Tensions are palpable in the city. There is pressure from homesteaders on local Indian tribes; there are those who worry about the Americans across the river who likely have designs on the Territory. There are those who feel a connection to the land who resent those who don't.
Isobel knows her job is to solve problems but no one is willing to say what the problem is. Isobel is also growing in her powers - both the powers given her by the Devil as a result of their bargain and the powers that seem to have been born in her as a child of the Territory. She'll have to learn to balance her powers and stand on her own two feet to make her judgment. This is a fascinating historical fantasy with a complex and intriguing mythology.
The characters are well-developed. I like the way Isobel has changed in the past year of their travels. I liked this episode especially because it gave more depth to Gabriel and his struggles. This is a hard book to review.
I was barely able to put it down. Now that I've finished reading it, I'm sitting here numb, not sure what really happened. This is NOT the way I usually react to a book. This book is about power: This series, especially this book, ranks with Orwell's as an allegorical blockbuster that is both thought-provoking and a deeply enjoyable read. I have loved this series and these characters, especially Isobel, the Devil's Hand. This book sends them to a new setting, where Isobel must face down a town full of roiling troubles and hidden anger, and must also face the forces that control and guide her.
As an ending, it feels a little messy and incomplete, with the fate of our characters and of the Devil's West left unknown. As a new chapter in Isobel's understanding of herself, this provides a solid conclusion that sees Isobel finally accept and use the power she has been given. Character growth, world build richly done and story line that follows and makes sense. Feels a bit like a cliff hanger, but a satisfying one.. Looking forward to the next.
This series is highly recommended. This was a consistently, amazingly smart conclusion to the trilogy. Great follow up on the story but incomplete ending for me. Fascinating alternate history for the old west. See all 11 reviews. Amazon Giveaway allows you to run promotional giveaways in order to create buzz, reward your audience, and attract new followers and customers. Learn more about Amazon Giveaway. Set up a giveaway. Customers who viewed this item also viewed. He was neither teacher nor guardian but a fellow Rider. He might give her a different answer.
So, what was it like then? It was always busy. Boats using the Mudwater stop there to sell and buy, then go back up- or cross-river, back and forth. There are always strangers coming and going. The Americans claimed the river as theirs.
The explosion
The boss just laughed and said they could try to hold it, for all the good it would do them. The Mudwater was its own. Those were two very good reasons for her to become familiar with this area: Beholden to no one, the city rested between a bend in the Mudwater and a massive lake that was fed by the sea itself, and was home to pirates, freebooters, and whatever navy paid them enough for berthing—Spanish, American, even the English and French.
The boss stepped carefully around Liberdad, and they paid him the same respect. She had never questioned the stability of that—until now. The thought was uncomfortable. Too many of her thoughts were uncomfortable these days.
Customers who bought this item also bought
She pushed it down with the others and reached back to pull her hat up, settling it firmly on her head as though to protect her from further distractions. She made a face at the horse, and one of its ears flicked at her as though it were laughing. And crowded with people who came here from all different places, for all different reasons. All sorts of people, not all of whom would be given pause by that sigil in your hand. The thick black lines were a reminder of what she had asked for, the Bargain she had made for it nearly a year earlier. And while power might rest in the palm of her hand, respect had to be earned.
Her thoughts made her frown, wondering where they came from, and Gabriel misinterpreted her expression, moving Steady over a pace so his knee bumped up against hers.
Follow the Author
Let them learn you. Three horses, she guessed, light and fast. Isobel thought of the letter still tucked into her pack, waiting to be handed off, and wondered if the approaching horses carried a post-rider she could hand it over to. That hope was quashed the moment they came into view. Post-riders were often young, but these were mere boys, riding neck and neck with no regard for anyone else who might be sharing the road with them.
The horse danced under him, exuding resentment that it had been forced to stop, and the other two riders followed suit, if a little less abruptly. Trusting them to stay calm, she shifted her focus to the newcomers. They were young and male, their heads bare, skin pale enough to tell her they did not work outside, that this was a jaunt for them, briefly released from counter or desk.
There was a tense silence.
- Blood in the Streets?
- Tony La Russa: Man on a Mission?
- This is True [v8]: Invisible Man Disappears From View (And 500 Other Bizarre-but-True Stories and Headlines from the Worlds Press).
- Wild For You (Always a Bridesmaid Book 3).
One heartbeat, then another. Odd, to hear it spoken this far south, where Gabriel had told her that Spanish or Portuguese, or even Inka-Quechua was more common. Money, and careless with it. Gabriel had mentioned them briefly. Settlers from the Northern Wilds, where his own people came from; refugees from the war between France and England.
- Deep Water: New TED Book on crisis of polar ice melt and rising oceans | TED Blog.
- Leaking oil;
- Red Waters Rising!
- “Deep Water” at Usborne Children’s Books.
- Deepwater Horizon oil spill of | Summary & Facts | theranchhands.com!
- Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010.
They had taken their wealth with them, clearly, or rebuilt it in the decades since then. We only now realize he is blind in one eye and half-witted to boot.
Red Waters Rising (The Devil's West): Laura Anne Gilman: theranchhands.com: Books
Isobel lifted her chin, eyes narrowing as though to dare him to make further comment. None of them apologized to Calico Zac, however. Boy or girl, it makes little difference. That was stupid, it could be anything. Does bleach taste salty? I pour myself a mug of water and swill my mouth out just in case. Then I find a packet of biscuits and head back to the front room.
I thought she went in early today, but she must be on a late shift. We catch glimpses of some kids in our year and at one point I see Levi going past the science lab window. It could be anyone. At six Levi has to go. We can watch a film. I close the door and call the supermarket where Mum works. How can I help? Oh, you mean Erin. They all look the same to me. Would I be phoning if I did? I call her mobile and hear her ringtone faintly.
Just for a second I imagine she might be unconscious, dead even, lying on the floor upstairs the whole time we were watching TV. I spot her phone flashing on the wooden chair next to her bed. I pick it up and stare at the screen. I wipe the phone on my jeans and put it back down on her bed. I pick up her perfume and spray it towards the dressing table mirror. It smells of Mum getting dressed up to go out. The scent hangs in the still air and forms a slight mist on the glass. I stare at my reflection. My dark brown eyes look massive in this light and you can hardly see the whites.
My hair has gone all straggly and looks like straw. Probably should have blow-dried it after my shower. I let it fall back down. Time to cook my pizza instead. All the main characters get eaten, one by one. I spend too much time training in the sea in summer. At the end, Levi checks his watch. What if she finds out?
Deep Water
We often take her to nursery because his mum starts work really early. As I shove my plate in the dishwasher, I glance at the water on the work surface under the boiler. I try to remember if Mum said anything about going out tonight.