Impressions: Range of Ghosts (Eternal Sky#1) by Elizabeth Bear

This is my blogiversary week. Yesterday, I featured a review for the latest release by one of my favorite historical romance writers, Mary Balogh. Today I'm featuring one of my favorite female fantasy writers and one whose works I have recommended repeatedly at Impressions throughout the last three years, Elizabeth Bear. Here are my impressions of her latest release:

Range of Ghosts (Eternal Sky #1)

Temur, grandson of the Great Khan, is walking away from a battlefield where he was left for dead. All around lie the fallen armies of his cousin and his brother, who made war to rule the Khaganate. Temur is now the legitimate heir by blood to his grandfather’s throne, but he is not the strongest. Going into exile is the only way to survive his ruthless cousin.

Once-Princess Samarkar is climbing the thousand steps of the Citadel of the Wizards of Tsarepheth. She was heir to the Rasan Empire until her father got a son on a new wife. Then she was sent to be the wife of a Prince in Song, but that marriage ended in battle and blood. Now she has renounced her worldly power to seek the magical power of the wizards. These two will come together to stand against the hidden cult that has so carefully brought all the empires of the Celadon Highway to strife and civil war through guile and deceit and sorcerous power.

Elizabeth Bear. How does this author manage to do this to me every time? What a magnificent fantasy read Range of Ghosts turned out to be for me! I read it slowly because I wanted to savor every single detail on the pages, and I didn't want to miss a single word, nor did I want to lose track of her world building.

What made it so absorbing? The way she weaves the story, of course, plus the world building which is based on both Middle Eastern and Asian cultures, and the characters that inhabit that world, from heroes to villains.

Bear takes the reader from the steppe plains on the land of the Eternal Sky where the Great Khan once ruled and where Qori Buqa waged a terrible war killing the rightful heir to the Khagnate and leaving young Temur to flee for his life, through the Range of Ghosts where blood ghosts raised by an evil wizard threaten his life. To the Rasan Empire and the Citadel of the Wizards of Tsarepheth where Temur meets the strong and beautiful Once-Princess and now wizard Samarkar. And to the great Ala-Din stone in the Uthman Caliphate, a land of veiled women where assassins, a djinn and an evil wizard's magic drive our heroes on to the White Sea.

There is war and love, life and death, evil and magic. There is a sense that fables come to life as our hero and heroine(s) race through danger. Magic takes a toll, debts must be paid, and while villains do damage, they don't win all the battles. The hero is young, uncertain and just beginning to find his strength and will, yet females are strong and powerful in this tale of wizards and warriors. Oh, and horses are magnificent!

I love the sense of wonder in our characters as they move from their own lands and witness the changing skies that Bear uses to define the different empires, and fully experience the differing cultures of this world. There's a contradictory sense to this story in that it can lull the reader with its beauty, yet the pace is quick with action. I chose to let it lull me this time instead of quickly gobbling up the action. Bear ends this first installment at just the right moment satisfying the reader, but leaving the road open with a big 'danger ahead' sign that promises further adventures.

Of all the books I've read by Bear to date, this is the one that gets closest to what I think of as a traditional fantasy story -- that's not a bad thing... just rather surprising. I also find it interesting that this is the second series I've read where Bear begins with her hero/heroine at the end of an epic battle and where a horse comes to his/her rescue. The other story is All The Windwracked Stars. On the minus side, the first few sentences in this book worried me as they are a bit overdone! Don't let that put you off because thankfully that only lasts for a few sentences and Bear's story telling abilities quickly take over.

Range of Ghosts by Elizabeth Bear is a beautiful fantasy read and a great beginning to the Eternal Sky series. If you love fantasy, I thoroughly recommend it.

Category: Fantasy
Series: Eternal Sky #1
Publisher/Released: Tor/March 27, 2012
Grade: A-

Visit Elizabeth Bear here.

April 2012: Reads + Updates

April is over. The good thing about April? There were new releases that I was looking forward to reading and I read them all. That means that even with all those crazy "real life" issues that are continuously affecting my daily life lately my reading slump is officially over. Good thing!

Anyway, here are my reads for the month. Those new releases were wonderful because they got me to read and I enjoyed them for different reasons, but only a few of them made it to the top of my list:

Total Books Read: 18
  Contemporary: 4 (Romance: 2 Romance Suspense: 1 Romance Erotica: 1)
  Historical Romance: 3
  Urban Fantasy/PNR: 1
  LGBT: 10 (Romance: 5 Fiction: 2 Spec Fic: 2 Memoir: 1)

1.   About That Night by Julie James: C
2.   Just Down the Road by Jodi Thomas (Upcoming Review) 
3.   The Duke's Perfect Wife by Jennifer Ashley: B-
4.   The Rake by Mary Jo Putney: A-
5.   Split by Mel Bossa: A-
6.   Private Eye by S.E. Culpepper: C-
7.   Almost a Gentleman by Pam Rosenthal: C
8.   Carbon and Ash by Chris Owen (Re-read): B
9.   Added Money by Chris Owen: C+
10. Lover Reborn (BDB#10) by J.R. Ward: C-
11. Lily by Xavier Axelson: B
12. Dutch's Boy by Xavier Axelson: B
13. Earthly Concerns by Xavier Axelson: B
14. The Heart's History by Lewis DeSimone: B+
15. The Witness by Nora Roberts: A
16. Bear Like Me by Jonathan Cohen (Upcoming Review) 
17. Naked Angel (Club Burlesque) by Logan Belle (Upcoming Review) 
18. Dirty Poole: A Sensual Memoir by Wakefield Poole (Upcoming Review)

Upcoming Reviews:

Currently Reading:

These are two very different books! Range of Ghosts is Elizabeth Bear's latest release and the first book in her latest fantasy series Eternal Sky. I'm loving her world building so far, but I'm not far into the book so I can't tell you much about the characters yet.

