Another good installment to the Tremontaine Season 3. Entertaining even when you mix in Rafe's school is a former brothel, both Joshua and Micah are in this installment more and the one thing I change. Have Florian killed off by Reza, as a favor for IxKaab.

IxKaab is my favorite character in Tremontaine, next to Micah, but I how her character has evolved with the death of her Aunt and she takes over leading the the House of Balam of the Kinwiinik Traders. Another highlight for me was that the burglary at Tremontaine house, seems like the Duchess's under estimated what Davenport would do.

Thanks to Serial Box for the advance read copy.

As a humorous opening to this review, I’d like to say that my notes for this review are so long, incredibly grammatically incorrect, and feature highlights such as “We all hate Davenant; Fuck Davenant (but uhhhh not like that Diane)” and “D E A R K A A B. but casually”. Also, this episode has my favorite cover so far!

This episode opens with Rafe showing Florian, Joshua, and Micah the building in which he wants to have his school. Florian picks an argument and Micah stands up for her friends, explaining that Diane Duchess Tremontaine told her that it’s good to stand up for your friends- which was downright adorable.
Of course, Rafe and Joshua are perplexed by this, leading to Micah recounting the story of how someone broke into Tremontaine and Micah confronted them. But since they had swords and we’re terrifying, she ran and hid in her room until Diane found her. According to Micah, she wanted to go home, but Diane convinced her to stay saying that she (Diane) would be afraid without her there.

If you’ve kept up to date on the latest happenings of Tremontaine Season 3, you’ll know that Diane wanted Micah at Tremontaine as a barganing chip of sorts. As long as Rafe doesn’t do something totally crazy, Micah will be fine. (If you haven’t been keeping up and are just randomly reading this, oops. Spoilers sweetie.)

But Diane seems to have taken a liking to our favorite tunip-loving girl-genius extraordinaire. Micah is the only truly honest character who wears her aspirations on her sleeves. She doesn’t have an agenda, and to Diane, who has to plot and scheme to get anywhere on the Hill, finds it a breathe of fresh air. Diane, we read, is genuinely concerned about Micah’s safety, even has her inner sanctum is breached. And speaking of the break in…

It’s obvious to Diane that Davenant is behind all this. In fact, Lionel shows up at her door to deliver a letter from him.

(And side note, IT’S LUCINDA! Lucinda makes an appearance, and this is your not-so-casual reminder that I have a weird love for Diane’s maid. You go girl.)

Davenant sends Lionel with a letter to Diane, apparently not knowing that Lionel and Diane were a thing- or are a thing, as Diane decides that now would be an amazing time for a quick and dirty roll in the sheets. Poor Lionel is being used by everyone but out of their interaction we get this amazing piece of insight into Diane’s thought process, “No, she did not want to think about Esha, or about the danger that the theft of the ledger had exposed her friend to. The last thing she needed was anther attachment. Another weakness that someone like Gregory Davenant could exploit. Best to stick to the Lionels of the world, who were there to be used, and who so enjoyed making themselves useful.”

Diane, as I suspected, sees love as a weakness that can easily be exploited. She loved Will but look how that turned out. Now she’s finding it hard to get attached to any one else without the fear of her love being used against her.

Meanwhile, in Riverside, Tess is becoming the Mom of Riverside, instructing a group of street kids in an interaction that seems inconsequential right now, but I feel that it may play a bigger role in the story later.

Kaab is dealing with that inspector who I believe was first mentioned season 2. Maybe season 1. I don’t quite remember but I feel like they’ve been talking about this guy for a long time and he’s finally here! And he’s shady! Detective Kaab is on the case though!

My only complaint about the Kaab and Tess sections all this season is that they feel very separate from the rest of the characters. Yes, Kaab visited Diane in s3e1 but after that Kaab is in her own world and Tess is in hers. Meanwhile Micah who hangs out with Rafe also lives with Diane and it makes their three plot lines intertwine.

Back to our story though, Rafe gets into a fight with Florian because Rafe didn’t notice that Florian was grieving Shade but in Rafe’s defense, he didn’t realize Micah was a girl until Diane told him.

Diane does finally go to visit Esha! She can’t stay away, immediately confessing the theft of the ledger as saying that she thinks Esha must find her quite cowardly. But Esha doesn’t find her cowardly at all and understand the walls Diane has to put up to get to the position is in. Aren’t they adorable??

But all is not well with the house of Tremontaine, as we end of a semi cliffhanger ending. Lionel sends Diane a letter saying that Davenant has taken a seat on the university board- one that was recently held by Will. My theory is that he’s going to try to stop Rafe’s school from coming to fruition…

I jumped into this in the middle of several stories, which is probably not the recommended way to read a serial like this. Luckily, I am a little familiar with the Tremontaine setting, and the writing style also echoed those that I have read. Although I had to do a lot of guessing and catching up, it was actually still a really enjoyable read. The several interwoven stories were complex and interesting and I got a good sense for the characters from the little snapshot I got. It would take me a while to catch up on the story from the beginning, but if I have the time I think it would be worth it, because this little bit already got me hooked!

Every Face a Forgery (Tremontaine Season 3 Episode 5)
by Paul Witcover
The amazing aspect of this Mosaic novel is that you can miss episodes and still follow the story line. The aspect of looking at the characters attempting to cope with the cliff hangers from the last season. You find the beauty of characters and this world in every story. The personal struggles of the characters is addictive.
This chapter is the set up for the events that will focus the rest of the story, the repercussions of winning does not always mean you are safe after you win.

By this point in the season, we've established who everyone is, what the major conflicts are, and which relationships are paramount. Now we take a brief break from all the drama and build a few bridges. I have a feeling this episode's seemingly minor details will pay off in a big way as the serial unfolds.

I must say, too, I grow fonder of Joshua every time I see him. I'm also keen on Tess's storyline. MORE TESS, please!

I loved this week's episode for its exploration of fear and isolation (Tess, Kaab) - and for celebrating how friends and loved ones make us stronger (Tess, Diane, Rafe. Sorry Kaab). But it is also a warning to guard our hearts. Diane’s former mantra - attachment is a weakness - looks likely to come back to haunt all our beloved characters. Their affections and their assumptions make them vulnerable, and there are those out looking for any weakness they can exploit. IT'S ALL GETTING TENSE AND I AM SO WORRIED.

The stage is set to once again put our principals to the test, and I fear the tests are going to be harsh. Even Joshua has secret affairs to pursue, and the writers have succeeded in making me as paranoid as Kaab, doubting even my beloved favourites. Attachment is a weakness. I’m terribly attached.

I will write a review of the whole season when it is completed.