The River Has Roots

Amal has such a lyrical way with words and worldbuilding. We are so lucky to get more of her brain with this stunning tale of magic and family and devotion.

An inventive and dreamlike fantasy novella from Amal El-Mohtar, who previously wrote the wonderful “This Is How You Lose the Time War” with Max Gladstone.

This is one of those books where I feel my lacklustre words are not even worthy of talking about it. It tells the story of two close sisters, Ysabel and Esther, who live in a small human town on the very edge of the faerie world. Esther has fallen in love with Rin, a being who takes on a different form every time we meet them. The sisters like to sing together, and it’s Esther’s songs that have captivated Rin. However, the farmer who lives next door has other opinions on who she should marry.

There is a fascinating description of magic here, visualised as untamed grammar that flows in the river between the two worlds, that people in the town carefully harvest and pass down to those who wield it:

“That is the nature of grammar—it is always tense, like an instrument, aching for release, longing to transform present into past into future, is into was into will.”

I feel it is best not to talk too much about the plot, but suffice to say it touches on misogyny and murder, so keep that in mind. While the main tale is not very long at all, it is ideally read in a single sitting, so I will not fault it for that. There is an additional short story “John Hollowback and the Witch” included too, which is an inventive fairy tale and also well worth your time.

Amal’s clever and imaginative writing style really feels like nothing I’ve encountered before, and I look forward to reading more of her work in the future. Recommended!

Thanks to Tor for the early review copy.

The River Has Roots is half-ballad, half-enchantment, and entirely unforgettable. El-Mohtar’s writing has a musicality to it that makes each page feel like a spell, wrapping you up in a narrative that’s both dark and wondrous. If you’re drawn to lush, lyrical storytelling and a tale of sisterly devotion amidst harrowing circumstances, this book is one you won’t want to miss.