Beautiful photo by @onetruedaydreamer!
Hello fairies!
I hope that you’re all loving The Foxglove King so far! It’s now day 3 and the story is really starting to get interesting! We left off on an awkward moment so I’m excited to see what happens!
Before we start reading, we have our secret giveaway! What’s that? Oh, just a chance to get your next FairyLoot Adult Book-Only box for free as a reward for reading! Doesn’t really get better than that! And your chances are so good too! We don’t really announce this anywhere else as we truly want the person from the readalong to win! If you’d like to try your luck, all you need to do is follow these steps!
- Take a photo of our edition of The Foxglove King
- Include the hashtag #FairyFoxglove (very important!)
- Do all of this by the end of April 26th.
- Mention down below in your comment that you have entered and include your Instagram handle (also super important!)
Good luck!
Today we’ll be reading from Chapter 17 to the end of Chapter 25, let’s jump in!
Please be warned, the following section will include spoilers for The Foxglove King by Hannah Whitten, from chapters 17 to 25. Please only read on if you’ve finished this section!
-!SPOILERS!-
Gabe isn’t shutting down Lore’s demands that they go to the vaults and honestly? I like him all the more for it! He’s not brushing off her worries but helping her on her mission to find out what happened.
When they reach the vaults, Bastian is there too. ? He offers to get them into the vaults BUT he has some kind of ulterior motive. He wants to take Lore and Gabe on a detour first. It’s their only option really… so they agree.
I have to say, of all the places Bastian might have wanted Lore and Gabe to go, a boxing ring wasn’t one of them? Oh wow. Bastian’s opponent… is Michal. Yep Bastian’s definitely up to something.
Michal recognises her, and that is apparently all the confirmation Bastian needed. He’s smarter than anyone seems to give him credit for, to the point where he seems to be the only person who’s worked out Lore’s Mortem didn’t come about the usual way. Lore eventually tells him she was born in the catacombs to one of the Night Sisters.
Bastian is shocked, he didn’t think the Buried Watch existed anymore but Lore seems like living proof that it does. She was born with the ability to channel Mortem. I wonder if she’ll tell Gabriel too?
When they finally reach the vaults, Lore’s worries were correct. The child – the corpse – rises with her arrival, as if waiting for her. She’s struggling to get a grip on Mortem with Bastian around and forces him to leave. It works, but that’s not really good news, because they learn from the corpse that the other bodies were never destroyed, which means August and Anton are keeping them somewhere. Creepy.
Poor Gabe is still trying to see the best in Anton, despite the evidence of his lies. His anger towards Bastian does feel a bit like jealousy? And I think a lot of it stems from their past too!
Lore and Gabe are both angry, and their anger somehow results in an almost kiss! The tension between them is stronggggg. Things quickly turn back to Bastian though, with Gabe asking probing questions about why Lore can’t channel Mortem with him around. I mean, relatable, I’d also like to know!
Croquet, meeting with Anton and August, Mortem leaks… it’s all happening here!
Lore is adamant she’s going to help with the Mortem leak. When Gabe realises the Presque Mort are struggling to reign in the Mortem, he tells Lore to help.
They eventually control the leak, but it comes at a cost. There’s one Presque Mort on the floor who was caught by the Mortem, and Lore worries she’s the one responsible.
She ends up passed out for days, hearing snippets of conversations between Bastian and Gabe while she drifts in and out. When she wakes, she finds only Bastian. Alone, Bastian tells her he doesn’t want her hurt. He tells her what happened, of the surge when she started channelling. Lore is definitely suspicious of Anton after that whole ordeal, but no one else seems to be. Turns out Gabe was also injured, he lost the tip of his finger trying to reach for Lore when she was channelling.
Gabe eventually returns armed with medicine for Lore. She tells him of her theories and how she wants to go to the Church library to delve a little deeper. Lore goes to Gabe, tells him she’s cold and without hesitation, he lifts his blanket to allow her entry and they fall asleep together.
Who are you suspecting? I’m leaning toward August or Anton right now!
Do you think Bastian has good intentions?
What do you think it means that Lore can channel Mortem because she was born in the catacombs? Any theories?
I can’t wait to see where tomorrow’s section will go!
Love,
Shannon
I admit I had a hard time getting into this one. But am glad I kept reading but it’s getting pretty good now! I don’t trust August or Anton now either, but at this point I feel like they are too obvious to be the culprits. I’m having some mixed feeling about Bastian. I am starting to trust him, but initially thought he would be the bad guy. I find Lore’s story with channeling Mortem really interesting. Not sure how she came to be born with it, but looking forward to finding out!
I just posted about the book for the contest. My Instagram name is @buckeye_jenna_reads_again
I have entered the fairyloot read along picture challenge on instagram @tweetbugshouse
I think there a lot about lore we don’t know and are slowly learning. I think the author is doing an amazing job of keeping us guessing who is bad, who is good and who can easily switch sides.
Anton is so suspicious! His whole performance, lack of channeling mortem like all the other Presque Mort at the leak was weird. What was with the threads he was making into a ball? I have no faith in Anton or his brother. Its going to cause an even larger rift between Gabe and Lore since he cant let go of Anton.
Bastian, cunning Sun Prince! I think he truly wants to help his kingdom and people but would also throw anyone to the wolves to make it happen. Lore will not be his number one priority because of that. I do believe that he earnestly does not want her hurt, which he proved by revealing his identity at the boxing ring to save her.
Very interested if Gabe is actually using Lore like Bastian suggested on their walk back to the Gardens.
There have to be other children that were born in the catacombs like Lore was. Women who wandered in like her mother and never left. What makes Lore special then, did something happen during the pregnancy or when she was an infant that she doesn’t even know about? Maybe its just random, right place, right time.
Posted on instagram @ramble_reads
Anton. People have hidden terrible things under the guise of religion and his ~maybe~ vision makes me question him. Plus whatever he was doing to weave the Mortem during the leak.
I think Bastian’s intentions are to do what will benefit him. Certainly good intentions for himself, but others? Who knows. Although he does seem to possess a certain level of concern for the common citizen which is unexpected and nice.
I guess being born in the catacombs might be why she can control the Mortem like that, but I wonder if there was some sort of ritual performed on her that gave her the ability plus the scar on her hand. Doesn’t the scar seem like part of a pair with Bastian’s?
I also entered the giveaway! My instagram handle is @giggenbach.reads
August and Anton, or just Anton, atm.
I think Bastian is a gray character. Maybe morally gray, maybe just a between-Lore-and-August/Anton gray.
I still think the goddess is going to try to use her [either as a vessel for her own soul/spirit/whatever or for her power], which will somehow result in her resurrection/rebirth/something. Somehow, the goddess is going to use her to return to power, basically.
I finally got a chance to post for the giveaway! My handle is @SeaFox.Adventures ?
I entered! My instagram handle is @starless_eyes_books
Gabe’s anger is totally jealousy. I think it has to do with their past as well.
I also suspect August or/and Anton. I really do not trust them at all.
I think Bastian wants what is best for the kingdom. Despite not wanting to be King I think he actually cares a lot. He seems like a good person, especially compared to his father and uncle. I think he plays dumb or plays up the playboy persona but as we have already seen he is actually really smart and observant.
I wonder that Lore being born in the catacombs just made her connection to Mortem stronger than other people. I am not sure though. There is also some sort of connection between her, Gabe, and Bastian… I really am interested on what is going on there and if it has something to do with her power.
What was on Bellegsarde’s paper that he his in the servants’ staircase? Does it have something to do with Bastian’s theory of Gabe & Lore finding planted evidence of his treason? So, it was pretty sketchy about how August reacted to Lore asking the corpse boy a question, & these new tidbits are certainly leaning guilt towards the King & Priest. Having gotten bad vibes from them from the start, I’m sure they’re no innocents, but are they planning to do bad things with all this or are they already doing these bad things. I’m also getting that this “deeper connection” Lore is feeling is something like “past lives” (reincarnated gods), especially with the eclipse coinciding with her Consecration & feeling/seeing Bastian’s Spiritum powers counteracting her Mortem powers. (Does Anton know? Is that why he carved the half sun symbol that lines up with Lore’s moon scar onto Bastian’s palm?) What was that Mortem knot Anton made? Why wouldn’t Gabe let Bastian see her? I think she could’ve woken up sooner, if he had. I wonder if Malcom has a larger role in things than has previously been suggested.
