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The Annual Migration of Clouds #3
The First Thousand Trees
Henryk Mandrusiak, finding nothing left for him in his community following his best friend Reid's departure, travels through the devastated land in search of a new place to call home.
"One of the most unique and engaging voices in genre fiction." -- Booklist
"In this rich and nuanced universe, Mohamed offers an emotionally fierce and human story that takes the time and space to personalize apocalypse." -- Quill & Quire, starred review
After making a grievous mistake that ended in death, Henryk Mandrusiak feels increasingly ostracized within his own community, and after the passing on of his parents and the departure of his best friend, Reid, there is little left to tie him to the place he calls home. Henryk does something he never expected: he sets out into the harsh wilds alone, in search of far-flung family. He finds his uncle's village, but making a life for himself in this unfriendly new place -- rougher and more impoverished than the campus where he grew up -- isn't easy. Henryk strives to carve out a place of his own but learns that some corners of his broken world are darker than he could have imagined.
This stunning novella concludes the story Mohamed started in The Annual Migration of Clouds and continued in We Speak Through the Mountain, bleaker than ever but still in search of a spark of hope in the climate apocalypse.
"One of the most unique and engaging voices in genre fiction." -- Booklist
"In this rich and nuanced universe, Mohamed offers an emotionally fierce and human story that takes the time and space to personalize apocalypse." -- Quill & Quire, starred review
After making a grievous mistake that ended in death, Henryk Mandrusiak feels increasingly ostracized within his own community, and after the passing on of his parents and the departure of his best friend, Reid, there is little left to tie him to the place he calls home. Henryk does something he never expected: he sets out into the harsh wilds alone, in search of far-flung family. He finds his uncle's village, but making a life for himself in this unfriendly new place -- rougher and more impoverished than the campus where he grew up -- isn't easy. Henryk strives to carve out a place of his own but learns that some corners of his broken world are darker than he could have imagined.
This stunning novella concludes the story Mohamed started in The Annual Migration of Clouds and continued in We Speak Through the Mountain, bleaker than ever but still in search of a spark of hope in the climate apocalypse.
148 pages, Paperback
First published September 30, 2025
16 people are currently reading
490 people want to read
About the author
Premee Mohamed
82 books765 followersPremee Mohamed is a Nebula award-winning Indo-Caribbean scientist and speculative fiction author based in Edmonton, Alberta. She is an Assistant Editor at the short fiction audio venue Escape Pod and the author of the 'Beneath the Rising' series of novels as well as several novellas. Her short fiction has appeared in many venues and she can be found on Twitter at @premeesaurus and on her website at www.premeemohamed.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
October 6, 2025
This series is great but this final installment wasn't what I was expecting. We go back to follow Henryck, a side character from the the beginning of the first novella. After being shunned by his community he ventures to find a new place and encounters a much rougher way of life than he has experienced previously. Through the course of the novella he changes. This is a great, beautifully told dystopian sci-fi series that explores different modes of human survival and attempts to adapt to horrific circumstances. I received a copy of this book for review via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.
September 21, 2025
I love Premee Mohamed’s body of work, and I’ve enjoyed everything of hers that I’ve read. “The Butcher of the Forest” remains one of my all-time favorite novellas.
This particular novella centers on Henryk, Reid’s best friend, and his journey to find himself in the wake of Reid leaving. He has always felt like a square peg in a round hole, and Henryk thinks that perhaps he can start over in his uncle’s town/village. I feel for Henryk…it honestly sounds like he’s on the spectrum in some way, and we just think and act differently than neurotypical people. We often wonder what we’re doing wrong but are unable to figure out how to NOT do the things that make us “weird” to others. Henryk is constantly apologizing to others and assuming that everything is his fault.
A lot of the story centers on his progress (or lack thereof—you decide) in identifying and managing his strengths and weaknesses, and I think there are some good lessons in there regarding self worth and self-sufficiency. I personally think Henryk is doing a lot better than a lot of others would in a post-apocalyptic world—and I very much am including myself in the latter group!
This trilogy of novellas is well-worth your time, and they don’t actually take much time to read. Also, and I consider this a huge bonus, you’re likely to learn at least one new word. Mohamed is very intelligent, and she threw some words in there that I’d never heard of before, which is rare for me because I read so much. I’m always down to expand my vocabulary!
Thank you to NetGalley and ECW Press for the advance copy! I’m writing this review entirely voluntarily.
This particular novella centers on Henryk, Reid’s best friend, and his journey to find himself in the wake of Reid leaving. He has always felt like a square peg in a round hole, and Henryk thinks that perhaps he can start over in his uncle’s town/village. I feel for Henryk…it honestly sounds like he’s on the spectrum in some way, and we just think and act differently than neurotypical people. We often wonder what we’re doing wrong but are unable to figure out how to NOT do the things that make us “weird” to others. Henryk is constantly apologizing to others and assuming that everything is his fault.
A lot of the story centers on his progress (or lack thereof—you decide) in identifying and managing his strengths and weaknesses, and I think there are some good lessons in there regarding self worth and self-sufficiency. I personally think Henryk is doing a lot better than a lot of others would in a post-apocalyptic world—and I very much am including myself in the latter group!
This trilogy of novellas is well-worth your time, and they don’t actually take much time to read. Also, and I consider this a huge bonus, you’re likely to learn at least one new word. Mohamed is very intelligent, and she threw some words in there that I’d never heard of before, which is rare for me because I read so much. I’m always down to expand my vocabulary!
Thank you to NetGalley and ECW Press for the advance copy! I’m writing this review entirely voluntarily.
December 28, 2025
This was an interesting close to the trilogy. This was definitely a coming of age story for both Reid and Henryk, as they went their separate ways to figure out their place in the world. And it turns out, they will have to make it.
November 4, 2025
Premee Mohamed's writing is as brilliant and competent as ever. But not gonna lie, this one took me awhile to get through because it is bleak.
As relatable as I find the anxious bean that is Henryk, it's also very difficult to be in his head for long periods of time as he spirals and spirals. And while the series's hope for the future is definitely still alight at the end, the journey to get there in this novella is quite long.
This novella is full of action throughout and maintains a fast pace. If there's a discussion it's normally about something monumental like life and death, as these characters are always on the move and Henryk is always reacting to a recent sequence of events.
So overall this novella feels tonally very different from its two predecessors, almost switches genres to more of a Walking Dead style apocalypse of survival and communities, and has a very different protagonist with very different thoughts to be in. I think you can probably stick to just the first two books if you'd like, but I do feel like this final installment nicely rounds out some experiences and ultimately has a lot to contribute to the characters' final conclusion.
Does the dog die?:
Thank you to ECW Press and NetGalley for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
As relatable as I find the anxious bean that is Henryk, it's also very difficult to be in his head for long periods of time as he spirals and spirals. And while the series's hope for the future is definitely still alight at the end, the journey to get there in this novella is quite long.
