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Rainbird
She’s a halfbreed in hiding.
Rainbird never belonged. To one race, she’s chattel. To the other, she’s an abomination that should never have existed.
She lives on the sunway.
High above the ground, Rainbird is safe, as long as she does her job, keeps her head down, and never ever draws attention to herself.
But one act of sabotage is about to change everything.
For Rainbird. And for her world.
Rainbird never belonged. To one race, she’s chattel. To the other, she’s an abomination that should never have existed.
She lives on the sunway.
High above the ground, Rainbird is safe, as long as she does her job, keeps her head down, and never ever draws attention to herself.
But one act of sabotage is about to change everything.
For Rainbird. And for her world.
Nook
First published October 10, 2012
2 people are currently reading
113 people want to read
About the author
Rabia Gale
21 books74 followersI break fairy tales and fuse fantasy and science fiction. I love to write about flawed heroes who never give up, transformation and redemption, and things from outer space. In my spare time, I read, doodle, eat chocolate, avoid housework, and homeschool my three children.
A native of Pakistan, I grew up in hot, humid Karachi. I then spent almost a decade in Northern New England where I learned to love fall, tolerate snow, and be snobbish about maple syrup and sweet corn. I now live in Northern Virginia.
A native of Pakistan, I grew up in hot, humid Karachi. I then spent almost a decade in Northern New England where I learned to love fall, tolerate snow, and be snobbish about maple syrup and sweet corn. I now live in Northern Virginia.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
July 8, 2016
A strange and wonderful Kindle novella from indie author Rabia Gale,
Rainbird
is appropriate for adults & young adult teen readers. Gale is one of three indie authors (the others are Intisar Khanani & W.R. Gingell) whose works are absolutely amazing: these authors write without the safety net of an editorial staff and consistently produce works easily superior to a great many 'published' authors. I'm a bit baffled as to why the big publishing houses haven't signed these writers … but anyway …
Rainbird follows the title character as she goes about her life on one of the strangest planets I've encountered in S/F: the human population lives on, and in, the continent-sized corpse of a dragon which sustains them. Rainbird herself has a human father and a non-human eiree mother but is accepted by neither race. Abandoned young, she survived human society and finally found her father, joining him in his job of maintaining the higher-elevation dragon bones that humanity relies upon.
Gale's writing is easily up to the task of her strange world, compelling and fascinating, and the story she spins on the bones of the beast grabbed me from the first page.
I particularly love the little details of the story: the thirdhand coat smelling of cigar, the satin-starch of her wings, and much more. A very enjoyable read at about 208 pages.
Rainbird follows the title character as she goes about her life on one of the strangest planets I've encountered in S/F: the human population lives on, and in, the continent-sized corpse of a dragon which sustains them. Rainbird herself has a human father and a non-human eiree mother but is accepted by neither race. Abandoned young, she survived human society and finally found her father, joining him in his job of maintaining the higher-elevation dragon bones that humanity relies upon.
Gale's writing is easily up to the task of her strange world, compelling and fascinating, and the story she spins on the bones of the beast grabbed me from the first page.
Rainbird danced on the sunway to the singing of uncountable stars, music that only she could hear. Her trench coat, too large and shabby, smelling of cigar smoke and mothballs, flapped around her. Under the thick thirdhand fabric, her wings whispered, satin-starch-slither. Her long-toed bare feet skimmed the bumpy bone of the sunway, worn smooth and glittering by centuries of inspection. Her oversized lungs pulled in the thin cold air
Rainbird rose up on her toes, spun, leapt high and proud like a horse, and landed perfectly. She dipped her head and knees in a curtsey to her celestial audience. Then she kissed her hand to Glew, the dim, faraway true sun of the purebred eiree. It glowered with sour malice, rheumy-eyed even this far above the clouds and the smoke, the haze and the lights of the cities of men.
I particularly love the little details of the story: the thirdhand coat smelling of cigar, the satin-starch of her wings, and much more. A very enjoyable read at about 208 pages.
February 3, 2021
Wonderful little sci-fantasy novella with one of the coolest premises I've ever come across - a civilisation built upon the decaying-but-not-quite-dead remains of a dead dragon.
