Review: Queen's Shadow

It's been a good week for me; in addition to finishing The Island of the Sea Women, I also finished Star Wars: Queen's Shadow, which was my first Star Wars read in quite a while.

I wouldn't call this one of my favorite Star Wars novels, and I am overall more a fan of the so-called Legends era novels as a whole than the more recent novels post-Disney, but I did enjoy this one and find it to be worth a read.

Natalie Portman as Queen Amidala, copyright Disney

The novel focuses on two women; Padme Amidala and Sabe, one of her handmaidens. The book starts just as Padme's time as queen on Naboo is ending and she is figuring out what to do with her life, as are her loyal handmaidens, then follows her through her transition to the senate and learning to be her own person outside of the shadow of Naboo, so to speak.

Simultaneously, we learn more about her closest handmaiden, Sabe, who was often seen posing as the Queen in Episode I, the Phantom Menace. We learn more about her role as Padme's protector and friend, and see her grow into her own person - to some extent. I'd like to say she is a foil for Padme, but I am not sure she really is - they're both in the mold of strong, independent women. They're both figuring out who they are as they grow into adulthood and how they want to spend their lives.

Sabe posing as Queen Amidala,
copyright Disney

If you're wondering, no Anakin doesn't appear in this one, although there are some implications Padme thinks of him from time to time. There are also no Sith, although there are some veiled suggestions that they are operating in the background.

If you like the political aspect of Star Wars, or really want to know more about Amidala's development, you'll enjoy this one. Bail Organa also gets a decent amount of "screen time" in this one, and we visit Alderaan, which is fun. This also helps us understand why he was chosen as Leia's adoptive father after Padme's death, and I appreciated that fleshed out look at the lore.

We learn more about the operation of the Senate, and get a lot more about Naboo, which I also enjoyed. We learn a bit more about their culture and political system, and the cultures of the various worlds in Star Wars is a big draw of the novels for me, so this worked for me.

Padme as a senator,
copyright Disney

However, if you read the Star Wars novels for space battles and action, you might want to skip over this one - most of the action is of a political nature. This book was mostly intended as a character study than as an action novel, and I think it worked adequately at that. It also had some poignant moments, particularly during Padme's visit to Alderaan.

I think this really helped develop Padme as a character, gave some interesting insights into the Senate prior to Palpatine's rise as emperor, and delivered on the cultural and political aspects of the Star Wars universe. If those appeal to you, give it a go. If you're more about the action, the wars, and the battle scenes, it might not be your cup of tea.

Review: The Island of the Sea Women

Wow. The Island of the Sea Women by Lisa See really blew me away. I know it's still early yet, but I think it's safe to say this will be on my list of favorite books read in 2019 at the end of the year.

I had read a lot of positive reviews of Lisa See's books, but this is the first one I've actually read - and it will not be the last. This novel follows a diving collective of haenyeo, or sea women, on the Korean Island of Jeju during Japanese colonialism, World War II and the Korean War. Despite having a background in political science, this is an era/place I did not know much about, and it was fascinating. However, because I didn't know what was coming this book packed a real wallop; this is not a light, happy read, so fair warning.

While I loved that the book opened my eyes to some parts of history I somehow knew nothing about, I also just really loved the culture explored in this book. It was, as See describes it, a "matrifocal" culture, where the men often cared for the children and did the cooking and much of the other household chores, while the women worked outside the home and did most of the providing.

It was really fascinating to see gender stereotypes turned on their head, and to see her depiction of how these women saw themselves and their families. It was also really interesting and enlightening to see how they reacted to and saw the colonizers - first the Japanese, then the US. These women were truly bad ass, and I was in awe of what they did in their daily lives, much less in the turbulent times described in the book.

Modern day haenyeo, 2012. By 김형찬

See's website also includes some great material on her research into the haenyeo, particularly here and here. She also includes a link out to a 1975 documentary on the divers, here. She gives a great head start for anyone who wants to do a little more reading into the topic. 

