{4.5\/5} “The office of Raven’s Lease offered many privileges and a share (along with the Council of the Directions) in the rule of Iraden, as well as the rule of Ard Vusktia across the strait. But there was a price: two days after the death of the Raven’s Instrument — the bird embodying the god that called itself the Raven — the person occupying the Lease’s office must die, a voluntary sacrifice for the god.”<\/p>\n
The Raven Tower<\/strong> by Ann Leckie, published in 2019<\/p>\n When Mawat arrives at the Raven Tower, he expects to find that his father has died and it its time for him to succeed him as the Raven’s Lease. But his Uncle Hibal sits on the bench, and he claims that his father could not be found when it was time for him to fulfill his duty. Mawat can’t accept this. While he sulks, his aide Eolo scours the town for hints on what happened to Mawat’s father.<\/p>\n There are a couple of unusual things in this novel. The narrator addresses “you” as the main character, Eolo. And the narrator is a god, telling its own story interspersed with the other storyline.<\/p>\n The 2 storylines come together in a satisfying way. I was a bit ambivalent about the very end, but other than that I liked it a lot.<\/p>\n It’s about gods whose words change reality, the interaction of gods and humans, and an aide (former farmer, former solider) who doesn’t stop until he figures out what’s going on.<\/p>\n The font is absurdly large, probably making you pay more for a fatter book.<\/p>\n