Metal Slinger

How do Jovie’s different names parallel her evolving sense of identity and her relationship to Acker? Does her choice to go by “Jovie” have political, personal, or romantic motivations or a complex combination of several?

Does the novel suggest that withholding information is the same as being dishonest? Why or why not? Is this framework the same for personal concerns and political ones? Use details from the text to orient your claim.

How do the novel’s different settings (Alaha, Roison, Kenta) affect Jovie’s feelings about her magic, her identity, and her relationship with Acker?

How do the characters’ different magical gifts foreshadow their alliances at the end of the novel?

The series’ title is Fire & Metal, and this first installment references Acker’s metal-oriented powers. What does the title of the scheduled sequel, Light Wielder, suggest about what might come to pass in the next installment? What conflicts are suggested by the juxtaposition of fire and metal?

The novel examines different forms of oppression: gendered, imperial, economic, and class based. How does Jovie—a princess who has been kidnapped and raised in an impoverished community—gain authority within this multilayered depiction of the interplay between power and oppression?

The novel explores different meanings of ethics, featuring those who wield power and those who lack it. Does the narrative suggest that one form of power is more effective than any other? Consider the text’s portrayals of political power, magical power, and military power in your response.

The end of the novel implies that Wren and Edmond have much in common—and that they may have some relationship to one another, given that they both wield the magical power of compulsion. How does the novel differentiate the two leaders from one another, and how do these portrayals indicate Jovie’s own views and biases?