The RIB: Threads of Memory by Richard Fierce (SPFBO XI)
This is a crisply written book. It’s short and pacy, and I loved how it got straight to the action. (It's also another entrant in the SPFBO XI contest.)
Amara is a seamstress, and a threadwitch, with the ability to awaken memories in cloth. This means that someone could use a cloak or jacket to listen to memories or impressions of the past wearer, something that could be of interest in a world without modern technology. You could listen to the worlds of a holy leader by touching the cloth, or relive time with a beloved reparative.
However, magic in this world is controlled by the Guild, and Amara is an illegal practitioner. One day in the market place, she’s asked to repair a cloak belonging to a military captain and accidentally awakens its memories, which she quickly silences. However, not before the outburst was noticed by everyone around her! This puts Amara in the path of Caedric, an Unraveler (or inquisitor) whose job is to work for the Guild and round up all of these rogue, magical seamstresses.
Amara denies being a thread-witch in her interrogations with Caedric, but he’s still suspicious. And she’s hounded by the public who want her to use their powers for them, so that they can awaken memories belong to the departed relatives As Caedric investigates Amara, he becomes more sympathetic to her, and is torn between fulfilling his duty to the Guild, and helping Amara.
But the Guild isn’t the only one after Amara; there’s an evil cult, the Wraithstitchers. Unlike a threadwitch who awakens memories in a cloth, a wraithstitcher can tear a soul apart and use it to ‘craft garments of terrible power’. (Although , disappointingly, they mostly write intimidating messages). And there’s a third pressure on Amara; the Lady Selanna, who wants Amara to use her power to awaken the memories of her dead son.
How Amara navigates all these threads with Cedric’s help is the heart of the story. It’s probably not a spoiler to say that Caedric and Amara are attracted to each other, but don’t quite trust each other. The romance gels in the last part of the book, although it’s more of an emotional connection between the pair. There’s not much time for anything else! An unlike some romances I’ve read, where Partner A has to sit out of the last boss fight watching and cheering on while Partner B does everything, there’s a decent balance of action at the end.
I suppose the main issue with this one was the world building. Why is this magic actually illegal? What monopoly is the Guild protecting? For example, the noble who kidnaps Amara wants her to awaken her son’s memories in a shirt. But if the Guild has licensed threadwitches who use rune-thread (rather than Amara’s natural talent) why not pay the Guild? How does the Guild make their money to pay for their inquisitor program if everyone hates threadwitches? No one in the public who hounds Amara talks about negotiating with the Guild or complains about their steep prices. (Although I’m not sure if the target audience will worry about this too much.)
Probably the other issue is all of the sewing-related jargon around the magic system: Threatwitches, Wraithstitchers. Caedric’s sword is a threadcutter. When Amara uses too much magic she gets threadburned (which means she stab herself with her needle).
But the sharp pace makes this a real page-turner, and the relationship between the pair develops nicely. Recommended. (Although note that the ending is set up for a sequel.)