The Weavers of Saramyr: Difference between revisions

 

Kaiku tu Makaima is having a bad day. She's just died for the first time, only to be brought back to life by her misanthropic, shapeshifting, possibly-lesbian handmaiden, in her demon-besieged home where her family has just been killed. Not knowing who is responsible, or for what reason they died, she barely escapes with her life and swears vengeance in the name of her fallen kin. Problem is, her only lead in the mystery pits her squarely against the absolutely evil, conscience-lacking, nigh-unstoppable Weavers, an insular, male-only monastic sect that has spent the past 200 years ingraining itself into her people's culture and directing the flow of social evolution. But how can a young, fresh-faced noblewoman like Kaiku fight men with the power to control the fabric of reality itself?

The series is not a Doorstopper series by any stretch; the three books barely reach 1000 pages. However, it is notable for its incredible originality; in a literary landscape dominated by Tolkien derivatives, The Braided Path stands out in terms of characters, settings and plot. It's a brilliant set of books, recommended to anyone who wants to read something unlike anything they've read before.

 

* [[Aerith and Bob]]: Justified in-universe. Names like Lucia, Asara, Saran and Anais come from the Quraal settlers who originally landed in Saramyr over 6000 years ago, while more current names, like Tane, Kaiku, Mishani and Cailin were borne of Saramyr's own linguistic evolution. Asara [[Genre Savvy|takes advantage of this]] to remain beneath suspicion.

* [[Body Horror]]: The Weavers' True Masks give their wearers great power while simultaneously taking everything from them, both mentally and physically. The longer a Weaver wears a Mask, the more grotesque and diseased he becomes, to the point where Vyrrch {{spoiler|is basically melted and flabby on one side of his face, while the other is missing most of its skin, revealing parts of the skull underneath. The book's description is much, much more disgusting than this.}}.

* [[Cruel and Unusual Death]]: At least {{spoiler|two Blood Emperors (technically one Blood Emperor and another who would have been crowned Blood Emperor had he not been set on fire, fallen off a tower and pecked apart by pissed off crows); Durun and his father Mos. Their deaths are not pleasant, but it's hard to feel sympathy for them, considering what they've done in their arcs}}.

* [[Have You Tried Not Being a Monster?]] Asara gives Kaiku what can only be described as a "coming out of the closet speech", urging her to accept her powers and be proud of them. {{spoiler|Ends with the two of them getting hot and heavy before being interrupted by a bunch of dude who are literally armed with pitchforks and torches. 'Coming out of the closet' indeed.}}

* [[Heroes Prefer Swords]]: Inverted and partially justified: Kaiku is more comfortable using rifles, swords are not her strong suit. None of the other main characters use swords except Asara, who only uses them once in the final book because {{spoiler|they head into the close-quarters environment of the Forest of Xu}}. Tsata uses special blades adapted for close quarters combat, however, called 'kntha.'

* [[Rapunzel Hair]]: Mishani, whose most distinctive appearance-related feature is her literal ankle-length hair.

* {{spoiler|[[Sickbed Slaying]]}}: Happens to {{spoiler|Chien in book two.}}

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