I didn’t set out to include themes or symbolism when I started writing , but sometimes the characters reveal themes you didn’t even know you were looking for. The more I wrote the more it became clear that there were two main themes important for the development of several key characters. One was Survival, and the sacrifices people make for it and the people they love. The other was Hope, and how each character processes it differently.
Ever since Andi was five years old, she’s had minimal supervision or instruction for aspects of life other than amulet construction. She was even raised with as little care and affection as possible. For that reason, hope was all she had to cling to—hope for food, shelter, and work—after being thrown out of her home to live on the street, without a license to work in the field she’d been training for her entire life. Armed with nothing but a small knife and street smarts, her optimism helped her pull through adversity and survive an otherwise heartless world. Once she arrived at the castle, that same resourcefulness was what helped her succeed where other debtera had failed.
Magnus had to face survival a little differently. Unable to look anyone directly in the eye, he instead chose to prioritize the survival of those around him instead of his social needs until the curse is broken. As a consequence, he’s lived a lonely three years of seclusion, other than Saba and occasional visits. As chaotic an energy as Magnus has, his hope is usually disguised as rules and logic. He hired Andi because of the facts laid down before him—she’s unlicensed and she needed a patron in order to secure financial stability. Like him, she had everything to lose so he knew she’d stay. His arrogance disguised the reality that deep down he knew Andi was his only hope. Because if someone who needs this as much as he does can’t figure out a way to save him, who can?
As for Saba, she only had two choices: suffer as the slave of an Evil she has no option of fighting against or be taken away from the people she loves. And Jember, he had survived half his life by being overly cautious, to the point that he isn’t living much of a life outside of his work at all by the time he took in Andi. Both Saba and Jember are hopeless when it comes to their own lives, resigned to the eventual fate of an early death. At the same time, every sacrifice they make is for Andi and Magnus—for them, their survival and hope are seen as a temporary arrangement until they’ve successfully made a new life for their children.
Ultimately each character is driven by their hope, or lack of it. This reflects in their survival style and motivations, and, eventually, how their story ends…or, in some way, begins. I hope reading with this in mind helps broaden your understanding of four very different characters on journeys more similar than they ever expected. After all, everyone needs hope at some point. What do you hope for?
