Aric is so my man. I honestly couldn't believe when Evie chose Jack. My five reasons to choose Aric.
1. He is really intelligent. Although Jack is smart, he was never like Aric.
2. He understands and truly accepts Evie's powers.
3. He never lied to Evie. No amount of torture can overcome that fact.
4. He's prepared to defend her, no matter the cost.
5. He's "perfectly shaped. Everywhere." Okay, sometimes I can be petty.
Originally posed by 100.36.183.132
I think she chose him because he was her first. I imagine Aric would have been a bit intimidating at first. Then he kidnapped her. And they had all that bad history. And she probably didn't want to disappoint Jack.
But oh my, Evie and Aric in Arcana Rising. Just wonderful :)
As much as those reasons sound find... They're an oversimplification of something very obvious if you've been astute: Evie is unhappy with Death... I was Team Aric before I went back to reread the books after finishing Arcana Rising and Day Zero... I realized that Aric is selfish... He has never truly been self sacrificing with this incarnation of the Empress. He has been mean, methodical, and manipulative towards her based on his feelings, his perceptions and what he felt was his due. While Evangeline has excused his harsh abuse because of her empthy, she does so out of pity and weakness. She feels overwhelmingly compelled to make him happy because she's the only one that can, to her own detriment each time.
Book to book, there are many reocurring themes. Have you ever noticed how Evie finds herself in Jackson, and strengthens. Have you noticed how Evie loses herself in Aric, and weakens. In one book the cilice serously weakened her ability to grow, she was mentally abused, and obstracized. In this last book... we all know what was sucking her energy from her in the end... These are important themes... Evie and Aric are doomed. They may have this time, and Aric's loneliness has finally been quelled, and in honest, in this AF world it would have never lasted long any way... But, it's all doomed.
And, the narrative all points to the Hanged Man/Our Lord Uncanny as a martyr... Hanging from a tree... Pretty sure its Jackson. And, this again I think the ending will be bittersweet. Pretty sure Evie will die too if they don't figure out how to stop the game. But, even that has to do with sacrifice, so someone will die to stop this game. Then what will they do? Overthrow the gods? Ask for a reset and start all over sans powers?