The same goes for The Seduction of Phaeton Black by Jillian Stone. This is more of a Victorian noir, paranormal romance. The beginning of the book is quite erotic, so I'm expecting the steam level to be on the high end of the scale. That first chapter kept me reading and Phaeton Black is certainly a character! Let's see how it turns out.

That's it for my April reads. May looks like it's going to be a great reading month too... I'm looking forward to reading quite a few new releases. How about you? How did your April turn out?

Review: The Tempering of Men by Sarah Monette and Elizabeth Bear

Here's a book I read last year as soon as it released. I also wrote this review last year, but for one reason or another never found the right moment to post it. Well, since I loved the first book of this series so much, right moment or not... here it is, The Tempering of Men by Sarah Monette and Elizabeth Bear.

In Iskryne, the war against the Trollish invasion has been won, and the lands of men are safe again…at least for a while. Isolfr and his sister, the Konigenwolf Viradechtis, have established their own wolfhaell. Viradechtis has taken two mates, and so the human pack has two war leaders. And in the way of the pack, they must come to terms with each other, must become brothers instead of rivals--for Viradechtis will not be gainsaid.

She may even be prescient.

A new danger comes to Iskryne. An army of men approaches, an army that wishes to conquer and rule. The giant trellwolves and their human brothers have never hunted men before. They will need to learn if they are to defend their homes.

The Tempering of Men is the sequel to A Companion to Wolves and it picks up right where that book ended. As such, it works quite well in my opinion, however, this is not a book I would recommend anyone read as a stand alone as it would not make much sense to the reader. It would be like beginning a story in the middle. And that is exactly what The Tempering of Men is, a middle book without a real beginning or a true end.

The Tempering of Men is told from three different points of view, that of Vethulf and Skjaldwulf, Isolfr's wolfjarls and Brokkolfr a new wolfcarl from whose perspective we observe Isoflr. Although the first book focused on exploring the relationship and balance between man and wolf, this book's focus is centered on relationships between the men themselves. The wolves are still at the heart of the story, just not as central as they were in that first book. This was accomplished by eliminating Isolfr and Veredectichs point of view and therefore the pack sense as the focal point.

The title very much reflects the story, as counterbalancing or neutralizing situations that arise from relationship between men seems to be its main purpose -- whether it's the relationship between wolfjarls Vethulf and Skjaldwulf, conflicts between the packs or the ever growing and rather delicate relationship between wolfcarls and wolfless men -- tempering is the key word. The new introduction of an invading army of men from a different culture adds to the mix.

I thoroughly enjoyed the in-depth look into Vethulf and Skjaldwulf's characters. The way in which the individual characters develop together and apart is a central thread throughout this book, even as events climax and other characters are introduced. However, although I found Bokkflr's view of Isolfr quite interesting and informative, as we get to see him from the perspective of someone who is on the outside looking in I found that Isolfr's perspective is sorely missed in this story.

Having previously read Elizabeth Bear's works (I've never read Sarah Monette), I'm familiar with her use of gender bending. That's present in this installment, for example: there is a female character who is a "son" and the head of his clan, but role reversals are found throughout also, one small example of that is the male who is referred to, and takes on the role of, "mother."

A new female character is introduced in this story, a captive who on the surface appears to be a woman without power. Yet, she is the one who holds the knowledge that men will need to defeat the incoming invaders. Skjaldwulf rescues, adopts her as his daughter and brings her back to the wolfhaell. Again although she is not a central character, she ties in to that underlying thread I mentioned in my post for A Companion to Wolves about women's roles in this male-centric series. She is also an interesting addition to the cast of already vast characters.

That cast of vast characters is one of my problems with this book and series so far -- that and the unpronounceable names. It takes a while to remember all the players in this series, between the wolfcarls, wolves, wolfless men and the rest of the crew. Additionally with the invaders, the authors have introduced new culture(s) (Britons and Roman) on top of the already established Norse (Viking) culture in this series. I'm not sure how or if that is going to effect the overall series.

In conclusion, I enjoyed this book and loved the further in-depth development of already established characters and their relationships, world building, and men's perspective. The wolves as the central focus are missed, and I have some concerns about the addition of new cultures to this already complex world building. The Tempering of Men is a middle book and one I don't recommend read on its own. However I recommend the series as a whole, and do recommend that A Companion to Wolves be read first. This is a fascinating series with excellent world building and characters, and I won't miss the next book.

Category: Fantasy (Spec Fic)
Series: Iskryne World
Publisher/Release Date: Tor Books/August 16, 2011 - Kindle Edition
Grade: B

Series:
A Companion to Wolves, #1
The Tempering of Men, #2

ETA: Please do not judge this series by the covers. Unfortunately, in my opinion in this case, the covers do not do justice to the stories -- the one for this book in particular.

Hilcia's Weekly Reads

Hey a Weekly Reads post from me! It's been a while since I posted one of those, right? But then, it has been a while since I read enough books in one week to do so. Also, two posts in one day... that doesn't happen often around here either. But hey... why not? I've had a good beginning to April and decided to share it with you.