September 1, 2016
Rainbird is a half-breed, child of an eiree and a human. As a child, she was forced to work as a circus act, her vestigial wings damaged to prevent any hope of escape. When she killed to escape, she became a fugitive from human law, and her father became the only one willing to shelter her. When Rainbird discovers a huge expanse of bonerot infesting the sunway, the source of heat and light for human settlement, the authorities react with disturbing indifference. However, behind the facade of indifference are political and species conflicts not safe to tangle with - and Rainbird and her father are caught in the middle.
Rainbird is a powerful view into the life of a despised half-breed, a child of nether the eiree nor of humanity, and shunned by both. Her overwhelming loneliness is one of the driving forces of the story, and her wary, fugitives' view of the society she lives in is compelling. Despite or because of the very serious themes of race, isolation, and discrimination underlying the story, this is a gripping book, the whole woven into a fast-paced sci-fi / fantasy read that readers of both genres will enjoy. Rabia Gale's unique talent for writing very different, very plausible worlds and societies is guaranteed to keep you fascinated until the last page.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Rainbird is a powerful view into the life of a despised half-breed, a child of nether the eiree nor of humanity, and shunned by both. Her overwhelming loneliness is one of the driving forces of the story, and her wary, fugitives' view of the society she lives in is compelling. Despite or because of the very serious themes of race, isolation, and discrimination underlying the story, this is a gripping book, the whole woven into a fast-paced sci-fi / fantasy read that readers of both genres will enjoy. Rabia Gale's unique talent for writing very different, very plausible worlds and societies is guaranteed to keep you fascinated until the last page.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
December 25, 2012
There is a thing about this novella that tickled every fantasy nerve in my body. The setting, I can safely say, is unlike any I have seen, and I applaud the author for this awe-inspiring vision. She decided to set her novella in a civilization built on remnants of a giant dragon! Yes, you got that right. People are living in and on it (and living off it). At first it was hard to imagine and I struggled for the first dozen of pages simply because it is not something to visualize easily. But the author does a wonderful job building the world and everything comes naturally. I grew to love the dragon-and there's more left of it than you would think. I never experienced that with a book before. The setting becomes a character that I developed so much empathy for. Therefore, the ending made me all mushy and teary.
Rainbird was a lovable character. As the synopsis says, she is a half-breed, belonging exactly nowhere, and always on the run due to something that occurred during her childhood. I admired her deep loyalty and courage, and the connection that she made with the dragon.
This is a novella of around 31 000 words, and I can't help but wishing that it were longer (I wouldn't mind a trilogy, wink wink). I felt that some aspects weren't explored deeply enough. I would love to know more about the history, about Rainbird's childhood and especially about the Eirees who have an important role in the world that Rabia Gale builds, but there is little that we learn about them. Some characters who feature quite prominently in the story don't get a proper closure. While I was more than happy with how the author wraps up the story for Rainbird (leaving open great possibilities for a sequel), some aspects of the story felt unfinished.
I enjoyed the writing and the easy flow of the story. Rainbird reads almost like a fable with a simple, yet beautiful moral thread that unfolds slowly, unobtrusively and unpretentiously. The author impressed me with the worldbuilding. It's clear that Rabia Gale has an admirable capacity of imagination and is capable of writing mind-blowing fantasies. Have you ever wished you could hug an author simply for the way their mind works? Yeah, that.
(Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
Rainbird was a lovable character. As the synopsis says, she is a half-breed, belonging exactly nowhere, and always on the run due to something that occurred during her childhood. I admired her deep loyalty and courage, and the connection that she made with the dragon.
This is a novella of around 31 000 words, and I can't help but wishing that it were longer (I wouldn't mind a trilogy, wink wink). I felt that some aspects weren't explored deeply enough. I would love to know more about the history, about Rainbird's childhood and especially about the Eirees who have an important role in the world that Rabia Gale builds, but there is little that we learn about them. Some characters who feature quite prominently in the story don't get a proper closure. While I was more than happy with how the author wraps up the story for Rainbird (leaving open great possibilities for a sequel), some aspects of the story felt unfinished.
