Foundryside – Founders #1 – Robert Jackson Bennett
In a city that runs on industrialized magic, a secret war will be fought to overwrite reality itself–the first in a dazzling new fantasy series from ‘City of Stairs’ author Robert Jackson Bennett.
Sancia Grado is a thief, and a damn good one. And her latest target, a heavily guarded warehouse on Tevanne’s docks, is nothing her unique abilities can’t handle.
But unbeknownst to her, Sancia’s been sent to steal an artifact of unimaginable power, an object that could revolutionize the magical technology known as scriving. The Merchant Houses who control this magic–the art of using coded commands to imbue everyday objects with sentience–have already used it to transform Tevanne into a vast, remorseless capitalist machine. But if they can unlock the artifact’s secrets, they will rewrite the world itself to suit their aims.
Now someone in those Houses wants Sancia dead, and the artifact for themselves. And in the city of Tevanne, there’s nobody with the power to stop them.
To have a chance at surviving—and at stopping the deadly transformation that’s under way—Sancia will have to marshal unlikely allies, learn to harness the artifact’s power for herself, and undergo her own transformation, one that will turn her into something she could never have imagined.
Review:
Every once in a while you come across a book that takes escapism to the next level. There are many excellent books out there, but these particular ones are rare finds that become cherished companions. It was only the day before yesterday that I made a “Top Ten Tuesday” post about books that could get you out of a reading slump. I emphasised old favourites and comfortable, familiar reads. These are the kind of books I’m talking about, the ones you can revisit in times of sadness or nostalgia or just to rekindle your love for reading. When you pick up a book like that for the first time, you just know.
Similarly, there are quite a few books that get hyped up before or right after release. It is difficult as a reader to go in to these books with expectation that can be easily met. But every once in a while, a book comes along that lives up to the hype and even exceeds it. Foundryside is one of those books.
Robert Jackson Bennett had already given us the impressive Divine Cities trilogy in recent years, proving what a master he is at world building and creating interesting characters. Foundryside proves this yet again and I feel has even surpassed the Divine Cities. In this book he gives us the slow unfolding of an elaborate world based on a masterfully crafted magical system and an enticingly complicated history. Tevanne is made up of several small ‘campos’. They are ruled by powerful Merchant Houses and are home to the richer part of society. In between these cities are ramshackle places that are inhabited by the poor and the criminals, not affiliated with any Merchant Houses.
Everything is powered by sigils, basically it’s an alphabet that when strung together in certain ways, like sentences or books, can alter reality. It is a complex and fascinating system that was first invented and used by an old society called the Occidentals. Remnants of their work were found in ruins and once humans learned to use them, Tevanne was born. Almost everything is powered by it, from complex locking mechanisms to simple floating lanterns providing light. It has so many possibilities and it’s absolutely riveting to explore the boundaries of this together with the characters.
The main character, Sancia, lives in a neighbourhood called Foundryside, between the Merchant campos. Sancia is a thief, the best one out there because she’s different. She has the ability to sense certain objects when she touches them. She can feel everything they feel, she can immerse herself in every single detail of that object. Sancia’s personal growth throughout the book is amazing to read and slowly getting to know more about her history contributed so much to her character and our understanding of her motives, her feelings and her capabilities. Clef is another interesting one, an unusual character but his bond with Sancia was so adorable and their conversations so entertaining, you can’t help to love him! Sancia’s ordeal brings together a band of unlikely allies, almost all of them bringing their own interesting histories and backgrounds. I’m a sucker for well-fleshed out, engaging characters and Foundryside definitely delivered. The switch between viewpoints almost made it read like a movie, making it a dynamic and fast-paced read.
Foundryside is an amazing story combining some absolute fan favourites: daring heists, characters with a lot of depth, witty dialogue, a hint of steampunk, a dash of magic and a mysterious history to uncover. Not many would succeed in combining all of these successfully, but Bennett does it with flair. Believe all the rave reviews and the hype, this is one hell of a book and will go on many ‘Best of’ and ‘Favourite’ lists.
Release date: August 23rd, 2018
Publisher: Jo Fletcher Books
Age Group: Adult
Pages: 503
Format: E-galley
Source: Received from the publisher in exchange for an honest review
