My life in books

One of my most distracting first-world problems is the multiple consequences of there being too many books and not enough time. With so many interesting books clamouring for my attention, I often find that I’ve read, and deeply enjoyed, the first one or two books in a series, but then gotten distracted by other equally interesting and enjoyable books, and years go by before I get around to the next in the series.

Some two or three years ago, I read Intisar Khanani’s secondary world fantasy novella Sunbolt, about a young thief and potential mage named Hitomi. And now I am finally reading Memories of Ash, the novel that continues Hitomi’s story.

It has been a year since the events related in Sunbolt. Hitomi, has survived the desperate awakening of her magic in the casting of the sunbolt that killed the monster threatening her and the breather Valerius - a kind of vampire who feeds, not on blood but on the breath and life force of others, but at great cost. Near death, and with much of her memory burned away, Valerius brought her to the healing mage Stormwind and persuaded her to help Hitomi.

Now, she is healthy, and has regained some of her memories, though it is likely that she will never completely regain her past. More, Stormwind has been teaching her magic, for her own protection and that of those around her, even though she is a rogue mage, one who was never tested and enrolled in the mage academy.

But her old enemy, the dark mage Blackflame, is about to cause more devastation for Hitomi. He holds an old grudge against Stormwind, and has persuaded the Mage Council that she is guilty of crimes against the Council. At Stormwind’s insistence, Hitomi hides her true abilities from the mage sent to bring Stormwind to trial, but once she discovers that Stormwind has been betrayed and will be found guilty, Hitomi sets out to rescue her teacher and mentor.

Hitomi dares much, and risks everything, to save Stormwind in this well-crafted and thoroughly engrossing tale of adventure and intrigue. I am just as enchanted by the lead character as I was in the first installment of these chronicles, and Khanai’s worldbuilding is a delight. And the story is only beginning, with so many different paths and possibilities for Hitomi’s future. I very much hope that Khanani will soon be ready to give us part three of the Sunbolt Chronicles.

I often peruse websites that promote diversity in sff writing (or YA writing, because to be honest, some of the best books coming out in the sff field today are being marketed as YA), looking for authors and books that may not be on my radar, but are at the very least being mentioned in diversity writing circles.

One such author is Intisar Khanani, who has written one novel, Thorn, and a novella, Sunbolt, which is the first in a series. (You can find out more about Khanani at her website http://booksbyintisar.com)

Thorn is at its heart a retelling of the Grimm fairytale The Goose Girl, and a very interesting one at that. All of the traditional elements of the tale are present, but woven into a larger (and darker) tale of revenge taken too far and justice denied. The central character, Princess Alyrra, is complex and well-delineated, as are the characters of her faithless and ambitious companion Valka and the mysterious sorceress known as The Lady who is the prime mover behind the magical exchange that places Alyrra in Valka's body and vice versa. The key male characters taken from the fairy tale - the king and the prince - are less well-developed, but I found that this does not detract significantly from the story, which is first and foremost about Alyrra's internal journey from reluctant princess (and abuse survivor) to confident and just ruler.

Khanani is at her best in the portions of the book in which goose girl Alyrra, now known as Thorn, interacts with the people of the city - other servants, street urchins and thieves. Through the lives of these characters, Khanani develops the themes of justice denied and justice fulfilled that are central to the novel. Alyrra, who has shown herself from the beginning to be a princess in touch with the common people and sensitive to the need for justice that serves both commoner and noble, finds herself faced with the tragic consequences of capricious injustice, justice denied, justice misplaced, and justice tainted by revenge, learning through these experiences what responsible and even-handed justice would look like.

It is this understanding, painfully gained, that enables her to counter the murderous vengeance of The Lady, and attain a position in which she may be able to bring true justice to her people. And find happiness with her prince.

Khanani had originally planned for this to be the first of three volumes about Thorn, but has instead found herself working on other projects. I hope she returns eventually to this story, because Thorn/Alyrra is a fascinating character and I'd like to see her again.