Review: Soild world with interesting races
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 2, 2011
There are three races in this book, the Aemet, who are susceptible to the epidemic Gripthia, the Ferrin, foxlike helpers who spend their lives helping others, and the long lived Korvi, a reptile like race with wings.Rose, an Aemet from Fenwater is a healer whose father has just died.  She is afraid she is unsuited to step into his shoes so soon, but when the Gripthia hits her fellow Aemet, she must step up to heal them as good as she can.  She is a Mage who can use healing stones to keep the sick alive long enough for their bodies to heal themselves. She remains in the city with the sick Aemets and all the well ones go on a mass exodus to avoid catching the "demon" Gripthia.The flying dragonish Korvi, and the fox-like Ferrin are the most interdependent.  Korvi fly to trade and act as messengers, they are also strong enough to mine for the gemstones which hold mage power.  Long-lived Peregrine has mined for many decades and has lost his hearing.  Over these years he has had Ferrin to aide in hearing and his latest is Tillian, who he has raised from babyhood.  The Ferrin also perform tasks suited to their size and high energy.  Peregrine and Tillian are paired for her lifetime.During the crisis Peregrine, who has just ended his mining career has just attempted his first messenger flight with Tillian.  They go to Roses town and find Rose overworked and short handed.  He leaves Tillian with Rose who welcomes her capable paws.The Aemet are farmers and also labor in the cities, so the Gripthia hits the races equally hard because of the specialization and interdependency of the species.  The Ferrin usually attach themselves to a family and their litters pledge to work and live for successive lifetimes.  Peregrine has seen 6 generations of Ferrin, or "clan children",  in his almost 150 year life, 100 of which were spent being a miner.  His wife is Gralia, a potter, who joins Peregrine as a messenger in these trying times of need.The structure of this world and it citizens is well thought out.  You are immersed in all of its peculiarities and nothing seems to wake you out of how this world revolves.  I enjoyed it very much, and would like to see another volume set in this world.  I read a free Kindle book offered for review.