Daily Q&A:
Q:
1.) Who are you suspecting?
2.) Do you think Bastian has good intentions?
3.) What do you think it means that Lore can channel Mortem because she was born in the catacombs? Any theories?
A:
1.) I think August & Anton are up to no good, but who started raising bodies before they found Lore is what I want to know.
2.) I, actually, get a better feeling about him than Gabe, but there’s so much room for things to turn still.
3.) My theory about reincarnated gods could cover this (her being Nyxara reincarnated or a descendant, at least) would cover this. We’ll see.
*I’ve already posted my #FairyFoxglove photo under @TupaKitty_Reads ????*
I’m still leaning towards both, but maybe Anton a bit more. He seems like the more ambitious one fo the two and maybe he doesn’t want Bastian to take to crown but want the crown for himself and be the ultimate person in power of both the crown and the church.
I do think Bastian has good intentions. Right now, it seems as if he doesn’t want the weight of the crown, but his sense of duty to his country and its citizens is bigger than his own wants and he would put the citizens before himself, like a good rules should
I have two theories, either because she was born in the catacombs, the Mortem has somehow seeped into her while being born and thus giving her the power to channel Mortem. My second theory, which seems more in line with how you become able to channel Mortem, is that she actually had died during childbirth for a brief second and because she was in the catacombs, close to the body, she got the ability to channel Mortem from birth. Either way, in both theories, the reason she is so strong is because she got the ability as a baby and being so close to the source of the Mortem and thus making it that much stronger. I also keep thinking about the scar she has, like Bastian has his, which might’ve made her so much more stronger as well. It was probably given to her at the moment of birth in the catacombs.
Posted on instagram @lisashelves
I’m so intrigued by this, what’s with Anton and his threading with the Mortem? I really feel bad for Lore now though, she’s going to be blaming herself for Jean’s condition, even though it’s not really her fault.
I do have a feeling that Bastian can channel Spiritum in the same unusual way that Lore can channel Mortem, and that’s how they’re linked. That would also explain the scars, so I feel like Lore had a similar ceremony to Bastian’s as a child where she got her scar carved and maybe getting that scar gave them both their powers.
I really don’t know what’s going on, and I’m suspicious of everyone really, but I’m having so much fun coming up with theories! Can’t wait to read more!
Also entered the giveaway,
instagram handle: @acourtofsilverpages
?I’ve entered 🙂 my ig is @vivis.readingpages
Wow, I’m actually in love with this story. The romance is so good, and the depth of the plot is there too. I’m finding myself actually CARING about these characters, which doesn’t happen with all books, so there better not be anything irreparably bad about to happen to them please ?
Honestly, right now I’m suspecting the Buried Goddess. I think she and the Buried Watch are pulling a lot of the strings right now. But I also think there’s someone else in the background too, could it even be Apollius himself? I feel like August and Anton are too obvious.
Lore is connected to the gods and it’s suggested that she may even be the daughter of the Buried Goddess? Very curious, because I think someone or something is preparing Lore to gain more power for an ascension. Whoever it is wants to use Lore as a tool and I’m desperately hoping Lore will fight back.
I do believe that Basitan has good intentions. I trust him, just like Lore does. Which by the way, the romance is giving me triad vibes. The tension is real! I appreciate that Basitan is revealing more of his depth. I was living for the alleyway scene when he finally showed anger *squeals* plus Gabriel and all his fiery pining is phew!
I’m so glad this readalong is fueling the binge reading hehe
Who are you suspecting? Suspicious mostly of Anton but don’t trust August as well.
Do you think Bastian has good intentions? I think he does, he’s grown on me a lot since day 2’s reading. Already switched from team Gabe to team Bastian!
What do you think it means that Lore can channel Mortem because she was born in the catacombs? Any theories? She must be closely related to the Night Witch or have a strong connection to her. Will possibly take her place?
I posted on instagram – @echotheeleopardgecko
1. I will be participating in the photo challenge. My user name is mangapenguin
2. Who are you suspecting? I’m leaning toward August or Anton right now!
Anton is sus! So sus! The way he looked at Lore too ! NOPE! I do not trust that man at all.
