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The Pathways Tree #4
The Cascade: The Pathways Tree, Book 4
The last surviving city of the fae is about to fall, and only one person can save it.
The Mirrors are decimated. Travel to and from the human world is at a standstill. Ænathlin teeters on the brink of destruction. It falls to Julia, the Head of the dreaded Redaction Department, to stand between order and chaos.
As the baking heat of summer dries Ænathlin to a crisp, a cascade - an irreversible collapse - is predicted to occur before year's end. Food and supplies are running out, and support for the anti-fairy group Ænathlin Again is growing. With no idea how to stop what appears to be an inevitable civil war, the General Administration is in disarray, too long without a leader.
Luckily, Julia has a plan and the courage required to act on it. Whatever it takes, she will rescue the city from itself. And the mortal gods help anyone who stands in her way....
Award-winning author F. D. Lee weaves together politics, power, and propaganda in this exciting installment of the best-selling fantasy series, The Pathways Tree.
The Mirrors are decimated. Travel to and from the human world is at a standstill. Ænathlin teeters on the brink of destruction. It falls to Julia, the Head of the dreaded Redaction Department, to stand between order and chaos.
As the baking heat of summer dries Ænathlin to a crisp, a cascade - an irreversible collapse - is predicted to occur before year's end. Food and supplies are running out, and support for the anti-fairy group Ænathlin Again is growing. With no idea how to stop what appears to be an inevitable civil war, the General Administration is in disarray, too long without a leader.
Luckily, Julia has a plan and the courage required to act on it. Whatever it takes, she will rescue the city from itself. And the mortal gods help anyone who stands in her way....
Award-winning author F. D. Lee weaves together politics, power, and propaganda in this exciting installment of the best-selling fantasy series, The Pathways Tree.
- GenresFantasyFairy Tales
Audible Audio
First published April 7, 2020
20 people are currently reading
108 people want to read
About the author
F.D. Lee
7 books93 followersF D. Lee is the author of the internationally bestselling fantasy series, The Pathways Tree, and the award-winning SF novel, In the Slip.
A lifelong fantasy and science fiction fan, Faith is an advocate of self- and indie-publishing and has a PhD in English Literature and Creative Writing. She has been featured in The Independent, appeared on Radio 4 to talk about her research into genre fiction, and has given a mini-TED talk on why stories matter.
Faith is online and always happy to chat! Facebook, Instagram, Threads: @fdleeauthor (Facebook is the best place to catch her!). Visit Faith's website (www.fdlee.co.uk) to read her work, including free short stories and sample chapters.
A lifelong fantasy and science fiction fan, Faith is an advocate of self- and indie-publishing and has a PhD in English Literature and Creative Writing. She has been featured in The Independent, appeared on Radio 4 to talk about her research into genre fiction, and has given a mini-TED talk on why stories matter.
Faith is online and always happy to chat! Facebook, Instagram, Threads: @fdleeauthor (Facebook is the best place to catch her!). Visit Faith's website (www.fdlee.co.uk) to read her work, including free short stories and sample chapters.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
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June 20, 2020When did this come out? April? I need this in my life
March 6, 2021
Will be honest, I didn't want to finish this book because I thought it was going to be the last one, but I'm overjoyed to learn that it is not and now I will dream about this story every single day until the next installment is released.
For everyone that hasn't read this series, please, please do, it's such an amazing series all the characters are absolutely amazing and I wouldn't trade any of them for the world!
For everyone that hasn't read this series, please, please do, it's such an amazing series all the characters are absolutely amazing and I wouldn't trade any of them for the world!
April 15, 2020
After the mirrors that link the Fae to the human world are shattered, the Fae must find new sources of food and, equally importantly, magical power. Meanwhile, the death of the godlike Teller hands influence to those who pretend to execute His will, and an already dangerous political situation takes a much more sinister turn. As memories are deliberately erased, the scattered heroes of the Pathways Tree saga must come together and resolve an impossible problem: how do they make sense of their story when all the facts about it are fiction?
There is some great, knotty political stuff in here, as if it’s distilled a lot of the observations and world-building from the previous books. Elements already foreshadowed that have come into their own in our ‘real’ world include the withdrawal from the Sheltering Forest, which is perpetrated by an easily-influenced Fae equivalent of a Tory golf-club bore. The move is catastrophically unwise because Ænathlin is isolated, its people are reliant on other realms, and withdrawal will create problems where none yet exist.
As if that wasn’t obnoxious enough, the ruling powers back racist parties to scapegoat individual Fae races, particularly the immigrant fairies. The use of narrative as a force for evil finds its most insidious expression in the efforts of a hobgoblin called Edward. Talented but down on his luck, Edward composes nationalist stories that are so effective in their fascistic sentimentality that many of the Fae willingly acquiesce in the titular cascade of their own destruction.
The heroine of this series is a cabbage fairy called Bea, who discovers a rough-and-ready practical side in The Cascade by creating vegetable gardens that will feed the Fae once the remains of the invading monster are eaten. However, Bea is complicit in dark fictions of her own, particularly regarding the true identity of her lover, Mistansinon. There are some great twists regarding the fate of these fairies, and some of the background characters, particularly drinking buddy Joan, really come into their own.
The author juggles a lot of narrative threads and cross-book arcs in this story about stories, and while the novel does work as a standalone, it helps to have read the previous books, particularly The Academy. The most compelling sequences in The Cascade are those set in the class-ridden, increasingly claustrophobic Ænathlin which, like Terry Pratchett’s Ankh Morpork, conveys the visceral sense that it is a fictional place you have actually been to.
There is some great, knotty political stuff in here, as if it’s distilled a lot of the observations and world-building from the previous books. Elements already foreshadowed that have come into their own in our ‘real’ world include the withdrawal from the Sheltering Forest, which is perpetrated by an easily-influenced Fae equivalent of a Tory golf-club bore. The move is catastrophically unwise because Ænathlin is isolated, its people are reliant on other realms, and withdrawal will create problems where none yet exist.
As if that wasn’t obnoxious enough, the ruling powers back racist parties to scapegoat individual Fae races, particularly the immigrant fairies. The use of narrative as a force for evil finds its most insidious expression in the efforts of a hobgoblin called Edward. Talented but down on his luck, Edward composes nationalist stories that are so effective in their fascistic sentimentality that many of the Fae willingly acquiesce in the titular cascade of their own destruction.
The heroine of this series is a cabbage fairy called Bea, who discovers a rough-and-ready practical side in The Cascade by creating vegetable gardens that will feed the Fae once the remains of the invading monster are eaten. However, Bea is complicit in dark fictions of her own, particularly regarding the true identity of her lover, Mistansinon. There are some great twists regarding the fate of these fairies, and some of the background characters, particularly drinking buddy Joan, really come into their own.
The author juggles a lot of narrative threads and cross-book arcs in this story about stories, and while the novel does work as a standalone, it helps to have read the previous books, particularly The Academy. The most compelling sequences in The Cascade are those set in the class-ridden, increasingly claustrophobic Ænathlin which, like Terry Pratchett’s Ankh Morpork, conveys the visceral sense that it is a fictional place you have actually been to.
July 1, 2020
Too preachy. I don't mind politics integrated into a book, but not to where it takes me out of the fantasy/fairy genre story. I see and hear enough of that in the news, and don't want to feel like propaganda has been thrown in (along with the kitchen sink) when I spend my hard-earned cash. Again, I don't mind some, but it was too much in this case, and didn't really fit in well with the story line. I want something I can relax with at the end of a work day.
June 1, 2024
Julia's manipulations continue. I absolutely felt the political maneuvering she was putting in place mirrored current, real life dealings There is a lot of folk pairing up, but most of the relationships seemed doomed by circumstances. The importance of friendship is clear in this story. Love, friendship, trust, and believing in yourself.
As the plot says, we all want a happy ending. I am eager for the final chapters.
As the plot says, we all want a happy ending. I am eager for the final chapters.
February 3, 2025
⭐ 2
I really do want to love these books because I think the idea itself is wonderful. However, the pacing feels really wrong and each one is in need of stronger editing as it's sadly ruining the reading experience. I hate to rate it so low but I really struggled to get through this one.
I will say that a good strength was the cliffhanger ending, almost guiding us into the next book. I am invested in what happens.
I really do want to love these books because I think the idea itself is wonderful. However, the pacing feels really wrong and each one is in need of stronger editing as it's sadly ruining the reading experience. I hate to rate it so low but I really struggled to get through this one.
I will say that a good strength was the cliffhanger ending, almost guiding us into the next book. I am invested in what happens.
May 1, 2020
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book, I love reading the characters development over the series and am already eagerly awaiting the next one. It was quite the cliff hanger at the end, unlike the previous book endings.
June 7, 2020
Bloody hell, HOW LONG do I have to wait for the next one??!!
June 17, 2021
Review to come.
September 9, 2021
As always these books go from strength to strenth unlike other in a series that filter out after a while I CANT WAIT FOR THE FITH BOOK i need to know whats going on !! ??
September 13, 2021
Enjoying this series, can't wait for the next book this one leaves on a cliff hanger.
September 26, 2021
Loved this book , can't wait for book five
September 12, 2023
Book 4 of the Pathway Tree series sees takes us throught the aftermath of the Orrery fiasco and the rise of leaders from previously unimagined sources.
We see Naima pick the pieces left behind in the Imperial City of Cern Bralksteld as the interim Baron. She is aware of the geowing confusion and seeks out to use Melly as a liason/advisor between Humans and Fae.
We see Hemmings find his inner Elf and channel his healing powers to ensure that Seven can survive the trip back to the Fae land.
Chokey, turns sleuthy and turns out to be the most astute Fae of those who remain on other side of the mirror. She picks up on the undercurrents and the hidden messages easily. I do expect to see her play a vital role in the next installment, in the finding of the tree!
Romance is in the air, with the Fae opening their hearts to the possibility of love and emotions. The star crossed lovers, to the ones who are determined to to stay together.. From the acceptance of feelings to betrayal and heartbreak... We see a lot of them here.
Julia, the emerging puppet master of all things gling wrong with the Fae and tales,come out more open and stronger in intentions.
What happens to Seven when he finally opens his eyes in Fae land?
Will Bea find the tree, in her quest?
Will Mistasinon fell Julia's regime from within? Will Chokey help him?
Where is Joan and will she ever be able to forgive the people she once trusted?
So much to look forward to!
We see Naima pick the pieces left behind in the Imperial City of Cern Bralksteld as the interim Baron. She is aware of the geowing confusion and seeks out to use Melly as a liason/advisor between Humans and Fae.
We see Hemmings find his inner Elf and channel his healing powers to ensure that Seven can survive the trip back to the Fae land.
Chokey, turns sleuthy and turns out to be the most astute Fae of those who remain on other side of the mirror. She picks up on the undercurrents and the hidden messages easily. I do expect to see her play a vital role in the next installment, in the finding of the tree!
Romance is in the air, with the Fae opening their hearts to the possibility of love and emotions. The star crossed lovers, to the ones who are determined to to stay together.. From the acceptance of feelings to betrayal and heartbreak... We see a lot of them here.
Julia, the emerging puppet master of all things gling wrong with the Fae and tales,come out more open and stronger in intentions.
What happens to Seven when he finally opens his eyes in Fae land?
Will Bea find the tree, in her quest?
Will Mistasinon fell Julia's regime from within? Will Chokey help him?
Where is Joan and will she ever be able to forgive the people she once trusted?
So much to look forward to!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 20, 2022
Five stars is in part because this is building so well on the previous three novels. Now we get a lot of items falling into place. But also the plot this time around is very strongly linked to the politics of the Fae world in a way that gives another dimension to the series and also feeds directly into the current events we're experiencing around the rise of fascism and the pandemic. Great stuff.
May 6, 2022
This exceeded my very high expectations and I love that each book introduces new characters and new places to enjoy
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews