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The Sunless World #1
Quartz
A sunless world. The lost Tower of Light. And the race to find it.
Rafe Grenfeld, diplomat and spy, has problems.
He’s just learned of the discovery of a legendary quartz pillar: his world’s most precious resource. But his informer died before revealing its location, and Rafe’s on the run in the hostile state of Blackstone.
Once, quartz powered magical devices, but the mages who created them are long gone. Now, veins of quartz give light to a dying world, and Rafe has competition.
Karzov, the notorious chief of Blackstone’s secret police, is also hunting for the pillar. Determined to claim it for his own country, Rafe forms an uneasy alliance with the mysterious and maddening Isabella. As dangerous magical artifacts resurface and dark forces close in, Rafe must tap into the lost powers of the mages to find and secure the quartz—before his world is torn apart by famine and war.
Rafe Grenfeld, diplomat and spy, has problems.
He’s just learned of the discovery of a legendary quartz pillar: his world’s most precious resource. But his informer died before revealing its location, and Rafe’s on the run in the hostile state of Blackstone.
Once, quartz powered magical devices, but the mages who created them are long gone. Now, veins of quartz give light to a dying world, and Rafe has competition.
Karzov, the notorious chief of Blackstone’s secret police, is also hunting for the pillar. Determined to claim it for his own country, Rafe forms an uneasy alliance with the mysterious and maddening Isabella. As dangerous magical artifacts resurface and dark forces close in, Rafe must tap into the lost powers of the mages to find and secure the quartz—before his world is torn apart by famine and war.
309 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 13, 2015
13 people are currently reading
67 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 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 28, 2016
It took a very long time to settle into this book. The writing was action-packed and engaging, but it felt like a step was missing for a very long time, or a few chapters. I actually set it aside (figuratively speaking) and read at least one other book before coming back to it.
Either I was incredibly inattentive for a long time to more than just the name of the series this book opens or there actually was a step missing: it took me forever for the light bulb to go off (so to speak) that the world on which the story was set literally had no sun. Seriously, I had no idea. (In my defense, the Kindle galley I had just used "Quartz" in the listing – no series name. There was a book synopsis just inside the cover – but opening the book for the first time goes straight to the table of contents, a couple of pages after.) Then suddenly the penny dropped and I understood why magical quartz was so valuable, why all agriculture took place in caves filled with said quartz, and why no one ever commented on what a lovely day it was. So – maybe I missed something else. This might, however, have been one time when a prologue, or an excerpt from an ancient text, or a glimpse into a history class ("It's true, children! Once upon a time there really was a big ball of fire in the sky, providing heat and light…") or something like that might have been useful for the less intuitive reader … Or maybe I did just miss it.
Well, no, actually, if it was subtle enough an explanation that I missed it entirely then it was too damned subtle – I'm not that careless a reader…
Anyway. With that little contretemps and the almost grudging revelation of not only how the society of the Sunless World (which, you know, has no sun) works, but also of anything at all about our hero Rafe, Rabia Gale strikes me as a writer who has no patience with readers who need their hands held. I don't, usually – in fact, I usually have no patience for writers who hold their readers' hands. But there is a vast span between the infodump-and-recap style of storytelling and the standoffish "you'll find out eventually" style of Quartz.
Once it did engage me, though, it sucked me in pretty thoroughly. The characters were kind of great. Rafe is just a lot of fun to read about – a man who is equally willing to dance with fire in the name of duty or to dance at a ball, a man with a mission and some very entertaining friends. If and when I seek out the next book in the series it will be largely because of Rafe, and his sister. Oh, man, his sister...
The writing (as opposed to the storytelling) was the main saving grace. It is confident, clear (if not always in the ways I wanted: "Wait, there's no sun?"), and sharp.
“So, what do you think of that?” said Coop, with the air of having pulled a gold coin out of Rafe’s ears.
…
Dark figures ran back and forth in futile frenzy, silhouettes outlined in flame. Some heaved bucketfuls of water at the fire. It was like fighting off an army with a pair of sugar tongs.
I have to say, I enjoy a world where there's an elevation called Bubble Mountain.
