Graham
Another challenging book for me to review. There are some things about it which are extremely well done. I can fully appreciate the quality of the prose which flows nicely and is very easy to read whilst at the same time being expressive and poetic in places. There is a clever sense of ambiguity about the setting. We are in a convent. The time period and place is never fully defined. There is a strong undertone of magical realism flowing through the text. The implicit criticism of patriarchy within religion was mostly well crafted. At the same time, I found myself struggling to connect with it.
I really want to like the more feminist takes on fantasy which are cropping up more and more (the GSFF book subscription which I received this through is doing a good job of highlighting them), but they are consistently fallen down on the caricature like presentation of men, losing any subtlety and ending up trying to bludgen the reader with pretty much all male characters being one note evil. This is taking the bechdel test and flipping it to its opposite extreme and honestly it ends up feeling just as unrealistic. I want books where there is a balance on these things!
I also got a sense that this book doesn't know where it is being marketed - I received it through a fantasy and Sci-fi subscription box, but honestly it felt more like historical fiction even if it isn't exactly placed in time or place. The fantastical elements are mostly present through a sense of magical realism which was only very minor.
Mostly, I feel this book just wasn't for me. I can respect the ambitions of the author even if I ended up a bit underwhelmed during the reading
I am left in awe at the balancing act that K.S. Villoso manages in the Bitch Queen books. Talyien manages to be both incredibly badass yet show her emotional vulnerabilities in an extremely realistic way. Honestly this feels like the most feminist SFF book I have read becuase of that brilliant balance - allowing our character to be both feminine and truly heroic at the same time, without trading or overbalancing in one direction. The level of nuance that is brought is perfection.
The Ikessar Falcon, the second book in this series, brings up that vulnerability a notch from the first yet still keeping Tal as a hard nosed diplomat/leader. The tenderness brought to the role is just so well done.
This is not the most action packed fantasy, a lot of it delves into personal introspection on the characters parts, but when the action ramps up it is also properly epic. There is also a wonderful greyness to most of the characters - capable of doing both good and bad things for good and bad reasons. Everything feels reasonable and believable. The politicking really explores this in a way that is reminiscent of GRR Martin.
The world building is also fascinating - with a definite lean to oriental society but at the same time there is a lot of ‘european' fantasy constructs and tropes employed, with everything nicely balanced.
I cannot sing praises high enough for this series. It deserves far more attention than it has received.
Thoroughly moored in the grimdark genre. The Last Sacrifice is bleak, unremittingly so. We are introduced to a world where the gods most definitely do not care. They are not good, yet are still needed to ensure the worlds continued existence. Their disciples go about the world randomly selecting people to be their sacrifices to appease them.
The central story here surrounds a man called Brogan, returning from his time in a mercenary band to find his wife and 2 children have been taken as sacrifices. Seeing that the gods and their disciples have done nothing for him he raises a gang to try and rescue them, failing but killing the gods followers and desecrating their sacrifice site in revenge, without understanding the consquences.
James A Moore does a fantastic job in showing the two sides to this. Both are driven by suspect things, but both fundamentally think they are in the right. Brogan, who feels wronged by the gods (justifiably) and lashing out against them, and the Grakhul, the servants of the gods, who see their duty to keep the gods appeased, but not understanding the personal cost of what they are doing. This conflicted and bleak heart makes this book.
That being said, there are some issues. The start of the book is extremely abrupt. We are not given much time to really build our understanding in the pain of Brogan's loss (or that of the Grakhul for that matter). It took me a while to really start empathising with either side as a result which undermined the power and the impact, but as the book progressed and we got to know the characters better, that cruel dichotomy at the heart of the story added some power to their actions, even if I never fully connected with each character as I might have liked.
This is very much the first book in a series and the ending was somewhat abrupt, but I do look forward to continuing it. There is an intriguing melancholy to everything here.
Powerful. A look at the destruction of innocence of some public schoolboys in the trenches of the First World War, whilst also dealing with societies then attitude towards homosexuality. This is playing with some really weighty topics, and it does them with an appropriate level of sensitivity whilst not backing away from the brutality of the events of the time. Even as the events of WW1 are fading into history we find a similar trench warfare building on the gates of Europe again at the moment which I think adds to the poignancy of the stories here.
The title refers to a section in the school newspaper, where the fallen old boys of the school are remembered, and as we start our main characters are all still in the school reading about former schoolmates who have gone to war and grasping with the ideas of glory that are still prevalent. As they gradually leave the safety of school and enlist we see the idealism gradually fade to be replaced by horror and lasting psychological trauma, and that descent provides the powerful backdrop to the whole novel.
Poignant, sad and heartfelt, a powerful read.
There seems to be a trend for feminist retellings of classic myth at the moment - at least I seem to have received a lot from the various book boxes I subscribe to over the last few months. The problem is that they frequently do not work, on a fundamental level. It is hard to deny that there is definitely a male bent to ancient tales and myth, and I can understand the desire to go back and try to tell things from a more feminine perspective. If done well I can see this working. The problem is that too many of these retellings end up feeling either anachronistic by trying to put too much of a modern bent on the female characterisations, or they fall into an almost caricature of male villainy.
The Heroines is a retelling of the rape of Phaedra from classical Greek mythology. This one definitely falls into that second category, where every male character almost feels like a pastiche of a cartoon villain. Some of the changes from the source material act specifically in this way for no apparent reason (eg - in the original myth Phaedra had several children with Theseus before the rape by Theseus son, here Theseus is shown as disinterested and effectively abusing Phaedra with neglect). For me increasing the evilness of the men is not the way to make a myth more feminist - a more subtle approach here would have reaped a far greater dividend as the story itself has enough potential without making it cartoonish in its characterisations.
The writing itself is good enough - the prose is modern and eminently readable. Having a modern prose approach to mythology is something I can definitely approve about as it opens up the classics to a more modern audience. The multiple POV works ok for me, although the differentiations between the different POV characters was limited with not enough difference in voicing. A quick and easy read and a good introduction to a classic myth, even if some of the stylistic choices and alterations to the source material fell down for me.
Some nice extra flavour for the shadow campaigns series. The title of The Penitent Damned refers to the group of people who have been ‘infected' with demons to allow them to use magic for the furtherance of the church. The whole magic system in the Shadow Campaigns is very cleverly done - the idea that some other entity is infecting you to provide some superhuman ability.
This short story focuses on a thief in possession of some of these special abilities, and their interaction with church. A nice introduction to the Machiavellian machinations of the state here! Definitely not essential reading for the series, but some fun extra colour for the overall series.
Action packed and exciting, this series is only getting better and better. Blindspace follows up quite closely after the events of Stormblood. We see the team that Vakov has put together take on more and more missions to try and get to the bottom of the House of Suns cult, and through that get redemption for his little brother. And this little tidbit gives the heart that runs through the story. We have the found family of the team that Vakov has put together, with their competing and compelling reasons for being there (which occasionally become at odds, much like a real family). we also have the more personal family issues running through here as well. All running against the backdrop of existential galactic threat and general space opera. Amazingly, this sequel manages to be both more intimate and more grand than the first book.
The expanding world is also fascinating. Here we begin to move away from Compass and start too see the greater universe that Jeremy has built, visiting new worlds and stations, encountering more aliens and getting more of a view of the vastness and otherness of world that has been built.
The characters are well developed and the inter-relationships, the small betrayals, the developing learning between them all serve to give colour and life to the book. I do find that Vakov can be a bit overpowered sometimes though which is the only criticism I can draw really. That man goes through a lot yet through the stormblood lore he is able to stay strong and largely unharmed by this, despite all other users seeming to be largely driven insane by the drug.
Nonetheless this is a hugely impressive world building and character building exercise. Space Opera on both a grand and intimate scale.
