Library of the Sapphire Wind

Over Where #1

by Jane Lindskold

Instead of mentors, they got monsters . . . 

That’s what Xerak, Vereez, and Grunwold think when three strange creatures shimmer into being within the circle of Hettua Shrine. Their conclusion is reasonable enough. After all, they’ve never seen humans before. As for Margaret Blake, Peg Gallegos, and Tessa Brown—more usually known as Meg, Peg, and Teg—they’re equally astonished but, oddly enough, better prepared. Then there is the mysterious verse that Teg speaks as they arrive, words that seem to indicate that the Shrine must have been at least partially responding to the request made of it.

Despite doubts on all sides, the three unlikely mentors join forces with the three young “inquisitors” and venture out into the world Peg dubs “Over Where.” First they must find the Library of the Sapphire Wind, destroyed years before. Will they find answers there, or is this only the first stage in their search?

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Adult, Adventure, Science Fiction Fantasy, Magic, Young Adult

289 pages, Paperback

First published February 1, 2022

About the author

Jane Lindskold is the author of more than twenty published novels, including the eight volume Firekeeper Saga (beginning with Through Wolf’s Eyes), Child of a Rainless Year (a contemporary fantasy set in Las Vegas, New Mexico), and The Buried Pyramid (an archeological adventure fantasy set in 1880's Egypt).

Lindskold is also the author of the “Breaking the Wall” series, which begins with Thirteen Orphans, then continues in Nine Gates and Five Odd Honors. Her most recent series begins with Artemis Awakening, released in May of 2014. Lindskold has also had published over sixty short stories and numerous works of non-fiction, including a critical biography of Roger Zelazny, and articles on Yeats and Synge.

She has collaborated with several other SF/F writers, including Roger Zelazny, for whom, at his request, she posthumously finished his novels Donnerjack and Lord Demon. She has also collaborated with David Weber, writing several novellas and two YA novels set in his popular ”Honorverse.” She wrote the short story “Servant of Death” with Fred Saberhagen.

Charles de Lint, reviewing Changer, praised "Lindskold's ability to tell a fast-paced, contemporary story that still carries the weight and style of old mythological story cycles."[1] Terri Windling called Brother to Dragons, Companion to Owls "a complex, utterly original work of speculative fiction." DeLint has also stated that “Jane Lindskold is one of those hidden treasures of American letters; a true gem of a writer who simply gets better with each book.”

Lindskold was born in 1962 at the Columbia Hospital for Women, the first of four siblings and grew up in Washington, D.C. and Chesapeake Bay. Lindskold's father was head of the Land and Natural Resources Division, Western Division of the United States Justice Department and her mother was also an attorney. She studied at Fordham, where she received a Ph. D. in English, concentrating on Medieval, Renaissance, and Modern British Literature; she successfully defended her Ph.D. on her 26th birthday.

Lindskold lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico with her husband, archaeologist Jim Moore.

Reviews

[Erin]

This is a book for people who like packing for a trip more than they like going on a trip.

[Jonathan Koan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jane Lindskold certainly has a handle on how to write Fantasy storytelling. In this book, she blends traditional Fantasy tropes while at the same time twisting some tropes to make the story seem fresh yet familiar. This makes the story so engaging and a fun way to hook readers early on.

Typically, in stories like this, it is young teenagers who get whisked off on an adventure in a magical world (Narnia, Harry Potter, etc). Here, however, it is three women who are...lets just say "Older". Teg is a working professor who I believe is supposed to be in her 50s. The other two women in the story, Meg and Peg, are supposed to be in their 60s or 70s. This creates a very unique dynamic, making these older women the protagonists of the story, and the well established characters who know the magical world are the teenagers. It truly is a clever reversal of the classic Fantasy tropes.

This world features creatures that have mostly bodies like humans, but heads like animals. Because of the spell that brings our three older protagonists to "Over Where", they are able to understand the language used by these young "Inquisitors", who are looking for answers to various problems they have.

