Raising the Stones is one of my favorites, a strong blend of plot, character, and Tepper's unique imagination. Some parts hung together well, but the flow of the story and the excitement was lost in the descriptive 'muck' some of which I would gladly have seen catapulted into the mire. Did she get scientific training in the 8 months since the end of The Waters Rising while taking care of the newborn twins? This book continues the story from The Waters Rising, following Abasio and Xulai as they travel with their children across the land looking for recruits to bear children that can survive the coming flood waters. They also meet and befriend some Griffins, who want assurances that they, too, will be transformed to survive the coming age.

I was also disturbed by the much increased use of machines -- by the Artemesians in particular as it seemed contrary to the philosophy they espoused in A Plague of Angels. Among them are the Fishman Warrior, Fishman Commando, Fishman Lord, Fishman Raider, and Fishman Captain.Weird, because the connection between her The True Game series and the books in her most recent Plague of Angels trilogy seems tenuous at best. Xulai and Abasio begin/continue their journey spreading knowledge of the rising waters that will inevitably consume all of Earth’s land masses, and their sea children who have been specially born and bred to survive in their inevitable aquatic future, to receptive communities. Made in New Zealand, Zealandia's range of grain free snacks are ideal for use as rewards or training treats. This crash barrier fishtail piece is popular in carparks and pedestrian areas to protect people and vehicles from the rough ends of a crash barrier. There could have been a pretty good book here but it is buried in words, words, words, and endless repetition.

In Fish Tails, two of Tepper's beloved characters-Abasio and Xulai (A Plague of Angels and The Waters Rising)-and their children travel from village to village scattered across the sparsely populated land of Tingawa. I have re-vamped my living room with cushions and lampshades from Earthworks and they look fantastic!She wanted to tie two of her main series together as a grand finale and resolution of the character's arcs because the thematic elements and her concerns are the same. It does little good for this book to refer back to characters and plots that are far out of reach to most current Tepper readers. The way couriers deliver parcels has changed in recent years and although we would prefer all drivers knocked, many now don’t, and we are unable to make them. For creativity and imagination I would give this story and plot five stars, but for readability, I can only give it three stars. Everything was tied up at the end but with far too many balls of string and wax wrapping up all the loose ends, and plugging any holes.

It's rare to encounter authors who, over the course of several decades, remain uncompromising and so focused upon a single message. Tepper's thirty-fifth novel, features a handful of major characters from her very first novels published over thirty years ago. Tepper's view environmental issues is also consistent with many of her previous books, including the ones not in this series.In this latest one, I'm not sure if it is because I'm older and more jaded, but her social commentary came across more heavy handed. What I liked about this story is how it stays in line with her views of sexism and how many patriarchal groups within society are damaging. Tepper introduces all-powerful magic (in the form of)advanced technology not once, but three times, but fails to explain even once why the characters don't just wave their magic wands to solve all ills.