Holy Sister by Mark Lawrence (Book of the Ancestor # 3)
So yet another trilogy by Mark Lawrence! Done and dusted. Holy Sister marks the end of the trilogy, Book of the Ancestor tracing the emotional and physical journey of Nona Grey, from the time she entered the order of the sisters as an orphan, till she becomes a holy sister, giving herself up to faith and prayers in this whole series that has been built up on religious imagery. If Red Sister was about Nona's early transformation into a fearsome fighting machine and her physical transformation, Grey Sister saw Nona embrace the dark magics to tap into the magical reserves within her and also manipulate the threads that shaped this world. So this, was a fitting conclusion as she finally decides to embrace the black of a holy sister because, she realizes that the world can never get enough of the prayers to heal.
And what a world! Mark's packed in some dense world-building into this planet where the sun gets weaker everyday, a planet where four different humanoid races each with their own set of magical strengths (speed, strength, empathy and magic) decided to crash-land and set up a new civilization. With time though, the magical strengths passed on through generations are weak and the world Abeth is crumbling giving in to an all-out ice-age because the focus of the bright moon isn't going to be enough to sustain life in that fifty miles wide stretch called the Corridor. This is where neighbors squabble - for farming is almost impossible and the wild life disappearing as well losing that fight to ever-encroaching wall of ice closing in, eating up resources and land. War was inevitable. And in Holy Sister, war is front and center of the proceedings as the neighboring Scithrowl led by a dangerous and ambitious queen called Adoma declare war on the borders of the empire. It is left to the heroics of Nona and her friends to save the empire aided by the crumbs left in place, a long while ago by Abbess Glass who, similar to Albus Dumbledore from the Harry Potter, is in for the long game playing out her moves through instructions left to Nona and her friends.
The prophecy of Argatha or the Chosen One is proved to be a false one. But Nona is a triple-blood and as she has grown in years, she has also mastered the various aspects of this power. Holy Sister is divided into two time-lines, one that traces the events from right after the disastrous end-battle of the Grey Sister and the other, three years later, within the Convent and then spilling out across the empire. I am not normally a fan of this plot-device but in the deft hands of Mark Lawrence (Whom I would trust blindly after having read NINE of his books and found nothing to complain about!) this is handled pretty well.Whenever the narrative dips in momentum in the past time-line ( mostly around how Nona and Zole tag-team to lead the scithrowl and the enemies of the empire away through a treacherous route that leads across dangerous ice-laden territories including the dreaded Black Ice!) things pick up nicely on the "present" front. mixing it up well, the pacing as usual is a scorcher.
The second narrative is the more expansive one obviously, featuring a set of tasks that Abbess Glass has left for Nona to accomplish which unfolds like a series of thrilling "heists"; some set within the convent and some outside the walls of Sweet Mercy - but Nona's clever schemes all lead up to the looming larger issue of a well coordinated Scithrowl attack under the command of their zealous queen Adoma that has advanced far beyond just the borders of the empire. Nona's best friends Ara, Jula and Ruli are equally invested in seeing her schemes successful as they trust Nona blindly to carry out Abbess Glass' instructions.
Mark as usual, does a brilliant job of having got us invested into Nona's fate - closely linked to the fate of the world as well. It was a great culmination of the growing-up character arcs for Nona along with her friends testing her friendship that might go a lot deeper with Ara and her hesitant bonding with Zole the only four-blood to have come along in ages [ Zole! Sigh... even without really having been present across larger parts of the narrative, this girl wins all my heart. Her stoic resoluteness and her unwavering faith thaws a bit in front of Nona's goodhearted earthy earnestness. I loved their chapters together where Mark goes beyond the veneer of just two young girls trying to survive the bitter terrains of ice, bringing the attention to the concept of "devils" inside you, the thoughts that form the base for emotions like jealousy, hate, envy etc. Kudos!], her relationship with Sister Kettle and Apple strained by the demands of war and the ever present shadow of Abbess Glass that looms over everything. Her bitter enmity with the Tansis family continues on, including a thrilling encounter with the Noi-Guin, the ninja-style assassins who can walk the "path".
The larger part of the narrative however focuses on the blood-soaked war that erupts with the hordes of Scithrowl flinging themselves at the gates of the Empire. The siege is brutal, there is a lot of body-count and blood-spattered violence but none of that takes away from the central plotting - bringing in a clever interplay of science-fictional elements into this fantasy mix, elevating it further. In fact, I think this is trademark Mark Lawrence and it fits in beautifully well.
The series ends off on a deserved high - with a heartening message about hope amidst the dark that threatens to engulf the world, a hope borne through duty, relationships and the deep bonds of friendship that sisters of Sweet Mercy strike up. The third book, frankly may have been the weakest of the lot - compared to the first two, personally the book felt a bit pallid. The flighty adventures through the ice-laden mountains, the blood-soaked war and the brutal resistance put up by the brave sisters, Nona's tryst with the Path and her meta-transformation: all of it kept my attention on a razor-edge but it was just that the first two books felt a lot more raw. Nona's struggles were a lot more real as she was still a child. Maybe that felt a bit more endearing and heart-rending. Nona by the third book still gets angry a lot, throwing herself onto the Path with nary a thought about the inner-peace you are supposed to achieve before setting out. But this uncontrolled streak of anger is what Nona is all about. Her amazing characterization wins us over and over. Third Book of Ancestor ties up nicely her adventures, a coming-of-age tale that just way beyond and Mark Lawrence's venture into a YA-themed fantasy is a true winner. This one's special because of the intricate world building and the brilliant characters that leap off the pages. Nona Grey is right up there on that pantheon of greats that I now worship in this genre. This guy is pure genius!
