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Ennek Trilogy #1
Stasis
Praesidium is the most prosperous city-state in the world, due not only to its location at the mouth of a great bay, but also to its strict laws, stringently enforced. Ordinary criminals become bond-slaves, but the Wizard places traitors in Stasis, a dreamless frozen state.
Ennek is the Chief's younger son. He has grown up without much of a purpose, a man who cannot fulfill his true desires and who skates on the edge of the law. But he is also haunted by the plight of one man, a prisoner for whom Stasis appears to be a truly horrible fate. If Ennek is to save that prisoner, he must explore Praesidium's deepest secrets as well as his own.
Ennek is the Chief's younger son. He has grown up without much of a purpose, a man who cannot fulfill his true desires and who skates on the edge of the law. But he is also haunted by the plight of one man, a prisoner for whom Stasis appears to be a truly horrible fate. If Ennek is to save that prisoner, he must explore Praesidium's deepest secrets as well as his own.
221 pages, Paperback
First published December 15, 2009
44 people are currently reading
1218 people want to read
About the author
Kim Fielding
175 books1,304 followersKim Fielding lives in Oregon and travels as often as she can manage. A professor by day, at night she rushes into a phone booth to change into her author costume (which involves comfy clothes instead of Spandex and is, sadly, lacking a cape). Her superpowers include the ability to write nearly anywhere, often while simultaneously doling out assistance to her family. Her favorite word to describe herself is "eclectic" and she finally got that seventh tattoo.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 148 reviews
June 5, 2013
I really enjoyed that!
There were some flaws: the end kind of rushed up a bit quickly at the end, and Miner is a bit of a blank slate. There were unexpected parallels with some other books I've read recently (Melusine, Measure of Devotion).
I'm looking forward to book 2.
There were some flaws: the end kind of rushed up a bit quickly at the end, and Miner is a bit of a blank slate. There were unexpected parallels with some other books I've read recently (Melusine, Measure of Devotion).
I'm looking forward to book 2.
September 25, 2016
Kim Fielding really knows how to construct an alternate universe. Bits of darkness are throughout the character's backstories that ratchet up the poignancy and make it impossible to not root for them. She's exceedingly talented at creating these worlds and handling the dynamics therein and she does it again here with Praesidium giving us yet another of her trademark damaged couples that will pull on the heartstrings in Ennek and Miner.
Ennek tells the story of Stasis. A story that starts off with him as a boy sneaking into Under with his precocious friend Gory and progresses until he's nearly thirty and in his first relationship. I'm sure he wouldn't understand why his story is so heart wrenching simply because it's his norm which is precisely what makes it so. He's the second son of the Chief and a deviant. Being gay in Praesidium is tantamount to a death sentence, if you're lucky. Otherwise you get put into stasis or become a bond-slave for who knows how long and that's just one of their draconian laws.
Ennek's accepted his lonely fate and believes he will likely never amount to anything. He enjoys his simple pleasures-hiking, being on the water, horseback riding. He drinks too much. He thinks himself a coward yet he saves the life of the man who's haunted his dreams since he first laid eyes on him in that manmade spider's web when he was twelve yrs old.
The relationship between these two men is gradual. Miner is confined to Ennek's rooms since no one can know he's no longer in stasis thereby making him his slave. There's not a lot of angst but there is a lot of awkwardness over how to handle their relationship so they become friends. Gradually over the course of nearly a year Miner begins the painstaking process of living again in a situation and a time that are completely foreign. They begin to trust each other and have the most exquisite quiet moments. Those moments of vulnerability and devastating honesty that made me feel like a voyeur. But there seems to be this ever present sense of something lacking, something just beyond their reach that neither knows how to overcome.
Unfortunately the only person that could bring Miner out of stasis is Praesidium's wizard, Thelius. Thelius blackmails Ennek into becoming his intern in wizardry in exchange for his silence. He's a classically evil character who has a wealth of secrets about the polis and Ennek. Those secrets are what pushed the plot forward and held my interest. Most are answered, some weren't.
The tension between Ennek and Miner is still in its infancy and there is no on page sex. I'm hopeful in the next book things progress between them but I don't expect it to turn into a Jake Jaxson film either. Undoubtedly they've got a lot of travails to suffer through before getting to their HEA.
There certainly is a 'to be continued...' ending but I wouldn't characterize it as a cliffhanger. The next is already on my kindle and would recommend Stasis to fans of Kim Fielding, AU and/or slow burn romances.
A review copy was provided in exchange for an honest opinion.
Ennek tells the story of Stasis. A story that starts off with him as a boy sneaking into Under with his precocious friend Gory and progresses until he's nearly thirty and in his first relationship. I'm sure he wouldn't understand why his story is so heart wrenching simply because it's his norm which is precisely what makes it so. He's the second son of the Chief and a deviant. Being gay in Praesidium is tantamount to a death sentence, if you're lucky. Otherwise you get put into stasis or become a bond-slave for who knows how long and that's just one of their draconian laws.
Ennek's accepted his lonely fate and believes he will likely never amount to anything. He enjoys his simple pleasures-hiking, being on the water, horseback riding. He drinks too much. He thinks himself a coward yet he saves the life of the man who's haunted his dreams since he first laid eyes on him in that manmade spider's web when he was twelve yrs old.
He reminded Ennek of ocean waves, white foam over sea green. But Miner was also warm and soft, with a shy little smile and a slight blush on his cheeks. Ennek wanted to drown in him.
The relationship between these two men is gradual. Miner is confined to Ennek's rooms since no one can know he's no longer in stasis thereby making him his slave. There's not a lot of angst but there is a lot of awkwardness over how to handle their relationship so they become friends. Gradually over the course of nearly a year Miner begins the painstaking process of living again in a situation and a time that are completely foreign. They begin to trust each other and have the most exquisite quiet moments. Those moments of vulnerability and devastating honesty that made me feel like a voyeur. But there seems to be this ever present sense of something lacking, something just beyond their reach that neither knows how to overcome.
Unfortunately the only person that could bring Miner out of stasis is Praesidium's wizard, Thelius. Thelius blackmails Ennek into becoming his intern in wizardry in exchange for his silence. He's a classically evil character who has a wealth of secrets about the polis and Ennek. Those secrets are what pushed the plot forward and held my interest. Most are answered, some weren't.
The tension between Ennek and Miner is still in its infancy and there is no on page sex. I'm hopeful in the next book things progress between them but I don't expect it to turn into a Jake Jaxson film either. Undoubtedly they've got a lot of travails to suffer through before getting to their HEA.
There certainly is a 'to be continued...' ending but I wouldn't characterize it as a cliffhanger. The next is already on my kindle and would recommend Stasis to fans of Kim Fielding, AU and/or slow burn romances.
A review copy was provided in exchange for an honest opinion.
November 10, 2010
Sweet, breathless, and terrifying--this is a book about breaking out of apathy as well as breaking out of the spell cast by too much peace and not enough freedom. The prose is clean, the editing superlative (it's a self-published book-- all good editing should be praised) and the premise is original. The sex is not graphic or gratuitous--but Ennek is a tentative, well meaning hero, and you root for him to discover a way to be held--and to be happy.
June 26, 2022
I found the concept of Stasis very interesting. As with all Kim Fielding books featuring a fantasy universe, the world building is outstanding. It takes you right into these characters' reality without over-explaining things.
Ennek lives in a dystopian city - called polis - that is ruled by his father, the Chief. His older brother is the heir to the throne, while Ennek doesn't really have much purpose in life except being 'the younger son'.
However, as the society they live in is a suppressed regime, anybody who speaks up against the order of the polis is considered a traitor and will be put into stasis for decades.
Stasis is an alternative to being executed. It basically means your heart stops beating and you fall into a deathlike coma until someone wakes you up again, decades later.
The polis leaders believe that this is worse than death because dead traitors could be turned into martyrs, whereas someone waking up after people forgot about them long ago might not be such a threat.
Also, you need to know that this stasis is not a scientific process, it is caused by magic. So people get put into stasis by a wizard who performs a spell on them.
When Ennek is still a kid, his father takes him and is brother down Under to the undersea dungeon where the stasis prisoners are kept floating on silken ropes in dark cells. During this visit, Ennek sees a mysterious "sleeping" prisoner who was sentended to stay in stasis for 1000 years (!), and the guy suddenly opens his eyes and looks at him.
Later in Ennek's life, the polis' evil wizard is seeking an apprentice and strikes a bargain with Ennek:
Ennek needs to train to become the next wizard and in return, Ennek may take the mysterious prisoner home to his chambers, wake him up and keep him as a slave....
I was not completely convinced by the plot. Somehow, it all fell into place a bit too easily. A high security prisoner who has been asleep for 300 years, having committed a long forgotten crime, gets dumped in Ennek's bed and left with him. It just doesn't seem logical.
Of course, the guy is a good guy who was just as much a victim of the regime as everyone else down Under.
Even though I love Kim Fielding's effortless world building, this story did not work too well for me.
Ennek lives in a dystopian city - called polis - that is ruled by his father, the Chief. His older brother is the heir to the throne, while Ennek doesn't really have much purpose in life except being 'the younger son'.
However, as the society they live in is a suppressed regime, anybody who speaks up against the order of the polis is considered a traitor and will be put into stasis for decades.
Stasis is an alternative to being executed. It basically means your heart stops beating and you fall into a deathlike coma until someone wakes you up again, decades later.
The polis leaders believe that this is worse than death because dead traitors could be turned into martyrs, whereas someone waking up after people forgot about them long ago might not be such a threat.
Also, you need to know that this stasis is not a scientific process, it is caused by magic. So people get put into stasis by a wizard who performs a spell on them.
When Ennek is still a kid, his father takes him and is brother down Under to the undersea dungeon where the stasis prisoners are kept floating on silken ropes in dark cells. During this visit, Ennek sees a mysterious "sleeping" prisoner who was sentended to stay in stasis for 1000 years (!), and the guy suddenly opens his eyes and looks at him.
Later in Ennek's life, the polis' evil wizard is seeking an apprentice and strikes a bargain with Ennek:
Ennek needs to train to become the next wizard and in return, Ennek may take the mysterious prisoner home to his chambers, wake him up and keep him as a slave....
I was not completely convinced by the plot. Somehow, it all fell into place a bit too easily. A high security prisoner who has been asleep for 300 years, having committed a long forgotten crime, gets dumped in Ennek's bed and left with him. It just doesn't seem logical.
Of course, the guy is a good guy who was just as much a victim of the regime as everyone else down Under.
Even though I love Kim Fielding's effortless world building, this story did not work too well for me.
February 13, 2024
Audio: 4.5 stars, I do enjoy Joel Leslie’s narrations!
Book: 2ish stars
It started with promise but I just got bored.. idk I know this is a trilogy but I’m stopping after book one lol.
Book: 2ish stars
It started with promise but I just got bored.. idk I know this is a trilogy but I’m stopping after book one lol.
July 9, 2018
This is the second time I've tried to read this book. I put it down the first time because the main character was so unlikeable. Picked it up again, don't even know why, and I did finish it. I wish I'd reviewed it at that time...about three weeks ago...but the fact I don't remember details speaks for itself. I know I found things to like about the story and I remember it ending with our MCs on the run, but all in all Ms. Fielding has written better stories. Don't get me wrong, some of my reading buddies love this series. I'm just going to call it three-ish stars and move on.
October 15, 2016
Extra stars for the smart MC. He has same clues as us and figures out at the same time as us who exactly caused the tragedy in his family. There are no misunderstandings, no illusions, no musings, no confusion over the actions of the evil character in this book. Everything is clear and to the point. Very refreshing.
*
Best non-explicit sex scene ever "Long into the night, their bodies rocked together to the rhythm of the ocean beneath them."
*
Barb ~rede-2-read~, thanks so much for lending this book to me! Loved it.
Free_dreamer, thank you for recommending it to me in the first place! Moving onto book two :)
*
Best non-explicit sex scene ever "Long into the night, their bodies rocked together to the rhythm of the ocean beneath them."
*
Barb ~rede-2-read~, thanks so much for lending this book to me! Loved it.
Free_dreamer, thank you for recommending it to me in the first place! Moving onto book two :)
February 21, 2017
Oh my, I loved it so much! Why did it take me so long to get to read it? I know why - because for a while I thought I didn't like m/m fantasy. And because a lot of people said it was kinda slow. Okay, I must say I know what a slow fantasy book is - and that is not it :) Maybe the beginning took a bit of time, yes, but once Ennek was set on his path, it was flowing. I barely made myself put it away yesterday to go to sleep.
This book... just have no words how much I loved it. It was so... comforting. Like something warm and soft and beautiful, nothing was scratchy, nothing felt wrong, nothing grated on me. I think I forgot what a kind author Kim Fielding is. And I don't mean that she coddles her characters, not at all, they suffer and a lot, but she never makes anything bad happen to them just to be mean or to milk some angst out of the situation. And her moral compass is perfect. Yes, okay, maybe it shows how limited my taste is - but this is what I love to see in stories involving slavery. I hate it when abuse is justified because it is "hot" or because "it is the way the society is". I love it that in her stories freedom, and compassion, and dignity are the values that are always there.
- maybe it was too romantic, maybe it wouldn't matter much if it were otherwise - but dear me, it just increased my love for this book even more. Made me love Ennek even more. I loved both of them... I don't know, maybe later, in other books, I'll be angry with one or both of them - but right now they both are so precious to me: Ennek, pure, and strong, and compassionate - and Miner, so reasonable, and kind, and brave to love again after everything that happened to him.
Anyway, this book was *exactly* what I love: hurt, rescue from a horrible situation, comfort, being forced into being a master, sacrificing for love, and characters I can respect and admire with all my heart.
I'm soooo glad there are two more books, even though I'm sure there will be difficult moments when reading them.
This book... just have no words how much I loved it. It was so... comforting. Like something warm and soft and beautiful, nothing was scratchy, nothing felt wrong, nothing grated on me. I think I forgot what a kind author Kim Fielding is. And I don't mean that she coddles her characters, not at all, they suffer and a lot, but she never makes anything bad happen to them just to be mean or to milk some angst out of the situation. And her moral compass is perfect. Yes, okay, maybe it shows how limited my taste is - but this is what I love to see in stories involving slavery. I hate it when abuse is justified because it is "hot" or because "it is the way the society is". I love it that in her stories freedom, and compassion, and dignity are the values that are always there.
- maybe it was too romantic, maybe it wouldn't matter much if it were otherwise - but dear me, it just increased my love for this book even more. Made me love Ennek even more. I loved both of them... I don't know, maybe later, in other books, I'll be angry with one or both of them - but right now they both are so precious to me: Ennek, pure, and strong, and compassionate - and Miner, so reasonable, and kind, and brave to love again after everything that happened to him.
Anyway, this book was *exactly* what I love: hurt, rescue from a horrible situation, comfort, being forced into being a master, sacrificing for love, and characters I can respect and admire with all my heart.
I'm soooo glad there are two more books, even though I'm sure there will be difficult moments when reading them.
March 6, 2022
Started this a month ago. I felt like it really dragged. Stopped for 3 weeks, than picked it up again.
I liked the story in general, it's really intriguing. But It was slow-going for me. I think I just picked the wrong time to read it.
The ending however was rushed. Suddenly everything clicked into place, it was too easy.
Not sure I'll continue the series.
I liked the story in general, it's really intriguing. But It was slow-going for me. I think I just picked the wrong time to read it.
The ending however was rushed. Suddenly everything clicked into place, it was too easy.
Not sure I'll continue the series.
March 13, 2020
I feel like the characters personalities were a little blank, especially Miner, and it was a tad rushed but overall a decent read and I’ll definitely be picking up book two.
February 14, 2017
There were parts of Stasis that I loved and that overwhelmed me. However, I also felt that the story took a very very long time to develop and I put this away repeatedly because I just couldn`t bring myself to read on. Not a lot that happened and the romance was almost nonexistent until the very end.
Ennek is the younger son of the "Chief" who reigns the "Polis" which has very strict laws that are strictly enforced.
People not obeying are either severely punished, executed, or put to "stasis" for long periods. It is a state between life and deaths, people don`t breath, their heart stops beating but after they served their sentence a wizard can bring them back to life.
Miner is one of those prisoners and Ennek with the help of the wizard brings him back to life. However this help is not cheap, the wizard whom Ennek despises demands he becomes his apprentice.
I am really glad I finished it and I definitely wanted to know how it ends but honestly, I think I am not continuing with the second part.
