I received this book for free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Obelisk Gate by N.K. JemisinSeries: The Broken Earth #2
Published by Orbit on August 16 2016
Genres: Adult, Fantasy
Pages: 407
Format: Finished paperback
Source: Publisher
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The nitty-gritty: More stunning world-building, the return of some beloved characters, and even greater mysteries.
The Fifth Season was one of my top ten books of 2015, and so I was beyond excited to start reading the second book in the series, The Obelisk Gate. I’m happy to say it was a more than worthy follow-up and I enjoyed it immensely. I have to admit I enjoyed The Fifth Season just a touch more, due to the slower pace of The Obelisk Gate and a slightly more confusing story structure. But overall this is a wonderfully intricate story with multilayered characters, a story that demands you pay attention and savor every new revelation. As she did in the first book, Jemisin treats her readers as intelligent beings and forces you to make many of the connections without spelling everything out. Be warned: this is a series you must read in order. Do not attempt to read The Obelisk Gate without reading The Fifth Season first. You will be lost, I guarantee. Also, there are some mild spoilers ahead if you haven’t read the first book.
Jemisin’s story alternates between two main points of view, with a third (and even a fourth, if you count the “interludes”) thrown in at times just to shake things up. Essun, the main character of The Fifth Season, continues to shine in this story. When the story begins, she has joined a “comm” (a community formed during a Season where like-minded folk ban together to survive) called Castrima, where she finds a number of other orogenes, Guardians and even stone eaters living more or less peacefully amongst “stills” (those who are not orogenes). Castrima is mostly underground and for this reason is considerably safer than comms that are above ground. Essun thinks it might be just the place for her to learn more about her powers and her place in the world, especially since she’s reunited with an old friend. But outside forces are beginning to threaten Castrima and disrupt their peaceful lives, and it will take everyone’s cooperation to survive these fast approaching threats.
The other main point of view is that of ten-year-old Nassun, Essun’s missing daughter from The Fifth Season. Nassun was only mentioned in the last book, but here she gets a starring role. After her father Jija murders her younger brother for being an orogene, Jija kidnaps Nassun and takes her on a journey to a place where she might be “cured” of her orogeny. Despite his overt hatred of orogenes (and Nassun is a very powerful one), she loves her father and will do almost anything he asks. They arrive at a comm where a group of young orogenes are training to hone their skills, but Jija is convinced the Found Moon will cure Nassun and make her “normal.” Meanwhile, Nassun is doing just the opposite and her powers are getting even stronger.
And back at Castrima, Essun is calling to the obelisks, gigantic objects of great power that float through the sky and hold untold mysteries and might even affect the Seasons themselves.
Once again Jemisin’s world building blew me away. She delves deeper into the abilities of the orogenes and explains more about their connection to the Earth and how they hold the power of life and death in their hands. Even Essun, who is an experienced orogene, can’t always control herself when it comes to her powers. Both Essun and Nassun end up killing people by accident during the story, which just proves how immensely powerful an orogene is, no matter her age.
For the uninitiated, a “Season” is a long period of time that follows a natural catastrophe, like an earthquake or a tsunami (and is usually caused by an orogene). During a Season, a variety of horrors present themselves, but each resembles a post-apocalyptic nightmare where people struggle to find food and shelter. In addition, many insects and animals go through changes in order to adapt, and there is a particularly horrific insect called a boilbug in this story that gave me the creeps! One of Castrima’s issues is that they are not only running out of meat, but it’s becoming more and more dangerous to send hunting parties out to find it.
We also get more time with the stone eaters in this book, mysterious creatures who resemble statues and yes, eat stone. Jemisin still doesn’t fully explain their purpose, and their relationship with the orogenes is complex and strange. But they are oddly compelling, especially a stone eater named Hoa who has an unexplained connection to the obelisks.
