The Hungry Gods (Adrian Tchaikovsky)

The Hungry Gods
(Terrible Worlds: Innovations)
Adrian Tchaikovsky
Solaris
Fiction, Sci-Fi
**** (Good)

DESCRIPTION: In the toxic ruins of civilization's collapse, there is little room for compassion or the weak... which is why Amri is so desperate to find fuel to bring back to the Rabbit tribe. Without close kin, she knows she is one bad harvest away from being sacrificed for the survival of the others. She pushes further than she knows she should, into the city ruins and into the territory of the bloodthirsty Seagulls - but instead of death at the hands of their champion Beaker, four great smoking fires roar out of the skies.
It is the end of the world as Amri knew it, and the beginning of one she and the other clans might not survive.
Those fireballs carry "Gods" from the long-lost golden age of humanity, returned from centuries in their distant space utopia. They intend to "fix" Earth... but each of the four have their own ideas how to go about doing that, mutually exclusive goals that only share a complete disregard for whatever life still clings to the worn-out planet. As Amri falls into the company of one of these new warring Gods, an artificially enhanced man known as Guy Vestin, she will need all her wits about her to navigate the changes ahead - but what chance does the littlest, weakest Rabbit stand when faced with the might of the world-changing Gods themselves?

REVIEW: The Hungry Gods takes the old-school trope of the technologically superior spaceman arriving on a primitive (and/or postapocalyptic) world and single-handedly saving it from itself by (re)starting civilization and becoming a veritable god among the worshipful, superstitious "savages" (a trope with clear roots in cringeworthy racism and colonialism), and knocks it firmly on its ear by the end. Told from the perspective of Amri, one of the first witnesses of the "Gods" descending - and one of the first survivors of their wrath, when one of the Gods lands right in the Rabbit village and wipes out her kin with the bioengineered plants and fungi that are meant to turn Earth into his vision of a new Eden - it clearly establishes the notion that, even if humans no longer can sustain civilization in the ruins left by their ancestors, they are not entirely stupid or mindless or hobbled by superstition. Amri knows full well that the ruins of the city were created by people, and also knows that the outcast "God" Guy is just a man, if a man with technology long lost to this reduced, exhausted Earth. Still, even if he is "just" a man, he is a force that is remaking her world, and she quickly realizes that the only way she is going to survive is by sticking by him and learning as much as she can about him and his one-time colleagues who are now his rivals. The other three "Gods" each have monstrous ideas about how to best re-imagine the ruins of Earth, and Guy - whose own vision and tech was sabotaged on the way - sets himself up in opposition to them... but what is his ultimate goal, and is it any less devastating to the people remaining on Earth? Do he and the others even see Amri and her kind as human, or just more obstacles or tools or biomass to be fed into their machinations? Like today's billionaires, Guy insists he is the only one who can lead the people out of "savagery" into a bright new age, but Amri can see how little he truly thinks of humans other than himself. There are a few times where the story hits its themes a little hard on the head, but overall it moves well and makes its points clearly, with a truly satisfying conclusion. One thing that becomes abundantly clear throughout is that the greatest threat to the world's future is the people who insist that they, and they alone, can lead us there.

You Might Also Enjoy:
Emergency Skin (N. K. Jemisin) - My Review
Dreamsnake (Vonda N. McIntyre) - My Review
Elder Race (Adrian Tchaikovsky) - My Review

Serendipity (Marissa Meyer, editor)

Serendipity: Ten Romantic Tropes, Transformed
Marissa Meyer, editor
Feiwel and Friends
Fiction, YA Anthology/Romance
**** (Good)

DESCRIPTION: The matchmaker who doesn't expect to find their own match... the fake relationship that reveals real feelings... the vacation mix-up leaving two people sharing a room... the grand romantic gesture... In this anthology, several notable authors explore these and other tropes of young adult romance tales.

