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Radiant

par Karina Sumner-Smith

Séries: Towers Trilogy (Book 1)

Membres	Critiques	Popularité	Évaluation moyenne	Mentions
163	10	169,019	(3.88)	10
Fantasy. Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML: Xhea has no magic. Born without the power that everyone else takes for granted, Xhea is an outcast�??no way to earn a living, buy food, or change the life that fate has dealt her. Yet she has a unique talent: the ability to see ghosts and the tethers that bind them to the living world, which she uses to scratch out a bare existence in the ruins beneath the City's floating Towers. When a rich City man comes to her with a young woman's ghost tethered to his chest, Xhea has no idea that this ghost will change everything. The ghost, Shai, is a Radiant, a rare person who generates so much power that the Towers use it to fuel their magic, heedless of the pain such use causes. Shai's home Tower is desperate to get the ghost back and force her into a body�??any body�??so that it can regain its position, while the Tower's rivals seek the ghost to use her magic for their own ends. Caught between a multitude of enemies and desperate to save Shai, Xhea thinks herself powerless�??until a strange magic wakes within her. Magic dark and slow, like rising smoke, like seeping oil. A magic whose very touch brings death. With two extremely strong female protagonists, Radiant is a story of fighting for what you believe in and finding strength that you never thought y… (plus d'informations)

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I can't rave to enough people about how much I love this book. It's quiet moodiness and vivid world-building are the very thing I search for in a fantasy novel, the qualities that allow me to sink into a story and leave me craving more long after it's over. In this world magic is currency and there's the implication that we are in a distant future, where magic has made modern technology obsolete and privileged society has risen to the sky in grand towers. It's also a ghost story. Xhea, an anomalous dark spot in a world of bright magic users has the ability to see ghosts, and she becomes embroiled in the (after)life of Shai, young and dead before her time. Through Xhea's colorblind eyes, we explore this world, discover the pasts of both girls, and delve deeper into a plot that may doom Shai to nothingness. It's a tale of great friendship between two girls as well, and I'm always a fan of such relationships. Radiant is rich and savory in its prose, I've become a huge fan of Sumner-Smith, and I can't wait until the next book. (

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nilaffle | Nov 6, 2023 |

A bit rough at times, but the story and the characters drew me in from page two. very much looking forward to the next books from this author! (

)

zizabeph | May 7, 2023 |

Shelved under general sci-fi or future, but it's more a future-fantasy, maybe? Whatever it's called, it was fun. (

)

Malaraa | Apr 26, 2022 |

I was recommended this one a while back and I feel slightly sheepish that I’m only just now getting to it.

I wanted something close to Jemison’s Fifth Season and I can see a few similarities, but other than the eventual near-end blow-out that takes on some huge-magic ramifications, it’s really its own beast.

Skyscrapers of magic. This part is rather cool. Kinda modern but after some huge collapse, the technology is now almost entirely based on magic. I’m reminded of Max Gladstone and dystopian urban fantasy mixed heavily with ghost talking. Sound cool? It is.

It takes a while to get into the magic system, otherwise focusing mainly on relationship building, a friendship between an abused ghost and the mc girl who, rather than disposing the half-alive mostly-ghost for the complicated job that it is, develops a strong friendship, instead.

Later on, however, is where I think this novel shines, when the world building blooms and the magics develop and then, all of a sudden, everything goes to hell.

It is technically a YA fantasy, but it is easily strong enough as a regular modern fantasy. I’m definitely continuing this. (

)

bradleyhorner | Jun 1, 2020 |

I just finished the book Radiant last night in the middle of a thunderstorm. It was fitting to read about magic battles by the flash of lighting. It was better to discover a new young-adult fantasy author with potential.

Radiant starts with Xhea, a lone girl whose main source of income is expelling ghosts. In a world where everybody is born with magic and the rich live in floating towers, Xhea has no magic and lives on the ground. Yet she can see ghosts, and discern the flow of magic.

Xhea takes a job, thinking only to make a little money and to get high on somebody else's magic. Instead she becomes embroiled in a major struggle over the fate of a girl who is already dead.

While this book is clearly not as polished as it could be, it showcases the talents of a growing author with good pacing, compelling characters, and beautiful settings. The lower world is gritty while the travel in the Towers is beautiful. Though the author never explains a few key elements, this story is still a gem.

This is the first in a trilogy, though it stands on its own. I look forward to the next installments and you should look forward to this one. It comes out September 2 from Talos Press. (

)

lukeallister | May 14, 2020 |

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Appartient à la série

Towers Trilogy (Book 1)

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Prix et récompenses

Sunburst Award (Présélection – Jeune adulte – 2015)

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Radiant

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Date de première publication

2014-09-30

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Dedicated with love to my parents,

Lindy and Martin,

for always believing.

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Curled in a concrete alcove that had once been a doorway, Xhea watched the City man make his awkward way through the market tents, dragging a ghost behind him.

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Greenwood, Ed

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Fantasy. Fiction. Science Fiction. HTML:

Xhea has no magic. Born without the power that everyone else takes for granted, Xhea is an outcast�??no way to earn a living, buy food, or change the life that fate has dealt her. Yet she has a unique talent: the ability to see ghosts and the tethers that bind them to the living world, which she uses to scratch out a bare existence in the ruins beneath the City's floating Towers.
When a rich City man comes to her with a young woman's ghost tethered to his chest, Xhea has no idea that this ghost will change everything. The ghost, Shai, is a Radiant, a rare person who generates so much power that the Towers use it to fuel their magic, heedless of the pain such use causes. Shai's home Tower is desperate to get the ghost back and force her into a body�??any body�??so that it can regain its position, while the Tower's rivals seek the ghost to use her magic for their own ends. Caught between a multitude of enemies and desperate to save Shai, Xhea thinks herself powerless�??until a strange magic wakes within her. Magic dark and slow, like rising smoke, like seeping oil. A magic whose very touch brings death.
With two extremely strong female protagonists, Radiant is a story of fighting for what you believe in and finding strength that you never thought y

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