It took me nearly a month to finish this. There I was, writing about The Night Circus and harping on about how I was doing well with my reading list for 2016. Then, I decided to follow it up with Too Like the Lightning. A hundred pages later and two weeks into reading Ada Palmer's debut novel, and I was just about ready to tear my hair out. But I mean that in a good way.
In the 25th century, nation states as we know it are a thing of the past. Every individual has the right to join any of the Hives (or not join any at all, should they choose not choose), regardless of the race that make up their genetic makeup or even their geographic location in the world. This is made all the more possible with their transit system, composed flying cars that can take you anywhere in the world in mere minutes or a few hours at the most. It takes a delicate balance of power among the Hive leaders and public figures to keep the peace in the now-small world. And when a publication's list ranking those in power is stolen, it sets off a chain of events that threaten to weaken that balance. Servicer Mycroft Canner finds himself called upon by those who appear on the list to help in different ways. His ultimate goal, however, is not just to help keep the peace in the world that he now must serve in any capacity to atone for his sins, but instead in ensuring the protection and secrecy of what he considers to be the world's most important being... one that can be easily used by those in power, both in public and in the shadows, if revealed too early.
It took a while for me to decide on the contents of the book's summary for this post, and I apologize if it does nothing to pique your interest. Because Too Like the Lightning is far more interesting and far more complex than the previous paragraph that you just read. I find that, as difficult as it was to initially read, it's even harder to find the right words to put it to justice and, it's frustrating, because I really, really want you to read this.
The first of the Terra Ignota book series is narrated by Mycroft -- with the occasional chapter narrated by other individuals who are part of events he wasn't witness to -- covering his experience throughout the investigation of the theft of the Seven-Ten list of the publication Black Sakura. He is telling the readers, who are from the future of his world, that he is chronicling the history. But while the political ramifications of the theft of the Seven-Ten list is foremost in the events, Mycroft relays the story because it also impacts what he perceives is the most important thing in the world... Bridger, he who can innocently perform miracles, a feat that has seemingly no place in their world. It's why he is invested in the protection of the Saneer-Weeksbooth bash', the family unit responsible for the network of millions of cars that is used by the world as transportation, and is being set up to be responsible for the theft of the Seven-Ten list. Not just because he performs services for them, but because Thisbe Saneer is also a keeper of the secret of Bridger's existence.
In the course of the narrative, we become privy to this future world... one that is strange, but not so hard to imagine as our own future once you have a grasp of its workings. It's political structure, technology and ideologies are fleshed out, piece by piece, as Mycroft meets with people who belong to the different Hives or groups, many not without significant power. Aside from the Hives (Humanists, Mitsubishi, Cousins, Utopians, etc.), there is another important aspect of their society. Humans can also choose which family to belong to. Even if you are born in a specific bash', you have the option to join a different bash' or form a new one with like-minded people. All these political and familial structures make up a significant part of their world.
Throughout Mycroft's narration, he tends to give mini-lectures about the philosophies that shaped their future world, many of them drawing from our own Enlightenment-era past. I was a poor student of philosophy, so this required a lot of re-reading paragraphs for me. It didn't help that Mycroft was using English from the same era, so I found myself reading words but not actually understanding them, leading to even more re-reads. Thus, my rather long reading and the length of which I only endured because Mycroft actually wrote a disclaimer about the English he used in his narration. I actually felt the need to read out loud... in an English accent.... go figure. But there comes a point in the book where you realize that you just need to go with the flow, and understanding the strange future world so steeped in archaic ideas and how it works will come in time. And once you accept that, the book becomes a joy to let unfold.
Too Like the Lightning is a package with many elements, what with its procedural vibe following the investigation of the Seven-Ten list theft, the mystery of Bridger, the equal mystery that is J.E.D.D. Mason, political intrigue courtesy of the different Hives and their leaders, and the conspiracy theories that are whispered in corners of their world. And then, there is Mycroft himself. Mycroft is quick to abase himself to readers and apologizes for what he claims are his many faults, a behavior he exhibits throughout the narrative in his role as Servicer. But never has the stories in Too Like the Lightning become quite as compelling as when the narrative focuses on him as an individual, toiling under the instructions of powerful people and bracing himself for any challenge that might lead to the discovery of Bridger by others. Nor is the story as potent in evoking your empathy as a reader as they do when it's Mycroft who is expressing emotions. The flow of the novel picks up in the last third part, which coincides with the revelation of why Mycroft, with all his gifts and abilities, is a Servicer. So, no, I don't believe that he is any less a protagonist than Bridger (despite his constant reiteration), who still only exists in relative freedom because of him.
Too Like the Lightning is a demanding novel. It requires your full attention and your time, because it's not something that you can just casually put aside and expect that getting into a groove of reading will come easily every time you pick it up again. But at the same time, it only requires that you go along with the flow as you read, allowing Mycroft to show you his world, which could easily be yours in the future.
There are so many layers to Ada Palmer's writing, with its complex and excellent world building, rich characters, twists and exciting reveals, and its warm tone... and all of them so wonderfully fused together, that at the end of the long journey that is Too Like the Lightning, you can't help but look forward to find out what happens next.
Even if you're terribly exhausted at the end of it.
Happy reading!!Labels: Ada Palmer, Book Series, Books, Fantasy, Fiction, Reading List, Sci-fi, Terra Ignota, Too Like the Lightning