This novella is full of action throughout and maintains a fast pace. If there's a discussion it's normally about something monumental like life and death, as these characters are always on the move and Henryk is always reacting to a recent sequence of events.
So overall this novella feels tonally very different from its two predecessors, almost switches genres to more of a Walking Dead style apocalypse of survival and communities, and has a very different protagonist with very different thoughts to be in. I think you can probably stick to just the first two books if you'd like, but I do feel like this final installment nicely rounds out some experiences and ultimately has a lot to contribute to the characters' final conclusion.
Does the dog die?:
Thank you to ECW Press and NetGalley for the ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
October 2, 2025
The story wasn't my favorite in the series but I did enjoy the atmospheric, dystopian forest setting. And thought the audio narration by Jamie Cavanagh & Eva Tavares was well done. Recommended for fans of books like The marrow thieves or Station Eleven. 10/10 for another fantastic cover illustration!!
August 9, 2025
In a surprising shift, the final installment of this fungal fiction, post-apocalyptic series centers not on Reid, but on Henryk. Left behind when Reid departs for Howse University, Henryk is adrift—isolated from the community, haunted by the guilt of the pig hunt gone wrong, and desperate for connection. He does the one thing he thought he would never do, and sets out on his own with a hand drawn map to visit his uncle Dex, his last surviving relative.
But Sprucedown offers little solace. Henryk’s awkward, anxious nature only deepens his sense of alienation, and his attempts to fit in seem to push others further away. That is, until a routine “fire drill” leaves him stranded in the woods—where he encounters a group of raiders with their sights set on breaking in.
Forget Cad, the fungal parasite embedded in most survivors. Forget Reid, the friend who once shielded him from bullies and chaos. If Henryk wants to survive, he’ll have to find the fight within himself.
Mohamed conjures a world that feels both refreshingly original and steeped in familiar post-apocalyptic resonance. There are shades of Earth Abides in its quiet devastation, and yes, the Walking Dead parallels surface—mostly in the bleak terrain and isolated communities—but trust me when I say... this series stands firmly on its own.
This is a story of outcasts carving out space in a fractured world. A story of rebuilding, even when redemption feels out of reach. And it brings this series to a satisfying, unexpectedly subtle close.
But Sprucedown offers little solace. Henryk’s awkward, anxious nature only deepens his sense of alienation, and his attempts to fit in seem to push others further away. That is, until a routine “fire drill” leaves him stranded in the woods—where he encounters a group of raiders with their sights set on breaking in.
Forget Cad, the fungal parasite embedded in most survivors. Forget Reid, the friend who once shielded him from bullies and chaos. If Henryk wants to survive, he’ll have to find the fight within himself.
Mohamed conjures a world that feels both refreshingly original and steeped in familiar post-apocalyptic resonance. There are shades of Earth Abides in its quiet devastation, and yes, the Walking Dead parallels surface—mostly in the bleak terrain and isolated communities—but trust me when I say... this series stands firmly on its own.
This is a story of outcasts carving out space in a fractured world. A story of rebuilding, even when redemption feels out of reach. And it brings this series to a satisfying, unexpectedly subtle close.
December 13, 2025
The First Thousand Trees is an excellent extension of the first two books, while offering a story that is very different in many ways because of how drastically different the protagonists are. Our previous protagonist is the one we all hope we can be. In many ways, Henryk is the protagonist we fear we are. He still has surprises in him though, and he's a good person at his core, so he's easy to empathise with. The First Thousand Trees also takes the focus off the illness in many ways, and shifts it to what it really means to be in community.
I listened to the audiobook which had a solid narration.
These books are great as a trilogy, but I like that it's open for more. I enjoyed reading this, and it's a world I would willingly revist. Recommended!
I listened to the audiobook which had a solid narration.
These books are great as a trilogy, but I like that it's open for more. I enjoyed reading this, and it's a world I would willingly revist. Recommended!
January 1, 2026
This is now the best written in the trilogy. It follows not Reid, but Henryk. A character who behaves as people I absolutely despise do. I also personally feel like he would have died long ago in a crumbled world like this. However, I must give credit to her for writing such an absolutely terrible person. The anger I feel towards people of Henryks type is genuine, such a useless person to society. No I dont think that was her intent either haha but there he is. I should add I find Reid bordering on marrysue territory, so she is also irritating at times. So it makes sense Henryk would be the way he is. Good end to this short series.
November 30, 2025
Such an interesting world Mohamed has created. I would love to read more and see what the characters do next!
January 3, 2026
I loved the first novella in this trilogy, and was holding out for a strong finish. But the writing in the second and third books felt less poetic and original, and there are so many loose ends. I feel like we didn’t ever get anywhere, and the grand message at the end isn’t really a solution to the climate crisis. I wanted more about Cad. I wanted accountability. I wanted the science. Henryk’s story is fine, but it was a deeply unsatisfying end to a trilogy that had so much promise.
October 6, 2025
Author Premee Mohamed expertly concludes her post-apocalyptic trilogy, by following Henryk, rather than Reid, in this last entry. After the disastrous boar hunt (in book one), Henryk feels very guilty, and though no one explicitly confronts him, he is quietly shunned by the people of the settlement. Already feeling alone without Reid, this only deepens his sense of isolation, and one early morning he walks away, heading to where his Uncle Dex had invited him.
Henryk arrives at Sprucedown after a long month of walking. He’s not greeted with open arms, as Sprucedown’s leader Beau, afraid he’s a raider (with which they regularly must repel), mistrusts him. But Uncle Dex vouches for the anxious Henryk, and much to Dane’s (Dex's adopted son) disgust, Henryk is taken in. But Henryk never really feels part of Sprucedown, despite pitching in to help with various jobs. Dane refuses to warm to Henryk, and even kindly, elderly Isabel tells him that everyone senses the young man has not been entirely truthful with them.
During a drill (Sprucedown does many for fear of incursions), Henryk is sent far enough off that he becomes lost and comes upon a girl by herself, seemingly on the run. Henryk, raised in a much more peaceable place, is easily duped and captured by raiders, and must, after a shocking moment, figure out how he wants to deal with the situation.
I was initially surprised that Mohamed would change narrators, but by doing this, she shows yet another response to the privation and dangers of people generations after a devastating war by moving Henryk to Sprucedown. This is a very different, more martial, but also incredibly, shockingly green and wooded place from his home.
Henryk is a gentle soul, bullied for years at home and protected by Reid. Without her, there’s no one to speak for him, and it’s incredibly sad that he was quietly, almost imperceptibly shunned for a mistake (that did result in grievous injury and death to others).
Henryk feels he might have a chance to make a new life in Sprucedown, but he’s still an anxious person eager to avoid conflict, who is not given to violence, and who is constantly blaming himself for every setback. But when things get really bad, Henryk finds he has a strength and determination he had not felt he had.