I wouldn`t call it boring, but I also was not really hooked.
Only at the very end it picked up speed and got really interesting. Overall I would rate this 3.5 stars.
Ennek is the younger son of the "Chief" who reigns the "Polis" which has very strict laws that are strictly enforced.
People not obeying are either severely punished, executed, or put to "stasis" for long periods. It is a state between life and deaths, people don`t breath, their heart stops beating but after they served their sentence a wizard can bring them back to life.
Miner is one of those prisoners and Ennek with the help of the wizard brings him back to life. However this help is not cheap, the wizard whom Ennek despises demands he becomes his apprentice.
I am really glad I finished it and I definitely wanted to know how it ends but honestly, I think I am not continuing with the second part.
I wouldn`t call it boring, but I also was not really hooked.
Only at the very end it picked up speed and got really interesting. Overall I would rate this 3.5 stars.
March 27, 2012
I didn't start this book with high expectations, but at the end I was happy I read it and I'm willing to read the sequel. I honestly couldn't put it down. It's not a flwless book, but for a debut, self-published book, this was outstanding. The formatting was a bit weird in places, with extra indentation, but the editing was very good, there were very very few mistakes.
The world building was interesting, even if a bit unusual, because for example the transportation was not modern (carriages, horses, a hint to a future steam train), but there was a touch of modern with flush toilets and electricity, for example. I must admit that with a little more thought about the world building, I would have a better idea, because it remained a bit hazy by the end of the book.
Ennek is the youngest son of the Chief, the ruler of Praesidium. He is not the designated heir, so he can live a life of leisure, because no one has expectations about him. He is plagued by dreams of a prisoner put in Stasis, a punishment that puts the life of a person guilty of treason or other grave crimes in a sort of suspension for tens, or even hundreds of years. Once the sentence is over, the prisoner is woken up in a world that has changed and gone forwards, where he has been forgotten.
One night Ennek frees the prisoner and takes him to his chambers. He doesn't know what to do, he has no idea of how to take care of this lifeless man that seems to react to his presence. The Wizard of Preasidium, Thelius, the man who puts people in Stasis, lets Ennek know he is aware of his theft and exchanges Ennek's apprenticeship as a wizard for the prisoner. Ennek finds the Wizard unsettling, but he wants to save the prisoner's (whose name is Miner) life and he knows that he could be put in Stasis himself if someone finds out he has stolen the prisoner.
The story is in part hurt-comfort, because Ennek coaxes Miner back to life, nurturing his body and spirit, quelling his fears. Helping Miner is the one thing that makes Ennek be proud of himself, and what he is given back from Miner is admiration and affection, which Ennek's always lacked in his life. Miner makes Ennek's life fuller and worth living.
In Praesidium homosexuality is considered a deviant behaviour and it's punished. Ennek has always known he is attracted to men, but he has never acted on his attraction. Even if slowly his feelings for Miner becomes deeper, and Miner reciprocates them, their relationship is chaste. Ennek is an honorable man, he doesn't want to take advantage of Miner's condition of prisoner and slave.
Since no one knows Ennek keeps a prisoner in his chambers, the enclosed space becomes their own world. The tension depends on all the things which could go wrong, on the menace from the outside world, on the intrigue that complicates Ennek's life. Unfortunately I think the final confrontation was resolved a bit too easily and an important episode in Ennek's past wasn't given enough space.
The book doesn't end on a cliffhanger, but it's clear there's still a lot to tell about the story. If you're looking for hot sex, this is not the book for you, but if you're looking for a beautiful connection of souls, I think this might be quite right.
The world building was interesting, even if a bit unusual, because for example the transportation was not modern (carriages, horses, a hint to a future steam train), but there was a touch of modern with flush toilets and electricity, for example. I must admit that with a little more thought about the world building, I would have a better idea, because it remained a bit hazy by the end of the book.
Ennek is the youngest son of the Chief, the ruler of Praesidium. He is not the designated heir, so he can live a life of leisure, because no one has expectations about him. He is plagued by dreams of a prisoner put in Stasis, a punishment that puts the life of a person guilty of treason or other grave crimes in a sort of suspension for tens, or even hundreds of years. Once the sentence is over, the prisoner is woken up in a world that has changed and gone forwards, where he has been forgotten.
One night Ennek frees the prisoner and takes him to his chambers. He doesn't know what to do, he has no idea of how to take care of this lifeless man that seems to react to his presence. The Wizard of Preasidium, Thelius, the man who puts people in Stasis, lets Ennek know he is aware of his theft and exchanges Ennek's apprenticeship as a wizard for the prisoner. Ennek finds the Wizard unsettling, but he wants to save the prisoner's (whose name is Miner) life and he knows that he could be put in Stasis himself if someone finds out he has stolen the prisoner.
The story is in part hurt-comfort, because Ennek coaxes Miner back to life, nurturing his body and spirit, quelling his fears. Helping Miner is the one thing that makes Ennek be proud of himself, and what he is given back from Miner is admiration and affection, which Ennek's always lacked in his life. Miner makes Ennek's life fuller and worth living.
In Praesidium homosexuality is considered a deviant behaviour and it's punished. Ennek has always known he is attracted to men, but he has never acted on his attraction. Even if slowly his feelings for Miner becomes deeper, and Miner reciprocates them, their relationship is chaste. Ennek is an honorable man, he doesn't want to take advantage of Miner's condition of prisoner and slave.
Since no one knows Ennek keeps a prisoner in his chambers, the enclosed space becomes their own world. The tension depends on all the things which could go wrong, on the menace from the outside world, on the intrigue that complicates Ennek's life. Unfortunately I think the final confrontation was resolved a bit too easily and an important episode in Ennek's past wasn't given enough space.
The book doesn't end on a cliffhanger, but it's clear there's still a lot to tell about the story. If you're looking for hot sex, this is not the book for you, but if you're looking for a beautiful connection of souls, I think this might be quite right.
December 2, 2015
First, I was very reluctant to read this book as the blurb didn't sound that interessting to me. However, Stasis really surprised me; I liked it a lot. The world building was well done and I liked the whole concept of Stasis. A few questions stayed unanswered, but I'm very curious to continue the series. 4 stars!
September 7, 2013
Stasis, by Kim Fielding, is an odd little book. I had just finished reading the sixth book of another fantasy series of novels, reaching that point every fan of good fantasy dreads—waiting for the next in a series to be written and published—and a search for something else to read during my wait landed me on Fielding’s book. At only 99 cents for the Kindle edition, I thought, “Why not?”
With only 224 pages, Stasis barely meets the definition for “novel” when compared to, say, almost any other work of fantasy fiction published in that format.
Most novels in the fantasy genre range from slightly over 300 pages to well over 500 pages, with some very heavy tomes at the higher end. (“Heavy” being metaphoric for the Kindlized versions.) There is a reason for this. Most fantasy trends toward the epic in scope, involving either complex sociological and political themes or a long series of exploits, encounters, discoveries, and so forth through which the main characters come to grips with their situation and overcome whatever obstacles and enemies stand in their way—and usually, both, complex themes and a series of encounters working through those themes. Also, good fantasy often requires a great deal of world-building. Because the worlds in fantasy novels are so different from our own, authors find themselves expending energy building up the world to something we can believe might actually exist somewhere in the universe or multiverse.
Stasis, in its tone and development, forgoes much of what readers of fantasy have come to expect of the genre and in fact seems more like a very long short story rather than a novel. No doubt, Fielding’s writing process for the book contributed to this feel: It was written in one month as part of the NaNoWriMo experience. I cannot say whether that process had any positive influence on the outcome, but negative results are obvious in the final product. That said, it is still a very good short read, surprisingly good given the fact that it was written in only one month.
Giving an adequate summary of the plot of the book without including too many spoilers might be impossible, given its size. I will try.
Ennek, the main protagonist, is “the younger son” of the leader of a city-state ruled through strict enforcement of morality laws and, incidentally, through magic. Ennek’s father, the Chief, does not possess magic, but a shadowy co-ruler or enforcer, the Wizard, does possess magic, and underlying the rule of law is the ever-present threat of Stasis. Common criminals may be forced into temporary slavery as bond-slaves—with exceedingly long sentences for even relatively minor offenses—but those criminals branded as traitors to the ruling elite are sentenced to a kind of physiological imprisonment most readers will recognize from the movie Minority Report: Stasis means being suspended in a kind of webbing in chambers below the home of the elite, alive but not living, a kind of suspended animation that can last anywhere from decades to centuries.
