Cast in Sorrow by Michelle Sagara

I've really enjoyed most of this series over the years, but this one (#9) was very very slow to get into, not one of those books I've picked up and stayed way up past bedtime to get through. There's a parody of Lord of the Rings out there somewhere that has the phrase "walking, walking walking..." and this is how this book feels for the first several chapters, as we approach the West March with Kaylin yet approach no closer to understanding what the heck she's doing here in the first place, as Sagara dribbles in meager facts about the Barrani and their history.

Kaylin does some more inexplicable magic with her runes, using some up and acquiring new ones, without ever coming any closer to knowing how her magic works, and threats to the Consort begin to take on a surreal quality of French farce, as she comes out one door of being saved by Kaylin and by the time Kaylin gets back to her lodgings, disappears behind another door of trouble.

I finally gave up, on the book, and on this series, I'm afraid.

There are far too many books on my TBR pile in which things actually happen and plots resolve.

Cast in Peril by Michelle Sagara

  After Kaylin's apartment is destroyed by a magic bomb, and the dragon who has been living with her is endangered, she temporarily moves into the Imperial Palace until things settle down. Yeah, that's likely. The egg that she's been caring for finally hatches out a familiar which looks much like a small dragon, for the moment, although I suspect it will be capable of taking on other forms at some point, as it becomes convenient.

Kaylin's presence becomes required soon thereafter upon a journey undertaken by the Barrani Court, upon which she is accompanied by her friends Teela and Severn, as well as Lord Nightshade and the Consort. Or perhaps she accompanies them, as they all seem to have their own motives and justifications for going on the quest. Yes, I said it. The Q word. Next, I'll mention the F word..."fellowship."

So, aside from the usual Barrani jostling for position and intriguery, the journey remains safe for the first few days, until they are past the point of no return to Elantra. Sagara introduces a new "race" into the mix - the Hallione - the guardians of the way stations on the trail to the Western March. They appear to have been created by the Ancients in much the same fashion as the other races, except they seem to have been created from varying races, as it turns out.

Kaylin gets to know one of these beings far better than those who have known them for centuries, in her inimitable style, and it affords her the chance to deepen her understanding of history, which helps us out a bit in this story, too.

There is at least one criminal (at least as far as the Emperor is concerned) hiding among the innocent Barrani on this journey. Severn has been tasked with assassinating the thief without causing a diplomatic incident. When the thief turns traitor to his own race instead, and instigates an attack on the adventurers, all bets are off.

Sagara continues with the oddest brand of magic I think I've ever encountered. In this world, words have meaning. Deep, powerful meanings which affect the very fabric of reality and the lives of all beings within hearing when a word is spoken. But words more importantly have their greatest meaning within the fabric woven into a story, which binds and shapes all actions and events. Kaylin, with her status as Chosen, has the ability to see and manipulate words in manners unavailable to others, which makes her uniquely qualified to overcome the difficulties she and her friends encounter.

This ain't your "I cast a fireball spell" rodeo.

Cast in Ruin by Michelle Sagara

Bodies are turning up in the fief of Tiamaris. Now, it's not unusual for bodies to be found in the fiefs, but when seven in a row are of the identical person, that's a cause for concern. Kaylin and Severn are called away from Kaylan's lessons in dragon etiquette to aid in the investigation.

We finally get a fairly long digression by Sanabalis about the history of the founding of the Empire, and the establishment of the rule of law there, as well as a great deal more about dragons, in general, than we've previously seen. I really need to go back and take a glance at some of the earlier books, but it does seem as if Sagara has focused on revealing the aspects of a particular race in each novel. I can recall, for certain, the one that dealt almost entirely with the Tha'alani, and the one that dealt with the Lions, and there was Cast in Courtlight, about the Barrani...maybe some follow up later.

I've read a lot of fantasy books, and it seems to me that the use of magic which Sagara describes here that Kaylin has is unique, in my experience. Most of what she does with it seems to take a long time to develop, has a great deal of visuals attached to it, and manifests through her emotions in a controlled, though sometimes unexpected, way. Most spellcasters in modern fantasy are more the wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am types, with a lot of flash for a few words and gestures, you know?

There's certainly a wry twist here, worthy of someone like Tolkien, in that we see the avatar of the Tower of Tiamaris' fief, Tara, going about in grubby gardening clothes much of the time. A bit of Radagast the Brown, perhaps, concerned with the smallest of living things.

And I still have another installment of this series on the shelf, awaiting my attention.

Cast in Chaos by Michelle Sagara

Sagara's heroine, Kaylin Neya, tends to jump right into things with both feet, as does this story. The action begins rapidly when odd magical happenings begin to cluster in the somewhat shady streets of the city. A hair restoring tonic actually works spectacularly, a fortuneteller's stories are actually true, and children begin to be born with odd abilities. Things escalate rapidly and a rain of blood allows Kaylin and the Hawks to sketch the radius of the effect - it's quite large.

When historical records are consulted, it turns out that the last time this happened, it presaged the advent of two new races, human and Barrani, into the world, and a great deal of destruction occured in the area when the portal that delivered them opened. The Dragon Council decides to have the Mages and Arcanists try to prevent the opening of the portal, but Kaylin discovers in a roundabout fashion that the new race on its way is being pursued by something called the Devourer, which has eaten whole worlds. Ever compassionate for the homeless, she uses all of her powers of persuasion, and her connections with the Keeper, Evanton, and the Tha'alani mind readers to sway the Emperor and the rest of his council to try something different.

An interesting dynamic between Lord Nightshade of the fiefs and Kaylin develops further when he rescues her from her first encounter with the Devourer between worlds. Kaylin digs into history with Tara, the avatar of the Tower in Tiamaris' fief. There are new developments with the runes magically embedded in her skin, and she gets access to the deeper parts of the Arkon's hoard. We find out a lot more about Severn's love for Kaylin, too.

There's a great buildup of tension and mystery and action for about two thirds of the book, but when the final confrontation with the Devourer arrives, Sagara spends far too many pages in mystical mumbo jumbo and allowing Kaylin to convince the Devourer not to eat people by sharing her memories and emotions, and in the process discovering many things about herself. Why clog up a great story with tortuous, slow emotional...er...stuff?

There should be interesting times ahead in the next book, as Elantra absorbs the refugees and Kaylin begins her training in Dragon etiquette, now that the crisis is past.

Cast in Silence by Michelle Sagara

I thought I knew where this novel was going, but very near the end, it went sharply off in a new direction. Not a bad direction, just unexpected.

Kaylin receives a message from the lord of the fief of Barren, where she spent some time after leaving the fief of Nightshade. Barren has some dirt on Kaylin's past, and threatens to reveal it to her new friends on the right side of the Ablayne River, if she doesn't come to visit.

There are quite a few flashbacks in this one. The message was delivered by a woman called Morse, who taught Kaylin (then known as Eliana) most of what she knows about killing. Barren used Kaylin as one of his assassins, removing troublesome folks from the fief, until he sent her on a suicidal quest to kill the Lord of Hawks, in the city of Elantra.

Through the flashbacks, we learn how Kaylin first arrived in Barren, how she survived there, and even get some insight into her early life, when her mother was still alive. We also learn quite a bit more about the nature of the fiefs, the towers and castles at the hearts of the seven fiefs, and their creation by the Old Ones.

There is a theme that runs through this book about the nature of love, belonging, and dealing with abandonment and guilt. It's a bit heavy for entertainment in a fantasy novel, but every author should get their chance to say what's on their mind, right?

The battle with the shadows, the Outcaste dragon, and the evil at the heart of the seventh fief is still coming, and being well set up in this installment. I definitely need to put the next two books on a library hold request.

Cast in Fury by Michelle Sagara

Kaylin is tasked with helping the temperamental Imperial playwright, Rennick, produce a play that will lower the tensions between the humans and the Tha'alani, who prevented the tidal wave in Cast in Secret from destroying the city, while the humans have come to believe that the Tha'alani are the ones who caused the wave. Already, some Tha'alani have been attacked, and the Hawks and Swords are watching the situation closely, before a riot develops.

Marcus, leader of the Swords, and one of the Leontines, has been accused of murder, and Kaylin takes it upon herself to investigate the charges, defying the direct orders of his replacement, Sergeant Mallory. She learns a great deal more about the culture of the Leontines, and we learn more about how she was given a home in the Pridlea of Marcus' household.

The Leontines have been vigilant for centuries, killing any members of their race who bear the coloration that indicates that they have mage abilities - at birth. One who has evaded that fate is now working to corrupt other Leontines, and has sired a cub that should also be killed, before it grows into its power. But Kaylin was present at the birth as a midwife, and her protective instincts place her life in jeopardy as she strives to keep the child alive.

As Kaylin and Severn get to know Rennick and his art, he says, "If we don't challenge ourselves, we get stuck in a rut. We do the same things over and over, until they're all faded echoes of the first thing we did."

It's good to see that Sagara is aware of this. Far too many authors simply do the same thing over and over again, stuck in a rut. So far, Sagara hasn't fallen into routine. Each installment of the Chronicles of Elantra reveals something new about Kaylin and about her world.

A particularly evocative bit, when Kaylin is talking with the Dragon Lord Sanabalis:
"His eyes were orange-tinted gold, and they met her gaze, without blinking, for a verly long time. As if she were a story in progress, and he could read her, and he wasn't certain what the ending would be, or if he would like it."

Another thing Rennick says about his plays, and the people who inspire them:
"...people make a story of their lives. Gains, losses, tragedy and triumph - you can tell a lot about someone simply by what they put into each category."

Definitely real-world implications here. We all see ourselves as victors or victims, heroes or villains, either in control of our own destiny, or the pawns of fate.

Sagara has gotten away from taking the easy way out, populating her world with elves, dwarves, vampires and werewolves. Instead, she's created some new races, like the telepathic Tha'alani, the winged Aerians, the Leontines, the immortal Barrani. The Dragons may seem familiar, but she's put her own signature twist on them, as well.

The realm of Elantra is slowly revealed, as bits and pieces of its history and myths show up in each book, and it grows stranger and more intriguing as time goes by.

I'm eagerly awaiting reading the next installment in this series.