This is the concluding story in a trilogy about a world damaged irreparably by war, and with each settlement Mohamed has given us, we see people still clinging on or trying to recreate the world that is forever lost. And bleak as Mohamed's world is, there is hope, personified by the gorgeous letter Reid left for Henryk.
There is hope, there is the possibility of building new, and there is always redemption, in this future. I loved this trilogy, and though this is the close of this story, I will always be happy to read more of Mohamed's work, whether in this world or any other she creates.
Thank you to NetGalley and ECW Press for this ARC in exchange for my review.
Henryk arrives at Sprucedown after a long month of walking. He’s not greeted with open arms, as Sprucedown’s leader Beau, afraid he’s a raider (with which they regularly must repel), mistrusts him. But Uncle Dex vouches for the anxious Henryk, and much to Dane’s (Dex's adopted son) disgust, Henryk is taken in. But Henryk never really feels part of Sprucedown, despite pitching in to help with various jobs. Dane refuses to warm to Henryk, and even kindly, elderly Isabel tells him that everyone senses the young man has not been entirely truthful with them.
During a drill (Sprucedown does many for fear of incursions), Henryk is sent far enough off that he becomes lost and comes upon a girl by herself, seemingly on the run. Henryk, raised in a much more peaceable place, is easily duped and captured by raiders, and must, after a shocking moment, figure out how he wants to deal with the situation.
I was initially surprised that Mohamed would change narrators, but by doing this, she shows yet another response to the privation and dangers of people generations after a devastating war by moving Henryk to Sprucedown. This is a very different, more martial, but also incredibly, shockingly green and wooded place from his home.
Henryk is a gentle soul, bullied for years at home and protected by Reid. Without her, there’s no one to speak for him, and it’s incredibly sad that he was quietly, almost imperceptibly shunned for a mistake (that did result in grievous injury and death to others).
Henryk feels he might have a chance to make a new life in Sprucedown, but he’s still an anxious person eager to avoid conflict, who is not given to violence, and who is constantly blaming himself for every setback. But when things get really bad, Henryk finds he has a strength and determination he had not felt he had.
This is the concluding story in a trilogy about a world damaged irreparably by war, and with each settlement Mohamed has given us, we see people still clinging on or trying to recreate the world that is forever lost. And bleak as Mohamed's world is, there is hope, personified by the gorgeous letter Reid left for Henryk.
There is hope, there is the possibility of building new, and there is always redemption, in this future. I loved this trilogy, and though this is the close of this story, I will always be happy to read more of Mohamed's work, whether in this world or any other she creates.
Thank you to NetGalley and ECW Press for this ARC in exchange for my review.
January 10, 2026
✧˖°.˗ˏˋ THE FIRST THOUSANDS TREE'S ˊ˗˖°.✧
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Characters: ★★★☆☆
World Building: ★★★☆☆
Plot: ★★★☆☆
Tension: ★★★☆☆
Writing style: ★★★☆☆
Entertainment: ★★☆☆☆
Overall Score: ★ 2.9/5.0 ★ 6/10 ★
Up onto the last book of this trilogy (Hopefully? Maybe?) It is a bit of a snack in between larger reads... I might have not really focused on the details in this one, as we follow another character rather than the us familiar Main Character...
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
˗ˏˋ The Story ˊ˗
[ To Be Edited ]
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˗ˏˋ My Two Cents ˊ˗
[ To Be Edited ]
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- Series ☆ 2.7/5 ☆ -
[ The Annual Migration of Clouds ] ★ 4/5.0 ★ 8/10 ★
[ We Speak Through the Mountains ] ★ 3/5.0 ★ 6/10 ★
[ The First Thousand Trees ] ★ 2.9/5.0 ★ 6/10 ★
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"Not doing it seemed like a waste, you know? You look at the rest of this place - maybe the rest of the world - and we got this blessing and nobody looks at it and says, Hey, this is a blessing. All this water and suchlike"
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Characters: ★★★☆☆
World Building: ★★★☆☆
Plot: ★★★☆☆
Tension: ★★★☆☆
Writing style: ★★★☆☆
Entertainment: ★★☆☆☆
Overall Score: ★ 2.9/5.0 ★ 6/10 ★
Up onto the last book of this trilogy (Hopefully? Maybe?) It is a bit of a snack in between larger reads... I might have not really focused on the details in this one, as we follow another character rather than the us familiar Main Character...
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
˗ˏˋ The Story ˊ˗
[ To Be Edited ]
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
˗ˏˋ My Two Cents ˊ˗
[ To Be Edited ]
----- ----- ----- ----- -----
- Series ☆ 2.7/5 ☆ -
[ The Annual Migration of Clouds ] ★ 4/5.0 ★ 8/10 ★
[ We Speak Through the Mountains ] ★ 3/5.0 ★ 6/10 ★
[ The First Thousand Trees ] ★ 2.9/5.0 ★ 6/10 ★
July 16, 2025
I read this novella courtesy of NetGalley, but I loved it so much, I'll need to get it on paper.
These are absolute gems of novellas. In a post climate-disaster world, communities are rising and falling, sustaining and exploiting, and people live lives of desparation that isn't quiet, and dignity that is. They fail, and get up again.
The first novella takes a new perspective - while 1 and 2 followed Reid, a desparately brave young woman fighting to make her life better while coping with a disability that would one day brutally kill her, the third novella switches POV to her best friend, Henryk, the walking disaster. Henryk is the opposite of a fantasy of competence - he is afraid, and he doesn't trust in himself. He runs away. He's utterly relatable, and terribly smart, and for me, his perspective brought to mind nothing less than Marilynne Robinson's characters.
The voice is wonderful. The worldbuilding - well, it's simply great. The attention to detail. The loving care. I could have read another five hundred pages of this.
If this is not on all kinds of award shortlists, then I don't know what we're even doing in the sff reading world, because this is where it's at. These novellas are fresh, and literary, and gripping, and I want to force everyone to read them.
[The last sentence this time is not as perfect as in the previous volume, but in context, it comes close. It's beautiful, just not iconic.]
These are absolute gems of novellas. In a post climate-disaster world, communities are rising and falling, sustaining and exploiting, and people live lives of desparation that isn't quiet, and dignity that is. They fail, and get up again.
The first novella takes a new perspective - while 1 and 2 followed Reid, a desparately brave young woman fighting to make her life better while coping with a disability that would one day brutally kill her, the third novella switches POV to her best friend, Henryk, the walking disaster. Henryk is the opposite of a fantasy of competence - he is afraid, and he doesn't trust in himself. He runs away. He's utterly relatable, and terribly smart, and for me, his perspective brought to mind nothing less than Marilynne Robinson's characters.
The voice is wonderful. The worldbuilding - well, it's simply great. The attention to detail. The loving care. I could have read another five hundred pages of this.
If this is not on all kinds of award shortlists, then I don't know what we're even doing in the sff reading world, because this is where it's at. These novellas are fresh, and literary, and gripping, and I want to force everyone to read them.
[The last sentence this time is not as perfect as in the previous volume, but in context, it comes close. It's beautiful, just not iconic.]
October 6, 2025
Thank you to ECW Press and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not change my opinion in anyway.
The Annual Migration of Clouds is a novella trilogy in a dystopian setting. The First Thousand Trees wraps up this story. But instead of focusing on Reid, we get a story focused on Henryk.
Henryk was Reid's best friend. But after his cowardice got someone killed during a boar hunt, he feels that he doesn't have a place within the community anymore. As Reid left for her school, he leaves to find his uncle. Unfortunately this village is not at all what he was expecting it to be. Neither are the people.
While I wasn't initially really that interested in his story and I don't think it is entirely nessecary, it was still a solid story to read. We get an idea of how other parts are dealing with the fall out and how they have created their communities. There are other dangers out there than boars for them.
Henryk is just trying to find his way in the world, see if there is a place for him. But he just flaunders and makes mistake after mistake. Or so others feel. I just see someone who is learning. Who doesn't always get it right but he is trying. It is more of an introspective tale.
It is worth a read for sure.
The Annual Migration of Clouds is a novella trilogy in a dystopian setting. The First Thousand Trees wraps up this story. But instead of focusing on Reid, we get a story focused on Henryk.
Henryk was Reid's best friend. But after his cowardice got someone killed during a boar hunt, he feels that he doesn't have a place within the community anymore. As Reid left for her school, he leaves to find his uncle. Unfortunately this village is not at all what he was expecting it to be. Neither are the people.
While I wasn't initially really that interested in his story and I don't think it is entirely nessecary, it was still a solid story to read. We get an idea of how other parts are dealing with the fall out and how they have created their communities. There are other dangers out there than boars for them.
Henryk is just trying to find his way in the world, see if there is a place for him. But he just flaunders and makes mistake after mistake. Or so others feel. I just see someone who is learning. Who doesn't always get it right but he is trying. It is more of an introspective tale.
It is worth a read for sure.
July 1, 2025
It's great to see how Mohamed decided to wrap these characters' stories, while also exploring all the various ways that communities can go wrong, what regime change actually looks like (not great, but frankly, it's all you've got sometimes), and being able to bring a wrap to Reid's individual story. I ended up tearing through this, but that was mainly because Mohamed has become an author I will ready anything I can find from, and there are some absolutely stunning passages here around the feeling of the world falling apart around you. Absolutely pick this up this fall.
October 1, 2025
I would like to thank NetGalley and ECW Press for the eARC. I greatly appreciate it!
I’m so sad this is the last novella to this wonderful series. THE FIRST THOUSAND TREES is not a story about finding one’s home. It’s about learning that home isn’t a place—home is the people who love us, who fight for us, who are there for us. Through Henryk’s POV, we get an intimate portrayal of one’s battles with anxiety and self worth being overlooked in a world ravaged and wearied by a single disease. It was profoundly accurate.
I’m so sad this is the last novella to this wonderful series. THE FIRST THOUSAND TREES is not a story about finding one’s home. It’s about learning that home isn’t a place—home is the people who love us, who fight for us, who are there for us. Through Henryk’s POV, we get an intimate portrayal of one’s battles with anxiety and self worth being overlooked in a world ravaged and wearied by a single disease. It was profoundly accurate.
January 25, 2026
Henryk's point of view was brutal, but also horribly relatable. Although, while I did miss Reid at times, being in Henryk's head definitely introduced a necessary perspective and experience in this dystopian future. This novel felt somewhat more bleak than the previous two, but did offer moments of hopefulness and levity. As always, I was deeply interested in the themes and conversations Mohamed explored in this trilogy and I thought this conclusion was exactly what needed to happen to clarify those themes!
Highly recommend this whole trilogy for those interested in realistic dystopian.
Highly recommend this whole trilogy for those interested in realistic dystopian.
October 24, 2025
not gonna lie, I was disappointed to find out this book follows a different character than the first 2 did, and I think Reid is a much more interesting character than Henryk
this was a fine ending to the trilogy, but I think I wanted more from all 3 and the world of these books
this was a fine ending to the trilogy, but I think I wanted more from all 3 and the world of these books
January 3, 2026
This was so sad, not make you cry sad, but just tragic the way people are, with the tiniest bit of hope at the end.
October 1, 2025
4.25 stars.
Thank you to ECW Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The final book in this post-apocalyptic novella trilogy, I was surprised that the book shifted focus from Reid to Hendryk instead. Once I had adjusted, this ended up being my favourite entry in the series.
We follow Hendryk, who is wracked by guilt, leaving his community and heading off to join another.
This short book was surprisingly action packed, and I really enjoyed the author's writing.
A worthy conclusion to the trilogy that wrapped up all the stories in a satisfying way.
Thank you to ECW Press and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
The final book in this post-apocalyptic novella trilogy, I was surprised that the book shifted focus from Reid to Hendryk instead. Once I had adjusted, this ended up being my favourite entry in the series.
We follow Hendryk, who is wracked by guilt, leaving his community and heading off to join another.
This short book was surprisingly action packed, and I really enjoyed the author's writing.
A worthy conclusion to the trilogy that wrapped up all the stories in a satisfying way.
Want to read
August 1, 2025What, this is going to be Henryk story? I didn't see that coming! How is it going to wrap everything up...?
December 27, 2025
I thought this was the best book of the trilogy in the sense that it was the only one that told a complete story. But as the last book of this trilogy it failed to answer any of the questions and mysteries set up in the previous books which was disappointingly on par for this series. Ultimately this trilogy felt like it had something special but then totally fumbled the execution into an unsatisfying surface-level story.
October 10, 2025
The Annual Migration of Clouds series has been an exploration of what happens after “the end of the world as they know it”, which is a very different thing from the actual end of the world. The world is ticking along just fine in this post-climate-apocalypse dystopia, but the humans who caused it all – not so much.
The idea behind this series, and what makes it so compelling and so heartbreaking, is that the world didn’t end all at once. Which it probably won’t in a climate change run amuck scenario. Instead, it’s a long, slow slide of things slipping away, as the infrastructure that supports a high-tech, 21st century (or later) lifestyle erodes piece by piece as roads wash out and coastlines shrink and satellites fall because what we need is beyond any one person’s or even one town’s knowledge and ability to fix.
In the first book, the titular Annual Migration of Clouds, we were able to experience one possible scenario, as we follow Reid and Henryk in a village named ‘campus’ – probably because it used to be one.
Their village is a bit of a liberal, quasi-socialist experiment, not surprising if it truly did descend from a college campus. Everyone who can works, but those who can’t are supported. Everyone has a job to do – and it’s each according to their ability. They keep each other afloat and keep the place protected. It’s a bit utopian, or it would be if they weren’t living at a time when everything they need to keep alive is scarce while an endemic disease ravages the population.
