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Isles of the Forsaken #2
Ison of the Isles
Revolution has broken out in the Forsaken Isles. The islanders have risen up to drive out the Inning Empire, but still they have no one to unite them. Only an Ison can do that - a leader whose heart has been cleansed by the curing of dhota-nur. The power to create an Ison lies in the hands of three people, and none of them are heroes. Spaeth has the ancient Lashnura heritage, but does she have the stature? Harg has the military genius, but he utterly rejects the price of dhota-nur. And Nathaway, the Inning outsider, finds himself unexpectedly holding the key to the future of the Isles. Perilously poised between Inning conquest and the savage powers of ancient forces, the Forsakens need them to decide. But for an Ison to rise, each of them must betray one of the others. Ison of the Isles continues the story started in Isles of the Forsaken.
299 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
97 people want to read
About the author
Carolyn Ives Gilman
86 books156 followersCarolyn Ives Gilman has been publishing science fiction and fantasy for almost twenty years. Her first novel, Halfway Human, published by Avon/Eos in 1998, was called “one of the most compelling explorations of gender and power in recent SF” by Locus magazine. Her short fiction has appeared in magazines and anthologies such as F&SF, Bending the Landscape, The Year’s Best Science Fiction, Realms of Fantasy, The Best From Fantasy & Science Fiction, Interzone, Universe, Full Spectrum, and others. Her fiction has been translated into Italian, Russian, German, Czech and Romanian. In 1992 she was a finalist for the Nebula Award for her novella, “The Honeycrafters.”
In her professional career, Gilman is a historian specializing in 18th and early 19th-century North American history, particularly frontier and Native history. Her most recent nonfiction book, Lewis and Clark: Across the Divide, was published in 2003 by Smithsonian Books. She has been a guest lecturer at the Library of Congress, Harvard University, and Monticello, and has been interviewed on All Things Considered (NPR), Talk of the Nation (NPR), History Detectives (PBS), and the History Channel.
Carolyn Ives Gilman lives in St. Louis and works for the Missouri Historical Society as a historian and museum curator.
In her professional career, Gilman is a historian specializing in 18th and early 19th-century North American history, particularly frontier and Native history. Her most recent nonfiction book, Lewis and Clark: Across the Divide, was published in 2003 by Smithsonian Books. She has been a guest lecturer at the Library of Congress, Harvard University, and Monticello, and has been interviewed on All Things Considered (NPR), Talk of the Nation (NPR), History Detectives (PBS), and the History Channel.
Carolyn Ives Gilman lives in St. Louis and works for the Missouri Historical Society as a historian and museum curator.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
February 25, 2016
Really very good. Full review (spoilers) http://resolutereader.blogspot.co.uk/...
February 28, 2013
I loved the first book in the series and was excited to find that the second was already out! No waiting a year this time for a release date.
This book continues the story begun in Isles of the Forsaken. We follow Nathaway and Spaeth as they make their way to Lashnish, the spiritual center of the Forsaken islands. Harg, meanwhile, is trying to take on the Inning navy. There's a very long battle sequence, which should please fans of Patrick O'Brien.
Eventually, all the characters end up at Lashnish, where Spaeth takes on a responsibility that she hasn't been given and tries to purge Harg of his wounds (physical, emotional, spiritual) in a ceremony that will proclaim him Ison of the Islands. The Ison is a leader who has emerged in the past when the Islands have been in danger. The idea is that he has to be purged of his pain in order to be a selfess, moral leader. However, Harg feels that giving away his pain will rob him of who he is, and keep him from displaying the ruthlessness that is necessary for an effective war leader.
The tension between morality and pragmatism, spirituality and logic, is the driving force behind this series. The story loses a bit of tension and meanders a bit in plot partway through the book. The theme seems to be that these contradictory philosophies begin to rub off on each other, leaving no culture unchanged.
The end of the book, as Harg contemplates a horrible death, is stirring. I don't think anyone reading this part could fail to feel the horror that Harg does, even as he tries to maintain his courage and do the best thing for his people. It feels to me like there is more to the story than the end of this book. I hope that we get more. The concept of self-sacrifice and the power of forgiveness aren't generally things that are explored from this viewpoint in fiction. It's easy to become maudlin or sentimental, but that doesn't happen in this book, which adds to the power of the story.
This book continues the story begun in Isles of the Forsaken. We follow Nathaway and Spaeth as they make their way to Lashnish, the spiritual center of the Forsaken islands. Harg, meanwhile, is trying to take on the Inning navy. There's a very long battle sequence, which should please fans of Patrick O'Brien.
Eventually, all the characters end up at Lashnish, where Spaeth takes on a responsibility that she hasn't been given and tries to purge Harg of his wounds (physical, emotional, spiritual) in a ceremony that will proclaim him Ison of the Islands. The Ison is a leader who has emerged in the past when the Islands have been in danger. The idea is that he has to be purged of his pain in order to be a selfess, moral leader. However, Harg feels that giving away his pain will rob him of who he is, and keep him from displaying the ruthlessness that is necessary for an effective war leader.
The tension between morality and pragmatism, spirituality and logic, is the driving force behind this series. The story loses a bit of tension and meanders a bit in plot partway through the book. The theme seems to be that these contradictory philosophies begin to rub off on each other, leaving no culture unchanged.
The end of the book, as Harg contemplates a horrible death, is stirring. I don't think anyone reading this part could fail to feel the horror that Harg does, even as he tries to maintain his courage and do the best thing for his people. It feels to me like there is more to the story than the end of this book. I hope that we get more. The concept of self-sacrifice and the power of forgiveness aren't generally things that are explored from this viewpoint in fiction. It's easy to become maudlin or sentimental, but that doesn't happen in this book, which adds to the power of the story.
October 18, 2013
In Ison of the Isles, Carolyn Ives Gilman has taken the world she established so beautifully in Isle of the Forsaken and pushed it to a whole new level.
The story, set in a fantasy world but with obvious paralells to out own, covers such broad topics as imperialism, freedom, the nature of knowledge, the structure of belief, and countless others in a tale that was both riveting and heart-breaking. The conflict between the Innings, who hear stand in a way for Anglo-Americans, with their obsession with Law and Justice that doesn't quite jibe with the ways their empire actually functions, and the various peoples of the Islands, is perhaps only the surface, and how it plays out in the individual level is the most interesting aspects.
Characters range from the Revolutionary Native leader who was once a capable servant in the Inning Navy, to the disilllusioned scion of one of Inning's first families, to a native who has to square her own desires to the ritual role she is suppose to play and the way her society and that of the Innings have become imeshed. It deals with the complications of identity, of colonialism and imperialism, in ways I've seldom seen so artfully handled. I breezed through it and kept wanting to know what would happen next, who or what would be jeopardized.
Like it's predecessor it's just an outstanding book I'd recommend to practically anyone.
The story, set in a fantasy world but with obvious paralells to out own, covers such broad topics as imperialism, freedom, the nature of knowledge, the structure of belief, and countless others in a tale that was both riveting and heart-breaking. The conflict between the Innings, who hear stand in a way for Anglo-Americans, with their obsession with Law and Justice that doesn't quite jibe with the ways their empire actually functions, and the various peoples of the Islands, is perhaps only the surface, and how it plays out in the individual level is the most interesting aspects.
Characters range from the Revolutionary Native leader who was once a capable servant in the Inning Navy, to the disilllusioned scion of one of Inning's first families, to a native who has to square her own desires to the ritual role she is suppose to play and the way her society and that of the Innings have become imeshed. It deals with the complications of identity, of colonialism and imperialism, in ways I've seldom seen so artfully handled. I breezed through it and kept wanting to know what would happen next, who or what would be jeopardized.
Like it's predecessor it's just an outstanding book I'd recommend to practically anyone.
September 20, 2016
This was a really interesting look into the consequences of colonization, and into the minds of people on both sides of a conflict. The world building was unique and very well planned and thought out; overall, the entire book was really very engaging. There was a lot of violence and death, but I always feel that shocking the reader in a story about war with these is better and gives you a feel for the actual sacrifices that have to be made. I also liked that the author didn't dwell on things that most fantasy authors feel are very important to go over in great detail: i.e. long boring journeys where not much happens. Such a win! And not everything was explained; some parts were just mysterious or left open-ended. Do yourself a favor and read this duo.
September 18, 2013
The story is set in the Forsaken Isles, which have been taken over by a continental power called Inning. The Forsakens are peopled by three races, the Adaina, the Torna, and the Lashnura. The Innings rule through the Torna. Rebellion has broken out, aided by elements of the Inning navy based in the Forsakens and crewed largely by Torna. The Innings pride themselves on their law reason and justice, but the Inning admiral in the Isles is a butcher. His brother is siding with the rebels, which doesn't improve his disposition any.
