Tough Traveling: Turncoats
The Thursday feature “Tough Traveling” is the brainchild of Nathan of Review Barn, who has come up with the excellent idea of making a new list each week based on the most common tropes in fantasy, as seen in The Tough Guide to Fantasyland by Diana Wynn Jones. Nathan has invited anyone who is interested to come play along, so be sure to check out the first link for more information. Compulsive list-maker that I am, I’m very excited to take part!
This week’s tour topic is: Turncoats
TURNCOATS are people who change to the side of the DARK LORD in mid-tour.
The theme title is pretty self-explanatory this week, methinks. Sit tight now, as we explore fantasy fiction’s offerings of traitorous, double-crossing, two-timing, back-stabbing jerks, renegades, betrayers and other dastardly characters.
Mogsy’s Picks:
A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin
Yeesh, you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a traitor or a turncoat in GRRM’s series. These books are full of them, from mercenaries who switch sides for a higher bidder, bitter lords who put on a welcoming face only to later slaughter all your friends and family, so-called brothers-in-arms who will turn on you the moment your back is turned, and the list goes on and on. Notable examples of turncoat characters include Littlefinger who plays the game of thrones only for himself, and Theon Greyjoy, in fact nicknamed “Theon Turncoat” after his heinous actions at Winterfell.
Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
Lots of turncoats in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter books as well, the most notable one of course being Peter Pettigrew also known as “Wormtail” to the childhood friends he ends up ruthlessly selling out to Lord Voldemort.
Broken Homes by Ben Aaronovitch
I just realized the massive potential for spoilerific details with this week’s theme. Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last fifteen years or so, I think most people know what happens in Harry Potter, and I tried to be sufficiently vague when I talked about ASoIaF. But Broken Homes is a different matter. Obviously I can’t reveal the identity of the turncoat here, but the betrayal happens right at the end of this book, by a character most characters have grown to care for, which makes the violation of trust hurt all the more!
Turn Coat by Jim Butcher
With a title like that, I thought this Dresden Files book would be a shoo-in this week for sure. As it turns out, it’s a bit more complicated. The “turncoat” is a battered and bleeding Morgan who shows up on Harry’s doorstep one day, accused of killing one of their own. Morgan was found standing over the body of a Senior Council member wielding a bloody knife, but he claims to have no memory of the incident. Morgan came to Harry because it was the last place anyone would expect him to go, and also he believed Harry would empathize with being accused of a crime he wasn’t guilty of.
Half A King by Joe Abercrombie
When his father the king and older brother are unexpectedly killed in an enemy ambush, Prince Yarvi has no choice but to inherit the throne, but he barely has the chance to warm the seat before he is betrayed and left for dead – by someone close to him whose loyalty he thought was beyond reproach.
The BiblioSanctum 
Two picks in common! Though in my case Pettigrew’s an honorable mention.
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Merely an HM for Peter Pettigrew, THE turncoat extraordinaire? 🙂
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Yea, I actually remembered him last -.-
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Theon did something that was so beneath him…
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Agreed, though he got what was coming to him….
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Hmmm I’d add The Barrow to this list.
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Great choice. Too bad you were busy this week, I could have used your help! 😉
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Seems like Pettigrew is ending up on a lot of lists, which makes perfect sense because he’s the ultimate turncoat-y little bastard. Theon is a really good choice as well; I was actually really surprised when he turned on the Starks and everyone at Winterfell. Apparently I’m just gullible.
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GRRM likes to do that to his readers…Theon Turncoat indeed!
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Pettigrew is the worst really! I can’t believe I left off Half a King – I actually had it on my list – Doh!
Lynn 😀
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That happens to me all the time!
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What happens with the turn coat in Broken Homes quite literally broke my literary heart. It’s not okay!!!!!
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YES! Someone else who read it and understaaaaaaands!!! I was totally floored.
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I almost made it to the library today..I was too lazy. But if I had made it I would have borrowed Half a king. damn me being lazy
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Doh! Curse the case of the lazies. It’s a great book 🙂
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MORGAN~ bah bah bah I’d like to sucker punch him with an iron gauntlet.
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Morgan’s such an ass…but that was what make that book so good!
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Well done with finding Turn Coat right in the title. I like that thinking.
Damn it Theon, I hate you.
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Yeah, it didn’t fit exactly into the theme, but the title was too perfect.
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I found this week’s topic to be really hard as I can only think of three turncoats and 2 of them are already famous, Pettigrew and Saruman. The other one is from Suzanne Collin’s MG series.
Oh geez, I didn’t even think of Theon Greyjoy and Littlefinger. But yeah, Theon really shattered my heart. I mean, WTH, the young Starks treated him as a brother and he betrayed them. >.< This may sound evil but he really deserved what happened to him later into the series.
Thanks for sharing, Mogsy!
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