In the second book, We Speak Through the Mountain, we view this world from an entirely different place, as Reid has been invited to the elite, exclusive, enclave of Howse University. H.U. was once a gated retreat for the wealthy and influential, a place where they planned to sit out the apocalypse and only return when it was safe and they could rule over ‘the masses’ they consigned to the fate they escaped.
H.U. invites very few into its rarefied location – just enough to maintain the genetic diversity of their population. And it operates under a kind of benign brainwashing in the way that it makes life so safe and comfortable inside that no one will ever want to leave. Reid asks too many questions about what the ‘haves’ owe the ‘have nots’, and pokes gigantic holes in H.U.’s self-defining narratives about the laziness and barbaric conditions among the villages just like the one she came from, blaming her people for their inability to recover from the apocalypse even as H.U. withholds the technology that might help.
This final book in the trilogy takes a completely different tack and follows, not Reid, but her best friend Henryk. Reid is smart and capable and confident, while Henryk is anything but on all counts. Reid was always the leader, and Henryk was always someone’s hapless follower. Which is how he ended up leaving campus in Reid’s wake, heading for a not-so-nearby village where his uncle lives in the hope of a fresh start.
That’s where Henryk discovers that there were other, terrible, ways that this post-apocalyptic scenario could go. He finds himself in a village run by a tyrant, pushed and pulled from one abusive situation to another, despised for not knowing how things are done and then not being able to do them, and ends up facing death at the hands of raiders who use him to destroy the place he wants to protect even if he’s not very good at it.
All of which leads back to the beginning, as both Reid and Henryk return to campus. While it’s true that there’s no place like home, there’s also nowhere that manages to survive one day after another other any better than the place they grew up in. And there, at least, they have each other as best friends and quasi-siblings – and after both of their journeys, that’s enough.
Escape Rating B: Taken as a whole, now that this series is whole, I still liked the first book best, although the second book was better on my second read because by then I had listened to the first one and the set up made a whole lot more sense. That’s a hint to read/listen to this series in order.
I didn’t like this one as much because a) I didn’t like following Henryk nearly as much as I did Reid, and b) Henryk is one of those characters to whom horrible things just seem to happen, to the point where it’s no surprise that he ends up in yet one terrible situation after another. So I did feel for him but he also drove me nuts.
The different responses to the climate apocalypse read like situations I’ve seen before in this kind of story – just not all together in the same story. But it makes sense that with the breakdown of communication, places that aren’t all that far apart would find their own way to keep going – whether good or bad – based on how and where they started.
Campus feels very utopian, especially in comparison to the other two options. They are doing their damndest to do their best for everyone – even when they don’t have enough to make things good for anyone. It’s the way we wish things would turn out – but we humans are not even capable of that level of fairness now when there actually IS enough if we would just share it. This situation reminds me a bit of the near-future timeline in Khan Wong’s Down in the Sea with Angels – and it’s working just about as well because humans are gonna human in the best and worst of scenarios.
Reid’s foray into Howse University smacks of the situation in the Enclave in Anna Hackett’s Hell Squad series, where a group of the rich and powerful created a sanctuary for themselves so they could safely sit out an alien invasion.
The hellscape that Henryk finds himself in is the ‘red in tooth and claw’ version of humanity that we sort of expect to see in a dystopia. OTOH the folks of Sprucedown started out with a good location and a good plan for survival – which is where the Thousand Trees of the title come in. And very much on the other, they’ve come under the sway of a late-arriving dictator who is more interested in power and personal aggrandizement than in managing the resources that make it all possible. In the end, everyone pays for his hubris. For anyone who has ever read even a part of S.M. Stirling’s Emberverse, particularly the early books like Dies the Fire, this scenario is all too familiar in its hellishness.
In the end, now that we’ve reached an end, this series is three views of an apocalypse, it’s what happens AFTER the end of the world as they know it, and it’s compelling and heartbreaking and sad and scary. Because it might all come true.
Originally published at Reading Reality
The idea behind this series, and what makes it so compelling and so heartbreaking, is that the world didn’t end all at once. Which it probably won’t in a climate change run amuck scenario. Instead, it’s a long, slow slide of things slipping away, as the infrastructure that supports a high-tech, 21st century (or later) lifestyle erodes piece by piece as roads wash out and coastlines shrink and satellites fall because what we need is beyond any one person’s or even one town’s knowledge and ability to fix.
In the first book, the titular Annual Migration of Clouds, we were able to experience one possible scenario, as we follow Reid and Henryk in a village named ‘campus’ – probably because it used to be one.
Their village is a bit of a liberal, quasi-socialist experiment, not surprising if it truly did descend from a college campus. Everyone who can works, but those who can’t are supported. Everyone has a job to do – and it’s each according to their ability. They keep each other afloat and keep the place protected. It’s a bit utopian, or it would be if they weren’t living at a time when everything they need to keep alive is scarce while an endemic disease ravages the population.
In the second book, We Speak Through the Mountain, we view this world from an entirely different place, as Reid has been invited to the elite, exclusive, enclave of Howse University. H.U. was once a gated retreat for the wealthy and influential, a place where they planned to sit out the apocalypse and only return when it was safe and they could rule over ‘the masses’ they consigned to the fate they escaped.
H.U. invites very few into its rarefied location – just enough to maintain the genetic diversity of their population. And it operates under a kind of benign brainwashing in the way that it makes life so safe and comfortable inside that no one will ever want to leave. Reid asks too many questions about what the ‘haves’ owe the ‘have nots’, and pokes gigantic holes in H.U.’s self-defining narratives about the laziness and barbaric conditions among the villages just like the one she came from, blaming her people for their inability to recover from the apocalypse even as H.U. withholds the technology that might help.
This final book in the trilogy takes a completely different tack and follows, not Reid, but her best friend Henryk. Reid is smart and capable and confident, while Henryk is anything but on all counts. Reid was always the leader, and Henryk was always someone’s hapless follower. Which is how he ended up leaving campus in Reid’s wake, heading for a not-so-nearby village where his uncle lives in the hope of a fresh start.
That’s where Henryk discovers that there were other, terrible, ways that this post-apocalyptic scenario could go. He finds himself in a village run by a tyrant, pushed and pulled from one abusive situation to another, despised for not knowing how things are done and then not being able to do them, and ends up facing death at the hands of raiders who use him to destroy the place he wants to protect even if he’s not very good at it.
All of which leads back to the beginning, as both Reid and Henryk return to campus. While it’s true that there’s no place like home, there’s also nowhere that manages to survive one day after another other any better than the place they grew up in. And there, at least, they have each other as best friends and quasi-siblings – and after both of their journeys, that’s enough.
Escape Rating B: Taken as a whole, now that this series is whole, I still liked the first book best, although the second book was better on my second read because by then I had listened to the first one and the set up made a whole lot more sense. That’s a hint to read/listen to this series in order.
