Gloriana Thoren

Gloriana Wayward (Thoren) is a major POV in A Death at Dawn.

In 506 SM, she becomes the Lady Regent to the Lord Protector of the Mountain Realm.

Appearance and Personality
Gloriana Wayward is a beautiful woman with long, dark brown hair and blue eyes. She is of Summeran culture, but dresses in typical highborn mountain attire. She is one of the few people who know the ancient language of the Summerlands, Old Summeran.

She is power hungry, cunning, and cocky. Since the moment she arrived in Maryere, she has been called an outcast. Gloriana believes her worst quality is the way she raised her children. She considers herself a careless mother because she had, "forgotten a mother's touch", since she left her family at a young age. When she was a child, Lady Fallen Wayward, verbally and mentally abused Gloriana. Lady Fallen did this because she believed that Gloriana was too ambitious and controlling of her betrothed, Borin Wayward. Gloriana never forgot the reason why she was abused and so as a mother, she chose not involve herself in her children's lives. She believed she did this for their sake, but at the beginning of A Death at Dawn, Gloriana realizes she really did it for herself.

History
Gloriana was born in Goldspire, the Summerlands, on the twenty-eighth day of the Snow Moon during the four-hundred and seventith year after the Secession of Man. She is the daughter of the once Lord Protector of the Summerlands, Bryce Thoren and Popeaila Naidu. A member of the original House Thoren, Gloriana had four siblings. Two sisters, Cleophilia and Alice; and two brothers, Roland and Symon. She is the lady wife of the Lord Protector of the Mountain Realm, Borin Wayward, and the mother of Alice, Jaslyn, and Josef Wayward.

At the age of eight in 479 SM, Gloriana moved from Goldspire to Maryere, the Mountain Realm. After several attacks at the border of the Kingdom of Valley Pines by House Osmont, Lord Bryce grew worrisome a war might break out. He contacted the Lord Protector of the Mountain Realm, Robart Wayward, for an alliance and economic pact. Lord Robart happily agreed, effectively breaking his pact with Lord Morvan Osmont. She became a ward for Lord Robart Wayward and possible betrothal candidate for Borin Wayward, the heir to the title of Lord Protector of the Mountain Realm.

In 481 SM, when Gloriana was ten, House Osmont murdered House Thoren. This event is known as the Massacre at Goldspire. Lord Bryce, Lady Popeaila, and their children were all believed to have perished. Gloriana was in Maryere at the time and survived the massacre. This event was the immediate cause for the Single King's War.

After Lady Fallen Wayward committed suicide in 485 SM, Gloriana believed she was free from any verbal abuse. However, Lady Joan Myster's brutal honesty was just as terrible. She also experienced physical abuse. In 487 SM, Gloriana was pregnant with her first child which she had already named Rayne. Unfortunately, one night, a drunken Borin beat her horribly and she had a miscarriage.

A Death at Dawn
Moons before A Death at Dawn begins, Lord Borin Wayward leaves Maryere for Kingment, giving Gloriana the power of the Mountain Realm. Gloriana gains confidence during this time and believes she ruled dutifully. Borin returns with Lord Falk Osmont upsetting Gloriana. Her husband was back taking away her power and he brought a member of House Osmont near her. During the dinner to celebrate her husband's safe return, Gloriana gets drunk. Borin, who is just as drunk, grabs Gloriana and she begs him to release her. Upset that she caused a scene, he tells her to leave the feast. Gloriana runs to the abandoned Sun Keep to hide. Falk, however finds her. He apologizes for what his father did to her family, and tells Gloriana how long he wanted her. Gloriana decides to make a deal with Falk, she will sleep with him if he leave Maryere and never returns. Falk agrees to the deal.

One morning, after having sex with Falk, Gloriana receives a letter written by Victoria Osmont. From the letter, she learns that Victoria had gone mad and that Borin has a whore. Falk questions who the letter is from and Gloriana confronts him asking him if he knew these things and kept it from her. The confrontation turns into a physical fight. Falk threatens Gloriana and leaves, frightening her. After the fight, her handmaiden Ashton cleans her wounds as she sobbed.

Falk forces a betrothal between her daughter, Alice and Doran Osmont. Gloriana has a breakdown over this news and promises to murder Falk. Borin locks her away for her outburst and was not allowed out until after Alice left.

Broken, yet determined, she befriends Lady Joan and creates a plan to remove Borin from power and take the Mountain Realm. She makes plans to send Josef to Griffon's Den and Jaslyn to Fairpeak for safety. Then she tells Ashton to find Borin's mistress named Esme, so that they could meet. During the secret meeting, Esme exposes her abused body and blames the torment on Borin. Esme asks Gloriana if she could murder Borin, but Gloriana promises she will find a way to let Esme escape. Borin viciously beats Gloriana when he receives a letter from Sable about Josef's departure. After Gloriana is beaten, she finds Esme and tells the girl that she can murder Borin. Esme poisons Borin and Gloriana believes she has succeeded, until she is told that Jaslyn suffocated Borin and disappeared. Devastated, she demands the guards to find Jaslyn but do not arrest her.

After Borin's funeral, Gloriana is given the title of the Lady Regent Protector of the Mountain Realm until Josef comes of age.