The characters of "Over Where" might remind readers of stories like Disney's animated "Robin Hood" movie or the book series "Redwall". Those are good barometers for describing what they look like and perhaps act like, but this story is a little more mature than that. Some reviewers I've seen have said this should be classified as "Young Adult" fiction. I can understand why that might be the case for them, as this story does feature "coming-of-age" tropes, it also has such an emphasis on our older protagonists that I think will really appeal to older fantasy readers.

The plot of this book is pretty simple, our characters are searching for the Library of the Saphire Wind, which was destroyed years earlier but might hold answers to their questions. However, the Library has many secrets that could threaten to end the whole expedition before it even begins!

I think Jane Lindskold does a terrific job of balancing the character development, the plot, and the action sequences in the book. She also does a great job of throwing in references to classic fantasy and coming of age stories that readers will appreciate (especially to Narnia!).

However, there is one thing that I think hurts the book a little bit, and that is the abruptness of the ending. Books do not have to end with everything tied up, and cliffhangers are often excellent for keeping readers reading. However, had the book ended about two chapters earlier, I think Lindskold could have made it feel like a natural ending. As it is, the ending here is just so abrupt that if you didn't feel how many pages were left you'd think the book would just keep going. I think that this could have been fixed a little in editing.

Overall, I quite enjoyed the book! It brings a uniqueness and freshness to the fantasy genre, while mixing and matching elements of Fantasy storytelling that feels familar and delightful to read. I'll give the book an 8 out of 10! Excellent job Jane Lindskold!

[Colin Letch · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed the first half of this duology. Every book should have three seasoned women as its protagonists. The fact that they are just like “yeah, I’m down for some adventure” after being summoned to a strange world, but also suggest things like “can I run home and grab a refill of my prescription first” had me hooked and loving them from the start. The thoughtfulness, planning, and wisdom they exhibit is a great counterpoint to the somewhat rash nature of the three characters who summon them. Not to mention that representation matters, especially in fantasy, and it’s about time readers had older women such as these to look up to.

Pros:
*Who doesn’t love anthropomorphic characters? This book has them in spades.
*Beautiful, vivid settings that feel believable and magical at the same time.
*Some great character growth from both the human and anthropomorphic characters.
*Plenty of world building and dialogue but doesn’t skimp on the action.

Cons:
*The ending felt very abrupt and clunky. I know this is a duology so I give it something of a pass but I wish the author had worked through the last chapter a few more times.

[Debrac2014 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, this fantasy didn't keep my interest! Also, I'd consider it YA!

[John Loyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Vereez, Xerak and Gromwald (the inquisitors) each want something, find her sister, find his master, cure for his father, respectively. To aid them in this effort they summon three mentors from our world. Meg, a retired librarian, Teg, an archaeologist, and Peg, a mother and grandmother, are at their monthly book club meeting when they are transported to another world. The inhabitants of this world have human bodies and animal heads, and are astounded at the appearance of their mentors and that all three look so similar.

Even though it appears some mistake has been made, the old women decide to stay and help. The title Library having been destroyed Teg has ideas on how to go about looking for things. Once they get to the Library they get some startling information, they have to bargain with the Sapphire Wind, and their quest takes new shape.

There are some allusions by the humans to stories from our world, Narnia, Harry Potter, etc. along with generic references, e.g. "if we eat the food here are we stuck in this world?" Those references are fun and aren't overdone. The mentors are [believably] able to contribute. There are a few fight scenes, which I will compare to special effects in movies. A few surprise reveals. The building of friendship between the mentors and the inquisitors is good. This is book one of Over Where, and it ends not with a cliffhanger, but incomplete. 4.3 stars.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a cute and somewhat cozy fantasy adventure. I enjoyed the premise of three older ladies going on an adventure in a magical world with all kinds of interesting characters and a foreign land. However, the three older ladies were so similar that it was difficult to distinguish between them and they were pretty flat and one-dimensional. The other characters had more to distinguish them but they were still not that developed as characters.

The plot was pretty basic, but it worked for the story and didn't bother me. It was nice to only have a few major plot points happening at once, it kept the story from being too overwhelming or having too much to keep track of.