Firstly, I do not think this is a badly written book. Was it for me? No. Is there a market for it? Definitely. The prose is well written and engaging, I breezed through reading this in only 2 days. Why am I only giving it 2 stars? I think I am a bit oversaturated on the historical fantasy right now. I got this one through the Goldsboro books GSFF club and it seems like most of the recent books from there have been quite similar in feel. Reviews are 100% subjective and I am confident that others will love this book way more than me.
Shield Maiden is a retelling of Beowulf, at least his third fight against the dragon, but told from the perspective of his niece. There is definitely a bit of fad for retelling of classic historical fantasy from a female perspective. Honestly, I am not sure how much it adds and would rather new stories were told rather than trying to shoehorn a modern feisty girl into a classic work of fiction. Yes, historical fiction is extremely male dominated, but I am not certain that feminist retellings are the way to correct that as it always ends up feeling somewhat anachronistic, putting modern societal mores onto these historical events.
The pacing also feels somewhat off, being very slow for the first half of the book. There is an almost YA feel to the characterizations. Fryda is a typical modern YA style feisty princess. The villainy here is also somewhat one dimensional and black and white. It is easy reading. It all jars somewhat with my knowledge of the original source material, but I have nothing in particular against making Beowulf more accessible to the modern audience, but again it felt a bit shoehorned in. The Beowulf elements of the story (fighting the dragon) definitely played second fiddle to the love interest and court intrigue.
This is not a bad story, it just felt like a few too many things were stitched in to a story which they didn't belong in.
A case of wasted potential on this one. Historical fantasy with the most famous figure from Russian folklore (Baba Yaga) set in the most tumultuous period in Russian history (the Oprichnina of Ivan the Terrible) with a more feminist twist should be a recipe for success, but what is served up is so neutered and boring.
The author correctly points out that the Baba Yaga of legend has largely been shaped by the chronicles of men rather than women, and in all probability they are probably correct that it is based on an ancient fertility god. Traditionally she is shown as an withered crone who flies around in mortar. She has a certain duality to her - she may help or she may hinder those who seek her out. The author here correctly identifies the duality inherent in the ancient pagan traditions but then completely removes it from the Yaga figure in this story. All the interest is removed as a result. The idea that the figure presented is more feminist also fails in my mind as her relationship with a man (Vasily) becomes a central theme of the book - I honestly feel the original telling is more feminist in this respect!
What of the historical setting? Yes, the author does present some of the horrors of the Oprichniki but again this desire to smooth over the rough edges robs it of its impact. The pseudo mysticism of trying to recapture the identities of the lost Slavic gods makes the plot meander and get lost, robbing some of the immediacy of the very real horror and suffering of the time.
I am left feeling that there is the potential for a great book set around these themes. For me this was not it.
An impressive Indie debut novel. This is well polished, well edited and just generally a well written book. The character and world building here is top drawer, with a Sandersonian style magic system with hard well defined rules based on eye colour. The central premise of the story is a mystery, with the author doing a good job with pacing the reveals. The three main POVs are all distinct and have clear motivations and agency. Yes, there is some slightly stilted dialogue in places (to be expected in a debut) but the flow of the book works well.
The Fall of Babel provides a dramatic finale to the Books of Babel. The cast of characters that had been dispersed are brought back together, the machinations of the Bricklayer, the Sphinx and Luc Marat are all brought to their conclusion. This book does a good job in tying together all of these ends in a mostly satisfying way. There are some occasional miss-steps: I am not sure about the ultimate purpose of Nebos - it feels a bit of a cop out in some ways and the resolution between Marya and Tom is not as satisfying as I had hoped. But on the whole, the characters feel like they get what they deserve. Wrapping it up is an expansive operation though - this is by far the longest book in the series.
The Books of Babel feel like some kind of fever dream, unlike anything else in modern fantasy I have read. Do the later books hold up to the initial promise of the first book? I am not sure - the problem with this type of weird and wonderful pastiche is that the longer you stay in it the less it surprises you. This is not to diminish these works in any shape or form - this is wildly creative genre bending stuff - but perhaps the chonkiness of the series is to its detriment.