• Chill (Jacob's Ladder, Book 2) by Elizabeth Bear was a book that I began reading in March, but finished in April. This is the followup to Dust, the book that obsessed me back in February. It turns out that as a middle book, it was not as gripping as the first one and it took me a long time to finish it. It does suffer from a bit of the "middle book syndrome" in my opinion. The gorgeous world building is set, the principal cast of characters have been introduced, and now it's a matter of getting them to that finale. There's development of the characters and there's another interesting quest that furthers the overall plot line, but overall it was not as interesting as that first book, Dust. I am, however, really looking forward to reading the end of the trilogy and can't wait for this crew to get to their awaited destination, the planet. The book Grail has been sitting on my coffee table all this time and I just can't wait to find out what happens in the end. Grade C+

• I continued by picking up one of my most anticipated March releases, Children of Scarabaeus (Scarabaeus, Book 2) by Sarah Creasy, the second and last book in her Scarabaeus series. This is the follow-up book to Song of Scarabaeus, a book that I really enjoyed reading and reviewed by February. I have a review on the works, but I can tell you that I definitely look forward to reading other books by Ms. Creasy in the science fiction romance sub-genre.

• The Sweetest Thing (Lucky Harbor #2) by Jill Shalvis came next on list, and that was a wonderful surprise for me as you can read on my review. I didn't really like Tara, the female protagonist, in the first book and I truly dislike triangles, but ended up giving this book an A! The majority of my re-reads are contemporary romances and this book will be placed on that section of my bookshelf once I get the print edition. :)

• I followed by picking up another highly anticipated read, It Happened One Season (Anthology) with Stephanie Laurens, Mary Balogh, Jacquie D'Alessandro and Candice Hern. I took my time reading this anthology and read other books in between the novellas -- I actually finished The Sweetest Thing and Children of Scarabaeus in between novellas. As my Sunday Mini post states this was a mixed bag, but one I enjoyed.

• Yesterday I finished Slow Dancing on Price's Pier by Lisa Dale. This book was one of my anticipated releases for the month of April, and a book I've been looking forward to reading for over a year. I'll be reviewing it, so I won't say too much except that I continue to enjoy Ms. Dale's writing and the way she puts together a story, as well as her in-depth characterization.

• And last, but not least, yesterday I began and finished reading Kiss Across Swords by Teal Ceagh. I won this book over at lovely Leslie's blog, Leslie's Psyche. I downloaded the ebook and just... read it right then and there! It's an erotic, time travel, vampire tale -- MMF. The author was a guest on Leslie's blog on March 31st and I remember loving her post about Claddagh Rings, and also being intrigued at the time because well... the characters in this story go back to the fall of Jerusalem during the Crusades. It seemed as if the historical details alone would be up my alley. Plus, hey, time travel, vampires AND MMF... what's not to look forward to, right? I will be sharing a bit more about this book with all of you soon.

At this moment I'm reading Maisie Dobbs (Book 1) by Jacqueline Winspear. I have Winspear's latest release A Lesson in Secrets on my TBR already, but I decided to at least read the first book in the series to get an idea as to the character before reading her last release. I'm about 29% into the book (Kindle edition), and this is what I had to say in my Goodreads update:

"I'm really taken with how the plight of English soldiers, during and after WWI, is depicted in this mystery novel. I'm loving the details, and the characters so far. Just went backward in time to Maisie's childhood and I'm surprised that I'm enjoying that part of it as much as her "present" time."

That's it for me for the week! Wish me luck, maybe I can do another one of these next week too. :D How was your reading week?

Quotes and Thoughts: A Companion to Wolves by Sarah Monette and Elizabeth Bear

Female Influence

"Perhaps sometimes it was wise to listen to a woman. Not that he would have to learn, unless he wasn't chosen. Wolfcarls did not marry. But for a woman's voice to speak reason when a man's counseled cowardice --- there was shame." Page 7

The female's influence is a thread that begins as a subtle one and one that runs deep within A Companion to Wolves. At first glance it is tough to recognize this thread since the book is packed with male central characters, testosterone and, from the beginning, that psychic bond between man and wolf seems to be the main focus. However even through that bond, our main character Njall or Isolfr learns that there's no shame in listening to a female and that her influence can sometimes be the most powerful. The thread is carried throughout the story as Isolfr and his friends battle trolls and meet the powerful svaltarfar who dwell under the mountain.

Honor

"You must decide what your honor is, Njall, and hold to it...." Page 11

Honor is another key thread throughout A Companion to Wolves. It is what drives Isolfr's actions from the beginning when he is 16 years old and gives himself as tithe to the wolfheall against his father's wishes. Honor is ingrained in Isolfr, but it is the above advice given to him by his mother -- a female that knows the true meaning of the word -- as he is leaving the keep that stays with him throughout the story. Holding his honor is a decision that will place Isolfr in deadly danger, but one that will make a great man out of him.

Pack sense

"He could smell the night around him -- the snow and the dark and the sap running up branches, the first green tang of spring. He could smell Sigmundr beside him, smell the wolves and the men, each individually, smell Brandr's sour fear and his determination, smell his own confidence -- for, unlike the other young men, he was a jarl's son and this was not his first time in battle -- and he thought if he closed his eyes and concentrated, he might be able to pick out the scent of the moonlight on snow. Moving, all moving, like a great, coordinated dance, and he bit his lip to keep from laughing in delight." Page 21

Without pack sense there would be no book. This is what makes the story truly amazing. The authors explore social structure, hierarchy, even political and amorous ambitions and how they affect a group. There's the beauty as shown by the above quoted passage but there's also the raw brutality expected of both wolf pack and man. Man's ambitions and outward civility, as well as the animal's need for domination and or submission are both captured by the writers. The authors also go out of this circle and explore how this group is viewed, and therefore judged, by outside society.

