The End of October by Lawrence Wright

From the publisher: In this riveting medical thriller–from the Pulitzer Prize winner and best-selling author–Dr. Henry Parsons, an unlikely but appealing hero, races to find the origins and cure of a mysterious new killer virus as it brings the world to its knees.

I’m stuck at home during a global pandemic and what do I choose to read? A thriller about a global pandemic. But it’s good one, so believable and so filled with facts and scenarios that have come/are coming true.

The first two thirds of the book is really great. I would say I couldn’t put it down but I did in fact have to put it down because while I wanted to keep reading it was also ramping up my anxiety in this time of Covid-19. The last third devolves into a Hollywood thriller, and I fully expect to watch the movie version of the book one day.

The main character, Henry Parsons, suffered rickets as a child and has health issues and a limp. Think of him as a young Dr. Fauci, a leading expert on emerging diseases. He has a worried wife and young children who want him to come home, but he is called to travel all over the world as the threat grows.

As I read The End of October I kept thinking of Donald Trump saying “Nobody knew there’d be a pandemic or an epidemic of this proportion.” People knew. LOTS of people knew. Lawrence Wright knew, and everyone he talked to researching this book knew. 

The End of October does feel really well researched. I don’t know when it was written, but clearly well before the Covid-19 crisis arrived, and yet so much of what happens in the book has happened in real life – right down to the TP hoarding – or COULD happen in real life.

Fortunately, the crisis in the book is much worse than the one we are currently experiencing (and let’s hope it stays that way). It’s also a bird flu, which as a birder made me very unhappy. Both domesticated and wild birds are slaughtered in the book. There are some twisty plot twists that remind you this is a book and not real life, but nothing seemed too outlandish. The end is sad but satisfying.

It’s possible I was more engaged by this book now than I would have been at a different time. Still, if you love medical thrillers, I definitely recommend The End of October.

I read an advance reader copy of The End of October. It is scheduled to be published in April 2020, and the Galesburg Public Library will have it in regular print and large print and as an ebook. Thank you to Alfred A. Knopf, Penguin Random House, and Baker & Taylor for the advance reader's edition.

The Unspoken Name by A.K. Larkwood

From the publisher: What if you knew how and when you will die? Csorwe does—she will climb the mountain, enter the Shrine of the Unspoken, and gain the most honored title: sacrifice. But on the day of her foretold death, a powerful mage offers her a new fate. Leave with him, and live. Turn away from her destiny and her god to become a thief, a spy, an assassin—the wizard's loyal sword. Topple an empire, and help him reclaim his seat of power. But Csorwe will soon learn—gods remember, and if you live long enough, all debts come due.

Hurray for a straightforward, linear, coming of age fantasy story with an ordinary, likable but flawed heroine, told by an omniscient narrator. I found it thoroughly refreshing not to have to spend the whole book trying to figure out what was going on. A young girl is to be sacrificed to a god, a wizard offers her an alternative, she trains with him, becomes a trusted aid. Time passes, adventures continue. There is plenty of action but there are also slow parts where we see character development.

The world building is good, and there’s a glossary of characters to help keep them straight. Also included is a pronunciation guide, and the use of made up words in the text is not excessive. Also there are maps!

Main character Csorwe is a perfectly ordinary hero. She’s not a Chosen One destined to save the world, she’s not a mage, she’s just a regular person making the best of a second chance at life. There is a blessedly small cast of secondary characters – easy to tell apart, each morally ambiguous (like real people, how about that). Sex and love come into play (as they do, in real life) but the book is not primarily a romance.

There are plot twists – not wholly unpredictable plot twists – and this fantasy novel certainly follows in the footsteps of fantasy works that came before it. But it’s a cracking good story so who cares? I really felt immersed in a world both very different from our own and not that different from our own.

I particularly loved a visit to a dead land that was once inhabited by giant intelligent snakes. A definite recommend for lovers of straightforward fantasy who just want to read a great story.

The Galesburg Public Library owns The Unspoken Name in print and as an ebook and downloadable audio book.

Stealing Thunder

From the publisher:  Protecting her identity means life or death in this immersive epic fantasy

inspired by the Mughal Empire.  

In a different life, under a different name, Razia Khan was raised to be the Crown Prince of Nizam, the most powerful kingdom in Daryastan. Born with the soul of a woman, she ran away at a young age to escape her father’s hatred and live life true to herself.

Amongst the hijras of Bikampur, Razia finds sisterhood and discovers a new purpose in life. By day she’s one of her dera’s finest dancers, and by night its most profitable thief. But when her latest target leads her to cross paths with Arjun Agnivansha, Prince of Bikampur, it is she who has something stolen. 

An immediate connection with the prince changes Razia’s life forever, and she finds herself embroiled in a dangerous political war. The stakes are greater than any heist she’s ever performed. When the battle brings her face to face with her father, Razia has the chance to reclaim everything she lost…and save her prince.

What the blurb from the publisher fails to mention is that there's also feathered zahhaks, large flying quadrupeds that breath thunder, fire, acid, or ice. So, close enough to dragons for the imagination (hopefully there will be official artwork closer to the publication date), and large enough to be ridden by royalty. While dragon riders as a trope has been around for decades, the author consulted with a USAF Lt. Colonel for the aerial battle scenes and it shows. The action scenes are engaging and unmuddled.

The publisher's blurb, also, in my opinion, focuses a little too much on the romance aspect of the book. While the relationship between Razia and Arjun is a major plot point, there is also such a focus on being true to oneself and dreaming of reclaiming what has been lost, while struggling with surviving day to day and daring to plan for the future. Romance as a genre isn't my cup of tea, but this book is epic fantasy, just with a romance subplot.
 
I enjoyed this book immensely, and am very much looking forward to the sequel. It's nice to get away from a generic European setting for epic fantasy, and I look forward to reading more books like Stealing Thunder and Hunted by the Sky. Throughout the book, I was able to parse most of the unfamiliar terms through context, and there was a glossary in the back. At times, Razia's internal monologue could be a bit repetitious, and overall the story could do with a bit of tightening. There may be some times when things may work out a bit too simply or neatly for some readers, but I personally prefer my recreational reading to fall more on the happy ending side than gritty realism. 
 
The author's note states: 'Now, I'm proud to say that Stealing Thunder will be the first adult fantasy novel with a trans woman main character, written by a trans woman, ever to be published by a mainstream press in the United States'. Author and trans activist Alina Boyden wrote Stealing Thunder while working on her PhD in cultural anthropology, focusing working with the hijra communities of India and Pakistan. Representation matters, and I hope Stealing Thunder will encourage publishers to bring us more voices to listen to.

I read an uncorrected proof of Stealing Thunder. It is scheduled to be published in May of 2020 and will be available in print at the Galesburg Public Library.