The White City

The White City (2010) Elizabeth Bear

Abigail Irene, Sebastian,and Phoebe have traveled to Moscow, as they attempt to get over their loss of Jack. However, Sebastian spent time here with Jack, before he met Irene and Phoebe, and his memories of the place include Jack.

And murder–past and present–inserts itself into their lives, both causing problems and distracting them.

I like these stories. I like that Abby Irene is a solid middle aged woman–witch actually–with no desired for immortality despite the fact that Sebastian could give it to her.

I also like the world where magic and the supernatural exist yet the course of history trundles on, different from our history, yet it some ways, the same.

The White City shifts chapter by chapter between the past and the present. Sebastian remembers his time in the city with Jack while Abby Irene helps to investigate the murder in which they find themselves enmeshed. Sometimes I’m annoyed by stories that skip back and forth in time, but in this novella it worked well, and I had a hard time putting the story down, when each chapter left me wanting to find out what happened next.
Rating: 8/10
Published by Subterranean Press

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