Arc copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Utterly fabulous. Maika is a great character and the world building is superb aided bArc copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Utterly fabulous. Maika is a great character and the world building is superb aided by the exquisite artwork. This is a very dark story and likely to become more so. Maika looks human but is not. She is part of a race of Arcanics - magical hybrids that are outcast amongst thr rest of the world, persecuted, enslaved and tortured. Mistreated most of all by the 'witches' a religious order of priestesses of a mixture of science, alchemy and magical learning. Maika is on a mission for answers that takes her into the dark belly of the Witch stronghold. This us dark and beautiful - real must read for all graphic novel fans. Can't wait to read issue 2.
Merged review:
Arc copy provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Utterly fabulous. Maika is a great character and the world building is superb aided by the exquisite artwork. This is a very dark story and likely to become more so. Maika looks human but is not. She is part of a race of Arcanics - magical hybrids that are outcast amongst thr rest of the world, persecuted, enslaved and tortured. Mistreated most of all by the 'witches' a religious order of priestesses of a mixture of science, alchemy and magical learning. Maika is on a mission for answers that takes her into the dark belly of the Witch stronghold. This us dark and beautiful - real must read for all graphic novel fans. Can't wait to read issue 2....more
Audio ARC provided by NetGalley and Hachette Audio in exchange for an honest review
Audio Review; I liked the narrator for this book. He was always engAudio ARC provided by NetGalley and Hachette Audio in exchange for an honest review
Audio Review; I liked the narrator for this book. He was always engaging and brought plenty of nuance to the text. He had a real feel for the voices of the characters too
Book review: I'm a bit ambivalent about this book. On the one hand, it's a clever piece of fiction which mirrors and examines some of the very moral and personal arguments we're having now (certainly on social media). It's extremely well written and somehow manages to be a slick spy thriller and slightly bleak post apocalyptic story held up against a cynical theocratic movement. Hence the four stars I awarded it. On the other hand, it's tricky to get into the story to start with. I ended up liking Ven a lot as a character but he honestly just didn't grip me for the first 20% of the book and I might have been tempted not to read further if it hadn't been an audio book. Even now, while I acknowledge that this is a good book and that I enjoyed it, I don't feel like I will ever reread it.
That said, I did enjoy it. I'm glad I read it. It fed very nicely into a lot of non-fiction reading and thinking I've been doing recently. There was one line that summed things up very well which I'll paraphase: suggesting that there are only two points of view is a false dichotomy. There are many opinions and gradations between complete control by the state and chaotic freedom. Especially when most people just want to be self directing and not have to make big decisions about things such as nuclear armaments! It's not hard to draw parallels here between the current political right and the political left. Ven acts as an agent for us to examine whether both sides in extremes aren't equally wrong, and in moderation, don't they have equally good points too?
The world building is phenomenal. The reader is not bogged down with detail but through the sort of files Ven translates from old hard drives, we can see just how different this world is. People live in an uneasy truce with nature, even venerating it, but things have moved to a purist extreme where any luxury or even medicine is interfering with the course of nature. Ven starts off the story as an archivist, full of anger and dissatisfaction. He becomes a spy for the Brotherhood who believe that the heretical files found on 21st C hard drives should be accessed and the knowledge used. We are in Ven's pov all the way and make the same journey he does. There is not one right answer. Some knowledge was definitely forbidden erroneously, when it could be of great benefit. And some should certainly be kept out of greedy hands if not stay buried. In the end, the reader is left to decide whether both extremes are equally bad, which I imagine is the point.
Overall an interesting read and very different take on a dystopian novel.
ARC provided by Luna Press in exchange for an honest review
Lorraine Wilson will be appearing as a guest on my podcast Dissecting Dragons and the episoARC provided by Luna Press in exchange for an honest review
Lorraine Wilson will be appearing as a guest on my podcast Dissecting Dragons and the episode will be airing on 6th August 2021.
This is Our Undoing is one of those books which sits across several genres but instead of being a clear mash-up, is completely its own thing. There's a broad dystopian framework, a dash of magical realism, a hint of dark fantasy, an interwoven ghost story and a murder mystery. All things which should probably not go together, just as you wouldn't put curry and ice cream and salad and balsamic vinegar in a single dish. Don't let that description put you off, however; Lorraine Wilson is one of those vanishingly rare word-chefs who can take the foragings from around the edges of other genres and not only produce the literary equivalent of a gourmet meal, but make you wonder why you haven't been eating this dish all your life. I'm in danger of abusing the metaphor now so I'll step away and talk about the book.
