really like this fantasy writer: all her books have interesting worlds and interesting characters, her whole concept of magic is markedly different in each one, and she writes excellent prose. this one's more or less a typical fairy tale, only turned inside out, a fun conceit. the narrative gets away from her a bit close to the end, in describing the brother prince's difficulties, and the antagonists tend to be faceless, making me wonder if the whole thing could have used another pass, but actually i really like the principals, the father is an intriguing enigma, and altogether i skipped dinner to finish it. everything Neumeier writes is well worth reading. ( )

(I got a patchy look at the last ten pages through Google preview; it was all over bar the shouting, but I did want to see the shouting. Oh well.)

There are many things I liked about this book. Significantly, the characters were great. I was a big fan of Oressa, a princess whose carefully hidden feistiness is actually an obsessive need for knowledge and control; from first appearances she could easily have been a tired rendition of same-old, but she was marvellous, layered, worthy, delightful. I liked Gajdosik, though he was rather more cast-to-type. And I even liked Gulien, though intellectual-yet-effective princes are prone to causing me exasperation (and so did he, I just didn't mind so much).

I also liked the world. The physical world was interesting primarily because it was a dry setting, not the usual Euro-mash. (As an Australian, part of the fantastical of fantasy is how green and wet everything usually is.) But that didn't really matter much to the story; it was less about the physical and more about the metaphysical. The special physics layer of this world was a believable post-gods mess, full of mystery and holes.

That was also part of the problem for me, unfortunately. There was a little too much mystery, and it took a little too long to piece itself together, and then there were still holes, because there was just no way for our very tight viewpoint characters to know much more. It meant that even the finale was sort of a mash of Things Happening that we then needed a couple of chapters to have explained to us. (Part of my lack-of-shine for Gulien is probably that most of this stuff was in his storyline, rather than Oressa's.)

And that mystery overflowed, by necessity, onto some of the antagonist / foil / supporting characters. It makes some of the resolutions a bit anticlimactic. And even more unfortunately, the other antagonist characters were rather cliche. That was probably the most significant weakness of the book.

A final note on the writing. This is the third of Neumeier's books I've read, and her style has always been just heavy enough that you notice the crafting of the words, and that how we're telling the story is a part of the enjoyment. Which either works for you or it doesn't. Mostly, it works for me here, and I enjoyed taking the extra time with the flow, especially as it complemented the strong character viewpoints. Mostly, but not always: sometimes I found myself starting to skim because there'd been too much woffle since the last point of significance. YMMV. ( )

The Mountain of Kept Memory is about two royal siblings trying to protect their country. It opens with Oressa hiding under her father’s throne so she can eavesdrop on his council, as they debate offering her hand in marriage to appease a foreign prince. I was invested in her story by about the fourth sentence.

This sort of thing had been easier when she was twelve. Or even sixteen. Now she was a woman grown, she had to work much harder to stay out of sight.

I didn’t feel as strongly about her brother, Gulien, who goes off to the Kieba’s mountain to ask help. Gulien is less fierce than Oressa - he has privileges she doesn’t, he doesn’t have to be as fierce - and the situation he initially finds himself in is much more ambiguous (Who exactly is the Kieba, anyway, and is Gulien making the right choice by seeking her approval in defiance of his father?). But once I got to know him, I was glad that the story alternated between him and Oressa. I liked their relationship with each other, and appreciated the way their relationship with their father was so complicated. And I loved the trust that develops between Gulien, Oressa and one of the Tamaristan princes - especially that it develops because of the insights they have into each other’s characters.

This is a gripping story, with unexpected plot developments and reversal of circumstances, intriguing worldbuilding, and characters with complex motives. I loved the way the pieces of the story fitted together, the way it circled around and returned to certain topics, except with a different slant or with a character now possessing a different perspective.

I really loved this. ( )

I requested this from Netgalley, because of one bit from the description: "this gorgeous fantasy in the spirit of Guy Gavriel Kay and Robin McKinley". If you're going to say that, and live up to it, then it's going to be amazing. (Also, Guy Gavriel Kay and Robin McKinley have very little in common apart from being ... amazing, so I'm dying to see what constitutes a cross between them.)

If you are going to say that and not live up to it ... I will eviscerate the book in question. Slowly. In print, of course.

But no. I think I get it. There is a certain scope and range to the story which is not unlike GGK, and a certain facility with the language which, if you squint, resembles Robin McKinley. But I wish, I really do wish, that publishers or whoever it is who puts out blurbs like that would realize that they are far more likely to be doing their authors a disservice than helping them. Because I went into this book – heck, I requested this book – with a light in my eye like "Oh, yeah? Prove it. A lot."

And while I still can't say I approve of using two of my favorite writers in the blurb, it didn't take all that long for me to let it go and just enjoy the book. Because it really is a solid, unique book with lovely, lovely writing. I required it to be nothing less than amazing, and it was.

The characters are alive, well-rounded and very much themselves, just about always responding to situations in ways that I didn't expect, but which were perfectly in keeping with the way they were built. It would have been very easy for the young princess Oressa to become a cliché of a trousers-wearing, I'm-not-going-to-behave-like-a-proper-princess rebel – and she did not. She is wonderful.

And so are her brother Gulien and the invading prince Gajdosik (who has such good reasons to invade). They all kept surprising me, they grew through the story, and they won my heart.

I read this not quite in one sitting, but not for lack of trying. The main reason is that it took me a little while to figure it out (and, I'll admit, to get past my prejudices), but once I was sucked in I was solidly in the author's world. It's a remarkable invention – magic used like I've never seen it used before, capricious gods (or are they?), perilous artifacts – it's deep, and wide, and hopefully has plenty of room for lots more stories.

As I mentioned, one point of commonality Ms. Neumeier has with, say, Robin McKinley is an easy grace with the language (easy-seeming – I'm sure the seeming is achieved with blood and sweat and tears) that is one reason why I read fantasy. She does not indulge in the villain's point of view to save herself the trouble of explaining his motives; she does not ever let a character take the figurative microphone and blether on in endless infodumping. She does not choose to simply say "he was exhausted and in pain", but shows it: "He lounged in his chair, feet up on a small table and crossed at the ankles, head tilted back against the cushions, eyes mostly closed. He would have managed to look comfortable, except that he was also ashen pale. There were dark shadows under his eyes and lines at the corners of his mouth that Oressa was almost sure hadn’t been there even a day ago." See, kids? That's what the old writing advice means. And the author knows how to avoid Reality Show Recapitis, in which what happened just five minutes ago is retold for the benefit of some character who wasn't there, although I the reader very much was. "'I believe we would appreciate the long version, eventually,' murmured Gajdosik", she writes, and my note was "Oh, bless", because so many (lesser) writers would have felt the need to remind their short-term-memory-lacking audience of everything they read a chapter or two ago.

It just struck me that I can myself add another writer to the short list that nobody else really ought to be compared to, but to whom I am, to my own surprise, going to draw a comparison… Dorothy L. Sayers. There is an air of Peter and Bunter about Oressa and Gulien, with Oressa piffling away and only to the patient and observant revealing her actual level of intelligence, and Gulien solidly and stolidly moving forward whatever the obstacles. (Of course, Peter's piffle is usually an intentional defense mechanism, and Oressa just can't be bothered to straighten out the tangles before she speaks, but the resemblance still struck me.)

One book does not a Very Favorite Author make, but somewhere in packing boxes I apparently own two other books by Ms. Neumeier. Now I need to go find them. And I can't wait to see if there will be more from Carastind.

I just hope no one does her the disservice of comparing her to Tolkien.

Favorite line, which won't mean much out of context but which twisted my heart a little in: "Don’t talk," Oressa said quickly. "Please, don’t. Look, I’ll do both parts."

The usual disclaimer: I received this book via Netgalley for review, with thanks. ( )

The Mountain of Kept Memory is a stand alone fantasy novel that reminded me of City of Stairs. The gods died long ago, but the Kieba has retained some of their power, which she’s used to protect the people of Carastind… until the king manages to anger her. With the kingdom on the edge of invasion, the prince and princess of Carastind are desperately trying to salvage their kingdom’s independence from the forces arrayed against them.

While The Mountain of Kept Memory is firmly in the fantasy genre, the eponymous mountain, the dwelling place of the Kieba, had an almost science fiction feel to it. I really loved the influence, and I thought the background mythology of the dead gods and the Kieba was one of the best things about the book. The world building was just detailed enough to avoid feeling generic, but I think I’ll be remembering the Kieba and her mountain for quite a while.

The narrative switches POV between two protagonists. Gulien Madalin is the prince and heir to the throne. He’s conscientious and tries to be a good son, but he’s realizing that his father may not have the kingdom’s best interests at heart. Oressa is his sister, the princess. She was a pretty awesome female lead. She’s adept at playing the role of the demure princess, but she’s actually got a rebellious streak a mile wide and is far more intelligent than she lets on. If anything happens within the palace, she’s likely to know about it.

Tone-wise, The Mountain of Kept Memory doesn’t follow the grimdark trend. While I wouldn’t call it fluffy, it’s not dark either. There is a minor romance subplot for Oressa, but it doesn’t receive much focus. The story’s more centered around the political drama of invading armies and trying to seek the Kieba’s help.

The Mountain of Kept Memory is one of the few stand alone epic fantasy novels I’ve come across in a while. I was doubting Rachel Neumeier’s ability to fit the plot into one volume, but she ended up surprising me. I enjoyed reading it quite a bit, and I’d recommend it for anyone looking for a more traditional fantasy novel.

Originally posted on my link text

I received an ARC of The Mountain of Kept Memory from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )