Random questions about Liveships (spoilers Farseer, LST and TM)

[Nuytsia]

* Until I came across the first conversation that Jani had with Ronica and Keffria regarding courtship between Reyn and Malta, I had not taken in the fact that Reyn's father was still alive at any time during the three books. I had always believed that he had died next to his blocks of memory stone prior to the beginning of SOM but it says that Jani talks of her husband as still being alive at the time she visited the Vestrits in Bingtown. I will watching very closely for details of him/his death.

I just re-read SOM and I had the impression Reyn's father was dead (or at least he didn't feature)......
It does say in Mad Ship that Reyn has a step father. This might be the 'husband' of Jani who is alive. (he would be her husband, just not Reyn's father)

* Hints and tips on Ephron and his reasons for not continuing his trading up the Rain River. I know he was concerned about the magic, and the changes/harm coming into contact with it would bring etc, but I get the feeling that there's something else there. If it were only about the objects themselves or the magic, Ephron would never have brought Ronica her earrings from there, and Ronica and Keffria would have been far more cautious with regard to the gifts Reyn gave to Malta, I'd have thought...gifts all with origins in the Rain Wilds and some of Elderling make eg flame jewels.
He was the only liveship owner who refused to trade there. Whatever reason it was, it was significant. Significant enough to make Ronica choose slavery over trade with their Rain Wilder kin, despite knowing the side-effects that would be brought about by slave-trading eg what having slaves on board would do to Vivacia, their reputation etc

This bugged me too when I started re-reading LST!
I thought it might be something to do with Keffria's deformed (??) baby. It does say that Kyle was away at the time and Ephron 'had to deal with it' (or words to that effect). However, as neither Keffria nor Kyle had ever been up the Rain Wild River (AFAIK) then it seems unlikely that is the ACTUAL reason. Then again, people's 'reasons' aren't necessarily logical ones.
I found it strange that Ronica did choose to allow slave-carrying rather than Rain Wild trade for the liveship. Then again it seemed that Ronica and Keffria were kind of unbelievably clueless as to the nature of liveships.

* The timeline and also the geography of changes, particularly beneath the ocean as seen from the serpents' perspective

Yeah! When my partner read the very start of SOM he got the impression the serpents had been hibernating! That had never occurred to me.
Something I hadn't noticed that I picked up on my re-read was when the serpents moved north they went to colder waters before they got to warmer waters.
This seems weird on the face of it (on our world if you went north you would generally either just get warmer, just get colder, or first get warmer then colder)
But I guess there's always the influencing factors of your 'gulf stream' type flows so who knows. The cold water may just indicate 'open ocean' away from continental influences.
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* Carrion. He reminds me of Fool not only in colour but the way he speaks mockingly to the other serpents, and seems to know things...in a different way to the 'knowing' that Maulkin and She Who Remembers have.

He reminds me of Moby Dick. Teehee!
Yeah it was a bummer he didn't get to be a dragon, I thought he had some significance.
Hey on the Fool, I just re-read a bit where Shreever refers to Maulkin as a 'prophet' ..... not that I think it means anything about the WP's..... just sayin'

What are we to make of Amber's wanting to stay with Paragon? At one point she tells him that she couldn't think of anything better to wish for than to stay with him and let the world save itself (or something like that). At least one other time, far later in the books, I recall that she expressed the same wish....that she would gladly give everything up to be able to remain with him alone.
Of course, as WP, she knew she couldn't, even telling Paragon in the beginning that she didn't know how long she could spend time with him/remain in Bingtown. Stiil, as a WP who has a strong bond with a Catalyst, and knowing how much Fool loves Fitz (aside from, or in spite of, that WP/Catalyst relationship), it seems a surprising wish, in a way...? Or not?

I just re-read that bit! She seems very taken with Paragon, and I found it ironic that Paragon is thinking about how humans always die so he shouldn't get attached to her (or something like that). Ok well she WILL die but if Prillkop is anything to go by she will live an unbelievably long time. If only Paragon knew that. I wonder if she ever tells him? I bet not.
Anyhoo I do wonder if Paragon will have a reunion with 'Amber' - he's going to be around a lot longer than anyone else 'she' knows.
AND the reasons Amber has to leave are kind of null and void now (no longer WP, world can save itself pretty much) (or can it?) (to be revealed)

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Here's a random question about LST - who the heck are the Durjans?
I've come across about the third reference to it, and it appears to be a race/nationality??? I wonder where they live.