Runelight is set in a world coming back to life, but it is also a world in conflict. For Maddy, born with the mark of magic on her hand, the return of the old gods and the overthrow of the brutal Order who suppressed them is a time of excitement. But for Maggie, raised as part of the Order, it is a time of chaos and desolation, as her family and values are wiped out.
Like the two girls, the new world remains divided - the old regime has gone but with nothing to take its place, anarchy is beginning to spread...
Joanne Harris draws us back into the richly imagined world first introduced in Runemarks -a world not unlike our own, had it been shaped by the Vikings instead of the Romans. But if its inhabitants, including Maddy and Maggie, can't solve their differences soon, they will destroy their world altogether.
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[Five past midnight in World's End, three years after the End of the World, and, as usual, there was nothing to be seen or heard in the catacombs of the Universal City - except, of course, for the rats and (if you believed in them) the ghosts of the dead]***
(Black Swan, 8 November 2012, first published 2011, 572 pages, paperback, bought from @AmazonUK)
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Harris is one of my favourite writers. I devour her work. I loved Runemarks and the Loki books. I didn't realise until recently that I hadn't read this so had to drop everything and become quickly lost in the book. This dazzling novel features Maddy's sister, Maggie who is dark opposite of her sister. Harris makes her a fully-fledged character in her own right rather than an evil clone of her sister. She makes some terrible decisions but she's only 17 so her actions are understandable. I also loved the return of Maddy and Odin. Loki is as usual, a devious but charming delight. The events in this book follow on from Runemarks and it was easy to follow what was going on. I wish I hadn't waited so long to read this because I feel I missed a lot of connections and links with Runemarks.
