Tag: science fiction

Marshmallow has already read and reviewed Scythe, Thunderhead, and The Toll, the three books in Neal Shusterman’s Arc of a Scythe series. Today she is writing about Gleanings: Stories from the Arc of a Scythe, a collection of stories Shusterman published in 2022 that explores some of the lesser known features of the same story universe.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you liked reading any of the books in the Arc of a Scythe trilogy, then this is the book for you!

Marshmallow’s Summary (with Spoilers): In the three original books about the world of scythes and the Thunderhead, Shusterman did an amazing job of creating an immersive story. But such tales have a tendency to leave the reader wanting more, which is exactly what happened to me at the end of the series. While the main plot lines were all resolved well, I still really wanted to read more about that world; the premise is simply intriguing (a post-mortality world full of fascinating technology and sheltered by a benevolent AI on the cusp of a new era of space expansion). Luckily, Shusterman was very nice and wrote this collection of stories, some in collaboration with other authors.

The first story–titled “Formidable”–goes to a period before the events in the Arc of a Scythe series took place. It elaborates on the rise of Scythe Marie Curie who is a major character with a past that is often mentioned with only sparing detail. In Gleanings, we finally learn more about her rise to fame as the scythe who set humanity free from its bureaucratic history. The next story is titled “Never Work with Animals” and introduces a new scythe, a new setting, and a new story but with one familiar face. “A Death of Many Colors” similarly shows another scythe and makes Shusterman’s fiction feel even more real by adding yet another thread to the tapestry he has been weaving.

By adding so many new stories about scythes, the Thunderhead, and their world, Shusterman creates an even more expansive setting. “Unsavory Row.” “The Mortal Canvas,” “The Persistence of Memory,” and “Perchance to Gleam” especially were stories that colored in so many new aspects of the sci-fi world and were so very detailed in that goal. “Unsavory Row” peeled back the word ‘unsavory’ and presented another perspective of what that label means to those labeled. My favorite story “The Mortal Canvas” teaches readers about the period right after immortality was achieved. “Perchance to Gleam” also explores another part of that world and its different culture (and thus the scythes’ different gleaning methods). In “A Martian Minute,” we learn what truly happened in Goddard’s mysterious past and “Cirri” and “A Dark Curtain Rises” reveal what happens after he is later defeated.

Questions you forgot you had are answered and the world of the Arc of a Scythe is broadened. Reading this book is a great way to continue the journey you started when you picked up the first book!

Marshmallow’s Review: I’d like to start by praising Shusterman’s fluid prose. I think part of what makes this book and the Arc of a Scythe books so good is his writing. I really only started appreciating it when I noticed some parts of some stories (the ones that were co-written with others) sounded a little different and sometimes a little less smooth. In general though, this book flows so clearly that you have no choice but to allow yourself to be swept forward with the story. All of the stories are fascinating and are deeply satisfying to read.

I find the world Shusterman describes to be extremely interesting and reading this book expanded my knowledge and understanding of it significantly. I particularly liked reading “The Mortal Canvas.” All of the stories are mostly related to the main series and are gratifying to read as an extension. They all make you think and compare between the texts. But “The Mortal Canvas” could also just be a stand alone story as well. I think you could read it without having read the previous books (though that might also go for all the others, just as long as you don’t mind having everything revealed to you). In this story, young students at an art school grapple with the disconnect between the only reality they’ve known (a world without death) and the past their teacher came from (a world where death took her husband and was a constant). This plot not only reveals more about that period of time, it also asks truly deep questions about mortality and what it means to us as creators, humans, and beings that exist at all. Reading “The Mortal Canvas” made me really think about life and what our purpose is. That sounds cliche, but it did. This ending line reveals just a fraction of the fascinating ideas inspired by this story:

‘She said her life was completed,’ […] ‘That’s something that none of us will ever experience. Even if we’re gleaned someday, it won’t be the same, because we weren’t born mortal. From this movement on, no one will ever know what it feels like to be complete’ […] she smiled through her tears–because they both knew that together they might just get one step closer to completion” (Shusterman 246-7).

I think this story has made me recognize how meaningful life is. While length is lovely, it is the depth of what you do with it that matters the most. Shusterman’s imaginary world offers opportunities to wrestle with what it means to be human when that length is luckily granted to all but that meaning is unluckily lost to most. In this aspect, I think this book and the series that came before it are truly masterpieces. These books are books that we should read alongside 1984 and Brave New World. While I would recommend waiting until you’re older than twelve, I would still suggest reading this book to all bunnies ready to recognize a literary jewel!

Marshmallow’s Rating: 100%.

Marshmallow has already read and reviewed Scythe and Thunderhead, the first two books in Neal Shusterman’s Arc of a Scythe series. Today she reviews the third book, The Toll, first published in 2019.

Marshmallow’s Quick Take: If you liked the previous books in the Arc of a Scythe series, then this is the book for you! But if you haven’t read those yet, then Scythe and Thunderhead are the books for you!

