Book review: Mahimata by Rati Mehrotra


Note: This review is based on an advance review copy obtained from the author. 

Markswoman, Rati Mehtrotra’s debut novel, introduced a unique world, a post-apocalyptic fantasy-Asia that was a bewitching blend of science fiction and fantasy. In the aftermath of a distant Great War, five Orders keep peace among the numerous clans of Asiana—Orders of warriors telepathically bonded with their magical knives, which are made of a metal called kalishium left behind by a mysterious alien race.  But the outlaw Kai Tau threatens Asiana’s peace; he has stolen terrible dark weapons—guns made of kalishium. Kai Tau has raised an army and means to destroy the Orders and take Asiana for himself.

The first book was a strong debut, with engaging characters and a fast-paced, twisty plot. The sequel, Mahimata, is even better.

Mehrotra carefully set up her game pieces in Markswoman. Now the game begins in earnest, and the plot flies. There are twists and turns, and revelations within revelations. There is a major plot point in Markswoman which seemed just slightly “off” to me. Here, it’s explained in a way that makes utter sense. The pieces fall into place with a satisfying click, even as the revelations remain a surprise.

The world of Asiana is also expanded; our main protagonist, Kyra, finds new friends and allies. Her true love, the Marksman Rustan, also finds new friends and mysteries as he goes on a personal quest for penance. His journey and experiences in a mysterious monastery in the mountains were some of my favorite scenes; here we find intriguing glimpses of answers to the history of Asiana, of who the mysterious alien Ones actually were, and how this world came to be.

In the end, of course, Kyra and Rustan’s journeys intersect, and a number of different Orders, clans, and allies rally for the climactic battle against Kai Tau and his dark weapons. The battle scenes are full of action; I particularly appreciate the way in which the Markswomen and Marksmen use a combination of telepathic Mental Arts and knives in what would seem a hopeless battle against an enemy armed with guns.

And yet I find myself thinking of the quiet scenes as some of my favorite in the book. Those scenes of friendship and tenderness, which show the bonds that Kyra has to her Order, and Rustan to his. I love the development of secondary characters; I love seeing the reunion of old friends. And although not all characters are able to achieve redemption, I’m glad to see that some do.

Even toward the end, there are some final twists. I won’t spoil them here. Let’s just say that the world expands yet again for our protagonists, and that though there is a bittersweetness to the last pages, there is also new wonder. Mahimata is a wonderful, thrilling conclusion to the journey started in Markswoman.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

On memoir and things I have no experience of—A review of "Barbarian Days: A Surfing Life" by William Finnegan

I know nothing about surfing. I've never stood on a board. I've never even seen surfing done in real life (I've spent most of my life in the American Midwest. And even when I lived in Los Angeles for college, I somehow never met any surfers). Yet it came into my head to write a story that involved surfing. So I read a lot. I was interested in big-wave surfing, so I read Susan Casey's book, "The Wave." I read a lot of journalistic accounts. I watched videos online. And eventually, probably inevitably, I stumbled upon a two-part article in The New Yorker. The article is titled " Playing Doc's Games" by William Finnegan, and it was published in 1992. It is famous among surfers. The surf magazine The Inertia called it " possibly the greatest surf story ever" and a writer at The Surfer described it as "the best written piece (all 39,000 words of it) ever penned about surf culture."  I am not a surfer. Yet Wi
Read more

Short fiction recs! May-June 2023

My short fiction recs from late spring/early summer. Tales of horror and magic, beauty and grief, discovery and wonder and strength. “Sasabonsam” by Tara Campbell in Strange Horizons I sit high in the mahogany tree, my long limbs dangling toward the earth. My eyes, if you could see them, would gleam at you in the moonlight. I am alert, but I let my arms swing idly with the breeze. They look just like the vines drooping from the branches, don’t they?   This is an older story, which I only just discovered thanks to a recommendation online. It’s a tale about a sasbonsam—a monster of West African folklore—and its prey. It’s a tale of curling tension and deliciously dark twists. The sasabonsam eats humans and feeds on their regrets. But in the end, who is the predator and who the prey?   “Lullaby for the Unseen” by Nelly Geraldine Garcia-Rosas in Weird Horror Ariel. It is because of him that I have this scar.   He was my classmate. A very thin kid, shorter than me, with g
Read more

Short fiction recs! Oct-Nov 2023

Some stories that I read and loved, from October through November.    Fantasy “Four Words Written on My Skin” by Jenn Reese in Uncanny Magazine When the Fae stole my wife, I followed them into the dark woods to win her back.   A short but achingly sharp and lovely piece about finding what’s been lost. The Fae stole the narrator’s wife, but the narrator has been losing Jess for a long time, before the Fae ever appeared. What follows is a confrontation with the narrator’s own responsibility for that loss, for the distance that’s grown between them. And, at the end, a glimmer of hope—the decision to choose to love. Beautifully told.     “Six Versions of my Brother Found Under the Bridge,” by Eugenia Triantafyllou in Uncanny Magazine Technically it was built on top of a river that had been dredged and filled in some fifty years ago which made the ground under the bridge degraded and pretty dangerous. But rumor had it—and by rumor Olga meant Maria’s oldest cousin who had be
Read more