Mississippi Blues

Mississippi Blues builds upon the world and characters in Queen City Jazz. Although the plot lags in places, overall the book unfolds with exactly the kind of upbeat pessimism good blues music is famous for. It's not The Bones of Time, but still a very satisfying read.

How many times have you wished you could change other people's minds? Imagine that power being within reach of any determined individual or group -- philosophies and core beliefs and even whole identities spreading (literally) as viruses. Now imagine that this has been going on for hundreds of years. This is a book that dares to think big, and to answer its own questions with unflinching candor. And there's action, too!

The epic proportions and pacing of this book are only gradually revealed to the reader. It begins as an adventure quest; the cast and their mysterious histories accrete and generate a story with much gravity. Several running themes are carried: free will as a gamble, the power of music, the cruelty of slavery and Otherness in general. Heroics tend towards healing and guiding rather than fighting. A loose, disorganized quality to the characters, jerky narrative flow and occasional pedantic tone prevented my fuller enjoyment of the book. It's more focused and substantial, however than her earlier books--all in all, a good read.