Thumbs up for The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N. K. Jemisin. Fantasy.
This was a first novel? It’s better than most people’s tenth novels. Jemisin’s writing is not only assured, it’s sophisticated (more in the way of the organization of scenes rather than the prose itself – hard to describe briefly, so I won’t try). My only negative comment was that none of the characters really grabbed me, but despite that, I kept eagerly turning pages to find out what happened. The ending was both surprising and satisfying, and I definitely recommend this book to readers who like fantasy that takes place in a culture other than a Ye Olde England rip-off.
Only three [gods], I mean. Now there are dozens, perhaps hundreds. They breed like rabbits. But once there were only three, most powerful and glorious of all: the god of day, the god of night, and the goddess of twilight and dawn. Or light and darkness and the shades between. Or order, chaos, and balance. None of that is important because one of them died, the other might as well have, and the last is the only one who matters anymore.
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