REVIEW: For all that I don't generally read many romances (especially romances that aren't crossovers with some other genre, such as sci-fi or fantasy), I'm familiar enough with the tropes and with rom-coms (also not generally my go-to entertainment, but ubiquitous enough I've absorbed the gist through cultural osmosis) to see what these stories were trying to do and where they were working to subvert them, even though some of the subversions didn't feel as subversive as I'd expected given the title and it's promise of tropes "transformed". As one might expect, I enjoyed some tales more than others, though none were outright clunkers. The stories present a spectrum of personalities and attractions, with some cultural variations as well. All things considered, it made a nice break to change up my reading selections. As with all anthologies, I rated on a cumulative score.

You Might Also Enjoy:
The Fix Up (Tawna Fenske) - My Review
The Love Con (Serissia Glass) - My Review
When Lightning Strikes (Brenda Novak) - My Review

Daindreth's Assassin (Elisabeth Wheatley)

Daindreth's Assassin
The Daindreth's Assassin series, Book 1
Elisabeth Wheatley
Book Goblin Books
Fiction, Fantasy
****+ (Good/Great)

DESCRIPTION: Amira was born with the gifts of her sorceress mother and the birthright of her royal father... until King Hyle bent the knee to an invading emperor and the sorceresses rebelled, fleeing at last beyond a deadly forest. Those of magical blood left behind were bound by cursed oaths into slavery, granted power only so long as they obey their master, and despite her noble birth young Amira was no different. Now, instead of being the princess in waiting, she is a bastard child of an annulled union and her father's private assassin. Her latest target, though, surprises even her, for the king has sent her against Archduke Daindreth, son of the empress and the intended groom of Amira's half-sister Fonra. It seems like just another curse-compelled murder - until Amira arrives at Daindreth's tent to find a half-demonic monster in man form, which she barely escapes.
Nobody is more surprised than Amira to learn that the monster was, in fact, Daindreth himself, victim of a terrible curse... a curse that, somehow, Amira's magic temporarily counteracted in their brief, desperate struggle. Then the archduke springs the greatest surprise: a last-minute substitution of betrothal, taking not Fonra as originally planned but Amira.
Compelled by her curse of obedience, the assassin is pulled into the vipers' nest of the imperial palace, brimming with impenetrable politics and scheming courtiers and vicious rumors swirling about long before she sets foot in the royal palace. Worse, Amira begins developing feelings toward her one-time target, even as she uncovers the terrible truth of Daindreth's curse - and the doom awaiting him and the whole of the empire if that curse isn't broken soon.

REVIEW: I've watched and enjoyed the author's videos on Instagram and YouTube for a while, and finally got around to trying one of her audiobooks via Libby and my local library; I figured if anything was going to break my recent middling-rated streak, it would be Wheatley's works. Did it? As one might surmise by the near-top-notch rating, yes, yes it did.
The tale kicks off fairly fast, as Amira is about to set out on her latest hated mission, establishing the world and characters and the generalities of magic and curses. She is not a flawless assassin or person, and - like everyone, even her enemies - has more to her than is initially apparent, adding some depth and room for growth. Even bound by her curse of obedience, she struggles against her bonds, finding ways to twist and subvert commands as best she can, even if she can't keep the blood from her hands; to directly defy an order is to risk death by magical strangulation. Killing Daindreth would at least free her innocent half-sister from a future as a powerless political pawn (at least for a while), so Amira isn't entirely opposed to her latest task... until she confronts the evil entity and becomes tangled up in things far more deadly and dangerous than she understands. But Daindreth the man, when not consumed by a flare-up of his curse, is not at all the odious beast she was expecting, for all that she's too experienced (and jaded) to take him at face value. It's the first of many surprises she encounters as her unexpected and unwanted betrothal whisks her away from her father's keep, off to the distant palace of the empress and a future that might be much shorter than anticipated if Daindreth's many enemies have their way.
Amira may struggle, but always does her best to confront each new challenge, never dithering or freezing (unlike some main characters I've encountered lately... not namin' names, here...). Along the way, romantic feelings start to develop - unwelcome, given Amira's situation and less-than-idealistic notion of humanity in general, one more complication and potential liability in a situation that already threatens to overwhelm her. The tale moves fairly well, and avoids the low-hanging fruit and obvious for the most part. The main drawback is that it ends at a pause in the larger arc, leaving much still in the air; I'm not sure if my library even has the next installment on Libby, let alone when I can get to it, given the hold lists and other life complications. Dang it...
As a closing note, the author narrated the audiobook herself. She did an excellent job (again, unlike some narrators I've encountered... again, not namin' names...).

