r/bookclub • u/jaymae21 Yearbook Editor-in-Chief • Sep 05 '24

A Day of Fallen Night [Discussion] A Day of Fallen Night by Samantha Shannon Ch. 50-57

Welcome fellow dragonriders to our sixth discussion of A Day of Fallen Night! We're a little over halfway through the book at this point, and are seeing a lot more of what we are all really here for: dragons! Let's get started.

First, a friendly reminder to use spoiler tags for anything ahead of Ch. 57, as well as anything from The Priory of the Orange Tree! This novel can be thought of as a prequel or a standalone novel, and as such not everyone may have read The Priory.

Links to the marginalia and schedule.

"Five hundred and eleven years. All those sisters who came before us, who lived and died without seeing the war they knew was coming-we must realize their destinies as well as ours. We must win against an evil that does not hear reason, and you must lead us."

Ch. 50 East

Dumai, Nikeya, and Kanifa arrive at the City of the Thousand Flowers, in the Empire of the Twelve Lakes. They are greeted by the Minister of Ceremony, and learn that King Padar has already been there, asking after Mistress (now Master) Kiprun. As Furtia is led to water, she tells Dumai that only fallen night can stop the fire from rising. As Dumai goes to sleep, she reaches out to her dream-twin for the first time in awhile. Dumai warns her that the wyrms are coming, and to be ready. At midnight, Consort Jekhen summons Dumai. As she gets ready, she requests Nikeya, and allows her to comb her hair as she tells of what she knows about Consort Jekhen. Nikeya begins to feel ill, so Dumai lets her rest in her bed.

Dumai meets with Consort Jekhen, who says King Padar vouched for her and she may meet with Master Kiprun. Suddenly, a woman enters on horseback, who turns out to the the Hüran Princess. She comes announcing that King Bardholt of Hrόth is dead. She also introduces Nayimathun of the Deep Snows, the first dragon of the Empire of the Twelve Lakes to awake.

Ch. 51 West

Glorian prepares for her parents' entombment and thinks about the warning her dream-twin gave her. She travels with the Virtues Council, the Dukes Spiritual, and many of the Earls Provincial and Knights Bachelor to the Sanctuary of Queens on Rose Island. Glorian is allowed some time by herself in the tomb to pray, and she goes down the line looking at the tombs of previous Queens and their Consorts. She reaches her parents' tomb, and tells them she loves them and misses them. The rest of the entourage comes in, a total of about 300 witnesses, and they sing a song to the deceased. A tooth from each of them is placed into their tombs, as there are no other remains. As they leave, Glorian starts to sing a song in Hrόthi in memory of her father.

After the song, Glorian sees wyrms appear over the horizon, one large with many smaller ones around it. The large wyrm is black, and that is how she knows it is not the Nameless One. It appears before her and addresses her as the Queen of Inys, and names itself Fýredel. He brings the bones of her parents, and warns her that the cold one was her kin, who fell to his flame. Fýredel tells her that when the days grow long and hot, they will come. She thinks about what each of her parents told her about finding courage, and forging her armor, and she tells the wyrm that she will drive him back with sword and spear, bow and lance if he dares turn fire on Inys. The smaller wyrms set fire to Ascalun, and Glorian is picked up and taken away as she tries to gather her parents' bones.

Ch. 52 North

Wulf meets with Einlek Óthling, the new King of Hrόth. Wulf tells him that they were attacked by the wyrms that came out of the Dreadmount. Einlek wants to know how Wulf survived, when he should have frozen in the sea. Wulf's answer is that he chose ice rather than fire. Einlek then asks him if he will pledge himself to him, and to go to Inys to let Glorian know what happened. Wulf then meets with the small remainder of his lith-Thrit, Sauma, and Karlsten. Karsten is outraged that once again Wulf survived, and says he will not serve with a witch.

Ch. 53 South

Tunuva, Siyu, and Canthe travel back to the Priory as Carmentum burns. Canthe is very weak from the exertion of her strange power, and Lalhar is dead. At the Priory, Tunuva and Siyu go to meet with Esbar, and Tunuva tells her everything that happened. Esbar reprimands Siyu for her foolishness, and most of all for the death of her ichneumon. Siyu explains that she only wanted choices, and now she has chosen the Priory, and she apologizes.

Siyu is dismissed, and Tunuva looks at the tablets and fragments from the archives Esbar has spread about. Esbar explains she has been reading up on texts written by her ancestor, Siyāti uq-Nāra, who wrote of trying to find a cure for the dragon plague. Tunuva draws a picture of the dragon for the first time since her son died, and explains the magic Canthe used against it. Esbar is troubled by this news, and does not trust Canthe. As Tunuva vouches for her, Esbar asks her why she doesn't just go to Canthe's chamber instead.

Esbar intends to send men to Queen Daraniya to aid them, and Tunuva will join them in a few days. She goes to visit Canthe, who murmurs the name "Sabran" as she wakes, and explains that it was her daughter's name. Tunuva says she named her birthson for the stars. Canthe then explains her magic, which she calls sterren, that comes from the stars and flows like water, and is the opposite of siden. Canthe then tells Tunuva that she knows of a babe that was found by the haithwood and adopted, who in Inys it is thought was born from a witch, that may be her son.

Ch. 54 West

Wulf, Sauma, and Thrit travel to Inys by boat. Wulf asks Thrit about the dragons of the East, and Thrit shows him an amulet given to him by his grandfather for protection, with a carving of a dragon. Sauma alerts them to a bad storm coming, so they seek shelter on land. Once it passes, Wulf refuses to go back on the ship. He and Thrit travel by foot, and come across a landed boat with the sail of Clan Vatten. Wulf looks on the deck of the ship and finds people dead, with redness to the elbows, faces contorted in agony. The sickness has reached Inys.

Glorian is stuck in the Queens' Tower as others deal with the madness in the city. She feels guilt for taunting Fýredel, thinking she caused this to happen. She wants to fight, but no one will let her leave. She tells Florell to get Prince Therico there as fast as possible, as she knows she cannot leave unless she produces an heir. She prays for rain, and later she wakes to the sound of thunder, and hears a voice saying "I hear".

Ch. 55 East

Dumai wakes from a dream soaking wet, remembering the voice that had begged for help, and for rain. Somehow, she knows that she could do this, and she hears thunder though there is no storm outside. She meets with Kanifa in the courtyard, and then they meet the famous Master Kiprun, the eccentric court alchemist. He dismisses ideas of magic, saying he deals with truths. When Dumai mentions what Furtia has told her about the fallen night, he becomes more interested in the conversation. He explains that the world has many contrasts, night/day, fire/water, sky/earth and explains a theory of the weighing scales, which states that the world is tuned to duality in balance. He posits that they are currently in an Age of Fire that is burning too strong. He thinks he should consult with an astronomer, which is the opposite science that he studies.

Outside, they see smoke. Dumai immediately runs to the Hidden Lake and boards Furtia. Nayimathun looks at her, and wonders how it is that she carries the light. The city is being burned by winged creatures, with two legs. Furtia and Nayimathun easily takes one of them down, but then they see a giant wyrm with golden scales, two horns, and four legs coming towards them. Furtia attempts to attack it, but is injured, and Dumai falls from her back. She stumbles through the streets, running from strange contorted creatures before she is picked up by Nayimathun, who breaks the ice on the Lake of Long Days, bringing forth another.

Ch. 56 West

Glorian is summoned to meet with Lord Robart to receive a royal messenger. As they walk, Glorian grills him on the going-ons of the Council, and what they are doing in light of the disaster. When they get to the throne room, Glorian sits on the throne, and Lord Robart awkwardly tells her he has to sit there, and she on the stool next to him. The messenger is Lady Mara, Wulf's sister, with a message from Queen Marian. She wants to come to court to be with her granddaughter. Lord Robart refuses her. As Mara goes to leave, another messenger appears with news of the Conviction. It turns out to be Wulf, who pledges himself to Glorian. He tells her first about the sickness, and then everything that happened to the ship.

Later, Glorian reads a letter from Einlek, urging her to look to the Saint first, and then to herself. She is summoned to the Virtues Council, who tell her that Prince Therico is dead. There is a backup member of the Vetalda though, all ready to marry Glorian. Prince Guma Vetalda is in his 70s and has already agreed to the match, they can be married tomorrow. Glorian is technically given the choice, but she chooses to marry him and be done with it.

Ch. 57 East

It has been several days since the attack by the wyrm, named Taugran (splendid death), who was driven off by Nayimathun, Furtia, and the Imperial Dragon, who is now awake. Dumai is injured, but joins Consort Jekhen and Princess Irebül in witnessing a demonstration by Master Kiprun, who has just invented explosives from a black powder he found in the mountains. Consort Jekhen tells Dumai that Master Kiprun has requested a particular astronomer, who lives on Brhazat, the tallest peak known. She wants Dumai to take him there on dragonback. She offers a huge crossbow, meant for war, to take back to Seiiki to give them knowledge in exchange for her flying with Furtia for the astonomer's knowledge. With the advice of Kanifa and Nikeya, she decides to go.

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