However within the wolf pack, the authors also address the female role. The leader of the wolves is a female. She chooses her mate and controls the pack, and in turn her chosen brother (the man) becomes the most influential male. This brings me back to the thread of female influence, as this female doesn't just represent the mother or mate in the story, instead without her or her brother there would be no cohesion to the pack. In A Companion to Wolves when a female wolf is born there is cause for celebration, as opposed to the world of men where females are not held in high esteem.

Do the central characters realize what females contribute to their lives and to the outside world? Does the role of the female wolf within the pack impact the men's outlook on their world? You'll have to read the book to find the answers.

Final Note: I chose to focus my post on this one point because I found it a fascinating thread in a book that features an all male character cast as the protagonists. The raw and rather brutal scenes that make this story such a fascinating read, combined with the main character's personal realizations, all kept pointing me in this direction as well. However, I just wanted to point out that this is a beautifully written, moving fantasy story focused on the characters -- human and non-human -- their relationships, battles, and most of all honor.

Review: Dust (Jacob's Ladder, Book 1) by Elizabeth Bear

Dust by Elizabeth Bear is the first book in the Jacob's Ladder trilogy, a 2007 release. The trilogy is categorized as science fiction, however I found enough fantasy elements in this first book that places it firmly into the science fiction/fantasy category for me. This didn't surprise me overmuch after having read some of Bear's other works and discovering her talent to seamlessly weave fantasy with mythology, so why not with science-fiction?

Let's begin with the science fiction setting and details. Our characters' "world" is the massive generational colony ship the "Jacob's Ladder.” While on their way from Earth to a new planet, the ship broke down and has been orbiting twin-dying suns for centuries as the inhabitants themselves survived by evolving. This evolution was originally forced on some of the inhabitants by the ship (or ship's computer program) through a symbiosis between nanotechnology colonies and their human hosts, creating the Exalts. These symbionts heal wounds making Exalts nearly indestructible, with the exception of a wound received from unblades or swords created specifically to kill Exalts. Evolution has taken different forms and there are a myriad of characters encountered throughout the story, from winged angel-like humans to sentient entities that are created from nanotech colonies.

When the ship first broke down and the main frame "computer" (Israfel) failed, it splintered into different sections: (Jacob Dust) Memory, (Samael) Biosystems and Life Support, and the ship's (Asrafil) Weapon's Systems. They all work and control the ship, but must be accessed as separate entities.

Now we get into the fantasy aspects of the story and the fun! Did you notice the names above in parenthesis? Each of those splintered computer programs is characterized as an "Angel" in Dust. Jacob Dust is the Angel of Memory, Samael is the Angel of Biosystems and Life Support and Asrafil is the Angel of Blades or Weapon's Systems. They are all that remains of Israfel or as they refer to him, God. Since the Angels can’t agree on how to save the “world,” they are at war with each other and manipulate humans and circumstances to survive. The three Angels have one goal: to consume the other two and gain their knowledge until there is only one left.

Bear takes a broken down ship in the middle of space and creates a whole world out of it with cities, societies and customs. The most recognizable concept in Dust is that of a medieval society. There are the ruling noble houses -- the House of Rule and the House of Engine (or the Commodore's Quarters and Engineering) -- knights, quests, chivalry, honor, political intrigues, inheritance issues, war, swords, servants, ancient bloodlines, and even names like Sir Perceval, Tristan and Benedick. Then Bear mixes in not-so-subtle religious references -- God, Angels and even a depiction of the Garden of Eden -- with a necromancer, a dragon and a basilisk along the way. It's quite the smorgasbord, yet it all fits together and it made this an exciting read.

The story seems simple enough; the world is in danger from two different fronts and it must be saved at all costs. Sir Perceval, a knight from the House of Engine is captured by Ariane, a Princess from House of Rule, and surrenders honorably. Ariane severs Perceval's wings with her unblade, committing a dishonorable act that will trigger a war between the two Houses. Ariane's father, the Commodore, reprimands her for her actions and she responds by killing and consuming him to acquire his knowledge and memories. At this point it's clear that Ariane is making a move to control House of Rule and Engine. In the meantime Rien, a servant girl tending to Perceval, makes a few surprising discoveries and the two girls escape and embark on a journey throughout the ship to stop a war between the two Houses.

Perceval finds herself as the center of the conflict between the "Angels" and the war between the Houses. However, it is Rien who really effects the changes in this story and turns out to be the courageous "knight" of the piece. As the character with the most growth from beginning to end, she became a favorite. Rien begins as a fearful servant who is Remade by Perceval from a Mean (a human who doesn't have a symbiont) into an Exalt, and after unknowingly consuming the memories of the original Chief Engineer and finding her family, her strength of character really comes through. Jacob Dust was also a fascinating character that took me for a ride from beginning to end by just trying to figure him out. I also loved his interactions with the other Angel entities and Perceval.

Of the main characters although Perceval was well developed, she was also my least favorite as I found her to be emotionally weak. On the other hand, there were secondary characters that were key to the story -- Tristen, Benedick and particularly Ariane -- who either piqued my interest or were likable, but whom I thought could have used further development within this first book.

In the other works I've read by Bear, she approaches sexuality openly through her characters. In Dust she includes a hermaphrodite, an ungendered character, one who chooses to be celibate, homosexuality, and taboo subjects. I loved Bear's seamless weaving of science fiction and fantasy and again enjoyed her approach to sexuality through characters and how she makes it all work.

