Jemisin, N.K. - The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms

[oyceter]

(Book 1 of the Inheritance trilogy)

Disclosure: I know and like the author and got the ARC from her. Book coming out in Feb. 2010.

In the world of the hundred thousand kingdoms, there were once three gods. But things changed, and now one rules while the Arameri, a mortal family, enslaves four other gods. Yeine's mother was the heir to the Arameri before she married Yeine's father, who was seen as a barbarian from Darr. Now, Yeine has been called back to the palace Sky, and she's immediately thrust into family politics.

I love so much about this book. First, I have a huge love of court politics and intrigue, and this book is chock full of secrets and secret histories and people never quite saying what they mean and nothing looking like what it is. Yeine is by nature straightforward and blunt, but she must adapt to Sky, which differentiated this book from others with protagonists who aren't good at intrigue. Too often I feel those other books minimize the dangers of a slip up and focus instead on what a breath of fresh air the protagonist is, or they have the protagonist know nothing of intrigue and yet come out on top anyway. Yeine, on the other hand, makes deadly mistakes, and everything has a cost.

I also love the world of the book, from the palace of Sky, balanced above the city of Sky on a thread-like column, to the legends of the three gods to the little we see of Darr's matriarchal culture. I love the bound gods and the way Jemisin makes them all frightening and awe-inspiring and yet vulnerable and hurt at the same time. I read a review somewhere and of course promptly forgot who wrote it, but the person talked about the interesting complications of slavery and power with the gods, who are enslaved and yet have enormous amounts of power, and with the Arameri family, some of whom are servants and yet still have the power to command enslaved gods.

It's a fantasy book that feels new and different, and considering that I've mostly stopped reading non-YA fantasy because I've been so bored with it, that in and of itself made me so happy. And in addition to all that, the prose is lovely. I adore the narrative voice, which occasionally rambles and talks to itself and corrects itself.

Overall, highly recommended. As I've said, I haven't been reading fantasy that isn't YA for a long time because I've felt it had very little left to offer me. I'm glad I was wrong, and this book has me craving a) more from the world and b) more wonderfully satisfying world-building and characterization in general.

Comments

[desdenova.livejournal.com]

Is this "Book 1 of a trilogy" in the sense of first volume of a multi-volume plot, or does it contain a complete story?

I have been interested in this book since I first heard of it, but I have no idea if it falls under my hard-and-fast "no more unfinished fantasy epics" rule.

[oyceter]

It is book 1 of a trilogy, but there's a complete plot in this book. From what I can tell, book 2 takes place 10 years after, so it's related, but not the same story. I didn't feel at all cheated at the end, and it's a definite ending, no cliffhangers.

[(Anonymous)]

Cool! I will put it on my list, then!

[desdenova.livejournal.com]

Cool! I will put it on my list, then!

(sorry for the anonymous comment.)

[oracne]

I liked it a lot, too.

[brigdh]

I've been excited for this book since I first heard about it. I can't wait till it comes out.

[laceblade]

I loved this book, too!

[gwyneira]

I am so looking forward to this book!

[kate_nepveu]

Definitely do--I've also read it but am waiting to do my review until the release. And I thought it was a much more tightly-connected kind of trilogy and was pleasant surprised at how much gets resolved at the end of this book--all kinds of things.

I think you will like it.

[nojojojo]

::bouncebouncebouncebounce::

I seriously wanted your honest opinion; I respect your reviews a lot. I'm soooo unbelievably glad you liked it.

::rolls up sleeves:: Now back to trying to make Book 3 even better!

[crossedwires]

That's good to hear! I'm definitely putting this book on the 'to read' list. Thanks for the review.

[roadrunnertwice]

Oh man, thanks for the review. I've had high hopes for this book like whoa.

[(Anonymous)]

To be even more explicit, the three books in the series don't even share the same main characters. They're definitely part of a story arc, but the first and second stand on their own.

AK

[bravecows]

Ahhh, this sounds so amazing! I cannot wait to read it.

[wealhtheow]

Oh man, this sounds so awesome. Seriously, every single thing you mention here is something I love to find in my reading material. And I'm particularly excited about the twist on the "blunt protagonist in a twisty situation" trope. You're right--instances where their inability/unwillingness to guard their words and look behind people's motivations actually lead them into trouble, as opposed to gaining them respect, are few and far between. (In fact, the only other example I can think of is from Scott Lynch's series, though I'm sure there are more.)

[oyceter]

Yay!

[oyceter]

Me neither so I can talk about it with more people!

[oyceter]

Yay!

[oyceter]

I want it out sooner so the next one comes out faster!

[oyceter]

OMG I am so looking forward to the next one! The one bad thing about ARCs is having to wait longer, haha. Not that I am complaining much ;).

Good luck with book 3!

[oyceter]

It made me super happy!

[oyceter]

It is very awesome!

[oyceter]

It is extremely awesome and presses so many of my buttons with gorgeous prose to boot!

[badgerbag]

I can't wait to read it! I pre-ordered it after reading a draft of book 2!

[oyceter]

Ohhhh I want to read book 2! Haha, my greed, it knows no bounds.