Wind from a Foreign Sky

Tielmaran Chronicles #1

by Katya Reimann

Gaultry enjoyed the simple, pastoral life of a hedge witch, where her most daunting task was to travel to the nearby village to purchase supplies. But her peaceful life is shattered when it becomes entangled in an ancient prophecy--a prophecy which names her and her headstrong twin sister, Mervion, as their nation's salvation...or its destruction.

Genres: Fantasy, High Fantasy, Fiction, Magic, Witches, Science Fiction Fantasy, Adult

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Katya Reimann is the author of the Tielmaran Chronicles, a high fantasy trilogy set in a world dominated by squabbling deities and complex, often-troubled characters, set at odds by conflicting loyalties to their gods and to each other. She was a finalist for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer of Science Fiction and Fantasy in 1997. Her novels are Wind from a Foreign Sky(1996), A Tremor in the Bitter Earth (1998), and Prince of Fire and Ashes(2002).

The Wanderer, a posthumous collaboration with author Cherry Wilder, came out in 2004, with a softcover edition in November of 2005. Katya is currently at work on a contemporary fantasy set in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Reviews

[Jennifer Ambrose · Rating 4 out of 5]

Did I like this book? Let me put it to you this way: my AOL address/ screen name is Mervion and my twin sister's is Gaultry, which we chose way back in the mid 90s when we'd just read this book and AOL was still new.

I am completely biased when it comes to this book because I was so starved for a book about twin sisters.

Sadly Mervion, my favorite twin, doesn't get much page time. Still, if you're looking for a fantasy novel with strong twin sisters, this would be a good place to start!

[Celeste · Rating 5 out of 5]

Magic and fantasy and no annoying men ruining the plot. A lot of lore dropped very quickly but I liked it a lot <3 twin rep 🏋️‍♀️

[Kelley · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd never even heard of this book until I stumbled across it at a used bookstore. (God bless used bookstores.) The cover looked intriguing; it was very affordable; so I took a chance and bought it. I'm very glad I did, because not only was the novel itself enjoyable, but it also helps me realize how many obscure fantasy and science fiction treasures might lie lurking under the general radar.

The style isn't especially gorgeous, but it's solid and readable. The heroine, Gaultry, discovers the extent of her powers after a long journey with many a misstep. She stumbles and sometimes falls, but she always comes out fighting. Happily, she saves herself, her sister, and the kingdom when it matters most. You can't take that for granted. More than one well-regarded fantasy novel builds up a heroine's "strength" over the course of many chapters, only to render her useless and/or irrelevant at the climax. (One Good Knight, Warbreaker, and Heir to Sevenwaters, I am looking straight at you.) Gaultry is, in the end, the heroine of her own story, with her manly love interest in a crucial but distinctly supporting role.

I do have a couple of issues.
I'm fond of animals, so I found Gaultry's power to draw the spirits from animals a bit disturbing at times. It does help her save herself and others on a number of important occasions, but I still caught myself wondering if the animals would be okay. Whatever became of the mare the male lead was riding at the beginning?

Also, concerning said male lead -- names matter. I may be unduly sensitive to them, but on occasion my dislike of certain characters' names has led me to take the novels in which they appear off my consideration list. (Cass's The Selection Series Boxed Set: The Selection / The Elite / The Prince and Koch's Touched by an Alien may be very good books, but I just can't bring myself to take heroines called "America Singer" and "Kitty Katt" seriously.) In this case, I didn't learn the hero's name until I was already interested in the heroine's story, but still... Martin Stalker? Really, Ms. Reimann? Granted, I know "stalker" has other meanings than "creepy sexual predator." I know it's also a hunting term, which makes sense in the story's medieval setting. All the same, every time I read his name, I had a tiny "eww" moment that I could have done without.

Still, those issues are far too small to stop me from reading the sequels, which I was lucky enough to find at another used bookstore. God bless used bookstores.

[Victoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this book when it first came out, and I remember really loving it. Now that I have tracked down the two sequels, I decided to revisit the trilogy as a whole. And first of all, I have to admit that I had not remembered any of the details from my first time reading it in 1997-ish. In reading it again, I do wonder what it was that stuck out so much to me. While I did like it, I thought it was a good set-up for an interesting world, other than the identical twins aspect, I am not really sure that it is as terrific as I had originally thought. Not that there were any major flaws, it just seemed like a pretty straightforward fantasy story with a pretty unique twist of magic. I am curious about where this trilogy will go, but I wish I could remember what made this book stick out to me so much thirteen years ago... It must be the twin-thing...

[Josefine · Rating 5 out of 5]

i found this book in a "grabbelbox" it was reduced and i didn´t expect so much from it. But i was really blown away. I loved the characters. Even though i can not pronounce the main charackters name ;-). But the male lead is just *sigh*. The journey through this new world is very fascinating and the lovestory is cute. This is the best book of the trilogie (well i hope it is a trilogie -.-). There are nice turns and all. This is a book i am keeping for life. But read for yourself. ;-)

[Edwin Farrell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of the best Fantasy novels I've ever read. The characters and the setting are believable and full of life. Very well paced and fun to read. Magic isn't just a simple trope used freely; the consequences of its misuse would be dire--as it should be. I highly recommend this first entry of a trilogy that begs me to put all other reading aside for its follow-ups.

