The Shadow Throne question

I'm as confused as you are, actually. His betrayal to the family was so huge that you can't just switch your loyalty in a heartbeat. It's impossible and unrealistic to feel so strongly about tearing the kingdom apart only to gain it for yourself, only to think twice and become something totally different and do the opposite in the end. Maybe time in the dungeon has changed him, but maybe you only learn your lesson once it really comes down to just surviving. However, I don't even buy my "what if", because it's just so... I guess maybe that's the only option the author could think of unless she were to bring a random character into the action. It's more likely she just ran out of ideas.

I think Conner was literally a patriot, in an insane way. Maybe he didn't care for the people running the country, just the country itself. Maybe he thought they were irresponsible or unfit to rule. Anyway, my theory is that he thought he would make a better ruler. Then he became power-crazed a little, until after his time in and out of the dungeon he realized Jaron was actually quite capable of being king.