The ruler of the city-state considers Stasis a humane form of punishment. Other city-states may execute traitors, but in Praesidium, the leader explains, these prisoners are allowed to keep their lives in Stasis, awaiting the time unawares until they are released from Stasis after decades and, typically, then forced into bond-slavery to serve out the remainder of their sentence. Bond-slavery, by the way, is no easy sentence; at one point in the book, one bond-slave tells Ennek that he was arrested while young for “joy riding” with a horse and is serving out a 40-year sentence for the crime. Ingeniously, the Wizard explains the difference between simple bond-slavery and Stasis: traitors awake after decades to find that the whole world has moved on, so whatever insurrection or traitorous activity was committed in decades past will no longer have a foothold in Praesidium. As one reads through the book however, it is easy to see that the Chief’s description of Stasis, that it is a humane form of punishment, is simply rhetoric used by him to cast the ruling family in a good light.
Ennek, as “the younger son” of the Chief, is pretty much just flotsam. His brother, the elder by six or so years, will become Chief one day, wielding all power in the city-state, and as heir is several magnitudes of importance above Ennek. There is a kind of inviolable totemic nature to the family structure in which all significance is forced upward, onto the Chief and his first-born son, and Ennek, as “the younger son,” while still recognized as a member of the ruling family is merely a kind of vestigial organ. This insignificance plays a major role in the book, after Ennek becomes aware of a particular prisoner held in Stasis and decides to free him; much that happens as a consequence of his ill-thought-out action could not have occurred if he had had the same spotlight on him that his brother, the heir, has.
For all its short length, the book is rather disquieting. Stasis, as it is described—how it is effected, the things done to some of the bodies in Stasis, some of what at least one character in Stasis experienced during his long Stasis—is far more macabre than what viewers of Minority Report will have witnessed in that sterilized, slick Hollywood treatment of a similar process. But for me, the most disquieting aspect of the book, by far, resulted from the thin veneer placed over the world it occupies. I suspect that Fielding’s writing process for the book, its having been written in only a month, contributed to this approach. At 224 pages, not much room is utilized for world-building. Instead, the setting for the book is quite obviously the western U.S. coast; but it is off-center. The home of the elites has indoor plumbing—their bathrooms seem rather like our own now, with toilets and tubs and hot water available at the turn of a knob; Ennek’s quarters could as easily have been a suite in a Marriott—and they also have indoor lighting; but the lighting is gas lighting, not electric, and they travel via horses, carriages, and ships with sails. Some mention is made of a breakthrough some city-state is about to make, of horseless vehicles, but has not yet made. They use swords; but Ennek briefly mentions guns (which never otherwise make an appearance in the book.) And there is magic, powerful magic.
Readers of fantasy who expect detailed descriptions of the processes of magic, however, will be disappointed. As little time is given to this as is given to the world-building in general. The off-center feel for the setting inhabits the whole book. Aside from Ennek and the prisoner he decides to free, and perhaps the main villain, all the rest of the characters in the book are merely backdrop. The various city-states, the land they occupy, the economy and society-at-large are mere backdrop, hardly developed at all. When you come right down to it, even the prisoner and the main villain are barely developed, at least in comparison to Ennek. The prisoner and the villain, and the principle members of the ruling family, and Ennek’s only friend in the book, do seem real—but in the way that acquaintances and colleagues around us in our everyday lives feel real. We brush against the veneer constantly, we are aware that other complete human beings shape our world, but we have no inside access to them, no connection beyond how we are affected by our constant brushes with them.
Stasis is written in a third-person limited point of view, not third-person omniscient. We are never given a real window into the thoughts, feelings, and so forth of any character but Ennek, but are instead left to experience the world as he experiences it. This approach was rather wise for Fielding, even if it was merely a consequence of the limited time put into writing the book. We know by Ennek’s reactions to his world and the people in it that he has some connection to the interior of others—so, vicariously, they do seem real to us—but frustratingly, our experience of that world is still enigmatic and limited. It seems obvious to me that Fielding’s choice of a title and theme was intended to inject some allegory into the book. Ennek, by the way, is gay in a city-state that abhors immorality; homosexuality is extreme taboo; he is furthermore “the younger son” and so shoved further aside; as such, and given the constraints of his world, at 28-years-old or so he is still a virgin — in sum, his own life is also in stasis. We come to learn that Praesidium itself appears to be in a kind of stasis, although this impression is developed more subtly, almost only barely. Against this, the off-centeredness of the book is almost like that persistent pain that warns of an underlying problem before any doctor has made a diagnosis: here is a small break in stasis which threatens a bigger break. We are as troubled by the book as Ennek is troubled by his life.
I cannot say that Fielding entirely succeeds. There are two very egregious mistakes in the book which could easily be resolved in a revision without much effort; and, one other slight irritation.
Of the two major mistakes, I can only mention one with any sort of directness without giving out a major spoiler. The directness will have to be indirect, even so: Late in the book, Ennek seemingly “forgets” something until someone reminds him of it, but it is such a thing that, really, given the whole rest of the book, it is impossible for us to believe that he did not keep it in mind daily for months. It would have been riding his mind heavily. I suspect that Fielding’s rush to complete the book in a month, her too-stubborn effort to do so, forced her hand into making the major mistake. Had Ennek really had that thing riding his mind for months, the development of the resolution to the book, its completion, would have required more finesse and more time—in all likelihood, quite a few more pages interspersed throughout at least the last third of the book.
Of the second major mistake, I can only mention another work, to avoid too great a spoiler: the movie The Incredibles. There is a lesson there, something that is parodied, but I can’t go into it further. I will however mention the word, monologuing. Suffice to say, Fielding’s rush led her into a particular trap near the end of the book.
The irritation, which is not really a major problem with the book except insofar as it exacerbated the two major mistakes, is in the lost potential of Stasis. I read the book in one sitting. As a long short story (in feel and lack of further development), it was surprisingly good, despite some stumbles—quite surprising, and almost superhuman. But it could have been so much more. I am almost irritated with Fielding directly, feeling as though she determined once and for all that it would be a book written in one month and, by god, that was what is was going to be. A deeper treatment of the world and the many implications of that world, a deeper treatment of the characters, could have led to a major work of fiction; but, alas, then she could not advertise that it was written as a NaNoWriMo enterprise.
I finished this book having enjoyed it, however slight it is. The story of Ennek and his love continues in two sequels, forming a trilogy—but a warning here: Book Two was a major, major let-down, worthy of maybe 2 stars at best. I could not bring myself to read Book 3 after the experience of Book 2. This first book can stand alone however, for what it is.
With only 224 pages, Stasis barely meets the definition for “novel” when compared to, say, almost any other work of fantasy fiction published in that format.
Most novels in the fantasy genre range from slightly over 300 pages to well over 500 pages, with some very heavy tomes at the higher end. (“Heavy” being metaphoric for the Kindlized versions.) There is a reason for this. Most fantasy trends toward the epic in scope, involving either complex sociological and political themes or a long series of exploits, encounters, discoveries, and so forth through which the main characters come to grips with their situation and overcome whatever obstacles and enemies stand in their way—and usually, both, complex themes and a series of encounters working through those themes. Also, good fantasy often requires a great deal of world-building. Because the worlds in fantasy novels are so different from our own, authors find themselves expending energy building up the world to something we can believe might actually exist somewhere in the universe or multiverse.
Stasis, in its tone and development, forgoes much of what readers of fantasy have come to expect of the genre and in fact seems more like a very long short story rather than a novel. No doubt, Fielding’s writing process for the book contributed to this feel: It was written in one month as part of the NaNoWriMo experience. I cannot say whether that process had any positive influence on the outcome, but negative results are obvious in the final product. That said, it is still a very good short read, surprisingly good given the fact that it was written in only one month.
Giving an adequate summary of the plot of the book without including too many spoilers might be impossible, given its size. I will try.