I enjoyed the writing and the easy flow of the story. Rainbird reads almost like a fable with a simple, yet beautiful moral thread that unfolds slowly, unobtrusively and unpretentiously. The author impressed me with the worldbuilding. It's clear that Rabia Gale has an admirable capacity of imagination and is capable of writing mind-blowing fantasies. Have you ever wished you could hug an author simply for the way their mind works? Yeah, that.
(Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.)
December 7, 2016
I've been meaning to read this forever, but it seemed like every time I started, something would distract me. I read the first page probably five separate times! Last night I sat down to read it in earnest and finally I made it past that first page and to the end!
Rainbird is a brilliant story set in a world that's completely foreign to our own. The way the author wove the description and vibrant phrases was amazing. Right from the start, the plot kicked off and cruised along at the perfect pace. Rainbird was easy to like and easy to cheer for.
There's not so much a main antagonist in here as much as the world itself is set against our girl! She's a half-breed, not loved by humans or eiree. She's a murderer, wanted for killing a brutal man who'd abused her and held her captive. She doesn't fit in anywhere and her world is in peril.
The only thing I thought could've used some improvement was the explanation of everything. As I said, this is a new world. I suspect it takes place in somewhere that's not-earth. So while there are humans, everything else is new and I don't feel like I fully grasped how things worked. Some things got trickled in throughout the story in a good way that fit, but there wasn't enough all-together to satisfy me and there are so many things I didn't understand as soon as I would've liked or to the detail I would've liked.
It's a bit . . . not disturbing, but Rainbird and most/all humans live in a dragon skeleton!! It's kind of like ewww, and shivery inducing. I like how the author never forgot the environment and there's lots of details worked in to remind the reader that this does take place in or on a dragon skeleton.
I had noooo idea how this was going to end and though the big moment right before the end I expected, the rest surprised me. I won't give it away, but I felt the ending was fitting and was perfect for the tone of the story and in retrospect, I can't imagine a better ending for it.
I'd love to read more of this world, but I did get a final feeling at the end and I suspect that this is the last I'll see of Rainbird's world. And in a lot of way, that feels right too.
Rainbird is a brilliant story set in a world that's completely foreign to our own. The way the author wove the description and vibrant phrases was amazing. Right from the start, the plot kicked off and cruised along at the perfect pace. Rainbird was easy to like and easy to cheer for.
There's not so much a main antagonist in here as much as the world itself is set against our girl! She's a half-breed, not loved by humans or eiree. She's a murderer, wanted for killing a brutal man who'd abused her and held her captive. She doesn't fit in anywhere and her world is in peril.
The only thing I thought could've used some improvement was the explanation of everything. As I said, this is a new world. I suspect it takes place in somewhere that's not-earth. So while there are humans, everything else is new and I don't feel like I fully grasped how things worked. Some things got trickled in throughout the story in a good way that fit, but there wasn't enough all-together to satisfy me and there are so many things I didn't understand as soon as I would've liked or to the detail I would've liked.
It's a bit . . . not disturbing, but Rainbird and most/all humans live in a dragon skeleton!! It's kind of like ewww, and shivery inducing. I like how the author never forgot the environment and there's lots of details worked in to remind the reader that this does take place in or on a dragon skeleton.
I had noooo idea how this was going to end and though the big moment right before the end I expected, the rest surprised me. I won't give it away, but I felt the ending was fitting and was perfect for the tone of the story and in retrospect, I can't imagine a better ending for it.
I'd love to read more of this world, but I did get a final feeling at the end and I suspect that this is the last I'll see of Rainbird's world. And in a lot of way, that feels right too.
October 18, 2012
This short novel is very well-written and immersive; I finished it in one sitting, unable to put it down until I had found out how her tale ended. The world-building is first-rate, a truly unique construction that is both surprising and believable, and the character of Rainbird is quirky, real and not too perfect. I am very much looking forward to Rabia's next one...and perhaps hoping for a prequel someday, as I would dearly love to know more about the main character's history. I don't want to give away any spoilers, just read it and see. :) I loved it.
June 17, 2013
Rabia Gale has created a world that teeters between beautiful and horrifying, with Rainbird the half-breed that balances between both realms. Swaying your emotions so that in a few short chapters, you’re invested in Rainbird’s survival as much as the character herself.