[Iamshadow · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF at 24%. Didn't like the writing style or characterisation. It felt weak and obvious. After reading a bunch of good, female-led fantasy lately, starting out with blatant rape attempts and segueing into girl being attracted to a random stranger who is bound to protect her was just... ugh. I guess I like my female heroes less defined by the men around them and more their own people.

[iewi · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I picked this up first, I thought that it was a romance novel because of the glitter on the cover. Then I saw that it was published by Tor Fantasy. Halfway through, I thought again that it may be more of a romance novel than I wanted. I gave it a chance and I was proven wrong again. I ended up liking it overall.

[Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars, one of my favorite reads of the year! Randomly picked this up from Half Price because the spine stood out, and boy am I glad I did! The pacing is quick from the start, the magic and world building are very interesting, and the characters are dynamic. Such a classic fantasy, and definitely worth the read.

[Chezzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was something about this book that I absolutely loved at the time that I cannot for the life of me figure out now. It's been years since I've touched a copy, but parts of the story still sticks to me.

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series was well written. I enjoyed the world and the chracter building was in depth. It was easy to picture what was going on and to get a feel for where the story was heading. Gaultry is definitely interesting and easy to feel close to.

[Judy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely entertaining. I read it in less than 24 hours, which meant just sitting and reading for hours and hours. Some of the religion wasn't fully built out but it was still great and it seems very feminist. Looking forward to reading #2.

[Foggygirl · Rating 5 out of 5]

The two main characters in this series have great "on page" chemistry that translates as a repressed sizzle that carries well through all three books.

[Megan Lillian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anyone else craving a tarot deck like Tamsanne's? And "fox colored" hair?


Love this entire series.

[Bradley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad fantasy fare. Fairly solid read. =)

[Natasha Cassinerio · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up at a library book sale with no knowledge about it and was very pleasantly surprised! Very enjoyable read.

[Theres · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dense, engaging fiction

[Ceilidhchaos · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was unexpectedly good. The magic was well done and the world building was good. I would have loved a map included, but that's my only complaint.

[Melissa Widmaier · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rousing tale with a plucky heroine. I enjoyed the ride and I'm looking forward to the rest of the story.

[Valerie · Rating 2 out of 5]

To be honest, I spent a lot of this book not really understanding what was going on. I'm going to give this book the benefit of a doubt and chalk my confusion up to lack of attention on my part.

But even with that in mind, this was no beach novel! The writing style is rather formal, the story is heavy on the politics, and the visuals are sometimes lurid. The magic in this world is weird and creepy. A lot of disturbing concepts were approached with no real acknowledgement that they were disturbing. For example, the magical art of "taking" an animal's spirit—which basically meant to enslave an animal's consciousness, for however brief a time, to serve the taker's will. Felt ethically questionable to me, but no one in the book seemed to worry. Likewise, the blossoming romance between Gaultry and Martin seemed kinda icky given Martin's magically induced imperative to keep her safe (and feel her feelings!). There's a lot of coercion in this plot that basically gets brushed off as insignificant.

I'm trying to come up with things about the book that stuck out in a good way but mainly drawing a blank. There's a body-swap at the end that's almost comedic; I guess there's that!

[Julie L · Rating 2 out of 5]

There were some good elements to this story, my favorite being the magic where Gaultry is able to "take" from animals and experience their strengths (as well as their natures). However, I felt the evil of the Bissantry (sic?) empire was underdeveloped--half-way through I was thinking--"Ok, WHY are they evil again?" which made Gaultry's struggles seem kind of pointless. (They're described as having enslaved the Tielmark people, but their goddess Llara doesn't seem too bad, and Martin's Bissantry friend is ok, making it seem like just another territorial dispute rather than a good-against-evil, good-must-triumph sort of a battle. The author may have outlined it more, but it wasn't super clear. Also, having evil characters that are only evil by virtue of their being put under a spell/having their souls manipulated, isn't true evil, especially when it's due to the tricks of a crazy, (but not necessarily evil) person. I kept waiting for something more from the middle (and end?) of the book since it had a strong start, but I never really got it.

[Chari Small · Rating 2 out of 5]

OK fantasy novel. Good character growth for the main character. As a "want-to-be" writer, I noticed several things I hope I will remember to do differently. The history of the two countries in the book, while maybe important to the author, were really hard to keep straight or to care about. The main character must have been superwoman because she kept getting beat to a pulp and then getting up and jumping back into the fray. I did finish the book and I would give it to a friend. Just OK.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first in an excellent fantasy trilogy--I read it again to remember what happened when I wanted to read the second book. Ten years later when I finally read the whole trilogy, I had to dive in for a third time. It looks like it is out of print as of 2011, but available on the Kindle.

[Patrick · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a decent book that unfortunately didn't leave a strong impression when I was done reading it. The background was fairly good. I felt the politics had some potential, but that it wasn't explained in a good way.

[K H · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF at 52%. If I’m not dying to finish a book after making it to the 50% mark, it’s not worth finishing. Not a bad book by any stretch but not engaging for me. Hopefully it is for you!