Despite the slightly forbidding sounding title, this was ultimately a very uplifting book. Yes, I know anyone who follows my reviews will be quick to point out my penchant for darkness in fiction, but I stand by my original statement. Set in a near future with some very dystopian elements - totalitarian regimes in which information is carefully controlled and people can vanish in the night, for instance - This is Our Undoing grapples with many important issues at the heart of what it means to be human; divided loyalties, the need to act and the restraint not to do so, politics and policies being fundamentally wrong on a moral level, the desire for personal significance and the freedom to be self directing. One of the major themes is what to do - what can possibly be done - about the overwhelming sense of helplessness and powerlessness many of us feel in the face of a changing world. This is a special kind of torment, most often suffered by those who naturally question everything and are not satisfied by the party line.
Another important theme is that of family; what it takes to make one and how fragile that can be. There are children in this book and they each represent something a little different - those who have been failed by the powers that be or completely erased, those who are struggling to make sense of a world where fairness is not inherent and loss is a given, and those who are consumed with fury for those who came before and messed it all up in the first place. More subtly, there are adults who can see the children they once were in the young people before them, and are helpless to offer them the answers which they themselves have never managed to discover.
Not so much a theme but an important component in the books make-up is the exploration of anger and the actions it leads us to take, the things it can lead us to say. It's never praised nor condemned, but it is certainly understood. As someone who personally feels that a wronged person's justified anger is both an individual right and a luxury that should not be indulged in if our goal is to create a better society, this resonated strongly with me. Anger can be a useful tool if directed carefully or a firehose full of napalm if not.
The main thrust of the plot follows Lina, a biologist at a field research station in the wilds of Bulgaria. Lina's past is about to catch up with her, forcing her to use contacts she hasn't needed for years in order to get her family safely out of London. Of course nothing is that simple and the very cause of that upheaval is soon foisted on her and her partner Thiago, turning their quiet retreat into a pressure cooker full of secrets, lies and danger. I have no wish to spoilify anyone so I won't explain further. Suffice to say that Wilson writes like a miniaturist paints. You cannot see individual brushstrokes but every stroke is important and contributes to building up a picture you cannot tear your eyes from. In the background, the forest is a dark presence, neither malign nor benign but simply there. In that respect the landscape reminded me a little of some of Studio Ghibli's offerings (Princess Mononoke, Nausicaa) - not because of any similarity of description but because there was a definite sense of genius loci to the forest. I believed Iva's warnings about spirits and uncanny creatures!
In many ways this is a slow burn novel. Around eighty percent of the story is driven by tension and quiet suspense, by Lina's internal wranglings, rather than by action pieces. In fact up until the climactic event towards the end, any action is fairly muted. And this doesn't matter at all. I can honestly say I've never been so stressed reading a book that didn't have explosions and pyrotechnics of some kind. I appreciate a book driven by internal rather than external factors but I don't think I've ever lost sleep over one before! Rest assured that the slow build up is absolutely paid off in a very satisfying manner.
I imagine that for many people who tune into the many layers of meaning in this book, that it won't be an entirely comfortable read. Which is the point. This is not a story of good versus evil, this is a story of humans versus other humans, trying their best and making a mess of things. And then, as in all the best human stories, finding that more unites us than divides us. That things such as love, forgiveness and the ability to learn from suffering and loss are what magnifies the human spirit into something greater than the sum of its parts. This is a book about impossible choices and in the end, accepting that no matter how powerless you are, you always have power over your own actions. I can already tell this story is going to play on my mind for a long time. Excellent book. Highly recommend....more
Audio ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
Audio review - narrator was brilliant. Excellent reading and really captured Winston'sAudio ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
Audio review - narrator was brilliant. Excellent reading and really captured Winston's mindset throughout this harrowing novel.
The book - there's a reason that this is a classic. While I do believe Orwell suffered from leaning into the inbuilt human negativity bias too much at times, the message of this book is as relevant today as when it was first written. Yes, I know the year 1984 was a few decades ago now, and we're not living in the futuristic high tech societies promised by fifties sci-fi, but it really doesn't matter. 1984 and it's pov character Winston, speak to the human need for freedom and curiosity and the terrible consequences of that when you live in a society that intends to train you into certain lines of thought. There are frightening parallels here with our own society. The way those at the top contribute to keeping a dirt poor and repulsive underclass in place and a frustrated, mean and angry middle class above them. In 1984 this is carefully engineered. Someone is in control. It's a diabolical plan but there is a mastermind. In our own reality, no one is flying the plane and that's even more frightening.
