53 pages • 1-hour read
The Ever King
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Background
Literary Context: The Broken Kingdoms Series as Precursor to The Ever King
Though The Ever Seas series can be read on its own, it is founded on L.J. Andrews previous series, The Broken Kingdoms, which consists of nine installments and explores the nuances of four different earth fae kingdoms: the Northern kingdom (three books), the Eastern kingdom (three books), the Southern kingdom (two books), and the Western kingdom (one book). In the context of The Ever King, the most relevant clusters of installments concern the Northern Kingdom and the Eastern Kingdom. The Northern Kingdom trilogy (Curse of Shadows and Thorns, Court of Ice and Ash, and Crown of Blood and Ruin) explores the developing romance between Valen and Elise, Livia’s parents. The Eastern Kingdom trilogy, specifically its last book, Dance of Kings and Thieves, also holds vital exposition for The Ever King. It describes a very young Erik Bloodsinger, who is saved from captivity, and the novel also explores the existing relationships between Valen and Elise’s earth fae royals and King Thorvald and his brother, Harald.
Dance of Kings and Thieves also features the historic battle between Valen and Thorvald, in which Thorvald accuses Valen and the other earth fae of destroying his son Erik, the perfect Ever kingdom heir. In retaliation, Thorvald maims the face of Eryka, a Southern princess and the betrothed to Gunnar Strom, Valen’s nephew. Valen prevails over Thorvald in battle, and before dying, Thorvald warns him that while Valen may have won the mantle of kingship by killing him, but ownership of the mantle can be challenged again after 10 years. Andrews thus uses this pre-established foundation, kingdom structure, and political tension to establish the story of the Ever Seas series, which takes place 20 years after this moment. In the interim, 10 years after his father’s death, Erik leads a rebellion against Valen. Although the campaign is spearheaded by his uncle, his rebellion is doomed to failure and causes countless deaths. Erik is captured by Valen and encounters the young Livia for the first time through the window of his jail cell; their interaction is recounted in the prologue of The Ever King. After Erik’s trial, the Chasm that separates the sea fae from the earth fae is sealed with Erik’s blood, and it will be another 10 years before he and Livia encounter each other again as adults.
Cultural Context: Viking Cultural Practices
While Andrews openly admits to drawing upon Viking culture in her world-building, her inclusion of Viking cultural practices in The Ever King can primarily be seen as subtle allusions. The most prominent is her nod to the Viking custom of bride-stealing, which was historically pursued as either a violent kidnapping or as part of the courtship and nuptial negotiations. Although bride-stealing was typically considered to be a controversial practice that ignited power struggles and feuds, instances of this act have been recorded in remnants of Scandinavian sagas. The tone of these literary descriptions ranges greatly; bride-stealing was sometimes portrayed as a trigger for war and violent death, or else it was romanticized as a desirable outcome or used for humorous discourse. The latter instance is most vividly portrayed in the Poetic Edda, specifically the poem Þrymskviða (the Lay of Thrym). In this legend, the giant Thrym steals the god Thor’s hammer in order to bargain for the goddess Freyja’s hand in marriage, even though she is already being married to Óðr. Thor later masquerades as Freya and brings about Thrym’s demise.
In The Ever King, Andrews utilizes aspects the bride-stealing trope when Erik infiltrates the festival to kidnap Livia, stealing her from her suitors and her father. Although this act is meant to make Valen despair, the kidnapping transforms into a genuine romance, after which Erik claims Livia as his queen. However, Livia is later stolen by Larsson as part of his bid to overthrow Erik’s rule. Thus, Andrews engages with several literary traditions, for Erik’s act of stealing Livia away from her family soon results in a desirable arrangement for them both. However, when Larsson steals Livia from Erik, he creates a serious incident that will inevitably result in greater conflict.
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