3. Do you think Bastian has good intentions?
I really am not sure at this point. He does make good points about the fact that he is the only one that does not use Lore. I am also intrigued how he made the mortem go away.
4. What do you think it means that Lore can channel Mortem because she was born in the catacombs? Any theories?
Maybe she’s a witch! Or maybe we have a Rosemarys baby situation omg can you imagine rather than being the devils baby she’s deaths ?. I think I’m on to to something.
I agree. I am very suspicious of August and Anton. I’m also suspicious of what Anton was doing with his channelling…
Bastian hasn’t given me any reason not to trust him. But I do wonder if he knows about his powers more than he’s letting on.
I think Lore’s ability to channel Mortem to the degree she can has to do with her connection to the Goddess. I wonder if her Ascension is referring to an ascension into her power, status as a ‘Goddess’ or whether she’s going to end up as Bastian’s Queen in future?
I will be joining the giveaway. My insta handle is @mirlyah
Do you think Bastian has good intentions?
– Definitely! He’s such a sweetheart, he clearly knows his father wants him gone to put someone bad on the throne, and while he doesn’t want it he’ll do it for the good of the town!
What do you think it means that Lore can channel Mortem because she was born in the catacombs? Any theories?
– Maybe she has some of the goddess’s magic inside her?
I also entered the Instagram readalong @landscapesofink however I only have the YA book only for now as I cancelled my adult box
I still think it’s Anton and he’s using August because he is the King. And I don’t think Anton is a channeler, that maybe he faked that vision?
So maybe Lore is not a descendant but the Buried Goddess reincarnation. That mention of ascension and considering her birthday is near.
And also, Bastian could be the Bleeding God’s reincarnation. Bastian and Lore is Light and Dark, Sun and Moon, Life and Death.
My ig for the giveaway @books.over_
Who are you suspecting? I’m leaning toward August or Anton right now! — I have a feeling, that both brothers are behind a some kind of conspiracy. Not only involving Bastian, but also Lore. But I also think, they have no clue with what kind of power they are toying.
Do you think Bastian has good intentions? — I have a feeling that Bastian knows very well about his skill of Spiritum, just as Lore knows about her Mortem. And he probably is the first in his family in a very long time who shows this gift, but he didn’t tell anyone, especially not his father.
What do you think it means that Lore can channel Mortem because she was born in the catacombs? Any theories? — Like I stated already, I think Lore is a descendant of Nyxara. That’s why she was born with her gift. And it all points to the fact, that Bastian is a descendant of Apollius. Both of them being at the same age probably means they are meant to bring change to the world, balancing everything out again. If this has to be a love couple, I am not sure.
This is the part where the book picked up momentum for me. The first two sections were a bit difficult to read as Mortem wasn’t easy to understand either. But now, with Bastian in the “team”, the pieces of the puzzle seem to be gradually coming together.
Who are you suspecting? I’m leaning toward August or Anton right now! Hmm probably both
Do you think Bastian has good intentions? He seems like a good person and I do actually think he cares a lot
What do you think it means that Lore can channel Mortem because she was born in the catacombs? Any theories? I saw someone else mention it could be due to a ritual performed on her and that seems pretty likely as of right now
Oh also! I’ll be entering the giveaway and my Instagram handle is @Kratist0
I have entered the challenge on Instagram @stacyspillsthetea
I entered, my Instagram handle is @read.ingbee!
I loved this section. When Bastian first met them in the vault, my jaw dropped. Then when Michal was the fighter in the pit and beat the prince, my jaw dropped again! All the drama coming up in these chapters. Now they have matching scars and Bastian has Mortem suppressing powers and light that shoots out of his hands? Very suspicious, I am starting to believe my God reincarnation story more and more.
The knotting of the Mortem was very interesting, it will be neat to see if Lore has that ability or what can come of that, Antone seems very powerful too. Also this leak feels very suspicious.
Hi! Entered @bookboxsherlocks!
Definitely team both lol, but if I had to choose I’m Team Bastian – and I do think he has good intentions.
Suspecting Anton definitely. The king is certainly not the best and can be murderous but I think he’s less subtle in his cruelty. As opposed to this holier-than-thou Anton who knows much more than he’s letting on. He might have even created that leak to somehow awaken Lore’s power.
Also are Lore, Gabe, and Bastian reincarnations??