There were times when the dialogue was fairly clunky and felt awkward amongst the characters, lines that felt forced or otherwise out of place for the context. The ending was also extremely abrupt, it didn't so much as conclude anything about the story and just ended so quickly it felt very forced. It would have been nice for the author to at least wrap up some of the things or something other than abruptly stopping the story.

I did enjoy the world and learning about how things work in it from the inquisitor characters. I hope that there will be some more new and interesting things to discover in this world.

Overall 3/5 stars.

[Christianne Swearson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Humorous and strangely engaging characters. I kept feeling like it was very YA except that the main protagonists were "ladies of a certain age". It also ended frustratingly incomplete. I know its a series but it seems like at least the current quest should have been finished. It just stops. I would read the next one because i like the development of the characters and the parallel worlds and I want to know what happens!

[Laura Bone · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

The Library of the Saphire Wind was an enjoyable, some what simple, story that contained "animal people." I haven't read too many books with Anthro characters and I have always enjoyed Anthro art and movies. Therfore, it was a nice change of pace to read a novel wherein most of the characters are anthropomorphic animals. Another positive is the inclusion and focus on more "aged" main characters. The three human women range in age from 50s to 70s. It's not often that you see a fantasy adventure novel have older female main characters.

However, I do think the writting and story telling was a little clunky at times. Some of the exposition/description moved slowly. One example, there was a detailed section talking about the minutiae the humans packed in preparation for their travels through the Over Where, items that were never mentioned again. Also, the story would slow and get bogged down when the characters needed to plan or discuss possible options, because the discussion was often too mundanly detailed. Lastly, I feel like there was a lot of "quipy" writting that came off a little forced/fake.

Ultimately, I thought the novel was cute and will read the second book soon.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a fresh take on the fantasy quest trope!!

Our protagonists are three women of a certain age. One never married, one divorced, and one a widow. The divorcee and the widow have already raised their children and are quite familiar with dealing with adolescent humans.

These three are part of a book club that meets in their neighborhood bookstore. Meg is a librarian, Teg is a field archeologist, and Peg has the most experience raising children.

They show up for their monthly book club meeting except this particular meeting happens to fall on Valentine's Day. So, these three are the ONLY ones who happen to show up for this particular meeting.

Suddenly the world grays out. They find themselves facing three peculiar looking beings who immediately see them as monsters. This is a very interesting parallel world that Meg, Teg, and Peg find themselves in.

The three ladies discover that they have been summoned as mentors to the three young people (not so much teens as what we could call college age). The summoners are an apprentice wizard (who in our world would be a Ph.D. candidate who is ABD, that is "all but dissertation". Meaning who has completed their degree but not defended the dissertation as the final step to the coveted Ph.D.), a young woman from a very wealthy family, and another young man who is good with both weapons and sailing boats.

I forget which of the three ladies came up with this but the parallel planet is named OverWhere (in homage to the World War I anthem Over There, where the Yankees were coming to aid the French to repay the latter country for crucial help to win the American Revolution).

Anyway, the three OverWhere natives need guidance on their quests. The wizard apprentice is missing his master, the young woman is looking for her lost baby sister, and the other young man is seeking a cure for his dying father.

It had happened that Teg was reciting a verse (from a book by prolific 1970's+ romance writer Barbara Cartland) that Peg had handed her exactly during the time that the OverWhere trio was summoning them:

"Curing one ill who is not sick
Finding the victim of a cruel trick
Easing an ache that cuts to the quick

All this and more you will find
After you pass through the doorways
Of the Library of the Sapphire Wind"

This mysterious passage is the heart of this book.

PLUS, unlikely or not, Meg, Peg, & Teg turn out to have exactly the backgrounds which prepared them to be suitable mentors to the three young people.

As a librarian myself who has always loved the archeology dig programs on PBS' NOVA as well, I could see why this would be so.

The ONLY complaint I have about this really fine book was that it is the first half of the story.

Most fantasy books (and sf books too) are trilogies. So, we only get one more installment.

The good news is that the second half will be published soon. (Somehow the publisher this time was not cruel enough to make us wait the usual year for a traditionally published book.)

Highly recommended for someone who enjoys reading about quests but this time on another world that has surprising similarities to our own (but at the same time is clearly not our own world)!

