Five Books

I've read plenty in the past few months. Instead of giving full reviews for each one (considering some were from months ago and have fuzzied out a bit in my mind) I'll put some thoughts here.

The Stone Sky by N. K. Jemisin

- Essun knows she must travel to the other side of the world in order to catch the moon even as she helps Castrima make their way to Rennanis. Nassun and Schaffa, meanwhile, make their way to Corepoint in order to break the world. Meanwhile Hoa takes us to his past with the story of how the Seasons started.

Dedication: To those who've survived: Breathe. That's it. Once more. Good. You're good. Even if you're not, you're alive. That is a victory.

Much like the first two, I found myself compelled to read to the end and figure out what the hell had happened to this world even through the ugliness of the characters. In particular, I was very interested in the story Hoa told of how he and his people broke the world and became the first Stone Eaters. The mirrors between his life and Essun's were interesting to catch though depressing when one realizes that few things change. People dislike those who are different. They distrust those who are different. And they will do horrible things to those they think they are better than. 

The book concluded the story satisfactorily for me. I definitely recommend this to anyone who likes dark, high fantasy. But be prepared because it is dark.

The Memory Theater by Karen Tidbeck

- The denizens of The Gardens spend all their time partying, playing croquet, and hunting their servants whose time has come to an end. Dora and Thistle escape the gardens even as Thistle's mistress is cast out for bringing Time to the Gardens. It's up to Dora and Thistle to find Augusta to retrieve Thistle's real name, while Augusta will do just about anything to make her way back to The Gardens.

Another dark fantasy, this one tells of a world outside of ours. A Fairyland of sorts. Though the people who live in this world of Faerie, known as the Gardens, are cruel. The Gardens part of the plot is somewhat disheartening and definitely not for those with a weak stomach. However, once the main characters escape from the garden, things pick up. I particularly enjoyed seeing the titular theatre. 

Once Upon a River by Diane Setterfield

- The Swan Inn on the Thames is famous for its storytelling. One Midwinter's Eve, the locals gather around to listen, only to be interrupted by an injured man carrying a corpse. Hours later, the corpse comes to life as a girl. A girl who's claimed by three different families. 

This one was hard to put down. In general, the writing style was lovely. It felt like I was reading a fairy tale or legend even though it's a modern book set in turn-of-the-century England.

The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker

- Chava, a golem made of clay to serve a master, finds herself masterless in New York at the turn of the century. Ahmed, a jinni from Syria, also finds himself in New York with his only memories from his life thousands of years ago. Both feel out of place as they struggle to find their way in this giant city where they don't fit in.

Blech... that's a horrible summary for an exquisite book. This is a reread as the second book is coming out this year. I neglected so many of my responsibilities in order to read this! Wecker writes a compelling story about two very lost people. I thought her cast of characters to be very interesting. I particularly enjoyed how everyone came together by the end. Poor Chava is particularly interesting. The Golem only wishes to help everyone, but to do so would completely give away that she's not human. And so she's stuck helping as she can without being noticeable. I really liked how she rubbed off a bit on the jinni as well. I have the second book on hold for whenever it is that it arrives. 

The Witch's Heart by Genevieve Gornichec

- A witch refuses to tell Odin the information he wants about the end of the world. As punishment, her heart is torn out of her body and she's burnt at the stake three times. The witch crawls to the edge of the forest where Loki gives her back her heart. She renames herself Angroboda, and there she makes a home for herself, Loki, when he visits, and her eventual children. But Odin is a hard man to deceive and it's only a matter of time before he gets what he wants.

This one started off a bit rough for me. The flyleaf (and my description) make it seem like Angroboda's punishment is a huge part of the book. In reality, it's mentioned in the first couple of pages to set the scene. As Boda's relationship with Loki starts out, it felt very immature. In fact, I was struggling with the very YA feel of the book. However, once her children were born, I found myself more invested.

The story is a retelling of Norse mythology events from the point of view of Angroboda. Her view of the gods is a very negative one. The book moved slower than I expected. Recommended for fans of mythological retellings particularly from a women's perspective.