Dust is well plotted, has excellent pacing and fascinating world building. I enjoy Bear’s writing style and this book is no exception. However I did have a problem with the very beginning of the book where I felt the story was bit rushed and lacking in detail. It took a couple of chapters for everything to “gel” for me. Once it did, the story took off and I couldn’t stop reading.

This is the first book in the Jacob's Ladder trilogy and obviously there's more. Bear ties up the most important threads of this particular story -- Perceval, Rien, the war between the Angels and the “world’s” immediate fate -- but there's more. The story ends with a bang, and I mean of epic proportions, and at this point I was glad I had the second book, Chill, available to read immediately as I became obsessed with this world's fate. This is a book I recommend for those who love science fiction, fantasy, or just a great adventure full of creativity and fantastic characters.

Category: Science Fiction/Fantasy
Series: Jacob's Ladder Trilogy - Book 1
Publisher/Release Date: Spectra - December 26, 2007
Grade: B++

Visit Elizabeth Bear here.

Trilogy:
Dust, Book 1
Chill, Book 2
Grail, Book 3 (Released 2/22/11)

ARC Review: The Sea Thy Mistress (The Edda of Burdens Series, Book 3) by Elizabeth Bear

This direct sequel to Elizabeth Bear’s highly acclaimed All the Windwracked Stars picks up the story some fifty years after Muire went into the sea and became the new Bearer of Burdens.

Beautiful Cathoair, now an immortal warrior angel, has been called back to the city of Eiledon to raise his son--Muire’s son as well, cast up on shore as an infant. It is seemingly a quiet life. But deadly danger approaches…the evil goddess Heythe, who engineered the death of Valdyrgard, has travelled forward in time on her rainbow steed. She came expecting to gloat over a dead world, the proof of her revenge, but instead she finds a Rekindled land, renewed by Muire’s sacrifice.

Book Summary:
It is fifty years after Muire sacrificed herself and became the Bearer of Burdens. Cathoair is an einherjar and lives a life of service on the road helping others, as an almost dead world slowly comes to life due to Muire's sacrifice. But Cathoair returns to Eiledon after he's informed that he and Muire had a son. Raising Cathmar gives him a reason to settle into a quiet life by the sea.

A few years later, their idyllic life is disrupted when Cathmar becomes a teenager and dark changes befall them. The goddess Heythe has returned just as promised when she abandoned the world she destroyed and as the Children of Light fought their last doomed battle by the sea. She travelled through time to find proof that her destruction was complete. Instead two thousand years later, Haythe finds a renewed world saved by Muire, the new Bearer of Burdens. Heythe the destroyer won't stop until this new world is erased from existence. Unbeknown to Cathoair and Cathmar, she targets and torments them in the hopes that the Bearer of Burdens will come to their rescue. But Mingan, the Grey Wolf, knows his old nemesis Heythe has returned and this time he'll do whatever is necessary to defeat her.

Impressions of The Edda of Burdens Books 1 & 2:
In All The Windwracked Stars, an unforgettable book that captured my imagination, Elizabeth Bear began this series of apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic endings and new beginnings by focusing on Muire's quest and weaving a story that was both dark and full of hope. There, Muire witnessed an apocalypse and the destruction of her brothers and sisters, the Children of Light. In a renewed world that was again dying, she fought an old evil in the Grey Wolf and a new one in the Technomancer and through battle, sacrifice and forgiveness saved the world from a second apocalypse.

In the second installment, By The Mountain Bound, Bear goes back in time and writes a tragic tale worthy of Norse mythology giving the reader a better understanding of her world and characters. Although the events unfold through all three central characters' points of view -- Muire the Historian, Strifbjorn the Warrior, and Mingan the Wolf -- it is the invaluable in-depth insight into the Grey Wolf's motivations and history that resonates in this story. By the Mountain Bound ends where All The Windwracked Stars begins giving the reader a complete understanding of events past and present and making it a darkly emotional, compelling tale of love and betrayal, particularly as the reader already knows how the story ends.

Review:
With The Sea Thy Mistress, Elizabeth Bear concludes The Edda of Burdens trilogy by going forward in time to about fifty years after Muire's sacrifice and completes this post-apocalyptic trilogy by returning -- to a lesser extent -- to the cyberpunk fantasy style and atmosphere found in the first book. She seamlessly joins the story lines from the two previous books and focuses on Cathoair as the central character.

As with the first two books in the trilogy, there's a dark, doom-like sense and atmosphere that permeates the story. But unlike what happens in By the Mountain Bound, there's hope and light by the end. Having said that, the journey to the light is a tough one. These are tormented characters and in this book Cathoair's past as an abused child and male prostitute come back to haunt him. Bear doesn't stint when it comes to digging deep into this man's damaged soul, his guilt, self-loathing or pain. She thoroughly explores that pain and in turn the sensitive subject of abuse. The characters' internal struggles parallel those of the world that surrounds them. Losing would mean a final end to Valdyrgard.

The story is told in short chapters and shifts from character to character, as seen from their points of view. This gives the beginning of the story a choppy feel and slows the flow and pacing until about page 74 where the points of view are reduced and the plot begins to concentrate on Cathoair and Cathmar. This is also where the pacing and my interest in the story picked up. Even with the choppy beginning, I was surprised when I found myself fully emerged in the story, wanting to know more about Cathoair and getting what I wanted.

In-depth characterization is also found in secondary characters and knowing what ultimately motivates them provides a sense of completion to the book, and in turn the trilogy. Most important of these characters are the Imogen, Selene the moreau with the soul of a Valkyrie, and Aethelred, with Cathmar thoroughly developed as a new, key character. Heythe's need for revenge and destruction are explained, however her real motivations seemed both obscure and rather futile to me. There is no further development for Heythe, making her the weakest character of this story.Bear also gives the reader a full, final view of a redeemed Mingan. He and Cathoair again share deeply emotional moments, bringing the story to a fully closed circle.