November 11, 2021
A melancholy and bittersweet little tale that resists the easy story beats. The real achievement here is the unique world building, supporting the opening vision of our MC dancing in the starlight atop a continent sized dragon's skeleton with a rationally worked out technical and social setting. I could imagine Terry Gilliam making this work, but not many others.
December 31, 2012
I was requested to review this novella by a friend of the author’s and given a free copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
Review:
I had never heard of the author before, and though the synopsis intrigued me I didn’t really know what to expect. However, I was quickly drawn into the story by Rabia Gale’s wonderful, sometimes lyrical writing style. The novella is fairly short at 94 pages and I would have read it all in one sitting if real life hadn’t always interrupted – it was hard to put down so I could catch sleep!
The world the author creates is truly unlike anything I’ve ever read, and I think that these days that says a lot! Rabia Gale created a whole microcosm with its own supernatural species (none of which you’ll know from other novels) and even flora and mythology, and she manages to do so without info-dumping the reader. There is enough information to follow the plot but you need to pay attention and puzzle things together on your own as well. At the very beginning I was a bit confused but I caught on fairly quickly.
Rainbird is a half-breed, part human and part eiree. The eiree are a race of beings who live on the sunway. What is the sunway, you might ask? Basically, it’s the bone-arch of the spine of a huge dragon who (supposedly) died ages ago. It serves as a sort of rail for the cycle of the sun as it travels around the earth. Rainbird lives there with her father, who is employed as one of many inspectors of the sunway, making sure there are no problems with the bone and that everything is in order generally. There is a huge support system in the interior of the dragon’s spine, and different areas serve different purposes. Everyone has their place – apart from Rainbird. No one must know that she is half eiree, that’s why she has to hide her crippled wings under a trenchcoat. She is not allowed on the Wing, where the eiree live, and she is not allowed downside with the humans either.
When Rainbird and her father discover a conspiracy and when a violent event in Rainbird’s past is revealed, they have to fight for both their lives as well as the continued existence of the entire sunway. There are several subgroups with conflicting interests in the sunway, and our heroine gets stuck right in the middle. I’d love to go more into detail but that would be too spoilery, and I wouldn’t want to take away the pleasure there is in getting to know this world on one’s own from future readers. The novella is fairly fast-paced, with both plenty of action as well as slower, beautifully lyrical descriptive passages, and the ending ties up nicely.
I really liked Rainbird. She was quick-witted, resilient, strong. She did what had to be done, and she was extremely protective of her father. Even when her situation seemed hopeless, she never gave up. I really enjoyed watching her grow and try to carve out a space for herself and figure out who she really is. The novel is told in the third person and mostly from her point of view, but sometimes the perspective shifts to her father and I liked these glimpses of his mind; it explained some of the things he did in the past and added another layer to Rainbird’s sometimes limited knowledge.
My only complaint is that the story was almost too short! There was so much world building, it almost felt like a bit too much content stuffed into too small a form. I would have loved to explore this world in a little more detail and get to know the characters yet better. If Rabia Gale ever writes another story or maybe a full-length novel set in this world, I’ll definitely read it! Her writing style painted a really vivid picture of everything for me and I’ll make sure to keep an eye out for her work in the future.
Review:
I had never heard of the author before, and though the synopsis intrigued me I didn’t really know what to expect. However, I was quickly drawn into the story by Rabia Gale’s wonderful, sometimes lyrical writing style. The novella is fairly short at 94 pages and I would have read it all in one sitting if real life hadn’t always interrupted – it was hard to put down so I could catch sleep!
The world the author creates is truly unlike anything I’ve ever read, and I think that these days that says a lot! Rabia Gale created a whole microcosm with its own supernatural species (none of which you’ll know from other novels) and even flora and mythology, and she manages to do so without info-dumping the reader. There is enough information to follow the plot but you need to pay attention and puzzle things together on your own as well. At the very beginning I was a bit confused but I caught on fairly quickly.
