A Shadow in Summer by Daniel Abraham

If you ever want to read something really different and intense, give this book a try. It's not the least conventional novel in the world, but it certainly takes some getting used to. The writing focuses much more on the plot--a set of conspiracies--than on any individual character. It reminded me a lot of watching a movie that slowly reveals more and more about a conspiracy until the conclusion wraps it all up in a neat little package. Yes, you do get to know the characters a bit as the plot advances, but that's really not the point. Who they are is meaningless. The events are what is important. If you like that sort of thing, you'll like this book, and--I imagine--the rest of the series.

Plot development was clearly Abraham's main focus. Characters generally appeal slightly more to me than plot development like this, but I do love a good, complex government conspiracy in my fantasy novels. And this book was nothing if not rife with conspiracy. Everything unfolded in a really graceful yet suspenseful way. Even the expected parts contained a lot of suspense and were executed well.

I also really enjoyed how Abraham toyed with the notion of sterility and virility--not in your typical, emotional, hot-blooded way, but in a more emphatic, detached sense. Everything that happens, every action taken, somehow relates back to fertility and growth or lack thereof, but nothing is really described sexually. In this sex-centric world, sex itself is not important. Abraham glosses over all of that and focuses more on the fact that that virility or fertility is there. Or if we're talking about events of loss, that they're not there.

It's unfortunate that the summary on the back cover (Kirkus Reviews) is so comprehensive. It basically boils down the first half of the book to a paragraph. You could actually probably just read that paragraph and start reading the book around page 160 or so. But you shouldn't do that…You'll miss the whole point of what's left unsaid. Also if I had to read through all of that to get to the "good stuff," you should have to, too!

All in all, this was an interesting one--tough to get through at first, but well worth it. Once I got used to the author's style and once I got past the first half (when the action picked up), I was hooked and I devoured the rest. I recommend this if you're looking for a rigorous fantasy novel that will challenge you to read differently than how you're probably used to reading.

~8/10~ (I almost want to give it a 9, but the slow-going of the first half is holding me back.)