Yesterday I got about halfway through The Traitor Baru Cormorant. I had a big of a pickle getting my hands on the ebook, since it transpires that the US edition is not available for purchase from my IP. Which means I couldn't get it through Kobo, my usual method of buying ebooks, for some reason. Never mind that, though. What's important is that, though it's not exactly what I expected, it's still a very entertaining read.
Baru Cormorant is brilliant, driven and ambitious. The world of the Empire of Masks is considerably more complex (in more ways than one) than what I've gotten used to seeing from secondary world fantasy. Issues of sexuality make a central theme in the book; issues of gender identity and expression come up, although as far as I've gotten, they are still not a major thread in the plot. More like part of the backdrop, the cultural imperialism that pervades the setting and provides an impetus to all of Baru's actions.
Like I said, I'm enjoying it a lot.
Baru Cormorant is brilliant, driven and ambitious. The world of the Empire of Masks is considerably more complex (in more ways than one) than what I've gotten used to seeing from secondary world fantasy. Issues of sexuality make a central theme in the book; issues of gender identity and expression come up, although as far as I've gotten, they are still not a major thread in the plot. More like part of the backdrop, the cultural imperialism that pervades the setting and provides an impetus to all of Baru's actions.
Like I said, I'm enjoying it a lot.