Rainbird is a half-breed, part human and part eiree. The eiree are a race of beings who live on the sunway. What is the sunway, you might ask? Basically, it’s the bone-arch of the spine of a huge dragon who (supposedly) died ages ago. It serves as a sort of rail for the cycle of the sun as it travels around the earth. Rainbird lives there with her father, who is employed as one of many inspectors of the sunway, making sure there are no problems with the bone and that everything is in order generally. There is a huge support system in the interior of the dragon’s spine, and different areas serve different purposes. Everyone has their place – apart from Rainbird. No one must know that she is half eiree, that’s why she has to hide her crippled wings under a trenchcoat. She is not allowed on the Wing, where the eiree live, and she is not allowed downside with the humans either.
When Rainbird and her father discover a conspiracy and when a violent event in Rainbird’s past is revealed, they have to fight for both their lives as well as the continued existence of the entire sunway. There are several subgroups with conflicting interests in the sunway, and our heroine gets stuck right in the middle. I’d love to go more into detail but that would be too spoilery, and I wouldn’t want to take away the pleasure there is in getting to know this world on one’s own from future readers. The novella is fairly fast-paced, with both plenty of action as well as slower, beautifully lyrical descriptive passages, and the ending ties up nicely.
I really liked Rainbird. She was quick-witted, resilient, strong. She did what had to be done, and she was extremely protective of her father. Even when her situation seemed hopeless, she never gave up. I really enjoyed watching her grow and try to carve out a space for herself and figure out who she really is. The novel is told in the third person and mostly from her point of view, but sometimes the perspective shifts to her father and I liked these glimpses of his mind; it explained some of the things he did in the past and added another layer to Rainbird’s sometimes limited knowledge.
My only complaint is that the story was almost too short! There was so much world building, it almost felt like a bit too much content stuffed into too small a form. I would have loved to explore this world in a little more detail and get to know the characters yet better. If Rabia Gale ever writes another story or maybe a full-length novel set in this world, I’ll definitely read it! Her writing style painted a really vivid picture of everything for me and I’ll make sure to keep an eye out for her work in the future.
April 5, 2013
When I first started reading this book I felt a bit confused and lost. I hadn't read the description in awhile so I went in with absolutely no clue. I wasn't sure if Rainbird was an angel, if this was a fantasy or urban fantasy, or what. And I think I was confused for a good 10% of the beginning and then as it goes on and the world is slowly revealed through Rainbird's eyes I found that this is a very unique and fantastic world. It's definitely fantasy (not urban fantasy) and is kind of a difficult thing to explain. And while I feel like I have a decent picture in my head of the world I'm not sure I fully understand it. But I still really really enjoyed the book.
This book takes place on a dragon. How I understand it is the dragon is dead (or least mostly so) and the humans live below in a city and the dragons spine is the thing that holds the sun up (sunway). I know that's not accurate, but it's something like that. And Rainbird works on this spine keeping it in working order with her father. But Rainbird is not completely human. She is a halfbreed. And so she's not fully accepted by humans or by her Eiree family. But her father accepts her and loves her but he's in bad shape with a horrible cough that has come about from so many years working on the sunway. The air is not meant for humans that high up.
I really enjoyed Rainbird and her bravery. She was willing to sacrifice herself to save her father. She just wanted him to be healthy again. But people are after her because they think she did some bad things and it's put her father in danger. So she has to try to save him and reveal that someone else is the bad guy, not her. I felt bad that so many were against her and she really had no one on her side.
I think the best and the worst part of the book is the world. I think it's a brilliant idea and in many ways I feel like the author did a brilliant job of explaining it. But in other ways I still feel clueless about how it all works. It's just a bit complicated and in 94 pages we're not going to see everything completely. I want to know how and why this dragon became their world. I want to know how the people beneath live, is it a city inside the dragon, or beside the dragon? Those are just a few of the questions I have.
While the book is short at 94 pages, other than the world building, I felt like it was a full length novel. We get to know Rainbird very well and the plot plays out long enough I never felt cheated. The end was a bit different, and I honestly am not sure how I feel about it. I hope that the author decides to expand on Rainbirds story and the world and we get another book or two so we can see and understand it all more fully.
