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Travelers #4

Southsayer

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Sometimes it’s hard to make the right choices, even with a god whispering in your ear.

Jack Daughter has been trying for years to find happiness, but no matter where he runs to, the memory of the little sister he abandoned haunts him. Terrified of her rejection, he follows a merchant caravan into the Southern post-apocalyptic wasteland instead of seeking her out. He hopes more distance between himself and America will help fade his guilt of past wrongs.

Despite The South being a territory of fear and legend, his caravan is eager to capitalize on an unseized financial opportunity. Tempers flare and party members turn hostile, as the South’s fantastical—but deadly—flora and fauna tries to consume them all. If Jack doesn’t leave The South to find his sister soon, it might be too late.

When a “god” of painted light arrives offering assistance to find Jack’s sister, it seems too good to be true. But no one else can see Jack’s god, and his messages are cryptic. Is this mysterious being Jack’s last chance at redemption? Or is it just another trick of The South, luring him into danger?

Kindle Edition

Published May 26, 2019

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About the author

Al Hess

33 books221 followers
Author of World Running Down, Key Lime Sky, Yours Celestially, and the award-winning Hep Cats of Boise series.

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5 stars
26 (81%)
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4 (12%)
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1 (3%)
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
Profile Image for Evie Drae.
Author 4 books146 followers
June 17, 2019
I was thoroughly impressed by this week’s read, y’all. I’ve only read a few post-apocalyptic novels in the past, and they’ve been very much hit or miss with me. This one? A definite hit. Southsayer by Alia Hess is book 4 in her Travelers series but it is billed as a standalone that can be used as an entry point into her established series for new readers. As someone who hasn’t had the pleasure of reading this author before, I can attest this book does as it says. It introduced me to the world in an effortless fashion and left me wanting more, more, more!

The character at the heart of this story is non-binary and trans masculine. But rather than having the story focus on the struggles related to Jack’s identity, the author instead gave Jack an adventure and a purpose outside of dwelling over his gender. All I can say is… thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! I am a champion of stories that focus on LGBTQ+ characters but whose LGBTQ+ status isn’t the driving purpose of the plot. Yes, there are places and times for such stories, but LGBTQ+ characters deserve to have their sexuality and/or gender be as much of a non-issue as they are for the MCs in cishet novels. It simply is who they are. It doesn’t have to be a central plot point or primary focus any more than a cishet MC’s sexuality and/or gender would be.

Okay, hopping off my soap box. (But, yes, seriously… thank you, Alia. We need more rep just like this in the world!)

This story and the characters it supports are just all around wonderful. They evoked emotion, piqued my interest, and kept me guessing as to what might happen next. I adored the “positive” spin on the post-apocalyptic genre. I feel like that’s an angle far too few authors have considered. (Not to say I have a great deal of experience in that genre, but this is certainly the first of its kind I’ve even heard of!)
Profile Image for Luna.
60 reviews2 followers
May 27, 2019
THE SOUTHSAYER | 4/5 | I RECOMMEND THIS BOOK!

Southsayer is a post-apocalyptic western story about forgiveness.

I've received an ARC copy of this book. Thank you for the opportunity! I enjoyed it very much. May Sasha be with you!

THE GOOD

A GOOD STORY! I liked the story. It was emotional and it made me feel what the characters felt. The plot was interesting—the universe rich, the characters well developed with strong motivations. It never felt boring. I always wanted to know what came next.

A GOOD PREMICE! I liked the western post-apocalyptic setting. It sometimes reminded me of Fallout New Vegas—but it has its own vibe. It didn't go for a crazy over-the-top wasteland. It was much more down to earth—but still a little bit whacky.

A NICE RIDE! The book is a massive journey. It's a sense of proportion that adds to the story. Jack fights for what he wants, struggles, and accomplishes lots.

MANY SURPRISES! Jack surprised me, and so did Sasza. Every time I picked it, it introduced new ideas that helped to spice up the desert where the story takes place. From a big bug to an odd god—it never got old.

EVOKES FEELINGS! When something nice happened, it really felt nice. Jack usually finds himself in a tight skirt. Whenever the universe decided to give him some slack, I couldn't help but feel relieved. Whenever tragedy struck, I also felt struck by it.

