Seaborn

Masters of the Elements #3

by S.A. Bolich

Nes Riverborn of the Water Clans has her people's inborn magic in huge measure--but her Da refuses to train her and all of her instinctive control over tricksy, elemental Water comes down to stubbornness and good luck. So when the River Melth in fury flings a devastating flash flood at the town of Southbridge, Nes finds herself not only separated from her ship, but swept away on a quest to discover the source of the river's distress. For an untrained young woman who has scarcely set foot ashore in her life, traveling with an exotic company of talented strangers is less a source of wonder than of daily embarrassment as she runs up hard against all the things she doesn't know.

Alternately humiliated, angry, frightened, over-confident, and confused by her feelings for a man not of her clan, Nes struggles to bring her talent to bear on a mystery that could overwhelm her whole world. If Water herself has chosen to join her rebellious siblings Wind and Fire in attacking Earth Mother...where in Metrenna will there be anywhere left for mortals to stand?

336 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 24, 2013

About the author

S. A. Bolich is a fulltime freelancer with a number of published fantasy stories as well as many nonfiction articles in print and on the web, covering a wide variety of subjects from horsemanship to travel (usually with an historical slant) to the state of Flash web design. A native of Washington state, she resides there again after serving six years in Germany as a regular army military intelligence officer. She graduated summa cum laude from college with a degree in history, which she confesses was greatly aided by devouring historical fiction of every era and kind through her formative years.

Since then she has taught web design, trained horses, spent a few hectic and thoroughly enjoyable years volunteering with the United States Pony Clubs (kids and horses, oh, my!), worked in global marketing and project management, and finally managed a long-overdue escape from corporate world to write.

Her first published short story earned an honorable mention in The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror; other stories have earned honorable mentions from Writers of the Future and 5th place in the Preditors and Editors online poll for best fantasy short (2009). Her first novel, Firedancer, appeared in September 2011.

She is currently working on the sequel to Firedancer, "Windrider."

You can find some of her previous work in:

Beneath Ceaseless Skies (December 2009)

Defending the Future IV: No Man's Land

Wolfsongs 2

On Spec (Fall 2010)

On Spec (Summer 2002)

Science Fiction Trails (March 2009)
Damnation Books (September 2009, a short published as an e-book)

Reviews

[Eden Colenca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wonder why Goodreads doesn't have the actual cover of this book up. Too bad,as it makes it look like some self-published thing, which it's not. It's the third book in a series I am finding hugely enjoyable. These books are about as far from traditional fantasy tropes as you can get, which makes them very fun. The author takes kind of a big chance each time by using a different main character, but it works. Each book is about a different clan, and since the clans have different talents for Fire and Wind and Water, each book needs new eyes to see through. I really like this one, which is pretty close to YA but don't let that stop you. The protagonist is young (22) but acts younger because she's never been off her family's ship in her life. Her family problems will look familiar to a lot of teens, but let's hope they don't have to resort to her solution to grow up! It's a big of a love story but not a romance, and the heroine is rather endearing in her insecurity despite the hugeness of her talent. We've all been at that awkward stage of feeling like the village idiot in new circumstances, and Bolich captures that very well. We want to cheer for Nes when she finally gets her act together.

This book starts a couple of months after the conclusion of the action in "Windrider", the second book in the series and comes as a direct consequence of the climax of that book. I won't spoil it but let's just say it's a logical set of circumstances. This author is very good at drawing a compelling, lived-in world where things happen for good reasons instead of just because the author needs them to. I especially like the fact that she makes me want to go stroll in the park afterward to pick up on all the sounds and smells and tastes of nature she manages to capture through the eyes of each of her protagonists. After reading the last one I sat out on my balcony and just listened to the wind. Now I will have to go listen to the rain and walk down by the river to hear all the voices of Water.

Man, I love it when an author leaves me wanting more! Go read this series. This is a great book, and one you can safely read to your kids.

[Esther Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

I feel as if I was carried on a wave of adventure and excitement with Nes as she journeyed with Jetta, Settak, Sheshan, and the others. This book was just as good as the first two, and now I cannot wait to read the fourth in the series.

The world S. A. Bolich has created is so rich and complex, and we learn of it slowly as the series progresses. Seaborn gives us insight into the fascinating world of the Water folk, and a few glimpses of the abilities of the Delvers. The romance here nearly felt tacked on, but I like it anyway. Finally, Settak gets a life partner.

I highly recommend this book (and the whole series) to everyone who reads fantasy. It's simply amazing.

[Tirzah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't particularly care for Nes. I much prefer Jetta and Shan. That being said, I thought the story was interesting and well written. Looking forward to Delver!