Review – Litany for a Broken World – LJ Cohen
SciFi / Fantasy about 84,000 words
Available at Amazon, Google Books, Kobo, Barnes & Noble, Apple Books and Smashwords
Author’s website
Pre-order links
I found this story by happy accident. On one of my social media sites (Mastodon @arjaybe) I met a person (LJCohen @LJ) who was offering her new novel as an advance readers copy(ARC). The deal with ARCs is, you get to read their book for free, and in return you provide feedback and maybe a review. I decided to go for it and soon received a copy of Litany for a Broken World. I have experience with ARCs of my own and I have learned that you can’t always count on the reciprocity. Therefore, I will make sure it happens here.
On her website, Cohen has books listed as Science Fiction, Fantasy and Short Fiction. I think Litany qualifies as both Science Fiction and Fantasy. A central theme of the story is the multiverse, from the many worlds hypothesis of quantum physics. Science. The characters move between the worlds thanks to a personal trait. Fantasy. They are both essential to the story and she blends them well.
In the opening chapters, Cohen introduces her characters, each one distinct and definite. In the following chapters, continuing to use the omniscient point of view, she gradually brings them together. You know they will meet, and you look forward to it. Of course, the interesting thing is how they respond to the challenges they face when they do.
If you are the type of reader who wants everything resolved by the end of the book, you might be a little frustrated. Don’t worry. This is a complete story with the loose ends tied up. It’s just that we’re left with questions about the futures of the characters. Fortunately, the author has promised a sequel, so we should see those questions answered.
I congratulate Ms Cohen on writing this book. Working in the multiverse isn’t easy and she has made it work. She has a good writer’s voice and I look forward to future developments.
Visit her website and check it out.
rjb
