Tag Archives: Audrey’s House of Joy

I Dare – Chapter 40

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Day 31
Standard Year 1393

Surebleak Spaceport

In which good intentions sooner or later need cash to back them.

A whole month has passed since we last saw Pat Rin and company, so it’s now only a few weeks before Val Con and Miri are going to start worrying about them. The way things are, though, there’s still a lot might happen in a few weeks.

If anyone ever compiles a book of advice for people caught up in adventure stories, one of those pieces of advice will surely be to never, ever, under any provocation, ask the question “What harm can it do?”

I Dare – Chapter 23

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Day 310
Standard Year 1392

Blair Road
Surebleak

In which they’re fighting in the street with their children at their feet.

It’s an occupational hazard of people who read adventure stories, daydreaming about being in the story working alongside the heroes, but when I daydream about being in the Liaden Universe I always have to include some element of being swept up involuntarily, because otherwise my plan would be to hide under the nearest rock until it’s all over: the Department of the Interior scares me, and if I’m honest I have to admit that the heroes all know how to look after themselves and I really don’t have any relevant skills and there’s more ways for me to make things worse than to make things better. But there are a couple of places in the series that always tempt me to consider coming out from under the rock, in defense of innocent bystanders who can’t fend for themselves, and Jonni is one of those. (And then I start thinking about my odds of surviving on Surebleak long enough to achieve anything useful, and the rock starts looking good again.)

In the last scene, told from Natesa’s viewpoint, the ring Pat Rin wears is described as Korval’s Ring, which reminds me that on the day he obtained it he told Cheever it was a fake but only showed it to Natesa and allowed her to draw her own conclusions. It appears he has not subsequently found it necessary to correct any false impression she may have gained thereby.

I Dare – Chapter 22

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Day 309
Standard Year 1392

Blair Road
Surebleak

In which the new boss gets to know the territory.

One of the many victims of the epidemic Pat Rin is told about in this chapter was Miri’s grandmother; she mentions it to Val Con back in Agent of Change.

Ms Audrey thinks she’s joking about Pat Rin deciding it’s too cold and installing central heating in the streets, but he’ll be making plans to very similar effect by the end of the book.

I Dare – Chapter 20

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Day 308
Standard Year 1392

Blair Road
Surebleak

In which the people meet the new boss.

Following on from what I said last time, I note that when telling Ms Audrey about the Sinner’s Carpet Pat Rin is again selective with the details, and selects a different set than when talking to Jim Snyder.

On a subject I’ve been keeping track of: Ms Audrey’s guess is that Pat Rin’s preferred game is dice, rather than cards, but his reply is exquisitely uninformative.

I Dare – Chapter 18

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Day 307
Standard Year 1392

Blair Road
Surebleak

In which the new boss is not the same as the old boss.

One hazard of reading a series like this in chronological order like this is that one occasionally encounters two stories that are set within a few days of each other but written years apart, and then it can be difficult to avoid noticing discrepancies.

The difference between the implication here about the carpet’s creator and the explicit description in “Persistence” is, I think, clearly a deliberate creative decision by the authors, and can be easily explained in-universe as a deliberate creative decision by Pat Rin, who would not misinform a potential buyer as to the value of a carpet but also knows the value of tuning the details to fit the audience. I can’t see any such clear-cut explanation for the fairly large difference between the price Pat Rin paid for the carpet in “Persistence” and the price he remembers paying here.

On the other hand, there are good juxtapositions, too. Snyder taking Cheever at face value is extra amusing coming so soon after Beba seeing right through him.