Read the rest of the Ison of the Isles review at SFReader
Read the rest of the Ison of the Isles review at SFReader
May 26, 2019
this is a more cohesive book with a stronger idea behind it than the first in the series, Isles of the Forsaken. it works as a military fantasy a little like Bujold's long Miles Vorkosigan journey. but it's also an interesting case study of a disastrous collision between a military culture which casually imposes its codified structures of authority, "justice" and law on a local population with none of those concepts and a culture instead based on harmony, balance, and sacrifice, with disastrous consequences traceable to a complete absence of mutual understanding. and that's a formal setup worthy of Ursula K. Le Guin.
November 19, 2014
There's a lot to love about this book, from the vivid setting to the all-too-familiar social and political hierarchy (highlighted all the more for being in a fantasy setting), but the best were the characters. They were all flawed, all a little petty sometimes, all with personal perspectives and agendas, but that didn't mean that a lot of them weren't fundamentally decent (and sometimes shockingly self-sacrificing) people. This wasn't about brooding antiheroes but people from a variety of backgrounds who are all just doing the best they can.
March 11, 2017
Second part of the novel that began with "Isles of the Forsaken", this half of the epic is concerned with the rebellion of the Isles against the imperial power. The supernatural might of the islanders is thrown against the rationalist empire and...loses. But in the conflict a new concordance is created, one that will have benefits to both sides as their differences dissolve. The story of the rebellion is first-rate fantistory. Highly recommended!
December 24, 2021
There was a lot of boat names and island names and it all got rather confusing at times. Also, lots of nautical terminology that left me stumped. Still I loved the book and the statements it made. Wasn't wild about the ending as the loose ends are definitely not tied up but I'd be happily read a part 3 if it happened.
September 14, 2012
This book is the sequel to "Isles of the Forsaken" by the same author. Read that first.
Terrific and original. I couldn't put it down. BOOM!
Terrific and original. I couldn't put it down. BOOM!
May 1, 2024
A worthy sequel and wrap-up of the characters' respective journeys. This one had been on my TBR list for some time and when I picked up the first volume again ("Isles of the Forsaken") one night and re-read the opening, it all came back.
This time, the author leaned even harder into the terrible costs of empire and war, with some on-the-nose observations about cultural and racial divides. The reader learns more about the underlying magical/godly forces at play in the war, but honestly, the gods are not nearly as important (or interesting) as the people on the ground. As it should be.
The plot kept me guessing. Even when I predicted certain moments of success and failure for the characters, they would make odd and frustrating choices that kept me engaged. My only serious nitpick might be an extended courtroom scene. However, the important revelations revealed during that scene justified it.
This duology makes me want to go back and read Gilman's earlier work, which I suppose is one of the best recommendations.
This time, the author leaned even harder into the terrible costs of empire and war, with some on-the-nose observations about cultural and racial divides. The reader learns more about the underlying magical/godly forces at play in the war, but honestly, the gods are not nearly as important (or interesting) as the people on the ground. As it should be.
The plot kept me guessing. Even when I predicted certain moments of success and failure for the characters, they would make odd and frustrating choices that kept me engaged. My only serious nitpick might be an extended courtroom scene. However, the important revelations revealed during that scene justified it.
This duology makes me want to go back and read Gilman's earlier work, which I suppose is one of the best recommendations.
March 26, 2021
A well developed. convention-breaking fantasy story, sequel to the equally good Isles of the Forsaken. I particularly appreciated its sophisticated treatment of an imagined colonialism of the Inning invaders, which combines brutal violence and cynical divide-and-rule tactics with an unquestioned belief in their cultural and moral superiority. The tensions, alliances and conflicts between the three indigenous people of the Isles are also handled very skillfully.
Plus there are raffish pirates, grim sea battles, dastardly double-crosses and defiant rebellions against the odds aplenty.
Plus there are raffish pirates, grim sea battles, dastardly double-crosses and defiant rebellions against the odds aplenty.
March 23, 2019
Intellectually, I was with this tale of anti-colonial resistance and imperial self-involvement all the way; emotionally/imaginatively, though, I just couldn't quite find my way in.
September 12, 2021
DNF I re-read Book 1 and enjoyed it again but I just couldn't get into Book 2. I persevered through about 70% before abandoning the book.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews