I received this book for free from my own shelves in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Source: my own shelves
The Future Falls
by
Tanya Huff
urban fantasy in a Kindle edition that was published by Titan Books on November 21, 2014 and has 434 pages.
Explore it on Goodreads
Other books by this author which I have reviewed include Truth of Valor, The Wild Side: Urban Fantasy with an Erotic Edge, The Wild Ways, An Ancient Peace, Shadowed Souls, A Peace Divided, The Privilege of Peace, Valor’s Choice, The Enchantment Emporium, The Better Part of Valor, The Shorter Parts of Valor
Third and last in the Gale Women urban fantasy series and revolving around Charlie Gale. The couple focus is primarily on Charlie and Jack. It’s been a couple of years or so since The Wild Ways, 2.
My Take
Sure, it’s fun and quite the journey with that Wild Gale, Charlie, who travels through the Wood. Lucky for her there’s no monetary expense, no lines, no security, and hardly takes any time for Charlie to go from here to there, Oklahoma to Brazil, or anywhere. It’s a danged handy skill to have as Charlie flits all over North America, visiting bars and musician friends throughout the land.
But being a Wild power is more than just hopping through the Wood and flitting through life. There’s also the cost of time travel.
We experience it all through Huff’s use of third person global subjective point-of-view from the thoughts and events from other characters, but mostly from Charlie’s and Jack’s perspectives.
Huff holds it all together through music, songs that reflect individual characters and the way back, individual instruments that affect Charlie’s surroundings and emotions, and tunes that provide Charlie with feedback.
Huff gives hints about the Gale way of life, but there is nothing explicit. It’s rampant understated sex throughout. A touch, a glance, bed partners. There are rules, of course, one of which contributes to one of the primary issues — Jack’s and Charlie’s love for each other. A love that can never be.
It’s so sad about Jack loving Charlie and her loving him back. I also feel for David, being tied to the land and his alternate form, wasting that doctorate he has. Ya know, I am curious as to what the Gales’ purpose is in life, even if they do make for an interesting albeit confusing story.
The other primary conflict is that impending asteroid impact, which provides a horrifying “opportunity” for Jack with plenty of angst that ties into that rule.
I’m not getting the correlation between teddy bears and people. No, I don’t mean the part about innocence and bears, but the negative side that Huff implies.
Unexpectedly, Charlie encounters Gary and Sheryl giving it all up to take a chance on his career in music via an RV and their cats. If only Charlie had known who he was. I say “unexpectedly”, but I reckon fate plays a major hand in where Charlie roams.
Humor does pop up, especially via Jack’s flight issues in the skies of Calgary. Those jets . . . As for the Fey love for basketball, that I did not see coming, lol. I’m torn between considering Jack’s childhood in the UnderRealm and the constant menace of his family as being funny or tragic or both. As for the trauma the Frost Giants are suffering. Well.
How sweet to be a Gale girl, where everything falls into your lap as needed. There’s some sweet payback when Charlie hums charms to help others.The negative side to being a Gale girl is all those danged phone calls! Of course Graham’s status as a seventh son brings additional hardship.
Don’t tick off Allie . . . it’s too irritating when every stoplight is red for over four hours or leaves start growing out of lamp posts.
Yep, Huff likes Firefly and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, that explains why I like her, *grin*, even if she is vague about the Gales’ religion/magic and how it works.
Living quarters for The Enchanted Emporium are increasing. As for living with “two-legged radio stations playing in [his] head 24/7”, that’s just irritating.
The Story
When Auntie Catherine warns the family of an approaching asteroid, the Gales scramble to keep humans from going the way of the dinosaurs. Fortunately for the world, they’re wielding a guitar and a dragon.
The Gale family can change the world with the charms they cast, which has caused some supernaturally complicated family shenanigans in the past. So when NASA and Doomsday Dan confirm Auntie Catherine’s dire prediction, Charlotte “Charlie” Gale turns to the family for help.
But Allie is unavailable because the universe seems determined to have her produce the seventh son of a seventh son of a seventh son of a Gale. And the Aunties can’t help because they’re tied to the earth — although they are happy to provide their delicious, trademark pies. And in the end, all Charlie has is a guitar . . .
. . . and Jack. The Dragon Prince, and a Sorcerer.
But Charlie might like Jack just a little too much, and Jack might like Charlie a little too much in return. Actually, between Allie’s hormones, the Aunties trying to force her and Jack into ritual, the Courts having way too much fun at the end of days, and Jack’s sudden desire to sacrifice himself for the good of the many, Charlie’s fairly certain that the asteroid is the least of her problems.
The Gales are going to need more than pie to save the world from an incoming asteroid. But together there isn’t anything they can’t deal with — except possibly each other.
The Characters
Charlotte “Charlie” Gale, a.k.a. “Cha Cha”, is a Bard, a musician who is a Wild Power with almost degrees in Sociology, Music, Drama, and English.
The Gales
Auntie Catherine, Allie’s Gran, is the oldest of the three family Wild powers and a troublemaker who likes to make the family work for it. Uncle Edward had been Catherine’s husband, who was Hunted in The Wild Ways, 2.
Calgary, Alberta, is . . .
. . . now home for the pregnant-again Alysha “Allie” Gale, who has a degree in Art History and is Charlie’s cousin, closest friend, and a bedmate who had inherited Auntie Catherine’s The Enchantment Emporium, 1, a junk shop. She now leads second circle. Graham Buchanan is Allie’s husband and a former assassin (The Enchantment Emporium), who runs the Western Star, a cheesy tabloid. He’s also the seventh son of a seventh son. Their twin sons are Edward, a.k.a. Edlet, and Evan. Grrr is the green bear.
The now-seventeen Jack Archibald Gale is a dragon, a prince, a sorcerer, and a Wild Gale (The Wild Ways, 2). David is Allie’s brother with the doctorate in criminal psychology, who became the anchor to Calgary in The Wild Ways. Auntie Gwen is living in the garage loft with Joe O’Hallon, a Leprechaun from The Enchantment Emporium.
The Aunties include Carmen; Bea, who is the most senior of the aunties; Gabbie; Melissa; Heather; Bonnie; and, Trisha. Katie, Jennifer, Judith, Rayne, Penny, Sandy, Gen, Gabi, and Wendy are Gale girls. Cameron Edward Gale is the only third circle Gale boy, which seems to be quite the hardship. The magic mirror has a cheesy sense of humor.
Michael is Allie’s gay best friend. who lives in Vancouver with his husband, Brian. Kenny Shoji runs the coffee shop. Boris is a minotaur.
Doomsday Dan is homeless due to a mental issue, and it’s not that he’s crazy. The Brownies at the Saddledome stadium save stuff for Dan. Kelly Ahenakew is a TV reporter. Lisa LaFlammen is the CTV evening news anchor. The FBI?? The Silvan Diner is a popular spot for the minor Fey nobility. Elessar “El” and Arwen are patrons. Regan is a Glashtin. Alice, with nymph blood, works the counter. Jorge works at a golf course. Dr Malan is a Selkie and marine biologist.
Nick O’Connell’s is the bar owned by Brian and Kevin Trang-Murphy where Charlie encounters Four Men Down (and one woman). Dave Anderson is on guitar, Mike Carter is on electric bass, Tara McAllister is on fiddle, Paul Stephens on drums, and Gary Ehrlich, an engineer, on bouzouki. Sheryl is Gary’s wife. Rhianna is Mike’s wife.
Darsden East, Ontario, is . . .
. . . home base for the Gales in Canada until The Enchantment Emporium, 1, when Allie established the Calgary branch. Auntie Jane is the auntie to be feared. Auntie Mary and Uncle Tomas are Allie’s parents. Uncle Arthur defeated Uncle Evan, but is already failing to hold. More Aunties include Trisha; Meredith; Ellen; Christie; Martha, who makes the bread and butter pickles; Esther; Ruth; Fanny, who teaches eighth grade physics; Rose; the dying Ruby, who believes chickens are flying monkeys; Vera, who is sitting with Ruby; and, Grace, who died in June. Charlie’s youngest sisters are on teams in the local roller derby league in Calgary: Gale Force Eleven and Gale Force Twelve. Huff also mentions twin sisters who are out Hunting in the world. I don’t know if they’re additional sisters or . . .? Allie hopes to talk Peggi, a pharmacist, and her husband, Steve, into moving their family to Calgary. Judith, Rayne, and Lucy are the closest Allie has to sisters. Sara is in Ottawa and Ashley is in Toronto. Uncles Richard and Raymond.
Dave Clement knows all about folk or Irish happenings in the US and the UK. The Teddy Bears’ Picnic is the name of a B&B in Carter, Vermont. Toby Summers is a former boyfriend from Charlie’s Montreal band days. George “Frosty” Frost had been with Frost on the Windows. Benji Cheung. Morris Winchester.
NASA
Brigadier General Pam Yorlem is in the Air Force. Dr Grayson is the head of JPL. Dr Kiren Mehta is a scientist involved with the Near-Earth Object Program. Dhruv is Kiren’s ex-husband; Adrika is his second wife. Dr Adeyemi is really frustrated. Howard.
Gary is Kiren’s childhood friend. Mrs Bowen had been one of Kiren’s and Gary’s teachers.
The Elder God was a threat in The Wild Ways. The Armageddon Asteroid is in hiding. The MidRealm is earth. The UnderRealm is where Jack was born into a family with twelve uncles, all Dragon Lords, some of whom are Uncles Adam, Ryan, and Viktor. The Enchanted Emporium also functions as a drop box for Fey mail. The full-blooded Fey Courts are in UnderRealm. A Hantri is a member of a kin group among Brownies.
Stanley Kalynchu, a.k.a. Jonathan Samuel Gale, had been Jack’s father (The Wild Ways, 2). Kevin is the “boy-toy” in Las Vegas. Eineed is a Selkie from The Wild Ways, 2.
The Cover and Title
The cover is all browns! It’s the blonde Charlie in a leather jacket and jeans standing on a clifftop with Jack in his dragon form behind her, his HUGE head circling around to the front. Behind them, it appears to be a barren plain with a bright light sparking behind Charlie. The title is at the top in cream. To the left of Charlie’s shoulder is a testimonial with the author’s name at the very bottom with both in white.
The title is what Auntie Catherine sees, when The Future Falls.