More is still to come - there is a short story collection that I will definitely pick up. This is one of the most bonkers fantasy stories you will ever encounter and it is definitely worth the trip down the Carrollesque rabbit hole.
Read as part of the Action Fantasy Book Club.
An interesting concept underpins this - the grooming of someone as a sacrifice. In the world of Dragon Strife, dragons have overthrown the gods. Each dragon has taken a territory and in return for a 15 year old virgin as a sacrifice every 5 years they look after that town. What if you are brought up as that sacrifice - given everything you could want but knowing that you will die by the time you turn 15. The grooming is at the heart of the start of the story. The grim acceptance that ‘if it isn't me then someone else will have to die' gives an uncomfortable undertone to the start of the book. There is a sense of othering as well which adds to the discomfort.
Russell Nohelty does a good job of riding the line with the uncomfortable undertones. The MC is likeable, her motivations believable and the sense of resignation tangible. It is a good question that is being asked and it is dealt with just the right amount of pathos.
The story changes up somewhat in the second half once we have entered the dragons lair. Whilst I can appreciate the anger and betrayal that underlies the action here, I found some of the characters actions more questionable. That being said this was a fun start to a series. I will have to dig a bit further and see where it is going as the world that has been set up is an intriguing one.
This was a challenging one to review. There are some very good aspects to the book, but also some very fundamental flaws and things that did not gel with me.
Darkmage falls very firmly into the grimdark category. We are thrown into a massive conflict, almost from the get go with very little world building or character development at the start. Unfortunately I think this lack of scene setting put me on the back foot from the start. We are very briefly introduced to a mage culture and hierarchy, but within a few pages that order is almost completely destroyed without us really being allowed to build a connection with it, or understand the motives for the betrayal that leads to this destruction or the motivation for the very strict and limiting structure imposed. Apparently there is some centuries old conflict with someone only ever described as ‘the enemy'. This lack of definition, whilst adding to the greyness of the world, tends to even further lose the focus from the why.
That being said, I can kind of get what the author is trying to achieve here - the destruction of everything grounding the MCs world gives motive and agency to what he is forced to do, with increasingly morally grey decisions and choices that challenge their beliefs. The motivations of the MC which might be questionable on their own become entirely more believable within the context framed. At the same time, the strength of belief within the character and their own moral code is stated several times, but we don't ever really see it in action as the cataclysm that forces him to go against it happens so early in the book - again the lack of buildup here causes problems. With just a bit more character building I would have felt the strain of him having to against his oaths in a far more personal way. The choices and decisions are delicious in their difficulty based on what is stated, but I would have liked a bit more showing of why these oaths are important.
Ultimately, I think the book starts to far into the story. There really needed to be some more world and character set up as the terrible moral choices the characters have to face lose their impact from the lack of context. In the end I struggled to engage with the characters and world because of this.
A giant ebook omnibus of the Queen of Thieves series containing 3 novels and a novella!
Child of the Night Guild
This first book was brutal. If you are easily triggered, avoid this - child abuse, rape and child trafficking feature prominently. We are first introduced to Viola, whose moderately happy life is interrupted when her alcoholic father sells her to the Night Guild (the local thieves guild) to pay off some debts. What follows is a story of dehumanising trials and brainwashing as the guild molds the young ‘slaves' it has bought into beggars, thieves, bounty hunters and assassins. All trace of their old life is beaten out of them.
The world Andy has built is firmly in the grimdark end of the spectrum. We are following a guild of thieves, who whilst having their own code are populated by brutal and morally grey people. Viola becomes Illana and ends up specializing as a hawk, a housebreaker who specializes in entry from above the third story. We follow her from Tyro, to Apprentice and finally her trials to become a journeyman. She is the soul of the story and through her many trials we are given a thorough glimpse into the workings of the guild. This is also a found family type story - having been abandoned by her own, it is the relationships she builds with others going through a similar journey as her that is the key to the story.
