Hi, folks! Scott M. Roberts here, author of the 'Discriminating Monster's Guide to the Perils of Princess Snatching.' Thanks for all the comments.
I am curious [...]why they need to suck down destinies on Bald Mountain. [...]what does he get out of it? And was this her destiny?
It's never explicitly explained in-story why Golgorath needs destinies. I'll note that the effect of eating destinies is hinted at when Golgorath is killed and Mercedes bathes in the destinies that escape his body. Shortly after his death, she turns Bald Mountain into a thriving grove of ash trees, similar to the one that was behind Vren and Greta's home.
The secret there-- and alas, apparently not clear enough in the text (bad writer! no treat!) -- is that Mercedes gained enough magic power from Golgorath's death to preserve Greta, Zash, and Sojet somehow. This is hinted at in the ash trees; in Mercedes sucking on her hair; and in the play of moonlight and shadow in the grove. (Also, Greta's no slouch when it comes to magic-- she tells Vren to come and find her, implying that she'll be around somewhere to be found).
And yes, it was Mercedes' "destiny" to destroy Golgorath.
The first thing that threw me out was the title.
:wince:
Yeah, Lois Tilton of Locus Online had the same comment-- the title sets an expectation that the story doesn't deliver. Sorry about that. When the tale was originally published in InterGalactic Medicine Show, Edmund Schubert and I went back and forth for quite a while about what to call it. In the end, I decided to go with the original title, which is how it remains.
I suppose I could make some lame argument about how it's an artistic feint to cleverly subvert reader expectation...but nah. I just couldn't think of anything more fitting. I suck at titles.
I assumed this would be a G-rated romp...
I was completely surprised when it got an 'R' rating. Violence and drug use? Okay, it's violent...but does mentioning vodka and heroin addiction get you an R?
I am ready for a sequel at any time now
How about a series of novels?
You took away his kids "princess".
I admit to being taken back by the shellacking Mercedes is taking. Definitely my fault for not making what happened more explicit in the text.
Greta and Vren were indebted to Golgorath because he took Greta's destiny (mediocre though it was) and transformed her into a giantess so that she and Vren could marry and have a family. When Golgorath was killed, the universe righted that particular bit of tampering. Mercedes used her power to preserve Greta and the boys, though not restore them to Vren, who she (rightly!) mistrusts.
SO...while Vren and his family are very sympathetic (happy to see that worked out for a lot of you), Corydon has the right of it. He's a monster. I considered going the adoption route, as has been suggested here, and giving them a Disney happy ending...but I didn't think that would be satisfying for me personally. Vren has been stealing children from their families for centuries. He has been an instrument in not just their deaths, but their complete annihilation from the universe.
He hasn't earned happiness in my opinion, despite his protestations about being a Changed Monster.
Good narration by Dave, too
Yes, a thousand times! He did a wonderful job.
I felt that the Princess and the younger son could have fallen in love and run off together. [...] I had to keep reminding myself they were too young for that.
Again, something I probably wasn't clear about. Mercedes is between 12-14 years old. Zash (the older boy) is comparatively as old, though much more sheltered. Zash is in love with her, and indeed, was trying to run off with her. That's why Mercedes tells Vren not to be angry with Zash when they meet up at the bar-- because Prince Zash was trying to rescue her.