The False Prince

“‘You’re a trick to figure out, Sage. Would you ever be on my side, even if I chose you over the other boys?’” 

Sage is a wily character, and Conner wonders exactly whose side Sage is on. What his moral compass is and what he believes if, if anything, are mysteries to be discovered. 

“‘Conner sent a messenger ahead. I heard about you.’ Errol smiled and added, ‘I fear you may find out the answer to that question for yourself.’” 

Sage’s reputation precedes him at every turn. Even when Sage has first arrived at Farthenwood, Conner’s estate, Errol the servant boy is aware of Sage’s reputation for being a conniving, clever, and wily young man. The question that Errol is referring to is in regard to what occurs should one not do as Conner wants. Errol implies that Sage is certainly going to go against what Conner wants and will suffer the consequences. 

“It would have felt good to defend my father’s honor by punching Tobias in the face. But although my father was not a coward, he would have avoided being in a war at any cost. That fact was one of the last things he and I ever fought about.” 

Sage, wily and irreverent as he is, hints at an underpinning of strong moral fiber here: He abhors cowardice, is willing to fight for his family’s honor (his father’s here), and is also willing to voice and stand up for his beliefs—even if it means standing up to or arguing with an authority figure like his father.

“‘I’m offering to make you the sun of Carthya, brighter than the moon and stars combined. And you will take the throne, knowing that you have pulled your country back from the brink of war. How can you refuse this opportunity, Sage?’” 

Patriotism is a major motivating force for Conner, and part of a larger theme of the novel. For Conner, saving Carthya at any cost is of the utmost importance. He compares the Carthyan royal court to the center of the universe, as it were, the “sun,” which also is a play on the word “son.” 

“I was silent a moment as emotions I didn’t understand filled me. What was it? Shame to acknowledge that Mott was correct? Was I foolhardy as Jaron seemed to have been? Or was something telling me not to try for the crown? Perhaps in having fewer of Jaron’s character flaws, Roden or Tobias would make a better king.” 

Sage’s patriotism is evident in this quote. He cares deeply enough for Carthya that he would rather see someone with fewer personality flaws than he lead Carthya—even though not being chosen to impersonate Prince Jaron means he will likely be killed. In essence, Sage is saying that he would rather die than see Carthya led by an insufficient ruler. 

“Before he [Mott] left, he blew out both candles, leaving me suspended from the ceiling, half-naked, injured, and in complete darkness.” 

In this passage, Sage has just experienced brutal torture at the hands of Mott, his friend. Mott takes part in this violence only because Conner instructs him to do so, which highlights the brutality of Sage’s world. Even those people Sage trusts might harm him, possibly because they have no choice in the matter. 

“‘I will always be an orphan now.’ And for the first time in as long as I could remember, I cried. I cried for my lost family, and for every circumstance in my life that had led me here. Mott held my forehead until calm slowly returned to me.’” 

Physically and emotionally exhausted after his time in the dungeon, Sage is worn down to the point where he expresses his deepest fears, his insecurities, and his sadness. Namely, that he is alone in the world as an orphan and that he is trapped by poverty and bad circumstances and will have to make difficult decisions based on these factors. Sage is expressing this to one of his only friends, Mott, who is also his captor and torturer. 

“I turned away as she left the room. Unfortunately, I understood exactly how she felt. Nobody should have to bow to a false prince.” 

Imogen says that, though she believes Sage will be a fine king one day, she will never be able to truly bow to him because she knows him to be a fake. Questions of authenticity are explored throughout the book. Sage is sympathetic to her belief, even though it defies his ascension to the throne. Though the throne is his birthright, as he is the true Prince Jaron, Sage often feels he is not up to the task of being king because of his negative personality traits. 

“Lies fell from his lips as gracefully as raindrops from a cloud.” 

When Veldergrath asks probing questions about Conner’s secret mission, Sage notes how easily Conner is able to lie. For Conner, if lying is done in the service of patriotism and righteousness, then it is necessary and not morally bankrupt. Sage’s relationship to lying and morals has its similarities—he can steal or lie in the name of good—but also its major differences. For example, Sage would never kill. 

“One hand clawed into my wounded back, which I couldn’t have tolerated if it was anybody but her causing me pain.” 

The love plot between Sage and Imogen is rife with pain and suffering. At this point in the narrative, neither of them has explicitly admitted to loving the other; however, both have, without question, rushed to the other’s defense when there is danger. Here, the pain Imogen inflicts is tolerable only because of Sage’s feelings for her—in this story, pain and pleasure are usually related. 

“‘The person I choose must have the lie so settled in his heart that he truly believes he is king, that he ceases to think of his own name and answers only to Jaron’s. He must become so convinced of his lies that, were his own mother to appear at his side and call to him, without shedding a single tear he would tell her he is sorry she lost her son, but he is the child of Eckbert and Erin.’” 