THE BAD

A WEE BIT ALL OVER THE PLACE. Upon its start, it establishes two conflicts—a primary one, and a secondary one. The problem's it's easy to mistake the two. The primary one gives the impression it'll be Jack's motivation throughout this book and the next one's main conflict. The author starts the story one way and, half-way through the book, it shifts into something entirely new. Despite liking it, the journey didn't seem to follow a coherent path, and the actual central conflict took a while to become thus.

ODD WRITING CHOICES. I've read the ARC copy, so I didn't analyse it thoroughly., but there are still some problems. Alia decided to make the narrator ask questions Jack ought to ask. He also uses parenthesis for such. There were also some phrases that—if thought by the character—would have added to their personality, but the narrator says them instead. It robs the characters from the opportunity to be more charismatic. It annoyed me, yes, but it's but a minor annoyance. It has more to do with my preference than anything else.
Profile Image for WillowRaven.
193 reviews92 followers
January 5, 2021


**semi spoiler alert**

Such an enjoyable story about Jack (previously known as April) as we follow him as he does a job as a caravan guard.  Through the book and via flashbacks, you find out how Jack grew up in the rough city of Hammerlink, befriends a young girl named Dessantia (later named Dusty) and takes care of her and views her as a little sister.  This is a story about growth, love, loss and redemption.  And, you even get to see one of the older Travelers, Sasha, as he finds Jack at one point and tries to help him.  Overall a wonderful story in the Travelers series.  Thumbs up!

In closing, I'd like to thank the author, Al Hess, for the wonderful opportunity to read their book in the form of an ARC. I give this *honest* review of my own accord. 
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
877 reviews25 followers
May 4, 2019
I received this book as an ARC from the author. I am thankful for the opportunity to read this story. I don’t generally like the paranormal genre. However, this story is more than just the usual paranormal story of UFOs or ghosts. It’s an amazing and inspirational look at the life of two young teenagers who had to live unspeakable hardships. They meet and became a family. They lived through mistakes and lived up to each other’s hopes. They become better for having seen such hardship. Then were able to help others see the best in the people around them. I would recommend this book to everyone. It is wonderful!!
Profile Image for Darby Harn.
Author 17 books188 followers
May 23, 2019
Southsayer marks a quantum leap for both the Travelers series and Alia Hess.

In Jack, they have created a great new character who is at once classic and modern, a neo-Western hero fighting the past as they journey toward the future. If you're new to the series, this is a great jumping on point. Southsayer is a standalone tale focused squarely on Jack and their day to day struggle in the South, trying to make a living in brutal, often inhuman conditions. The synthesis of Western and post-apocalyptic SF, at times evocative of The Road - though not nearly as stark - emerges vividly from each page, as well as the always amazing art Alia Hess includes. The prose and art combine to create lasting impressions of the characters and setting (you will not forget some hungry vines).

If you're like me and you've loved this series from the jump, it contains many connecting points to the previous books, including payoff for some lingering questions about some of the characters. I can't recommend this book or the series enough. It's a joy to see the series develop, and I can't wait to see where it goes next.
567 reviews
March 30, 2020
Meet Jack, he is who brought Dusty in from the rain.

The story behind with Jack finding Dusty, giving her a new name,teaching her how to live and the finding that he had to move on. They find each other again after they have life-changing events happen to them.
Profile Image for OldBird.
1,891 reviews
April 21, 2019
The story of Southsayer is a slow and meandering one, but at it's heart is a soulful main character who isn't your usual candidate for a journey of self discovery. Jack's confused because even though he knows himself, he's not quite sure he likes what he sees. That he's gender fluid and comes somewhere along the LGBT sexuality spectrum is by the by rather than being the reason for his inner turmoil. He's an older than your average journeyer too, being in his early thirties. It shows it's not impossible to have a character who seems believably lost without coming across as naive for their age.

