“Tough Traveling” is a weekly Thursday feature created by Nathan at Review Barn where participants make a new list each week based on The Tough Guide to Fantasyland by Diana Wynne Jones. This hilarious little book cheerfully pokes fun at the most prevalent tropes in fantasy. All are welcome to take part, and there is a link up over at his site. Join in any time!
This week’s trope is TOWERS:
TURNCOATS are people who change to the side of the DARK LORD in mid-tour.
This week I’m repping the YA side of things. Apparently teenagers are just as prone to betrayal as adults….surprise, surprise.
 Caleb – Insurgent by Veronica RothWe meet Tris’ brother Caleb in Divergent; a quiet, intelligent, and intensely curious young man, he’s a perfect fit for the Erudite faction. So it’s a little surprising when he defects and joins Tris and her buddies in their rebellion against Erudite’s brainwashing and attempt to take over the factions. But of course, Jeanine Matthews, leader of Erudite, has his loyalty the whole time. Tris is understandably brokenhearted when she learns that Caleb is a turncoat. |
 Peter Pettigrew – Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. RowlingI mean honestly, does this one even need an explanation? Peter Pettigrew, betrayer of Lily and James Potter. Not only did he sell them out to Voldermort, he also set up his friend Sirius to take the fall! Double turncoat. Boom! |
 Lord Asriel – The Golden Compass by Philip PullmanIf the “Dark Lord” is another way of saying greed, fanatical violence, and a complete disregard for your own daughter, then Lord Asriel is turncoat #1. At first he seems like little more than a complete failure as a parent – then shit really starts to hit the fan and he’s revealed as a senseless killer of innocent BFFs. More than a decade after my first read through and I’m still not over it. |
 Rachelle “Rae” Rodgers – The Darkest Powers trilogy by Kelley ArmstrongWhen Chloe and the gang decide to escape Lyle House – the supernatural Cabal facility masquerading as a group home for troubled youth – they invite Rae to come with them. She refuses…and runs straight to the coordinators to tell them about their plan. In Armstrong’s currently ongoing novella Atoning, Rae attempts to….well, atone for her turncoat-y behaviour. |