In the end I was very impressed with the book. The editing was done very well and it was well written. While it's an Indie book I would say it's as well done as any traditionally published novel. If you enjoy fantasy and are always looking for something different, something unique, I definitely urge you to give this one a shot.
You can find this review, and others like it, on my blog at http://www.candacesbookblog.com
This book takes place on a dragon. How I understand it is the dragon is dead (or least mostly so) and the humans live below in a city and the dragons spine is the thing that holds the sun up (sunway). I know that's not accurate, but it's something like that. And Rainbird works on this spine keeping it in working order with her father. But Rainbird is not completely human. She is a halfbreed. And so she's not fully accepted by humans or by her Eiree family. But her father accepts her and loves her but he's in bad shape with a horrible cough that has come about from so many years working on the sunway. The air is not meant for humans that high up.
I really enjoyed Rainbird and her bravery. She was willing to sacrifice herself to save her father. She just wanted him to be healthy again. But people are after her because they think she did some bad things and it's put her father in danger. So she has to try to save him and reveal that someone else is the bad guy, not her. I felt bad that so many were against her and she really had no one on her side.
I think the best and the worst part of the book is the world. I think it's a brilliant idea and in many ways I feel like the author did a brilliant job of explaining it. But in other ways I still feel clueless about how it all works. It's just a bit complicated and in 94 pages we're not going to see everything completely. I want to know how and why this dragon became their world. I want to know how the people beneath live, is it a city inside the dragon, or beside the dragon? Those are just a few of the questions I have.
While the book is short at 94 pages, other than the world building, I felt like it was a full length novel. We get to know Rainbird very well and the plot plays out long enough I never felt cheated. The end was a bit different, and I honestly am not sure how I feel about it. I hope that the author decides to expand on Rainbirds story and the world and we get another book or two so we can see and understand it all more fully.
In the end I was very impressed with the book. The editing was done very well and it was well written. While it's an Indie book I would say it's as well done as any traditionally published novel. If you enjoy fantasy and are always looking for something different, something unique, I definitely urge you to give this one a shot.
You can find this review, and others like it, on my blog at http://www.candacesbookblog.com
March 31, 2013
Review Posted on Reading Lark 2/4/13: http://readinglark.blogspot.com/2013/...
I was pulled in by the cover of this one. I'll admit it. Once I got over the pretty factor, I did take the time to read the summary and it sounded intriguing so I decided to give this one a shot even though it seemed a bit outside of the typical fantasy novels I enjoy.
Lurking within these pages is an imaginative world where humans are not the only species. The world as we know it is gone and everyone lives on the bones of a giant dragon. Rainbird, the main character, is a teen girl who doesn't fit in anywhere. The humans don't want her around because she's part Eerie; the Eerie don't want her around because she's part human. Rainbird keeps herself content by dancing along the Sunway - the only place where she can be herself without judgment. Her father, a human, does his best to keep discrimination at bay, but he can't always protect Rainbird. He encourages her to blend in and keep her true identity a secret. Rainbird wants to be free to be herself, but in her world, that could mean the end of everything. I found myself drawn to the issues of discrimination that permeated this world.
I loved Rainbird and her spirit, but I did have a difficult time getting into this one. The action begins from sentence one and I found myself in a world that was hard to visualize. There is very little explanation in the beginning. I had to piece together what this world looked like and how society was structured with very little guidance. As the story progresses, bits and pieces of information are delivered to help paint a better mental picture, but it still took a lot of work on my part. I also wasn't able to clearly visualize the different races at first. There is so much creativity and potential in this world. I just wish the author had helped me understand what was going on before she shoved me into the action. Complex, new worlds need world building to happen sooner rather than later - especially for readers like me who are stepping outside of their reading comfort zone. I felt disoriented until the world building picked up steam.
Fans of fantasy and science fiction should certainly spend some time with Rainbird. Gale's writing is strong and this world offers something fresh and innovative. It was completely different than anything I had ever read before.
One Last Gripe: I had to reread passages frequently to really understand what was happening. Again, I believe this was because I had trouble visualizing.
My Favorite Thing About The Book: The structure of this society
First Sentence: Rainbird danced on the Sunway to the singing of uncountable stars, music that only she could hear.
