A Palace Near the Wind

In this uneven fantasy, Nebula Award winner Jiang (I Am AI) depicts a world full of fascinating tree people who grow needle threads instead of hair, weep sap, and fly on the wind, but entangles them in a trite and often inexplicable plot. To halt the relentless expansion of the human government, called the Palace, into the wild land of Feng, Liu Lufeng must marry the human king, a fate that her mother and three younger sisters have already met—only to never be seen again. Lufeng plans to kill the king instead but swiftly abandons this scheme when long-buried family secrets come to light after the wedding. Unfortunately, Jiang’s clever worldbuilding does not extend to the political plot, which is frustratingly simplistic. The conflict between nature and civilization fails to convince, and the story breezes past an incestuous subplot that will disturb many readers. Those searching for a lyrical and contemplative fantasy may find something to enjoy in the atmospherics, but the promise of the prose does not deliver an equally well-crafted plot. This disappoints. (Apr.)