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Steeplejack #0.5
Chains
Anglet Sutonga is more realistic than most teenagers, but still dreams of rising above the impoverished streets of Bar-Selehm. When an opportunity comes along, will she take it? And what does she risk in order not to throw away her shot? A novelette set before the events of A.J. Hartley's Steeplejack.
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39 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 22, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
June 27, 2016
3.5 stars. Review first posted at FantasyLiterature:
Anglet Sutonga, a sixteen year old girl in the depths of poverty, is a steeplejack in the city of Bar-Selehm, helping to build a suspension bridge. Anglet is an indentured laborer: most of the money she earns goes to the leader of her gang, and any attempt to escape the gang is likely to lead to a violent death. Nevertheless, Anglet is captivated by the scope and importance of the bridge, seeing each stage of building it as “a step toward a glittering new order.” Her diligent work, painting a protective coating on the huge chains of the bridge, attracts the attention of the white head of the project, Sir William Defarge, who takes her under his wing and even offers to buy her freedom from the gang. But when trouble arises, will Sir William listen to her?
Chains is a prequel to A.J. Hartley’s Steeplejack, a new YA fantasy novel set in an analogue to 19th-century South Africa. The white Feldish people, although a minority in numbers, are in control of the country and most of its wealth. The black Mahweni are the native people, some city labourers and others living in the savannah. Anglet is of the Lani, another darker-skinned people who immigrated over several generations to this land, and are mostly servants and laborers.
Chains introduces us to a grim and violent world of white overlords and minority resentment arising out of poverty and mistreatment. If there are any magical elements in this fantasy world, they aren’t apparent in this novelette. Hartley appears to be more interested in examining the relationships between people and races. He’s written a thoughtful article on the Tor/Forge blog titled “Writing POC While White.” Hartley’s wife is East Asian, and they have a son, so he has some personal experience with racism, and his interest in the topic is not just academic. The racial tensions of historic South Africa, which still continue today, are painfully echoed in the relationships between the different races in Chains. Chains, clearly, can be made of more than just metal.
Free online at Tor.com
Anglet Sutonga, a sixteen year old girl in the depths of poverty, is a steeplejack in the city of Bar-Selehm, helping to build a suspension bridge. Anglet is an indentured laborer: most of the money she earns goes to the leader of her gang, and any attempt to escape the gang is likely to lead to a violent death. Nevertheless, Anglet is captivated by the scope and importance of the bridge, seeing each stage of building it as “a step toward a glittering new order.” Her diligent work, painting a protective coating on the huge chains of the bridge, attracts the attention of the white head of the project, Sir William Defarge, who takes her under his wing and even offers to buy her freedom from the gang. But when trouble arises, will Sir William listen to her?
Chains is a prequel to A.J. Hartley’s Steeplejack, a new YA fantasy novel set in an analogue to 19th-century South Africa. The white Feldish people, although a minority in numbers, are in control of the country and most of its wealth. The black Mahweni are the native people, some city labourers and others living in the savannah. Anglet is of the Lani, another darker-skinned people who immigrated over several generations to this land, and are mostly servants and laborers.
Chains introduces us to a grim and violent world of white overlords and minority resentment arising out of poverty and mistreatment. If there are any magical elements in this fantasy world, they aren’t apparent in this novelette. Hartley appears to be more interested in examining the relationships between people and races. He’s written a thoughtful article on the Tor/Forge blog titled “Writing POC While White.” Hartley’s wife is East Asian, and they have a son, so he has some personal experience with racism, and his interest in the topic is not just academic. The racial tensions of historic South Africa, which still continue today, are painfully echoed in the relationships between the different races in Chains. Chains, clearly, can be made of more than just metal.
Free online at Tor.com
July 2, 2016
Rating 3.5 rounded up to 4.
An interesting story about class differences.
Ang lives in Bar-Selehm and is an indentured servant to Morlak. There are four different clans in Bar-Selehm and Ang belongs to one of the lowest classes, the Lani - people of color- but she is one of the hardest workers. She hangs by suspended chains in order to build a bridge. These chains can be seen as a metaphor for the chains that bind her to her gang, to Morlak, and even more importantly to the lower "chain of command" that Ang belongs to in everyone's eyes. When a white man of the highest class sees what a great worker Ang is,he offers to buy her contract from Morlak. But is hard work enough to make someone see you for who you are and not as a low-class monkey?
This story's events take place before those in Hartley ' s new YA novel Steeplejack .
An interesting story about class differences.
Ang lives in Bar-Selehm and is an indentured servant to Morlak. There are four different clans in Bar-Selehm and Ang belongs to one of the lowest classes, the Lani - people of color- but she is one of the hardest workers. She hangs by suspended chains in order to build a bridge. These chains can be seen as a metaphor for the chains that bind her to her gang, to Morlak, and even more importantly to the lower "chain of command" that Ang belongs to in everyone's eyes. When a white man of the highest class sees what a great worker Ang is,he offers to buy her contract from Morlak. But is hard work enough to make someone see you for who you are and not as a low-class monkey?
This story's events take place before those in Hartley ' s new YA novel Steeplejack .
March 15, 2017
I read this short story because I picked up the first book in the series Steeplejack from my local library (yes, I still love the feel of a real, true, honest-to-God paper books in my hand) and I figured I would get a little peek of what to expect. For 90% of this short story I was sure of what I could expect from the series, but then the last page turned all my expectations on my ear, and this series took a dark and highly unexpected turn. This series is going to much darker and much more interesting than I first thought.
July 20, 2017
As an introduction to Hartley's STEEPLEJACK universe, I think this gave me a good idea of the world and what to expect before I dive into the books themselves.
June 23, 2016
Dang it, Chains just suckered me into seeking out another full length novel. If Steeplejack is as exciting as this preview, I will not regret it though! I loved the main character, the steampunk setting, and the class and race dynamics offer something new to the genre.
September 19, 2020
I haven't read the rest of this series, so this was just a standalone story to me. Interesting world, and an interesting little vignette, and I suppose origin story.
February 2, 2017
This is a novelette set before the events of Steeplejack, but it can be read, and appreciated as stand-alone (I did).
The story is very well written, and hard to put down. It deals with some of the worst of our historic inheritance (i.e. colonialism, and xenophobia), and it presents those in a fictional context. It is the story of Anglet Sutonga, that while down to earth and realistic, she still dreams of rising above the impoverished streets of Bar-Selehm. When an opportunity comes along, will she take it? And what does she risk in order not to throw away her shot?
The story is very well written, and hard to put down. It deals with some of the worst of our historic inheritance (i.e. colonialism, and xenophobia), and it presents those in a fictional context. It is the story of Anglet Sutonga, that while down to earth and realistic, she still dreams of rising above the impoverished streets of Bar-Selehm. When an opportunity comes along, will she take it? And what does she risk in order not to throw away her shot?
June 27, 2016
Enjoyed the story. Hit on a couple levels.
August 23, 2016
2GR* (Not without merit, but in the end I did not like it.)
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews