Order History
Premium Membership & Rewards
Help Center / FAQ
Things Get Worse for Nona Grey in Grey Sister
The middle is where things get worse.
And thing gets much worse for Nona Grey, the assassin/spy trained by a special sect of nuns in Grey Sister, the sequel to last year’s sci-fi/fantasy mashup Red Sister and the middle book in the Book of the Ancestor trilogy, which will conclude with Holy Sister.
In the first book, Nona survived child slavery, betrayal, and loss, only to find a home and a purpose at the convent of Sweet Mercy—but she is going to need all her training and the support of her friends and allies, known and unknown, to survive the events of Grey Sister.
Author Mark Lawrence has created a unique fantasy world around Nona Gray, bracketed by a science-fictional concept but infused with magic that is the stuff of fantasy.
Long ago, the planet of Abeth was inhabited by a people who have since vanished—they are now called the Missing by Abeth’s current inhabitants, who colonized the world long after the ancient ones left. Abeth is a harsh world, and becoming harsher. The planet orbits a dying red sun and is slowly being overtaken by ice due to decreasing temperatures. Only a great orbiting mirror—an artificial moon—keeps a swath of the world at the equator from freezing, but even that stretch of sanctuary is shrinking, leading the survivors to battle over what is left.
There is an air of inevitability hanging over Grey Sister: even if Nona wins her struggle, even if those she loves survive, even if the right people stay in power, it seems her world is doomed—though she knows it not.
Ships in 1-2 days.
The solution to the problem of global extinction may well be found in the shiphearts—ancient spacefaring vessels—at the center of court politics, and in the other bits of civilization left by the Missing. And, of course, in the magic possessed by the citizens of Abeth, who have various powers depending on their tribal ancestry. Nona is a three-blood, and therefore triply blessed—even in the psychic ability to control “threads,” the psychic bonds that surround every human.
In short, this series’ worldbuilding is complicated and imaginative, to say the least. The author provides a helpful recap of Red Sister‘s events at the beginning of Grey Sister, intended to catch a new reader (like me) up to speed. I confess I didn’t fully comprehend it until I’d finished the entire book and lived in the world for a while.
But it’s an immersive world, primarily because Lawrence has created a number of indelible characters to catch a reader’s attention, and because of the unflagging pacing, and because of the amazing action—particularly a climactic battle royale that precedes an escape from an Imperial Palace.
Nona, a child salve-turned-trainee of an order of nuns that teach girls academics, magic, spycraft, and assassination tactics, is driven by revenge for the death of her closest friend, but she’s also motivated by friendship with those still living, and an altruistic urge to do the right thing. She’s also struggling with a literal demon inside of her that must be contained, lest it be discovered and they both be killed. In this, she reminded me a bit of Maiko Halfwolf from the brilliant comic series Monstress, by Majorie Liu and Sana Takeda. But unlike Maiko, Nona is willing to look to others for help, and that gives her strength, and makes her a companionable viewpoint character for this exploration of a bleak world.
Ships in 1-2 days.
The rest of the cast is similarly intriguing. Sister Kettle is a senior spy and assassin who may be the most caring member of the Grey Sisters, a woman of seemingly infinite resources of strength, all of which she will need to survive and help Nona. Zole is the supposed Chosen One (a four-blood mix) who keeps her opinions close and her emotions closer, but every now and then, her true thoughts emerge, and never fail to surprise. Abbess Glass, the head of the convent of Sweet Mercy, is on Nona’s side, but struggles to keep her convent from being overtaken by an Inquisition led by her political enemies. Glass is the master of manipulation, hoping certain actions will result in certain consequences, but never exactly sure of how things will turn out. Though this is a violent world, Glass is repulsed by it, which humanizes her.
The enemies, too, make an impression. The Noi-guin are the male equivalent to the Grey Sisters, trained all their lives as killers and dedicated to a single purpose. They won’t rest until they catch their quarry, and that quarry is Nona Grey; their hunt for her invariably brings everyone together for that final battle. Joeli, Nona’s schoolmate, brings a personal edge to the struggle, indulging in what seems like petty spite and slights at her classmate until her plan becomes clear, and the full scope of her power and evil are revealed.
Did I mention the excellent, nigh-hopeless battle that ends the book? Well, it bears repeating: it’s awesome.
You can read Grey Sister without picking up Red Sister first; the narrative is focused on the personal, giving us intimate points of view from Nona, Sister Kettle, Abbess Glass, and others, and the worldbuilding never overwhelms the characters. But given the complexity of the story, which adds yet more layers to the first book, and a framing device meant to evoke the arc of the overall trilogy, wit’s probably best to start there.
My only complaint is that there is almost too much story stuffed into these novels, and I cannot imagine how Lawrence will resolve it all in Holy Sister. But I can’t wait to see how he does.