Shelf Care: World Fantasy

Welcome to Shelf Care, where I review three books related by a theme. These aren't necessarily the latest releases, but are hopefully books you can't believe you missed.This column's theme: World fantasy – novels featuring creatures that definitely do not have EU passports.Since J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of The Rings trilogy demonstrated that there was a commercially viable market for fantasy novels, the vast majority of them have followed the template that Tolkien set, using settings and creatures inspired by European mythology. Over the last decade or so the market has begun to noticeably diversify with new authors proving that there is a market for fantasy that draws on other locations for inspiration. So with that in mind, here are a few novels that don’t feature dwarves, knights, or castles.So if you likeSteampunkMurder MysteriesMiddle Eastern settingsThe Arabian NightsYou might likeA Master of Djinn, by P. Djèlí ClarkWhere the inspiration comes from: the Middle EastOverviewIn 1910’s Cairo the Egyptian Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments, and Supernatural Entities was established to deal with issues arising from the return of magic and djinn 40 years ago. When a secret society ends up slaughtered by a master magician, Ministry agent Fatima has to find the culprit while discovering that a bunch of dead cultists will be the least of her problems.Sample passage

Fatma squinted to where the woman indicated—a dark shape in the distance. No, that couldn’t be the Ministry. She squinted harder, tracing the shape’s rectangular outline. It was the Ministry! Only shrouded in a thick yellow haze that swirled about the building.“No wonder we couldn’t tell the storm’s direction,” Hadia said. “It’s centered on the Ministry!”Looking to the sky, Fatma made out veins of blowing sand, all streaking toward the Ministry building. They merged with the churning cloud as if eager to join a dance, growing thicker by the moment. This didn’t look good.“You have your sidearm?” she asked.Hadia’s dark brown eyes showed alarm, but she nodded, pressing at a place beneath her coat. “You think it’s that bad?”Fatma checked her own pistol. The service revolver was standard Ministry issue, nothing fancy: silver plated, a thin long barrel, and a six-shot cylinder. “When there’s a strange, unknown disturbance centered around the one place meant to investigate strange, unknown disturbances—yeah, I think it might be that bad. How are you with that?” She jerked her chin at Hadia’s pistol.“Good enough, I suppose. But I don’t like guns.”

TakeawayIf you’re tired of conventional story settings, I’d recommend this novel set in Clark’s ‘Dead Djinn’ (named for events in a few novellas set prior) universe. The mix of steampunk, Middle Eastern culture, and magic provides for an interesting setting. Plot-wise, the pacing is a bit uneven and you may see some twists coming (though in fairness even knowing they were coming it was difficult to see how they were going to resolve), and there are a lot of subplots that take a while to resolve into the narrative, but if you have the patience for a slow chapter or two, there’s a lot that is worth unpacking here, and if you like what you see, there are other stories set in this universe as well.Or if you likeAztec mythologyCinderella StoriesGods walking among usThe 1920sYou might likeGods of Jade and Shadow, by Silvia Moreno-GarciaWhere the inspiration comes from: Central AmericaOverviewA servant girl has to help a god reclaim his throne in 1920’s Mexico.Sample passage

Hun-Kamé and Casiopea discussed their schedule for the day, eating by the open window. Hun-Kamé wanted to go to a jewelry store, which Casiopea thought odd.“What would you need from there?” she asked, dipping the bolillo in her coffee.“A necklace, very likely. If we are to see Xtabay tonight we cannot head there empty-handed.”“I thought gods did not make any offerings.”“It’s not an offering, it’s a gesture of goodwill. Besides, I won’t be carrying it, you will,” he said airily.Casiopea pointed at him with the butter knife. “You consider me your maid.”“My ally, dear lady,” he replied, sipping his coffee slowly, as if he was still reluctant to taste earthly dishes.“You could spin a few jewels out of rocks,” she said.“I can’t do that.”“I’ve seen you turn stones into coins,” she reminded him.“I cannot alter the nature of an object. It is merely a play of light and shadow, an illusion.”“Will the illusion wear off?”“Illusions always wear off.”

TakeawayGods of Jade and Shadow combines elements of European fairy tales with a New World twist. The use of Aztec mythology is refreshing when so many other mythologies have been thoroughly explored in pop culture, and provides a framework wherein direct conflict between the gods isn’t possible, limiting them to acting through proxies. Another twist from the Cinderella story of the heroine being pulled out of a disastrous home life by a charming god, is that the god’s success or failure depends entirely on her choices, so she is anything but a passive player in the unfolding events. I’ll also credit Moreno-Garcia with not having her characters make predictably stupid choices to prolong the plot. It’s nice to read about characters that can avoid obvious pitfalls. So if you’re looking for a semi-contemporary fantasy novel that has an under used setting, Gods of Jade and Shadow is definitely worth a look.Or if you likeCoyote sightings, in the ‘trouble is coming’ sense.Urban FantasyStrong female protagonistsDifferent gods and monstersYou might likeTrail of Lightning, by Rebecca RoanhorseWhere the inspiration comes from: North AmericaOverviewSet in a near future North America, where magic has returned and certain individuals have developed powers based on their tribe, a monster slayer has attracted the attention of some supernatural entities.Sample passage

The severed heads are heavy and wet against my back, and the long trek out of the forest in the dark carrying them is more nightmare stuff. The only plus side is that I’m alone. No animals, no more monsters.A single bare bulb lights the door to the Chapter House. It should feel like a beacon welcoming me back, but instead it glows menacing and pale. The front door is shuttered, barred against the monsters in the night. Not sure if they meant to include me in that or not, but I pound heavy on the door, hoping someone’s still waiting up.Locks turn inside. A face peers out. It’s my runner, the same kid who came to my door this morning to offer me the Lukachukai job.“Where is everybody?” I ask.“Locked up tight,” he says. “Scared of the monsters.”“Why aren’t you locked up tight?”“I volunteered to stay. I’m not scared of monsters.”“No?” I shift the bloody bags on my shoulder to the other side, hear the click of skull bone against skull bone. “Why not?”“I knew you’d kill it. You’re famous.”“Look,” I say, “you got my trade?”“You got the bounty?”No nonsense, this kid. I swing the bags off my shoulder. Hang on to the bigger one and drop the smaller one to the side. “Don’t open that.” I point with my lips to the small bag. “That’s for the family. Give them something to bury.”“You didn’t save her?”I don’t answer that. It’s too complicated and I’m too tired to explain it. I hold the bigger bag open, give him a chance to peer inside.As he does, some of his bluster fades and he swallows hard. “Is that...?”“Monster’s head. I’m taking it to a medicine man I know in Tse Bonito so he can tell me what it is. What it was.”

TakeawayThe setting of a post-apocalyptic North America grounds the story and helps make it more accessible to readers who don’t know much about Native American mythology, and provides an interesting juxtaposition of magical elements in an ordinary setting – so in that sense Trail Of Lightning feels a bit like urban fantasy. As for that trail, the monster slaying protagonist, Maggie, starts off doing her job, then starts investigating a series of disasters related by the (nearly) inexplicable appearance of lighting. This, of course, drags her in to events that are way larger than they originally seemed. I found Trail of Lightning to be well paced and plotted, with the characters finding new information that raises new questions to keep the reader engaged in figuring out just what exactly is going on here. It’s an especially great read if you’re looking for something a little different than the same old, same old.So, what other books should be on this list? Leave your thoughts in the comments and stay tuned for my next column.