Overall, this book ticked all the boxes for me. Fascinating era in history, check. Fascinating culture, check. Interesting characters, check. Tackles difficult topics in a sensitive way, check. Good drama and suspense, check. Highly recommend. 

Review: The Night Circus

I have been privileged to read two books in the last year that really pushed beyond what I am used to reading and changed the wake I look at reading and writing. The first was the Fifth Season by NK Jemisin (which I can't recommend highly enough for anyone looking for something different), and the second was The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, which I just finished.

I really wasn't sure about this one when I picked it up; I found it hard to imagine how an author could keep my attention through an entire book that took place almost entirely in a circus. It just didn't sound like that interesting of a premise to me. But I had heard a lot of really good things, so I did want to read it eventually.... and then my book club chose it. (Incidentally, the book club was what got me to actually pick up the Fifth Season as well!) I was definitely wrong that it wouldn't keep my attention.

What was so unique, at least to my reading experience, was the depth of atmosphere Morgenstern created here. The characters were great, and the basic premise was interesting, and the plot was unique enough to be interesting as well, but that atmosphere is really where she excelled. She managed to really evoke the feel of the circus, which is no ordinary circus. She manages to make you really feel the mysterious, magical, other worldly feel of the circus and the sense of wonder, even though you as the reader know the "secret" behind it, which seems like it must have been very hard to do, but Morgenstern makes it feel effortless.

If there is anything negative to say about this book, I would say the ending wrapped up a little too pat and neat for the overall feel of the story; I would have expected a less perfect, pretty ending given the sort of gothic, slightly horror like feel of the book itself. I would normally say it was a bit predictable, but at the same time it wasn't because the feel of the book made me expect an unpredictable ending. It was unpredictable in its predictableness, if that is possible.

But this is a very minor thing in comparison to the other strengths of the book. The atmosphere created by the author and the circus is incredible, and its worth reading for that alone. Every time I picked this book up, the reading time just flowed by. I felt as if I could have read this book in one sitting, had I wanted to, which is rare for me. It's an effortless read that creates a remarkably immersive experience. Highly recommend.

Stay tuned/subscribe for upcoming reviews of:

• The Firebrand, Marion Zimmer Bradley 
• The Island of Sea Women, Lisa See
• Star Wars: Queen's Shadow, EK Johnston 
• The Romanovs: 1613-1918, Simon Sebag Montefiore

Review: The Sultan's Harem by Colin Falconer

I will admit, my expectations were low going into The Sultan's Harem. I was afraid it would heavy on the romance and the sex, at the cost of the story itself. As I've discussed before, I don't mind romance and sex in a book, but I get bored when they are the focus. But I was really interested in Hurrem after seeing her mentioned in Pirate Women, so I bit the bullet and gave it a try.

While it didn't blow my socks off, and I am not sure I'd re-read it, I am not sorry I read it, and it was better than I was expecting. While there was certainly sex, it was relatively minimal for taking place in a Harem and it generally served a purpose in the story. And the romance was surprisingly minimal as well, given that this was the story of a Sultan who rejected tradition and turned his world upside down to marry a woman.

La Sultana Rossa,
or Portrait of a Woman,
circa 1550 by Titian

Hurrem was an interesting character. I have a biography of her set aside to read soon, and I am curious how much the biography meshes with the Hurrem portrayed in this book. Without giving too much away, I'll say she is not portrayed so much as a woman in love whose love conquered all, but more of a woman who schemed to carve what control she could out of a world where women had no rights. It delivered on my interest in political intrigue, I will say that.

The characters are fairly well developed and interesting, and the dynamics between them all keep the reader engaged. I am not sure anything in the plot was particularly surprising, but it kept me reading. It certainly paints a picture of what life must have been like for women of that era. It definitely whet my appetite for a biography of Hurrem. It also piqued my interest in Suleiman himself, even though I went into this book far more interested in Hurrem.

