figure it out and we'll be here when you're done." I was curious to see if anyone else got that from the book or if it was just me.☺

Having said that, the author may have set it up that way and I may have missed something along the way, but the impression was there for me, all the same.

Thoughts?

I agree and also think they didn't do enough. I was angry with both of them as well, especially with the father which did nothing except dispersing advice now and then. At least Emily was there for him. The father didn't even bother to show himself to his son at first and gave lame excuses about that. His brother Rory did far more than him. Conor's Father & Aunt could have helped more than they did and I think it would have enriched the story.

I don't know I wonder if his father maybe thought Emily was doing enough for him and was thinking if he continued it may go overboard. Sometimes that could be too much and get overwhelming. He could have just been giving him his space also.

I felt like Aunt Emily was a significant force in helping Conor come into his own. I am not convinced that we know all there is to know about why Madoc hung back from developing a relationship with Conor. I hope that this is something that the author will develop more in future books. I also am curious as to why Aunt Emily and Father Abbot were so long lived. I know that Emily spent time in the Otherworld as a young girl but it was not clear to me exactly why Father Abbot was so ancient. I did want to see Father Abbot and Madoc help Conor more.

I also thought Conor should have been given more information. Madoc, Emily, Malachy - they all had crucial information. Only Rory was really interested in helping Conor figure it out, but he was pretty scary for 3/4 of the book I think the lack of information given to Conor was deliberate, in that the whole town was so used to keeping secrets... that was their way. Conor was sort of an unknown to them, even though they knew more about him than he did. Anyway, if you were a kid - and you just lost your mom, and some weirdo just bit you, and some other weirdo wrapped up your hand and told you a riddle ... and then you arrived in a town you'd never heard of ... how would you feel if all of a sudden you were told that, hey - btw, you're not human. you're turning into a shapeshifter, more specifically a giant bird. your dad is centuries old. you are a key player in a fight between good and evil that you didn't even know existed, and if you don't accept your fate, the whole thing is going to hell. Like - whoa!!! Let me off the bus! Sure, it was frustrating for him, and I think more information could have been given earlier to help Conor know more about who to trust and what decisions he had to make, along with all the consequences... but, it's also clear that the key players like Emily and the Abbot all thought they were going to have more time. They thought they were going to be able to guide Conor slowly, in which case they would have had the luxury of informing Conor more slowly.

greenstripedgiraffe wrote:I also thought Conor should have been given more information. Madoc, Emily, Malachy - they all had crucial information. Only Rory was really interested in helping Conor figure it out, but he was pretty scary for 3/4 of the book I think the lack of information given to Conor was deliberate, in that the whole town was so used to keeping secrets... that was their way. Conor was sort of an unknown to them, even though they knew more about him than he did. Anyway, if you were a kid - and you just lost your mom, and some weirdo just bit you, and some other weirdo wrapped up your hand and told you a riddle ... and then you arrived in a town you'd never heard of ... how would you feel if all of a sudden you were told that, hey - btw, you're not human. you're turning into a shapeshifter, more specifically a giant bird. your dad is centuries old. you are a key player in a fight between good and evil that you didn't even know existed, and if you don't accept your fate, the whole thing is going to hell. Like - whoa!!! Let me off the bus! Sure, it was frustrating for him, and I think more information could have been given earlier to help Conor know more about who to trust and what decisions he had to make, along with all the consequences... but, it's also clear that the key players like Emily and the Abbot all thought they were going to have more time. They thought they were going to be able to guide Conor slowly, in which case they would have had the luxury of informing Conor more slowly.

I agree that they shouldn't have bombarded the poor kid with information; but doling it out slowly in a supportive way would have moved the storyline along and helped the pace. There was some repetitive aspects due to the lack of sharing as well; because Conor just kept getting the same answers when he asked questions.

Janetleighgreen wrote: I agree that they shouldn't have bombarded the poor kid with information; but doling it out slowly in a supportive way would have moved the storyline along and helped the pace. There was some repetitive aspects due to the lack of sharing as well; because Conor just kept getting the same answers when he asked questions.

I think you hit the nail on the head with that one. I was okay with the pace, but it could have been tightened by better sharing the information for the sake of the story line.