I was pulled in by the cover of this one. I'll admit it. Once I got over the pretty factor, I did take the time to read the summary and it sounded intriguing so I decided to give this one a shot even though it seemed a bit outside of the typical fantasy novels I enjoy.
Lurking within these pages is an imaginative world where humans are not the only species. The world as we know it is gone and everyone lives on the bones of a giant dragon. Rainbird, the main character, is a teen girl who doesn't fit in anywhere. The humans don't want her around because she's part Eerie; the Eerie don't want her around because she's part human. Rainbird keeps herself content by dancing along the Sunway - the only place where she can be herself without judgment. Her father, a human, does his best to keep discrimination at bay, but he can't always protect Rainbird. He encourages her to blend in and keep her true identity a secret. Rainbird wants to be free to be herself, but in her world, that could mean the end of everything. I found myself drawn to the issues of discrimination that permeated this world.
I loved Rainbird and her spirit, but I did have a difficult time getting into this one. The action begins from sentence one and I found myself in a world that was hard to visualize. There is very little explanation in the beginning. I had to piece together what this world looked like and how society was structured with very little guidance. As the story progresses, bits and pieces of information are delivered to help paint a better mental picture, but it still took a lot of work on my part. I also wasn't able to clearly visualize the different races at first. There is so much creativity and potential in this world. I just wish the author had helped me understand what was going on before she shoved me into the action. Complex, new worlds need world building to happen sooner rather than later - especially for readers like me who are stepping outside of their reading comfort zone. I felt disoriented until the world building picked up steam.
Fans of fantasy and science fiction should certainly spend some time with Rainbird. Gale's writing is strong and this world offers something fresh and innovative. It was completely different than anything I had ever read before.
One Last Gripe: I had to reread passages frequently to really understand what was happening. Again, I believe this was because I had trouble visualizing.
My Favorite Thing About The Book: The structure of this society
First Sentence: Rainbird danced on the Sunway to the singing of uncountable stars, music that only she could hear.
December 30, 2012
Rainbird is a novella from Rabia Gale, a self published author who I managed to quite fortunately stumble across earlier this year.
Rainbird is also the name of our half breed protagonist Part Eerie part human she is seen as a lesser being in both societies.
She works with her human father, helping maintain the Sunway, an amalgam of wires, conduit and metal bolted to the great skeleton of a long dead dragon.
The setting, for such a short piece is stunningly original and vivid. I want to say it has elements of steampunk in the description of the mechanics of the Sunway, in the description of the clothes and the attitudes of the Morality League. That doesn’t quite do it justice though. It would be too easy for you to go “pfft more steampunk” and roll your eyes.
That would be an injustice, for I think Rabia Gale has crafted a world that has echoes of several sub genres and seamlessly woven them together. Rainbird leaves me wanting more of the world that Rabia has created – a feature rarely experienced in reading self published work and not as common as you would like to experience in traditional publishing either.
To top it off this well sketched work has a nice little engine of an action story powering it.
It’s a truly original tale of action, love and redemption.
At $2.99 it’s well worth it.
This book was provided by the author.
Rainbird is also the name of our half breed protagonist Part Eerie part human she is seen as a lesser being in both societies.
She works with her human father, helping maintain the Sunway, an amalgam of wires, conduit and metal bolted to the great skeleton of a long dead dragon.
Rainbird danced on the sunway to the singing of uncountable stars, music that only she could hear. Her trench coat, too large and shabby, smelling of cigar smoke and mothballs, flapped around her.
Under the thick third hand fabric, her wings whispered, satin-starch-slither. Her long-toed bare feet skimmed the bumpy bone of the sunway, worn smooth and glittering by centuries of inspection. Her oversized lungs pulled in the thin cold air.
The setting, for such a short piece is stunningly original and vivid. I want to say it has elements of steampunk in the description of the mechanics of the Sunway, in the description of the clothes and the attitudes of the Morality League. That doesn’t quite do it justice though. It would be too easy for you to go “pfft more steampunk” and roll your eyes.
That would be an injustice, for I think Rabia Gale has crafted a world that has echoes of several sub genres and seamlessly woven them together. Rainbird leaves me wanting more of the world that Rabia has created – a feature rarely experienced in reading self published work and not as common as you would like to experience in traditional publishing either.