Overall, I felt it was a solid 3 star read. Worth reading if you are interested in the time period or one of the historical figures featured in the book, but if that doesn't interest you, you can probably skip it.

Series Review: Conqueror Series by Conn Iggulden

It would be hard for me to overstate how much I enjoyed the Conqueror series by Conn Iggulden. It kept me engaged, launched Iggulden right to the top of my favorite authors, and prompted me to add several non-fiction books on the Khans to my "to read" list.

The five book series starts with Genghis: Birth of an Empire. This book chronicles the childhood of Genghis Khan, born Temujin, who starts as a young boy with his family, expelled from his tribe after the death of his father and rises to be great khan, or gur-khan, of the Mongol nation.

Genghis Khan as portrayed in a
14th-century Yuan era album.
National Palace Museum,
Taipei, Taiwan.

Genghi's story continues in Lords of the Bow, which follows his conquest of the Chin and Yenking. I had a little trouble with the jump between the first two books; I felt the transition from young Genghis to adult Genghis wasn't entirely smooth. However, this was a minor detail for me and I lost that feeling as the second book progressed. The sheer scope of what Genghis and his tumans accomplished is truly mind boggling, and Iggulden captures that feeling quite well.

The third book, Bones of the Hills, continues Genghis's story and really features some interesting character development as we see Genghis struggled to make the transition from warload to ruler of a nation. He struggles with the lifestyle he has known and making the transition to ruler of cities, a life that doesn't entirely suit him. The transition in Genghi's story from the second book to this one was smoother for me, and really made for an interesting character study.

Mural of seige warfare, Genghis Khan Exhibit, 

Tech Museum San Jose, 2010, photo by
Bill Taroli

The fourth book, Empire of Silver, follows the transition of the title of great khan following Genghis's death and the struggles of the next ruler. I won't say who the next ruler is to avoid spoilers, but again Iggulden manages to create an interesting character study and to create a really interesting main character from a historical figure. I'll also add that I rarely cry when I read, but there was a scene in this one that got me, so kudos to Iggulden for that. If you read it, I think you'll spot it when you get there!

Map of the Mongol nation in 1259, from Columbia

The series wraps up with Conqueror, which covers the next few khans after the death of the second khan, including a brutal civil war. Overall, the series really creates a multi-dimensioned look at the Mongol horde, showing them as more than killing machines (although they are that). His characters are multi-faceted and interesting, and you find yourself rooting for them.

In addition to the pure interest of the story, the Mongols offer a great glimpse at a variety of areas and the world and a variety of cultures, which I really enjoyed. As we can see in the above map, the Mongols controlled a huge chunk of the world from Korea and China to Russia and Iran at their height. Columbia University has a useful page showing their spread, from which that map is borrowed, here.

Masyaf Castle, an assassin stronghold
in modern day Syria. Photo by Mewes.

One of the cultures discussed in a few of the books that particularly caught my interest was that of the Isma'ili assassins of Alamut - I am definitely going to be doing some more reading about them. The assassins are a thorn in the side for the Mongols for a while; I won't spoil how it ends, other than to say I enjoyed the whole story arc.

Tului With Queen Sorgaqtani by Rashid al-Din

The series also covers a regency by a woman, which was really revolutionary for the time and for that area of the world, which was interesting; I'd love to have seen a book focused around just that! Iggulden touches on that himself in the historical note to the last book, stating Sorghaghtani could easily have a book to herself. (That's a book I would love to read!) Stephanie Thornton has a book that discusses Sorghaghtani, among others, called The Tiger Queens that I also recommend wholeheartedly.

Overall, this series had so much going for it. The books were fascinating and fun to read, and I tore through each of them. The historical notes at the end helped shed light on the historical accuracy (which seems to be high) and just wet my appetite for more about the Mongols.

Review: Drawdown

I probably never would have picked up Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reduce Global Warming by myself; it was a book club read for my job. The book, edited by Paul Hawken, is a list of the top 100 solutions for not only halting but reversing climate change. The book also has a fantastic webpage for anyone who wants to dig deeper and see more detail on the research behind the book.

And research is the right word it. The book was compiled by a whole host of experts in their fields, listed here. One of the things I really enjoyed was the variety of solutions. Some were expected, such as energy solutions like wind turbines. Others weren't nearly as obviously related to climate change, such as educating women and girls, which clocks in at number 6.

Some of the solutions were just plain interesting, particularly the last set of "coming attractions" discussed at the end. My favorites included the idea of repopulating the mammoth steppe, which discussed the impact of our ancestors hunting larger species to death thousands of years ago on global climate. Enhanced weathering of minerals was also really interesting to me as it suggested increasing erosion.

The top 25 solutions discussed in Drawdown, from Drawdown.org

I also found the coming attractions related to oceans particularly interesting, including ocean farming, marine permaculture, and "a cow walks onto a beach," which discusses the potential for using seaweed and kelp as feed stock for cattle.

The other thing I feel is worth mentioning is that the book is pragmatic; the editor and authors don't shy away from offering imperfect solutions (what they call "regret" solutions), and they don't sugar coat the downsides of the proposed solutions. They weigh the pros and cons in an honest way, which is refreshing and useful, and increases the impact of their message.

Overall interesting, and not entirely what I expected. Worth reading for anyone interested in this area or interested in knowing what they (and their communities) can do to help positively impact the climate.

Review: City of Lies

I just finished City of Lies, and I am probably going to gush about this one a little. I believe this was Sam Hawke's first novel, but you can she put a lot of effort and thought into it. The world building is good, the plot is decent, but the characters are where she really nails it. Incidentally, it also starts out with the best first line I have ever read in a novel:

"I was seven years old the first time my uncle poisoned me." 

Her book has an interesting world with a sort of Middle Eastern-meets-Native American feel to it. The religion is interesting and developed, with room for more development in future books. The magical system is only roughly sketched, which again leaves room for more later, but which also makes the magic not the focus. This is one of those books that is fantasy more because it isn't set in our world than anything, with just some brushes of magic, building toward a more fantastic scene at the end.

The plot at times felt slightly cliched or predictable, with some interesting moments, but kept me engaged and interested. I think the plot felt like a first novel (while the world building and character development felt more fine tuned), but you can easily see how she will grow as she writes more. In some ways, some of the side-plots were more interesting/surprising to me than the main plot.

But her characters are where Sam really hit it out of the park for me. First, she manages to have no truly "main character," yet still have you interested and care about the characters. Second, she includes a character with an anxiety disorder and a character with a chronic illness, yet their illnesses don't define them. This alone made the book worth reading to me. The illnesses are part of them, but are not the focus. They're part of character development, not plot. It's rare to see a character with these sorts of illness where the illnesses are not the focus, they're just a part of the character development.

As someone who suffers from anxiety and monthly migraines, this was truly amazing to me. I felt she handled the whole thing skillfully and in a believable way that allowed me to identify with characters in a way I am not sure I have in any other book I have read.

It turns out Sam and I are members of the same fantasy readers Facebook group, and in a comment on a thread I got to tell her this. She replied "chronic and mental illness are so underrepresented in fantasy and I just wanted a story where the leads had these issues but it wasn't the point of the story. It's just....them." To me, she really pulled that off. This was exemplified in a particular passage I highlighted on my kindle:

For most of my life I'd had to hear the same sentiment - sometimes asked in confidence, sometimes with brashness or suspicion or disbelief. They couldn't see what was wrong so they assumed it was not real. "She's been doing too much," I snapped. "She is always unwell, she's just very good at hiding it." 

This book should be on any must-read fantasy list, and any must-read list for someone who suffers from chronic illness and doesn't seem themselves well represented in literature.