The Year of Our War

After a while, one grows tired of elves and orcs and barbarians and the typical fantasy stories. Steph Swainston has invented a new and unique world with none of the normal suspects in it, with great imagination that still leaves a lot to the readers to ponder. She creates a world with mortals and immortals, where the immortals must earn their place by being the best at what they can do: the best swordsman, the best sailor, the best archer. Immortality is betowed upon them by the Emperor San...where he got the ability to do this is one of the mysteries of the series. Jant Comet is one of the immortals, called the Messenger because of his unique ability to fly. Because he is the Emperor's Messenger, we get to see the politics of the realm, and even see Jant change a few things. The Emperor's realm is at war with the Insects, who look like bugs many times the size of humans and who build paper nests out of counqueorer lands. Where the Insects have come from is yet another of the mysteries in the book and series. Jant is an addict to a substance called Cat. Ms. Swainston's portrayl of Jant's addiction, in this book and the next, is dead on...she must have known or studied addicts quite closely. Jant's addiction gives him entrance into a parallel world, a world he and we the readers are not sure is real until we explore it further. Then it becomes tied in with the Emperor's world and the Insects. Ms. Swainston mixes political intrigue (immortals battling each other for position; non-immortals vs. the Emperor; mortals vying to become immortals), war (vividly imagines human vs. insect fighting scenes, shades of Stormship Troopers!), addiction and Jant's journey of self-discovery into an excellent fantasy novel. As an author, what I most admire about the writing is her ability to not tell the reader what is going on (at least for the big stuff) but to let us figure it out. The novel held me in suspense till the end, made we eager for the next (which is equally good). Highly recommended.

I am in awe of Swainston's imagination and skill with prose. The Fourlands is a vivid place, and the readers are not insulted with too much exposition or contrived explanation. I like that she does not feel the need to work within typical fantasy tropes and that newspapers are as much a part of the Fourlands as swords are. Many people compare Swainston to Mieville. With the exception of the genre-busting details. I do not think that the metaphor holds. I actually saw quite a bit of Zelazny in the book, with more than a few echoes of the Princes in Amber in the Circle and its inhabitants. Those are good echoes, by the way. Jant is an immortal messenger, at least temporarily immortal-- so long as he can keep the favor of the Emperor. His mission is to help stop the bugs from taking over the Fourlands while negotiating the minefield between his wife and his lover. In between life-threatening events, he tries to find a moment to get a fix in peace. He is a clever and charming anti-hero and one of the strongest things in the book. One of the finest new speculative fiction authors that I have read recently. Highly recommended.

I'm not sure what it is, but British writers know how to produce a really interesting book. Now this isn't Shakespear, but the action and the characters are interesting and you will certainly want to read the other books in this series.

For centuries, humans have claimed an uneasy stalemate with the huge insects who invaded their world. A Circle of immortals, picked as the very best of their professions, stands at the top of the defense, but mortal kings and warriors form the largest part of the war. When a strong King is killed by insects and his incompetent brother takes over, the bugs launch a huge offensive, sweeping through human-occupied lands that had never been threatened before. Worse, the insects seem to be appearing faster than they could possibly breed. Could this be the end of an entire civilization. Immortal messenger Comet (original name Jant) battles with insects, the petty intrigues among mortals and immortals, and his own 'Cat' habit that threatens to kill him. Yet Cat serves a purpose--along in the world, he can travel between the mortal world to the world of 'Shift,' a world where the war against the insects is actually being won. Unfortunately, no one believes Jant's drug-dreams. Author Steph Swainston creates a fascinating world and culture in THE YEAR OF OUR WAR. The 'Circle' of immortals, each best at what they do, is a well-thought-out idea. The concept of the challenge, allowing mortals to aspire to immortality, creates a bit of a democratic process. Comet/Jant makes a really interesting and multidimensional character, and Swainston's use of shift allowed back-story to be woven seamlessly into the main plot. Although I enjoyed this book a lot, I found the ending a bit abrupt. I would have liked to see something more clever or thoughtful that would precipitate the dramatic conclusion to the centuries-old war with the insects.

For two millenniums the Insects have swarmed, trying to destroy the Kingdom of Awia though the Insect Wall has kept them confined to the Paperlands. Still they keep trying to breach the wall and regain what the humanoids took back from them. Ultimately they want to turn all of Awia followed by the Plainsland and Morenzia into lands of paper tunnels and hives. War is a way of life. The immortal King Dunlin Rachiswater of Awia and his Circle of fifty knights keep a vigil at Lowespass, near the Wall and one inside Insect territory. The assaults have increased lately and the monarch and his court are very concerned. Mercurius "Jant" Comet is a junkie with a criminal past who has the ability to journey to the alternate realm of Epsilon where he has built a castle that could prove to be the final escape once the inevitable Insects doom Lowespass and the surrounding lands as even the King anticipates that will one day happen. This entertaining fantasy hooks the audience from the onset and never lets go as readers will wonder if the Insects will overwhelm the Kingdom and if yes what then. The story line is exhilarating as the action-packed tale moves quickly yet provides fans with a deep look at an intriguing society where immortals live, but are from perfect as the "hero" shows. Steph Swainston writes a fantastic gripping epic fantasy while paying homage to the Roman and Greek Gods. Harriet Klausner