Ennek, the main protagonist, is “the younger son” of the leader of a city-state ruled through strict enforcement of morality laws and, incidentally, through magic. Ennek’s father, the Chief, does not possess magic, but a shadowy co-ruler or enforcer, the Wizard, does possess magic, and underlying the rule of law is the ever-present threat of Stasis. Common criminals may be forced into temporary slavery as bond-slaves—with exceedingly long sentences for even relatively minor offenses—but those criminals branded as traitors to the ruling elite are sentenced to a kind of physiological imprisonment most readers will recognize from the movie Minority Report: Stasis means being suspended in a kind of webbing in chambers below the home of the elite, alive but not living, a kind of suspended animation that can last anywhere from decades to centuries.
The ruler of the city-state considers Stasis a humane form of punishment. Other city-states may execute traitors, but in Praesidium, the leader explains, these prisoners are allowed to keep their lives in Stasis, awaiting the time unawares until they are released from Stasis after decades and, typically, then forced into bond-slavery to serve out the remainder of their sentence. Bond-slavery, by the way, is no easy sentence; at one point in the book, one bond-slave tells Ennek that he was arrested while young for “joy riding” with a horse and is serving out a 40-year sentence for the crime. Ingeniously, the Wizard explains the difference between simple bond-slavery and Stasis: traitors awake after decades to find that the whole world has moved on, so whatever insurrection or traitorous activity was committed in decades past will no longer have a foothold in Praesidium. As one reads through the book however, it is easy to see that the Chief’s description of Stasis, that it is a humane form of punishment, is simply rhetoric used by him to cast the ruling family in a good light.
Ennek, as “the younger son” of the Chief, is pretty much just flotsam. His brother, the elder by six or so years, will become Chief one day, wielding all power in the city-state, and as heir is several magnitudes of importance above Ennek. There is a kind of inviolable totemic nature to the family structure in which all significance is forced upward, onto the Chief and his first-born son, and Ennek, as “the younger son,” while still recognized as a member of the ruling family is merely a kind of vestigial organ. This insignificance plays a major role in the book, after Ennek becomes aware of a particular prisoner held in Stasis and decides to free him; much that happens as a consequence of his ill-thought-out action could not have occurred if he had had the same spotlight on him that his brother, the heir, has.
For all its short length, the book is rather disquieting. Stasis, as it is described—how it is effected, the things done to some of the bodies in Stasis, some of what at least one character in Stasis experienced during his long Stasis—is far more macabre than what viewers of Minority Report will have witnessed in that sterilized, slick Hollywood treatment of a similar process. But for me, the most disquieting aspect of the book, by far, resulted from the thin veneer placed over the world it occupies. I suspect that Fielding’s writing process for the book, its having been written in only a month, contributed to this approach. At 224 pages, not much room is utilized for world-building. Instead, the setting for the book is quite obviously the western U.S. coast; but it is off-center. The home of the elites has indoor plumbing—their bathrooms seem rather like our own now, with toilets and tubs and hot water available at the turn of a knob; Ennek’s quarters could as easily have been a suite in a Marriott—and they also have indoor lighting; but the lighting is gas lighting, not electric, and they travel via horses, carriages, and ships with sails. Some mention is made of a breakthrough some city-state is about to make, of horseless vehicles, but has not yet made. They use swords; but Ennek briefly mentions guns (which never otherwise make an appearance in the book.) And there is magic, powerful magic.
Readers of fantasy who expect detailed descriptions of the processes of magic, however, will be disappointed. As little time is given to this as is given to the world-building in general. The off-center feel for the setting inhabits the whole book. Aside from Ennek and the prisoner he decides to free, and perhaps the main villain, all the rest of the characters in the book are merely backdrop. The various city-states, the land they occupy, the economy and society-at-large are mere backdrop, hardly developed at all. When you come right down to it, even the prisoner and the main villain are barely developed, at least in comparison to Ennek. The prisoner and the villain, and the principle members of the ruling family, and Ennek’s only friend in the book, do seem real—but in the way that acquaintances and colleagues around us in our everyday lives feel real. We brush against the veneer constantly, we are aware that other complete human beings shape our world, but we have no inside access to them, no connection beyond how we are affected by our constant brushes with them.
Stasis is written in a third-person limited point of view, not third-person omniscient. We are never given a real window into the thoughts, feelings, and so forth of any character but Ennek, but are instead left to experience the world as he experiences it. This approach was rather wise for Fielding, even if it was merely a consequence of the limited time put into writing the book. We know by Ennek’s reactions to his world and the people in it that he has some connection to the interior of others—so, vicariously, they do seem real to us—but frustratingly, our experience of that world is still enigmatic and limited. It seems obvious to me that Fielding’s choice of a title and theme was intended to inject some allegory into the book. Ennek, by the way, is gay in a city-state that abhors immorality; homosexuality is extreme taboo; he is furthermore “the younger son” and so shoved further aside; as such, and given the constraints of his world, at 28-years-old or so he is still a virgin — in sum, his own life is also in stasis. We come to learn that Praesidium itself appears to be in a kind of stasis, although this impression is developed more subtly, almost only barely. Against this, the off-centeredness of the book is almost like that persistent pain that warns of an underlying problem before any doctor has made a diagnosis: here is a small break in stasis which threatens a bigger break. We are as troubled by the book as Ennek is troubled by his life.
I cannot say that Fielding entirely succeeds. There are two very egregious mistakes in the book which could easily be resolved in a revision without much effort; and, one other slight irritation.
Of the two major mistakes, I can only mention one with any sort of directness without giving out a major spoiler. The directness will have to be indirect, even so: Late in the book, Ennek seemingly “forgets” something until someone reminds him of it, but it is such a thing that, really, given the whole rest of the book, it is impossible for us to believe that he did not keep it in mind daily for months. It would have been riding his mind heavily. I suspect that Fielding’s rush to complete the book in a month, her too-stubborn effort to do so, forced her hand into making the major mistake. Had Ennek really had that thing riding his mind for months, the development of the resolution to the book, its completion, would have required more finesse and more time—in all likelihood, quite a few more pages interspersed throughout at least the last third of the book.
Of the second major mistake, I can only mention another work, to avoid too great a spoiler: the movie The Incredibles. There is a lesson there, something that is parodied, but I can’t go into it further. I will however mention the word, monologuing. Suffice to say, Fielding’s rush led her into a particular trap near the end of the book.
The irritation, which is not really a major problem with the book except insofar as it exacerbated the two major mistakes, is in the lost potential of Stasis. I read the book in one sitting. As a long short story (in feel and lack of further development), it was surprisingly good, despite some stumbles—quite surprising, and almost superhuman. But it could have been so much more. I am almost irritated with Fielding directly, feeling as though she determined once and for all that it would be a book written in one month and, by god, that was what is was going to be. A deeper treatment of the world and the many implications of that world, a deeper treatment of the characters, could have led to a major work of fiction; but, alas, then she could not advertise that it was written as a NaNoWriMo enterprise.
I finished this book having enjoyed it, however slight it is. The story of Ennek and his love continues in two sequels, forming a trilogy—but a warning here: Book Two was a major, major let-down, worthy of maybe 2 stars at best. I could not bring myself to read Book 3 after the experience of Book 2. This first book can stand alone however, for what it is.
May 17, 2016
From the moment I read the blurb for this book, I was fascinated with this world of city-states, strict laws that can result in magic-induced stasis for the worst criminals, and a young man who is the ruler’s second son, but does not agree with some of the laws he is supposed to help uphold. As I was reading the story and got to know this world in more detail, it became apparent that most of the similarities are quite superficial. We may have some shared history - Latin was mentioned as a language of the educated and for spells – and the law against sodomy is in full force, but that is pretty much where the similarities end. This world has city states that trade with each other; there was no mention of war. Their technology is at the level of the early eighteenth century of our Earth. But the biggest difference is that magic exists and is used for all kinds of purposes, including medicine.
The story is about Ennek, the second son of the chief who rules Praesidium, the most powerful city-state on Earth, with an iron fist and no empathy. This first part of the trilogy focuses on Ennek’s awakening, coming of age, and the beginning of independent thought replacing his complacency and acceptance of the ways things are. Ennek’s back story only slowly emerges as things are set in motion that will change his life. There have always been hints that he is different as he grew up, but he never put two and two together, so to speak, until he is almost thirty. Once he does see the whole picture, very gradually he begins to develop the courage to think about a way out. But even his final actions are provoked, almost forced on him, and it will be interesting to see how he deals with the new situation in the second part of this trilogy.
