Recent reads

Wolf Tower, by Tanith Lee. A fast-paced young-adult novel from a veteran fantasy and SF author. Claidi is a serving-girl in The House, an immense castle ruled by a cruel, decadent, self-absorbed aristocracy. There are distinct hints of Gormenghast here, although Lee does not imitate Peake's gnarled, baroque prose. The story we read is made up of Claidi's diary entries, and as such are in her own narrative voice. It's a rather modern-sounding voice, full of sarcasm and adolescent humor as well as occasional adolescent angst and self-doubt, but it's internally consistent throughout the story. The story moves quickly as Claidi's life is radically altered by an unprecedented visitor to The House. Adventures, danger, and deception follow, along with romantic longings and confusion. The cultures encountered are entertainingly strange, although Lee is clearly not aiming at the same level of anthropological sophistication as Ursula LeGuin. It's an entertaining story for YAs and others who enjoy light fantasy, and a promising start to a series.