A World Without Princes

“There is an uneasiness that remains after your best friend tries to kill you.”

This is the first line of the novel, and it helps to establish a dark and ominous mood. Though it describes Agatha, the narrator’s use of the second-person point of view, via the pronoun “you,” puts the reader into Agatha’s shoes, encouraging readers to relate to her feelings and helping to establish her as the novel’s protagonist as opposed to Sophie. This moment also reinforces The Confluence of Heroism and Villainy, as Sophie’s actions in the previous novel were undeniably wicked, yet she still insists on her own Goodness. Agatha’s lingering unease highlights the complexity of their dynamic, in which love and danger are deeply intertwined.

“‘I wish I could see her again,’ Sophie wept. ‘I’d do anything. Anything.’”

Though much of the text and many of its characters focus on Agatha’s wish, blaming her ambivalence for the war in the magical world, Sophie makes a wish too, one that precedes Agatha’s. The presence of one of Dean Sader’s blue butterflies in the cemetery helps to establish the link between Sophie and the dean, how the dean knew to treat Sophie like a cherished daughter and encourage her to chase the “ever after” for which she longs.