276°
Posted 20 hours ago

Small Miracles

£9.9£99Clearance
ZTS2023's avatar
Shared by
ZTS2023
Joined in 2023
82
63

About this deal

Wilson, Nigel Robert (December 1, 2022). "Longshadow by Olivia Atwater". The British Fantasy Society. Archived from the original on March 5, 2023 . Retrieved March 5, 2023. SPFBO Finalist Interview: Olivia Atwater". fantasybookcritic.blogspot.com. April 6, 2023 . Retrieved September 9, 2023. If Good Omens was a rom-com and put less emphasis on David Tennant and… I mean Aziraphale and Crowley, it would be close to Small Miracles. Or the other way round. I guess one is better than the other? Perhaps? Gaiman and Pratchett vs Olivia Atwater? This was not supposed to be a difficult choice. There are many favourite parts of the book I could list, but one of them is the casual treatment of gender fluidity and queerness. As Steve Jobs would have said, It Just Works; effortless, unforced, and wonderful. The endearing, smart, yet somewhat naive and slightly fumbling and flawed Gadriel was a wonderful main character. Once she finds out she’s out of her depth in provoking Holly to acquiesce to sin, she resorts to something different, but Holly’s intractability also leads to Gadriel and Holly forming a great relationship, as they get to know one another better. Angels… chose a gender for the day, in rather the same way that you or I might choose a shirt or trousers…

Can you tell us anything about any upcoming projects? Or can you tell us a few teasers for your sequel? Overall, this is a very different but enjoyable take on the fantasy genre, with its entertaining examination of the everyday struggles of ordinary folk, all heroes within their own complicated and unexpectedly spicy lives. As one of the many footnotes points out God may show mercy, but capsaicin does not.Small Miracles by Olivia Atwater was touted as “If you like Pratchett, you’ll enjoy Atwater!” As I’ve read exactly one Pratchett book, years ago, I can’t speak to that comparison, although the cover certainly evokes the design of Good Omens by Pratchett and Gaiman. So, that’s nice. I’m sure other reviewers will speak more eloquently about the similarities and differences between Pratchett and Atwater. I’m not that person. I knew I was going to like this, but even I hadn’t anticipated how much. I’ve liked all of Olivia’s books in the past and so I just opened this one up without knowing what the inspiration for the book was.

In 1990, two iconic fantasy authors, Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett, collaborated to write the famed novel “Good Omens” (full title: “Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch”. After a lost bet with Barachiel, Gadriel owes the (still) angelic one favours. In this case Barachiel sets Gadriel to tempt a mortal named Holly Harker into a little bit of sin because Olivia Atwater writes whimsical historical fantasy with a hint of satire. She lives in Montreal, Quebec with her fantastic, prose-inspiring husband and her two cats. When she told her second-grade history teacher that she wanted to work with history someday, she is fairly certain this isn’t what either party had in mind. She has been, at various times, a historical re-enactor, a professional witch at a metaphysical supply store, a web developer, and a vending machine repairperson.For a while, I had a job as a historical re-enactor. I actually learned a lot about Tudor England, specifically, but I also gained an accidental education in English history as a whole. I was surrounded, actually, by people with Masters degrees and PhDs in different English eras, and they loved telling me all about how the lower classes lived, because it’s so rarely discussed in mainstream media. If you’ve ever been around people who rant about their passions, you’ll know it can be very contagious. So I think on some level, I was always thinking about how I could work some of these interesting, lesser-known historical facts into a book. Small Miracles charmed me with its simple, effortlessly funny story and likable characters. It's whimsical, often amusing, and there is hardly a dull moment. Utz, Judith (July 29, 2022). "Longshadow". Booklist. Archived from the original on March 5, 2023 . Retrieved March 5, 2023.

So, this is my 5th book of 2023, and amazingly it only took me 3 days to read. In part because I spent nearly 5 hours on various trains, in part because it's short, and in part because it's a very easy read. And I don't mean that last bit as anything other than a positive. Angels… chose a gender for the day, in rather the same way that you or I might choose a shirt or trousers…But as with any fashion choice there is always the danger that one might turn up at a luncheon meeting wearing exactly the same gender as the friend with whom one is meeting. This is considered both gauche and embarrassing.” Gadriel is a fun and interesting character, and a flawed one as you might expect from a fallen angel. At first, I found it weird that everyone took it in stride when one moment he appeared male, then female, without asking questions much, then again, who are we to question how others want to appear? Ultimately, I liked that Holly, her niece and everyone else around them just accepted Gadriel as they are. Which is one of the messages of this book, although probably not the main one. Still.

This is NOT a review of that book. Yet unavoidably, there will be comparisons between “Small Miracles” by Atwater, and that seminal work by Gaiman and Pratchett. First off I have to say that readers who are a fan of the above genre will like it more than I did. It’s just that… I could swear that you were… weren’t you a woman before?“ Gadriel blinked. “Oh!” he said. “I forgot entirely. I suppose most people don’t just change that when they feel like it?”🖊️ True to pattern, I was an absolute mess the day that I won SPFBO. Mr Atwater tip-toed into the room to gently prod at me, and I said “oh, I must have got a nice review, because I feel wretched today.” And he said “yes, something like that.”

Asda Great Deal

Free UK shipping. 15 day free returns.
Community Updates
*So you can easily identify outgoing links on our site, we've marked them with an "*" symbol. Links on our site are monetised, but this never affects which deals get posted. Find more info in our FAQs and About Us page.
New Comment