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A review by caitibeth
The White City by Elizabeth Bear
3.0
Another novella in the New Amsterdam series. This one takes the form of two interconnected short stories - one in which Sebastien and a sixteen-year-old Jack visit Moscow together and make the acquaintance of an artist named Irina, and one in which Sebastien revisits the city six years later (shortly after ) with Abby Irene and Phoebe. Both times there is a murder in Irina's circle of acquaintances, and Sebastien and his court attempt to figure out what's behind them.
I enjoyed the short story about Jack & Sebastien a good deal - reading about Jack's determination to progress their relationship (as well as Jack's penchant for getting involved with revolutionaries everywhere they go) was satisfying. The other short story is about grief and Bear's favorite theme in this series, mortality; it's less dynamic without Jack, but the last scene is quite good.
(Although I've separated them here, I should note that the two stories are interwoven in the novella, switching back and forth frequently.)
Spoiler
Jack's deathI enjoyed the short story about Jack & Sebastien a good deal - reading about Jack's determination to progress their relationship (as well as Jack's penchant for getting involved with revolutionaries everywhere they go) was satisfying. The other short story is about grief and Bear's favorite theme in this series, mortality; it's less dynamic without Jack, but the last scene is quite good.
(Although I've separated them here, I should note that the two stories are interwoven in the novella, switching back and forth frequently.)