Song for the Basilisk

I don't understand how McKillip keeps writing these amazing books. There's been 2 or 3 books by her that I wasn't too keen on, but ignoring those, she has to be one of the only authors of which I love almost every single book. This one I absolutely loved as well.

It's different from her other books, yet it's kind of the same. It has many of the familiar aspects of a McKillip book but executes and brings them together wonderfully.