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mwplante 's review for:
Engraved on the Eye
by Saladin Ahmed
After reading the author's novel and his Zok Iron Eyes short-form work online, I was craving a bit more. Engraved on the Eye satisfied that craving and left me stoked for book two of the Crescent Moon Kingdoms.
I reviewed this collection's Zok story ("Iron Eyes and the Watered Down World") and Saladin's other online Zok story ("Amethyst, Shadow, and Light") elsewhere. Other tales in this collection:
"Where Virtue Lives": This Crescent Moon Kingdoms tale details the first meeting of young Dervish warrior-monk Raseed and his mentor, the aging Ghul Hunter Adoulla. It's a fun story for those craving more of the Crescent Moon series, but it doesn't add a whole lot to the mythology or to the relationships of the main characters. Raseed is roughly as skeptical of Adoulla at the beginning of the first Crescent Moon book as he is at the beginning of this prequel tale. Still, fun stuff. I especially liked the knot magic.
"Hooves and the Hovel of Abdel Jameela": This is probably my favorite story of the collection. It is written in a less genre-laden style than the rest of Saladin Ahmed's work, which was interesting to experience. Furthermore, the story manages to keep you guessing in a very satisfying way.
"Judgement of Swords and Souls": The better and more illuminating of the two Crescent Moon Kingdoms stories in this collection. An important piece of the world is filled in by this tale of the Dervish warrior-monks. Saladin Ahmed also takes this opportunity to remind us that he can write women surprisingly well for a Fantasy author.
"Doctor Diablo Goes Through the Motions": A fun, comedic vignette in the life of a supervillain, interweaving themes of social justice.
"General Akmed's Revenge?": An episode in the life of a struggling Arab immigrant actor in 1980s Hollywood, with a supernatural twist. Short, satisfying, and clever.
"Mister Hadj's Sunset Ride": This story had a lot of potential, glimpsing the adventures of a gun-slinging Muslim mystic bounty-hunter in the Old West from the point of view of his assimilated Arab-American partner. However, the story felt a bit cut-off and not nearly as fleshed out as the premise deserved. Furthermore, the action sequence was a bit clipped and unsatisfying. I did love the premise thought, and would be interested in revisiting it in a longer form.
"The Faithful Soldier, Prompted": This story lobs us another fascinating premise. Here, we find the future Middle East has been ravaged in a high-tech war over the Islamic proscription of loan interest (riba). Our main character is a cybernetically enhanced ex-soldier whose battle cry is "God is greater than credit!", on a journey to save his beloved from a bioengineered plague, at the prompting of his supposedly deactivated retinal communication device. Basically, it's in the vein of the best old-school apocalyptic Scifi, but with Saladin Ahmed's signature Islamic twist. So go read it!
I reviewed this collection's Zok story ("Iron Eyes and the Watered Down World") and Saladin's other online Zok story ("Amethyst, Shadow, and Light") elsewhere. Other tales in this collection:
"Where Virtue Lives": This Crescent Moon Kingdoms tale details the first meeting of young Dervish warrior-monk Raseed and his mentor, the aging Ghul Hunter Adoulla. It's a fun story for those craving more of the Crescent Moon series, but it doesn't add a whole lot to the mythology or to the relationships of the main characters. Raseed is roughly as skeptical of Adoulla at the beginning of the first Crescent Moon book as he is at the beginning of this prequel tale. Still, fun stuff. I especially liked the knot magic.
"Hooves and the Hovel of Abdel Jameela": This is probably my favorite story of the collection. It is written in a less genre-laden style than the rest of Saladin Ahmed's work, which was interesting to experience. Furthermore, the story manages to keep you guessing in a very satisfying way.
"Judgement of Swords and Souls": The better and more illuminating of the two Crescent Moon Kingdoms stories in this collection. An important piece of the world is filled in by this tale of the Dervish warrior-monks. Saladin Ahmed also takes this opportunity to remind us that he can write women surprisingly well for a Fantasy author.
"Doctor Diablo Goes Through the Motions": A fun, comedic vignette in the life of a supervillain, interweaving themes of social justice.
"General Akmed's Revenge?": An episode in the life of a struggling Arab immigrant actor in 1980s Hollywood, with a supernatural twist. Short, satisfying, and clever.
"Mister Hadj's Sunset Ride": This story had a lot of potential, glimpsing the adventures of a gun-slinging Muslim mystic bounty-hunter in the Old West from the point of view of his assimilated Arab-American partner. However, the story felt a bit cut-off and not nearly as fleshed out as the premise deserved. Furthermore, the action sequence was a bit clipped and unsatisfying. I did love the premise thought, and would be interested in revisiting it in a longer form.
"The Faithful Soldier, Prompted": This story lobs us another fascinating premise. Here, we find the future Middle East has been ravaged in a high-tech war over the Islamic proscription of loan interest (riba). Our main character is a cybernetically enhanced ex-soldier whose battle cry is "God is greater than credit!", on a journey to save his beloved from a bioengineered plague, at the prompting of his supposedly deactivated retinal communication device. Basically, it's in the vein of the best old-school apocalyptic Scifi, but with Saladin Ahmed's signature Islamic twist. So go read it!