Seaborn

Who doesn’t love a good pirate story? What about a story that has flying ships that drop gunpowder bombs? Or a story that has magic and mysterious civilisations living on remote islands? These all sound great and are wrapped together in a lovely fantasy package in Michael Livingston’s Seaborn, a book about tribalism, but also about compromise for the greater good. 

Bela never meant to become a hero, but when the bombs began to drop from the sky, she kept her head whilst those around her did not. Her level head meant that some of the fleet was saved, but this would only be the start of a long war. The Seaborn must find a way to fight against the Windborn and that solution may be found in the mysterious magic hidden away on remote islands. However, these islands are not as unpopulated as first thought. 

I enjoy a well-balanced set of adversaries in a fantasy novel; a magical version of rock, paper, scissors. Livingston has created one of the most satisfying balances of magical systems I have read since the sublime Powdermage series. Not only do the different clans have different approaches to magic, but they also use different forms of transport. The Seaborn stick to traditional ships, while the Windborn refuse to use magic, but have the technology to fly. Pottering around are other factions including pirates who will do anything for booty and will take from any other clan. 

What you get is an exciting seafaring adventure with added fantasy fun. Bela is a traditional seafarer, but she soon comes across the infamous Bone Pirates. The story has plenty of swashbuckling to suit any fan of pirate books, but it also has magic. The balance of sword fighting, and spells is well done with one not overpowering the other. The fear would be that the Windborn have too much of an advantage as they rain terror from above, but the pirates soon find a way to negate that advantage. 

I would have been happy just reading about Bela, but you also get to follow one of her lost crewmates and one of the pirates. You get a balanced look at several of the factions and start to see the complex web that Livingston is weaving. The clans are at war, but whilst some are suing for peace, factions within the clans have their own ambitions, and they could end any concept of peace. 

Seaborn is a novel of high adventure, cracking set pieces and interesting world building. At times there is a lot thrown at the reader, and Livingston crams a lot of backstabbing and sword fighting into a book that is short for a fantasy tale. The book manages to remain followable, just, but give me hijinks and high action over a boring book any day. In between the action we do get to learn more about the characters. This is not something I normally say about a fantasy novel, but a hundred additional pages or more would have helped to get to know the characters better. 

Book two promises to expand the world of Seaborn and I look forward to reading it. I have a good sense of the world and politics, but we have only scratched the surface of where the character’s personal journeys may lead. I would recommend this to any fan of fantasy, especially those who like a lot of action and a fast pace.