[PS. April is like a double-gold month as we get not one but TWO Mark Lawrence books! One Word Kill up next on my TBR~]
And what a world! Mark's packed in some dense world-building into this planet where the sun gets weaker everyday, a planet where four different humanoid races each with their own set of magical strengths (speed, strength, empathy and magic) decided to crash-land and set up a new civilization. With time though, the magical strengths passed on through generations are weak and the world Abeth is crumbling giving in to an all-out ice-age because the focus of the bright moon isn't going to be enough to sustain life in that fifty miles wide stretch called the Corridor. This is where neighbors squabble - for farming is almost impossible and the wild life disappearing as well losing that fight to ever-encroaching wall of ice closing in, eating up resources and land. War was inevitable. And in Holy Sister, war is front and center of the proceedings as the neighboring Scithrowl led by a dangerous and ambitious queen called Adoma declare war on the borders of the empire. It is left to the heroics of Nona and her friends to save the empire aided by the crumbs left in place, a long while ago by Abbess Glass who, similar to Albus Dumbledore from the Harry Potter, is in for the long game playing out her moves through instructions left to Nona and her friends.
The prophecy of Argatha or the Chosen One is proved to be a false one. But Nona is a triple-blood and as she has grown in years, she has also mastered the various aspects of this power. Holy Sister is divided into two time-lines, one that traces the events from right after the disastrous end-battle of the Grey Sister and the other, three years later, within the Convent and then spilling out across the empire. I am not normally a fan of this plot-device but in the deft hands of Mark Lawrence (Whom I would trust blindly after having read NINE of his books and found nothing to complain about!) this is handled pretty well.Whenever the narrative dips in momentum in the past time-line ( mostly around how Nona and Zole tag-team to lead the scithrowl and the enemies of the empire away through a treacherous route that leads across dangerous ice-laden territories including the dreaded Black Ice!) things pick up nicely on the "present" front. mixing it up well, the pacing as usual is a scorcher.
The second narrative is the more expansive one obviously, featuring a set of tasks that Abbess Glass has left for Nona to accomplish which unfolds like a series of thrilling "heists"; some set within the convent and some outside the walls of Sweet Mercy - but Nona's clever schemes all lead up to the looming larger issue of a well coordinated Scithrowl attack under the command of their zealous queen Adoma that has advanced far beyond just the borders of the empire. Nona's best friends Ara, Jula and Ruli are equally invested in seeing her schemes successful as they trust Nona blindly to carry out Abbess Glass' instructions.
Mark as usual, does a brilliant job of having got us invested into Nona's fate - closely linked to the fate of the world as well. It was a great culmination of the growing-up character arcs for Nona along with her friends testing her friendship that might go a lot deeper with Ara and her hesitant bonding with Zole the only four-blood to have come along in ages [ Zole! Sigh... even without really having been present across larger parts of the narrative, this girl wins all my heart. Her stoic resoluteness and her unwavering faith thaws a bit in front of Nona's goodhearted earthy earnestness. I loved their chapters together where Mark goes beyond the veneer of just two young girls trying to survive the bitter terrains of ice, bringing the attention to the concept of "devils" inside you, the thoughts that form the base for emotions like jealousy, hate, envy etc. Kudos!], her relationship with Sister Kettle and Apple strained by the demands of war and the ever present shadow of Abbess Glass that looms over everything. Her bitter enmity with the Tansis family continues on, including a thrilling encounter with the Noi-Guin, the ninja-style assassins who can walk the "path".
The larger part of the narrative however focuses on the blood-soaked war that erupts with the hordes of Scithrowl flinging themselves at the gates of the Empire. The siege is brutal, there is a lot of body-count and blood-spattered violence but none of that takes away from the central plotting - bringing in a clever interplay of science-fictional elements into this fantasy mix, elevating it further. In fact, I think this is trademark Mark Lawrence and it fits in beautifully well.
The series ends off on a deserved high - with a heartening message about hope amidst the dark that threatens to engulf the world, a hope borne through duty, relationships and the deep bonds of friendship that sisters of Sweet Mercy strike up. The third book, frankly may have been the weakest of the lot - compared to the first two, personally the book felt a bit pallid. The flighty adventures through the ice-laden mountains, the blood-soaked war and the brutal resistance put up by the brave sisters, Nona's tryst with the Path and her meta-transformation: all of it kept my attention on a razor-edge but it was just that the first two books felt a lot more raw. Nona's struggles were a lot more real as she was still a child. Maybe that felt a bit more endearing and heart-rending. Nona by the third book still gets angry a lot, throwing herself onto the Path with nary a thought about the inner-peace you are supposed to achieve before setting out. But this uncontrolled streak of anger is what Nona is all about. Her amazing characterization wins us over and over. Third Book of Ancestor ties up nicely her adventures, a coming-of-age tale that just way beyond and Mark Lawrence's venture into a YA-themed fantasy is a true winner. This one's special because of the intricate world building and the brilliant characters that leap off the pages. Nona Grey is right up there on that pantheon of greats that I now worship in this genre. This guy is pure genius!
[PS. April is like a double-gold month as we get not one but TWO Mark Lawrence books! One Word Kill up next on my TBR~]
Comments