To top it off this well sketched work has a nice little engine of an action story powering it.
It’s a truly original tale of action, love and redemption.
At $2.99 it’s well worth it.
This book was provided by the author.
August 13, 2013
This was incredibly good. It's no easy feat to create a whole new world in a novelette, but Rabia Gale managed to do that without ever getting boring.
The story is set on, in and around the backbone of a long dead dragon. Humans use it to move their sun (which is actually the dragon's eye) over the populated earth below. There's no sun like we know anywhere around, but distant stars sing their songs. I suspect they're probably more dragons, but nothing was revealed about them (although some hints were placed into the story setting this up as the first in a series -- I hope!). The main character is half human, half bird-person. The family on her mother's side is never described in great detail but it's clear they're more bird than anyhtign else.
I loved the way everything seemed to crumble around Rainbird. Whenever she thought of a way out of her predicament, it got worse. The story was so fast paced, I couldn't set it aside regardless how tired I was. Very well done, and highly recommended.
The story is set on, in and around the backbone of a long dead dragon. Humans use it to move their sun (which is actually the dragon's eye) over the populated earth below. There's no sun like we know anywhere around, but distant stars sing their songs. I suspect they're probably more dragons, but nothing was revealed about them (although some hints were placed into the story setting this up as the first in a series -- I hope!). The main character is half human, half bird-person. The family on her mother's side is never described in great detail but it's clear they're more bird than anyhtign else.
I loved the way everything seemed to crumble around Rainbird. Whenever she thought of a way out of her predicament, it got worse. The story was so fast paced, I couldn't set it aside regardless how tired I was. Very well done, and highly recommended.
October 30, 2012
Gale once again demonstrates a fantastic facility with words in her science-fantasy tale, "Rainbird." The story of a complex girl's transition from abusive childhood to a challenging but hopeful adulthood through a cynical-but-loving adolescence is gripping, believable, and beautiful. Gale demonstrates a powerful and compelling fusion of "science" and "magic," though both words are misnomers in Gale's story. Not a patchwork setting, like much of steampunk, nor space opera, Gale breaks with common wall between technology and transcendence, capturing attention and heart with a rich imagination. A sequel, or two, is called for!
May 23, 2013
This book was very good. It's very different in many, many aspects. In the beginning I didn't much understand what was going on, I was confused being suddenly plunged into this unknown and not yet explained society. And you want to know what's going on because everyone is so surprised with what's happening and it's all such a big deal that you just forge on reading hoping it'll be cool and awesome and to understand better. And you do. And it was so magical and adventurous. I definitely enjoyed it a lot.
January 4, 2016
The highlight of this book is the hugely innovative world, where civilisation is built around a decaying dragon skeleton, fashioned by technologists to provide the heat and light of the Day Sun. Rainbird is a mechanic, operating repairs on the sunway, and trying to keep her true identity under wraps. Genuinely original fantasy.
Full review: http://strangecharmbooks.co.uk/2015/1...
Full review: http://strangecharmbooks.co.uk/2015/1...
February 27, 2016
Captivating and Poignant
Gale does a fabulous job creating complex and interesting worlds. She has an amazing imagination and I enjoy every moment she shares with us. The story is short but face paced. The ending, unexpected. This is a wonderful little read and you won't be disappointed.
Gale does a fabulous job creating complex and interesting worlds. She has an amazing imagination and I enjoy every moment she shares with us. The story is short but face paced. The ending, unexpected. This is a wonderful little read and you won't be disappointed.
October 31, 2015
This book seriously needs a sequel. It was everything I hoped for when I read the summary--a roller coaster ride through a strange world of humans, eiree, other strange creatures, and an immense dragon carcass.
Is there more? I want more!
Is there more? I want more!
November 3, 2012
It started slowly for me because I had orient myself to the world, but I was riveted to Rainbird's journey for most of the novella.
November 23, 2012
For me the world was difficult to get into. I was confused to much of the time to truly enjoy this one.
March 20, 2013
I literally could not put it down once I started. The world building is amazing and the characters draw you in so well.
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