In many ways the message of this book - question everything, do not succumb to lazy thought patterns where you don't verify information, strive to be free in your own mind at least - is reflected in trends in social media. It is so easy to end up with our own 'Big Brothers'. We form echo chamber communities online, expelling voices who disagree with ours. We pursue our own confirmation bias instead of accepting that it's possible to completely disagree with an opinion or a piece of information and yet still consider it from all angles. I genuinely believe this is an essential skill we are losing and we will be the poorer for it. The way it's so easy to fall from grace at the least infraction against the crowd is also shockingly apposite. Consider the last time you saw a Twitter dragging. It's so easy to get drawn in, and yet people say and d stupid things or may even have a point. Views contrary to yours are not necessarily evil.
I could go on but that's the subject for a podcast episode I think so I'll end it here. Orwell makes some excellent points. If this is a book you've always meant to read, don't put it off. It's not a happy story but it is an important one....more
As you would expect from both the author and this series, this novella was a mixture of horrific trauma and really sweet, believable relationship growAs you would expect from both the author and this series, this novella was a mixture of horrific trauma and really sweet, believable relationship growth. In the Song Rising, Paige was imprisoned and tortured for almost a month while she sought out and destroyed SenSHEILD. Now in Paris, convalescing, Paige has time to remember everything she has endured. Warden is with her and what could (and occasionally does) become a really cute domestic scene is given conflict as the narrative cuts between the present through which Paige struggles, and flashbacks to the past pre-rebellion days in Sheol I when Paige and Warden were becoming allies. You don't absolutely have to read this before the Mask Falling drops - it's the sort of novella that adds to what's already available rather then provides must know plot points. That said as any good supplementary novella does, it adds to and enriches the main series. One for fans and those who have read the series so far, and definitely one for Paige and Warden shippers, which meant of course that I loved it. This is still one of the best series I have ever read....more
I enjoyed this even more than Trail of Lightning. Perhaps it's because there's been time for the character's to bed in and Maggie is a lot more accessI enjoyed this even more than Trail of Lightning. Perhaps it's because there's been time for the character's to bed in and Maggie is a lot more accessible. In fact, as well as the world building, one of the strongest selling points for this book is the character development. Maggie is still the jaded monster hunter who won't let anyone get close, but some of that is clearly now pretence. She finds herself caring despite her gruff exterior. Having beaten and killed her ex-lover and lightning god in the previous book, Maggie is somewhat adrift here. But she is not left to her own devices long. A powerful and disturbing new religious movement is gathering momentum, aided by another supernatural who seeks to claimed the remains of the ravaged world. Maggie is forced into an unlikely team up with people she doesn't want to care about as they are dragged through the underbelly of a regime that preaches a narrow view of freedom to desperate people as a form of control. Could it be that the preacher has more than natural charisma? Dark, gritty and very satisfying, this is a great book. And I say this despite my favourite character - trickers Coyote, Mai'i hardly making an appearance at all. Definitely a series to get your teeth into but you need to allow the MC time to let you in....more
Not my favourite King story. It engaged me - King's characters always do - but the plot meandered from gripping apocalyptic action and character studyNot my favourite King story. It engaged me - King's characters always do - but the plot meandered from gripping apocalyptic action and character study, into increasingly bleak and slightly ridiculous territory. Didn't hate it but didn't love it either....more
Like all the best zombie stories, Last Ones Left Aliveuses its major disaster and the resultant creatures as a vehicle for telling a story of human enLike all the best zombie stories, Last Ones Left Aliveuses its major disaster and the resultant creatures as a vehicle for telling a story of human endurance, courage and kindness. The main character, Orpen, has grown up on an island with her mother and her mother's best friend (lover?). She had a happy childhood despite never seeing any other people. As she grows older, she soon learns that the world is dangerous, an apocalyptic event occurred and she must learn to protect herself. And then her world is shattered when her family is destroyed, leading to her breaking all the rules she's ever been taught...
This was such a gripping read. On the surface Orpen's world is harsh and brutal but there are surprising glimpses of beauty beneath. In a coming of age story like no other, the MC learns to expand her world view and encompass others under her protection, and to let go of her family. It's clever and beautifully written, and in the end, strangely hopeful. Highly recommend....more
Honestly, if we're talking pure enjoyment, then this didn't deliver the way the Hunger Games did. Then again, it wasn't meant to. A lot of reviewers hHonestly, if we're talking pure enjoyment, then this didn't deliver the way the Hunger Games did. Then again, it wasn't meant to. A lot of reviewers have claimed this book is boring or dry, they've been outraged that it's from Coriolanus Snow's pov. I lost count of the times I saw some permutation of 'do we really need another book about a white, privileged man and how he became evil?' The answer to which - in these days of both the UK and US having an absolute farce for a government - the answer is YES. We absolutely need books that remind us that white, straight, cis, wealthy, powerful men get created as a product of their life experiences. Does this exonerate them for the evils they do? No, not at all. But we must start somewhere because the very system that oppresses people who don't fit the perceived norm, is also making a different set of victims to keep it in place. (As Nelson Mandela said, those who inherit a corrupt system are also its victims.)
So, if you go into this expecting to revisit HG, it's probably going to disappoint you because that's not its purpose. Songbirds and Snakes looks at how someone who suppresses all empathetic urges and refuses love, eventually becomes a monster. And here's the thing, Katniss could have become a monster too. The big difference is that there was someone she loved more than herself - her sister. Otherwise she is a ruthless, driven, competent and furious person who does not love or care easily. No one wins the Hunger Games by being a nice person - they wouldn't be such an effective and destabilizing deterrent to rebellion otherwise. Katniss is saved from becoming a monster because she does not allow her ruthless practicality to overshadow her love for her sister.
Snow on the other hand, has been born into what appears from the outside, to be a life of privilege. Except that impression is only skin deep. He has an apartment they cannot afford to keep, a quasi-nazi grandmother and his own aptitude. Oh and his name, which is the one thing he actually cares about. The war started when he was five and ended when he was eight. It's been over for ten years. In that time he nearly starved to death, lost both parents and a still born baby sister, and saw the sort of things very hungry, desperate people were willing to do to each other. He has only the vaguest memories of his family being well-off and if he wants to repair their fortunes, he has to maintain a charade that they are wealthy. Not much scope for friends or lovers in that scenario. It's interesting to consider what he might have been like if he had had a younger sister to protect. Whether that would have changed his arc the way it swayed Katniss'.
In short, this is the other end of poverty. The constant worry and strain of keeping up when you cannot afford to and cannot improve your prospects without belonging with those who can. It's as much a trap as the oppressive dirt poverty at the other end of the scale, though there's no question that he is in a better position living in the Capitol and attending the academy than being a district child. So the real question is, why did Snow end up the way he did? I don't want to include spoilers but in many ways, I think Collins demonstrates that this is what you can expect when someone consistently rejects love of any kind in favour of the cult of self. He and Katniss both have a selfish streak, but hers extends to wanting things for her sister. His love is all for himself. Collins invites us to consider what he could have been if he had been willing to question his upbringing and status.
However, for those who found being in Snow's head for 600 pages something of a trial, it certainly is. I don't think we're ever meant to be comfortable there. All of his actions are at least 50% selfish even when he appears to be helping. His romance with the Tribute he is supposed to be mentoring is not supposed to be enjoyed as a romance; it's to act in contrast to the one forced on Katniss and Peeta for survival reasons. And then there's Snow's tendency to view people as belonging to him, as possessions. All in all, it's not a pretty picture and still he's not a monster. Not yet. But then that's the point. No one wakes up and thinks 'I'm going to become the next Stalin'. It's baby steps all the way without question yourself and your motives, or having the compassionate ability to engage with others as being as valid as you regardless of background or conflicting viewpoint. I found that far more believable than some overblown 'and then X happened and I became evil' story.