Ms. Bear's talents for in-depth characterization, while weaving a fantasy tale with mythology, are impressive. These characters, although obviously patterned after those of tragic Norse mythology, are unique and Bear's own. A tale where everyone seems to win by losing what they love most, by acceptance of self and others and ultimately through forgiveness, The Sea Thy Mistress is a deeply nuanced story and a solid conclusion to this trilogy.

Category: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Speculative Fiction
Series: The Edda of Burdens Series, Book 3
Release Date: February 1, 2011
Source: Tor/Forge Books
Grade: B

Visit Elizabeth Bear here.

New Releases: January/February 2011

It is time again for those new releases! And it's a really good time of the year, there are lots of upcoming releases and you know I want to read them all. However since that's not possible, I'll be highlighting a few of the books I'm really looking forward to reading for January and February. A few of my favorite writers have new releases and that's exciting!

Call Me Irresistible by Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Release Date: January 18, 2011

RSVP TO THE MOST RIOTOUS WEDDING OF THE YEAR!

Lucy Jorik is the daughter of the former President of the United States.

Meg Koranda is the offspring of legends.

One of them is about to marry Mr. Irresistible—Ted Beaudine—the favorite son of Wynette, Texas. The other is not happy about it. Not happy at all....

But even though Meg knows breaking up her best friend’s wedding is the right thing to do, no one else seems to agree. Faster than Lucy can say, “I don’t,” Meg becomes the most hated woman in town. A town where she’s stuck with a dead car, an empty wallet, and a very angry bridegroom.

Broke, stranded, and without her famous parents at her back, Meg is sure she can survive on her own wits. What’s the worst that can happen? Lose her heart to the one and only Mr. Irresistible? Not likely. Not likely at all....

Let's begin with Susan Elizabeth Phillips' new contemporary romance. SEP is one of my favorite contemporary romance writers and I've been waiting for her new release for a while. I will be buying Call Me Irresistible while it's hot off the presses!

Shadow Fever by Karen Marie Moning
Release Date: January 18, 2011

MacKayla Lane was just a child when she and her sister, Alina, were given up for adoption and banished from Ireland forever.

Twenty years later, Alina is dead and Mac has returned to the country that expelled them to hunt her sister’s murderer. But after discovering that she descends from a bloodline both gifted and cursed, Mac is plunged into a secret history: an ancient conflict between humans and immortals who have lived concealed among us for thousands of years.

What follows is a shocking chain of events with devastating consequences, and now Mac struggles to cope with grief while continuing her mission to acquire and control the Sinsar Dubh—a book of dark, forbidden magic scribed by the mythical Unseelie King, containing the power to create and destroy worlds.

In an epic battle between humans and Fae, the hunter becomes the hunted when the Sinsar Dubh turns on Mac and begins mowing a deadly path through those she loves. Who can she turn to? Who can she trust? Who is the woman haunting her dreams? More important, who is Mac herself and what is the destiny she glimpses in the black and crimson designs of an ancient tarot card?

From the luxury of the Lord Master’s penthouse to the sordid depths of an Unseelie nightclub, from the erotic bed of her lover to the terrifying bed of the Unseelie King, Mac’s journey will force her to face the truth of her exile, and to make a choice that will either save the world . . . or destroy it.

And what about Shadowfever by Karen Marie Moning? I've been waiting for the end of this series for quite a while! As a matter of fact, I haven't read Dreamfever yet, WAITING for this book just so I can finish the series in style, making this a highly anticipated book for me.

Notorious Pleasures (Maiden Lane, Book 2) by Elizabeth Hoyt
Release Date: January 25, 2011

Their lives were perfect . . .
Lady Hero Batten, the beautiful sister of the Duke of Wakefield, has everything a woman could want, including the perfect fiancé. True, the Marquis of Mandeville is a trifle dull and has no sense of humor, but that doesn't bother Hero. Until she meets his notorious brother . . .

Until they met each other.
Griffin Remmington, Lord Reading, is far from perfect - and he likes it that way. How he spends his days is a mystery, but all of London knows he engages in the worst sorts of drunken revelry at night. Hero takes an instant dislike to him, and Griffin thinks that Hero, with her charities and faultless manners, is much too impeccable for society, let alone his brother. Yet their near-constant battle of wits soon sparks desire - desire that causes their carefully constructed worlds to come tumbling down. As Hero's wedding nears, and Griffin's enemies lay plans to end their dreams forever, can two imperfect people find perfect true love?

Notorious Pleasures by Elizabeth Hoyt is the second book in her Maiden Lane series. I loved, loved Wicked Intentions, the first book... and can't wait to read Hero's story, so this is another highly anticipated book.

Scandal of the Year: Abandoned at the Altar by Laura Lee Guhrke
Release Date: January 25, 2011

One tryst was all she wanted . . .

From their very first meeting, Julia knew that Aidan Carr, the oh-so-proper Duke of Trathen, had a bit of the devil in him, a devil who secretly yearned for what he could not have, a devil who harbored a desire for her. So when she needed to be caught in a compromising situation, Aidan was the answer to her prayers.

One tryst just wasn't enough . . .

Aidan is supposed to be looking for a bride, yet his scandalous liaison with Julia is all he can think about. Hot, erotic memories of kissing her skin, falling into her bed, pulling her naked body on top of his own continue to torment and tempt him. What is it about this brazen seductress that he finds so hard to resist? And how can he stop himself from falling into her bed a second time?

