Book Review: Redemption in Indigo by Karen Lord

Redemption in Indigo by Karen Lord

Genre: Re-imagined Folk Tales

Publisher: Jo Fletcher Books

Publication Date: August 2010

Author Info: merumsal.wordpress.com

Wendy's Rating: 4 of 5 stars

Based on a Senagalese folk tale, Redemption in Indigo follows a similar quirky story telling style to weave an intricate and sweet little story about a woman named Paama. Paama is the elder of two daughters, married to a not-overly-impressive lord. The match seemed like it would work well enough, though, since Paama is an exceptional cook and Ansige loves food. But after ten years of feeding his insatiable maw, Paama has had enough and returns home to her family. Ansige follows with his moronic bumbling, but Paama reveals her true character by never once trying to make him look bad (though he does it well enough on his own). When they finally part ways, the djombi see her true heart as worthy of the Chaos Stick, but the indigo lord disagrees and demands she return his power. What happens next is both surprising and bittersweet.

This originally popped up as a Goodreads recommendation and I quickly grabbed it, though I ended up reading and loving Lord’s second book, The Best of All Possible Worlds, first. The two books are very different in many ways – the latter being more of a subtle science fiction story that sneaks in romance – but both books share Lord’s artful storytelling. It’s something that I can only describe as “comfortable,” because that’s how it makes me feel when I read her books. Her words flow so smoothly and unobtrusively, quietly sucking you into the story and characters before you even realize it. Lord is, quite simply, a master storyteller.

Re-imagined fairy tales and folk tales are not uncommon, but it is rare to find ones that aren't based in European lore. Some might recognized the trickster spider, Anansi, making an appearance in Redemption in Indigo, but otherwise, this is a refreshingly different tale. And different is very, very good.

Wendy's Favourite Romance Book

For me, the best romance books are the ones that you don't realize are romances. That happened with The Best of All Possible Worlds by Karen Lord where, coincidentally, the lead character, Grace Delarua, didn't realize it either.

10 Authors That Deserve More Buzz

This list was originally inspired by the post I stumbled across by M.L. Brennan who in turn was inspired by a Top Ten Tuesday by Danielle over at Coffee and Characters. So, you know all those times you read an amazing, incredible book, but then when you rush out to hit up your bookish friends to find out what they think you discover that - SHOCKER! - hardly anyone has read it or even knows about it? You know what we mean! That idea evolved into this topic, in which Mogsy and Wendy list some authors plus the books they've written that we think should be getting waaaay more attention!

Wendy's Picks:

BLAKE NORTHCOTT: I discovered Northcott's first book, vs. Reality, via her Twitter feed, lured in by her sense of humour, obvious geek status and home girl pride. She writes novels about superheroes from a really unique angle. In fact, her first book was meant to be a comic, but when plans fell through, she converted it to a novel and has followed through with that concept for two more books in the series, plus an all new book, Arena Mode.

N.K. JEMISIN: The Killing Moon currently appears on numerous awards lists. I'm sure it's there with good reason, but I couldn't appreciate the book enough after reading her Hundred Thousand Kingdoms first. I loved that book so much that I read it twice within two months. A unique and diverse world with beautiful characters that have had a huge emotional impact on me. I haven't started the second book in her Inheritance trilogy because I'm not yet ready for the emotional trauma!

JASON M. HOUGH: If you're looking for a good place to jump into sci fi, or if you're already a sci fi fan, get started on Hough's new Dire Earth Cycle series. I think of it as down-to-earth sci fi that has all the necessary elements of space, technology and aliens, combined with action, drama, suspense and mystery. I love the diversity and the unpredictability that keeps me turning the pages.

MARTHA WELLS: Wells has already made a name for herself, writing within various popular fandoms, including the upcoming Star Wars: Razor's Edge. But she has a number of books of her own that I bought in one big rush after finishing The Cloud Roads. Her worldbuilding is amazing and I love the physical and cultural uniqueness of her characters.

KAREN LORD: I love the subtly of Lord's work. Her forays into science fiction (The Best of All Possible Worlds) and fantasy (Redemption in Indigo) might not seem to be science fiction and fantasy enough for some, but I really enjoyed her writing. Reading about her worlds and the characters within them made me feel like I was joining a bunch of friends on a comfy couch as they told me their tale.

Mogsy's Picks:

WILL McINTOSH: I recently finished a book that arguably was what motivated me to start up this post in the first place, Love Minus Eighty. If you're looking to read a sci-fi novel guaranteed to give you a strong emotional reaction, then this one is it. It's a very human story despite the futuristic high-tech setting, and it made me want to check out more of Will McIntosh's work. My mind is still blown.


M.L. BRENNAN: And speaking of motivation to write this post, my discovery of M.L. Brennan's own list was what clued me in on this topic in the first place. I thought, "How apropos!" because I knew if I had to make my own list of "Authors that deserve more recognition", M.L. Brennan would definitely be on it. I read Generation V this summer and it's already rocketed itself up my list of essential Urban Fantasy. She's so funny and creative, and it comes out in her writing and characters. I just cannot stop raving about this book to everyone I know who loves UF!

