The world he travelled through was so well realised, and the Peruvian jungle and the town of Bedlam felt wonderfully real and alive. The imaginative elements worked well because they came out of the natural world and old traditions, and they spoke of what makes up human. I particularly liked that way that those things sat against practical concerns, particularly the importance of a good cup of coffee. The characters here are interesting enough, though at times their words didn't seem to suit the time period. There's also a guest appearance from a character those who've read The Watchmaker of Filigree Street will recognise. A sweet inclusion, but ultimately just another weird moment for me. I cannot pin down what this story was trying for. I was smitten when I read Natasha Pulley’s first book, ‘The Watchmaker of Filigree Street’ a year or two ago, and so when I saw that a second book was being sent out into the world I knew that I had to rush out and buy a copy. The eagerly anticipated new novel from the author of The Watchmaker of Filigree Street - a treacherous quest in the magical landscape of nineteenth-century Peru. I was too caught up in the wonder of what I was reading to ponder the serious questions, but I saw that they were there and they gave the story weight without ever weighing it down.

I’m so glad that I did. It was a lovely mixture of the familiar from the first book and the completely different and utterly right for this book; and it was set in the same slightly fanciful but utterly natural past that I wished could have been but that I know probably wasn’t. The past ahead. Time is like a river and you float with the current. Your ancestors set off before you did, so they're far ahead. Your descendants will sail it after.” The writing itself is - fine. Technically inoffensive, though with a few typos here and there. There is a tinge, but only a very bare and unstated tinge, of male/male romance. 'Blink and you miss it' stuff. It's possible that the romance and also the entire novel was just too subtle and understated and British for my brash American needs. But subtle can be very, very skilled and cruel if you don't make it boring. You could read this book that asks questions about life and faith; or you simply enjoy a lovely journey through a world that is both real and fantastical.

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I must say that in terms of imaginative concepts and world building I thoroughly did like this book, if a bit overcrowded at times. That however is not my real problem with the ending. My disappointment is more with the relationship status at the end, but the identities of the characters in fact might not leave any possible non-problematic relationship options, I'll discuss that more in the spoiler tags below though. Hart called this a queerplatonic romance, which fits well, but I would have liked something more solid at the end, be it sexual or not.

I nodded. He could have. But it felt good to have stood in front of him without flinching and, however stupid it was, I wanted to do it again. I can’t really review this book without keeping the The Watchmaker of Filigree Street, Natasha Pulley’s debut, in mind and I apologies in advance for multiple comparisons between both books which I will be making. OK, so in the two volumes I've read so far of N K Jemison's Broken Earth trilogy, The Fifth Season and The Obelisk Gate, there are creatures called Stone Eaters, humans who turn to stone! Is this a thing? I have not come across this in any book before.) I was drawn into this story from the very beginning – I loved the way that the fictional Tremaynes were insinuated into the family history of the real Tremayne family that used to live at Heligan – but even if I hadn’t known that very real place, where the lost gardens are open to visitors, I still would have been captivated. First of all, I'd like to thank Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.Pulley’s attention to detail and world building was exceptional – I found myself vividly picturing what was occurring throughout the novel, and to me, that is exactly what a novel should do. I also suspect the anticipation of the building relationship might be key to it's success. I went into both this and Watchmaker expecting to get a low key but definite gay relationship, and I think someone who didn't could easily miss some of those subtle moments or not read into them the same meaning and therefore deprive them of their power. The cover alone made me desperate to get hold of this book, not to mention the description. Exploding trees? Strange events in Peru? Sign me up now, please! At the heart of this is colonialism, with all its horrors. This is the summation of colonialism in the novel:

This expedition isn’t really about the trees at all, is it? It’s about getting a decent map, for if – when – the army has to go?’ steal a plant whose exact location nobody knows, in territory now defended by quinine barons under the protection of the government, and inhabited by tribal Indians who also hate foreigners and have killed everyone who’s got close in the last ten years.’ Bedlam is a village, also called New Bethlehem. The author's imagination and world-building skills make it one the most astonishing creations I have ever found in fantasy. If you read The Watchmaker of Filigree Street then you may already know this, but first time readers need to understand going into this book: it requires some patience. I wouldn't describe it as slow because changing the pace would be changing the feeling of the book itself, I would much rather describe it as peaceful and lovingly written. Thus begins a slow-paced epic journey. Others have undertaken this journey before and few have survived it. And they were able-bodied men, whereas Tremayne can barely walk. Tremayne and his companion, his former naval colleague, Clements Markham. They are being sent to:The novel is also historical fiction because the East India Company did send expeditions to Peru to obtain quinine from the bark of cinchona trees, desperately needed to treat its workers in the East who suffered from malaria. So there is another whole plot concerning the dastardly practices of people trying to bring cuttings of the tree out of Peru and the natives who seek to prevent this First World rip-off of their natural resources.

He understood well what grief meant to a markayuq. In the same way that they learnt languages, gathering knowledge carved into stone at the first mention and never forgetting, never lessening, they held sadness just as permanently. Language: English Words: 4,177 Chapters: 1/1 Comments: 4 Kudos: 8 Bookmarks: 1 Hits: 74

He protested that his leg wasn’t up to the trip; he suspected – correctly – that there was more to the trip than he was being told; he knew that others had tried do the same thing and lost their lives in the process; but he was intrigued and he remembered that his father had told him stories about his own travels to that part of the world, and hinted that there were more stories that he couldn’t tell. Disclaimer: I received a free e-copy ARC of this book from NetGalley. Thank you to the publishers!] The best character in this story full of amazing characters, is Rafael, a Peruvian Catholic priest. He is also the preserver of Andean spiritual traditions and cares for the markayuq: wooden statues which are considered to be actual people turned to stone, can move around in mysterious ways, and are guardians of sacred spaces. Conflicted in almost every way. Its pace, its subject matter, its characters--all of these facets have both lots of positive points in their favor but yet almost as many strikes against them. The writing is very good; descriptive without being exhausting, beautiful without turning purple. I enjoyed the writing on its own very much. But the story. Spoiler Warning: This article or section may contain spoilers. If this bothers you, proceed with caution.