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    The Stone in the Skull
    The Stone in the Skull
    The Stone in the Skull
    Audiobook12 hours

    The Stone in the Skull

    Written by Elizabeth Bear

    Narrated by Rendah Heywood

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    The Gage was an artist, once, and a lover. To avenge his murdered beloved, he allowed a sorcerer to sheathe his body in mirrored bronze. His vengeance is complete now; the sorcerer has long since perished. But the Gage endures. The Dead Man has a purpose once as well: he was raised to be the protector of a Caliph. The Caliph died: the Dead Man did not. Now the Dead Man and the Gage have become companions of the sword, itinerant mercenaries. They have come east and south, through the passes of the Steles of the Sky, bearing a message to the besieged young queen of one of the Lotus Kingdoms. There, they will discover magic, mystery, betrayal, love - and, perhaps, finally, a purpose.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRecorded Books, Inc.
    Release dateOct 10, 2017
    ISBN9781501919367
    The Stone in the Skull
    Author

    Elizabeth Bear

    Elizabeth Bear was born on the same day as Frodo and Bilbo Baggins, but in a different year. She is the Hugo, Theodore Sturgeon Memorial, Locus, and Astounding Award–winning author of dozens of novels and over a hundred short stories. She has spoken on futurism at Google, MIT, DARPA’s 100 Year Starship Project, and the White House, among others. Find her at www.elizabethbear.com.  

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    Reviews for The Stone in the Skull

