"'Choosing to lock yourself up in a life that doesn't suit you is its own sort of death, wouldn't you say?'"
My Rating: ★★★≛
Genre(s): Young Adult, Fantasy
Publication: December 4, 2018 (Balzer & Bray/Harperteen)
Synopsis:
The second in a sweeping and action-packed fantasy duology loosely inspired by the early climbers of Mount Everest -- perfect for fans of Tamora Pierce and Kristin Cashore.
After the terrifying events on Mount Raksha, the witches have returned, and River has betrayed Kamzin to regain his dark powers. The witches' next step: march on the Three Cities and take over the Empire -- led by River's brother, Esha.
If Kamzin is to save Azmiri and prevent the destruction of the Empire, she must find a star that fell in the Ash Mountains to the north. Fallen stars have immense power, and if Kamzin and Lusha can find the star, they can use its magic to protect their homeland. To get there, Kamzin has allied with Azar-at, the dangerous and deceptive fire demon, who can grant her great power -- in exchange for pieces of her soul. But River wants the star too, and as their paths collide in dangerous and unexpected ways, Kamzin must wrestle with both her guilt and her conflicted feelings for the person who betrayed her.
Facing dark magic, a perilous journey, and a standoff against the witches, can Kamzin, Lusha, and Tem find the star and save their Empire?
***CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR EVEN THE DARKEST STARS***
Review:
While Kamzin's world remains stunningly rich and grows even more complex in this sequel to Even the Darkest Stars, the plot and characterization in All the Wandering Light show only scant improvement. Kamzin becomes a bit more likeable, but still, River is the star of the show, and the rest of the characters remain the same -- boring or unlikeable -- with minimal development, if any. But, just like the first book, it is Fawcett's worldbuilding and River Shara that kept me reading.
Though he is not the main character, it is again River's inner conflict that engrossed me, and I had little interest in Kamzin's. I was excited that Fawcett chose to weave in some chapters from River's perspective for this reason. Both his own inner struggle and his central role in the global conflict (the witches, who now have their magic back, versus the Empire) were some of the most compelling aspects of the story. Had Fawcett split the book fifty-fifty between River's perspective and Kamzin's perspective, the lack of compelling conflict on Kamzin's end might not have been so much of an issue. But as River's chapters felt few and far between, and he was not really one of the protagonists in the story, I was more apt to want to breeze through Kamzin's chapters in order to get to River's.
To continue talking about River -- again, best character in the book -- his complicated relationship with his brothers is very well done, and it is the driving force behind his inner turmoil. Now that he has returned magic to his people, his brother, Esha, is hell-bent on leading the witches to march on the Empire and tear it all down. As the royal explorer, River -- unlike his wild, wood-dwelling people -- has learned to love the people of the Empire, if not the vanity of the nobility. Esha, on the other hand, as well as many other witches who have no exposure to the human world, is bloodthirsty and vengeful as a result of the Empire stealing the witches' magic decades ago. That River cares for humans and witches alike despite their hatred of one another is what makes him sympathetic and easy to root for.
“'Perhaps terrible things will result from the choices you made -- perhaps good. You can't know for certain before all's said and settled. And you certainly can't blame yourself for the paths that branch off from the one you've beaten, even if they lead others to dark places.'"
The now-strained relationship between Kamzin and River, both of whom cared for and betrayed one another, and whose people are sworn enemies, was another strength of the book. There was a palpable tension that lingered and grew until Kamzin and River were finally reunited following their mutual betrayal. This reunion was one of the more satisfying elements of the story, and the momentum it created made the rest of the book fly by. Their relationship is particularly powerful because, regardless of their differences, Kamzin and River mirror one another. Kamzin was forced to train as a shaman, even though she would rather climb mountains, and River was forced to masquerade as a nobleman among humans, even though he is a witch who would rather explore his own magic and have his own adventures. Both are kept from living their truth, and, oddly enough, each finds that truth within the other. It is part of what makes their relationship so compelling (despite Kamzin's difficult personality).
“'You're like the wind -- you're meant to be out there, among the mountains and the stars, fighting storms and monsters and anything else foolish enough to get in your way.'”
I was a bit sad to find that Kamzin didn't have a compelling internal struggle of her own other than her need to save her people. As admirable as such a goal is, there didn't seem to be anything in particular that was driving her, and there wasn't any nuance to her goal that made her more dynamic or interesting. That, coupled with the fact that she never felt like she belonged with the people of Azmiri, make her motivation very flat and underdeveloped. As she is the protagonist and the person that the reader spends most of their time with, this was disappointing, and I suspect that it was at least part of the reason that I found myself bored from time to time during Kamzin's chapters.
The character development was, unfortunately, not the only thing that fell flat. While an immensely powerful fallen star that's even more than it seems sure does sound interesting, that plot thread seemed very shallow. Though role the star played in the struggle between the witches and the Empire was fairly well executed and intriguing, there is a truth about the star itself that is revealed relatively early on that was not expanded upon. In fact, that part of the star plotline was ambiguously resolved. I can't say more without spoilers, but I felt I had to express my disappointment that such a cool and unexpected plot thread very much fizzled in a way that was not at all satisfying.
Though I had my issues with it, All the Wandering Light was a good conclusion to a series that is, at its core, all about finding your truth. It is about taking risks, and it is about living rather than simply being alive. This theme is near and dear to my heart, and so, while it was flawed, I very much appreciate what Fawcett conveyed with this series. I think that, with a little more development, Kamzin and River's story could have been excellent as opposed to just "good," but I have to give it credit for its message. And for that, I do recommend this series -- read it if you want to feel inspired to start living.
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