I didn’t like this one as much because a) I didn’t like following Henryk nearly as much as I did Reid, and b) Henryk is one of those characters to whom horrible things just seem to happen, to the point where it’s no surprise that he ends up in yet one terrible situation after another. So I did feel for him but he also drove me nuts.
The different responses to the climate apocalypse read like situations I’ve seen before in this kind of story – just not all together in the same story. But it makes sense that with the breakdown of communication, places that aren’t all that far apart would find their own way to keep going – whether good or bad – based on how and where they started.
Campus feels very utopian, especially in comparison to the other two options. They are doing their damndest to do their best for everyone – even when they don’t have enough to make things good for anyone. It’s the way we wish things would turn out – but we humans are not even capable of that level of fairness now when there actually IS enough if we would just share it. This situation reminds me a bit of the near-future timeline in Khan Wong’s Down in the Sea with Angels – and it’s working just about as well because humans are gonna human in the best and worst of scenarios.
Reid’s foray into Howse University smacks of the situation in the Enclave in Anna Hackett’s Hell Squad series, where a group of the rich and powerful created a sanctuary for themselves so they could safely sit out an alien invasion.
The hellscape that Henryk finds himself in is the ‘red in tooth and claw’ version of humanity that we sort of expect to see in a dystopia. OTOH the folks of Sprucedown started out with a good location and a good plan for survival – which is where the Thousand Trees of the title come in. And very much on the other, they’ve come under the sway of a late-arriving dictator who is more interested in power and personal aggrandizement than in managing the resources that make it all possible. In the end, everyone pays for his hubris. For anyone who has ever read even a part of S.M. Stirling’s Emberverse, particularly the early books like Dies the Fire, this scenario is all too familiar in its hellishness.
In the end, now that we’ve reached an end, this series is three views of an apocalypse, it’s what happens AFTER the end of the world as they know it, and it’s compelling and heartbreaking and sad and scary. Because it might all come true.
Originally published at Reading Reality
August 6, 2025
In my review for the second book, I wrote "I have no doubt that the plot points will be addressed in the next book", in reference to the incomplete feel and cliff-hangers left by We Speak Through the Mountain. Well - I should have had doubts, because the mysteries and unanswered questions posed in book two were completely abandoned and never referred to in this final instalment of the series. This is the main reason for my rating not being higher - if this had been a standalone novella, I'd probably have enjoyed it more.
In this final part of the trilogy, we follow Henryk a short time after the boar hunt which went tragically awry due to lack of action on Henryk's part. This poor guy is just not built for the post-apocalyptic lifestyle, fucking up at pretty much every turn. It's actually kind of a refreshing change from the competence shown by most main characters in dystopian/apocalyptic fiction, but I can definitely see that it could be a frustrating read for people who have less patience with helpless characters.
In the whole series, but this book in particular, I felt that Cad was underutilised - in fact, in this final part of the series the disease may as well not have existed at all and you pretty much could have read the whole book and completely forgotten about it.
This novella was an interesting exploration of the dynamics of this authoritarian post-apocalyptic community, and on its own was wrapped up satisfactorily. However, I can't really say the same about the trilogy as a whole, due to the unresolved threads from book two.
Thank you to ECW Press who provided me with an eARC through Netgalley.
In this final part of the trilogy, we follow Henryk a short time after the boar hunt which went tragically awry due to lack of action on Henryk's part. This poor guy is just not built for the post-apocalyptic lifestyle, fucking up at pretty much every turn. It's actually kind of a refreshing change from the competence shown by most main characters in dystopian/apocalyptic fiction, but I can definitely see that it could be a frustrating read for people who have less patience with helpless characters.
In the whole series, but this book in particular, I felt that Cad was underutilised - in fact, in this final part of the series the disease may as well not have existed at all and you pretty much could have read the whole book and completely forgotten about it.
This novella was an interesting exploration of the dynamics of this authoritarian post-apocalyptic community, and on its own was wrapped up satisfactorily. However, I can't really say the same about the trilogy as a whole, due to the unresolved threads from book two.
Thank you to ECW Press who provided me with an eARC through Netgalley.
July 8, 2025
This third installment was a bit disappointing for me. I don't mind a POV switch, but almost everything built in the second book is gone and never touched on in this one. All possible roads left by the cliffhanger ending of the second book just thrown out, and instead, we follow Henryk.
Henryk's story is slow, and honestly, like 50% of the novella is Henryk learning and failing to do most tasks in this town he ran away to. Which would probably be fine if he was a more interesting MC. During these failures, there are some solid side characters and love a story where the dog isn't just something to kill for "emotional stakes."
The novella is only around 150 pages, and not much happened outside of the above-mentioned tasks until page 82. Once things get real, the story picks up, but even things falling apart are the result of Henryk failing again. I was really hoping he would have some sort of grand redemption or epiphany, but (while he does sort of get his shit together briefly), he falls right back to his old self and runs away. Also, no one is pissed that he mostly caused all that?
The writing is still really well done, and there is a solid amount to like. Good messaging on change and how we are always better together than alone. On making a home vs. finding a home. The action was action-ing, again solid characters, and the bringing of the story full circle in the end was nice and hopeful. Just wish there was either one more book or that this one would have tied to the second more.
Thanks to ECW and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Henryk's story is slow, and honestly, like 50% of the novella is Henryk learning and failing to do most tasks in this town he ran away to. Which would probably be fine if he was a more interesting MC. During these failures, there are some solid side characters and love a story where the dog isn't just something to kill for "emotional stakes."
The novella is only around 150 pages, and not much happened outside of the above-mentioned tasks until page 82. Once things get real, the story picks up, but even things falling apart are the result of Henryk failing again. I was really hoping he would have some sort of grand redemption or epiphany, but (while he does sort of get his shit together briefly), he falls right back to his old self and runs away. Also, no one is pissed that he mostly caused all that?
The writing is still really well done, and there is a solid amount to like. Good messaging on change and how we are always better together than alone. On making a home vs. finding a home. The action was action-ing, again solid characters, and the bringing of the story full circle in the end was nice and hopeful. Just wish there was either one more book or that this one would have tied to the second more.
Thanks to ECW and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
December 1, 2025
In The First Thousand Trees, forthcoming with ECW Press on September 30, 2025, Premee Mohamed delivers yet another compelling vision of our post-apocalyptic future, but a less-than-satisfying conclusion to her trilogy.
Having just finished the entirety of Premee Mohamed’s trilogy of novellas, starting with The Annual Migration of Clouds, I can confidently say hers is one of the freshest takes on the post-apocalyptic story I’ve read in a long time. The saga begins in a future version of Edmonton, Alberta, long after the power went out due to a combination of global conflicts, the climate crisis, and the emergence of a deadly, parasitic virus known as “Cad.” The first two books follow the main character, Reid, as she navigates the harsh conditions of this destroyed world and the complicated relationships with her best friend, Henryk, her mother and others.