[H.P. Holo · Rating 5 out of 5]

There’s a meme that occasionally graces my social media feeds, lamenting that so many fictional heroes are unqualified teenagers, wishing for a story that follows an old grandma with the benefit of experience on her side.

Jane Lindskold’s Library of the Sapphire Wind has become the book I recommend whenever I see this meme.

In Library of the Sapphire Wind, Meg, Peg, and Teg are three ladies of retirement age and the only people in attendance at a book club when, suddenly, they find themselves transported to another world—summoned by three precocious youths who were hoping for mentors from their own world to help with various weighty problems. The three book clubbers, however, are the first humans this animal-headed trio has ever seen, and they’re not sure what to make of them.

However, Meg, Peg, and Teg are also three ladies with useful experience of their own, and they reason that, since they’ve been summoned to an alternate magical world to help solve a problem, they might as well see what they can do.

After all, it’s more exciting than regular retirement could ever be.

And as a former librarian, a semi-retired archaeologist, and a dedicated parent and grandparent to generations of children, they might be more qualified than even they realize, especially when the magic of the summons points them toward the isolated, destroyed ruin of the titular Library of the Sapphire Wind—along with the young summoners they have to manage on the way.

I can’t gush enough about this book, y’all.

I knew I was going to like it from page one because, let’s face it, librarians, archaeologists, and cool grandmas make for great characters in any type of story—but then the mini talking carrier pterodactyl showed up, and then a discussion of the magical translation linguistics of the world of “Over Where” (as the main characters dub it), and I’m a sucker for linguistics and pterodactyls, too.

My personal reading preferences aside, though, this is a more complex book than I expected it to be.
The animal-head motif that defines the residents of Over Where makes the book seem like it’s going to be a fun storybook adventure—and it definitely is a fun adventure—but fox-headed Vereez, stag-headed Grunwold, and lion-headed Xerak all have reasons for summoning aid that are darker and more complicated than the book’s colorful cover would suggest.

And while this tale told from the viewpoint of these three would likely present them as the heroes of their own stories, the tale as told by Meg, Peg, and Teg is one of how these characters need to mature, and how the three help them do so along the way. Which isn’t to say that Vereez, Grunwold, and Xerak are children in the conventional sense—Over Where has a different understanding of such rites of passage, where adulthood is not reached at a specific age but by the acquisition of a mature state of mind. Thematically, this raises the question of what it even means to be an adult, with each maturing character yielding a different answer, and often expressing maturity that is surprising for their relative ages. (When one young character speaks of a complicated romantic association, it’s to say, “There’s good in him. I’m just not sure it’s good for me.”)

It’s as much a tale of adventure as it is a tale of three mentors helping three adolescents grow up, and taking their jobs very seriously. There’s also a not-so-subtle jab at famous fantasy mentors like Dumbledore who send young protagonists off to do dangerous world-saving things without giving them useful guidance, such that I wonder if the book wasn’t entirely written as a reaction to such mentors.
That doesn’t mean it’s a book one reads for its Important Themes, though. Library of the Sapphire Wind is ultimately a book of complex, thoughtful points wrapped up in an adventure that is just plain fun. There are plenty of exotic locations for the main characters to explore; the Library itself is as cool as one would expect a magical library to be (complete with its own sentient, incorporeal guardian, from which it draws its name); and the variety of monsters the characters face as they travel to and excavate the library are as enthralling as any that ever captured young imaginations in children’s stories (Mine, at least; I’m a sucker for monsters, too).

The depth to which the worldbuilding goes is hypnotic, as well. Much is made of the summoning spell’s translation magic and how the characters must adapt—and thus learn more about each other’s worlds—when the magic doesn’t know how to translate specific words or concepts. There are also plenty of wonderful background details that don’t necessarily contribute anything to the story (yet—there’s a sequel, Aurora Borealis Bridge) but still serve to flesh out the world of Over Where as a living, breathing character of its own. One of my favorite such details was the setting’s concept of reincarnation: Over Where is a world where reincarnation is such an accepted (and proven) occurrence that it exists casually in the background, and though there are different subdivisions of the related belief system that disagree over some specifics, the concept in this setting is also wholly separate from theology. (“What do gods have to do with it? Gods are for crops, moral guidance, explaining how things got started, stuff like that,” as one character says.) It doesn’t affect the story at all that much except to explain why one character lives in a necropolis community (which exists because of those subdivisions trying to influence reincarnation through the treatment of interred bodies), but it’s still a really cool look into the spiritual and physical logic of the world.

