Red Sister (Book of the Ancestor)

Albeit an interesting read, filled with wonderful writing, thoughts and several "perfect sentences", I can't help but feel let down by the blandness of the clichéd world and characters. Pretty predictable in most cases, the world-building is uninspiring and the antagonists are one-dimensional. <spoiler>The world seemingly tries not to be Earth, yet they use the Arabic alphabet. That was pretty unnecessary and immersion shattering. Then, the main villain of this book is evil just because he is, fueled by his genetics that make him strong way above average ("fingers around which a child can't wrap their own fingers", and then predictably he gets possessed by demons and becomes even eviler. Give me a break.</spoiler> None of the characters seem to matter or their deeds to carry enough weight. It is obvious what everyone's next move will be, there's no surprise, whole most of the storyline could have happened without them. When they perish, that fact doesn't really do much in this grim world. <spoiler>A tortured donkey elicits a bigger emotional response than most of the people who have very little to their character besides some quirks. Possibly because that is the only instance where some sort of justice isn't served instantly.</spoiler>

<spoiler>There are some other clichés, like an implied sci-fi past, which is fine though not much is revealed, and two types of magical power sources: the one that can be "tapped" into at the risk of corruption, and the other that grants more power while in the proximity of some sort of "phlebotinum". Yet, my biggest issue with the whole book was obviously the troublesome eugenics trope. Not only is it boring that some people are different without merit, but it is a stupid and dangerous idea, as anyone with common sense has already realised. This idea doesn't help the narrative as it doesn't involve me, as a reader, deeper into the lore. It doesn't serve as a key element to the plot, the book could have done without it. I just shake my head whenever it is mentioned. And then there are "blood mixings" with some of the people being "pure" while others even a "perfect mix" of sorts. Don't get me wrong: the book is not racist in the modern sense, but this idea – that some are born to be better in some way than those of different bloodlines – is just lame to me and averts me from the world of the novel.</spoiler>

In many ways, it is an ambiguous novel, with some qualities shining through the lines, while some problems drag it down into the mediocre. Exposure is often written just a few breaths before they become relevant, while some events are embedded throughout and serve as a genuine surprise in retrospect. It often reads like a young adult novel, with ideas that have been old and overused more than twenty years ago. Yet, there are plentiful gems inside it in terms of engaging, masterful writing and witty thoughts that make it rise above the average young adult novel (and increase my rating). For that alone, it was a worthwhile journey.

Sadly the ending, while pretty much sudden and a cutting off with a cliffhanger, doesn't draw me to explore further. 

Since I’ve been living under a rock for several years, I’ve finally crawled out and read Mark Lawrence’s Red Sister. This novel stands out as one part coming-of-age story, one part mage school, and all careening toward a finale that is pulse-pounding in its intensity. This is one you should enjoy soon if you haven’t managed to enjoy it already.

One of the things I really enjoyed about Red Sister was the way Lawrence makes use of unreliable narrators. It actually might be better to say that Lawrence makes use of characters who deliberately play fast and loose with the truth as a way of defending themselves or getting what they want. This occurs with the viewpoint character, Nona, but Lawrence also puts this to use with Abbess Glass who tells us she’s an unreliable narrator. There are also various kinds of magic in this world, and I loved learning about each of them. Lawrence does a great job of never info dumping, but just giving us bits and pieces that feel natural in the narrative. This is helped greatly by the fact that Nona is learning many of these things herself. The characters also deserve praise, particularly for their variety and that way that characters who seem friendly end up less so or characters who initially seem like enemies end up playing a quite different role in the book. Perhaps the most unique element of the novel, however, is the world building. The story is set on a planet with a dying sun, the vast majority of the planets surface is covered in ice, with a thin strip near the equator the only land warm enough to support farming—and this only remains so because of an orbiting artificial moon mirror that the ancients apparently launched into the sky. It’s worth the read for the worldbuilding alone. The narrative itself keeps you guessing at several points though and I really enjoyed that element as well. The endgame is also intense and interesting, with some good reveals and aha! moments. Fast-paced and bloody at times, there is a lot to like throughout Red Sister.

There were several things that didn’t work as well for me. Most of these amount to preference issues. The largest issue is that Nona is twelve years old for much of the novel, and she just doesn’t feel like a twelve-year-old. Even allowing for her being abnormally mature because of the difficulties of her life, I just don’t buy her as a middle school student. Add four years, make her sixteen, and maybe her character starts to feel believable in terms of age. I also felt the pacing was a little slow at some points, perhaps getting bogged down in the magic school and class themes. Beyond this we’re getting into the weeds of preference, but one thing I really dislike is when a narrator withholds information the viewpoint character has or things the viewpoint character does, as a way of creating additional tension. Lawrence does this in the endgame with Nona, and when it was revealed I was frustrated.

Red Sister is one to read, and the world building, characters, and mysteries of the plot make it stand out. If you haven’t read this one yet, it should definitely be on your TBR.

8.0/10

4/5 stars.

5 – I loved this, couldn’t put it down, move it to the top of your TBR pile
4 – I really enjoyed this, add it to the TBR pile
3 – It was ok, depending on your preferences it may be worth your time
2 – I didn’t like this book, it has significant flaws and I can’t recommend it
1 – I loathe this book with a most loathsome loathing