I mentioned a third point of view, from a Guardian named Schaffa who also appeared in The Fifth Season. Here, Schaffa only appears briefly, but I got the feeling that he’ll play a bigger part in the final book of the trilogy. Schaffa knew Essun when she went by the name Syenite, and so these chapters are especially confusing and you may even need to brush up on The Fifth Season to remember all the intricate details. In this book, Schaffa nearly drowns, but is saved by an entity that makes a terrible bargain with him. In her typical fashion, Jemisin gives us only glimpses of what’s going on with Schaffa, holding her secrets for the big reveal at the end of the series (or at least I hope that’s what she’s doing!)
My only complaint is that the pace felt slower than the first book. In The Fifth Season, the characters are on journeys and there is almost constant movement. Here, most everyone has settled down and is preparing for the final battle. In that sense it felt very much like a “middle book,” but I hesitate to say that because as far as middle books go, it’s one of the best I’ve ever read.
By the end of the story, Jemisin has laid out her course for the third book and revealed some startling facts about the obelisks, the orogenes, and a sinister alien presence. And yet, she still doesn’t give much away, which makes me even more anxious to finish this series and finally understand everything. Several emotional and heartbreaking moments brought tears to my eyes, a reminder of Jemisin’s powerful writing skills. If you haven’t started The Broken Earth trilogy, go grab a copy of The Fifth Season immediately and get reading! (It did just win the Hugo for best novel, you know.)
Big thanks to the publisher for supplying a review copy.
The world building in this series sounds interesting. It’s nice to get a spin on the usual fantasy tropes. I’ve been seeing references to it everywhere lately so I might have to give it a go at some point!
Lorraine recently posted…Read Last Week (21 – 27 August)
It’s VERY different from anything I’ve ever read, so if you are looking to venture out of your comfort zone, this is the way to go.
I finished The Obelisk Gate over the weekend – and apart from the pacing (I didn’t notice whether it was slower), I agree with just about everything you said. An absolutely stunning book, especially in how it expands on the world-building, answers certain questions, and resolves others. I’m both excited and scared-to-death of reading the finale next year!
Sara L. recently posted…The Character Evolution Files, No. 12: The Journey Through the Character Arc, Stage 10 – The Emergence (Resolution)
I’m scared too! There is so much at stake with this series, and when you care so much about the characters it’s so nerve wracking!
I have definitely wished I remembered more details from the Fifth Season while reading this one (I’m in the middle of it right now). The tense kinda throws me at times too, but still really interesting stuff!
Lisa (@TenaciousReader) recently posted…Audiobook Review: Blood of the Earth by Faith Hunter
I didn’t do a refresher either but I did find myself remembering more and more as the story went on.
I just finished this one myself, and I agree, it was excellent. I still probably liked The Fifth Season more, because of how ingenious and refreshing it was, but this was a fantastic follow up!
Mogsy @ BiblioSanctum recently posted…Book Review: Curioddity by Paul Jenkins
Yes, such a special series, I need to go back read her back list now!
Ahhh – I’m so very behind with everything. I even preordered this one and it arrived, and I still haven’t read the first! Where is the time going to! Nice to see it’s picking up such a lot of love though. Perhaps I’ll wait until the series is complete and then I won’t have the wait in-between books.
Lynn 😀
The world building in this sounds really fantastic. I might have to start the series. I’m glad to see that this sequel didn’t let you down.
Sam recently posted…Waiting on Wednesday: Labyrinth Tales
This sounds like a great read! The cover is gorgeous
I stopped reading at spoilers but you had me at treat her readers as intelligent readers. 😀
Sounds like a must read!
I haven’t read the first one, but I am going to check it out now. Especially since the second book was a great read, as well!
Jaime Lester recently posted…The Perilous Journey of The Much-Too-Spontaneous Girl by Leigh Stathum ~ Release Day Celebration and Giveaway
Wonderful cover! Thanks for the review and the heads up about reading the Fifth Gate first. The series sounds excellent.