Though, perhaps, given the age of the main characters, reflections on mortality are not wholly out of place—especially when one considers other inevitable effects of age, and in turn how those affect the storytelling.

Though Library of the Sapphire Wind is ultimately an interesting fantasy adventure, it’s not a rollicking quest to beat a conspicuous bad guy in a Hollywood-style castle-crashing battle (though the characters do see their fair share of dangerous encounters and action scenes). Meg, Peg, and Teg are not reckless, daring heroes who barge into danger without thinking. Age and experience has made them careful and sensible (if sometimes to the chagrin of their young companions), and the novel flows at a calm, fluid pace that reflects that sense of care. And yet it’s never boring, but rather appreciative, introspective, and always enjoying the ride—and encouraging its readers to do so as well.

Library of the Sapphire Wind is easily one of my new favorite books. It expertly balances the thoughtful maturity of its older protagonists with the eager energies of its young ones. Combine that with its infectious sense of wonder, and it becomes something the fantasy world needs more of.

[Kristi Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three teenage friends, each on a personal quest, accompany each other to a shrine to perform a ritual that will summon the mentors they need to aid them. Instead of whatever they had been expecting, they get three very surprised older women from our world who had been attending a book club meeting at the library.

I thought this was utterly delightful. Wonderful relationships, wonderful characters. So nice to see both the younger and older characters treated as people, each with strengths and issues and areas to grow. Interesting quests. World was fine but basically a backdrop.

[Jane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yummy! Love Jane Lindskold…her writing, her characters! I found the book in Libby, hope the sequel comes to ebooks soon, the print is toooo small in paperback.

[Rindis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three young, and slightly desperate people perform a summoning for help. This is something that is a known idea in this world, and especially at Hettua Shrine, which will bring you the person most capable of getting you exactly what you ask for.

We don't get any other examples, or full explanations, but it seems like this is generally someone already in this fantasy world. The rushed ceremony performed by our three produces three people from... elsewhere. Earth, actually. And while you might expect some sort of action hero, they get a trio of ladies from about 50-70 years old, who had just been sitting down to a book club.

I'll point out here, that Lindskold is indulging a in a bit of self-insert here, and I'm sure Meg, Peg, and Teg are all directly expressing facets of her own life, as well as people she knows. At any rate, it's well done, and the three of them are our viewpoint characters for a portal fantasy adventure. And, yes, their learning and life experiences are indeed what is needed by our three summoners, despite their unusual nature.

For this is world of... well, near-furries. Most of them are more in the Egyptian god model of a human with an animal head, though the 'animal' traits carry beyond just the heads in some cases. Humans are entirely unknown to them, and a big shock.

We get a couple chapters of both sides getting over the initial shock and introductions... and our three ladies accepting the call to adventure. It's hard to keep something like this from dragging out a bit, but Lindskold keeps it all moving, and even at those points where there's a feeling of "okay, I get it already," things are moving fast enough that you know it won't drag out.

The adventure itself is well done, and there's plenty going on for external and internal issues, especially once the main leg is done, and we get the major twist of the story. However, this is part one, and while some major things get sorted, instead of things ending at that point, we pick up the next major thread, and get a "to be continued" as that gets going. I don't mind a series, but the break is at an odd place.

At any rate, it's a fun book, I'm more than happy with it, and I need to get to book two.

[Shazza Maddog · Rating 4 out of 5]

Found while rummaging around in the library next to the Fireseeker books and I thought, 'hey, this sounds like fun'. And it was!

