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We're getting to the point where I'm seeking out specific recs for squares I haven't filled. J mentioned that, while this is technically the first of a series, it works okay on its own and is a good fit for "Weird Ecology," so I gave it a try. I had read the first Murderbot and it hadn't clicked for me, but in part I had lower expectations for this one, because a big part of what didn't work for me about Murderbot was being sold as "oh this character is so not neurotypical and has a great outsider POV on humans, it handles that aspect really well," and I'm like..."I'm not neurotypical either but that doesn't necessarily mean I could write a book about it."
Anyway. Once upon a time there was a lonely shapeshifter named Moon who never hurt anybody, but through no fault of his own, he had trouble finding a place to fit in. Because everywhere he went, he had to hide the secret of his flying dragon-form, because if the "groundlings" ever saw him, they would assume he was one of the evil dragons who just wanted to kill and eat everybody, even the other sentient species. This is the premise of the story, and right away it feels like it's a premise that's not going to sustain an entire novel on its own. But then there's a twist! Moon finally meets shapeshifters who look like him, the "Raksura!" Except by now he's bitter and alienated because he's never had a place to belong before, and what if it's too late? Besides, the good Raksura are being hunted by the evil Fell, and even though Moon has others like him, he can't escape the fight! Again, this doesn't feel like a real premise either.
The next potential twist is that in the colony of Raksura he meets, there's disagreement over the best way to deal with the Fell. Many want to stand and fight, including Jade, a young future queen. (Raksura live in "colonies" and have caste roles like insects, with different subtypes who specialize in reproduction/warriors/teachers/etc. Since Moon was raised away from his own people, he doesn't know any of this, which allows for some narratively convenient infodumping.) However, the incumbent queen, Pearl, wants to let some of the Fell in to negotiate with them instead. Okay, politics, now this is getting interesting...
Just kidding. The Fell are just straight-up evil and apparently never have considered the whole "killing and eating other sentient people is maybe bad" thing, and nobody bothers to convince them otherwise, because Fell gonna Fell. I understand the concept of predators and the circle of life, but "these dragons are just evil and eat everyone, because," feels like a pretty weak trope by the standards of modern progressive SFF?
And then it switches over into woobie hurt/comfort mode. Not only has Moon never been a threat to the groundlings he's lived with before, but also, on many occasions he reveals that he's fundamentally brave and good-hearted and leaps into action to defend others. But he's gripped by angst about "oh no, no one likes me, I'll never fit in." There are ficcy tropes like "ooh, taking a bath, so domestic and luxurious!" or "just act like you could be Jade's potential consort long enough for her to challenge Pearl and take control of the colony" and "by the way, I need to tell you a horrible secret, I was once abused many years ago"/"no victim blaming, what happened to you is not your fault and nobody has any right to use it against you!" I just...really don't care and was not interested in most of the emotional beats. Sorry.
On the other claw, the worldbuilding is neat. The setting is referred to as the "Three Worlds" because the land, sky, and sea all have peoples living in them. There are werewolf shapeshifters, merpeople, and "sky islands." Groundlings build magical airships that sail across through the sky (this becomes an important plot point, since not all Raksura can fly). Moon has always had a sense of which way south is--sensing the planet's magnetic field, like Earth animals do? And there are lots of ruins of ground and sky societies that have come and gone in generations before--like the Wheel of Time, it gives a sense of rich lived-in history, that the characters we see are only one small part of a complex, intricate world. This was all neat. Overall, though, I'm just really not the target audience for this one.
Bingo: in addition to Weird Ecology, would certainly fit for Non-Human Characters and Shapeshifters. It's not a major plot point yet, but the series as a whole is on the r/fantasy LGBTQIA list--Moon's chemistry with his male friend Chime is more than platonic. Apparently it was also an r/Fantasy readalong.
Anyway. Once upon a time there was a lonely shapeshifter named Moon who never hurt anybody, but through no fault of his own, he had trouble finding a place to fit in. Because everywhere he went, he had to hide the secret of his flying dragon-form, because if the "groundlings" ever saw him, they would assume he was one of the evil dragons who just wanted to kill and eat everybody, even the other sentient species. This is the premise of the story, and right away it feels like it's a premise that's not going to sustain an entire novel on its own. But then there's a twist! Moon finally meets shapeshifters who look like him, the "Raksura!" Except by now he's bitter and alienated because he's never had a place to belong before, and what if it's too late? Besides, the good Raksura are being hunted by the evil Fell, and even though Moon has others like him, he can't escape the fight! Again, this doesn't feel like a real premise either.
The next potential twist is that in the colony of Raksura he meets, there's disagreement over the best way to deal with the Fell. Many want to stand and fight, including Jade, a young future queen. (Raksura live in "colonies" and have caste roles like insects, with different subtypes who specialize in reproduction/warriors/teachers/etc. Since Moon was raised away from his own people, he doesn't know any of this, which allows for some narratively convenient infodumping.) However, the incumbent queen, Pearl, wants to let some of the Fell in to negotiate with them instead. Okay, politics, now this is getting interesting...
Just kidding. The Fell are just straight-up evil and apparently never have considered the whole "killing and eating other sentient people is maybe bad" thing, and nobody bothers to convince them otherwise, because Fell gonna Fell. I understand the concept of predators and the circle of life, but "these dragons are just evil and eat everyone, because," feels like a pretty weak trope by the standards of modern progressive SFF?
And then it switches over into woobie hurt/comfort mode. Not only has Moon never been a threat to the groundlings he's lived with before, but also, on many occasions he reveals that he's fundamentally brave and good-hearted and leaps into action to defend others. But he's gripped by angst about "oh no, no one likes me, I'll never fit in." There are ficcy tropes like "ooh, taking a bath, so domestic and luxurious!" or "just act like you could be Jade's potential consort long enough for her to challenge Pearl and take control of the colony" and "by the way, I need to tell you a horrible secret, I was once abused many years ago"/"no victim blaming, what happened to you is not your fault and nobody has any right to use it against you!" I just...really don't care and was not interested in most of the emotional beats. Sorry.
On the other claw, the worldbuilding is neat. The setting is referred to as the "Three Worlds" because the land, sky, and sea all have peoples living in them. There are werewolf shapeshifters, merpeople, and "sky islands." Groundlings build magical airships that sail across through the sky (this becomes an important plot point, since not all Raksura can fly). Moon has always had a sense of which way south is--sensing the planet's magnetic field, like Earth animals do? And there are lots of ruins of ground and sky societies that have come and gone in generations before--like the Wheel of Time, it gives a sense of rich lived-in history, that the characters we see are only one small part of a complex, intricate world. This was all neat. Overall, though, I'm just really not the target audience for this one.
Bingo: in addition to Weird Ecology, would certainly fit for Non-Human Characters and Shapeshifters. It's not a major plot point yet, but the series as a whole is on the r/fantasy LGBTQIA list--Moon's chemistry with his male friend Chime is more than platonic. Apparently it was also an r/Fantasy readalong.
