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The Drowning Eyes
When the Dragon Ships began to tear through the trade lanes and ravage coastal towns, the hopes of the archipelago turned to the Windspeakers on Tash. The solemn weather-shapers with their eyes of stone can steal the breeze from raiders' sails and save the islands from their wrath. But the Windspeakers' magic has been stolen, and only their young apprentice Shina can bring their power back and save her people.
Tazir has seen more than her share of storms and pirates in her many years as captain, and she's not much interested in getting involved in the affairs of Windspeakers and Dragon Ships. Shina's caught her eye, but that might not be enough to convince the grizzled sailor to risk her ship, her crew, and her neck.
"The Drowning Eyes is a magic- and wind-filled adventure, peopled with excellent and strong characters. The story made me want to sail the coastline on a boat of my own and see if I could call up a storm. In Emily Foster's debut novella, apprentice Windspeaker Shina must return her people's power to them before the Dragon Ships destroy everything . . . unless Shina destroys it by accident first. So vividly rendered, you'll be tempted to wash the salt-spray from your clothing after reading The Drowning Eyes." - Fran Wilde, author of Updraft
Tazir has seen more than her share of storms and pirates in her many years as captain, and she's not much interested in getting involved in the affairs of Windspeakers and Dragon Ships. Shina's caught her eye, but that might not be enough to convince the grizzled sailor to risk her ship, her crew, and her neck.
"The Drowning Eyes is a magic- and wind-filled adventure, peopled with excellent and strong characters. The story made me want to sail the coastline on a boat of my own and see if I could call up a storm. In Emily Foster's debut novella, apprentice Windspeaker Shina must return her people's power to them before the Dragon Ships destroy everything . . . unless Shina destroys it by accident first. So vividly rendered, you'll be tempted to wash the salt-spray from your clothing after reading The Drowning Eyes." - Fran Wilde, author of Updraft
134 pages, Paperback
First published January 12, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 192 reviews
February 26, 2022
This was a novella and I quite enjoyed it. I did kinda want to read it as a full length book but it’s nice sometimes to read something short and good!
Thank you my sweet murderous pea 😘
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
Thank you my sweet murderous pea 😘
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
January 26, 2016
3.5 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum http://bibliosanctum.com/2016/01/26/n...
Tor.com kicks off the year with another irresistible lineup of novellas in early 2016, and leading the charge is Emily Foster’s debut release The Drowning Eyes. In this slim little volume, a lone survivor sets off on an adventure in a wind-swept coastal fantasy to retrieve what was stolen from her and her people. With the Windspeakers’ island enclave pillaged and destroyed by the Dragon Ships, villages along the coastline are left unprotected and open to attacks. Now it’s up to Shina, a young apprentice, to reclaim the weather-shaping magic of the Windspeakers in order to save the villagers and drive back the raiders.
Determined and resourceful, Shina manages to find a captain desperate for funds and bargains for passage on her ship. Tazir and her crew are unhappy at the prospect of transporting their new guest at first, but they soon come around when everyone realizes the importance of Shina’s quest.
I know I can be a harsh judge of novellas, often with my main complaint being a wish for them to be longer or feel more complete. I’m afraid this is once again the case with The Drowning Eyes, which feels a lot like a too large idea trying to fit into too small a package. This admittedly weakens the story somewhat. But be that as it may, I want to underscore a few things I thought this novella did amazingly well and other areas that might have been limited by the short fiction format but shone through nonetheless.
First, the characters. I might not have spent enough time with them to call them truly memorable, but they were delightful to get to know. I have a soft spot for roguish sailor types, and the crew endeared themselves to me for the brief time I got to read about them. Their personalities were all wonderfully unique, and I enjoyed the interplay between them and the way they gradually accepted Shina into the fold and decided to throw their support behind her.
Second, the magic. Before you go thinking that this sounds like your typical feel-good quest narrative-type adventure story, you should get a load of the Windspeaker’s powers. Weather magic, the kind that is central to the plot in The Drowning Eyes, is a strictly guarded medium. Apprentices are brought to the enclave at a young age, and when they are deemed ready to don the mantle of a full Windspeaker, their eyes are gouged from their sockets and replaced by stones. It’s true that I may not remember the names of all the characters in this novella a year, three years, or five years from now, but I can pretty much guarantee I’ll remember this gruesome little detail about Windspeaker tradition for the rest of my life. Also, seeing as this is the third book I’ve read in as many weeks about ships and characters with weather-based magic that can control winds, it’s refreshing to see a new twist on a familiar idea, even if it is kind of disturbing.
