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Summary
Chapter 18
Tamlin and Lucien have a conversation, but stop when Feyre comes downstairs. The three of them go for a ride so Tamlin can show Feyre the beauty of his lands. Tamlin asks Feyre twice if she likes the glen, surprised when she says nothing more than yes. She teases him, saying the Suriel mentioned he likes to be brushed and can be managed with treats. Tamlin laughs and Lucien expresses his surprise that Feyre made a joke. Tamlin shows her a sparkling pool made of starlight, his favorite spot as a child. Tamlin explains to Feyre that Lucien is the youngest son of the Autumn Court. Lucien’s father killed the woman he loved, believing she was inappropriate for someone of his son’s status. Lucien left the court and Tamlin took him in as an emissary. Feyre gives in and takes a swim in the pool with Tamlin. She tells him that her father lost the family’s fortune on a risky shipping venture and that she taught herself to hunt at fourteen. Feyre and Lucien talk about her adventure with the Suriel. Lucien says he wasn’t trying to put her at risk but admits he hesitated before coming to her rescue. He expresses surprise that she freed the Suriel.
Chapter 19
Before Tamlin gives Feyre her painting supplies, he takes her to the freshly cleaned gallery. Feyre feels humbled by the space and the artwork. She stays for hours, then Alis leads her to a room filled with canvases, paints, and brushes, where she begins to paint. Feyre doesn’t show anyone her paintings, feeling the works don’t match her imagination. When Tamlin is away, worry keeps her from focusing on her painting. Though she continues to have nightmares, she starts to feel less afraid, remembering the Suriel’s advice that Tamlin will keep her safe. One night after dinner, upset that she allowed herself to get distracted from finding answers to her questions, Feyre storms off into the garden. Tamlin follows her and tells her that the garden was a mating present from his father to his mother. Feyre tells Tamlin she’s upset that her family didn’t fight for her or try to find her. Feyre grabs a rose, stabbing her hand with a thorn. Tamlin kisses her palm to heal the wound. He promises answers to her questions when it’s safe.
The next morning, Tamlin follows Feyre to the woods. She laughs as he reads limericks that he created using the list of words she threw away. Tamlin explains the difference between marriage and the mating bond and tells her about the cruelty of his father and brothers. Since Tamlin never wanted his father’s title, he became a warrior. When his family was killed, Tamlin became High Lord, but many of the courtiers left, feeling he was a beast. Feyre sees faeries building bonfires, and Tamlin explains that they’re setting up for Calanmai, or Fire Night. The ceremony generates magic that sustains the land for the year. He tells Feyre she’s not invited and warns her to stay away from all faeries. As they enter the garden, Tamlin tells Feyre to hide. Lucien joins Tamlin and they face an invisible foe, talking about the mysterious woman who holds their fate in her hands. Before he leaves, the creature expresses surprise that Tamlin feels such fear in spite of his heart of stone. Tamlin tells Feyre that it was the Attor, a creature who lives up to the terrifying myths humans believe about faeries. They return to the house with Feyre wondering who the woman is that scares Tamlin and Lucien.
Chapter 20
The next day, Feyre paints a batlike creature with rows of fangs. She swears she can smell its foul breath. With Fire Night set to begin, Feyre sees the glow of fire, hears drumbeats, and smells the strong scent of magic. She feels compelled to go, but Tamlin tells her to go to her room, lock the door, and stay until morning. Feyre complies but is soon drawn toward the fires. She sees more faeries than ever before but can’t make out their faces. She stops near the mouth of a cave that is decorated with leaves and flowers. Three faeries surround Feyre, telling her they want some Fire Night fun with menace in their voices. They ignore her protests to take their hands off her. As one shoves her, someone else steadies her and puts his arm around her. The three threatening faeries scurry off as she turns around to thank the attractive stranger.
Analysis
The land of Prythian features extremes of beauty. The enchanting beauty offers a contrast to the stark, plain land of Feyre’s home. When Tamlin offers to take her for a ride with no killing or creatures involved, it highlights his pride in the gorgeous land. The novel uses the symbol of flowers, including crocuses, snowdrops, and bluebells, to show the vibrant life in Prythian. The flower symbol appears again in Tamlin’s garden, where the white roses stand for life as well as love. The landscape overwhelms Feyre’s senses as demonstrated through the rich sensory imagery, including the golden color of the light and the feeling of the grass. The sparkling water, which not only resembles starlight, but is starlight with the feel of warm silk, suggests that nothing is impossible in this land where magic grows. Feyre gazing at Tamlin’s strong body, knowing it has been shaped by battle, demonstrates that beauty can thrive even in terrible circumstances.
Prythian’s otherworldly beauty is often juxtaposed with terrifying horrors. When Feyre, Tamlin, and Lucien meet the invisible Attor in the garden, the metaphorical language of a voice that sounds like the screams of victims emphasizes how dangerous the Attor truly is. The imagery used to describe the Attor also develops a tone of dread and fear toward the mysterious woman who scares Tamlin and Lucien so much. Feyre’s painting of the creature she hasn’t seen includes death-like images of skeletons and carrion that imply the frightening nature of the creature. As Feyre learns more of Lucien and Tamlin’s stories, their backgrounds reveal a land where families kill for control, power, and revenge. The potential for violence lurks beneath Tamlin’s stunning good looks, but his actions reveal a moral code that always chooses good over evil.
Magic represents a terrifying force outside of Feyre’s comprehension. Magic grows as part of the natural realm in the Spring Court, enhancing its beauty, but it represents danger. Though Feyre’s nature is typically level-headed and straight-forward, magic has the ability to cloud her mind and distract her, even turning her thoughts away from her family. When Tamlin’s magic glamours Feyre in the garden so she can hear but not see the Attor, it suggests Tamlin’s motivation for allowing her to overhear the conversation is intentional. The blight’s ability to weaken Tamlin’s power suggests that there’s a magic even stronger than the High Lord’s. The celebration of Calanmai, or Fire Night, generates the magic that serves the land for the year ahead, illustrating that magic is essential to Prythian’s survival. Though Tamlin’s magic is not what it once was, he serves as the central figure in the Great Rite of Fire Night. As much as Feyre learns about her new land, an understanding of magic escapes her.
Tamlin, Feyre, and Lucien each carry the weight of duty, illustrating the value they place on caring for others. Though his title of High Lord makes Tamlin faerie royalty, Feyre’s knowledge that he alone dug a grave for the blue faerie shows that Tamlin’s power comes from his actions, not just his title. As Tamlin tells Feyre how Lucien came to his court, she understands for the first time that Tamlin’s protection extends to Lucien. The men share a mutually beneficial relationship with Lucien acting as Tamlin’s emissary to other courts. Tamlin also tasks Lucien with looking out for Feyre, and by giving his hunting knife to Feyre, Lucien shows remorse for hesitating before attempting to defend her from the naga. Feyre’s pain at her family’s refusal to fight for her after she taught herself to hunt to care for them illustrates that she took her duty seriously, and wished her family did the same. She, Tamlin, and Lucien all understand the importance of duty.
Until she arrived in Prythian, art and creativity were a luxury for Feyre. Now, freed from the struggle to survive and care for her family, she has the time, supplies, and space to paint. She doesn’t show her works to anyone, illustrating that the paintings are meant only for her. Though she dreamed of being able to paint one day, she perceives the act as selfish and worries that her family will forget her, showing that art cannot turn her thoughts away from them completely. Tamlin reveals a similar struggle with his desire to pursue creative outlets when he tells Feyre he plays the fiddle, but the responsibilities of being High Lord precluded him from becoming a musician. The closing of his gallery while he struggled to protect the Spring Cout highlights his misguided view that art is useless in times of danger. Tamlin’s use of Feyre’s discarded words to write limericks illustrates their growing connection over art. Together, Feyre and Tamlin allow each other the space and power to release creativity.
