I’ve come to be wary of books that feature autistic (excuse me, neurodivergent) people. Even if characters around them are tolerant, the focus comes to be on what makes them unlike others. Occasionally, they’re interesting. But most of the time we simply focus on how inept they are among other humans, how it makes them standoffish, rude, offensive, incapable of understanding the simplest human interactions, and all that riles me and puts me off reading about them. Stories that center on them make me grind my teeth. (Grave offenders of this ilk are “The Big Bang Theory” and “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”, e.g.)
But for the opening chapters of this story I didn’t think about that at all. Iselia’s nervousness in the crowd seems to have little to do with any neurological disorder and a great deal to do with what her naughty, criminally-minded sister has planned for the evening. Also, the night itself is dangerous. Eldritch forces are out and about, mingling in the crowd, pacing cheek by jowl with oblivious humans and Iselia knows enough to realize this could be dangerous.
In fact, it is Isolde, her mischievous “twin”, who seems to be the one who’s faintly wrong. Isolde is a merry thief and pickpocket, seemingly lacking in compunction or morals. She steals from the rich but she’s definitely not interested in giving to the poor. When she decides to up her antics from filching valuables from passerbys to robbing homes, you share Iselia’s growing unease.
So we follow her through the meandering crowd, as the author subtly winds our nerves tighter and higher with each passing moment. We are needled and poked along with Iselia as she attempts to avoid attention and keep anybody from remembering her passage.
Then matters get exciting! I was on the edge of my seat, eager to know what would happen next as Iselia and Isolde get tangled up in matters I’m certain they don’t quite understand. The author has crafted special characters with special backstories, the beginnings of a questing adventure, a colorful milieu and a fascinating worldscape that bears investigation. Contrary to my initial misgivings, this looks to be the establishment of a thrilling tale.
But for the opening chapters of this story I didn’t think about that at all. Iselia’s nervousness in the crowd seems to have little to do with any neurological disorder and a great deal to do with what her naughty, criminally-minded sister has planned for the evening. Also, the night itself is dangerous. Eldritch forces are out and about, mingling in the crowd, pacing cheek by jowl with oblivious humans and Iselia knows enough to realize this could be dangerous.
In fact, it is Isolde, her mischievous “twin”, who seems to be the one who’s faintly wrong. Isolde is a merry thief and pickpocket, seemingly lacking in compunction or morals. She steals from the rich but she’s definitely not interested in giving to the poor. When she decides to up her antics from filching valuables from passerbys to robbing homes, you share Iselia’s growing unease.
So we follow her through the meandering crowd, as the author subtly winds our nerves tighter and higher with each passing moment. We are needled and poked along with Iselia as she attempts to avoid attention and keep anybody from remembering her passage.
Then matters get exciting! I was on the edge of my seat, eager to know what would happen next as Iselia and Isolde get tangled up in matters I’m certain they don’t quite understand. The author has crafted special characters with special backstories, the beginnings of a questing adventure, a colorful milieu and a fascinating worldscape that bears investigation. Contrary to my initial misgivings, this looks to be the establishment of a thrilling tale.