Born into the lowest caste of her society, Nirrim keeps her head down, follows the rules (mostly), and doesn’t attract attention from the cruel, capricious High Kith… until she meets a sassy, rulebreaking foreigner who slowly makes her question everything about her society and even her own family. Love the slow-burn sapphic romance, which develops as the characters develop more trust in one another; the background of Nirrim’s society provides intrigue and danger by turns. Really interesting reveal at the end; it will be interesting to see whether the author has written herself into a corner.
Tag: genre-fantasy
Swordheart, by T. Kingfisher
This book actually precedes the Saint of Steel series, but I couldn’t get it off the library hold list until now. Practical housekeeper Halla inherits her great-uncle’s estate and suddenly finds herself at the mercy of her greedy in-laws, who are intent on forcing her into marriage so they can get their hands back on the estate; she stumbles upon an ancient, magical sword containing Sarkis, a warrior sworn (or perhaps cursed) to protect the bearer of the sword. Because this is a Kingfisher fantasy, there is plenty of hilarious miscommunication and misfortune before the two of them manage to figure out a way around their problems. I particularly liked the characterization of Halla, who consciously uses the stereotype of a silly, babbling middle-aged woman to get herself out of sticky situations.
The Sunken Mall, by K.D. Edwards
I was in withdrawal after finishing book 2 in Edwards’ Tarot Sequence, so I was delighted to find this little novella that slots in between books 1 and 2 in the main storyline. Basically Brand, Rune, and Addam take the teenagers shopping in an abandoned mall that was magically preserved and also, of course, slightly haunted. The 1980s nostalgia is on point, the magic and danger levels are just right, and the characters’ snarky fondness for one another carries through. Very satisfying read.
Arca, by G.R. Macallister
I totally teed this up to provide an emotional balance against Invisible Women. Sequel to Scorpica, which introduced us to the matriarchal society of the Five Queendoms, this book deals with the fallout of the climactic events at the end of the first book, and the various societies’ efforts to find their footing in the new era. Although this book does spend some time with the new young queen of Arca and her fight to secure power, it also spends some time in the queendom of Paxim where efforts were made to raise males to equal the status of females (scoffed at by those who were accustomed to seeing men raised to be servile and submissive), as well as back in Scorpica where the next generation of warriors is rising. Most of the book spends time on various individual storylines, so it is a bit jarring (but quite satisfying) when the various threads abruptly weave together near the end. Lots of interesting plot developments lining for the sequel.
No Man of Woman Born, by Ana Mardoll
This is a selection of short stories in which fables and fairytales are written to center transgender characters, sliding them into tales with gendered prophecies – think Eowyn’s triumphant “I am no man!” moment, but let go of the gender binary. As a theme for a short story collection, it gets old pretty quickly, since the “ha, I’m neither man nor woman, watch me subvert your prophecy!” reveal is at the center of literally every story; however, given that there is almost nothing else out there that features trans characters in fairy tales, I appreciate the collection. The characters are variously trans, nonbinary, and genderfluid; the stories are uniformly sweet but not saccharine. Perfectly good reading but I did have to space the stories out a little for maximum enjoyment.
Six Crimson Cranes, by Elizabeth Lim
This is a take on the Wild Swans fairytale in which heroine Shiori, only daughter of the emperor, sees her brothers cursed into the shape of cranes by her magic-wielding stepmother. To cement the curse, her stepmother magics a bowl onto her head to hide her face, and threatens her brothers with death if she makes even the slightest sound. The only silver lining is that these events stave off Shiori’s unwanted arranged marriage. Naturally, things get even more complicated (almost too overly complicated) as she discovers that her stepmother may not even be the greatest threat to her father’s kingdom. Shiori is a fun heroine to read, brave and defiant despite everything working against her, and although the characterization of practically all the characters is a little one-sided, that’s par for the course in the relatively simplistic world of YA fantasy. First in a series.
Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow, by Jessica Townsend
Sequel to Nevermoor, in which Morrigan begins classes with the rest of her unit at the Wundrous Society. I love the various ways in which friendship and loyalty are expressed and earned in this book, and how Townsend never leaves Morrigan completely alone to fight her battles. I also like that it’s not just the children in these books who get to learn and grow, but also the adults. The villain also seems to have far more complex motivations than Morrigan can comprehend; I look forward to learning more about what’s driving him. Overall a bit darker than the first book, but just as enjoyable. The kids tell me there’s only one book left before we have to wait for the next to be released.
Clary Sage, by Victoria Goddard
Prequel novella to Goddard’s Greenwing and Dart series, exploring the character of Hal, who is quite aware of his responsibilities as the next Imperial Duke and is very solemn about seeing them through. He pops into the series quite fully-formed so it’s interesting to see where he came from, and the sorts of decisions he had to make to get where he is in the main storyline.
The Hourglass Throne, by K.D. Edwards
This is #3 of Edwards’ Tarot Sequence. Everything I said about #2 applies and then some. Despite Rune’s newly elevated rank and new responsibilities, he’s still the same kid deep down who thinks he has to take care of everything and everyone, and it’s refreshing to watch the people around him try to gently convince him to accept help. The antagonist in this book does a lot to flesh out the culture of Old Atlantis vs the new kids in Rune’s generation, and even though it’s a fantasy culture, the parallels to our society are super obvious. Left pining for the next book as usual (except it’s not written yet, sadly, so it’ll be a while).
Last Call, by Tim Powers
Recommended by J because I liked Edwards’ Tarot Sequence, and I can definitely see the similarities – except whereas Edwards’ books are a warm hug, Powers’ book is more of a morbid chill. Yes, there’s a found family; yes, there’s magic tied to cards; yes, there’s a mysterious magic cabal that runs everything… but the engine that runs it all is fueled by deception, death, and sacrifice, and everything is dark and creepy and full of pain. The inevitability of the characters’ paths brings to mind Seanan McGuire’s Seasonal Fears, in which everyone has a predetermined role to play, and their only choice is how wholeheartedly to embrace it; there’s no way to sit out the game, and the only way to survive is to win.