Lastly, the world-building. I certainly liked what I saw, even if this story merely gave me a limited view through a tiny window. The rich descriptions paint a very lively picture of coastlines and the cultures of their inhabitants. The place feels very much alive, and even a small setting like life aboard a ship seems to have its own atmosphere.
And it was all over way too soon. I wish I could have held off the ending, but it came upon me like one of the story’s magical storms, and after a whirlwind of confused and sudden events, the book was finished. This is rather unfortunate, because a satisfying ending might have left me liking this book even more, but as it is, I felt the conclusion felt too incomplete—jarringly so.
However, as you can see from the many positives I talked about, The Drowning Eyes was still a book I really enjoyed. I think this would have made an excellent full-length novel with a more fleshed out plot and developed characters, but if given the chance to read more stories set in this world, I certainly wouldn’t say no. An impressive debut novella.
Tor.com kicks off the year with another irresistible lineup of novellas in early 2016, and leading the charge is Emily Foster’s debut release The Drowning Eyes. In this slim little volume, a lone survivor sets off on an adventure in a wind-swept coastal fantasy to retrieve what was stolen from her and her people. With the Windspeakers’ island enclave pillaged and destroyed by the Dragon Ships, villages along the coastline are left unprotected and open to attacks. Now it’s up to Shina, a young apprentice, to reclaim the weather-shaping magic of the Windspeakers in order to save the villagers and drive back the raiders.
Determined and resourceful, Shina manages to find a captain desperate for funds and bargains for passage on her ship. Tazir and her crew are unhappy at the prospect of transporting their new guest at first, but they soon come around when everyone realizes the importance of Shina’s quest.
I know I can be a harsh judge of novellas, often with my main complaint being a wish for them to be longer or feel more complete. I’m afraid this is once again the case with The Drowning Eyes, which feels a lot like a too large idea trying to fit into too small a package. This admittedly weakens the story somewhat. But be that as it may, I want to underscore a few things I thought this novella did amazingly well and other areas that might have been limited by the short fiction format but shone through nonetheless.
First, the characters. I might not have spent enough time with them to call them truly memorable, but they were delightful to get to know. I have a soft spot for roguish sailor types, and the crew endeared themselves to me for the brief time I got to read about them. Their personalities were all wonderfully unique, and I enjoyed the interplay between them and the way they gradually accepted Shina into the fold and decided to throw their support behind her.
Second, the magic. Before you go thinking that this sounds like your typical feel-good quest narrative-type adventure story, you should get a load of the Windspeaker’s powers. Weather magic, the kind that is central to the plot in The Drowning Eyes, is a strictly guarded medium. Apprentices are brought to the enclave at a young age, and when they are deemed ready to don the mantle of a full Windspeaker, their eyes are gouged from their sockets and replaced by stones. It’s true that I may not remember the names of all the characters in this novella a year, three years, or five years from now, but I can pretty much guarantee I’ll remember this gruesome little detail about Windspeaker tradition for the rest of my life. Also, seeing as this is the third book I’ve read in as many weeks about ships and characters with weather-based magic that can control winds, it’s refreshing to see a new twist on a familiar idea, even if it is kind of disturbing.
Lastly, the world-building. I certainly liked what I saw, even if this story merely gave me a limited view through a tiny window. The rich descriptions paint a very lively picture of coastlines and the cultures of their inhabitants. The place feels very much alive, and even a small setting like life aboard a ship seems to have its own atmosphere.
And it was all over way too soon. I wish I could have held off the ending, but it came upon me like one of the story’s magical storms, and after a whirlwind of confused and sudden events, the book was finished. This is rather unfortunate, because a satisfying ending might have left me liking this book even more, but as it is, I felt the conclusion felt too incomplete—jarringly so.
However, as you can see from the many positives I talked about, The Drowning Eyes was still a book I really enjoyed. I think this would have made an excellent full-length novel with a more fleshed out plot and developed characters, but if given the chance to read more stories set in this world, I certainly wouldn’t say no. An impressive debut novella.
June 1, 2022
Actual rating: 2.5 stars.
This could have been Slightly Very Scrumptious (SVC™). Only that it wasn't. Okay, so the beginning of the story was. But it all went downhill from there. I think the main issue here is that the story is way too short and once you get into the meat of the matter everything goes...
Which is Supremely Frustrating as Fish (SFaF™), if you ask me. There's this world with great potential, a pretty intriguing plot, tons of unexplained stuff you want to know tons more about and then BAM! The End 🙄🙄🙄. So yes, SFaF™ this story definitely is.
Also, despite a great beginning, everything pretty much falls flat as my favorite herd of ironing boards after the first few chapters. Also also, the two MCs behave like immature teenagers and I just couldn't bring myself to give a shrimp about them.
BUT. Huge kudos to Foster for making her MC a black lesbian. Who happens to be the captain of a ship called The Giggling Goat. I mean, The Giggling Goat!! Of course, naming the ship The Chortling Shrimp would have been a lot better but that's puny humans for you. They prefer to give their boats mammal names rather than lethal invertebrate ones.
I hear ya, Bertie.
This could have been Slightly Very Scrumptious (SVC™). Only that it wasn't. Okay, so the beginning of the story was. But it all went downhill from there. I think the main issue here is that the story is way too short and once you get into the meat of the matter everything goes...
Which is Supremely Frustrating as Fish (SFaF™), if you ask me. There's this world with great potential, a pretty intriguing plot, tons of unexplained stuff you want to know tons more about and then BAM! The End 🙄🙄🙄. So yes, SFaF™ this story definitely is.
Also, despite a great beginning, everything pretty much falls flat as my favorite herd of ironing boards after the first few chapters. Also also, the two MCs behave like immature teenagers and I just couldn't bring myself to give a shrimp about them.
BUT. Huge kudos to Foster for making her MC a black lesbian. Who happens to be the captain of a ship called The Giggling Goat. I mean, The Giggling Goat!! Of course, naming the ship The Chortling Shrimp would have been a lot better but that's puny humans for you. They prefer to give their boats mammal names rather than lethal invertebrate ones.
I hear ya, Bertie.
January 17, 2016
Another terrific novella from the TOR series. This one has a fantastic list of very diverse characters that really shine. The story is engaging and the ending was unexpected.
February 16, 2016
This one started out slow and then got really interesting and I was hooked and then the climax and the aftermath just kinda didn’t do it for me at all.
Still, I will check out the author’s future books.
Still, I will check out the author’s future books.
February 7, 2017
This was an entertaining story about hip-dialogue sailors and weather witches running from vaguely Viking guys....I guess? The magic system in this world was pretty harsh, which is a plus. And, like I said, the dialogue was pretty snappy, a little Mamet-meets-Whedon. But I didn't really get into it, and the characters didn't really end up giving two shits about each other, so I didn't end up giving two shits about them.
One huge plus though: the main character is LGBT, and.....who cares? There's no "I have to hide who/what I like cuz OPRESS'D" or "we have to feature kinky sex every other paragraph cuz SEX0RZ." She just liked who she liked, and it wasn't a big deal. VERY refreshing, and kinda my favorite part of the book.
One huge plus though: the main character is LGBT, and.....who cares? There's no "I have to hide who/what I like cuz OPRESS'D" or "we have to feature kinky sex every other paragraph cuz SEX0RZ." She just liked who she liked, and it wasn't a big deal. VERY refreshing, and kinda my favorite part of the book.
December 11, 2015
Fantastic story full of weather magic and swashbuckling! And a whole lot of characters with dark skin *gasp* and women who like other women *double gasp*. The pacing was fantastic though a couple of times I got confused about a time jump. The magic of the world is very cool but has some serious consequences that will leave you wondering if it is worth it. I love fantasy that makes me think!
February 8, 2016
My only real complaint here is that I wanted more - I felt like this could have been incredible in novel length! Interesting world, strong characters.
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July 21, 2024This book was a really pleasant surprise. I didn't know much about it in advance; in fact, I randomly picked it from a list of fantasy novellas (I'm in a novella-reading mood lately) and only skimmed quickly through the synopsis.
For a short book, the characters felt realistic, and I *loved* the always-grumpy Captain Tazir...she made for a great lead, and her interactions with the rest of the cast were one of the highlights of this book.
I'm not a reader who is typically concerned with magic systems, but I thought this one was unique and essential to the plot. I won't give the details here, because part of the discovery is what makes it fun.
One minor complaint is that the Dragon Ship raiders, the ominous villains of the tale, weren't really that well-developed. There was so much more we could have learned about them, but we were mostly left in the dark. Then again, this wasn't truly a story about them; it was a story about the ship's crew being placed in a difficult situation, and how their relationships with one another drove their decisions. And in the character of Shina, it was the story of how one young woman struggles with her sense of duty.
The short length was both a blessing and a curse. I really like the concept of a "one and done" novella, but this book is just begging to be part of a larger series (or even expanded into a full-length novel itself). There was a great deal of world-building packed into a small number of pages, and past events in the lives of the characters just hinted upon.
Unfortunately, I can't find much information about the author online. This book was published in 2016, and I'm curious to know if she's writing anything else. I would definitely read more of her work.
For a short book, the characters felt realistic, and I *loved* the always-grumpy Captain Tazir...she made for a great lead, and her interactions with the rest of the cast were one of the highlights of this book.
I'm not a reader who is typically concerned with magic systems, but I thought this one was unique and essential to the plot. I won't give the details here, because part of the discovery is what makes it fun.
One minor complaint is that the Dragon Ship raiders, the ominous villains of the tale, weren't really that well-developed. There was so much more we could have learned about them, but we were mostly left in the dark. Then again, this wasn't truly a story about them; it was a story about the ship's crew being placed in a difficult situation, and how their relationships with one another drove their decisions. And in the character of Shina, it was the story of how one young woman struggles with her sense of duty.
The short length was both a blessing and a curse. I really like the concept of a "one and done" novella, but this book is just begging to be part of a larger series (or even expanded into a full-length novel itself). There was a great deal of world-building packed into a small number of pages, and past events in the lives of the characters just hinted upon.
Unfortunately, I can't find much information about the author online. This book was published in 2016, and I'm curious to know if she's writing anything else. I would definitely read more of her work.
January 12, 2016
3.5 stars, now that I've had more time to think on it. I liked the ending the most (unexpected!). Solid writing. Distinct, engaging characters. Running from the nameless invaders' ships...? That was the only weaker part, but the rest of the story was stronger than that one detail.
January 17, 2016
The nitty-gritty: A compact story with big ideas, featuring a fascinating magic system and fierce and determined female characters.
I was immediately drawn to this novella by the cover: a beautiful and fierce-looking woman in the middle of a stormy sea. What was happening to her? It is book covers like this that make me want to read a book, and I dove in, hoping to find adventure, danger and an answer to my question. And I was not disappointed. The Drowning Eyes packs a lot of story into such a small page count, and introduces readers to some very unique characters. Foster takes the idea of a group of women who can control the wind and bring forth storms through magic, and tells the story of a girl who has been given a difficult task to complete before she is considered a full-fledged ��Windspeaker.”
Tazir is the captain of the Giggling Goat, and along with her small crew, she sails among the Tahiri Islands, transporting travelers from island to island, assuring them safe passage through choppy waves and storm-prone skies. As they wait in a port, looking for their next customer, they are approached by a young girl named Shina, who offers them a huge amount of money to get to a distant island. She says her parents are forcing her to marry against her will, but Tazir knows she’s hiding something. But, unwilling to turn down such a huge fare, Tazir takes the job.
Shina is hiding a secret, a big one: she’s a Windspeaker, someone who can bring forth storms with magic. She’s on a quest to find and bring back an icon that is sacred to her people. With Shina’s help, the ship is able to evade a dangerous enemy, but how long can they possibly hide from them?
I love stories that take place at sea, and much of the action happens on the Giggling Goat, as Tazir and her crew get to know Shina, who is clearly not the innocent rich girl she appears to be. Foster did a great job with the atmosphere of the story, and she literally made me feel the sea spray on my skin, and I could clearly imagine the rocking of the ship as the winds kicked up.
Foster’s magic system is strange and disturbing. I don’t want to give away too much, but I will tell you that Windspeakers have a tradition that when they come of age and are ready, their eyes are exchanged for rocks. I’m usually not the squeamish type, but this one story element made me cringe each time it was brought up. But still, I loved the idea of weather-related magic. This certainly isn’t the first story to use this idea, but I’ve never seen it done quite this way before.
The Drowning Eyes not only features multi-ethnic characters, but gay and bisexual ones as well, so for those looking for more diversity in your stories, this one has it all. Throw in a mostly female cast and you have a short but powerful story that delivers on many levels.
I think Tor.com is off to a great start in 2016 with their first published novella of the year!
This review originally appeared on The Speculative Herald. This review originally appeared on Books, Bones & Buffy
September 24, 2016
There’s a lot about this novella that’s fascinating — the image of the Windspeakers having to sacrifice their eyes and receiving stones instead is just, wow; I’m pretty sure that’s going to stick with me. The crew are cool, too; crabby and sympathetic and brave and practical. A mixture, like real people, and able to really get on each other’s nerves like real people, too. There are some awesome descriptions of weather magic, too: of the way the protagonist feels it in her body.
The flipside of that is that that there feels like there’s too much going on. There’s the whole magic system, then there’s the pirate crew, and it doesn’t fit that well together, because all of a sudden the pirates are really invested in something that is, well, above their pay grade. From transporting a runaway to saving a group of people that they don’t even necessarily sympathise with… And the Dragon Ships; that whole plot thread isn’t really resolved, because it’s implied there’s a lot more going on with them and yet the story more or less ends with a minor confrontation.
It doesn’t feel complete, like there’s just too much still up in the air. It’s not bad as a story, but it feels rushed and inconclusive.
Originally posted here.
The flipside of that is that that there feels like there’s too much going on. There’s the whole magic system, then there’s the pirate crew, and it doesn’t fit that well together, because all of a sudden the pirates are really invested in something that is, well, above their pay grade. From transporting a runaway to saving a group of people that they don’t even necessarily sympathise with… And the Dragon Ships; that whole plot thread isn’t really resolved, because it’s implied there’s a lot more going on with them and yet the story more or less ends with a minor confrontation.
It doesn’t feel complete, like there’s just too much still up in the air. It’s not bad as a story, but it feels rushed and inconclusive.
Originally posted here.
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September 25, 2019I feel, I have to explain my rating.
I'm tumblr-damaged, insofar as American citizens seem to insist on PoC, female writers with PoC female lead characters. I know, you'd insist on giving this the highest rating, based on those two facts alone. Bonus points for the captain being a lesbian.
If that's all you require, then CHECK. This should have been a five star review.
To me, it's not. This novella started out so fine, so perfect. Yes, female pirates. Yes, PoC pirates. But most of all, the fine line between power and the cost of it. The prose was as rough as the storms called, and I related it to the theme and thought, it was most fitting.
Then I reached the 70+ percent mark and the story was hacked off. I got there, perfectly sure to have one or two thoughts about what this story was intended to do and - with the hack, all my thoughts were gone.
I have thought about this for more than a day now and I really, really can't tell you, what this thing was about. I fell for the words "Stormcaller" and "Windspeaker". I blame Brandon Sanderson.
In the end, this story provides no suspense, no thought-inducing new revelations - nothing. It just drives you out with that cut and after that, it's just enduring until you reach the end.
I'm tumblr-damaged, insofar as American citizens seem to insist on PoC, female writers with PoC female lead characters. I know, you'd insist on giving this the highest rating, based on those two facts alone. Bonus points for the captain being a lesbian.
If that's all you require, then CHECK. This should have been a five star review.
To me, it's not. This novella started out so fine, so perfect. Yes, female pirates. Yes, PoC pirates. But most of all, the fine line between power and the cost of it. The prose was as rough as the storms called, and I related it to the theme and thought, it was most fitting.
Then I reached the 70+ percent mark and the story was hacked off. I got there, perfectly sure to have one or two thoughts about what this story was intended to do and - with the hack, all my thoughts were gone.
I have thought about this for more than a day now and I really, really can't tell you, what this thing was about. I fell for the words "Stormcaller" and "Windspeaker". I blame Brandon Sanderson.
In the end, this story provides no suspense, no thought-inducing new revelations - nothing. It just drives you out with that cut and after that, it's just enduring until you reach the end.
January 12, 2016
Full review coming.
November 19, 2018
Superb and gripping for the first 4 chapters, with excellent worldbuilding which has you hungry for more - okayish for the next 2.5 and then the end leaves you completely dissatisfied.
But this is the author's debut and I'm looking forward to get refining her craft in her future novels!
But this is the author's debut and I'm looking forward to get refining her craft in her future novels!
April 2, 2016
This is a fabulous novella, I could easily have read more.
August 28, 2022
3 stars.
I enjoyed this a lot! I liked the concept, but wish it was a bit longer and elaborated on further. It had some obvious flaws, like the confusing plotline, awkward writing and underdeveloped characters, but considering the length these aren't major complaints. There is also an odd time jump in the middle, which could have been avoided, but apart from that it was an entertaining read.
Content/ Trigger Warnings- Death, Murder, Genocide, Alcohol, Poverty, Ableism (terms like 'crazy' are used)
Note- I have tried to include all the content warnings that I noticed, but there is no guarantee that I haven’t missed something.
Review written on 28th August, 2022.
Storygraph. Spotify. Youtube. Pinterest. Twitter. Instagram. Linktree.
DISCLAIMER-All opinions on books I’ve read and reviewed are my own, and are with no intention to offend anyone. If you feel offended by my reviews, let me know how I can fix it.
How I Rate-
1 star- Hardly liked anything/was disappointed
2 star- Had potential but did not deliver/was disappointed
3 stars- Was ok but could have been better/was average/Enjoyed a lot but something was missing
4 stars- Loved a lot but something was missing
5 stars- Loved it/new favourite
I enjoyed this a lot! I liked the concept, but wish it was a bit longer and elaborated on further. It had some obvious flaws, like the confusing plotline, awkward writing and underdeveloped characters, but considering the length these aren't major complaints. There is also an odd time jump in the middle, which could have been avoided, but apart from that it was an entertaining read.
Content/ Trigger Warnings- Death, Murder, Genocide, Alcohol, Poverty, Ableism (terms like 'crazy' are used)
Note- I have tried to include all the content warnings that I noticed, but there is no guarantee that I haven’t missed something.
Review written on 28th August, 2022.
Storygraph. Spotify. Youtube. Pinterest. Twitter. Instagram. Linktree.
DISCLAIMER-All opinions on books I’ve read and reviewed are my own, and are with no intention to offend anyone. If you feel offended by my reviews, let me know how I can fix it.
How I Rate-
1 star- Hardly liked anything/was disappointed
2 star- Had potential but did not deliver/was disappointed
3 stars- Was ok but could have been better/was average/Enjoyed a lot but something was missing
4 stars- Loved a lot but something was missing
5 stars- Loved it/new favourite
February 10, 2017
Tazir has been plying the sealanes in her trade ship for many years, and is facing the same challenges all her competitors are, in these hard days when the Dragonships have started ravaging those some sealanes and the communities near them. She has no interest in anything other than keeping her ship and crew afloat and profitable--even if only barely--and no interest in challenging the Dragonships.
Shina is a young woman fleeing something, probably an unwanted marriage, but she has the money to hire the ship to make an unlikely journey, and that's what Tazir and her crew care about. That's the business they're in. It's no fault of theirs that they don't know what her real purpose is, or that they start to like her quite a bit.
Shina is an apprentice Windspeaker.
A major source of the Windspeakers' power has been stolen, and for reasons that gradually become clear, only an apprentice can recover it for them. Shina is leading Tazir and her shipmates into the heart of what they want to avoid.
Foter unfolds her world and her characters in measured layers, making it and them fascinating and compelling. I hope there's more in this world. Highly recommended.
Shina is a young woman fleeing something, probably an unwanted marriage, but she has the money to hire the ship to make an unlikely journey, and that's what Tazir and her crew care about. That's the business they're in. It's no fault of theirs that they don't know what her real purpose is, or that they start to like her quite a bit.
Shina is an apprentice Windspeaker.
A major source of the Windspeakers' power has been stolen, and for reasons that gradually become clear, only an apprentice can recover it for them. Shina is leading Tazir and her shipmates into the heart of what they want to avoid.
Foter unfolds her world and her characters in measured layers, making it and them fascinating and compelling. I hope there's more in this world. Highly recommended.
May 3, 2016
Awesome cover lured me in. Everything else fell flat for me, though.
There are some nice ideas, but the writing is unpolished and the plot thin. There are pirates and chases, but I never felt the suspense, because too much time is spent on the "pirates" arguing around as immature ex-lovers (they talk like bitchy teenagers) and unresolved emotional issues between them. A novella is maybe not the best format for a story that focuses on world-building and character relationships, but certainly it is very difficult to do both - adventure tale and relationship drama - in such a short text. In the present work, you get a little bit of both and therefore, neither worked for me. There was not enough time to create character depth nor to tell a thrilling story of travelling the ocean.
2 stars for nice ideas and because compelling short stories are in fact very difficult to write.
There are some nice ideas, but the writing is unpolished and the plot thin. There are pirates and chases, but I never felt the suspense, because too much time is spent on the "pirates" arguing around as immature ex-lovers (they talk like bitchy teenagers) and unresolved emotional issues between them. A novella is maybe not the best format for a story that focuses on world-building and character relationships, but certainly it is very difficult to do both - adventure tale and relationship drama - in such a short text. In the present work, you get a little bit of both and therefore, neither worked for me. There was not enough time to create character depth nor to tell a thrilling story of travelling the ocean.
2 stars for nice ideas and because compelling short stories are in fact very difficult to write.
February 16, 2016
Full review can be found in my blog: http://wp.me/p7a9pe-7q
Strongly recommended for fans of Fantasy. The characters are interesting and diverse, the adventures are dangerous, and the magic is awesome, as in literally awe-inspiring.
Strongly recommended for fans of Fantasy. The characters are interesting and diverse, the adventures are dangerous, and the magic is awesome, as in literally awe-inspiring.
March 17, 2016
This was really good, the world was really rich and I adored all the characters. My one big problem with it is that I just wanted so much more. I'm typically okay with short stories/novellas, I can dip in and out. But this one I wanted to be 300 pages, I want to walk around and travel with these characters. I'm hoping for more in this world from this writer, she's bumped up to the top of my watch list, I loved this so much.
January 31, 2020
I love that cover!!
And nearly 3 years later I finally decided to read this. I loved it. I love the air of mystery and urgency mixed with that down to earth vibe of life in the tropics. I really wish it was longer though. So that we could get a little more depth a little more information on why the Dragon Ships were intent on destroying these people's lives.
And I still really really LOVE that cover!!
And nearly 3 years later I finally decided to read this. I loved it. I love the air of mystery and urgency mixed with that down to earth vibe of life in the tropics. I really wish it was longer though. So that we could get a little more depth a little more information on why the Dragon Ships were intent on destroying these people's lives.
And I still really really LOVE that cover!!
September 7, 2017
I really wanted to like this because the magic here is very imaginative. I mean, people can control the wind at whim...but they have to get their eyes cut out first? Come on, who wouldn't like to find out why? I just..........really hated every single one-dimensional character here, the disjointed storytelling, and there was really no pay out for me in reading this. Oh, well.
July 30, 2022
“We set our own courses, and we don’t get to bitch about them when they turn out to be shitty.”
This was a pretty short audiobook, and when I finished it I really felt like I'd gotten almost nothing out of it, so I immediately started listening to it again. I didn't complete it the second time around, but it did bump it up a half star. There are a lot of concepts here that I love: grizzled older woman protagonist, hugely powerful younger protagonist, seafaring cultures, weather magic, lots of emphasis on eyes. The eye thing was something I didn't completely understand in my first listen, and the second time around it was very gross and very fascinating. But it still felt more like a hodgepodge of ideas than a good story, and even though the narrative arc was there, I just... didn't care for it all that much? I'd have probably liked it more if there were more emphasis on romance. I am who I am, etc etc.
Listened to the audiobook as read by Robin Miles, which was really good. I liked her accents; I've definitely heard worse when people attempt Jamaican twang. I just wish this were longer and more fleshed out because, again, I really liked the concepts.
July 22, 2016
I’m really disappointed with this novella. After hearing so many good things I expected to love it – the premise is exactly what I love reading in a fantasy book. I was confused for most of the novella, although the ending was definitely better than the beginning. Reading the first chapter, I felt bombarded by several characters, like opening a book on a random page. There were too many voices being introduced at once. I actually considered DNF-ing it, but decided to push through, since this is a short book.
What I understood about the world and Windspeakers was interesting, but I didn’t feel like enough things were explained in the beginning and middle. For example, Windspeakers are either referred to as wet-eye Windspeakers or stone-eye. Wet-eye means your natural eyes. When Windspeakers are fully trained they undergo a surgery to remove their eyes and replace them with stone eyes. This blinds them, but also increases their power. This wasn’t fully explained until near the end. It was also not explicitly stated whether stone-eyes are blind, until the end. I assumed this, but did theorize that magic could keep their sight or something like that.
Ultimately the author’s vision did not fully translate in the writing. Maybe it’s because this is a novella, so there are less words to use or just the writing. Who knows? I’d still recommend this because I liked what I saw of the world, but maybe request it from the library first. This is a quick read so if you don’t like it, your time isn’t too wasted. I feel The Drowning Eyes would have been better as a bigger book – allowing more time for the reader to bond with the characters and world.
What I understood about the world and Windspeakers was interesting, but I didn’t feel like enough things were explained in the beginning and middle. For example, Windspeakers are either referred to as wet-eye Windspeakers or stone-eye. Wet-eye means your natural eyes. When Windspeakers are fully trained they undergo a surgery to remove their eyes and replace them with stone eyes. This blinds them, but also increases their power. This wasn’t fully explained until near the end. It was also not explicitly stated whether stone-eyes are blind, until the end. I assumed this, but did theorize that magic could keep their sight or something like that.
Ultimately the author’s vision did not fully translate in the writing. Maybe it’s because this is a novella, so there are less words to use or just the writing. Who knows? I’d still recommend this because I liked what I saw of the world, but maybe request it from the library first. This is a quick read so if you don’t like it, your time isn’t too wasted. I feel The Drowning Eyes would have been better as a bigger book – allowing more time for the reader to bond with the characters and world.
March 28, 2016
The seafaring vibe in the synopsis for this tor.com novella caught my attention, so I picked it up on a whim while I was in between other things. Its story and cast were just the right size for a work of this length; the entire action takes place over a handful of small islands and there are only four main characters.
For some reason, "Shina's caught her eye" in the synopsis made me think there'd be some romance, but anything along those lines is very low-key. So low-key that I didn't realize who the pair of lovers was until the coda at the end of the story. The relationship between Shina and Captain Tazir is not a romance but something else, something that's no less fraught.
The story has a cataclysm and I appreciated how there was focus put on the aftermath and how it affected both its victims and who caused it. The islands and sea were depicted with good sensory detail, though without the map in the front I would have been confused as to where the islands and towns stood in relation to each other spatially. There was maybe too much in the way of raised eyebrows and flattened mouths and rolled eyes, and I didn't need to be shown for the fortieth time that Tazir smoked a pipe.
