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Shrubbery with violence
Sep. 3rd, 2015 09:42 pmStranger (The Change, #1), Rachel Manija Brown & Sherwood Smith.
The Mirror Empire (Worldbreaker Saga, #1), Kameron Hurley.
Both first volumes of trilogies, both featuring bloodthirsty vegetation, and both on reserve, so they're now back at the library and I am writing this from memory. I intend to read the second books in both series, and then that's probably the last thing they have in common.
Stranger is YA, post-apocalyptic California (Los Angeles specifically from the blurb, but I was unclear exactly where the story was taking place), multiple povs, nifty worldbuilding and diverse cast. Ross Juarez, a loner and prospector who's found a book that the villain wants very much, seeks temporary refuge in Las Anclas, and ends up – somewhat reluctantly - becoming part of the community. Other events and relationships play out among the locals, triggered by his presence, and tensions within and without the community build to a climax.
( No real spoilers. )
The Mirror Empire is bloody epic fantasy, with a very appealing hook; magic workers have powers dependent on which satellite is ascendant in the sky, normally predictable enough; but, rarely, the dark satellite Oma rises and those who have an affinity for it can open gates between worlds. Obviously this story is not set during one of the quiet predictable periods. The multiple worlds is another thing uncommon in epic fantasy, and Hurley does some neat things with the doppelgangers it produces.
( No major spoilers. )
The Mirror Empire (Worldbreaker Saga, #1), Kameron Hurley.
Both first volumes of trilogies, both featuring bloodthirsty vegetation, and both on reserve, so they're now back at the library and I am writing this from memory. I intend to read the second books in both series, and then that's probably the last thing they have in common.
Stranger is YA, post-apocalyptic California (Los Angeles specifically from the blurb, but I was unclear exactly where the story was taking place), multiple povs, nifty worldbuilding and diverse cast. Ross Juarez, a loner and prospector who's found a book that the villain wants very much, seeks temporary refuge in Las Anclas, and ends up – somewhat reluctantly - becoming part of the community. Other events and relationships play out among the locals, triggered by his presence, and tensions within and without the community build to a climax.
( No real spoilers. )
The Mirror Empire is bloody epic fantasy, with a very appealing hook; magic workers have powers dependent on which satellite is ascendant in the sky, normally predictable enough; but, rarely, the dark satellite Oma rises and those who have an affinity for it can open gates between worlds. Obviously this story is not set during one of the quiet predictable periods. The multiple worlds is another thing uncommon in epic fantasy, and Hurley does some neat things with the doppelgangers it produces.
( No major spoilers. )
