Review: “Sky Coyote” by Kage Baker

Thumbs up for Sky Coyote by Kage Baker. Science fiction.

In this, the second in the Company series, we’ve skipped a century since book #1 and are now in 1700 AD. Sky Coyote follows the immortal Joseph as he impersonates the titular diety in an effort to save the village of a Native American tribe before they are slaughtered by the Spaniards. He is much more lighthearted (or perhaps coldhearted?) than his protege Mendoza, heroine of the earlier In the Garden of Iden (my review), and his interactions with the Chumash are sometimes laugh-out-loud hilarious. I guess you’d have to be pretty lighthearted to live for 20,000 years with your sanity intact – with, as he points out, no counseling. (He suggests maintaining an active sex life.) There are also some philosophical issues concerning the Company’s history/future to add some intrigue beyond the romp of the main plot. There is definitely groundwork being laid here for a big reveal in a later book, and while ordinarily I hate series with long arcs, in this case each book is so much fun I can’t wait to see how it all turns out.

Now, these people were not idiots, and the first conclusion most of them came to was that I was a mortal man in some kind of coyote suit. Thank Dr. Zeus for high-quality grafts, implants, and appliance makeup. I think I’ll just skip over all the times I had to have my tail pulled to prove I was real, likewise the times people said things like I’ve Heard a Lot about You but I Never Actually Thought I’ve Meet You. Let’s cut to the big meeting in the council house that night.