cover image The Drowning Eyes

The Drowning Eyes

Emily Foster. Tor.com, $2.99 e-book (136p) ISBN 978-1-4668-9193-7

Foster’s tantalizing debut novella provides intriguing glimpses of a well-constructed world, but a trite conclusion undermines the rest of the story’s potential. In a coastal fantasy land where trade winds are essential, the Windspeakers who control the weather have been attacked by the raiding Dragon Ships, and the icon that is the source of their power has been stolen. Only one survivor remains from a raid on the school: Shina, an untrained Windspeaker, who takes passage on the first northbound ship she can find. The gruff captain and her small crew were simply looking for a paying passenger, but soon they find themselves at the tip of a literal and metaphorical storm, as Shina drives them forward to recover the stolen icon and bring the wind power back to her cutthroat society. The matriarchal society is the basis for a unique take on a piratical world, leaving the reader wanting more adventure when the abrupt ending fails to satisfy. [em](Jan.) [/em]