Lady Friday
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| Author | Garth Nix |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Sandra Nobes / Hofstede Design (paperback, Allen & Unwin) |
| Country | Australian |
| Language | English |
| Series | Keys to the Kingdom |
| Genre(s) | Fantasy, Young adult novel |
| Publisher | HarperCollins (UK) Scholastic Press (USA) Allen & Unwin (Australia) |
| Released | February, 2007 (USA) February, 2007 (UK) March, 2007 (AUS) |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 304 pp (needs citation) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-00-717509-4 |
| Preceded by | Sir Thursday |
| Followed by | Superior Saturday |
On the fifth day there was fear.
Lady Friday is the 5th novel by Garth Nix in his 'The Keys to the Kingdom' series. The fifth Trustee, Lady Friday, is mentioned at the end of the fourth book in the series, Sir Thursday, as a 'Doctor Friday'. Lady Friday is also mentioned in Grim Tuesday by Grim Tuesday as "that fool, Friday". Lady Friday deals with the deadly sin of lust.
[edit] Plot summary
At the end of Sir Thursday a nurse is seen telling Leaf that everybody has become infatuated with Doctor Friday because she is so beautiful and refined, only coming to the hospital on Fridays; as a result, everyone on the wards calls her Lady Friday. Lady Friday is in command of the Middle House, not the Incomparable Gardens which is ruled by Lord Sunday.
Lady Friday has kidnapped thousands of people, and taken them to the world that is mentioned in Sir Thursday as the world where the Skinless Boy's mind-controlling mold originated. Lady Friday kidnaps old people and steals their experiences; ergo, drains from them their emotions and memories.
Arthur, the Piper, and Superior Saturday all receive messages from Lady Friday, saying she has given up ruling the Middle House and that the first of the three who can reach her Scriptorium in the Middle House can have the Fifth Key and her domain as their own. She sent with each message a transfer plate that would send whoever touched it straight to the Middle House, which is a giant, terraced mountain. Arthur accidentally takes the plate and is sent to the Middle House while he still holds the Fourth Key.
While the Piper is contemplating on what to do with his plate, Suzy, Fred, and their New Nithling body guard Ugham grab it and are transferred to the Middle House. Saturday sends her Dusk. Once there, Arthur fights some Fetchers and eventually meets Fred and Suzy. At first, he does not trust them, but they convince him they can be trusted. Around their necks are bindings that bend them to the Piper's will; these are removed by Arthur at Suzy's behest.
While on the way to the Scriptorium, they meet some of the Middle House's Winged Servants of the Night, who are fighting several of Saturday's elite forces, known as Artful Loungers. Arthur singlehandedly defeats four Artful Loungers. While flying to the pinnacle of the mountain, on which is the Scriptorium, Arthur finds the Fifth Part of the Will in the lair of the Winged Servants. This part of the Will is much more likable than the other parts; it explains that without its balance, Dame Primus might do something unpleasant.
When Arthur reaches the Scriptorium, he finds the Piper has apparently killed Saturday's Dusk. The Piper orders Ugham to pick up what is supposed to be the Fifth Key, but when he does it opens a hole into the Void of Nothing, instantly dissolving Ugham. This is apparently a trap set by Lady Friday. As the hole gets bigger, Arthur decides to use the Fourth Key , even if it turns him into a Denizen, to fix the hole. One Key is not enough, so the Will tells him to imagine that he is holding all the Keys. He does and he is suddenly holding them all. He fixes the hole and uses the Improbable Stair, the Architect's own personal transport, to transport himself, Suzy, and Fred to Monday's Dayroom. Once there, Sneezer uses the Seven Dials to transport Suzy, Fred, Arthur, and Dr. Scamandros to Friday's hideout.
They find that Friday has lost her sanity and is about to "experience" thousands of people at one time. Arthur uses all the keys to stop her from consuming them, but is unable to stop her transferring their lives to the Fifth Key. Once he has the Key, he returns their lives . He finds that his friend Leaf was among the people, but his mother is not. She is confirmed to be outside the Secondary Realms, and is therefore deduced to be in the Upper House. Arthur gives all the keys to the Will, except for the Fifth, and decided to go to Earth to settle matters before going after Saturday. Suzy gives Arthur a note that Ugham gave her before he died. It is what looks like a piece of a letter sent from Sunday to Saturday. It reads "For the last time, I do not wish to intervene. Manage affairs in the House as you wish. It will make little difference in the end. S." The sender of this message, 'S', is presumed to be either Saturday or Sunday. But it is presumably Sunday who has been known to care about matters of a higher importance.
[edit] Characters
Arthur Penhaligon- Rightful heir to the Architect, Master of the Lower House, Lord of the Far Reaches, Duke of the Border Sea, Commander-in-Chief of the Army of the Architect and Master of the Middle House.
Suzy Turquoise Blue- Monday's Tierce and Piper's child.
Fred Initial Numbers Gold- Lieutenant in the Army of the Architect and Piper's child.
Banneret Ugham- Newnith (New Nithling) Soldier.
The Piper- 3rd son of the Architect and the Old One. Brought the Piper's Children and Raised Rats into the House and controls them with his pipe. He also created the Newniths.
Leaf- Arthur's friend on Earth. Was kidnapped by Lady Friday.
Lady Friday- Morrow Day and Mistress of the Middle House. Trustee of the Fifth key.
Dame Primus- Parts One to Four ( possibly Five now) of the Will of the Architect Steward of the Lower House, The Far Reaches and The Border Sea.
Part Five of the Will- A Part of the Will of the Architect in shape of a bat/dragon that is imprisoned in the Home of the Winged Servants of the Night.
[edit] Other
The release date of this book was February 5, 2007 in the USA, and March 8, 2007 in Australia. The book's first chapter is available on the Keys to the Kingdom Website[1], while GarthNix.co.uk[2] has the Prologue.
| Novels by Garth Nix | |
|---|---|
| The Keys to the Kingdom: | Mister Monday • Grim Tuesday • Drowned Wednesday • Sir Thursday • Lady Friday • Superior Saturday • Lord Sunday |
| The Old Kingdom series: | Sabriel • Lirael • Abhorsen • Across the Wall: A Tale of the Abhorsen and Other Stories |
| The Seventh Tower: | The Fall • Castle • Aenir • Above the Veil • Into Battle • The Violet Keystone |
| Standalone novels: | The Ragwitch • Shade's Children |
