Books by Rachel Neumeier
The Griffin Mage Trilogy
Published in the US, UK and Australia by Orbit, the three volumes of the Griffin Mage Trilogy came out during 2010:
- Lord of the Changing Winds [May 2010 US / June 2010 UK & Aus]
- Land of the Burning Sands [June 2010 US / July 2010 UK & Aus]
- Law of the Broken Earth [December 2010 US, UK & Aus]
And coming soon, also from Orbit:
House of Shadows is in a different world from the Griffin trilogy. It’s another adult fantasy. I enjoyed writing it, although it was complicated in some ways. I mean, I started to try to write a story three times with three different main characters, couldn’t choose which I liked best, and wound up keeping them all and weaving them together. The plot arose simply from a desire to keep all the main characters and the need to wrap a coherent story around them all. It all worked beautifully in the end, but it wasn’t easy.
Isn’t that cover lovely?
House of Shadows is self-contained, but I have a sequel in my head, so we’ll see.
And my Young Adult books:
Now out in paperback with a beautiful new cover!
THE CITY IN THE LAKE
From Booklist, a starred review: “It’s the poetic, shimmering language and fascinating unfolding of worlds that elevates this engrossing story beyond its formula. Layered within each other, the discovered kingdoms pulse with enchantments and ancient laws, and Neumeier’s language is particularly poetic in describing her characters’ ever-shifting forms, whether shattered planes of light to ethereal columns of smoke. Fans of Sharon Shinn’s books will find a similar celebration of the natural world—from the dense darkness of a forest to the “crystalline music” of the stars—in this vividly imagined debut.”
And now, just out:
THE FLOATING ISLANDS
A Junior Library Guild Selection And a Kirkus best-of-2011 selection!
With, this time, the starred review coming from Kirkus:
“Intelligent, richly detailed fantasy featuring two young cousins battered by losses, personal passions and larger events.
Shy, inarticulate, recently orphaned and newly arrived in the aptly named Floating Islands, Trei is transformed by the rare chance to strap on a pair of feathered wings and join the legendary corps of soaring kajuraihi. For his fiercely intense cousin Araenè, constraints on women are but annoying obstacles to be overcome in pursuing first the forbidden (to women) culinary arts and then the magical abilities that well up in her, all unbidden, in the wake of a family tragedy of her own. The arrival of an expanding empire’s invasion fleet, augmented by a new, mechanically powered magic, propels Trei and Araenè into actions that test their courage, loyalties and cleverness to the utmost.
The author delineates complex characters, geographies and societies alike with a dab hand, deftly weaves them all—along with dragons of several sorts, mouthwatering kitchen talk, flashes of humor and a late-blooming romance—into a suspenseful plot and delivers an outstanding tale that is self-contained but full of promise for sequels.”