Hope Zane, $2.99
Fantasy, 2019
Hope Zane’s Knave is clearly a part of a series called Persephone Girls, but that’s all I know of it. Is it the first entry, somewhere in the middle, or at the back?
I can’t tell, and it sure seems like a story that lands in the middle of a series, as things have already happened, and the protagonist is clearly unhappy with everything. She likes Wolf, a new member of her pack, but Wolf is enamored of the pack leader Lune. She then likes another new member, Waif, but Waif is enamored of Wolf and Lune.
Poor Knave, always the bridesmaid in all but name.
This short story is basically Knave being all brittle and mad. There is no beginning and no end… and yet, I find the whole story a most enthralling read.
It’s all in the prose, and the author has a lovely knack of making descriptions of even the simplest, littlest thing feel poetic, enchanting even.
She looks down at the present in her hand. It’s soft beneath the paper, and she rips it open slowly, peeling the wrapper away like the skin of a fruit. Inside is a new sweater, soft and black. It’s the sort of garment that she prefers—just her and no one else. It’s nothing any of the other girls would wear. She runs her fingers down its front and feels the sleek fabric shift coolly beneath her hands. One corner of her mouth quirks up despite herself. It’s a truly lovely gift.
So yes, I’m not sure what is happening as there are many details left unexplored and unexplained here, but for the most part, I feel like I know Knave very well even if I’ve just met her for a short while. She can be brittle and hard, but there is a vulnerability in her that makes her relatable and even sympathetic.
The party is over before it’s truly begun, but here’s the thing: I am almost afraid to read more about this series, because the author has captured perfectly, in this story, the essence of Knave that resonates with me. I can’t help but to fear that knowing more about Knave would reduce her mystique, maybe even turn her into a nag scold heroine typical of such stories.
Hence, for this magical moment, this story really gets under my skin and it’s a very interesting and effective introduction to this author. Maybe she’d win me over some more if I read more of her, or maybe she’d disappoint me, who knows. For now, this story works its magic on me most effortlessly.
