All the Birds in the Sky in Curious Iguana

Feb 06, 2017 Charlie Smith rated it liked it

Though published over a year ago, this novel comes uncomfortably close to current events; so much so, as its darker elements unfolded my body began manifesting stress reactions; tight chest, flipping stomach, nervous need to move a lot: which either means I'm crazy or the book was really well written. I suspect it was a little of the former and a lot of the latter.

The story is built of the foundation of the relationship between Patricia Delfine, who is adept at magic --- in particular, controlli Though published over a year ago, this novel comes uncomfortably close to current events; so much so, as its darker elements unfolded my body began manifesting stress reactions; tight chest, flipping stomach, nervous need to move a lot: which either means I'm crazy or the book was really well written. I suspect it was a little of the former and a lot of the latter.

The story is built of the foundation of the relationship between Patricia Delfine, who is adept at magic --- in particular, controlling the elements of nature, and Laurence Armstead, who is a brilliant scientist/inventor. They first meet as children, lose touch through what seems like betrayal and plotting against them, and reunite accidentally (or not) in young adulthood by which time Magic versus Science has become a conflict which threatens the continuation of the world as we know it.

I don't want to give too much away, but I found particularly fulgent the construction of the Magic and Science divisions. As with the world today --- say, Democrats and Republicans --- there were schisms within each side, good and bad, with plenty of gray area folks, including the two main characters. Both Patricia and Laurence behave in ways that are less than ideal, and, too, both perform acts of dangerous selflessness. It is not a spoiler to say that when the two at last find union, there comes at the world a devastating event of unknown origin; almost as if the fates of our main characters were tied to the survival of humanity. Hmmm.

But, it's not all heavy and dystopian-lecture-y like so many novels of this genre can be. Charlie Jane Anders is often hilarious. Here, one example:

Trust hipsters to make even the collapse of civilization unbearably twee.

Damn, I wish I had written that line. Look, I'm not doing justice to this novel. What is great about this book is the way in which Charlie Jane Anders builds worlds and describes events that would qualify this as science fiction/fantasy in such a natural, organic way it defies categorization, its elements eliding also into romance, satire, and literary fiction. Here's a thought: How about we do with novels what we ought to be doing with people? Stop categorizing.

All The Birds In The Sky is a fast, compelling, provocative, steamy, witty, thought-provoking read by a literate and gifted author who tackles big ideas in a way that is sneakily entertaining. And, while just a few months ago, a novel built around a possible world war might have seemed inconceivable, sadly, now, it feels nearly documentary.

And terrifying. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jun 12, 2019 Lauren rated it liked it

Shelves: zz-2019-read, fantasy

It felt like this book wanted to be something truly epic and yet couldn't quite make the push. Honestly, as a short story, I think I would have loved it. It just needed more for me to feel truly engaged for an entire novel. Every now and then I saw a glimpse of something I really enjoyed and wanted to explore but those glimpses were fleeting. ...more

Like · see review

Mar 26, 2016 Tessa rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, romance, sci-fi, tech-centric-fiction, new-adult, dystopian, speculative-fiction

4.5 stars. Really enjoyed the ideas, writing style, and mashup of fantasy and sci-fi! Has a more literary writing style and is a very thoughtful book. A sort of technology and science vs nature and magic theme. Definitely recommend.

Like · see review