I
wasn't really sure what to expect from Gameboard
of the Gods, the first in a new series by Richelle Mead. But now I'm really excited for the rest of the Age of X series.
The
story is set in the future after the “Decline” when a virus struck down most of
humanity. Now the world is recovering, but this period accounts for the
still-relatable rate of technological development. The Republic of United
America (RUNA, or Canada and parts of the US) and the Eastern Alliance (China
and Russia) are the major political players. The RUNA holds three things
responsible for the Decline — biological manipulation, religion, and cultural
separatism — and so it aggressively combats all three. There is, however, a caste
system, and people are assigned genetic ratings.
Enter
protagonist #1/3, Mae Koskinen, a
woman raised to, essentially, be a debutante, who instead fled to join the most
elite fighting force in the world. Mae
immediately seems to be the stereotype of the ice princess, but Mead dispels that idea almost before it
fully congeals. It can be hard for audiences to empathize with a character who
supposedly has no emotions, but right in the first scene we see evidence both
of her façade and of the emotions beneath as Mae compulsively braids and unbraids her hair.
It must
be said that, although RUNA denies that gods are real and disbands churches,
that doesn't actually stop people from worshipping, and it certainly doesn't
stop the gods. Enter protagonist #2/3, Dr.
Justin March, whose resemblance to Sherlock Holmes is unmistakable. His
greatest asset and weakness is his ability to notice everything and put the
clues together, and in true Sherlock Holmes fashion, he also has an
accompanying drug problem. Justin was
a professor of religion and made a living investigating and shutting down
churches, before he was exiled. He was an atheist, so the raven spirits now
living in his head are something of an ethical dilemma.
During
his exile, Justin grew closer to the
family of Tessa, or protagonist
#3/3. Tessa is a genius with no
prospects, but Justin recognizes a
kindred spirit, and when he returns to the RUNA he gets her a student visa to
go with him. Tessa is my favorite,
and she is integral to the plot. I suspect she will only become more integral
to everything as the series progresses. The aftermath of her near-arrest is
possibly my favorite scene in the whole book. Her character has a gift for
putting everyone and everywhere's BS into perspective without actually pointing
it out to them. Her treatment of and by the RUNA are especially poignant to
those who have lived in an unfamiliar setting.
In all
of these characters, I love the refusal to allow anyone else to control their
fates, be they god or human.
I did
have one suspension of disbelief problem, in terms of March's ability to identify gods. I suppose the rest of the
paragraph could be slightly spoiler-y, but if you have any knowledge of
mythology you'll have figured it out well before our characters, anyway, and
that's really the cusp of my problem. If you make a living dealing with
religious organizations and have been a professor of religion, it's not going
to take you longer than a couple seconds to identify a clever male god who uses
two ravens as messengers when you're as smart as March is supposed to be. It's certainly not going to take five
years and the course of a book. Likewise, when you have Celtic knotwork, crows,
and lots of death, it isn't a huge stretch to guess which deity might be
involved. Norse and Celtic mythologies are not so unknown that these should
have been insufficient clues.
I also
think there was a bit too much telegraphing the meaning of what characters say,
re-stating implications explicitly. As a reader, I prefer to be expected to
make those inferences rather than having them force-fed. Of course, my reading
is based on the ARC, and this may have been adjusted somewhat in the finished
copy.
I'm not
much one for post-apocalyptic or dystopian stories, and although Gameboard of the Gods has roots in each,
it also crosses into science fiction and mythology, so I'm not really sure how
to categorize this book in terms of subgenre, and I love that. Overall, Gameboard of the Gods has a fascinating
and well-thought-out setting, thorny and complex problems, and top-notch
characters, and I'm really happy with this book.
NOTE: Gameboard
of the Gods was published in North America on June 4, 2013 via Dutton.
The UK edition (See Above) was published on June 6, 2013.
12:00 AM | 
Posted by
Robert |
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1 comments:
"Game Board of the Gods," great title, great cover and captivating story line. When I began reading the review, I thought that is exactly how I feel at times, that my life is just a pawn on the god's game board. Of course, my life isn't nearly as interesting as this story, so I'll just have to read it. Thanks for a compelling review!