Tessa, aka Teg, and her two friends, Peg and Meg, are part of a book club that meets at a local book store. While the three of them are the first ones at the meeting on Valentine's Day, Teg reads a six-line poem and the trio are suddenly thrown into another world. Peg, the eldest, is a delightful hippie whose claims of being part of the Berkley scene may or may not be true; Meg, a retiree, has been a librarian most of her life, and Teg is an archeologist with a pair of cats, Thought and Memory - and the only one of the trio without (adult) kids.

The world they've appeared in is different enough, particularly because the sentient beings are anthropomorphized animals. Xerak is leonine, Veerez, vulpine, and Grunwold, deer-like, including antlers - and all three are searching for mentors to help them with a quest. Xerak is searching for his master, a wizard who's been missing for some years, Veerez has been looking for her little sister for almost as long, and Grunwold's father is very ill and yet no one seems to be looking for a cure for him. The trio, lifelong friends, agreed to go to a shrine wherein they could petition for assistance and lo and behold but it comes in the form of three humans.

Now Teg and Co. have to decide whether, with all their background knowledge of other worlds such as Narnia and other wizards such as Gandalf and Harry Potter, whether it's safer for them to go back home or help out in Over Where.

I very much enjoyed this book! The characters are definitely a lot of fun. What I didn't like was it ending abruptly without even an author's note advising there was a second book (this is book one of a duology).

There isn't a whole lot of action though the characters do run into some monsters while on their journey. Even so, I never really felt like anyone was in particular danger until we meet up with Vereez's parents.

Am definitely going to need to read book two because seriously. That not-ending was both abrupt and really disappointing.

[Ergative Absolutive · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was so disappointing! It had the makings of a really great romp--three aging ladies who know each other through a book group slip through a portal and serve as mentors for three young adventurers who are so young and dumb they need guidance. They have disparate skills--librarian, archaeologist, and aging hippy with eclectic skills (feels a lot like she was based on Nanny Ogg, to be honest)--and the quest takes them to a ruined library. How great are all those tropes? Enormously great! So much potential!

But none of the potential is realized. Everything is too convenient. The portal is perpetually open so they can slip back through to check on their cats or pick up soy sauce, for heaven's sake, because the stir fries in magicland need more seasoning. The ruined library has a magic spirit who is super-eager to help (and turns out even to have been controlling the monsters that barred their path, so the monster fights turn out, retrospectively, to have been fake), which means that the librarian and archaeologist never actually need to do anything other than ask the helpful spirit whatever questions they have. And the aging hippy never really has any skills that turn out to be useful, as far as I can see. She doesn't seem super good at reading people or diplomacy--a soft skill that is wildly valuable and would contrast nicely with the more formal skills of the librarian and archaeologist--and she spends most of her time knitting.

The book was boring, because all the conveniences stripped the plot of any tension. Such a disappointment!

[Wayland Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

The improbably called Teg, Peg, and Meg (one of my few problems with this book is that list of nicknames) gather for a meeting of their book club. Their other members aren't expected, as it's Valentine's Day, but they get a much bigger surprise once they're gathered. With no warning, they are summoned to another world, where three eager "inquisitors" (they explain the name) are hoping for guidance with their respective quests- a dying father, a missing sister, and a wizardly master who has disappeared.

Their new friends, Xerak, Vereez, and Grunwold are typical for this world- mostly human looking but with animal heads, claws, and tails. The six of them agree to work together, helping with the three quests, and dealing with a few other complications that pop up along the way. The trail leads to the lost Sapphire Library, once a place of mystic knowledge and learning, lost for many years after some kind of disaster. Learning what happened to it, and how it connects back to the inquisitors in an unexpected fashion, become one step of many in the process of unraveling some of these mysteries.

One of the aspects of this I really enjoyed was that the three women from our world aren't your typical teenage heroes. They're all 60 or older. Something else that was fun was the two groups gradually learning about each others' cultures and worlds.

It was a fun story with a decent ending. I will have to find the rest of this series when time permits.

[B.M.A. Rook · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a fun, light and casual read. I bought the first book and had pre-ordered the second. Life got in the way and I wasn’t able to devour them immediately. Then I started reading the first one and realized I needed the audiobook so I could continue the story while driving to work and while I was working.

