one of if not the most iconic opening lines in a fantasy book
I just finished the Broken Earth trilogy and it is not an easy read
I don’t think I’ve ever read a fantasy trilogy
that changes so drastically in its structure
over the course of the three books
and yet it still stays so consistent in terms of plot
and loved each of these books for very different reasons
little synopsis for you we are living on a super continent
in this post apocalyptic world that goes through the cycles of near extinction
natural disasters our main characters are controlled
and oppressed by an empire
that relies on their ability to draw power from the earth
and nature itself and it throws you in the deep end straight away
letting you figure out most of the magical slash scientific stuff for yourself
but that is half of fun cause I feel like the work that you put in
makes the payoff at the end of the books so worth it
the first book the 5th season
has split storylines and it also throws in a second person perspective
and the final twist at the end is so good
in my opinion it’s easily the strongest of the three
The Obelisk Gate has more of your classic fantasy storyline
where these tensions build throughout the book
and then there’s a final battle and a big climax at the end
and the Stone Sky is kind of a mix of the two
it has the split storylines
but then it also flips back between the present and the past
underneath it all there’s just people who are trying to survive
and trying to find their place in the world
and just like in every apocalyptic story
my favourite element is always
the exploration of the lengths that humanity will go to
to keep kicking I also really love how motherhood
and the relationship between mother and daughter
is such a massive part of this series
that comes with a lot of really heavy and tragic themes
such as slavery prejudice
climate change personal identity
the power of storytelling and passing on history
but it just amaze me how much she could pack into these books
because they’re not super long
and also how she could say so much without saying a lot at all
I started with a quote
so I finished with one of my favourites from the Stone Sky
and that is how can we prepare for the future if we can’t acknowledge the past