Conner explains to Sage and the boys how thoroughly they themselves must believe the lie that they are Prince Jaron, in order for Conner’s plan to work. The line between what is authentic and fake is blurred. If one believes a lie wholeheartedly, it almost negates the lie, in some sense. 

“‘Hail His Majesty, the scourge of my life,’ Conner said to Roden and Tobias as he stomped up the stairs. ‘I fear the devils no longer, because I have the worst of them right here in my home!’” 

Conner reluctantly names Sage Prince Jaron. Sage’s difficult, stubborn personality is openly mocked, a feature of how most people talk about him throughout the book.

“‘You’re not horrible, Sage. But look at what Conner’s turning you into. Don’t you see it? I’ve watched you go from this orphan boy who might’ve become my friend to Conner’s prince, who’ll never be anything but his costumed servant.’”

Imogen addresses Sage here, expressing her sadness that Sage will soon be transformed into Prince Jaron. Imogen does not know Prince Jaron per se—it is Sage who is her friend. Imogen’s idea of a “costumed servant” encapsulates many of the book’s main themes surrounding authenticity, servitude, and royal hierarchy. Though he will be a prince, and eventually crowned king, Sage will always be in Conner’s power because Conner is the one who put him there.

“‘And you’ve given your life to his control forever. You’ll never breathe free again.’” 

The irony of Imogen, a servant girl who is indebted for the foreseeable future to Conner, saying these words to Sage, the boy who is about to be crowned prince of the country, elucidates the complicated nature of human freedom, especially in the world of Carthyan royalty. Members of the royal family are no freer than orphans and servants—the poorest citizens. If Sage is named Prince Jaron, he will not only be beholden to Conner, the man who put him there, in the same way Imogen is, he will also be responsible for the well-being of the country.

“This wasn’t far from where Windstorm had left me several days ago, and the memory forced a smile to my face. I wished for a friend or a father I could tell the story to and make them laugh. Either with me or at me, I didn’t care.”

Here Sage experiences a rare moment of explicit loneliness. He is so concerned with survival he rarely exposes such a vulnerable side to anyone else, or even to himself. 

“A slight breeze rustled the leaves of the tall trees over my head. I lifted my face to the sky and let the wind and the sun caress my skin. This was freedom.” 

The nature of freedom is explored throughout the novel. The wealthiest of royals and the poorest of orphans share a sense of entrapment, though for very different reasons. Here, Sage is in a limbo period before he is officially named Prince Jaron, and he is able to simply exist—that, he believes, is “true freedom.”

“After four years of pretending, of immersing myself so completely in Sage’s identity, could I emerge convincingly as Jaron?” 

Jaron has so completely become “Sage, the orphan boy” that he has in essence ceased to be himself. The concept of identity is something fluid in the book. Sage/Jaron’s situation is extreme, but there are many instances where the lines between authentic and imitation are blurred. 

“When Conner first brought me to Farthenwood, I had thought he knew that Jaron was alive and he was searching for the prince, hoping to use him for some sort of ransom. So I determined that he must never suspect my true identity. That would have been bad, but Conner’s real plan was far worse.”

Chapter 44 recasts the novel in light of the plot twist that Sage has been Prince Jaron all along. As plot points are reframed from this new perspective, Sage’s intentions and plans are revealed, casting many of his choices in a new light. 

“I knew she loved me, because all mothers love their children. But she had stood with my father when they first sent me away, and I’d never quite gotten over that.” 

Even before he becomes an “orphan,” Sage has a difficult and often distant relationship with his family. Though his mother loves him, her love is not unconditional. Given the needs of Carthya, she supports her husband’s decision to cast Sage out of the royal kingdom. 

“‘From all I’m told, the prince they sent away was selfish, mischievous, and destructive. The king who returns is courageous, noble, and strong.’” 

These are Mott’s words to Sage, who he knows to be the true Prince Jaron. Mott makes the point that Sage’s time as an orphan, and that experience of abject poverty and destitution, has humbled him and made him a more king-like person.

“‘For the first time, Sage, I’m glad to have chosen a thief and an orphan for my prince.’”

These are Conner’s words to Sage after Sage tells him that he can sneak into the castle. However, Conner is unaware that Sage does not know how to gain entry into the castle because he is a conniving orphan—it is precisely the opposite. Because Sage is actually a prince, he is familiar with the castle grounds. 

“‘Of all Carthyans, I am the least free.’” 

Now officially crowned king of Carthya, Sage has obligations to his country and to the citizens of Carthya that will bind him to act in a certain way. Unexpectedly, Sage feels more “free” as an orphan. As royalty, he is bound by the weight of his sacred duty to do what is best for his country.