I devoured the first book immediately and purchased the second audiobook so I could immediately continue. Imagine my disappointment when I realized the 3rd audiobook hadn’t been released yet. But I have the physical copy so I still devour it.

Jane Lindskold has a a great way of telling unique stories in fun and intricate ways. She has a huge range of fantasy and sci-fi and can blend genres well in her books. This series is her most recent, and pulls covers characters with similar names, while ensuring each have a unique voice and different mannerisms. I never felt lost about which character was speaking, which was in a scene.

I’m a huge fan of older people being pulled into crazy adventures and this series so far does it so beautifully. There are few authors who can blend urban and fantasy settings well and Jane does this every time with great care. I am very very curious about how certain characters may come back in the future and what roles they may have to the story….there’s one gentleman I’m curious about, and wonder if my suspicions are warranted…

[Rex Libris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Among the protagonists of this story are a trio of youthful theriocephalic creatures, human-bodied with animal heads, who go to a shrine to summon a trio of advisors to aid them in their Quest. Their summoning brings to them a trio of "mature" ladies who were on their way to their book club.

Magic is a regular occurrence in the land of the animal-headed, and the answer to the quest lies at the runs of an ancient, now destroyed library. The animal-headed ones and their advisors get to the library where the youths learn the secret that their parents were responsible for the destruction of the library. The guardian of the library says they can get the answers they seek by recovering the pieces of a broken artifact that parents had stolen from the library.

The story begins too slowly, very methodical in its recounting of events, which takes away from the flow of the story. After awhile the tempo picks up and the story is redeemed. This is the first of a series, and the plot and events are intriguing enough where it looks like it will be worthwhile to continue wit the series.

[Sic Transit Gloria · Rating 2 out of 5]

Library of the Sapphire Wind is a reimagining of the classic fantasy trope: what if ordinary people went to a fantasy realm? But there's a twist: instead of an all-powerful teenager or some carefree children, the three protagonists are seventy-something retirees, flush with experience and wisdom if not a lot of endurance. It would have been a very cute idea if it had been done properly.

It took me a long time to figure out what felt wrong about this book. The story refuses to make anything unreasonable. Everything must make perfect sense. How can three older people can adventure and not be missed at home? Answered reasonably. How the furry society works? Answered reasonably. What's everyone's plans for the next caper? Answered reasonably and affirmed with nods all around.

Where are the idiosyncrasies? Where are the plans that fail? Where are the individual personalities that occasionally clash instead of always agreeing? The book is so concerned about being rational that it smothers any flavor the story might have had.

There are more things that I could touch on, but that's what really killed the book for me. I will not be reading the sequel, whenever it comes out.

[Cindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm really torn on this one. I love the idea of three old ladies being summoned to a fantasy world, bringing a particular kind of wisdom and experience that's exactly suited for the situation even if it's not what the young summoners expected. I also appreciate a lot of how the plotline unfolded, as mysteries are revealed and sordid pasts change how we view certain characters.

But...the writing style was just a bit off for me. I rarely felt more than a mild engagement with the story. A little too much telling and not enough showing, perhaps. And a certain inevitability to each event in the sequence so that I never really worried that anyone was in jeopardy -- even amidst fights with ferocious creatures, the tone was so matter-of-fact. The narrative halted abruptly with no real resolution, yet I'm not sure if I'll pick up the second book. It's a toss-up.

[Dani · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Library of the Sapphire Wind" (and its second half, "The Aurora Borealis Bridge") is a competent fantasy novel - written by an author who has written much-better-than-competent novels in the past. It reads well enough to be worth reading and worth finishing, but the story is very mechanical: Three women from our world are summoned to another world (where magic works and the people are all a bit theriomorphic) to aid three questers in what turns out to be an effort to unite three parts of a magic device...

What differentiates the novel is the summoned humans are women in their fifties, sixties, and seventies (one each), who bring lifetimes of experience to the table, rather than the usual outstanding physical abilities or skills. That helped.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good beginning for a longer story

The ending was abrupt, to say the least. As the seekers were heading back to the library, the book ended. No small preview of what was coming ... no author's notes or background info. It's as if someone took a larger book, opened it to a page and tore the rest of the pages out. I knew the story continued in the next volume, but such an abrupt stop was like having an auto wreck. Unexpected, with whiplash.