My only quibbles – apart from the whole "Seriously? No sun? At all?" thing – were one instance of too-here-and-now dialogue ("It was some people in the cabinet who got on Father's case") and one question which might be easily enough explained away: in lieu of, you know, celestial sources of light, candles are much in use. And at least once specific mention is made of wax. Wax means bees. Bees, generally, (to me at least) mean flowers. From what I gleaned, very little precious space is used growing flowers; most room and resources have to go toward producing food. So … Beeswax? Not sure about that.
That being said, I am very much looking forward to the next book.
The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.
Either I was incredibly inattentive for a long time to more than just the name of the series this book opens or there actually was a step missing: it took me forever for the light bulb to go off (so to speak) that the world on which the story was set literally had no sun. Seriously, I had no idea. (In my defense, the Kindle galley I had just used "Quartz" in the listing – no series name. There was a book synopsis just inside the cover – but opening the book for the first time goes straight to the table of contents, a couple of pages after.) Then suddenly the penny dropped and I understood why magical quartz was so valuable, why all agriculture took place in caves filled with said quartz, and why no one ever commented on what a lovely day it was. So – maybe I missed something else. This might, however, have been one time when a prologue, or an excerpt from an ancient text, or a glimpse into a history class ("It's true, children! Once upon a time there really was a big ball of fire in the sky, providing heat and light…") or something like that might have been useful for the less intuitive reader … Or maybe I did just miss it.
Well, no, actually, if it was subtle enough an explanation that I missed it entirely then it was too damned subtle – I'm not that careless a reader…
Anyway. With that little contretemps and the almost grudging revelation of not only how the society of the Sunless World (which, you know, has no sun) works, but also of anything at all about our hero Rafe, Rabia Gale strikes me as a writer who has no patience with readers who need their hands held. I don't, usually – in fact, I usually have no patience for writers who hold their readers' hands. But there is a vast span between the infodump-and-recap style of storytelling and the standoffish "you'll find out eventually" style of Quartz.
Once it did engage me, though, it sucked me in pretty thoroughly. The characters were kind of great. Rafe is just a lot of fun to read about – a man who is equally willing to dance with fire in the name of duty or to dance at a ball, a man with a mission and some very entertaining friends. If and when I seek out the next book in the series it will be largely because of Rafe, and his sister. Oh, man, his sister...
The writing (as opposed to the storytelling) was the main saving grace. It is confident, clear (if not always in the ways I wanted: "Wait, there's no sun?"), and sharp.
“So, what do you think of that?” said Coop, with the air of having pulled a gold coin out of Rafe’s ears.
…
Dark figures ran back and forth in futile frenzy, silhouettes outlined in flame. Some heaved bucketfuls of water at the fire. It was like fighting off an army with a pair of sugar tongs.
I have to say, I enjoy a world where there's an elevation called Bubble Mountain.
My only quibbles – apart from the whole "Seriously? No sun? At all?" thing – were one instance of too-here-and-now dialogue ("It was some people in the cabinet who got on Father's case") and one question which might be easily enough explained away: in lieu of, you know, celestial sources of light, candles are much in use. And at least once specific mention is made of wax. Wax means bees. Bees, generally, (to me at least) mean flowers. From what I gleaned, very little precious space is used growing flowers; most room and resources have to go toward producing food. So … Beeswax? Not sure about that.
That being said, I am very much looking forward to the next book.
The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review.
July 15, 2023
A soft 3.5 stars for this. Rounded down because although I enjoyed it, it just didn't have the extra spark of awesomeness to move it from "good" to "great."
I think the biggest fault of the story was no fault of the author's... just not quite the sort of story I really enjoy. It was very plot-driven, episodic, and I was well past halfway in the book before I figured out what the book was about. Spy story? Escape adventure? Treasure heist? Quest to save the world from certain destruction? Political upheaval? The plot bounced between these, and more.
The characterization was done fairly well. The main characters were well described and distinctive, and several characters had hidden layers, which helped so much with believability.
The world building seemed kind of shallow, but... there are a few things that could have been more developed, but otherwise, it either didn't matter for the plot, or it kind of was the point. They don't remember the past history very well, the world has changed a lot and some history has become lost and some has changed as it became legend.
And for all that the author's style tends toward a little less description than I might prefer, that also means the plot is snappy and fast-paced, you jump right into action without drowning in pages of backstory, characters don't spend pages wallowing in despair, etc. So overall, a fun, light read.
I think the biggest fault of the story was no fault of the author's... just not quite the sort of story I really enjoy. It was very plot-driven, episodic, and I was well past halfway in the book before I figured out what the book was about. Spy story? Escape adventure? Treasure heist? Quest to save the world from certain destruction? Political upheaval? The plot bounced between these, and more.
The characterization was done fairly well. The main characters were well described and distinctive, and several characters had hidden layers, which helped so much with believability.
The world building seemed kind of shallow, but... there are a few things that could have been more developed, but otherwise, it either didn't matter for the plot, or it kind of was the point. They don't remember the past history very well, the world has changed a lot and some history has become lost and some has changed as it became legend.
And for all that the author's style tends toward a little less description than I might prefer, that also means the plot is snappy and fast-paced, you jump right into action without drowning in pages of backstory, characters don't spend pages wallowing in despair, etc. So overall, a fun, light read.
October 21, 2016
Meh. Halfway through I quit because I got bored waiting for something to give me a clue what the hell the plot was.
January 26, 2020
It was an interesting read. At first, I found it hard to get into it, but as I kept reading, I was getting more and more interested. The worldbuilding was interesting, especially since we get to know four very different countries (although some social commentary seemed half a century late). And the characters were likable enough.
I had a slight problem with the writing, I felt like some descriptions were missing (like: there was an explosion in the distance. We had a ground shaking and few pages later the character is running through the fire, but between them, there's a moment of confusion when we know something's up, but we have to wonder what.)
I had a slight problem with the writing, I felt like some descriptions were missing (like: there was an explosion in the distance. We had a ground shaking and few pages later the character is running through the fire, but between them, there's a moment of confusion when we know something's up, but we have to wonder what.)
August 28, 2023
Steampunk spy thriller
Spy Rafe works underground to thwart neighboring Blackstone and support its rebellion. He fonds out about a rare pillar of quartz which supplies power, light, and magic. He embarks on a dangerous adventure, sometimes with, other times, against, a mysterious woman. The tone of this book was a bit gritty for me - meaning the steampunk world and hopeless quality. Writing was good but the characters and story weren’t my type. You may enjoy it, however.
Spy Rafe works underground to thwart neighboring Blackstone and support its rebellion. He fonds out about a rare pillar of quartz which supplies power, light, and magic. He embarks on a dangerous adventure, sometimes with, other times, against, a mysterious woman. The tone of this book was a bit gritty for me - meaning the steampunk world and hopeless quality. Writing was good but the characters and story weren’t my type. You may enjoy it, however.
March 27, 2022
I wasn’t sure what this book wanted to be. We start off with a soldier turned spy/ambassador, who is a noble, who visits several cities and then stumbles into a special mystery. But there’s also a magical system that was very confusing, and very little time spent on the big reveal at the end. I wanted to like this book.
did-not-finish
January 23, 2024DNF 59%
I still can't figure out the plot of this book. Pretty sure Rafe's sister is evil but honestly the progression of this book reminds me of a teleporter. Let's spend 3 days in this country with this cast of characters then have a black out moment leading up to repeat in another country.
I still can't figure out the plot of this book. Pretty sure Rafe's sister is evil but honestly the progression of this book reminds me of a teleporter. Let's spend 3 days in this country with this cast of characters then have a black out moment leading up to repeat in another country.
December 23, 2015
I was given this book by Rebecca Hamilton in exchange for an honest review.
Rabia Gale’s Quartz: the Sunless World is a story of conflict in the dark, on a world where no sun shines and the quartz caves are vital to life. Rafe Grenfeld is a decorative social butterfly, a minor aristocrat known for his dancing. He’s also one of Oakhaven’s best spies, which is why he’s currently hiding from Blackstone’s secret police in a pile of potato peelings. Somewhere in Blackstone are hidden rumours of a legendary pillar of quartz, lost along with most of the world’s mages and relegated to the status of a myth. Unfortunately, Rafe isn’t the only one who’s heard these rumours, and killing is far from the worst thing his competition is willing to do to get there first.
Rabia Gale’s writing brings her story to epic life in the glare of gaslamps and the frenetic gaiety of a world clinging to survival by its fingernails. Quartz: the Sunless World introduces a rich and credible backdrop to the adventures of her characters, with a deadly political mire underlying the bright colours of high society. Rafe makes a gripping protagonist, his tendency to make wise-cracks irrepressible even when he’s on the verge of passing out, and the mysterious anti-hero, Isabella, with her links to a nearly extinct magic and her reluctance to reveal anything more than her name, is a refreshingly new take on the role. I would highly recommend this book – it’s a fast-paced and unique story.
Rabia Gale’s Quartz: the Sunless World is a story of conflict in the dark, on a world where no sun shines and the quartz caves are vital to life. Rafe Grenfeld is a decorative social butterfly, a minor aristocrat known for his dancing. He’s also one of Oakhaven’s best spies, which is why he’s currently hiding from Blackstone’s secret police in a pile of potato peelings. Somewhere in Blackstone are hidden rumours of a legendary pillar of quartz, lost along with most of the world’s mages and relegated to the status of a myth. Unfortunately, Rafe isn’t the only one who’s heard these rumours, and killing is far from the worst thing his competition is willing to do to get there first.
Rabia Gale’s writing brings her story to epic life in the glare of gaslamps and the frenetic gaiety of a world clinging to survival by its fingernails. Quartz: the Sunless World introduces a rich and credible backdrop to the adventures of her characters, with a deadly political mire underlying the bright colours of high society. Rafe makes a gripping protagonist, his tendency to make wise-cracks irrepressible even when he’s on the verge of passing out, and the mysterious anti-hero, Isabella, with her links to a nearly extinct magic and her reluctance to reveal anything more than her name, is a refreshingly new take on the role. I would highly recommend this book – it’s a fast-paced and unique story.
December 9, 2015
Wow! I've read -- and loved -- Rabia Gale's other work, but QUARTZ managed to surpass my expectations. Once I started reading, it was so hard to put this book down.
This is a complete fantasy world, one that I could fully envision, down to the finest details. It's a world without a sun, run by machines, divided into city states. Some of the city states are on the edge of war, while others have an uneasy peace. There is magic and adventure, plenty of intrigue and some good surprises. Great characters, great plot, fantastic world building.
And now I need the sequel!!
This is a complete fantasy world, one that I could fully envision, down to the finest details. It's a world without a sun, run by machines, divided into city states. Some of the city states are on the edge of war, while others have an uneasy peace. There is magic and adventure, plenty of intrigue and some good surprises. Great characters, great plot, fantastic world building.
And now I need the sequel!!
November 24, 2015
I had a hard time getting into this book. I felt like I was coming into the story in the middle. Hang in there, however. The more you read, the more you understand. By the time I was about a third of the way through the book, I was really getting into the story. I found that by the time I got to the end, I was go engrossed, I didn't even hear the kids call me. I look forward to reading more in this series once it is written.
November 27, 2015
Quartz by Rabia Gale is about Rafe, a spy and incredibly likable, on the hunt for something incredibly valuable at the same time as a handful of others are – just to make it interesting. Once, quartz powered magical devices, but the mages who created them are long gone. Isabella is another excellent character, and (wwarily) together the two try to beat others to the pass.
January 22, 2016
I was given this book by Rebecca Hamilton in exchange for a fair and honest review.
It's not often , after reading and reviewing so prolifically over the last two years, that I read a unique and exciting story. Two great characters , one being the elusive Isabella. This story is fast, fascinating and highly recommended . Thanks Becca for such a novel read.
It's not often , after reading and reviewing so prolifically over the last two years, that I read a unique and exciting story. Two great characters , one being the elusive Isabella. This story is fast, fascinating and highly recommended . Thanks Becca for such a novel read.
July 6, 2016
It is a very good book to read
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews