Still I rise

Hail woman power!

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Years ago, I had read Maya Angelou's famous poem "Still I rise"and felt in my blood the martial spirit blatant in her words - a non-white woman's daring challenge to the social traditions prevalent at the time:

You may write me down in history

with your bitter, twisted lies,

You may tread me in the very dirt

But still, like dust, I'll rise...

Did you want to see me broken?

Bowed head and lowered eyes?

Shoulders falling down like teardrops,

Weakened by my soulful cries...

Does my haughtiness offend you?

Don't you take it awful hard

'Cause I laugh like I've got gold mines

Diggin' in my own backyard.

I was reminded strongly of the words of this poem recently while reading "Sorcerer to the Crown" by Zen Cho. Let me elaborate on the reasons for this in my review below.

Book review: Sorcerer to the Crown

Literary mash-ups are all the rage right now, though no one knows whether they are just a passing fad or the birth of a new genre in itself. For the uninitiated, the art of literary mashing up involves putting together two completely disparate genres, but somehow retaining the spirit of the original literary work (though after the publication of "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies", I'm sure poor Jane Austen must be turning in her grave!). Zen Cho's debut novel can, I think, be loosely termed as a literary mash-up. Imagine a Regency London setting with the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars, complete with period costumes, mannerisms, balls, cultural mores and class barriers of Jane Austen's world, and add to that the wit, idiosyncratic prose and drama of a Georgette Heyer novel. Now for the completely incongruous element, mix in fantasy, magical beings and witchcraft reminiscent of Tolkein, and the heady concoction that will emerge from the cauldron is the inimitable "Sorcerer to the Crown".

But that is by no means the only thing that makes this book so unique. In a time when there in an increasing clamor for gender and racial diversity in fiction, Zen Cho does a remarkable job of building her magical fantasy around an Anglo-Indian, orphaned female character who, with the help of a freed slave of African descent, takes on the might of the orthodox British empire of the early 19th Century. But the part that really hooked me was that Cho tackles the issues of gender inequality, racism, colonialism and social injustice with such a large dose of humor that the reader never feels burdened by them. Every page is filled with sparkling wit and hilarious conversations that had me repeatedly laughing out loudly while reading! 

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Cho imagines an alternate-history Britain where side by side with the political system, there exists a society of aristocratic sorcerers called the Royal Society of Unnatural Philosophers. This society of elite sorcerers or thaumaturges are responsible for maintaining the balance of magical power in imperial England. Zacharias was freed and brought up by Sir Stephen and Lady Wythe as their own child. When he rises to the prestigious position of the first non-white Sorcerer Royal, he faces serious opposition from the other aristocratic white-skinned magicians. His manners may be impeccable and his magic may be flawless but that still doesn't make him socially acceptable. To add to his woes, British magic is on the decline, with the fairy kingdom putting a stop to import of familiars to Britain. So the esteemed thaumaturges are left with no magical beings to command and their powers are rapidly waning. Into this situation of scarcity of magic, comes Prunella with latent powers far surpassing any of the men, and the magical romp begins.

Though society forbids women to use magic, the women in this book are overflowing with magical powers - be it Prunella who discovers that she has not one but seven familiars, or the foreign witch, Mak Genggang, who leaves an impact in every scene she makes an appearance in. 

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Prunella, who has the apt surname of 'Gentleman' (a play on how she is more powerful and effective than the so-called Regency gentlemen), is the undisputed hero of this book. She is an unapologetic social climber, an irrepressible whirlwind, a ruthless and supremely powerful witch and a true force of nature! Her straightforwardness and larger-than-life persona reminded me a lot of Sophy in Georgette Heyer's ''The Grand Sophy":

“Prunella took to the ballrooms of London in the spirit of ruthless calculation of a general entering a battlefield.”   

A hilarious example of an interaction between her and Zacharias:

"Your amoral ingenuity in the pursuit of your interest is perfectly shocking,” said Zacharias severely. “Yes, isn’t it?” said Prunella, pleased. 

Cho's ability to write tongue-in-cheek humor had me re-reading portions of the book over and over again; every time I discovered some witticism I had missed previously, such as:

“A female may be poor or delicate or a spinster, but it does seem ill-advised of Miss Liddiard to combine all three.”   

The scene between Aunt Georgiana Without Ruth (ruthless, get it?) and Lorelei is one more example of the author's trademark humor (you really have to read it to appreciate it). The conversations between Zacharias and Lord Damerell and Rollo had me in splits. Even the thunder-monster summoned by Prunella and her familiars are funny.

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The final chapter had me in raptures - complete with talking caterpillars (go figure!) and a proposal to warm the cockles of my romantic heart. The underdogs triumph against all odds, Prunella thumbs her nose at society yet again (I'll do exactly what I please, thank you very much!) and glory to the Grand Sorceress, the Keeper of Seven Spirits, and mistress of the four points of the realm!

As with all new authors, I didn't know what to expect when I started this book, but it ended up totally surprising me with its wonderfully intelligent humor, imaginative fantasy elements, and above all, its irreverent and incorrigible female character. I cannot remember when I have last had this much fun reading a book and I am delighted to know that the author has plans to write two more sequels featuring Prunella and Zacharias. There are four more familiars to be hatched and more magic and mayhem awaits. Bring it on, I say!