It’s the month of Pride, and for the second year running, colourful parades are cancelled. To mark the occasion, I have two SFF book reviews with references to the Pride community.
Fire Logic by Laurie J. Marks
Fire, earth, water and air, are elements that sustained the people of Shaftal for generations, with powers of healing, truth, joy and intuition. But the Sainnites invaded, and the earth witch, ruler of Shaftal, died leaving no heir. The marauding Sainnites have occupied Shaftal for fifteen years, and with each year that passes, the cost of resistance rises. Shaftal’s fate is in the hands of three people: Emil, an officer and scholar; Zanja, a diplomat and sole survivor of a slaughtered tribe; and Karis, a half-blood giant and an addict. Together can they find a way to change the course of history?
This is an epic war fantasy, told with a wide lens, with religious, military, political and magical aspects intelligently woven into the richly described landscape. Rather than Kings and castles, it is guerrilla warfare among the farmsteads and iron workers, involving a complex cast of characters. War novels are not my usual go-to fantasy sub-genre, but I was struck by recommendations of this book being thoughtful, diverse and exciting, and on all these points it delivered. The social structure in this world is reimagined. Women and men are completely equal in every sense, so much so that gender often times feels irrelevant. Love and sexual attraction are displayed as uncomplicated affairs; same sex relationships are common, and family structures of all kinds are given equal importance. Needless to say, I adored the diverse characterisation, and look forward to discovering what more the author has in store in this well-developed, multicultural world.
Weave the Lightning by Corry L. Lee
‘Empire. Revolution. Magic.’
Weave the Lightning is spy thriller meets elemental magic, told primarily from the points of view of Celka and Gerrit. From the outset they appear to be on opposing sides of the resistance versus empire saga. Celka, along with her family, is a tightrope artist in a travelling circus. She is also storm-blessed, working to use her abilities to help the resistance. Gerrit is also storm-blessed, but he is a member of the Storm Guard Academy, working for the Tayemstvoy, the people who took Celka’s father. The storms are coming, and while Celka can only hope she has been prepared enough for her trials, Gerrit, son of the Stormhawk, is desperate to prove himself.
The magic system was intricate and organically delivered against a Russian inspired backdrop that was intriguing and well-developed. I was drawn into the complex world of espionage, and the characters’ journeys of self-discovery, as they face morally grey choices that challenge the very foundations of their worlds. The cast of characters and dynamics was diverse and refreshingly free from stereotypes, including gender variance in the supporting cast, and a love triangle involving the MCs, in particular making Celka an interesting and complex young woman MC that I was rooting for throughout. A highly atmospheric read.
For anyone looking for more Pride inspired books, click here for a Pride Parade of Books.
Happy Reading!
2 comments for “For the Love of Books #8”