Debut Showcase: Zadayi Red

Zadayi Red (Amazon USA, UK, Canada)
by Caleb Fox
Tor Books
Hardcover
Excerpt

Publisher's Blurb:
A young Shaman of the Galayi people has had a powerful and frightening vision: it is of the Eagle Feather Cape, the gift of the Thunderbird, which is worn by the Seer of the People to see the future and gain the guidance of the gods.  The cape is torn and bloody, and it will no longer bring visions to the Seer of the People.  But the Shaman's vision also tells her of the cure:  a child will be born to the People, a hero who will restore the cape and return the goodwill of the gods to the People.

Dahzi may be that hero, if he can survive the hatred of his grandfather.  He was born after his mother’s death, as she fled from her father’s anger.  But Dahzi carries the hope of all of his People, along with the power to become a great Chief.  He will be tested--by his family, by his people, and by the Gods.

I'm reading this novel and I have blogged on the opening chapters. So far, it's been great and I'm close to the end. It was slow going in the first half, but not in a bad way. It was slow going in the way a literary novel tends to be. And now, as I'm reading the closing chapters, it's quite gripping. As soon as I finish this post, I'm off to read again.

Tor sent me this novel, but it's one of those that I might have been tempted to buy whether I received the review copy or not.