All of this series looks at poverty and the way its used to prop up a class system and control the masses. This is a deep dive into what the absence of those things you need in order to live in relative comfort does to things like love, compassion, honesty and kindness. In contrast, Sejanus, one of Sow's classmates, has all of those qualities and is passionate about changing the system, but without having the fortitude to get into a position of power - in other words shaking hands with a few devils to get a seat at the high table in hell - he's crushed under the weight of the system he hates. This is not a happy book. You won't (probably) be cheering Snow on. But it's still an insightful piece of social commentary and one we would do well to take on board. No one wants another Trump....more
Really enjoyed this audiobook featuring three interlinked short stories inspired by Dante's Inferno. Creepy, atmospheric and unsettling in the best waReally enjoyed this audiobook featuring three interlinked short stories inspired by Dante's Inferno. Creepy, atmospheric and unsettling in the best way, replete with imagery of angels and demons....more
I read The Book of the Unnamed Midwife earlier this year and found it gritty and compelling. I'm a real dystopian fiction nut and my reader's kink (orI read The Book of the Unnamed Midwife earlier this year and found it gritty and compelling. I'm a real dystopian fiction nut and my reader's kink (or one of them) is world's ending. Seriously from The Stand to Watership Down, if the whole world is going to shit, I am in there like a greased weasel. The Book of Etta was equally compelling but I found it worked for me less well in terms of structure. I guess the diary entries weren't desperately necessary but I could overlook that. It was more the sudden explosion of pace at the end of the book whereby the denouement and wrap-up were covered in about 6% of the story, leaving no runway for readers to get off before the book ended. Perhaps Ellison was going for shock factor or perhaps she was leaving us thirsty for The Book of Flora (she totally did), but it didn't really work for me.
That said, this was still a fine piece of dystopian fiction. It's set approximately 100 yrs after the first book. Humans have formed small tin pot societies with no over arching governing structure. All of those societies are very different in how power is distributed and who holds the position of greatest importance. What I did find heartening is that women are not subjugated in all societies, nor is it a given that all men are bad. (For bad read 'rapists'). Ellison doesn't shy away from rape, misogyny, misandry, gender inequality or human sex trafficking (of both sexes) but it's not a given that women are less able and less powerful and that therefore it's a sexist old world again. I really appreciated that because it rang far truer that the idea that suddenly all men are rapists unable to control themselves and seeing women only as breeding stock.
Etta is a resident of Nowhere, the town to which the Unnamed went after her time on the road. Nowhere has changed since then however. Mothers are all but worshipped and Midwives hold the highest positions of respect. Below them are craftsmen and teachers. Women hold the most power, especially if they have successfully reproduced. The numbers are still woefully low though, with many girl children dying in infancy and women in childbirth. With a 1:10 ratio of women to men, many women have 'hives' of men who look after her house, do menial work and of course for reproductive reasons. On the surface this seems to be an equitable solution but Nowhere is very repressive in other ways. If all you can be as a woman is a mother or a midwife, if you are not free to be your true gender or to love the same sex, just how free are you? Etta dares disapproval from her people and spends long periods of time on the road, fulfilling her self imposed mission to free enslaved women and girls (and kill the slavers.) This leads her into the path of several other communities set up in completely different ways. No spoilers but the Book of Etta really meditates on personal freedom, the rights of the individual versus the needs of the many, whether there is ever a solution other than violence against those willing to use violence to achieve their ends, and what gender really means. This is no light dystopian romp, that's for sure, and at times is very tough reading. It's beautifully written, occasionally almost lyrical, and still easily accessible.
I did have some minor niggles - why hasn't the fever mutated for instance? Why are we not seeing a decline in infant and post natal mortality after a long enough period for some resistance to have entered the population? But aside from that and the slightly rushed feel to the ending, this was a good book. I can't wait for the third one in the series.
I really enjoyed this rather bleak dystopian vision of a future where 99% of the world's population has been killed by a disease. The disease especialI really enjoyed this rather bleak dystopian vision of a future where 99% of the world's population has been killed by a disease. The disease especially affects children, women and babies, making pregnancy difficult and killing almost all newborns within a few days of birth.
It sounds from that description like very standard fare but the voice of the Unnamed Midwife,who is our viewpoint character, is very strong, reflecting a desire to shape the ruined world into something better. There's particular emphasis on both biological and societal imperative versus female bodily autonomy. A tricky subject when almost all the women are dead or will die attempting futiley to give birth to the next generation. Isn't it selfish to not to want to marry or procreate under those circustances? Actually no. If you're not free to choose not to do something, then you're not free to choose to do it either. And at that point you're a slave.
On the other hand, in a departure from other dystopian books of this nature, while there are gangs of men turned predator it's by no means the whole story. Decent men who find rape anathema even at the end of the world are portrayed here too. The book is more robust for examining both angles equally.
