man… the broadcast scene in Nona is really something
It really drives home the perspective flip we get in Nona, having grown accustomed to necromantic hijinks in previous books. We've gone from domestic drama with God's polycule to being one of nine million normal people stranded on a decaying colony planet, where all we know of necros is that they're terrifying wizards.
And then you go to the civic centre for a broadcast from the Empire telling you what's gonna happen to your planet, and you get:
- a dead guy with fashion hair
- next to another dead corpse who doesn't speak, doesn't seem to breathe, and is just propped up there
- we're informed that dead girl is the Emperor's daughter??
- “there will be no widespread retaliation against the population, and you will even get to have elections! … unless a single one of you tries to fight, in which case the entire population will be considered a unified legal entity. and by the way, pleas will not be answered by local representatives but by the Emperor. welp”
- the first obviously dead person announced themselves as a new lyctor
- we're informed that Ur tried to rebel too and they've been annihilated
- (meanwhile, the people in charge of the broadcast keep having frankly stupid technical difficulties)
So… yeah, they are wizards and zombies and evil, and also somewhat incompetent.
(Also… I know Ianthe is all about “applying the boot”, but I'm also convinced she could never rule through charm. She completely lacks the ability her sister or Jod have.)