You Might Also Enjoy:
Graceling (Kristen Cashore) - My Review
Raybearer (Jordan Ifueko) - My Review
The Element of Fire (Martha Wells) - My Review

Servant Mage (Kate Elliott)

Servant Mage
Kate Elliott
Tordotcom
Fiction, Fantasy
***+ (Okay/Good)

DESCRIPTION: When the old kings reigned, mages of the five elements - fire, air, water, earth, and aether - were highly trained and celebrated members of society. But ever since the Great Liberation that overthrew the decadent and corrupt royal houses, magic is tightly controlled, with practitioners only allowed to learn a small fragment of their potential skills (that which serves the new government best), taught to fear the corrupting "demon" spirit inside them that grants them their powers. For all the August Protector's talk of creating a more equal and just society based on Virtues instead of bloodlines, many in this new, reformed world find themselves no better off than before... some, such as the mages, significantly worse.
Fellian has no love for the August Protector and the Liberationists, not since her mother and one of her fathers were publicly executed for "seditionist" activities. She was only spared because an oracle detected the fire magic within her. Now, she works off her indenture scrubbing latrines at a city inn by day and crafting magical Lamps by night. On the side, she still secretly teaches letters to those who wish to learn, a direct defiance of Liberationist decrees that restrict education to the most virtuous patriots. She's counting the moments until she earns her freedom to return the distant hills of her home. Then an inn guest makes her an offer she doesn't dare refuse, drawing her into the company of Monarchist rebels who seek to topple the August Protector and restore noble rule. Is this her chance at a future she hardly dared dream of, or is she walking deeper into danger?

REVIEW: There are authors I have an ambivalent relationship with as a reader, ones whose works I feel I should like, that I want to like, but for some reason I tend to feel let down by their stories more often than not, in some way I can't always articulate (which probably explains why I'm not exactly the world's best book reviewer, if I can't isolate and express my thoughts better). Kate Elliott is not at the top of that list by any means, but novellas like this remind me why she's on it, as for all the potential in the story premise and world going into it, I left it feeling subtly unsatisfied.
Things open on reasonably decent footing, as Fellian's situation and world are established in quick strokes that manage to avoid dull, intrusive infodumping... at least, at first. As the story progresses, though, there are more and more moments where she pauses to observe and think worldbuilding information for the benefit of the reader; her go-to reaction in stress tends to be lead boots. (I lost track of how often her feet or legs were described as "leaden", mostly so Fellian could stand uselessly and look around and describe things - even in the middle of high-stakes action - so the reader peering at the tale through her eyes got a full tour.) Things do at least happen, as Fellian is whisked from the inn halfway across the nation in the company of mages recruited to the Monarchist cause. She's all for undermining the August Protector and freeing herself from bondage, though at times Fellian parrots party-line ideas a little too readily for someone raised in the hinterlands by parents who were not loyal to the uprising, and having been partially educated in magic by someone outside the Liberationists and their strict, stifling, shame-infused system. The closer she and her companions get to their end goal, the more danger she's in - and the more she comes to question the ultimate motives and goal of their leader. Ultimately, she must decide where she means to stand in a politically fractured world, and what future she wants to work toward, though by then my interest was somewhat dimmed by distancing infodumps and tangled histories and relationships, and a general failure to really bond with Fellian enough to care where she ended up. I also found myself subtly irked that the cover misled me into thinking dragons would be more involved in the tale. (Aside from a somewhat-symbolic minor character/encounter, dragons are notably absent. Do not promise me dragons that you do not intend to deliver, authors and/or cover artists...) And the tail end drags out a little long, in a way that makes me wonder - along with all the worldbuilding crammed into a novella's page count - if Servant Mage was originally intended to be a full length novel or even a series but never quite fledged.
As I say too often, I've read worse. There are some interesting ideas, and when Fellian's not mired in leaden boots things happen. I just never felt drawn in like I'd hoped to be.

