Meredith Katz

Absolutely beautifully done, with a wonderful braid of feelings and complexities and personalities. The retro-future setting wound up feeling almost perfectly timeless, even with the focus from time to time on Clara's job - and, of course, on Sal's very existence.

Sal and Clara were so very engaging, both of them in different ways and in the ways they interacted, emotionally and logically. The coming together and the growth were so very well portrayed and the difficulties they faced made me show more want them to overcome them - and together - while throwing up enough things that might be in the realm of couldn't change to make me sorrowfully wonder if they would. show less

Firmly in the cozy fantasy genre, and a surprisingly large amount of character development and story in a small package. I really enjoyed the characters -- I love how Clara knows herself really well and refuses to constrain her wandering feet. I love that her companion is an emotionally resonant hummingbird robot. I also really love Sal's plotline, and the contemplation of mortality/immortality that she invites us to partake in. Satisfying.

This is a lighthearted ace (asexual) romance between a human and an AI. I found it to be simple and sweet, though maybe a little less cozy than I imagined. I could have done with a few more tea shop vibes to really set the mood. I felt the ace rep was done well without having to overstate every detail. I think maybe I just expected a bigger impact, or a bit more detail (I don't think I knew it was a novella going in), so I was left a little underwhelmed. But if you're looking for something show more short and generally cheerful, I'd recommend this. If this became a series of novellas about the characters, I would certainly read more. show less

I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Short version: I loved this SO MUCH. It was not only full of feels, but also beautifully crafted with subtle hints and twists and symbolism.

To quote the author, it has:
* A fantasy-mythological setting loosely based on Norse mythology
* Cute demigods with feelings firmly in It's Complicated territory
* A shape-shifting trickster
* A daring rescue
* Found family feels
(The above list is from Meredith's Goodreads page. Below is my show more own words again.)

How Saeter Robbed the Underworld is a story within a story - The frame story is about two queer dads with their three (adopted) children. The eldest, Eirik, has just had a fight with his friend, so his dads tell them a bedtime story that is about difficult relationships and conflicts. This story is the story of two demigods - Saeter is the son of the God of Envy, and Skault is the son of the God of Love.

I absolutely loved everything Meredith did with this story. Although I could see several of the twists coming from a mile away, they still somehow felt satisfying... in fact, probably even more satisfying than if they had come out of nowhere, because it was set up beautifully. I also really loved the suggestion that adopted family is just as important as biological family, although this is a little subverted at the end, but the message is still there.

It is difficult to talk about my favourite twists without spoilers, but I'm going to say that I really loved the symbolism/parallel done with the three animal shapes Saeter takes to save Skault.

And now some spoiler-y screaming:

I KNEW that Skault would be the only one able to hurt Skault, and it still killed me. And!! It's not spelled out, but it's still pretty obvious that my theory was right about the identity of Papa and Father, and it's beautiful. show less