The Traitor Baru Cormorant, by Seth Dickinson
You know what I love? Reading books by authors who are smarter than me. And Seth Dickinson is way, way smarter than me. I loved this book, which is complex in a way very reminiscent of Herbert's masterpiece Dune, full of political and personal machinations that I could possibly have figured out on my own if I weren't plowing through the book at light speed (or perhaps if I had a degree in finance, or political science, or both).
Baru Cormorant is a happy child, beloved by her mother and fathers on the beautiful island of Taranoke. But the Masquerade, a powerful empire, is slowly gobbling up all the lands around the Ashen Sea. While the empire feels like Rome, their conquest is very un-Roman: quiet and subtle, insidious in the way that money makes things. But they also bring progress, hygiene and medicine and easily traveled roads. The benefits outweigh the cost until suddenly they don't and ta-da! You're colonized! One of their favored methods is finding particularly smart children and giving them the "opportunity" to be taught in their top-notch schools. As any student of history knows, education is the surest form of inculcation, and these children are quickly swallowed into the empire and sent off to distant lands as bureaucrats, furthering the Masquerade's goals. Baru is a savant and takes to school like a fish to water, but the Masquerade's unconditional hatred of same-sex love keeps her from being totally brainwashed. First one of her fathers goes missing, then she becomes aware of her own sexual leanings, and she resolves to save Taranoke from the Empire of the Mask the only way she can: from the inside.
The rest is juicy and deliciously tense. Baru is sent far away, to a hostile land that presents some very thorny challenges. I won't give away any more plot because it's best discovered for yourself. This is epic fantasy at its best, unencumbered by magic or dragons, merely a very different world in which to fall head first, and a magnificently complex character you're not sure whether or not to root for. There damn well better be more of these books, otherwise we'll have missed out on one of the most promising fantasy series to be published in years.
A great gift for your fantasy buff!
Baru Cormorant is a happy child, beloved by her mother and fathers on the beautiful island of Taranoke. But the Masquerade, a powerful empire, is slowly gobbling up all the lands around the Ashen Sea. While the empire feels like Rome, their conquest is very un-Roman: quiet and subtle, insidious in the way that money makes things. But they also bring progress, hygiene and medicine and easily traveled roads. The benefits outweigh the cost until suddenly they don't and ta-da! You're colonized! One of their favored methods is finding particularly smart children and giving them the "opportunity" to be taught in their top-notch schools. As any student of history knows, education is the surest form of inculcation, and these children are quickly swallowed into the empire and sent off to distant lands as bureaucrats, furthering the Masquerade's goals. Baru is a savant and takes to school like a fish to water, but the Masquerade's unconditional hatred of same-sex love keeps her from being totally brainwashed. First one of her fathers goes missing, then she becomes aware of her own sexual leanings, and she resolves to save Taranoke from the Empire of the Mask the only way she can: from the inside.
The rest is juicy and deliciously tense. Baru is sent far away, to a hostile land that presents some very thorny challenges. I won't give away any more plot because it's best discovered for yourself. This is epic fantasy at its best, unencumbered by magic or dragons, merely a very different world in which to fall head first, and a magnificently complex character you're not sure whether or not to root for. There damn well better be more of these books, otherwise we'll have missed out on one of the most promising fantasy series to be published in years.
A great gift for your fantasy buff!
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