You Might Also Enjoy:
Kindling (Traci Chee) - My Review
The Elvenbane (Mercedes Lackey and Andre Norton) - My Review
The Jewel and Her Lapidary (Fran Wilde) - My Review

Lockjaw (Matteo L. Cerilli)

Lockjaw
Matteo L. Cerilli
Tundra Books
Fiction, YA Horror
*** (Okay)

DESCRIPTION: Bridlington is a quintessential small American town, the sort of place where goodly folks mind their own business and stay out of trouble... and where, too often, the cries of the outcasts are ignored in the name of keeping the peace. When young Chuck Warren, a bullied eleven-year-old boy, died in the old mill one night, Paz Espino saw what happened, but the grown-ups don't believe that she saw a monster in the shadows below the hole in the floor. She's branded a problem child, a troublemaker, and only her three best friends stick by her as the rest of the town turns their backs. But Paz is like a bulldog with jaws locked on a bone; she's determined to find and kill the beast, and if nobody else will help her, then she'll do it herself or die trying.
The young stranger blows into town with a cruddy old car, a mutt named Bird, an envelope of money, and no name. He's looking for a fresh start far away from home, and Bridlington seems as good a place as any. But from the moment he pulls up at the gas station, he gets a sense of hidden secrets and lurking danger, a sense that grows stronger after a strange encounter with a group of kids outside the convenience store. Taking the name Asher, he starts trying to build a new life, making friends with the right sort of people, but Bridlington is a town haunted by dark secrets - and the bill for looking the other way is about to come due...

REVIEW: In the vein of Stephen King's It where children are left to deal with the problems intentionally ignored (and sometimes openly exacerbated) by adults and generations past, Lockjaw exposes the "monster" underlying the veneer of civility, in towns small and large. Though at times effectively creepy and even surreal, sometimes it gets too clever for its own good with confusing timeline shifts and some exceptionally heavy-handed messages about silence in the face of injustices by the end.
Starting with young Chuck's doomed efforts to connect with a new group of outcast friends after being bullied on the playground, the tale goes to "Asher" and his seemingly carefree arrival in Bridlington with nothing but a dog for company. This is clearly a young man with secrets in his past, and it's just as clear that this small town has secrets of its own, even as he tries to ignore the pricklings of premonition that hang over his first introduction to the group of outcast kids. Other characters who become entangled in things include Paz's older sister, who has done everything in her power to distance herself from her peculiar sibling, and Beetle, a trans teen who is counting the seconds until he can escape to college and leave the whispers and cruelties of small town life in the dust. Creepy overtones and tension drift through the tale in a thickening miasma that sometimes obscures the plot itself, not helped by how the story jumps back and forth in time at random (it's possible this is an issue with the audiobook, that there is some hint in the printed version, because otherwise it comes across as an author trying to wow the reader with a two-by-four surprise that felt more like jerking me around for half the book), and eventually the promised supernatural/gory elements come to the forefront as the metaphoric chickens of Bridlington come home to roost. Asher, set up to be the main character, became my least favorite of the bunch, far too cagey with his past and shallow in his motives (the reason is later revealed, but by then my general dislike of his apparent shallow pursuit of popularity - even in the face of glaring red flags -had set in, plus even after the reveal he remained overreactive to an almost cartoonish degree when confronted with conflict, to the point of literally jumping around and denting his car door and needing to be socked in the face by another character to calm down). The latter parts feel drawn out to grind in the main lesson about the toxicity of brushing off bullying and abuse and intolerance as "not my business" and masking it as small-down politeness, and how the interest on those injustices compounds exponentially. The heavy hand of the Message smashes the reader in the face repeatedly by the end, to an almost numbing effect. This alone dropped it down to nearly three stars; the final half-star loss concerns the unnecessary cruelty of the fate of Bird the dog.

You Might Also Enjoy:
Pines (Blake Crouch) - My Review
It (Stephen King) - My Review
Three Quarters Dead (Richard Peck) - My Review