King of Pride

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2023

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-10

Chapters 11-20

Chapters 21-30

Chapter 31-Epilogue

Character Analysis

Themes

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

Beta

Discussion Questions

Symbols & Motifs

Books

In the text, books represent escape. For both Kai and Isabella, their hobby of reading books symbolizes a therapeutic escape from external pressures. Huang introduces Kai as someone who translates books into Latin for fun, and while writing books is a stressor for Isabella, reading others is a source of solace. Isabella finds comfort in escaping into thrillers. While she, herself, is “lost in life and scraping by on minimum wage in one of the most expensive cities in the world […] at least [she] [i]sn’t trapped in a cabin with a psychopathic husband or on the run from a serial killer who [i]s obsessed with [her]” (81). By reading about protagonists in much more dire situations than her, Isabella is able to put her own problems and worries into perspective.

The library in the Valhalla Club becomes a literal space for Isabella to escape to where she has the peace required to make progress on her novel; this space is a gift from Kai. Isabella similarly gifts Kai with books for Christmas. One is ironic— a dinosaur erotica titled A Raptor Ripped My Bodice by Wilma Pebbles to counter his collection of highly revered works of literature. She claims that it is “something new to translate when the board pisses [him] off” and that will be more relaxing than a Hemingway novel (202). This statement also alludes to the relaxing nature of reading. The second gift is her own unfinished novel.

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When the physical, finished copy of Isabella’s novel is released to the world, it also represents an escape from the trap of self-doubt and inadequacy that she has been under for the duration of the novel. Gone is the immense pressure she felt to prove herself, and in its place is her “footprint in history” (342).

The Media

While books offer Isabella and Kai and escape, the media—tabloid and social—are things they must escape from. In a high-profile social world where appearances are everything, the media represents the distorting eyes and opinions of the outside world. The tabloid National Star shines its defamatory light on Kai and Isabella’s relationship and on Isabella’s worth. It helps force Kai to date Clarissa and helps ruin his chances of becoming CEO. Its smear campaign weighs heavily on Isabella and makes her hyper-focus on what she lacks. Social media leaves her feeling a similar way. When she scrolls through friends’ posts, she feels “envy over all the engagement, promotion, and insert-other-big-life-change announcements” that others post about (113). Though Isabella is happy for her friends—such as Vivian for getting married and Sloane for landing a big client—she “wishe[s] [she] had something of [her] own to share besides jokes and gossip. Something substantial that would consume [her] thoughts at night and drive away the restless, amorphous anxiety that plague[s] [her] whenever [she] [i]s alone too long” (113). In the novel, both forms of media highlight inadequacy.

Piano

At the beginning of the novel, Kai overhears Isabella playing Beethoven’s “Hammerklavier” on piano. He is impressed by her adept rendition of one of the most challenging pieces ever composed for piano. Though he’s played it himself dozens of times and believes himself to be good, Kai notes,

Not once did it sound like that. The final movement was supposed to be thick with sorrow, an emotionally draining twenty minutes that had earned it mournful superlatives from commentators. Yet in Isabella’s hands, it’d transformed into something uplifting, almost joyful. Granted, her technique wasn’t perfect. She leaned too heavy on some notes, too light on others, and her finger control wasn’t quite developed enough to bring out all the melodic lines. Despite all that, she’d accomplished the impossible. She’d taken pain and turned it into hope. The last note hung in the air, breathless, before it faded and all was quiet (19).

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When he gives her critiques in the form of objective appraisal, Isabella challenges him to play it better than her. Kai easily takes her up on the challenge because he’s been practicing the piece since he was a child, but when he is finished, Isabella seems unimpressed and believes that hers was better. Though Kai doesn’t realize it in this moment, what he’s missing is emotional depth. While his piano playing is controlled and technically perfect, Isabella’s is expressive. Her performance of the piece conveys emotion that Kai’s can’t and gives it distinct personality.

Much like his piano piece, Kai’s need for control, perfection, and to be the “best” prevents him from noticing the other necessary elements of things. In the past, dating the women who seemed “fitting” for him quickly fizzled out. Kai made no meaningful connections just as his piano piece inspired no emotion. In the Epilogue of the novel, before Kai proposes, he and Isabella perform on the piano together for her family. The symbol of the piano runs through from their first moment of connection to their happy ending, except this time, instead of playing against each other, they are playing together, showing that they work best as a team.