BEN H. WINTERS: Being the author of the New York Times bestseller Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters, Ben H. Winters has already made quite a name for himself, but I still couldn't help but notice that while a lot of my friends have his books on their to-read lists, only a few have actually taken the plunge! Though his "humor" books are probably still more well known, I personally adore his Last Policeman series which I'm glad to see is gradually gaining more attention.

TERESA FROHOCK: Seriously, whenever the topic of Miserere comes up, I find it really difficult to shut up about how amazingly good this book is. So, before I forget myself and write a whole essay about how much I love Teresa and her book, let's just say that she single-handedly reaffirmed my decision to always finish every novel I start. Miserere takes its time to build up, but then rewards you in spades! The story is just so, so beautiful. And freakin' look at that gorgeous cover! Read this, you must!

DJANGO WEXLER: You know how there's epic fantasy, and then there's EPIC fantasy? The latter goes beyond just transporting you to a different world and time, it also sweeps you up into an experience that's truly grand, immense and awe-inspiring. Django Wexler's The Thousand Names that I read earlier this year was one of those books for me. Keep an eye on this author and his series, because I have a feeling he's gonna go places!

The Best of All Possible Worlds by Karen Lord

The Best of All Possible Worlds by Karen Lord

Review featured at Worlds Without End

The Best of All Possible Worlds takes place in a distant future, featuring varied species of humans separated by different planets and genetic developments that result in some differences in appearance and mental abilities. Many of these people are brought together by various tragedies to the planet known as Cygnus Beta. The story begins shortly after the heinous destruction of Sadira, home to a stoic race of people who pride themselves on mental disciplines that have resulted in a level of telepathic communication and emotional control. These elements define the book as “science fiction,” but in truth, this is a wonderful, quiet little love story. Not that this is merely a romance set in space. The science fiction aspect remains prominent, but it is the interpersonal relationships and sociological studies that are at the story’s heart.

The story is mainly told by Grace Delarua, a 30-something Cygnus Beta native of mixed race, who works with a contingent of Sadiri people seeking to perpetuate their dwindling culture. The author explains that she was inspired by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami that killed a large percentage of females and forced those remaining to relocate and adjust to their new surroundings. On Cygnus Beta, there are several taSadiri societies that the group must visit to determine genetic potential for Sadiri males. Having left Sadira long before, the taSadiri have developed in many different ways, from a society that patterns itself after fantasy lore, to an incestuous mess of classism and many more in between. The goal of Delarua’s group is to maintain Sadiri disciplines and genetics as much as possible through suitable pairings, but as they progress, they find that this is not an easy task.

The operation is rather clinical, yet it is never implied that people would be paired against their will or even without emotional attachment, and I appreciate that the clinical aspect did not become overwhelming. Rather, it served as further insight into the Sadiri way of life.

Delarua’s group includes Councillor Dllenahkh, who is the epitome of a culture that has several different meanings for the word “appropriate.” It becomes obvious to all but Delarua that these two will eventually become a pair. What I enjoyed most about their relationship was that it was not at all the typical case of putting the emotional lady with the emotionally subdued man and watching the sparks fly as she teaches him how to feeeeeel. Instead, we get a very slow character and relationship building, climaxing in a bonding that I cannot help but find adorable (I do not use that word lightly!) because of how it embraces those differences between them, even as they speak in technical terms and sign contracts to cement their future.

Several important events occur during the book – an attempted murder, a nigh tragedy, a political scandal, family abuse, time travel – but they all serve as backdrop and motivation for the character growth, rather than as plot focus elements themselves.

Reading this book gave me the feeling of being comfortable no matter where I was. I felt like I was sitting in my cozy reading chair with these characters, enjoying the story as it quietly unfolded. It's probably not a coincidence that the story is told in the first person by Delarua, who has the innate ability to calm those around her, even while being a very emotionally expressive person with empathic abilities.

The Sadiri could easily be written off as Vulcan-like, but that is far from the truth. They do not suppress their emotions, they simply do not express them as obviously. The magic of the story comes in Delarua’s growing understanding of their culture – through her research as well as her empathy, which allows her to recognize their minute expressions of emotion. The Sadiri are quite capable of emotion, but a good belly laugh to us, might simply be a shared twinkle in their eyes and a curve of the lips. Because Delarua tells most of the story, we are permitted to learn and feel all of this with her.

I occasionally found myself feeling like I’d missed something in the details, but towards the end of the book, everything fell into the place nicely and I realized that the details I felt I was missing were details Delarua did not quite know or Dllenahkh had not quite revealed. It was all a part of learning along with Delarua as she grew in her understanding of the Sadiri and of herself.

Overall, a fantastic read with very unique, memorable characters and I have to thank Goodreads for recommending Karen Lord’s first book to me, Redemption in Indigo. I had not yet read the latter, but upon seeing Lord’s name on this book, I decided to grab it and am very glad I did.

4.5 of 5 stars