    4/5

    45 ratings6 reviews

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    • 4/5
      3 and a half stars. first book in a new trilogy called The Lotus Kingdoms that inhabits the same world as the earlier Eternal Sky trilogy which was set in a fantasy version of the steppes of central Asia. this one is set in more oriental locations. the world itself does not distinguish much between magic and science, resulting in an intriguing kind of hidden steampunk world without the industrialization. the first half of the book seems to plod along at little, concentrating on a trek to the Lotus Kingdoms, but once they arrive the book opens up, the characters come alive, the politics becomes compelling, and the reader hastens to order in the second book in the series.
    • 3/5
      This seemed like a mashup of a standard fantasy novel and a post-apocalyptic novel, with some steampunk thrown in. It mainly follows two adventurers, a human soldier and a mechanical man, who are trying to find their purpose in the world, while on some very secret mission. They get involved in a conflict between multiple kingdoms, one ruled by a very young, very determined young woman. The conflict between the kingdoms and the challenges facing the rulers are the main plot. Mystery, intrigue, magic and and some trans elements. I read this a couple of years ago and still remember the essentials, so it was memorable. Good characters, but I never did get into the plot or the politics.
    • 4/5
      At the moment, there is only one other rating for this title here on Goodreads and it doesn't have a review, so I feel like I should say something, but I'm not thinking of anything that I'm happy with. So...I guess I'll just say that Elizabeth Bear is one of my go-to authors and I have never been disappointed by any of her books. If you enjoy stories that do new and interesting things with mythology and religion and folklore and belief; where neither gender nor sexuality are binary; and where magic, science, and technology are all to be equally embraced and reviled, then you could do much worse than to discover the work of Elizabeth Bear and The Stone in the Skull would be a fine place to start your explorations.
    • 4/5
      Lots of promising starting material, this is very much the first of a series. First we spend an intensely episodic long journey with an ex-Dead Man and The Gage, a human who has slowly become the tin man but retains 'heart', Then two rajnis of two small separate southeast Asian style remnants of a larger empire. Mrithuri, who struggles to retain the rule she inherited from her grandfather without submitting to marriage and Sayeh, recently a widow, miraculously the living mother of an heir, since her body did not have a womb or vagina, whose rule is unpopular and rapidly becomes vastly ill-omened and unfortunate. I am not enjoying the humid river laced landscape as much as the steppe of The Eternal Sky trilogy, nor have the characters charmed me as deeply. But enough to look forward the the next book in the series.
    • 2/5
      The Stone in the Skull by Elizabeth Bear is the first book in the Lotus Kingdoms trilogy. Gage is an automaton mercenary created by a wizard. He is carrying an important message to the sorcerer of the Lotus Kingdom.This story was not what I was expecting. I couldn't get into the story. It was too slow paced for me. It was written well, but just not the book for me.I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
    • 4/5
      The Stone in the Skull is the start of a sequel trilogy to Bear’s epic fantasy series that began with Range of Ghosts. However, you do not need to be at all familiar with the previous series. The Stone in the Skull takes place over fifty years later and has an almost entirely new cast. It also moves the narrative south to the Lotus Kingdoms, a setting based on pre-colonial India.Trouble is brewing in the Lotus Kingdoms. What was once a great empire has shattered into principalities ruled by the emperor’s descendants. Among them are two women, both struggling to hold on to their own thrones and independent power.Sayeh is regent for her three year old son, given to her by the divine intervention of the gods. But her kingdom is a poor one, and they struggle to find water during the dry season. If the potential strife with her neighboring cousins weren’t enough, natural disaster looks likely to strike Sayeh’s country.Mrithuri is a twenty-four year old woman who rules her kingdom in her own right, but she’s under increasing pressure to marry, which would mean handing over authority to her husband. And the options for a husband to be are distasteful: two male cousins who mass armies on her border. She desperately awaits a message from her great-aunt, the wizard of Messaline, whom she hopes will bring her some form of aid.Her great-aunt has sent her message with the Gage, a brass automaton who was created to serve a wizard but has outlived his creator. Accompanying him is his friend, the Dead Man, a survivor of the deposed Uthman Caliphate who has since become a mercenary. They may think themselves only messengers, but the wizard of Messaline has plans for them in the Lotus Kingdoms.The Stone in the Skull has hints of grand quests, but it is much more of a political intrigue fantasy than Bear’s last trilogy. It may very well appeal to those who enjoy stories such as Game of Thrones but want something less grimdark and with a more diverse cast. I’m grateful that Bear chose this route for The Stone in the Sky. While the plot line is still a bit familiar, it was less so than the epic quest, evil wizard story of her last trilogy. I didn’t find the plot line to be super thrilling, fast paced, or exciting, but it worked all right.And anyway, Bear makes up for it with her lush world and fantastic characters. The world was undeniably my favorite part of Range of Ghosts, so I’m glad she decided to explore a new corner of it. She has a marvelous gift for embedding her settings and descriptions with true magic and wonder. The she paints a brilliant picture of gorgeous architecture, scents, clothing, and even the sky overhead, a river of stars with a cauled sun that leaves the lacy shadows of an eclipse.Bear veers from the norm when it comes to fantasy settings. Her world is clearly non-Western, and the Lotus Kingdoms are inspired by historic India. The setting is a fresh breath of air for a genre often too preoccupied with medieval Europe, and I like how she moves up the historic time line, offering a fantasy that’s not quite steampunk but including elements such as guns. And of course, the Gage, a character I couldn’t help but love.In fact, I liked all of the central characters. The Gage and his backstory never ceased to fascinate me, and I can’t wait to see how he develops in the sequels. I loved the friendship between him and the Dead Man, who’s got his own tragic tale. The Dead Man may fall into some familiar character types, but he’s well drawn and not overly angsty. And of course, I always love the wide variety of female characters Bear includes in her work. Mrithuri and Sayeh are both incredible female leads, and Bear surrounds them with other noteworthy women. I am intrigued by Mrithuri’s addiction to the poison of a serpent, as it’s not a topic I’ve seen often explored in fantasy. I also appreciate how Bear includes queer characters, particularly Sayeh, a trans woman who’s gender is never questioned by the narrative. However, I have yet to see any reviews of The Stone in the Skull by trans reviewers, so if you come across any, I would be very interested to see what they have to say.My only complaint in regards to the characters are some romance sub-plots that feel a bit like insta-love. Thankfully, this isn’t two tedious when I like the characters involved.I started out unsure whether or not I’d continue with the trilogy The Stone in the Skull starts out, but by the end this enchanting story had won me over.Review originally posted at The Illustrated Page. I received an ARC in exchange for a free and honest review.