Anyhow, this was a nice snack-sized read, and I wouldn't mind reading another story in this setting, although "The Drowning Eyes" stands well on its own.
Synchronicity: both this novella and Mindplayers, which I read a couple weeks ago, feature people who have their eyes removed and replaced with artificial ones. That's... kind of weird.
For some reason, "Shina's caught her eye" in the synopsis made me think there'd be some romance, but anything along those lines is very low-key. So low-key that I didn't realize who the pair of lovers was until the coda at the end of the story. The relationship between Shina and Captain Tazir is not a romance but something else, something that's no less fraught.
The story has a cataclysm and I appreciated how there was focus put on the aftermath and how it affected both its victims and who caused it. The islands and sea were depicted with good sensory detail, though without the map in the front I would have been confused as to where the islands and towns stood in relation to each other spatially. There was maybe too much in the way of raised eyebrows and flattened mouths and rolled eyes, and I didn't need to be shown for the fortieth time that Tazir smoked a pipe.
Anyhow, this was a nice snack-sized read, and I wouldn't mind reading another story in this setting, although "The Drowning Eyes" stands well on its own.
Synchronicity: both this novella and Mindplayers, which I read a couple weeks ago, feature people who have their eyes removed and replaced with artificial ones. That's... kind of weird.
March 3, 2016
A great introduction to a cast of characters. This one feels short even for a novella, in part because the adventure the crew of the Giggling Goat go on feels like the start of something bigger. The world, and the relationships between the crew, don't have full arcs, so much as lovely existences in a story that feels shorter than they are. I wouldn't be surprised if Tor releases a series of these, if the first sells well.
The Windspeakers can swallow storms and control the weather in a world that badly needs the oceans for commerce, but the critical point for me was how the women treated each other. Captain Tazir is pricklier, but step by step, as battles are lost or people tremble in anxiety, what kept me hooked was Foster's habit of having the crew comfort each other, and their guests. They're uncynical, insisting a paying guest take the better bed, not because it'll help their PR, but just because that's how they do business. It was relieving, after reading so much brutal and dark fiction, to see some decent people. Decent pirates, even.
Expect a lot of reviews to complain that they wanted more. If you pick it up, expect a warm feeling for all the pages that last. I'll stand by and hope for a sequel.
The Windspeakers can swallow storms and control the weather in a world that badly needs the oceans for commerce, but the critical point for me was how the women treated each other. Captain Tazir is pricklier, but step by step, as battles are lost or people tremble in anxiety, what kept me hooked was Foster's habit of having the crew comfort each other, and their guests. They're uncynical, insisting a paying guest take the better bed, not because it'll help their PR, but just because that's how they do business. It was relieving, after reading so much brutal and dark fiction, to see some decent people. Decent pirates, even.
Expect a lot of reviews to complain that they wanted more. If you pick it up, expect a warm feeling for all the pages that last. I'll stand by and hope for a sequel.
April 30, 2021
I am probably being overly generous, but I had a lot of fun reading this! It's got some fantastic worldbuilding and really vibrant characters, plus it's very atmospheric. Unfortunately, it was a tad confusing and felt rushed, but novellas are usually like that! I can't really fault this for being what it is.
I really love to see a whole novel set in this world, because it feels so rich and full of details yet to be explored.
Sidenote, I'm having such a hard time finding out any info about the author? Either she's also a writer of romance or she shares a name with a writer of romance and is a ghost on the internet.
I really love to see a whole novel set in this world, because it feels so rich and full of details yet to be explored.
Sidenote, I'm having such a hard time finding out any info about the author? Either she's also a writer of romance or she shares a name with a writer of romance and is a ghost on the internet.
January 18, 2016
Nothing too special to write home about on this one. I found it really hard to follow and to differentiate the characters in my mind. The book was pretty confusing because the story wasn't explained that well, and the sections that were more understandable were not all that interesting. So, even though the book is short, I couldn't wait for it to end. It's also rife with harsh and coarse language. I think the book tries to implement too many innovative concepts and just can't sustain it all. I don't recommend this to fantasy fans.
June 14, 2017
I actually finished yesterday morning but was too busy/tired to update.
I must confess this novella felt incomplete to me. The characters were alright, the world and style worked, the plot had some nice beats. But the emotional connection to anything within it was just missing.
Still, the ideas and the beautiful cover deserve a 3-star rating.
I must confess this novella felt incomplete to me. The characters were alright, the world and style worked, the plot had some nice beats. But the emotional connection to anything within it was just missing.
Still, the ideas and the beautiful cover deserve a 3-star rating.
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