When I wrote about Sofia Samatar‘s A Stranger in Olondria, I had not yet started the practice of holding off to write about series until they were complete–that review ends with a mention of the companion novel, 2016’s, The Winged Histories, set in the same world, which finally made its way to the top of the pile.
The books aren’t exactly a series–there is continuity of setting and history, but not really of characters. The Winged Histories tells of roughly a century of violence (set against the backdrop of a much longer series of wars), told from the perspective of multiple women across generations, and spanning both/multiple sides of the conflict. It’s well-executed as such, and the underlying questions of what the proper response is to periods of hardship are handled deftly and are, you know, not exactly immaterial to the present moment.
Like A Stranger in Olondria, the beauty of The Winged Histories is in Samatar’s writing, in the care she takes with language, and how evocative her imagery is. The characters are secondary, although the key trio of protagonists–childhood friends, each of whom end up playing a role in the political fate of their nations–are well sketched.
My one quibble with the book is a central romance that feels more “shipped” than earned, at the same time, my suspicion is that may be her fandom’s favorite relationship in the novel.
Recommended as a very different experience from most fantasy novels–a pleasant change of pace that stays very much in the genre.