Mohamed’s writing deftly balances thrilling, fast-paced narratives with philosophical musings about the age of gluttony long before Henryk and Reid’s time, the very age of gluttony the Western world is currently living in, where resources like water and electricity are abundant, used to the point of waste, and we have everything we could possibly want at our fingertips.
The First Thousand Trees is no different in this sense, populating the edges of Mohamed’s world outside the densely packed urban centres like Edmonton and the illustrious pockets of utopia like Howse University. In this third book, focusing on the forestry town of Sprucedown provides a different method of surviving the apocalypse:, one where people return to the land instead of desperately clinging to the ghostly remnants of the golden age.
This novella follows Henryk’s story and POV after the events of The Annual Migration of Clouds, when he made a decision which ended in death and branded him as an outcast. It is undoubtedly a crucial part of the series – and a perfect companion narrative to the events in We Speak Through the Mountain, my favourite of the series – but as a conclusion to Mohamed’s trilogy, it feels underwhelming.
I desperately wanted to see how Reid’s story played out; how her relationship with her Cad changed after having it suppressed at Howse University. The most fascinating part of We Speak Through the Mountain was seeing Reid clash against the institution of Howse, which preferred to hoard valuable resources instead of sharing them. I wanted to see her try to change the world, to help it heal, but instead, we get Henryk and no real conclusion. I can see how this ending acts as a call to action for us, as readers living in the world that was lost to Reid and Henryk because of inaction and greed, but I still want to see how their story ends.
It doesn’t help that Henryk can be a challenging protagonist to root for, especially after following Reid so closely. It is a testament to Mohamed’s skills as a writer that I often disliked Henryk and felt frustrated at his decisions, which always seem to be the wrong ones, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. This, combined with the feeling of the narrative being incomplete, left me with a strange feeling as I closed the book: eager for more but disappointed that no more was coming.
Of course, all this means is that Premee Mohamed has crafted a universe that I desperately want to read more of, even if more content isn’t in the cards yet. The First Thousand Trees is by far the most harrowing and gritty novella in the series, and there’s a lot to love here, even if it doesn’t rise to the same heights as We Speak Through the Mountain. Mohamed’s writing is sharp and appropriately hopeful and haunting, fluid according to what the situation calls for.
This is a series worth reading and an author worth watching, but once you get to the end, be warned: you’re going to be dying for more.
Premee Mohamed is a Nebula-, World Fantasy-, and Aurora Award-winning Indo-Caribbean scientist and speculative fiction author based in Edmonton, AB. She is the author of the Beneath the Rising series of novels, as well as several novellas, and her short fiction has appeared in many venues.
Having just finished the entirety of Premee Mohamed’s trilogy of novellas, starting with The Annual Migration of Clouds, I can confidently say hers is one of the freshest takes on the post-apocalyptic story I’ve read in a long time. The saga begins in a future version of Edmonton, Alberta, long after the power went out due to a combination of global conflicts, the climate crisis, and the emergence of a deadly, parasitic virus known as “Cad.” The first two books follow the main character, Reid, as she navigates the harsh conditions of this destroyed world and the complicated relationships with her best friend, Henryk, her mother and others.
Mohamed’s writing deftly balances thrilling, fast-paced narratives with philosophical musings about the age of gluttony long before Henryk and Reid’s time, the very age of gluttony the Western world is currently living in, where resources like water and electricity are abundant, used to the point of waste, and we have everything we could possibly want at our fingertips.
The First Thousand Trees is no different in this sense, populating the edges of Mohamed’s world outside the densely packed urban centres like Edmonton and the illustrious pockets of utopia like Howse University. In this third book, focusing on the forestry town of Sprucedown provides a different method of surviving the apocalypse:, one where people return to the land instead of desperately clinging to the ghostly remnants of the golden age.
This novella follows Henryk’s story and POV after the events of The Annual Migration of Clouds, when he made a decision which ended in death and branded him as an outcast. It is undoubtedly a crucial part of the series – and a perfect companion narrative to the events in We Speak Through the Mountain, my favourite of the series – but as a conclusion to Mohamed’s trilogy, it feels underwhelming.
I desperately wanted to see how Reid’s story played out; how her relationship with her Cad changed after having it suppressed at Howse University. The most fascinating part of We Speak Through the Mountain was seeing Reid clash against the institution of Howse, which preferred to hoard valuable resources instead of sharing them. I wanted to see her try to change the world, to help it heal, but instead, we get Henryk and no real conclusion. I can see how this ending acts as a call to action for us, as readers living in the world that was lost to Reid and Henryk because of inaction and greed, but I still want to see how their story ends.
It doesn’t help that Henryk can be a challenging protagonist to root for, especially after following Reid so closely. It is a testament to Mohamed’s skills as a writer that I often disliked Henryk and felt frustrated at his decisions, which always seem to be the wrong ones, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. This, combined with the feeling of the narrative being incomplete, left me with a strange feeling as I closed the book: eager for more but disappointed that no more was coming.
Of course, all this means is that Premee Mohamed has crafted a universe that I desperately want to read more of, even if more content isn’t in the cards yet. The First Thousand Trees is by far the most harrowing and gritty novella in the series, and there’s a lot to love here, even if it doesn’t rise to the same heights as We Speak Through the Mountain. Mohamed’s writing is sharp and appropriately hopeful and haunting, fluid according to what the situation calls for.
This is a series worth reading and an author worth watching, but once you get to the end, be warned: you’re going to be dying for more.
Premee Mohamed is a Nebula-, World Fantasy-, and Aurora Award-winning Indo-Caribbean scientist and speculative fiction author based in Edmonton, AB. She is the author of the Beneath the Rising series of novels, as well as several novellas, and her short fiction has appeared in many venues.
September 24, 2025
Premee Mohamed’s The First Thousand Trees is the final book in The Annual Migration of Clouds trilogy. The Annual Migration of Clouds introduced readers to a grieving world dealing with economic collapse and climate disasters. We Speak Through the Mountain expanded this world by exposing issues related to ethics, complicity, power, and access to resources and knowledge. Different from the previous two novellas, The First Thousand Trees follows Henryk as he leaves his home after the events of the first book. He sets off to find his uncle’s village and when he arrives, Henryk faces a new set of challenges. His new community is not as welcoming as his old one, and he feels like an outsider. Henryk navigates these feelings while searching for his place and purpose as he tries to make a new life for himself, a life without Reid and far away from the only home he’s ever known.
Like the previous novellas, The First Thousand Trees explores themes of grief and power, and it also focuses on home, humanity and violence. It shows how, despite massive transformation and tragedy, humans are still prone to repeating cycles of violence. Through exploring this, Mohamed highlights the importance of change, choices and forging your own path. Everything is a choice—we can choose to try to break out of harmful cycles, and we can make choices to try to positively impact the world. It’s possible to make different choices instead of trying to rebuild systems that are broken, and the characters in this book must dare to make their own future. Under all the circumstances in the trilogy, this book reflects on what it means to begin again and not just survive, but live and thrive.