Marshmallow’s Summary (with Spoilers): Ever since every human was marked as unsavory, the Thunderhead went silent. The Thunderhead is the benevolent, all-knowing AI consciousness that runs the world, serving as a parent to those without, a therapist to those in need, a friend to those lonely … the list goes on. Without the Thunderhead, humanity feels a bit lost. Of course, all the physical things (revival centers, publicars, etc.) directed by the Thunderhead continue to run smoothly, perfectly. But the question of why the Thunderhead went silent seems answered by the recent sinking of Endura, which was essentially the man-made island serving as the capital of the global Scythedom. Rowan Damisch (dubbed Scythe Lucifer), who ended several corrupt scythes to serve vigilante justice, is blamed and the general consensus is that the Thunderhead marked all of humanity as ‘unsavory’ (which means the Thunderhead no longer speaks to them) to collectively punish them for Rowan’s crimes.

Unfortunately, this is not the real reason. Rowan sank with Endura, along with Citra Terranova–who you may know better as Scythe Anastasia. The Thunderhead was mourning their loss, too, along with all others lost in Endura. Rowan and Citra were actually trying to stop the destruction caused by Scythe Goddard, but instead Goddard seizes power afterwards and appoints himself the Overblade of North Merica. Goddard also begins changing the way the entire Scythedom works, eliminating the gleaning quotas so that scythes can glean as much or as little as they want to; he encourages other regional Scythedoms to do the same and soon the world is divided between scythes who align themselves with Goddard and those who are brave enough to resist his growing influence.

The Tonists, the main (perhaps only) religious cult that remains in a time of immortality, are another group against Goddard’s reign and scythes in general. Their religion always foretold of the Great Resonance, and the Thunderhead did release a technical wail (it made all alarms, beeps, and other sounds in the world go off for a brief couple of seconds) before it went silent. This reinvigorates their faith and legitimizes them slightly, especially now that they have the Toll.

Grayson Tolliver was raised by the Thunderhead and, in the last book, he saved Scythe Anastasia and her mentor Scythe Curie. The Thunderhead’s coding forbids it from interfering with scythe business, and the murder attempt targeting Scythe Anastasia and Curie’s lives fit that category; thus the Thunderhead wasn’t allowed to intervene to save them, but it could tell Grayson and it could predict that he would likely try to save them himself. Due to this interference, the Thunderhead was forced to mark Grayson ‘unsavory’ for a while, but after the Great Resonance (and everyone else being marked ‘unsavory’) he is clean and the only human on the planet who is able to talk to the Thunderhead. Living amongst the Tonists, he becomes their leader and the third part of their holy trinity—the Toll (the other two are the Thunder and the Tone).

While this is all happening, Scythe Faraday (Scythe Anastasia and Lucifer’s mentor) begins searching for the mythical fail-safe left by the founding Scythes in case the scythedom ever went in the wrong direction. This is because, unfortunately, the scythedom has gone astray and it seems like there aren’t enough people left to stand in Goddard’s way. Little does he know though that secrets lost to the sea and to space are not so lost after all. 

Marshmallow’s Review: I really enjoyed The Toll! I was extremely excited to read another book in this series and this book did not disappoint. I had loved the first two books and felt that ending the series in a satisfying way would be a very difficult challenge. However, Shusterman did a very good job and I think he made the best decisions possible. The ways the characters developed were nuanced, and I think he avoided certain stereotypical, simplistic arcs. The breakdown of one of the strongest characters was heartbreaking to read about, yet it was much more realistic than the unrealistic continual suppression of his emotional struggles.

The way the characters in this series grapple with mortality and the idea of gleaning (the ceremonial taking of lives executed by scythes) makes these books all very advanced and philosophical. They point towards what might lie ahead for humanity and how humanity both strives for and self-sabotages its improvement. I also find Shusterman’s imaginary world a bit comforting. While there is undoubtedly trouble in The Toll, there is also significant advancement for humans. Seeing and reading about a world where humans are still struggling to advance yet have already come so far is very inspiring and thought-provoking.

Despite the stark differences between our world and the world of The Toll, the characters are all incredibly well-written and I thought the relationship between (SPOILER) Citra and Rowan was very cute. Shusterman’s execution of their romance was very mature, I thought, because it seems that they do have some sort of physical interactions but we luckily don’t have to read about them. This omission actually helps strengthen the emotional legitimacy of their connection as that is what the author chose to highlight, rather than raw attraction.

I also thought the plot was amazing! The Toll was, like the previous books, a story that was so enveloping and compelling that I did not feel the need to slow down and try to predict what would happen next. I would just have to keep reading. I loved the final scene and I am very excited to read the additional books that Shusterman has written about this same story universe and is writing currently.

I would highly recommend reading all three of the books in the Arc of a Scythe series because they really do make you think about how differences between our world and the world of the series reflect on humanity as a whole and how mortality truly affects us. They are also just very entertaining. I am very excited for any new books set in the world of this series; I hope you read about it too!

Marshmallow’s Rating: 110%.