The Year of Our War

The Year of Our War

Infobox Book
name = The Year of Our War
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption = 2005 paperback edition
author = Steph Swainston
illustrator =
cover_artist = Emma Wallace
country = United Kingdom
language = English
series = The Castle books
subject =
genre = Fantasy novel
publisher = Gollancz
release_date = April 2004
media_type = Print (Hardcover)
pages = 304 pp
isbn = ISBN 0-575-07005-6
preceded_by =
followed_by = No Present Like Time

The critically acclaimed Fantasy/Science Fiction novel "The Year of Our War" (2004) is the first book by British author Steph Swainston. Described by China Miéville as "unputdownable" it is often given as an example of the New Weird literary genre.

Plot summary

The novel is set in the Fourlands, a country in danger of being overrun by large hostile Insects, and follows the exploits of Jant, also called "the Messenger" or "Comet". As a half-breed of two humanoid species Jant is the only person who can fly, which makes him an indispensable part of the Emperor's Circle of about 50 immortals, an elite group of (mostly) warriors who do not age (but, despite the name, are capable of being killed).

Swainston spins an intricate story which covers, among other things, the intrigues among mortals and immortals from the various humanoid races of the Fourlands, a full-scale assault by the Insects (previously held at bay behind an Insect wall), and Jant's exploits in the "Shift", an alternate world which he enters as a side effect of his addiction to a lethal drug.

So far, two sequels, "No Present Like Time" (2005) and The Modern World (2007) have been published. As of 2006 Swainston is planning a fourth book. [ [http://www.stephswainston.co.uk/blog/steph/2006/11/chamonix Blogs | StephSwainston.co.uk ] ]

Awards and nominations

The book won the 2005 Crawford Award and was nominated for the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer.

Reviews and sources

* [http://www.infinityplus.co.uk/nonfiction/yearofourwar2.htm Infinity Plus review]
* [http://www.sffworld.com/brevoff/175.html SF World review]
* [http://www.orionbooks.co.uk/MP-31268/The-Year-of-Our-War.htm Page at Orion Books]
* [http://www.scifi.com/sfw/issue357/excess.html SciFi Weekly review]


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