When Kadie wakes up in The After she is completely out of her depth. She thought she was
just a normal woman who recently had her heart broken
Now she learns she is a character in a book. And not even
a main character – and she’s a perfectly normal woman lost in a world of
fictional characters – a world of wizards and vampires and shapeshifters and
who knows what else
Not only is she lost in this world – but she’s also being
hunted. She doesn’t know why – and nor does the mysterious Archive that
controls this world – but until they learn the answer they’re not letting her
wander into danger. No matter what she wants
It’s interesting how this series works with The Apprentice which is set in the
same world but not the same series. That book did an excellent job of setting
up the world, the factions, the way the Archive operates, the way of the world
and its characters and the setting. And this world is wonderfully complex and
involved and fascinating that it really benefitted from having that book to
introduce everything – the ideals, the concepts, who everyone is and what they
could do and why was all so very involved that that excellent book was a great
way to introduce us to the series
It also introduced us briefly to a few of the conflicts
of this series: but primarily focused on the world itself. The amazing,
beautiful, rich world is introduced and displayed.
And this book now pokes the holes. Or more of the holes.
While we saw hints of injustices in The
Apprentice this takes it to the next level. We see how Prosaics are
treated, almost shunned in the magical cities, certainly treated with contempt
and derision and even good people treat them more like small children or pets.
Awkward, burdens, not necessarily to be hated, but certainly to be at best
pitied and definitely shuffled out the way. Certainly not treated as important
or useful or worthy of making their own decisions
The point is not just generally well made explicitly but
also in the general treatment of prosacis – from the basic imprisonment, to the
clear lack of respect the Archive has for their opinions or wishes or abilities
to provide insight – to even any consideration that they can be useful or
productive or helpful. It’s really well portrayed more in these constant small
moments of backhand, non-malicious disrespect than anything else
We also have a continued look at what it means to be a
character from a book rather than a second or third generation. I think this
works especially well when so many of the characters in this book, including
Kadie, are side characters. I mean in The
Apprentice we had another character from a book – but she was a major
character in her own story. She was important and, as a main character, was
pretty well developed in her own book
But what is it like to be a side character? What does it
mean to be someone who literally can’t remember the name of their own parents?
Whose entire existence is defined by having once met the protagonist briefly? What
would it mean to read your own book?
And what does it mean for a character like this to be the
protagonist? More than anything else that role is a direct subversion of the
whole idea that these book-based characters are not fully developed people – we
see it through her growth and participation
Again, I have to admire how this is done – with careful subtlety.
No-one has to overtly say “she’s a full person” because she just clearly is.
Unlike The
Apprentice we have a definite story and conflict here. We have an excellent
mystery as well as following the path of a brand new fictional entering this
world. We have more than just exploration (which I was concerned about) but
political factions, major differences about how the world should run and what
should happen
I think there is, perhaps, a moment in the middle that
seems to drag. But I think that’s a stylistic choice because there is a long
moment where Kadie doesn’t know what’s happening or what the whole mystery is.
The Archive doesn’t know what’s happening and everyone is confused and
frustrated and looking for answers which is a long, gruelling and not very
productive process and reflected in the book.
One of Kadie‘s fellow characters is a gay man – he spends
much of the book locked in his room so we don’t see much of him. We also have
Marc, the third character, who is Asian – we see more of him than Devon and he
certainly becomes more involved in the story. Harley, a woman who Kadie meets
when she first arrives is a Woman of Colour. We similarly have people of colour
among the people of Sanctuary they run into and among the High Council as well.
There is a general attempt to make the general populace racially diverse which
is also a bonus to include on top of the odd character in a sea of whiteness. There
is also a brown skinned vampire character I believe will later be more relevant
in the series as he seems to be a more moderate branch of the opponents to the
Archive which I think will bring nuance this series seems so very good at.
There’s also a hint that different supernatural
I also love the examination of what it means to have an
entire populace either of book characters or people descended from book
characters – not just the number of people with special powers or weird
technology. But how most of them are attractive – because most books have
attractive protagonists and main characters. Or how most of the populace is
quirky or eccentric – because how many books have we read where characters don’t
have a great deal of character development but have that one quirk to try and
make them more human? How many romantic heroines are clumsy? How many YA
protagonists have a disproportionately high interest in classical literature or
playing classical music or some other unusual and slightly quirky habit? I
think this little elements are especially joyful for anyone who reads a lot – because
you can see it, because we’ve seen so many of these things in the fiction we
read again and again.
In some ways this series reminds me of the Libriomancer series. Not because there’s
any great similarity of the worlds or even the plots – but because they’re both
a love story for reading. They’re both a celebration of the love of books, of
the joy of fiction. These are books for people who love books, for people who
adore reading and that’s clear with every word and I love it.