Jack's a caravan guard, though more of a worrier than a warrior. He stands up for the oppressed, but when things turn against him personally he's fully aware that physically he's often outmatched. He's got to hide his real self, physically and mentally, for his own protection. And all the while, over all those years, he's never forgotten the little sister he left behind. Guilt should have made him go back for Dusty, but instead it's kept him running. He falls from job to job and scatterings of ill-advised relationships because all he wants is for that betrayal to have meant something. It's only with a little help from the new American god Sasha that he takes to heart the idea that maybe redemption is what he needs, and the only way to do that is to face his past. That way maybe his future will have the meaning he so desperately wants.

What I loved about Jack's perspective was that it pulls no punches (sometimes literally). He's an AFAB who prefers the masculine side of gender, and so runs a great many risks. He's blunt about the abuse and fear he's gone through, though it's nothing graphic. I also loved that we saw some things from Dusty's memories of how the two bonded as children escaping the horrors of the city of Hammerlink. Her retrospective input lends a much needed emotive side to the story that could sometimes feel a little lacking. It would have been even better if Jack's POV explored more how he felt rather than just giving us his actions. How he spoke, his tone, his gestures could have given us more of an empathetic cue to his emotions rather than how it's rather logically presented.

The narrative is quite slow and odd, split into two acts: the journey to the South and the return for redemption. There are moments of shock and fear, but generally we stick to the trademark Travelers series "cozy Apocalypse" theme - people aren't all bad, and that even in the darkest of situations the light in humanity can shine through.

It's an imaginative, usual read. Regardless of my confusion over the character's emotions, I really liked how Jack was presented - as a human with all the wants and hopes and fears that so many of us share even if our situations are different. It's not your usual story of self discovery, nor maybe the one you'd expect given the fashion for LGBT "issue" fiction. It's an odd blend of spiky and soft that will keep you hoping that sympathetic the main characters will find the light that they recognise in everyone except themselves.

-I received an ARC copy of this ebook from the author-
Profile Image for Andrea Stoeckel.
3,207 reviews132 followers
May 9, 2019
**This review has spoilers**

“Regret was for the dead.“

Jack Daughter is a traveler, working for groups, guarding bufalope and certainly doing his fair share. He’s always been running: away from his past, away from his little sister, away from his memories, away from himself. Almost getting killed kind of changes his focus and makes him want to amend things and make his future better.

Her past and his present collide within an empty church and Sasha. The clinic that The Church of Sasha built saved Jack’s life. Now, the rosary he takes from another saves his life again after posessionweeds almost end it. Sasha, [in drone form that a fever addled brain hallucinates as a god], comes to Jack and leads him slowly to safety, telling him to reconcile with his deepest fears. Little does anyone know..

One of the things Jack wants to do is find her sister, Dessantia, who Jack re-names Dusty; yes,THAT Dusty, married to Sasha and Mom to Poppy. When all the pieces start to tumble together, there’s a lot of soul searching and memory scanning as reconciliation begins to help the past and their present begin to work towards a more acceptable future...one where Jack/Alice and The Church of the Flowers can be at peace and safe.

It is almost utterly impossible to write a review of this book without spoilers. However, if you have read the series, then you know enough to know that being accepted is a big part of Alia Hess’ work. And this is no exception. Jack is gender-fluid in part because of his past of traumatic abuse. This book in many ways forces the past as prologue as in some ways everyone of the “regular cast” has some emotional catharsis and “grows up”. The narrative has been described as slow, however, I see it as thorough and “normal” for these friends of mine who are beginning to see and embrace their own light within. Highly Recommended 5/5.

[I received this book from the author and voluntarily read and reviewed it]


This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
559 reviews10 followers
April 26, 2019
Review of Southsayer by Alia Hess (Travelers Series book IV)

Romantic, post apocalyptic adventure - 4 stars

Start with a world that has had a massive population decline. In the United States, there is hardly any policing; children can be sold into slavery until they are 16.

One group of not-yet-adults forms a commune that resides in abandoned buildings and steals food to survive.

Jack is born Alice but wants to be a man. Jack helps one 7 year old girl Dessantia who has escaped and renames her Dusty.

A former computer whiz, Sasha, forms a church which offers medical help and some counseling in a modest regional area. People who used to work with Sasha think that he was the cause of the plague.

