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A review by cornerofmadness
Silver on the Road by Laura Anne Gilman
5.0
I won this in a Goodreads giveaway but that did not influence my review in any way. I don't read a lot of 'weird west' stuff but this one sounded so interesting I had to throw my hat in the ring to win it. I'm glad I did. I vacillated between 4 and 5 stars on this one but what the heck give it five and call it 4.5 here.
I suppose since the protagonist is 16 this qualifies as 'young adult' but it doesn't read like one. For one there's no love triangle. Heck there's zero romance and that was a nice change of pace. No, this reads like a folktale.
Isobel is what I like to see in a strong female protagonist (i.e. non-abrasive/bitchy which is all too often used for 'strong'). She's smart and independent though she isn't too proud to ask for help when needed. She was raised in Flood, in the western Territory. In this alternative universe pretty much everything east of the Mississippi is 'civilized' and devoid of any strong magic. Everything west is wild magic, plagued by magicians (The advice Izzy is given about them is to just run, if that gives you an idea about them) who are mad for power and just plain mad and it's all governed by her Boss, the devil (he's not quite Lucifer though some may think so).
Isobel has been with The Boss since early childhood indentured to him by her parents. At sixteen she is a woman and free. He will give her whatever she wants but Izzy can't imagine a world outside of Flood (which thanks to the cover I thought was the south west but is probably more like Kansas or some other midwest state) She wants to be the Devil's one like Marie, the Devil's right hand. But he doesn't need another right hand. Ignoring warnings by other people the devil owns, Izzy signs up to be the Left Hand, the final word, the sharp knife.
To her surprise and dread, Isobel finds herself ordered out of Flood. She will be the devil's hand outside in the territory, on the road. The only guidance he gives her is a deal he struck with Gabriel Kasun, a rider on the road. Gabriel will train Isobel to be a rider, to learn how to survive on the road and we're never sure what the devil promised him other than 'peace' (There is something different about Gabriel but we won't learn about it in this volume).
The first bit of the book (which has no chapters, just parts) is her and Gabriel learning about each other and Isobel learning to live on the road. I liked that it didn't shy away from the problems a female would have monthly out riding the range. But as Gabriel trains her things begin to happen, people dying, whole towns disappearing.
They realize this is why the devil has sent her out there but he did not tell her one word about what she is supposed to do or how. The more disturbances they uncover the more the devil's sigil appears on her hand. It seems to serve as a warning but still, she has no idea what she's doing. All she knows is she has to stop whatever this is.
And I don't want to give away any more of the plot. Instead let me say that both Isobel and Gabriel are interesting and likable characters. I liked that there wasn't any sexual tension between them as he's twice her age though for that time period it would have been commonplace for a sixteen year old to be paired up with a man in his thirties. Gabriel is a patient teacher and he treats Isobel with respect.
Isobel is fascinating and I liked that she is a strong independent woman (and I'm assuming by her name, Hispanic though in this the Spanish can be problematic, keeping in mind America and Spain/Mexico were still hammering out the borders). I also liked that these things are just casually woven into the story. Too often any more we see strong female characters waving flags screaming look at me! Aren't I strong? Aren't I diverse? This doesn't talk the talk. It walks it quietly and believably.
The small cast of characters, including Farron (who I'll leave as something for the readers to uncover for themselves) are really interesting. I am definitely looking forward to the next book. So what were my quibbles that I considered giving this one less star for?
There is some repetition in this. Many many times we have Isobel lamenting that the devil told her nothing about what she was to do. Okay, that one I can understand though after the nth time hearing it, it's like okay I get it. Some of the descriptions also get repetitive like Farron's smile of too many teeth or Isobel being shorter than a certain pain in the ass Spanish friar. But these are minor things. This is a very good book. It doesn't have a lot of action in it per se but it reads as if it does.
However, the ending was...anti-climatic? Something. I guess it just wasn't what I expected and I'm not sure I entirely bought it or liked it when Isobel finally had to deal with the problem. I guess I expected it to be splashier. Still, over all I highly recommend this one.
I suppose since the protagonist is 16 this qualifies as 'young adult' but it doesn't read like one. For one there's no love triangle. Heck there's zero romance and that was a nice change of pace. No, this reads like a folktale.
Isobel is what I like to see in a strong female protagonist (i.e. non-abrasive/bitchy which is all too often used for 'strong'). She's smart and independent though she isn't too proud to ask for help when needed. She was raised in Flood, in the western Territory. In this alternative universe pretty much everything east of the Mississippi is 'civilized' and devoid of any strong magic. Everything west is wild magic, plagued by magicians (The advice Izzy is given about them is to just run, if that gives you an idea about them) who are mad for power and just plain mad and it's all governed by her Boss, the devil (he's not quite Lucifer though some may think so).
Isobel has been with The Boss since early childhood indentured to him by her parents. At sixteen she is a woman and free. He will give her whatever she wants but Izzy can't imagine a world outside of Flood (which thanks to the cover I thought was the south west but is probably more like Kansas or some other midwest state) She wants to be the Devil's one like Marie, the Devil's right hand. But he doesn't need another right hand. Ignoring warnings by other people the devil owns, Izzy signs up to be the Left Hand, the final word, the sharp knife.
To her surprise and dread, Isobel finds herself ordered out of Flood. She will be the devil's hand outside in the territory, on the road. The only guidance he gives her is a deal he struck with Gabriel Kasun, a rider on the road. Gabriel will train Isobel to be a rider, to learn how to survive on the road and we're never sure what the devil promised him other than 'peace' (There is something different about Gabriel but we won't learn about it in this volume).
The first bit of the book (which has no chapters, just parts) is her and Gabriel learning about each other and Isobel learning to live on the road. I liked that it didn't shy away from the problems a female would have monthly out riding the range. But as Gabriel trains her things begin to happen, people dying, whole towns disappearing.
They realize this is why the devil has sent her out there but he did not tell her one word about what she is supposed to do or how. The more disturbances they uncover the more the devil's sigil appears on her hand. It seems to serve as a warning but still, she has no idea what she's doing. All she knows is she has to stop whatever this is.
And I don't want to give away any more of the plot. Instead let me say that both Isobel and Gabriel are interesting and likable characters. I liked that there wasn't any sexual tension between them as he's twice her age though for that time period it would have been commonplace for a sixteen year old to be paired up with a man in his thirties. Gabriel is a patient teacher and he treats Isobel with respect.
Isobel is fascinating and I liked that she is a strong independent woman (and I'm assuming by her name, Hispanic though in this the Spanish can be problematic, keeping in mind America and Spain/Mexico were still hammering out the borders). I also liked that these things are just casually woven into the story. Too often any more we see strong female characters waving flags screaming look at me! Aren't I strong? Aren't I diverse? This doesn't talk the talk. It walks it quietly and believably.
The small cast of characters, including Farron (who I'll leave as something for the readers to uncover for themselves) are really interesting. I am definitely looking forward to the next book. So what were my quibbles that I considered giving this one less star for?
There is some repetition in this. Many many times we have Isobel lamenting that the devil told her nothing about what she was to do. Okay, that one I can understand though after the nth time hearing it, it's like okay I get it. Some of the descriptions also get repetitive like Farron's smile of too many teeth or Isobel being shorter than a certain pain in the ass Spanish friar. But these are minor things. This is a very good book. It doesn't have a lot of action in it per se but it reads as if it does.
However, the ending was...anti-climatic? Something. I guess it just wasn't what I expected and I'm not sure I entirely bought it or liked it when Isobel finally had to deal with the problem. I guess I expected it to be splashier. Still, over all I highly recommend this one.