Format: Hardcover, 400 pages
Release Date: April 14, 2020
Publisher: Disney-Hyperion
Source: Publisher
Genre: Young Adult / Apocalyptic & Post-Apocalyptic
From a lush, dazzlingly original new voice in young adult fantasy comes an epic clash of witches, gods and demons as the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.
Elysium, Oklahoma, is a town like any other. Respectable. God-fearing. Praying for an end to the Dust Bowl. Until the day the people of Elysium are chosen by two sisters: Life and Death. And the Sisters like to gamble against each other with things like time, and space, and human lives. Elysium is to become the gameboard in a ruthless competition between the goddesses. The Dust Soldiers will return in ten years' time, and if the people of Elysium have not proved themselves worthy, all will be slain.
Nearly ten years later, seventeen-year-old Sal Wilkinson is called upon to lead Elysium as it prepares for the end of the game. But then an outsider named Asa arrives at Elysium's gates with nothing more than a sharp smile and a bag of magic tricks, and they trigger a terrible accident that gets both Sal and Asa exiled into the brutal Desert of Dust and Steel. There Sal and Asa stumble upon a gang of girls headed by another exile: a young witch everyone in Elysium believes to be dead. As the apocalypse looms, they must do more than simply tip the scales in Elysium's favor -- only by reinventing the rules can they beat Life and Death at their own game in this exciting fantasy debut.
Elysium Girls is author Kate Pentecost's debut novel. In this sweeping Dust
Bowl-inspired fantasy, a ten-year game between Life and Death pits the
walled Oklahoma city of Elysium against the supernatural in order to judge
mankind. On April 14, 1935, two sisters, Life and Death, who like to gamble with each other, time, space and human lives, make a deal with Mother Morevna, leader of Elysium. They will have 10 years without interference to prove that they are worthy of staying alive. If society is judged good, life goes on. If society fails, the entire town is wiped out of existence.
The people of Elysium sealed their walls and began to listen to Mother Morevna, a powerful witch who had the confidence to take over and lead the people. But, dust sickness is a blight that infects people in the walled town of Elysium from the regularly occurring dust storms that hammer this isolated world. It gets in their lungs and makes them cough up mud. Since their mandate, they've been collecting food and supplies for the sacrifice to be offered at the end of 10 years. But, with time ticking away, things are getting bleak.
While intentions
started out good in Elysium, with people ignoring previous racist and
sexist divides, things have been devolving and people have begun fearing for their lives. Sallie (Sal)
Wilkerson is a bit of an outcast in Elysium. Since childhood, Sal has
been plagued by false visions of rain. Because of her vision didn't happen, she spends time being rotated from from family to family some who haven't forgotten about her vision of rain. When Sal is named
successor to Mother Morevna, who is a powerful witch, she
jumps at the chance to prove herself to the town. For Sal, being a witch explains the visions she's been seeing. It's also her chance to prove herself as worthy.
Even the arrival of
enigmatic outsider Asa-a human-obsessed demon in disguise-doesn't shake
her confidence in her ability. Sal begins to teach herself what it means to be a witch. Asa has always been enamored with humans. When Mother tells
Life to choose him as her wildcard, she sends him to Earth with a stone
that he is supposed to return to its owner as he appears human. When
Asa and Sal collide, they wind up with a huge mistake that destroys the
sacrifice and are into the Desert of Dust and Steel.
Out in the desert, Asa and Sal meet a group of also exiled
girls, and find themselves part the gang of misfits. Lead by Olivia Rosales who has been raiding Elysium for supplies and medicine, the gang creates a cavalry of magic
powered scrap metal horses in order to fight to save Elysium. Olivia also happens to be a witch like Sal and once though her future was set in stone. Olivia's group includes Mowse, Susannah, Cassandra and Judith. But Sal, Asa, and Olivia must do more than simply tip the scales in
Elysium's favor-only by reinventing the rules can they beat the Life and
Death at their own game.
FYI, there is another character you need to pay attention to. Her name is Lucy Arbor. Lucy is Sal's best friend since they were children. After Sal gets exiled, Lucy becomes obsessed with discovering why so many people are dying of dust sickness and what else is happening that is going ignored by Mother. Lucy trains to become a nurse, and stands and delivers when it counts. Lucy, like Sal, like Asa, are the real stars of this book. But, when Olivia and her Selenium girls take a stand for the town, the action is tight and suspenseful and down right fun.
The
plot was fantastic and an interesting mix of several genres as well as diversity. There's
fantasy, paranormal, historical, and western. It doesn't seem like they
should fit together but the author did a wonderful job of interweaving
them and creating something completely fresh and original.
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hey say that there was a big bang when the world began. When a whole lot of nothing exploded into everything.
Some say that it was the one true god speaking, commanding the light and the water and the earth to all be. The end, from what I’ve read, doesn’t seem too different. The sun will go supernova. Loud and violent. Or maybe, they say, it will be trumpets blown by angels made out of wings and eyes and wheels. Roars of beasts
and leviathans. But that’s all a lie. First of all, there isn’t only one god. There are two sisters—Life and Death—and their Mother, who presides over everything else. And the Sisters like to gamble against each other with things like time and space and human lives. And when our world ended and their game began, it was
silent and smothering as the grave.
Some say that it was the one true god speaking, commanding the light and the water and the earth to all be. The end, from what I’ve read, doesn’t seem too different. The sun will go supernova. Loud and violent. Or maybe, they say, it will be trumpets blown by angels made out of wings and eyes and wheels. Roars of beasts
and leviathans. But that’s all a lie. First of all, there isn’t only one god. There are two sisters—Life and Death—and their Mother, who presides over everything else. And the Sisters like to gamble against each other with things like time and space and human lives. And when our world ended and their game began, it was
silent and smothering as the grave.
i saw this one earlier and it looks awesome
ReplyDeletesherry @ fundinmental