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Overview
Lila Black is off with the faeries . . .
Ever since the Quantum Bomb of 2015 things have been different; the dimensions have fused and suddenly our world is accessible to elves, demons, ghosts and elementals—and their worlds are open to us. Things have been different for Special Agent Lila Black too: tortured and magic-scarred by elves, rebuilt by humans into a half-robot, part-AI, nuclear-fueled walking arsenal, and carrying the essence of a dead elfin necromancer in her chest, sometimes she has trouble figuring out who she is.
And a mission to the world of the fae may not help her work it out.
The fae are beautiful, glamorous, exotic, and talented, ruled by their king and queen’s summer and winter courts. Their inventions make food taste better, make beer divine, and bring sparkle and mischief to the world–but that’s only the surface. And Lila is being sent in at the deep end, to the deepest, darkest levels of Faerie: on the primal level, nothing about the fae is glamorous at all.
In a winter-locked, raw, and primitive world, Lila has to deal with the fae at their most basic levels, as tricksters and dealmakers–and the only deals worth making are bloody ones. If Lila’s quest is to succeed, and if she is ever to escape Faerie, the right question must be asked, the right sacrifice must be made, and the right quarry must be hunted down on the winter solstice. All of which is difficult, when the only aides Lila brought to Faerie are her friends . . .
Justina Robson’s new series combines her trademark themes of identity and reality, magic and technology, break-neck plots, a mischievous sense of fun, and a seriously sexy new heroine.
Editorials
Publishers Weekly
Uneven pacing and an overcrowded cast try the reader's patience in Robson's third Quantum Gravity novel (after 2007's Selling Out). Though the part Goth, part rock-and-roll tone is consistent throughout, the template shifts halfway through. Series protagonist Lila Black mopes through the book's first half with occasional interruptions from would-be assassins, pausing at intervals to puzzle over her built-in robotic weaponry's new self-upgrading abilities or to bicker with her two husbands-elf-lord Zal and demon Teazle-and with Tath, the dead necromancer whose consciousness she's hosting. Little of note happens until Lila and her entourage journey deep into faery realms, where a seemingly simple mission quickly turns into a surprisingly traditional fairy-tale quest with potentially world-altering consequences. The novel belatedly sparkles in this final section, suddenly sprouting a cleverly nuanced plot. Newcomers should look up prior volumes first, but series fans will be reasonably satisfied. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.Locus
The work of a smart and sexy novelist having smart and sexy fun.Library Journal
The Quantum Bomb of 2015 caused a fusion of dimensions, opening Earth to the creatures of Faerie, ghosts, demons, and elementals. Special Agent Lila Black, part human, part artificial intelligence, and all business, travels deep into the world of the fae, where she becomes involved in their tricksterish, deadly games as she tries to sort out both herself and her new world. The third outing for Lila Black (Keeping It Real; Selling Out) tackles the elusive world of Faerie, a place far from the stereotypes of legends. Robson's (Mappa Mundi) mercurial style suits her quick-witted heroine in a fantasy/sf adventure that is a good addition to most fantasy or sf collections.
—Jackie Cassada