Customer Reviews

Northlight

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3 star:		(2)
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A version of this review was originally published at Goodreads and Live Journal. I read the new e-book edition.

Oh, how did I miss this when it first came out in paperback! This is a wonderful SF novel of the tradition I think of as cultural-anthropological SF. It was just re-released on e-book under the author's current writing name, Deborah J. Ross, but it's the same Northlight released in 1995 by Deborah Wheeler.

If I was to sum this story up in one sentence, I would say that Northlight is a tale about the many forms of love, regret, and second chances.

Kardith the Ranger is an exiled woman of the steppes who has found a home and a purpose working as a border ranger for the the country of Laurea on the planet Harth. When we meet her, she is in a panic, half-killing her beloved hill pony as she tries to reach the capital city in time to get permission to search for her partner, the Ranger Aviyya, who has gone missing in the badlands. Laurea is on the verge of war with the northern barbarians, and Kardith's superiors will not allow any ranger to go off on a fruitless rescue mission.

Kardith has a slim hope she can convince their beloved leader Pateros to give her that permission -- partly because her partner Avi is the daughter of a powerful government official, a woman who saw her people through a great plague and now tries to moderate the military's influence on their peaceful land. Kardith's hope fails when a would-be assassin strikes Pateros, leaving the capital in chaos.

As it turns out, Kardith has one person who believes in her and will help her. Avi's brother Terricel has grown up into a young man dangling at loose ends, relegated to his mother's shadow, his own future as a scholar threatened by his mother's power and fame. Terricel wants to help Kardith and the sister he remembers fondly. He's smothered by his mother's protection, and worried that something is rotten in Laurea -- something that the assassin's appearance reveals is ripening. Ever since he was a child, Terr has been uncomfortable in the great hall of the government, prone to "spells" that amuse those who feel nothing strange about the building. Terr has done all he can to help his mother hold the government -- now, it's time to make new choices.

Terr's a person who notices things -- like Kardith's awareness of something "wrong" before the would-be assassin even struck. Kardith has a talent for recognizing "breakers" -- the heart of a group, the focus of energy, the end point of a chain of events. Together they will discover conspiracy at home, secrets beyond belief and a future poised on the brink of disaster. Where do you go when you need answers, when myth may actually be history, and some kinds of progress may destroy an entire civilization? The barbarians go to Northlight -- and in the end, so will Kardith and Terricel.

The story starts with the Ranger, and this was a brilliant choice. Kardith's status as outsider turned Ranger, her hyper-aware training and her innate abilities are what tells you that something is rotten in the system -- and keeps you looking beneath the surface at every point. Things seem to take a breath once you reach Laurea and Ter's POV, but not really. Look closely -- it's a fine watch works moving with precision. Although the world is old and layered, the weight of it is light. We learn only what we need to know, even as other glimpses intrigue.

You will not forget the POV characters, or the others who help and hinder them on their quest.

Kardith is everything you could want in a strong heroine--confident and determined, but with a past that gives her depth. Terricel has a softer strength that even he is unaware of at the beginning of the book.
Very unlikely companions that join together on a journey that is important to each of them personally and to the survival of all they hold dear.
Northlight is an expertly crafted tale with many layers that is sure to entertain.

If you like strong female leads and beautiful landscapes, you'll enjoy Northlight by Deborah J. Ross, "a tale of healing and adventure and some very cool horses" (Northlight Introduction).

Ross cares deeply about her characters, and this is clear in her writing. The main protagonist Kardith is a tortured but beautiful soul that your heart will ache for. Kardith and her beloved gray mare take us on a journey through rich landscapes and deeply experienced life-altering events.

Ross has a colourful and unique way of leading you into the world she has created. In the opening chapter, the character Kardith of the Rangers describes the landscape: "Where [the river] dumped into the Serenity, colder than winter snot, the trees bunched up as if they'd scrambled up on each other. Buildings hid among them, glass and rock as pale as weathered bone." I read this passage and felt chills up my spine.

Northlight is classified as a science fiction/fantasy novel, but it is mainly a fantasy. There is a minor science fiction element.

NOTE: A version of this review appeared on my blog on April 22, 2011.

I discovered Deborah's two books, Jaydium and Northlight, quite late in life, but am very grateful I have.

There are a host of excellent authors in the science fiction and fantasy genres (my two favourites), many of whom write stories of epic scale and complex intricacy (Peter Hamilton being my all time favourite of these), which I tend to default towards. Regardless of scale though, what I love most are beautifully written stories, especially when they feature characters of inspiring strength, conviction and humanity, woven together with underlying themes of challenge, growth, redemption and, ultimately, inner balance and love.

While Deborah doesn't choose to write stories of such epic scale, to my mind, no one is quite as able to create such stories, and particularly such intensely rich and wonderful characters, as Deborah is able with so few words (relatively speaking). In particular, Kithri (Jaydium) and especially Kardith (Northlight), for who I am, epitomise some of the best female lead characters I've come across.

Given enough time, one could probably each of these books in a single setting, such are their easily flowing yet gripping stories, which might suggest these are 'light' books. To me that would be to miss the wonderful weave of, I suspect, carefully chosen words that Deborah seems to be a master of, especially in Northlight.

I had a great opportunity to read "Northlight" as an Early Reviewer for Library Thing.

Wow Deborah Ross has written a brilliant story that displays all the elements writers should include in a book.

The book revolves around Karadith, a Ranger who has stronger strength and senses than others. Karadith's order was to go to Laurea, to meet with General Montborne, deliver a packet of very important papers. Captain Derron also ordered her not to go on any expeditions of her own meaning finding fellow Ranger Avi, who everyone thinks she is dead, except for Karadith.

If only it was that easy, in the midst of delivering the papers Karadith tries to save the Guardian of Laurea and notices Terricel sen' Laurea. Who is the next heir in line, he is the son of Esmelda of Laurea.

I love this quote from the book involving Terricel, "He'd learned to sit absolutely still through the long meetings, not a muscle quivering. Learned to keep his breathing slow and deep, his hands steady, his eyes unflinching as he followed the debate. It became a matter of pride that he let nothing show of what he truly felt."

Just from this paragraph alone, I could feel everything Terricel was feeling, it intrigued me greatly. I just had to keep reading and find out what was going to happen. I think this was the turning point for me as I connected with Terricel and I could not stop. I wanted to know what this character was going to do, was he going to show how he truly feels and speak up to others? Was he going to change? Was he going to be heir, I needed to know.

I loved the Terricel's character, I was able to visualize how he looked, acted and I could actually feel what he was feeling. As with all the other characters. I enjoyed it greatly.

I was amazed how Deborah continually blew me away with her descriptions so I could see everything unfold before my eyes. Deborah's writing was a pleasure to read as she put so much detail in describing the scenes, the time, the characters and the plot that unraveled.

I have not read any of Deborah's books before and after reading Northlight, I will definitely be adding her to my collections. As I know that, the words on the page are going to explode, into a brilliant and unearthly experience.

Well done

Read this book when it was first published and just reread it a second time and found it just as wonderful. I love characters that go against the rules to save the ones the love. And those who have the courage to break away from family to live the life they want. When I finished the last page I found myself wishing there was a second book to carry on the adventures of Kardith and Terris. I'd buy that book in a heartbeat!

I quite enjoyed Northlight. Enough that I bought Ross`s other novel Jaydium in order to explore her writing further ...and of course I am a Darkover fan.
For some reason I was left with the feeling that the characters in Northlight had more going for them than what was in print. (Very post modern)
Don't get me wrong. The characters are forceful, they are fully present, and I liked them, yet somehow their potentials are not as realized as I felt they could be. Or maybe it's the novel's ending that is not as fully realized for me.
Ross`s evocative use of language is excellent. Having just come through a snow filled, minus temperatures winter, I particularly appreciated her sketch of the landscape where,
`the smaller tributary snak[ed] in from the northwest. Where it dumped into the Serenity, colder than winter snot.'
A post apocalyptical story (I'm seeing early Andre Norton-ish here) situated on the world of Harth, with some interesting twists centering around the interactions of Kardith, a Starhall ranger, missing ranger Aviyya, and Aviyya's brother Terricel, a scholar. Set in a time when the society is struggling with traditions and rules whose origins and meanings have been lost down through the ages. A time when Guardians and Rangers and religious politics intertwine and collide.
The central characters journeys take them across Harth, (in unexpected ways) from Starhall to the Northlight,
`...two ends of the road, two poles with all of Harth strung out between them,'
and a mountain range of angst, misunderstanding and danger in between.

LibrayThing early review

A well written, fast paced novel that alternates between two points of view. It starts with that of Kardith, a Ranger who is trained and dedicated to defend the City against the raiders in the North. Later it switches to Terricel, son of one of the Council leaders of the City, a university student. Together they go searching for Terricel's sister and heir to his mother's Council position who was taken by the North. So far, nothing particular inventive, but done so well, you really get involved in the book. The story starts in the middle of action, and as the events happen, it back-fills with the details that make a believable, well-imagined universe. It has some elements of hard-sci-fi, and also some elements of the sword-fighting, different tribal cultures that are common in sword-and-sorcery fiction. The subjects that are dealt with in the book are very topical to day's events. They include political intriguing and infighting to the detriment of the planet's ecosystem, bigotry, civil liberties versus the good of the whole. Most of the characters in the book are twenty something so it is also a 'coming of age' growth story as their characters grow when presented with the tough realities of their world. Highly recommended.

Pardon the brevity, but I read this book some time ago. :) I just remember that I really liked it. Good setting, characters, plot and action.