I already have the first book in this series Wedding of the Season in my TBR. I'll probably wind up reading both of these books as a set, one after the other. I don't know why, but the summary for Scandal of the Year just calls to me. :)

The Sea Thy Mistress by Elizabeth Bear
Release Date: February 1, 2011

This direct sequel to Elizabeth Bear’s highly acclaimed All the Windwracked Stars picks up the story some fifty years after Muire went into the sea and became the new Bearer of Burdens.

Beautiful Cathoair, now an immortal warrior angel, has been called back to the city of Eiledon to raise his son--Muire’s son as well, cast up on shore as an infant. It is seemingly a quiet life. But deadly danger approaches…the evil goddess Heythe, who engineered the death of Valdyrgard, has travelled forward in time on her rainbow steed. She came expecting to gloat over a dead world, the proof of her revenge, but instead she finds a Rekindled land, renewed by Muire’s sacrifice.

She will have her revenge by forcing this new Bearer of Burdens to violate her oaths and break her bounds and thus bring about the true and final end of Valdyrgard. She will do it by tormenting both Cathoair and his son Cathmar. But Mingan, the gray wolf, sees his old enemy Heythe’s return. He will not allow it to happen again.

AND, oh boy! This is the last book in Elizabeth Bear's latest trilogy. I read and loved All the Windwracked Stars, Book 1, really enjoyed By the Mountain Bound, Book 2, and The Sea Thy Mistress, Book 3 is the end of this wonderful cyberpunk fantasy trilogy, with all its mythological details and characters. I received an ARC from Tor/Forge Books and will post an early review for this book.  :)

Absolutely, Positively (Lucy Valentine, Book 3) by Heather Webber
Release Date: February 1, 2011

“Exposed” by a Boston Herald reporter, Lucy is suddenly the talk of the town. Long back-story short: Even though the rest of her Valentine ancestors were blessed by Cupid with psychic abilities, Lucy’s only special power lies in her ability to find things. This skill has proven quite a blessing for those who come to her matchmaking agency in search of finding their long-lost loves. Now that Lucy’s secret is out, she has more new clients than she knows what to do with. But soon a certain man of mystery steals Lucy’s spotlight…

No, it’s not Sean Donahue, the sexy fireman-turned-private-eye who’s stolen Lucy’s heart. It’s a masked man in a cowboy hat, dubbed “The Lone Ranger,” who’s been throwing handfuls of cash across the Common. Now all of Beantown’s abuzz. Can Lucy unmask the mysterious money man, track down all her clients’ old flames, and turn up the heat on her love life? Absolutely, positively…

And last, but certainly not least, is the next installment in the Lucy Valentine series, Absolutely, Positively by Heather Webber. I read the first book in this series late last year and loved Lucy! (No pun intended). I have the second book already, and hope to catch up with Lucy and Sean's light and fun adventures with this book.

I might add more later if something I adore catches my eye, but that's it for now! What about you? Any great releases you're looking forward to reading?

Review: All the Windwracked Stars by Elizabeth Bear

“At the closure of the slaughter, there remained upon the strand
One who fled, one who lived, one who chose not to attend…

So the Children singing came all to the slaughter
Stars and shining suns, sons and shining daughters…
And all the windwracked stars are lost and torn upon the night
Like candleflames they flicker, and fail to cast a light.

To begin with there was darkness, darkness, Light, and Will
And in the end there’s darkness, darkness sure and still.”

There is something about a post-apocalyptic/apocalyptic, Sci-Fi Fantasy story that does it for me – mix in some Norse mythology and it’s a win-win situation. Elizabeth Bear’s All the Windwracked Stars has all of the above and more. She uses mythology loosely to construct her world and if you are familiar with Odin’s crew of Gods and immortals, you will recognize their integration into Bear’s world, her characters and usage of language.

Our fantasy adventure begins with the end. It’s the end for the Children of Light and their world – survived only by Muire, a waelcyrge (valkyrie), and Kasimir, a valraven (two-headed, winged, war-steed). Muire, who thinks of herself as the “least” of all her sisters, is not a warrior; instead she is a poet, historian and artist. She survives by fleeing that final battle where all her sisters and brothers – the einherjar or immortal warriors -- die. That single act of cowardice, the guilt and shame Muire carries with her, become the driving force behind her actions throughout this story.

Fast forward twenty three hundred years later and the world is again dying. This time, surprise, surprise it is a world of men, who after rising and inventing medicine, philosophy, space flight and metallurgy now live in an era known as the Desolation, under the Defile – a contaminated earth full of deserts and bleached bones, un-breathable air and a dead sea killed by bio-weapons and never ending wars. Only one city remains, Eiledon.

When Muire finds a truman dying in the shadows of darkness, with no traces of blood or bodily harm, she recognizes the manner of death and knows the killer. An old, powerful evil from long ago has returned and she must hunt it and kill it, or die trying.

The gloom and doom that permeate the world Bear constructs makes this a tough read through the first third of the book. Muire’s self-recrimination, guilt and sense of worthlessness, while understandable, were tough to deal with at times. Thank goodness for Kasimir who serves as her conscience and represents the hope and promise of a possible future. He has the faith in Muire that she doesn’t have in herself, and recognizes the courage and Light she possesses. Although Muire is the main character, and a strong one at that, once Bear’s well-developed and fascinating secondary characters start to emerge, I became immersed in her world. They were the ones that made this story work for me.

Thjierry Thorvaldsdottir, Technomancer of Eiledon, is known as the savior of the dying city. A combination techie/witch, she reigns supreme in the Tower, a floating bubble-like city she created – a city above a city -- adored by her students and guarded by loyal servants, the moreau or unmen -- animals with human-like abilities. Thjierry and Muire might be the only hope left for Eiledon. The unmen play a small, if key, part in the story. Selene, the cat girl with her claws, whip and smarts, is the most memorable of the unmen characters. I was touched by her toughness, vulnerability and courage – a definite reminder of H.G. Wells’ “The Island of Dr. Moreau.”

Mingan, the Grey Wolf is a tarnished predator, traitor to all, but most of all to himself. He is a dark, fascinating character that took hold of my imagination and didn’t let go, even after the book was finished. Possibly my favorite in this book, his is the character that brings us the closest to the tragedy and duality that we often find in Norse mythology. Based on a cross between Fenrir the Wolf and Hati, the sun-eater, Mingan, together with Cathoair, a young male prostitute and bar fighter, take over the page whenever they appear. Theirs is a complex relationship --Mingan hunts Cathoair, whom he both loves and hates and in turn, Cathoair haunts Mingan. Cathoair is both more and less than he appears to be. By becoming important to both Muire and the Grey Wolf, he also becomes a catalyst and central to this story.

As the story unfolded, defining the Dark and the Light became difficult, gray areas expanded and I found myself reading slower, savoring every moment, not wanting the book to end. And as I concluded my journey with Muire and her ragtag group of friends and foes, after experiencing depths of despair and selfishness, the power of friendship and love, I found that in the end, this book was mostly about redemption and self-sacrifice.

There is potential in this world for other great adventures. Hopefully, Elizabeth Bear will give us more. If you like Fantasy, Sci-Fi and mythology, this book is certainly for you.

Solid B

Visit Elizabeth Bear's site here. Read an excerpt from All The Windwracked Stars here.

Originally posted at Musings of a Bibliophile April 17, 2009

All the Windwracked Stars: A year later, a prequel, some thoughts & questions

A whole year ago, I reviewed All the Windwracked Stars by Elizabeth Bear. It was my first ever review in blogland. I remember giving this book, the review and my grade a lot of thought. Not only because it was my first review, but because I was quite conflicted at the time. (I posted the review below for your convenience)

This was my first read by Elizabeth Bear and a fantasy book and I remember loving it for a lot of reasons. I didn't want the book to end. It's post apocalyptic/apocalyptic fantasy and it has mythology as a base, two devices I really enjoy in a book. Bear also throws the reader right into her world from the beginning, and that's something I appreciate when reading fantasy. The rest you can read on my review. However, the way she used mythology concerned me at the time and that was reflected in my final grade.

Bear uses Nordic mythology in All the Windwracked Stars, and her usage of it is subtle and well done -- if you are familiar with it. She uses mythological composits to create her characters, as in the case of the Grey Wolf, that I thought were brilliant. However, although I enjoy this type of subtle mythology-based fantasy story, I remember being concerned that those readers unfamiliar with Nordic mythology would pick up this book and would end up hating it. I thought that for them, some of the language used and even part of the story would be confusing and the subtleties would be completely missed. When I wrote my review, I even thought of recommending that readers might want to check out a book that I use as a tool to refresh my memory about Nordic mythology, The Children of Odin: The Book of Northern Myths by Padraic Colum. This is not a heavy mythology book, but a fast read and easy to use as a tool. At the last minute I deleted my recommendation, thinking that my review was already too, too long, lol! This is not something that would concern me now. :)

Interestingly enough, a couple of months ago while looking for a sequel to this book, I found that Elizabeth Bear wrote and released a "prequel" instead, By The Mountain Bound. And guess what the book is about? She addresses the mythology-based part of her world. When I first began reading By the Mountain Bound, I felt almost as if I were reading stories right out of The Children of Odin: The Book of Northern Myths, except that Bear uses her characters and still manages to tell her story. And yes... as with the Grey Wolf, she often uses composits of stories and characters.

However, you'll be surprised to hear that I was disappointed with By The Mountain Bound, even though I initially thought it was would be helpful for those readers who needed a deeper understanding of the mythology used in this series. The book itself is well written and the story is good on its own, heavy on the mythology. My concern is in how By the Mountain Bound effects All the Windwracked Stars as a prequel.

All the Windwracked Stars has a mysterious atmosphere, full of sensuality and sexual tension between the female and two males, and a subtle homoerotic connection between the males, plus a darkness to the book that keeps the reader turning the pages and guessing what's coming next. By going back in time and writing a prequel, Bear not only gives her readers a deeper understanding of the mythology, but she explores the backstory of the three central characters from All the Windwracked Stars. By telling their backstory, part of that mystery is voided and the sexual tension is released because the reader now knows the dynamics that drive the relationships between the central characters.

When I began reading this series, my hope was that the characters, their story and world would be developed and explored in subsequent installments. I wondered how Bear would reveal the characters' pasts as she moved forward with their future. I hoped that the confusing parts of the first book would be addressed in the second installment. After reading the prequel, where she went back instead of forward with the story, I now wonder how it would feel to read this series in a different order -- By the Mountain Bound first and All the Windwracked Stars second. I'm sure it would be a totally different experience. I would certainly view the characters in a totally different light.

What do you think? How do you feel about prequels? Do you enjoy getting the backstory on already established characters in prequels? Or, do you feel authors often use prequels as an easy way to further develop their characters or world? Do you read prequels first when you begin reading an already established series? In this case, which book would you read first?