Jack leaves the mini commune setting himself up for a guilt trip for leaving Dusty behind as he strikes out on his own. He provides protection service for caravans that roam what used to the be the south eastern United States.

The book has attractive illustrations of people and unusual animals.

There are several inventive concepts such as moths that can poison and devour people and a plant (possessionweed) that can quickly overcome and strangle a muscular man.
Profile Image for Helgaleena Healingline.
Author 2 books30 followers
May 23, 2019
When born, Jack Daughter was given a different name, but chooses to live in the way that fits with what's inside. The challenges of the post-crash landscape lead Jack to join an expedition to the mysterious lands to the South, where there are new perils to humanity and an entirely different civilization has arisen. On the journey Jack comes face to face with a God and helps him return to being a regular human. It is also a great good fortune to discover long-lost family from childhood, and make new family in the North-West.

The most wondrous effect of following Jack is rekindling of hope for our future as a species, warts and all.
Profile Image for Jennifer Lane.
Author 13 books45 followers
May 23, 2019
Poisonous moths. Vines that consume. Like all of Hess' works, Southsayer is set in a vivid and vibrant post-apocalyptic world where redemption doesn't come cheap, but is well worth the effort.

For long-time readers familiar with the Travelers series, the backstory of much loved characters entwining with the new will be like visiting with old friends. But it also reads great as a standalone, though I'm sure first-time readers will be back for more.

Packed full of heart, wasteland wandering, gorgeous scenery, and unlikely saviors, Southsayer will stick with you long after you've read it.
Profile Image for Kaye Nutman.
Author 38 books10 followers
October 29, 2019
More please!

I am now a committed fan of the characters dreamed up by Alia Hess, and of course the writer themself.
The story brings Dusty’s big sister Jack into the fold. His struggles eventually help Sasha and his family have more freedom from his cult following, and we learn about the Southsayers and the perils of their environment which adds adventure you have to read to believe to Jack’s guarding duties. The author weaves in characters we’ve met before and a few new ones. A great read at any hour.
Profile Image for Mary Helen.
136 reviews14 followers
May 26, 2019
Another captivating story from Alia Hess. Her ability to create a believable world out of one extraordinarily new and unheard of is amazing. The characters are brought to life with the prose and beautiful illustrations. I’ve read the entire Travelers Series and anxiously await the next. I’m fortunate to have been able to receive an advanced copy of Southsayer, and give it an unbiased rating of 4.8/5🌟
254 reviews2 followers
June 27, 2019
A new installment in the Travelers series

Alia Hess has created a world where a devastating infection has caused the collapse of civilization. The protagonist, Jack, is a complex and emotionally wracked individual due to guilt. Alia develops Jack's character deftly, and shows moral development as he decides to atone for former moral failures.

The story moves quickly and the ending is both credible and satisfying.
Profile Image for Sam.
2,633 reviews45 followers
May 23, 2019
I really like this writer! Something completely different! Well written & great plot! This follows Jack on his adventures to find his sister & the bizarre situations he finds himself in whilst in the South! Great! Would recommend this!
585 reviews2 followers
May 23, 2019
This is a great story with great characters. I really enjoyed reading this book. This story has good twist and suspense. This is a great read.

I received a ARC copy of this book and I am volunteering to do an honest review.
495 reviews4 followers
May 23, 2019
I loved this book. Set in the future apocalyptic world, Jack must work through his anger and pain to forgive himself for past deeds and transgressions. It is an arduous journey he undertakes and there are lessons to be learned through him.
4 reviews
May 27, 2019
Amazing

I love this series I love the way alias hess writes it makes me feel part of the story I become one of the character I wish the books were a lot longer. Thank you alias hess.
456 reviews1 follower
May 31, 2019
So damn good!

I've read every other book and loved them immensely. This one was my favorite one so far. Each character and happening in the book truly sucked me in. I laughed, I gasped, I worried, and I loved every second of it.
Profile Image for Sam.
2,633 reviews45 followers
February 6, 2021
Another brilliant part to this excellent series! Something a little different & very enjoyable! Great characters & really good world building! Excellent!
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews