Tchaikovsky is an agile and varied writer (after an innovative fantasy series he has just won the Arthur C. Clarke Award for his SF novel Children of Time). The Tiger and The Wolf is the first novel of a new fantasy series set in a world not unlike that of Iron Age Northern Europe. This is a dark and cold world where tribes fight for supremacy amongst woods and hills. But the people of the tribes of the Wolf, the Tiger, the Boar and the Deer are no ordinary people, rather they are lycanthropes who can “Step” at will between human form and the animals that give their tribes their name. The organisation and culture of the various tribes are shaped by the natures of these animals. This feels like a fresh take on lycanthropy and it informs the feel of the story in way that is both vivid and intelligent.
Tchaikovsky has really thought about this all and his prose is supple and effective in conveying the idea in all its richness. The tribes and the animals really do live and breathe on the page – it’s scary and involving and it all feels very right. Into this wonderful feat of worldbuilding is thrown the young girl Maniye daughter of the chief of the Wolf tribe. But Maniye is both wolf and tiger and soon finds herself a victim of tribal politics and has to make her own way in a world that is tipping into war. Maniye is a wonderful creation; scared but resourceful, living by her wits. And she needs them – she is soon being hunted by a killer. I loved this book and fans of Joe Abercrombie and John Gwynne alike will really enjoy its robust sense of adventure and creation. ~ Simon Spanton
The first in the Echoes of the Fall series, The Tiger and the Wolf is an epic fantasy novel by Adrian Tchaikovsky, winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award and British Fantasy Award for Best Novel. ‘One of the most interesting and accomplished writers in speculative fiction’ – Christopher Paolini In the bleak northern crown of the world, war is coming . . . Maniye’s father is the Wolf clan’s chieftain, but she’s an outcast. Her mother was queen of the Tiger and these tribes have been enemies for generations. Maniye also hides a deadly secret. All can shift into their clan’s animal form, but Maniye can take on tiger and wolf shapes. She refuses to disown half her soul so escapes, rescuing a prisoner of the Wolf clan in the process. The killer Broken Axe is set on their trail to drag them back for retribution. The Wolf chieftain plots to rule the north, and controlling his daughter is crucial to his schemes. However, other tribes also prepare for strife. Strangers from the far south appear too, seeking allies in their own conflict. It’s a season for omens as priests foresee danger and a darkness falling across the land. Some say a great war is coming, overshadowing even Wolf ambitions. A time of testing and broken laws is near – but what spark will set the world ablaze? Continue this sweeping coming-of-age fantasy with The Bear and the Serpent.