I had trouble understanding Ennek. He is very passive throughout most of the book, and a lot of what he learns over the years gets ignored at first. Ennek is very good at compartmentalizing his feelings, but he does have a clear idea of what is right and wrong. He hates the idea of stasis, comes to understand that slavery is not the answer, and despises the wizard who uses people – including Ennek – to become ever more powerful. Ennek is not impulsive and not easily angered, and that is probably a good thing in his situation. While I can’t understand how it could take anyone that long to see the truth and act on it, I have not grown up in the repressive and cruel environment he has, and I can see how his past has made him the man he is.
If you like fantasy worlds that are different from ours, with laws and a history all their own, if you enjoy watching a young man come into his own – very, very gradually, and if you’re looking for a read that is full of mystery, suspense, emerging emotions, and a sense of an adventure just beginning, then you will probably like this novel. I definitely look forward to the next stage of Ennek’s journey!
NOTE: This book was provided by DSP Publications for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
The story is about Ennek, the second son of the chief who rules Praesidium, the most powerful city-state on Earth, with an iron fist and no empathy. This first part of the trilogy focuses on Ennek’s awakening, coming of age, and the beginning of independent thought replacing his complacency and acceptance of the ways things are. Ennek’s back story only slowly emerges as things are set in motion that will change his life. There have always been hints that he is different as he grew up, but he never put two and two together, so to speak, until he is almost thirty. Once he does see the whole picture, very gradually he begins to develop the courage to think about a way out. But even his final actions are provoked, almost forced on him, and it will be interesting to see how he deals with the new situation in the second part of this trilogy.
I had trouble understanding Ennek. He is very passive throughout most of the book, and a lot of what he learns over the years gets ignored at first. Ennek is very good at compartmentalizing his feelings, but he does have a clear idea of what is right and wrong. He hates the idea of stasis, comes to understand that slavery is not the answer, and despises the wizard who uses people – including Ennek – to become ever more powerful. Ennek is not impulsive and not easily angered, and that is probably a good thing in his situation. While I can’t understand how it could take anyone that long to see the truth and act on it, I have not grown up in the repressive and cruel environment he has, and I can see how his past has made him the man he is.
If you like fantasy worlds that are different from ours, with laws and a history all their own, if you enjoy watching a young man come into his own – very, very gradually, and if you’re looking for a read that is full of mystery, suspense, emerging emotions, and a sense of an adventure just beginning, then you will probably like this novel. I definitely look forward to the next stage of Ennek’s journey!
NOTE: This book was provided by DSP Publications for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
April 6, 2012
5 stars are not enough... I wish I could give more to this marvelous fantasy book!
In a fantasy land, called Praesidium....
The population live following countless rules. No mercy, and no possibility of scape. Even small crimes can be punished with slavery (time of slavery change for each crime, but it's always slavery)... and worst of all, there is also the possibility of a horrible fate... Stasis.
Stasis is a magical induced dead. Prisoners are keep "dead" to be wakened and certainly be also forced to live as slaves. It's an horrible punishment, and the worst nightmare to all... because Stasis is really a dead, or prisoners can suffer during it? No one know.
All rules and the law itself is in the hands of one family, and each first male son of the direct line of accession will be the Chief. The chief is the law... the chief is heartless... the chief... is the personification of oppression.
I can't express how much I was mesmerized with this world. It's a complex world, and each page is a new discover, of how the population must deal with this way of life, where everyone fear everything... everyone... even the second son of the Chief.
Ennek is not in the succession to be (as his father), the ruler. But he is the Chief son.
He never know love, never felt a touch of affection, never... feel alive. All the book is his point of view, and it's priceless! See him, step by step, trying to be himself, and try to find his place in such hard society. I can't say I like Ennek... "like" is such ordinary endorsement! You must read, to fall in love with him too! You will want to hug him, and never let him go... tell him there is hope... tell him you are sorry for his sadness... tell him... love will find him someday... and... love found Ennek. In the most unusual way.
can't say more... Ennek journey to fight for his believes, to help a stranger, just because in his heart he know Stasis is a too hard punishment.
Read it... to discover you too, how can one of the most important person of a city, decide to risk his own safety to help a simple prisoner...
In one word, Ennek is determination... while Miner... is impossible to define.
I must read more, to know who is he.
Ennek and Miner adventure will not end in this book, so know you will have to read more, not just this first book of the serie... but believe me, it will be a pleasure, read this one, and go on reading more. I already bought the second, and well, must read more now.
I really really like this story and certainly I recommend it to everyone.
In a fantasy land, called Praesidium....
The population live following countless rules. No mercy, and no possibility of scape. Even small crimes can be punished with slavery (time of slavery change for each crime, but it's always slavery)... and worst of all, there is also the possibility of a horrible fate... Stasis.
Stasis is a magical induced dead. Prisoners are keep "dead" to be wakened and certainly be also forced to live as slaves. It's an horrible punishment, and the worst nightmare to all... because Stasis is really a dead, or prisoners can suffer during it? No one know.
All rules and the law itself is in the hands of one family, and each first male son of the direct line of accession will be the Chief. The chief is the law... the chief is heartless... the chief... is the personification of oppression.
I can't express how much I was mesmerized with this world. It's a complex world, and each page is a new discover, of how the population must deal with this way of life, where everyone fear everything... everyone... even the second son of the Chief.
Ennek is not in the succession to be (as his father), the ruler. But he is the Chief son.
He never know love, never felt a touch of affection, never... feel alive. All the book is his point of view, and it's priceless! See him, step by step, trying to be himself, and try to find his place in such hard society. I can't say I like Ennek... "like" is such ordinary endorsement! You must read, to fall in love with him too! You will want to hug him, and never let him go... tell him there is hope... tell him you are sorry for his sadness... tell him... love will find him someday... and... love found Ennek. In the most unusual way.
can't say more... Ennek journey to fight for his believes, to help a stranger, just because in his heart he know Stasis is a too hard punishment.
Read it... to discover you too, how can one of the most important person of a city, decide to risk his own safety to help a simple prisoner...
In one word, Ennek is determination... while Miner... is impossible to define.
I must read more, to know who is he.
Ennek and Miner adventure will not end in this book, so know you will have to read more, not just this first book of the serie... but believe me, it will be a pleasure, read this one, and go on reading more. I already bought the second, and well, must read more now.
I really really like this story and certainly I recommend it to everyone.
October 10, 2018
I've got to admit, this was a good but very strange book. I thought the plot was great but some areas of it were quite weird.
The first half was slow and dragged slightly but the second half was a lot better and more fast paced. I definitely preferred the second half to the first.
The LGBTQ+ scenes were written and handled very well though and I was impressed with how much respect they were dealt.
I liked Thelius' character as well as Ennek's but didn't particularly like Miner's. I felt like Miner could've used some more personality.
I received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
The first half was slow and dragged slightly but the second half was a lot better and more fast paced. I definitely preferred the second half to the first.
The LGBTQ+ scenes were written and handled very well though and I was impressed with how much respect they were dealt.
I liked Thelius' character as well as Ennek's but didn't particularly like Miner's. I felt like Miner could've used some more personality.
I received this book via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
September 15, 2014
3.5 stars. The first half was a bit slow, but the second half of this fun little fantasy novel was much more exciting. Not quite as polished as Kim Fielding's other stories, but overall thoroughly enjoyable for a self-pub.
October 10, 2023
Oooh dark. Kim Fielding's Stasis has been on my tbr shelf for way too long, glad I finally got around to it.
The audio is nicely performed by Robert Scigfimpaglia.
The audio is nicely performed by Robert Scigfimpaglia.
February 8, 2025
3.5 stars
Having read so many of Kim Fielding's books, especially her shorter stories, with Stasis I feel a little underwhelmed... :(
Maybe because it's one of her older works. I've got used to her great little stories that have enough world-building and character development, and action that would draw you in and make you believe the MCs and their world.
With Stasis I feel like there were plot gaps, the MCs, Ennek and Miner, didn't do their best with their page time and the pace was simply slightly off.
My absolute favourite by Kim Fielding is The Bureau series (here it is) and I'm afraid I do compare her other works to those shorts while reading...