This is a brutal and powerful story and a gripping start to the series
5/5
Thief of the Night Guild
Having become a Journeyman Illana is now trying to make enough money to buy her freedom. Already the highest earning Hawk she now has a plan to make millions with a single heist. Moving on from the coming of age story in the first book this is a pure heist story, plain and simple. Everything is around the machinations and plotting around this giant heist. This is a fantasy Oceans 11. Trying to break into one of the most closely guarded mansions in the city, break through an unbreakable door, and escape with an extremely heavy load. The intricate plotting, the utilization of the side characters and the feeling of growth with respect to all the characters is nicely done.
4.5/5
Queen of the Night Guild
Illana is angry. More than angry - she is furious. Whilst the first novel was coming of age and the second was a pure heist, this one is a revenge story.
The Bloody Hand have come to Praamis. A rival guild from a neighbouring city they are trying to push the Night Guild out. Illana has been recognised as a major threat to their aims so a Machiavellian plot has been hatched to frame her for a murder and embezzlement to take her out of the picture. This time Illana does not have the resources of the Night Guild and has to turn to unusual allies.
Angry Illana is somewhat illogical at times, which can make for a frustrating read. The prince is also an amazingly scummy person for someone who claims morals. These character tendencies can make things a little more frustrating to read at times. Nonetheless this is a very satisfying end to her story arc
4/5
Traitor's Fate
This is an odd one. Kind of two novellas stitched together into a longer one. The first half follows Illana going back to The Bloody Hand's city to try and track down a people trafficking ring. A nice little titbit bringing us back to some of the more fun characters from the original story. Their mission ends mostly in failure as they are forced to retreat so they buy in the services of the Hunter of Voramis. I have not yet read any Darkblade books, but I assume this story ties more closely into those ones now as we switch our main POV to the Hunter. I struggled to identify with him as a character in this story, and I do wonder if reading more of the Darkblade books first might help, but the second part of this novella definitely fell a bit flat for me.
3/5
Groundhog day meets a deal with the devil meets a saved game. This was a clever concept - someone keeps on being brought back, each time able to give advice to the future iteration of themselves to enable them to progress further before dying, becoming the saint of war. Each time they realise more about the deal, their relationships and the ultimate futility of what they are doing. The dawning realisation of who matters forms the core of the story. A clever concept well executed! An excellent short story
Women's psychological healthcare in the Victorian era is rightly derided these days, and the Darlings of the Asylum takes aim at this rather open door. The problem here is that the male characters are painted in an almost cartoon villain light. This just plays really weirdly to me as I read it. The very insidiousness of the treatment of psychological health craves for a degree of subtlety which is just lacking.
On the plus side the prose was pleasantly readable, I breezed through the book rapidly. The main character is sympathetic and even if the twist was somewhat telegraphed it was handled well enough.
This topic has been covered better by other authors - the lack of subtlety really detracts from the story unfortunately. Not terrible, but it doesn't quite live up to the premise
The world of the Black Iron Legacy is one of the biggest strengths of this series. The faintly cthulhuonic overtures, the mad gods and twisted realities create a truly mind bending world, added to the steampunk/gaslamp fantasy setting just gives something hugely different and refreshing. The creatures and monsters borrow from the Lovecraftian mythos as much as classical fantasy. The whole thing is at the apex of modern fantasy for me, taking a novel and new approach rather than retreading tired worldbuilding tropes.
In this third entry in the series we get to explore a bit more of the world, expand our horizons to some of the other parts of the world that have been ravaged by the godswar. Seeing how a vestige of humanity continues to survive in these places twisted by the conflict between mad gods is fascinating and horrifying at the same time.
The expanded world is both the greatest strength and also one of the weaknesses of the book. The problem with these type of sprawling fantasies is that as a world grows the plot can become less focused. Splitting our attention between Guerdon and Cari's adventures kind of gives a certain disjointedness to the story. I am also a bit torn on my feeling towards the Ghierdana. Yes, dragons are cool, but they somehow seem a bit incongruous in this story, particularly with their ‘mafia' stylings. I can appreciate the concept - it is cool - but I am not sure it fully works for me. But ymmv.