It is always frustrating to see someone floundering from the lack of information, when a significant person in their life has the power to make a difference. Yes, I was aggravated. No matter how much time Conor may have had, leaving him in the dark showed a lack of foresight. I hate being left in the dark and always have. Conor may not have been able to handle it all at once, but it should have been addressed. Also Giving it in small amounts might have made the story flow better.

I felt that Emily was reasonably appropriate with the amount she did/could do. I think she was in the balanced position of "I could tell you but I'm not the right person to tell the story." To use the poor analogy, who would you rather tell you that your significant other was cheating on you? Is your significant other the right person or your friend's cousin's aunt's nephew's step brother? Yes, Emily had the information but it wasn't her information to give out.

Madoc, on the other hand, felt like a completely useless character. Madoc, Emily, and the Abbot seemed to share the mentor role (if you follow Joseph Conrad's story arc). To mix metaphors, it felt like too many cooks in the kitchen and Madoc added the least. I don't think the story would have lost anything if Madoc simply wasn't there. He didn't even do much during the final battle, some random guy jumps in and sacrifices himself for a complete stanger.

(I'm sorry for the rant but Madoc is just infuriating)

Gnome wrote:I felt that Emily was reasonably appropriate with the amount she did/could do. I think she was in the balanced position of "I could tell you but I'm not the right person to tell the story." To use the poor analogy, who would you rather tell you that your significant other was cheating on you? Is your significant other the right person or your friend's cousin's aunt's nephew's step brother? Yes, Emily had the information but it wasn't her information to give out.

Madoc, on the other hand, felt like a completely useless character. Madoc, Emily, and the Abbot seemed to share the mentor role (if you follow Joseph Conrad's story arc). To mix metaphors, it felt like too many cooks in the kitchen and Madoc added the least. I don't think the story would have lost anything if Madoc simply wasn't there. He didn't even do much during the final battle, some random guy jumps in and sacrifices himself for a complete stanger.

(I'm sorry for the rant but Madoc is just infuriating)

You're right, I think Madoc frustrated me much more than Emily. I felt that since Emily was there all those years ago, and was his mother's sister, she had an obligation to help Conor more than she did; but Madoc, as his father, had a bigger obligation. I see your point though; and I do think the author tried to explain why they didn't help more, it just bothered me.

Janetleighgreen wrote: I do think the author tried to explain why they didn't help more, it just bothered me.

Unless I missed something (which is possible, I read most of the book at work) it felt more like excuses. Most of it seemed it be "Daddy did it this way so that's what I'm going to do." Madoc's dad also tried to have him killed.

I understand relying on what you know but Madoc wasn't expected to save the world. I'm sure he had some sort of teacher to guide him, if he didn't he had his brother to learn with. I know I speak as an outsider to the relationship but it felt more like Madoc wanted nothing to do with his son not just on a mentor level but in a personal level.

Gnome wrote:

Janetleighgreen wrote: I do think the author tried to explain why they didn't help more, it just bothered me.

Unless I missed something (which is possible, I read most of the book at work) it felt more like excuses. Most of it seemed it be "Daddy did it this way so that's what I'm going to do." Madoc's dad also tried to have him killed.

I understand relying on what you know but Madoc wasn't expected to save the world. I'm sure he had some sort of teacher to guide him, if he didn't he had his brother to learn with. I know I speak as an outsider to the relationship but it felt more like Madoc wanted nothing to do with his son not just on a mentor level but in a personal level.

No, you didn't miss anything and I agree that it all felt more like excuses than good solid reasons of why they couldn't help; I think that's why it was so frustrating.

Agreed, they could have given Conor more information and Madoc could have been more fatherly. Though there was an attempt to explain his lack of interaction with Conor I felt that the excuses given were thin.

Guppy wrote:Agreed, they could have given Conor more information and Madoc could have been more fatherly. Though there was an attempt to explain his lack of interaction with Conor I felt that the excuses given were thin.

I did keep hoping that there would be more explanation about Madoc. Hopefully that is coming in the next book ? also more information about Rory, while the author is writing more of this history!

greenstripedgiraffe wrote:

Guppy wrote:Agreed, they could have given Conor more information and Madoc could have been more fatherly. Though there was an attempt to explain his lack of interaction with Conor I felt that the excuses given were thin.

I did keep hoping that there would be more explanation about Madoc. Hopefully that is coming in the next book ? also more information about Rory, while the author is writing more of this history!

I liked Rory, I thought his character could have been more prominent and fleshed out more.