City of Blades, by Robert Jackson Bennett
Second paragraph of third chapter:But not this land, she thinks. Not any land that exists under weather like this. …
I got this in 2018 when the Divine Cities trilogy was on the Best Series Hugo final ballot, and read the first volume that year. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I thoroughly enjoyed this one too, combining ancient magic returning to life with a military regime wobbling under the burdens of administering captured territory and running intelligence gathering in a hostile environment. I had forgotten most of what happened in the first book, but that wasn't really a burden here. Some very memorable characters and moments. You can get it here.
This was my top unread book acquired in 2018. Next on that pile is Cryptozoic, by Brian Aldiss.
I got this in 2018 when the Divine Cities trilogy was on the Best Series Hugo final ballot, and read the first volume that year. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I thoroughly enjoyed this one too, combining ancient magic returning to life with a military regime wobbling under the burdens of administering captured territory and running intelligence gathering in a hostile environment. I had forgotten most of what happened in the first book, but that wasn't really a burden here. Some very memorable characters and moments. You can get it here.
This was my top unread book acquired in 2018. Next on that pile is Cryptozoic, by Brian Aldiss.