I think about these books often and I know I will return to them. The First Thousand Trees is a satisfying and thoughtful conclusion to the trilogy, and Mohamed offers readers a profound meditation on survival, humanity, and hope.
Thank you ECW Press and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC to review.
Like the previous novellas, The First Thousand Trees explores themes of grief and power, and it also focuses on home, humanity and violence. It shows how, despite massive transformation and tragedy, humans are still prone to repeating cycles of violence. Through exploring this, Mohamed highlights the importance of change, choices and forging your own path. Everything is a choice—we can choose to try to break out of harmful cycles, and we can make choices to try to positively impact the world. It’s possible to make different choices instead of trying to rebuild systems that are broken, and the characters in this book must dare to make their own future. Under all the circumstances in the trilogy, this book reflects on what it means to begin again and not just survive, but live and thrive.
I think about these books often and I know I will return to them. The First Thousand Trees is a satisfying and thoughtful conclusion to the trilogy, and Mohamed offers readers a profound meditation on survival, humanity, and hope.
Thank you ECW Press and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC to review.
December 30, 2025
Ugh, Henryk.
The third book in the Annual Migration of Clouds series shows what's been happening to Henryk, Reid's friend, while she's off at university. Henryk was responsible for a tragedy in his home and he's been quietly shunned ever since, especially since his protector Reid isn't there to fight for him anymore. He decides to leave and strikes out across the Canadian post-apocalyptic wilderness to find the settlement where his uncle lives, hoping to start over.
He manages to find the settlement but the culture there is very different. Henryk grew up in a place that had previously been a university campus. The culture was communal and much more welcoming. The new village is harsh to those who don't immediately contribute and they feel no need to welcome outsiders or help them in any way. Henryk quickly finds that he must work extremely hard not be be considered dead weight. He doesn't feel welcomed by his uncle and his uncle's ward, a teen boy with a dog sidekick who never fails to show his disdain for Henryk. Soon, Henryk starts working on building his own house, but this work takes him away from working for the community.
Henryk is just one of those guys that doesn't ever fit in. He doesn't know why, and he keeps trying hard and making all the wrong moves as he tries. A misguided attempt to fit in put him in the wrong place at the wrong time in his old home and it led to tragedy. Henryk, put in a similar position in his new home, makes the exact same decisions and the outcome this time is even worse, as his bad instincts lead to an even bigger disaster.
I could see it coming too. Henryk's voice feels kind of whiny, even though he was working hard, and he generally annoyed me. I wanted to smack him upside the head for some of the choices he made. I feel like the repercussions for him in that community should have been worse.
I'm rating the book as high as I did because it did provoke emotional reactions, but they weren't pleasant ones.
The third book in the Annual Migration of Clouds series shows what's been happening to Henryk, Reid's friend, while she's off at university. Henryk was responsible for a tragedy in his home and he's been quietly shunned ever since, especially since his protector Reid isn't there to fight for him anymore. He decides to leave and strikes out across the Canadian post-apocalyptic wilderness to find the settlement where his uncle lives, hoping to start over.
He manages to find the settlement but the culture there is very different. Henryk grew up in a place that had previously been a university campus. The culture was communal and much more welcoming. The new village is harsh to those who don't immediately contribute and they feel no need to welcome outsiders or help them in any way. Henryk quickly finds that he must work extremely hard not be be considered dead weight. He doesn't feel welcomed by his uncle and his uncle's ward, a teen boy with a dog sidekick who never fails to show his disdain for Henryk. Soon, Henryk starts working on building his own house, but this work takes him away from working for the community.
Henryk is just one of those guys that doesn't ever fit in. He doesn't know why, and he keeps trying hard and making all the wrong moves as he tries. A misguided attempt to fit in put him in the wrong place at the wrong time in his old home and it led to tragedy. Henryk, put in a similar position in his new home, makes the exact same decisions and the outcome this time is even worse, as his bad instincts lead to an even bigger disaster.
I could see it coming too. Henryk's voice feels kind of whiny, even though he was working hard, and he generally annoyed me. I wanted to smack him upside the head for some of the choices he made. I feel like the repercussions for him in that community should have been worse.
I'm rating the book as high as I did because it did provoke emotional reactions, but they weren't pleasant ones.
June 27, 2025
This is the third and final book in Mohamed's Cli-Fi trilogy-
I expected this novel to follow Reid as she returned to her campus, but instead we follow Henryk on his journey to his Uncle's more Northern community.
Feeling bereft after Reid's departure, Henryk sets out on a wild adventure, traveling with a makeshift map to find his Uncle. With more luck than skill, he's able to find the community. Henryk is taken in conditionally and really does give it his all to fit in and be visibly productive in a vastly different community than the one he left. He struggles much in the same way he struggled at home, making some poor decisions, and being, in general, not very welcome. Much like his past, as series of disasters follows him, and while none are notable his "fault" dystopian communities seem to have no time for accidental blunders. After a particularly spectacular error Henryk somewhat redeems himself and makes a choice to move on.
For me, I wanted Henryk to desperately have sort of a hero's arc of redemption, but that does not occur, and to be honest, this seems so realistic as so many of us work very hard at being in community with others, and despite our efforts we aren't always successful.
In the end, the message I took away again was that people often survive better together, and no one really wins unless everyone can share in the winning. I love this message as it's one I believe in whole heartedly.
The writing again is precise and story construction is on point. These novellas are great for book club as there's so much to discuss- themes of belonging, community, class systems, the environment, poverty and wealth, community building and more!
Many Thanks to ECW press, the author and net Galley for ARC copy to read and review.
I expected this novel to follow Reid as she returned to her campus, but instead we follow Henryk on his journey to his Uncle's more Northern community.
Feeling bereft after Reid's departure, Henryk sets out on a wild adventure, traveling with a makeshift map to find his Uncle. With more luck than skill, he's able to find the community. Henryk is taken in conditionally and really does give it his all to fit in and be visibly productive in a vastly different community than the one he left. He struggles much in the same way he struggled at home, making some poor decisions, and being, in general, not very welcome. Much like his past, as series of disasters follows him, and while none are notable his "fault" dystopian communities seem to have no time for accidental blunders. After a particularly spectacular error Henryk somewhat redeems himself and makes a choice to move on.
For me, I wanted Henryk to desperately have sort of a hero's arc of redemption, but that does not occur, and to be honest, this seems so realistic as so many of us work very hard at being in community with others, and despite our efforts we aren't always successful.
In the end, the message I took away again was that people often survive better together, and no one really wins unless everyone can share in the winning. I love this message as it's one I believe in whole heartedly.
The writing again is precise and story construction is on point. These novellas are great for book club as there's so much to discuss- themes of belonging, community, class systems, the environment, poverty and wealth, community building and more!
Many Thanks to ECW press, the author and net Galley for ARC copy to read and review.
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