Thursday, June 17, 2021

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: A War of Swallowed Stars by Sangu Mandanna

 


Full Disclosure:  This book was read as an e-ARC (Advance Reader Copy) obtained via Netgalley from the publisher in advance of the book's release on June 29, 2021 in exchange for a potential review.  I give my word that this did not affect my review in any way - if I felt conflicted in any way, I would simply have declined to review the book.


Sangu Mandanna's Celestial Trilogy, which began with A Spark of White Fire (Reviewed Here) and continued with A House of Rage and Sorrow (Reviewed Here), is one of my surprise favorites of the past few years.  The series is a YA Space Opera adaptation of a part of the Mahābhārata, a famous Indian/Sanskrit epic, although no prior knowledge of that epic is required.*  Each novel in the series is fairly short, roughly 200-250 pages, and there's nothing in the first book that I can point to as objectively great in either character work or thematic work....and yet I fell in love with the characters and this world from the start, and it only got so much better after book 2.  The book's protagonist, Esmae, and its minor characters grew so much on me, as Esmae had her dreams betrayed by both gods and humans and got wrapped on an all consuming quest for vengeance, and book 2 ended on a tremendous cliffhanger that just left my jaw dropped and desperate for this book to conclude the tale.  

*I have not read a translation of the epic, although between this series and Ashok Banker's Upon A Burning Throne, I have now read two different adaptations of it*

And A War of Swallowed Stars absolutely delivers.  The improved and tremendous character work of book 2 continues, carrying the story even as its main protagonist is absent for much of the book's first act.  This story of betrayal, of family, of love, of gods and prophecies and curses, etc etc. just winds up and up and goes in some very different directions than I expected, leading to a conclusion that just made me tear up in happiness.  I loved the characters, I loved the themes of love and peace vs pride and vengeance, of our own autonomy vs destiny and heritage, and I loved how it all ended.  I cannot recommend this trilogy enough, and I cannot wait for whatever Mandanna has coming up next, if anything.  

Spoiler Warning for Books 1-2 below.  

---------------------------------------------------Plot Summary------------------------------------------------------
An Illusion has been shattered.  A Goddess has Fallen.  And the Great Beast Sorsha, cursed with an insatiable hunger to consume the stars, has been unleashed.  

The war between the House of Rey has placed the entire galaxy in peril, and in the aftermath of Arcadia, Esmae is missing, leaving Max, Titania, Sybilla, Radha and their allies without a clear direction to help save it.  A treacherous sun god had once proposed that a way to defeat the Great Beast and save the galaxy, but without Esmae, such a hope seems lost.  

But Esmae is not dead, and Esmae and Alexi's war is not over.  And when Esmae returns, she will have to recover from her maiming, from her near death, and decide a path forwards: with her ideals about her mother and brother shattered, and her attempt at vengeance nearly costing everything, is it still worth pursuing her campaign of fire and blood?  A path that seems to have been started generations ago, with curses and wrongs by her ancestors?  

Or is there another path forwards, one that could both save the galaxy, and leave her a happy life, despite all that she has done?  All life on the galaxy may hang upon her final decisions.......
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Okay, that's not a great plot summary, but I didn't want to spoil too much for this book, and if you're here, you're probably aware of where things are after two books.  What will be a surprise is how this book is told - whereas book 1 was entirely from Esmae's perspective, and book 2 added short interludes from Titania's book 3 is split quite firmly into three perspectives: Esmae's, Titania's, and in a smaller but still significant part, Radha's.  Titania is honestly the main protagonist of much of this book, especially as Esmae remains missing for the first act, and well, she works really well in this role.  

It helps of course that each of these characters has firm wants and needs, as well as distinct abilities and backstories to guide them forward, which makes them all feel unique and worthwhile as we learn new things about them and see them move forward.  Mandanna does a great job showing us Titania's joy at the prospect of becoming not just an all powerful weapon spaceship, but a human being, even knowing how such a dream could make her useless to her allies that she loves....a struggle that hurts her, and drives her with doubt, even as her allies express their love for her no matter what and inform her that she does not have to be useful to be a valued friend comrade and ally.  Radha's love for Sybilla, and her guilt over what she did for her father, drives her as well, as she's both confident she's right about Sybilla's love while also afraid of taking one step too far on it....and convinced there may not be a right time for it, as she attempts to rally her father to Esmae's aid.  

But really this is still Esmae's story overall, no matter how great the side characters are - and they are great.  Esmae spent the first book at first thinking she was going to rejoin her beloved idealized brothers and mother, and get back her homeland, only to realize that the uncle and cousin she cursed weren't actually evil, but good oft-misunderstood people who treated her better than anyone had...and to be betrayed by her brother and mother.  She spent the second book consumed by vengeance for that betrayal, for the death of her closest friend, but still slightly hopeful that she could convince her mother to love her...only to be betrayed again, even worse than before, shattering her idealized dreams for good.  Now she seemingly has nothing left, and all that vengeance has led only to more and more death and destruction, her mother-figure's loss of immortality, and the galaxy in jeopardy of utter destruction.  She could be shattered here, with nothing left but to plow forward no matter what.  

And yet, this is not that story, as Esmae goes through a character arc here that transforms the series entirely.  Where she realizes despite all she's lost, she still has a boy she loves, a bunch of comrades she cares for, and a home to fight for.  Where she realizes that her quest for vengeance has gained her nothing, all for the sake of her pride.  And where she realizes that despite all the prophecies, and all the curses and blessings that have been thrown around throughout the generations, that have affected her life tremendously, what really matters, and all that she can do anything about, is her own intentions and actions.  She is responsible for herself, not any past prophecies or curses, just as everyone else is responsible only for themselves.  And in a trilogy that has spent so much time talking prophecies, visions, curses, blessings, etc., it's an amazing turn that works so so well, as our lead character and her allies all have to realize these same things for there to be any happy ending for anyone.  

It all leads up to an ending that isn't perfectly happy, but is happy enough to make me tear up with joy.  And it's an ending that is perfectly fitting for this trilogy, a conclusion that wraps up the entire story as well as I could ever have hoped, and makes this trilogy one I am thrilled to recommend.

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