Other than that, the story was interesting and kept my attention focused on the characters. I enjoyed the banter among the characters, tempered with the views of the three older human mentors. It's a great book for a day or three of armchair adventure .

[Amberwitch · Rating 2 out of 5]

Parallel world fantasy with a trio of youngsters calling upon an oracle to help them in their quests, ending up with a trio of aged book club members.
Lindskold is a bit hit or miss for me, and this one is a miss. The worldbuilding is not engaging or believable, and while the idea of an ensemble cast with an unusual age
diversity is appealing, none of the characters are particularly convincing or engaging. And the continue use of pop cultural references, which I assume are meant as tongue in cheek funny, 1) falls flat, 2) is jarring and distracting from the plot and 3) interrupts progression of the plot for no good reason.

Diana Wynne Jones did a lot better in Dark Lord of Derkholm

[Henry Lazarus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jane Lindskold proves that little old ladies can have adventures too. Meg, Peg, and Teg are the only members of their book club who show up, and they are magically taken to another world where people have animal heads. The three young adults have summoned them for help with their problem, and a verse that comes with them leads to the Library of the Sapphire Wind (trade from Baen) It turns out that the parents of Xerak, Vereez, and Grunwald were responsible for the library’s destruction. The parents were attempting to steal a magical object that has broken into three parts. All three need to be returned. Lots of fun with a flying ship.

[Janet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a total waste of time but I don’t care enough to read the second book.

I didn’t like the writers style. Her sentences were long with multiple thoughts combined into one. I had to reread many sentences multilevel tone to figure out what she was trying to say.

Like her sentences, the book went on and on. Too many ideas going on in one thought. The story came to a dead halt so she could through in a fact about archeology or knitting or child bearing. I didn’t care about the history lessons and it didn’t add to any part of the story.

Overall in thought the story was interesting. The characters interacted well together. But I can’t recommend this book

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every fantasy has the same layout (And I love it) of A young band of adventurers, starting out and learning lessons on the way. Picture the same, but with a group of chicks 50 plus, that are either a fantastic grandmother of tons.... an archaeologist, or a librarian! THIS is how you enjoy a fantasy! There is still the coming of age theme, but there is also a "Be your best" theme that these feisty ladies excell at!! I can't even say if the book is good, I so enjoyed the set up that the rest just fell into place!

[Robert · Rating 2 out of 5]

Right from the get-go this book lost me. Three old ladies summoned to another world where everyone has an animal head, and all three are good with this. In reality all would be freaking out and having breakdowns.
Continuing along the story is about three teenagers all of whom are still immature looking for answers.
The story might be cute for a juvenile read. But extreme nonsense for any adult reader.
And the story does not end or conclude in anyway it simply stops.
There are way better fantasy novels then this.

[MJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a lot of fun, easy to read, a variety of characters including almost adult teens and three women from a bookclub meeting on Valentine's Day (and there I was actually reading in on VD!) who suddenly find themselves in a fantastical world where the people have animal heads. Thanks to a translation spell they understand one-another. World building is totally different and a delight. This didn't get 4 stars because it ended suddenly...obviously the next will start where this ends, but the ending was just too abrupt.

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Any book that has a CORRECT description of how to spin yarn is okay in my book. Meg, Peg, and Teg have to make some bracelets and have to spin some found items into yarn. I read the scene and description to my wife and she says, "Yep". But also the story itself is very compelling. Meg, Peg, and Teg are some of the best characters that I've read about in a long time. Their dialogue is spot on. While I found some of the journeying a little tedious, the character interactions are amazing. A search for a buried library? Yes please. More of that.

[Jennifer Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read, but I hate that it ended quite abruptly, and now I have to wait for the next in the series.
Three older women, part of a book club, are unceremoniously summoned to another world to act as mentors to three young people. All the people in "Over Where" have the heads of animals on an otherwise human body, and they have never seen people like Meg, Peg, and Teg (yes, those are the names).
There is magic, adventure, and intrigue to keep the story moving.