2011 Books, Hugo nominee: Jemisin
Jul. 2nd, 2011 07:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
melita66I am trying to read most of the Hugo nominees for best novel before the July 31 deadline. I already read Cryoburn by Bujold when it was released and feel that it's a minor Vorkosigan novel. A friend has borrowed Blackout by Willis. I only rarely read horror, so I'm sorry, Mira Grant, I won't be reading Feed.
I did manage to finally finish N.K. Jemisin's The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. I started hearing about it early last year and ran across a copy with a 3 for 2 sticker on it at Waterstone's in London on a trip. Since then it's gone on other trips and is quite battered for one of my books! When I first started reading it, I managed a few chapters, but was distracted by the excerpt from Celine Kiernan's The Poison Throne. I ended up devouring the Moorehawke trilogy (I did have to wait for book 3).
I...liked the book. In the past the 3 main gods had a war. The [male] god of order, Itempas, killed the third [female] god (of balance?). The other [male] god, Nahadoth (god of chaos/change) went to war with him. Itempas ended up winning and forced Nahadoth and this godling followers to become slaves for a ruling family. As might be imagined, the ruling family now rules over the known world. The current ruler is dying and brings back the daughter of his exiled daughter and makes her a possible heir. Political and social shenanigans start. Yeine is an interesting character and the final solution at the end surprised me. I wasn't as entranced with Naha/Nahadoth as I think the author is, based on an interview with her. I did appreciate Jemisin not showing all the squicky things the ruling family were getting up to. She would instead mention it, but Yeine would avoid the situation. That's one case where I'm quite happy the author told rather than showed. Nice twists and turns and I'll be picking up the 2nd book, a loose sequel, this week at Mysterious Galaxy.
I may also pick up The Dervish House by Ian McDonald. I have an electronic copy as part of the Hugo voter packet, but don't want to be stuck at my computer or phone reading it. I've read his King of Morning, Queen of Day back in the mid-90s but nothing else. His recent books which are set in various developing nations in the nearish future have been very intriguing but I never picked any up. I do have a fascination with the middle east so I've been thinking about reading this book even before it was nominated for the Hugo and I decided to attend (and thus vote).
I did manage to finally finish N.K. Jemisin's The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms. I started hearing about it early last year and ran across a copy with a 3 for 2 sticker on it at Waterstone's in London on a trip. Since then it's gone on other trips and is quite battered for one of my books! When I first started reading it, I managed a few chapters, but was distracted by the excerpt from Celine Kiernan's The Poison Throne. I ended up devouring the Moorehawke trilogy (I did have to wait for book 3).
I...liked the book. In the past the 3 main gods had a war. The [male] god of order, Itempas, killed the third [female] god (of balance?). The other [male] god, Nahadoth (god of chaos/change) went to war with him. Itempas ended up winning and forced Nahadoth and this godling followers to become slaves for a ruling family. As might be imagined, the ruling family now rules over the known world. The current ruler is dying and brings back the daughter of his exiled daughter and makes her a possible heir. Political and social shenanigans start. Yeine is an interesting character and the final solution at the end surprised me. I wasn't as entranced with Naha/Nahadoth as I think the author is, based on an interview with her. I did appreciate Jemisin not showing all the squicky things the ruling family were getting up to. She would instead mention it, but Yeine would avoid the situation. That's one case where I'm quite happy the author told rather than showed. Nice twists and turns and I'll be picking up the 2nd book, a loose sequel, this week at Mysterious Galaxy.
I may also pick up The Dervish House by Ian McDonald. I have an electronic copy as part of the Hugo voter packet, but don't want to be stuck at my computer or phone reading it. I've read his King of Morning, Queen of Day back in the mid-90s but nothing else. His recent books which are set in various developing nations in the nearish future have been very intriguing but I never picked any up. I do have a fascination with the middle east so I've been thinking about reading this book even before it was nominated for the Hugo and I decided to attend (and thus vote).