I love the Black Iron Legacy books. This is my least favourite so far, but it is still a brilliant book, really pushing at the boundaries of modern fantasy. I am looking forward to seeing more in this world in the future.
Tamsyn Muir has to be one of the most creative writers currently out there. Yes, she has a niche (fucked up undead lesbians), but where she takes that niche is truly wild. Every story is so different yet equally brilliant. Take this one - gansters, ghouls and showgirls in a steampunk dystopia.
As an author she has a tendency to throw you into a setting with little or no context and build the context through the story. I know some people may struggle with that but for me I find this style incredibly rewarding, each little reveal giving a tantalizing glimpse of the wider world. That small incremental reveal helps the final reveal have even more impact.
Muir's morbid imagination also thrives with this - her ghouls are properly ghoulish and macabre, uncomfortable to read about. It is almost enough to turn you vegetarian, with its descriptions of gorey meat consumption.
A truly excellent short novella
Unfortunately, cosmic horror through film props has been done by other authors much better. The story is not terrible, but it is somewhat forgettable. Essentially a mirror used as a film prop unleashes some horror on the film set and crew. The main issue I have is a somewhat Mary-Sue type character who flies in and saves the day. Add to that a strangely chipper prose, it all felt oddly unbalanced, not sure what type of story it really wanted to be
This was creepy! Probably the best King I have read so far! Plays heavily on the psychological horror rather than the supernatural, which I really appreciate - humans make the best monsters!
The central premise is a famous writer gets taken prisoner by a crazed fan and forced to write a book to ‘correct' the ending to a story. The entrapment and torture is gruesome, brutal and deeply unsettling. Annie is completely psychotic as a character, but immensely believable as well. The gradual Stockholm Syndrome of Paul is understandable, the psychological pressure he is put in is visceral in its intensity. The general claustrophobia of the story just acts to heighten the fear.
The history behind the writing of this is also fascinating - written as a backlash against his own fans increasing demands it is a powerful counter to the worst tendencies of fandoms.
Be prepared for an uncomfortable but brilliant read
There is certain ebb and flow to Devin's books that I am beginning to notice. They often have fairly slow starts (and this third entry in the series is no exception on that front), but by the end they reach a crescendo of action that becomes quite unputdownable.
The Reborn Empire series is following the interactions of three peoples and their Imperial ambitions: the Kisians, the Levanti and the Chiltaen. To a certain extent this is looking at the Mongol empire as its inspiration. The Levanti in particular take on the aspect of horse riding ‘barbarians' and the Kisians have a distinctly Chinese feel in places (the Chiltaens feel a bit more European in their influence). The clash of cultures is a central theme, with xenophobia, bigotry and prejudice playing a central role in the events depicted. The conflict is visceral and on multiple levels and the play on some of the worst aspects of human psyche gives an immersive level of darkness to the whole affair. On top of this is the role of change, and whether change is positive or negative.
For me this third entry was a step back up in quality from the somewhat meandering second entry in the series. Yes there is some heavy politicking in the first half of the novel, but there at least seems some goal in mind with where things are heading. The mythology around Leo begins to start making more sense as the connections start to be drawn between the characters. Cassandra, who has previously been one of my favourite POVs was somewhat subdued throughout this one which was a shame, but being trapped in an infirm body limits her. Dishiva begins to make a bit more sense as a POV. Rah is still quite frustrating at times both with his bloody mindedness and inconsistent regard he is given by his people (which gets quite confusing - is he loved or hated?). This book really sees Miko come into her own and her POV is where most of the action on this book is based.
The ending is deeply frustrating, but deliberately so. I look forward to the final entry to hope that the ending's frustrating nature gets resolved!
