Title:

Kalyna the Soothsayer

Author:

Elijah Kinch Spector

Category:

Science Fiction / Fantasy

Rating:

Date Reviewed:

March 26, 2023

alyna the Soothsayer is the debut novel of Elijah Kinch Spector. I saw it on the New Releases shelf at the library, and the summary on the book flap was intriguing enough that I check it out and brought it home. At 460 pages in the hardcover edition, it is a big story. The protagonist is Kalyna, the daughter of a soothsayer (her father, Aljosa), and also the granddaughter of a soothsayer (her grandmother, Vüsala). Unfortunately, Kalyna's mother died in childbirth, Kalyna's father is slipping in and out of dementia, and her grandmother hates her. It is a family heritage that each generation has one child, and that child is born with "the Gift" of foreseeing the future. Vusala and Aljosa both have that talent, but somehow the gift was not bestowed upon Kalyna. Her grandmother blames Kalyna for disrupting the passing of "the Gift", though any reasonable person could see that it is hardly Kalyna's fault that she born untalented.

Because her father is losing his mind, and her grandmother has retired from the business of foretelling, it is up to Kalyna to provide for the family. Though she has no talent at prognostication, Kalyna puts on an act, making vague predictions, slipping in a few shrewd guessing, and carefully rounding up enough information about the neighborhood in order to make sometimes-accurate forecasts of what's come. But the family has stay on the move, because too often Kalyna "sees" the wrong future.

Spector has created a unique fantasy kingdom - Kalyna lives in the Tetrarchia - which is four small kingdoms that have bonded together into one large federation. There are still four ruling monarchs, and the relationship between each kingdom is often strained, but the merger has benefits against the larger countries that press on Tetrarchia's borders. Alas - in one of his lucid moments, Kalyna' dad reveals that he has foreseen that Tetrarchia will be shattered, a great disaster will ensue when the next "Council of Barbarians" meets. (The Council of Barbarians is the name given to the gathering of the four monarchs when they decide on upcoming policy for Tetrarchia.) This year, the Council is to be held in the kingdom of Rotfelsen (Rotfelsen in one of the four kingdoms that comprise Tetrarchia ) - it would be wise to get as far away as possible from the pending doom.

Before Kalyna and her family can pack their wagon and roll out of town, the sinister Lenz kidnaps her. It turns out that Lenz is the top advisor for Prince Friedhelm of Rotfelsen. Prince Friedhelm is worried that someone is going to kill his brother, the King of Rotfelsen. The pleasure-loving Prince Friedhelm definitely does not want the burden the ruling the Rotfelsen, he is motivated to keep his brother on the throne at all costs. Lenz and Friedhelm have concluded that having a soothsayer in their employ will allow them to foresee the moves of their enemies and thwart their schemes. They have no idea that Kalyna is actually a fraud. In order to ensure that she cooperates, Lenz drags Kalyna's beloved father (and despised grandmother) to Rotfelsen as hostages. Kalyna is trapped - if Lenz and Prince Friedhelm realize that she is a fake, they will simply kill her and her family. Kalyna tries desperately to find away to escape with her family before the upcoming Council of Barbarians, and so she finds herself thrust into a nest of scheming nobles and untrustworthy ministers. There definitely is a plot against King Gerhold VIII, but who is the traitor to the crown? Lenz and Prince Friedhelm demand answers, while Kalyna temporizes and makes vague statements.

Spector has imagined an interesting Kingdom of Rotfelsen. It is full of red rock - the aristocrats live on the top of the rock in a vast palace, but the citizens live below, in huge tunnels that riddle the red rock. These tunnels were not naturally formed; instead, they appear to have been carved long ago by immense creatures that burrowed their way through the solid rock. The walls of the tunnels are still scored by their gigantic claws, the rock itself bears scars where their armored spines pushed the rock aside like a living glacier. There are passageways and chambers hidden in the red rock, does anyone actually know all the various secret routes?

My favorite characters were Dagmar, the invincible guardswoman, and Aljosa, Kalyna's father. Unfortunately they only play minor roles in this story. Although Kalyna understandably hates Lentz for kidnapping her and her family, I found that I actually liked the guy, who was doing everything he could think of to save the monarch of Rotfelsen. Although Kalyna is the protagonist, I found I did not relate to her that well. Kalyna never seem to come up with a coherent plan to escape, she never seemed to figure out who the conspirators were until they struck, mostly she was desperately reacting to events around her. This is entirely a reasonable portrayal, but it doesn't make Kalyna that heroic. If Spector writes another novel, I would interested, unless it stars Kalyna again, then I would skip it, because I don't think I would enjoy another big book starring her.