Catrin and Marcellus

Use this forum to discuss the September Book of the Month "Apollo's Raven" by Linnea Tanner.
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ssnv893
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Re: Catrin and Marcellus

Post by ssnv893 »

I thought it was believable in the beginning, but towards the end, the back and forth of whether or not to trust one another swung way too far for me. I wish the building of the relationship had been developed more thoroughly so we would have a better foundation to lean on for the later uncertainty. Then again that seems to be my reply for the whole book. I wanted to see deeper development in just about everything.
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Post by Angelique Bahormal »

Their love seems real as they were both looking for a means of escape with each other.
They even defy their own parents due to their passionate concern for each other.
I loved their fighting spirit. I wish them to have happy ending.
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Post by kclarke07 »

I agree with ssnv893. Their love story sounded so wonderful in the beginning, but it struggled to flourish throughout the novel. One of the big scenes that left me confounded was the ambush by Catrin's people in the exchange for Marcellus. The two lovers went from being a team and knowing everything they needed to trust one another - to distrust and betrayal filling their hearts - to Marcellus fighting his own people just to protect her - all in a matter of moments.

It was as if the characters had many doubts about their relationship, but the omnipotent force of the author forced them to "realize" their love for one another at key moments. This caused an unnatural strain between the two that I did not appreciate reading.
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Post by Jsovermyer »

I liked the love affair between Catrin and Marcellus. It added spice to the story. But I wonder if it was true love since this was the first time Catrin had been kissed. Or was it just puppy love?
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Post by CommMayo »

kclarke07 wrote: 25 Sep 2018, 18:16 It was as if the characters had many doubts about their relationship, but the omnipotent force of the author forced them to "realize" their love for one another at key moments. This caused an unnatural strain between the two that I did not appreciate reading.
I agree about the degree of doubt that the characters express about their relationship. The end left me feeling like they didn't trust each other at all. I think their relationship could have been developed in a much more complete way to make the reader a little more invested in the romance. I left the end of the book just wanting them to part ways and be done with each other. Marcellus was a total a tool and Catrin seemed like such a weak character that I disliked her.
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Post by Ravinder+Kaur »

In the beginning their love for each other does seem true and passionate. Towards the end, the author developed doubts and distrust in their relationship to seemingly leave some loops to pick up in the sequel of the book.
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Post by Uche B »

AliceofX wrote: 01 Sep 2018, 01:33 The more I think about it the more confused I get. Since Agrona used that love potion and who knows what other magic, how do we know how "real" their love really was? It's probably not something that we can judge just from the first book.

But what really bugs me is that Marcellus was willing to give up his family and country for Catrin, but she didn't do the same. It's like if Juliet had said, "Capulet's rule," at the end and walked off.
I actually like that Catrin was not willing to give it all up for Marcellus, to hell with all that Romeo and Juliet self-sacrifice.
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Post by jgardner15 »

It never felt genuine but that more could be because the author didn't do a good job of developing any mental or emotional connection between the two. One passage that really stuck out to me was the author mentioning that Marcellus felt in retrospect like he and Catrin had become good friends. The problem was we never saw that. From their first meeting, almost all of their interactions were physical and sexual. Physical and sexual itself isn't bad but when that is virtually the entirety of what we see of their relationship, it comes across as shallow and immature. At least it did for me. While I was TOLD of an emotional and mental connection and of a genuine friendship, I never SAW it. It just wasn't believable as genuine love. Lust, on both sides, sure but not love.
The development was certainly not helped by the clunky dialogue that vacillated between sexual innuendo and very thinly veiled exposition dumps. That was throughout, not just Marcellus and Catrin, but theirs was particularly cringe-worthy.
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Post by lavellan »

I thought that there should have been more of a slow burn with their relationship. They seemed to quickly rush into a relationship without truly knowing each other. This was exemplified by the numerous times Marcellus called Catrin a witch.
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Post by Theresa Moffitt »

To me it seemed that they fell in love and basically their families became a second thought. They didn’t try to get information about the other opposing side they just thought about themselves.
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Post by sarahmarlowe »

AliceofX wrote: 01 Sep 2018, 01:33 The more I think about it the more confused I get. Since Agrona used that love potion and who knows what other magic, how do we know how "real" their love really was? It's probably not something that we can judge just from the first book.

But what really bugs me is that Marcellus was willing to give up his family and country for Catrin, but she didn't do the same. It's like if Juliet had said, "Capulet's rule," at the end and walked off.
:lol: :lol: :lol:

Nice call on the lack of balance here in the decisions of the two lovers. I wonder what really makes Catrin hold back.
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Post by ReadMe28 »

I don't remember there being a moment where Catrin really questioned Marcellus, aside from his request for her to go to Rome with him and hide her. I can't blame her for saying no to that, as that just confirmed what her mother said about him only taking her as his whore. But I never once doubted Catrin's love for Marcellus, she always seemed to believe that he would never hurt or betray her, that he was on their side and that he loved her as she loved him. She was always concerned about his well being whenever she wasn't with him. Her love rang true to me, if a bit too sudden. Marcellus, on the other hand, frustrated me to no end. In one moment, he's crazy about her, but the next, he thinks she's evil, he thinks she betrayed him, etc. He's so quick to think the worst of her and turn his back on her. Yes, in the end he did try to protect her from his own men, but HELLO! They were trying to rape and kill her! No man should ever stand by and allow that to happen, no matter his feelings for the woman who is being attacked. That's just basic humanity. I don't believe he loved her.
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Post by rubinelli »

I did not find the "love" between Catrin and Marcellus very compelling. I liked both characters individually, but in scenes where they were together, I thought they both became diminished. Catrin became more of the stereotypical lovesick damsel and Marcellus was the stereotypical manly man. Their romance was rushed and never felt real to me. I was not really surprised by the ending because I never saw the two of them staying together in the long run.
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Post by Bluebird03 »

I loved their relationship- from the time they first laid eyes on one another and throughout the entire story. They each seemed to care so deeply for one another that they risked their own happiness and lives just to help one another. They both put one another over the wishes of their own communities.
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Post by mamilla93 »

Well, if you are seeing their relationship from a pure fictional- girl meets guy and instant sparks thing, then yes. But, on a deeper level, their relationship wasnt well developed in the book.
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