Sometimes the structure was a little disjointed and the wrap up felt somewhat abrupt. I think this might have been a stylistic choice since the book calls to mind the nomadic tales which became the bible and seems to have been modelled in a similar vein. It was a minor niggle in what was otherwise a compelling narrative with a dynamic, resourceful and pansexual MC. Highly recommend and the audio book is excellent....more
I ended up really enjoying this and downloading the second book as soon as I'd finished. However, for the first quarter of the book, I really wasn't tI ended up really enjoying this and downloading the second book as soon as I'd finished. However, for the first quarter of the book, I really wasn't that enamoured. I found the story hard to get invested in and the MC unengaging, and the writing was competent but not anything that really gripped me. Which all sounds very damning so please note that I finished the book and ended up loving it.
In hindsight, I think my initial difficulties were threefold - an audiobook narrator who didn't do it for me; a slow start to the main thrust of the plot without the bridging conflict being something that worked for me personally; and finally the MC (this is first person pov) who keeps the reader at a distance. The first two are a matter of taste but the third one is important. The idea that the MC recovers from a past trauma by believing that she has become a monster and doing monstrous things, is not an unusual or especially original plot point. As long as it's done right, it doesn't need to be. The search for identity - in this case identity in the wake of trauma - is a very human story that most people can identify with. However, if you are going to have an MC who is insular and cold and cut off as your POV character, then you're going to lose a lot of readers unless you can weave in another perspective. It was certainly losing me. Right up until one of my favourite trickster gods, Coyote, showed up.
Aside from already loving Coyote myths, the character was incredibly well drawn. He provided a contrast to the MC and more importantly a contrast to how she saw herself. This is really where Roanhorse's genius began to shine because without shifting the first person pov, we started to see Maggie Hoskie (MC) through other eyes. She wasn't just a monster. She was more than her sense of betrayal and trauma. Through first Coyote's and then Kai's eyes, reflecting Maggie back at herself, she starts to go on a really interesting character journey. Which is what sold me on the book.
So in conclusion, this was great but you need to buckle up for 25% of being kept distant by the MC through relatively pedestrian conflict before it really gets going. However in my opinion it's well worth it. I loved the Navajo myth woven in and I loved the faintly dystopian setting. Thoroughly enjoyable - definitely NOT YA btw! - highly recommend....more
And I'm still not entirely sure what I just read. Sort of magic based dystopian urban fantasy with zombie like creatures and necromancers. Anyway 3.5*
And I'm still not entirely sure what I just read. Sort of magic based dystopian urban fantasy with zombie like creatures and necromancers. Anyway I did enjoy this a surprising amount considering that I felt no deep tie to the characters. It's a good, solid fantasy, it just didn't quite hit the tropes I want out of a fantasy novel and there's nothing wrong with that. I liked Ten. It was good to see another queer protagonist and still have them be a fully rounded character. (Of late too many YA SFF books have had diversity as a unique selling point, without doing the work to make it an aspect of the character rather than tokenism.)
The story was quite a typical 'chosen one' scenario with enough twists to make it fresh. The overall feel was quite gothic (or dare I say emo?). Personally I wanted there to be more world building. I also felt I spent the whole book looking for a deeper message under the main theme, only to realise that was the message. It was a bit simplistic for me but that's very much personal preference. Overall a decent book. I'd read the next in the series....more
Everything I said in my first review still stands, except that I think if it's at all possible, I loved all of these bRe-read/ buddy read with Destiny
Everything I said in my first review still stands, except that I think if it's at all possible, I loved all of these books more the second time round. This is a richly imagined, detailed, immersive and staggeringly beautiful series. Highly recommend if you don't mind dystopian fantasy that will challenge you and make you think.
I'm so excited that I have The Dawn Chorus and an arc of The Mask Falling to read soon.
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I think this might be the first time I've consistently handed out 5 stars on each book in a series but somehow Shannon has accomplished the very difficult task of a consistently high standard.
The bone season world is richly imagined and nuanced but what really makes this series work are the characters. Paige herself is a believable combination of courage, ruthlessness and determination. Additionally all the supporting characters are equally well rounded and relatable, even those who are decidedly not likeable.
I don't want to get into spoiler territory but here Paige as underqueen has set herself the nigh on impossible task of uniting the underworld, undoing the harmful voyant classification system and taking down Sen-shield. So not much then...
A really good addition to the series which finishes on a very satisfying conclusion. It was such a long wait for this book though that I can't help a wave of dismay at the thought that another 4 books are planned before we get an answer to it all. On the other hand more of a series I like so there's that. If you enjoyed the rest of the series this instalment is not to be missed. And if you haven't read the bone season yet, what are you waiting for?...more
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