Tempests and Slaughter is fairly chill, really. It’s a school book, in that Arram and his friends are going through their schooling and that’s pretty much it. There is a lot of stuff going on in the background as far as Carthaki political machinations, but those are really in the background. Arram doesn’t have much to do with them and so doesn’t pay a lot of attention to them.
So, for some reason, I always had it in my head that Carthak was a more China-style country. The opening of Tempest and Slaughter takes me right to Ancient Rome, which is interesting given Tortall is a Europeon-style Medieval society and has been that way for over 300 years at this point… well… excepting the southern deserts and the Bazhir culture, which are Muslim based. Maybe I’m mixing things up with something from Pierce’s Circle of Magic series-es. I have no idea, but it’s interesting. Pierce has always borrowed from other cultures than just European, and the world around Tortall is fairly Asian-based so I’m also not sure that’s not an assumption I just made about Carthak… eh. Guess we’ll find out.
The place descriptions around Carthak University are definitely Northern Africa. Like, Nile delta, almost. Especially with crocodiles and hippos being a concern.
Jumping from Song of the Lioness to this is like night and day as far as descriptions and characterization goes. Also internal dialogue is more prevalent. I know that’s all because time is a great teacher and all, but I still thought I’d mention it. It’s also loads better than the way Beka would describe things in her books.
Preet reminds me of Kel’s gryphon baby in Protector of the Small. Just the whole setup of a mortal teenager given a mythic pet to care for is really very similar. Gives Arram something more to do other than just attend classes.
Honestly, if you’re expecting a story with a conflict and a resolution, this is not it. Tempests and Slaughter really just focuses on some of the things Arram learns and notices and leave the rest up to the reader to either keep in the back of their head or discard. It’s not bad at all, it’s just… not driven by any sort of conflict. Even the conflicts in the book are resolved rather quickly. I’m honestly feeling a little drifty after reading this.
Favorite Lines
"Don't make me regret taking you on. If I get irritated, I might drown you a little bit." - Master Sebo
"Because you're a boy, and daft by nature," - Master Sebo
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