Nat Drozdova covered more than a few miles in Spring’s Arcana, the first half of The Dead God’s Heart duology. This might have been the title of a much longer single novel in a different business and / or artistic climate, so know going in that you must read Spring’s Arcana before The Salt-Black Tree. That said, The Salt-Black Tree offers a satisfying, exciting finish to Nat’s story while building out the world-within-our-world in a manner that is rich, inventive, and really fun to read.
One of Saintcrow’s most admirable accomplishments in these books is her ability to employ world-building details as tension-building plot points. Rest assured that bits which seemed compelling but odd early in the narrative are fleshed-out quite enjoyably in the long-run. Saintcrow has an excellent handle on just how to deploy ambiguity, when to clear matters up and just how clear to make the edges of her imagined worldlet. It’s a pretty long story, and the immersion in the first book is complete – there are no real “Well, Nat…” moments. We learn as Nat learns, though readers may jump ahead of her as the journey unfolds.
In The Salt-Black Tree, Dmitri grows more enjoyable for readers even as we see less of him when Nat begins to grow into her inheritance. For Nat, Saintcrow has crafted a wonderfully wild and imaginative bildungsroman, using the world-building and elements of the fantastic to externalize the upshot of an abusive upbringing in the presence of a powerful, domineering parent-figure. As this plays out amid the Russian mythology re-grown in fertile American soil, you can sense that the writer of having as much fun as the reader. The big canvas suits the story, allowing Saintcrow to offer the details we love to experience as readers while literally keeping the pedal to the metal in supernaturally enhanced American roadsters. The upshot is simple; by the time the story is satisfyingly finished, you’ll look back on the reading journey that got you there as if it were a vacation you’d love to experience again.
It’s just not possible that Lilith Saintcrow and I had too much fun recording this interview, especially given that we actually managed to mention the book a few times. But it was fun, and Saintcrow has a lot of craft-of-writing insights to generously share with readers. Here’s the link so you can save the file and listen while you drive your blue Mustang, or just take the laptop/etc on the front porch, settle up and listen below while the sun sets.
Narrative Species 