Fantasy Three Musketeers vs religion. The Greatcoats have so far provided great entertainment, with the camaraderie between the leads Falcio, Kest and Brasti forming the backbone of the story. The setting of a country riven with petty rivalries, between callous Dukes uncaring for the common man provides a suitably dark setting with echoes of the revolutionary French setting of Dumas' original. At the start of this 3rd entry the Greatcoats are actually in a relatively strong position. They had managed to get the King's heir Aline and her Realms Protector into an actual position of influence, with Dukes actually paying at least some nominal attention. This time the enemy comes from a different direction, in the form of religion.
The mythology building in de Castell's world is mightily impressive, so the religion here is built on impressive foundations. The various Saints exist as living paragons of specific virtues, with 6 gods forming the Pantheon. In Saint's Blood we see this order upended. Someone is killing the Saints (+more). The mutability of religion vs the immutability of law then becomes the central theme of this book. This of course follows useful parallels in real life - religions have evolved over the years, but the main laws, even promoted by religions, have a certain similarity across time and culture. Yes, there is a certain anti-religiousness to the story, but the main thing here is preaching against blind faith and extremism, which again I find very relevant. This is present in the inquisition - they are presented as followers of the faith and religious law, and come out quite strongly against the new religion being presented here. It is kind of funny when the inquisition is the moderate religious influence in a story!
Anyway, this was a thoroughly enjoyable entry into a great series. Looking forward to reading the conclusion!
There is something very comforting about Brandon Sanderson's writing style. TotES takes that general coziness and dials it up to 11. This is definitely the most whimsical Cosmere book I have read before, and I know that was deliberate seeing as this was written specifically for his wife. And the whole thing wears its influences decidedly on its sleeve. The Princess Bride rides strongly through this both in theming and literary styling, with some of the extra Pratchett and Gaiman whimsy thrown in for good measure. Having the whole thing structured as a tale told by Hoid allows for that whimsy to work in the setting though.
Sanderson's big strength has always been his well realised worlds and Lumar, the setting for this novel, is no exception. Every Cosmere planet has its own unique expression and Lumar is its spore seas. Each sea has a different colour spore and each colour spore has a different property. The spores all react with water to cause certain effects - the verdant spores of the Emerald Sea violently sprout vines, azure spores violently explode on contact with water. A series of clever mechanical devices are able to use these properties to create different weapons and tools. Everything here works and makes sense. And the fact that water is the main catalyst creates a brilliant sense of danger - most living things excrete significant quantities of water!
The characters here are also excellent. The growth seen feels properly earnt. This is essentially a coming of age story so that growth is so important. The characters are just engaging, the ships crew have that excellent found family element and the self deprecation that Hoid uses helps balance out having a super powerful immortal hiding in the story.
Considering this story was written as a bonus secret thing for his wife this is hugely impressive and probably one of the best things to come out COVID... Extra bonus stories should not be allowed to be this good.
Some extra back story for how Esmir met Daymar. As with most short stories that are part of larger series, this is not essential reading, only adding some extra flavour for things alluded to in the main novels. Esmir is certainly a central figure within the main story line and Daymar is referenced a lot, so it nice to see how they first met! Also nice to meet the only other True Savant who has been mentioned thus far. Dragon Mage was superb so nice to be able to get a little bit more time in this world too!
Full disclosure: I won this book in a twitter contest direct from the author.
This is the third work of Jed's that I have read and the strongest so far. His works have all been characterised by superlative world building and The Thunder Heist is no exception. The Thunder Heist sees a step up in the character work which is really pleasing! Our main protagonist, Kef, is met about to be executed at a maximum security prison ship on a water based world. She has other ideas though, and a brilliant Machiavellian escape ensues giving a lively start to the story. As the title alludes, the main thrust of this is putting together a team to conduct a break in, and the plotting and team building here is done very well.
Whilst the character work has developed well my main criticisms to the novel still stem from this area. There is some inconsistency to Kef, with a heroic empathy sometimes giving way to a strange casual cruelty - it is sometimes hard to grasp her motivations. The same is even more true of her team mates, who tend to fade into the background somewhat. Despite all this, this is a fun heist story, with a brilliant steampunk nautical world built around it. A fun read and I definitely do want to continue this series to see where it goes!