The Fifth Season: The Broken Earth, Book 1

This is the way the world ends... for the last time.

It starts with the great red rift across the heart of the world's sole continent, spewing ash that blots out the sun.

It starts with death, with a murdered son and a missing daughter.

It starts with betrayal, and long dormant wounds rising up to fester.

This is the Stillness, a land long familiar with catastrophe, where the power of the earth is wielded as a weapon. And where there is no mercy.

I’ve read a lot of speculative fiction, but never anything like this. I was warned that this book is an intense read that requires a good amount of focus.
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The world-building in this first instalment is amazing and original! The magic system revolves around the ability to control (kinetic) energy. When angered and without proper training, this power can cause a ripple effect of destruction.
This book also deals with themes such as gender, sexual orientation and race, emphasizing what happens to those who are deemed different and end up being demonized. While this is all set in a world different from our own, the climatic & societal events in this book feel and sound all too familiar. ⁣
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It is refreshing to read a sci-fi / fantasy book that deals with the fluidity of gender and sexuality. read more