REVIEW: The History of the World Begins in Ice by Kate Elliott
Dear Kate Elliott
When Dear Author received an email offering this anthology for review I asked whether I needed to have read the Spiritwalker series (which begins with Cold Magic) first or if it could be read as a stand alone. I have Cold Magic on the TBR of Doom but I haven’t read it yet. The answer was, no, the stories were designed to stand alone. For those who had read the series, the anthology would broaden the world they already knew. For those who had not, there would be some mild spoilers but otherwise, all good. With that, I said yes.
When I opened the book I knew only that The History of the World Begins in Ice is a science fiction/fantasy anthology and it somehow involved magic. Nothing else.
What I found was a series of stories that drew me in, explained just what I needed to know without any info-dump and, while each telling a complete tale, left me wanting to know more. So I’m here to tell DA readers that this anthology is just as perfect a place to start the Spiritwalker series as Cold Magic.
I knew none of these characters and nothing about them, but very quickly I was curious to know what happened – to Kemal, to Andevai and the charming Rory, as well as Cat and Beatrice.
The History of the World Begins in Ice is also illustrated by artists the author commissioned especially for the book so there are some wonderful illustrations throughout.
There was one story I struggled with because it didn’t render very well on my reader (or within Calibre on my PC). That was The Secret Journal of Beatrice Hassi Barahal. The illustrations were gorgeous but I found the text hard to read.
There is something about going into a book with no knowledge and being wonderfully surprised by the revelations it contains. I enjoyed piecing together who was who and who they were to one another. I liked coming to understand that the boy in A Compendium of Architecture and the Science of Building (which is nowhere near as dry as the title sounds) turns out to be someone very important in the series and just how some of these stories fit together within the broader narrative. The stories are all told chronologically and there is an author’s note at the start which places each in the context of the original novels as well.
I particularly enjoyed The Courtship which was not about the usual kind of courtship one may find in romance but I had the sense that the relationship which began in that story would become very important indeed and extremely valuable. I also liked seeing the interaction between Cat and Vai and that made me want to read Cold Magic and the other books in the original series even more.
The main draw for me was the short stories but there are essays in the back about how certain things in the series were decided – the geography, certain languages, as well as character studies which were interesting to read. The amount of thought and research that went into the landscape and the language was well beyond what I had considered. The series is set on an alternative Earth based on the geography of about 20,000 years ago and where European colonialism didn’t occur and from there, the author imagined a world where Mande people from West Africa were a dominant culture. Sometimes it is very cool to see how the sausage is made and I liked knowing the care that went into the worldbuilding.
The last few stories are set after the events of the original series and my romance-loving heart especially enjoyed the final two – Finding the Doctor, or, The Many Clever Ideas of Andevai Diarisso Haranwy and When I Grow Up. They serve as a kind of epilogue for those who know the characters already and round out the anthology well in their own right.
Unfortunately, once he explained the plan, she found the idea delightful, which meant it was a tremendously bad idea.
The History of the World Begins in Ice did that rare and lovely thing of leaving me both satisfied and also wanting more. I’m so glad I said yes.
Grade: A-
Regards,
Kaetrin
The Spiritwalker series is one of my favorites — everything about it. I love its melding of African and Celtic mythology. I love how the main relationship is not just Cat and Vai, but really one about the love between two sisters. I love how there are multiple journeys of self-discovery. I still re-read it when I’m feeling down.