However, I am still very curious about Ennek and Miner's further adventures (we get a very open ending in Stasis) so I'm going to dive right in into Flux now ;)
Having read so many of Kim Fielding's books, especially her shorter stories, with Stasis I feel a little underwhelmed... :(
Maybe because it's one of her older works. I've got used to her great little stories that have enough world-building and character development, and action that would draw you in and make you believe the MCs and their world.
With Stasis I feel like there were plot gaps, the MCs, Ennek and Miner, didn't do their best with their page time and the pace was simply slightly off.
My absolute favourite by Kim Fielding is The Bureau series (here it is) and I'm afraid I do compare her other works to those shorts while reading...
However, I am still very curious about Ennek and Miner's further adventures (we get a very open ending in Stasis) so I'm going to dive right in into Flux now ;)
May 7, 2017
I was impressed with the world-building in this book; I thought it was quite original and very imaginative. It's a fantasy world, but similar to ours in some ways (before technology), so I could imagine it quite clearly.
While a little slow to build, once it gets going I found I could not put it down. I felt for both Ennek and Miner, and though the story is told through Ennek's POV only, the reader gets a rough idea of the anguish Miner is and was in.
Frankly, Stasis, the punishment meted out for offenses, particularly treason, against the establishment, is horrifying, and the way Fielding doesn't downplay or amplify Stasis, but rather explains it as part of the status quo that makes it all the more nightmarish.
The magical aspect to the story, with one the four elements being a cornerstone to a wizard's power was interesting and well played. The "evil" wizard here is a deliciously horrible bad guy.
Luckily, even though the book ends with a cliffhanger, it's not the kind that leaves you angry, and the other books have already been released.
This is a low steam book. There is not a lot of passionate interaction between Ennek and Miner, because Miner is a slave. Though it's not expressly or explicitly said or thought, it's understood by the reader that Ennek wouldn't do that to Miner when, as a slave, he can't really consent. So there's low steam, with merely hints at more, and I personally felt like that was appropriate to the situation.
I'm really, really glad the other books in the trilogy (Flux, and Equipoise) are already available and able for me to read...because I can't wait to find out what happens next!
Galley copy of Stasis (Ennek Trilogy #1) provided by the author in exchange of an honest review.
This review has been cross-posted at Gay Book Reviews.
While a little slow to build, once it gets going I found I could not put it down. I felt for both Ennek and Miner, and though the story is told through Ennek's POV only, the reader gets a rough idea of the anguish Miner is and was in.
Frankly, Stasis, the punishment meted out for offenses, particularly treason, against the establishment, is horrifying, and the way Fielding doesn't downplay or amplify Stasis, but rather explains it as part of the status quo that makes it all the more nightmarish.
The magical aspect to the story, with one the four elements being a cornerstone to a wizard's power was interesting and well played. The "evil" wizard here is a deliciously horrible bad guy.
Luckily, even though the book ends with a cliffhanger, it's not the kind that leaves you angry, and the other books have already been released.
This is a low steam book. There is not a lot of passionate interaction between Ennek and Miner, because Miner is a slave. Though it's not expressly or explicitly said or thought, it's understood by the reader that Ennek wouldn't do that to Miner when, as a slave, he can't really consent. So there's low steam, with merely hints at more, and I personally felt like that was appropriate to the situation.
I'm really, really glad the other books in the trilogy (Flux, and Equipoise) are already available and able for me to read...because I can't wait to find out what happens next!
Galley copy of Stasis (Ennek Trilogy #1) provided by the author in exchange of an honest review.
This review has been cross-posted at Gay Book Reviews.
March 26, 2012
This was so SO close to 4 stars but in the end I just couldn't do it. This is definitely an intriguing and interesting fantasy story. It meshes historical with contemporary. They lived in a castle Keep and rode in carriages but had toilets and toothbrushes. I enjoyed the mix of the two and felt it wasn't necessary to go one way or the other because it was clearly fantasy and not meant to be accurate. In terms of the characters I felt a little disappointed. I really liked Ennek (the Chief's second son) and Miner (the traitor put in stasis as punishment) but I feel the author could have done so much more with them! There were sparks throughout the story and I wish she would have kindled them into flames. For example,
She gave me enough information to draw my own story/conclusions but that's why I read damn it! I don't want to have to do the leg work. Another area I would have liked to seen developed further is the battle etc between Ennek and Thelius the Wizard. I would have liked to see more strength and decision from Ennek. Although I really liked Miner I thought he too could have been developed further and given more personality. The storyline was neither a romance or a suspense thriller but a mix of both. And then there's the ending. It ended so abruptly I honestly had a moment where I was like "What...wait....that's it?" I had to check my kindle to be sure I was at 99%
Other than that though the story was unique and enthralling. I had no real clue where the author was going with the story or how exactly it would be resolved and in the end it didn't work the way I expected it, which I guess can be seen as both good and bad!
She gave me enough information to draw my own story/conclusions but that's why I read damn it! I don't want to have to do the leg work. Another area I would have liked to seen developed further is the battle etc between Ennek and Thelius the Wizard. I would have liked to see more strength and decision from Ennek. Although I really liked Miner I thought he too could have been developed further and given more personality. The storyline was neither a romance or a suspense thriller but a mix of both. And then there's the ending. It ended so abruptly I honestly had a moment where I was like "What...wait....that's it?" I had to check my kindle to be sure I was at 99%
Other than that though the story was unique and enthralling. I had no real clue where the author was going with the story or how exactly it would be resolved and in the end it didn't work the way I expected it, which I guess can be seen as both good and bad!
November 30, 2013
Okay. So I've only read this book multiple times and just realized I DID NOT REVIEW IT FOR SOME UNFATHOMABLE REASON. What is wrong with me?! Good thing I remember enough to write SOMETHING down...
Praesidium is a polis situated adjacent to a bay, ruled by the Chief, who happens to be Ennek's father. As the second son, Ennek has had the freedom to explore his own selfish interests while his older brother is raised to become the next in succession.
I could gush and pour lots of praise about Kim Fielding's ability to craft such a magnificent fantasy world. And by "magnificent," I don't mean all rainbows and sunshine. Because the author has developed a world where cruel things can happen.
Like stasis.
And when Ennek finds the person who has haunted his dreams since childhood, he can't help but start something he could not take back. Because Miner, the prisoner who has lied in "stasis" for 300 years, becomes more than a curiosity. And in keeping Miner away from prying eyes in this homophobic society, the Chief and the Wizard of the polis, Ennek will have to shed the life of indulgences to protect what is truly important to him.
So there is magic.
There is romance.
There is even the start of an adventure.
There is no sex, though that's okay. Because I love everything else about this book/series. My only complaint that knocked this from a 5 star read to a 4 star is that it does take a while for Miner to come into the picture. There's a lot of Ennek and world building at first, so it does start slow. But once Miner is there, I became a very happy reader.
*gushes some more*
Praesidium is a polis situated adjacent to a bay, ruled by the Chief, who happens to be Ennek's father. As the second son, Ennek has had the freedom to explore his own selfish interests while his older brother is raised to become the next in succession.
I could gush and pour lots of praise about Kim Fielding's ability to craft such a magnificent fantasy world. And by "magnificent," I don't mean all rainbows and sunshine. Because the author has developed a world where cruel things can happen.
Like stasis.
And when Ennek finds the person who has haunted his dreams since childhood, he can't help but start something he could not take back. Because Miner, the prisoner who has lied in "stasis" for 300 years, becomes more than a curiosity. And in keeping Miner away from prying eyes in this homophobic society, the Chief and the Wizard of the polis, Ennek will have to shed the life of indulgences to protect what is truly important to him.
So there is magic.
There is romance.
There is even the start of an adventure.
There is no sex, though that's okay. Because I love everything else about this book/series. My only complaint that knocked this from a 5 star read to a 4 star is that it does take a while for Miner to come into the picture. There's a lot of Ennek and world building at first, so it does start slow. But once Miner is there, I became a very happy reader.
*gushes some more*
February 22, 2021
3.5 stars. The slowest burn romance of all time, it was poignant in its way. It's really a story about being trapped; physically, morally, and by the weight of expectations. It's very PG, which I don't love, but I enjoyed the story nonetheless.
August 21, 2017
It took me more than one year to finish this book. I don't know why. I think maybe it's because Kim Fielding made me we care so much about the characters I just didn't want to rush things and I didn't want to see bad things happen. Whenever, I finished it. I loved it and I'm ready for what's next.
October 26, 2018
I didn't love it, but I didn't hate reading it. I never fully connected with the story, and the ending honestly leaves me a little....underwhelmed. I wish there was more payoff, though maybe that comes further in the series? The plot moves fairly well, it wasn't like it was a chore to read. I even kind of like the characters...I guess.
November 28, 2019
Altro romance mm.
Devo dire che Kim fielding è brava ad usare in modo interessante dinamiche di potere nella coppia che potenzialmente potrebbero risultare agghiaccianti.
Anche questo è un talento. Non risultare problematici con cose così.
Poi non so devo capire se la dinamica schiavo/servo/prigioniero è una cosa che scrive così spesso o se io ho beccato gli unici due libri che la usano
Devo dire che Kim fielding è brava ad usare in modo interessante dinamiche di potere nella coppia che potenzialmente potrebbero risultare agghiaccianti.
Anche questo è un talento. Non risultare problematici con cose così.
Poi non so devo capire se la dinamica schiavo/servo/prigioniero è una cosa che scrive così spesso o se io ho beccato gli unici due libri che la usano
May 16, 2016
Author Kim Fielding aims straight for the heartstrings in Stasis, book one in the Ennek Trilogy, and she scores a direct hit. The series’ namesake, Ennek, is the spare son of the ruling Chief of Praesidium, a polis in an alternate universe to which the author’s given both an archaic and modern feel. Ennek is largely dismissed as a man of any sort of worth in spite of the fact that he’s more than just a pretty face. And he also has a secret. A secret that he must hide at all costs, because this particular secret could cost him his freedom. If not his life.
Justice is meted out in varying levels of horrid in this -verse: indentured servitude being one of the kinder punishments—if one punishment can be considered kind in relationship to another—the other being Stasis, a state of suspension that is akin to a living death. Prisoners are kept in a place called Under, the Tartarus of this world, where they exist in a state deeper than coma; alive yet not breathing, living yet not aware, surviving yet not thriving. And it’s here that Ennek first encounters a prisoner who begins to haunt his dreams, a man who is in a limbo of sorts between Stasis and Sentience. And has been for three hundred years.
Miner is that criminal, thought that’s rather an ungenerous term for a man who committed a crime of passion for an unjust punishment carried out against the man he loved, and he unwittingly becomes a bargaining chip and a tool of leverage between Ennek and Thelius, Praesidium’s wizard, a man whose absolute power has corrupted him absolutely.
Ennek and Miner’s circumstantial relationship begins with Ennek’s curious obsession with the prisoner whose unseeing gaze haunts Ennek’s conscience and sub-conscience, especially as this Chief’s son experiences an awakening and an awareness of the world around him, and sees that slavery is the means by which his family has maintained its privilege. It was easy to feel a great sense of compassion toward both of these characters, Miner in particular, as he not only wakes up to a world that has gone through major changes in three centuries but he also wakes up grieving for the life he’s lost. He’s also coming to terms with his rather unsettling position as the pawn in Ennek and Thelius’s bargain, but Ennek’s gentle kindness begins the sweet evolution of deeper feelings. And forbidden emotions also give rise to no small amount of fear.
I am nothing less than hooked on the danger Kim Fielding delivers to keep the pace of this story in direct competition with the slow and sweet untangling of Ennek’s and Miner’s feelings for each other. The world she’s building around them is harsh and unforgiving but is tempered by the love that’s growing between them. Fair warning, this being a trilogy, the story arc is intended to carry out over the three books in the series, so Stasis ends in a cliffhanger, one that has me anxious for the next book’s release.
If this introductory novel is anything to go by, the Ennek trilogy is ramping up to be an exciting and romantic series.
Reviewed by Lisa for The Novel Approach Reviews
http://www.thenovelapproachreviews.co...
Justice is meted out in varying levels of horrid in this -verse: indentured servitude being one of the kinder punishments—if one punishment can be considered kind in relationship to another—the other being Stasis, a state of suspension that is akin to a living death. Prisoners are kept in a place called Under, the Tartarus of this world, where they exist in a state deeper than coma; alive yet not breathing, living yet not aware, surviving yet not thriving. And it’s here that Ennek first encounters a prisoner who begins to haunt his dreams, a man who is in a limbo of sorts between Stasis and Sentience. And has been for three hundred years.
Miner is that criminal, thought that’s rather an ungenerous term for a man who committed a crime of passion for an unjust punishment carried out against the man he loved, and he unwittingly becomes a bargaining chip and a tool of leverage between Ennek and Thelius, Praesidium’s wizard, a man whose absolute power has corrupted him absolutely.
Ennek and Miner’s circumstantial relationship begins with Ennek’s curious obsession with the prisoner whose unseeing gaze haunts Ennek’s conscience and sub-conscience, especially as this Chief’s son experiences an awakening and an awareness of the world around him, and sees that slavery is the means by which his family has maintained its privilege. It was easy to feel a great sense of compassion toward both of these characters, Miner in particular, as he not only wakes up to a world that has gone through major changes in three centuries but he also wakes up grieving for the life he’s lost. He’s also coming to terms with his rather unsettling position as the pawn in Ennek and Thelius’s bargain, but Ennek’s gentle kindness begins the sweet evolution of deeper feelings. And forbidden emotions also give rise to no small amount of fear.
I am nothing less than hooked on the danger Kim Fielding delivers to keep the pace of this story in direct competition with the slow and sweet untangling of Ennek’s and Miner’s feelings for each other. The world she’s building around them is harsh and unforgiving but is tempered by the love that’s growing between them. Fair warning, this being a trilogy, the story arc is intended to carry out over the three books in the series, so Stasis ends in a cliffhanger, one that has me anxious for the next book’s release.
If this introductory novel is anything to go by, the Ennek trilogy is ramping up to be an exciting and romantic series.
Reviewed by Lisa for The Novel Approach Reviews
http://www.thenovelapproachreviews.co...
September 6, 2018
This is an amazing piece of fiction (especially considering it was originally written for NaNoWriMo) that draws the reader in immediately from the first page and keeps you hooked to the last. The characters are all fully formed, with motivations and histories of their own. There's the Chief, a stern ruler who will not bend the rules for anyone, even his own son, and expects everyone to adhere completely to the law, however unjust those laws may be. There's the heir, who may not like some of the laws but is determined to follow in his father's footsteps and keep their polis the best in all the lands. There's the wizard, a cold and calculating man hiding his intentions behind a mask of loyalty. There's the slave, removed from his time through a process called Statis, doing his best to adjust to a new world he can only catch of glimpse of through his window. And there's of course Ennek, the protagonist, the younger son of the chief, who is expected to only be pretty and is known for his drunkenness and gambling. This is about his awakening from a sheltered boy into a man with his own convictions, ambitions and desires. His journey is engaging and at times appears to be hopeless as he's still struggling to think of himself as someone who matters.
There is a lot of attention to detail and if I have one nitpick, it's that the book could have used a little more. I'm assuming this world is supposed to be modeled after the mid- to late-1800s. They have indoor plumbing with apparently instant hot water and flushing toilets (probably only the upper classes enjoy this technology), electricity and rubber balloons, but not cars and Ennek's treadmill is described as an "ingenious contraption". The clothes are more modern than I had first assumed, as is much of the language, but most of that can fit into the 1800-era model also, along with their slave society and prudish morals. The problem though is that I'm assuming this. I would assume one thing and a couple of pages later the author would drop in a detail that made me readjust that assumption. I'm not expecting Tolkien-level of detail, but even a couple more pages at the start devoted to describing this world would have given the reader a firmer grasp of what this world looked like as the story unfolded.
Hopefully, we'll get more of those details in the next book which I most certainly am looking forward to.
There is a lot of attention to detail and if I have one nitpick, it's that the book could have used a little more. I'm assuming this world is supposed to be modeled after the mid- to late-1800s. They have indoor plumbing with apparently instant hot water and flushing toilets (probably only the upper classes enjoy this technology), electricity and rubber balloons, but not cars and Ennek's treadmill is described as an "ingenious contraption". The clothes are more modern than I had first assumed, as is much of the language, but most of that can fit into the 1800-era model also, along with their slave society and prudish morals. The problem though is that I'm assuming this. I would assume one thing and a couple of pages later the author would drop in a detail that made me readjust that assumption. I'm not expecting Tolkien-level of detail, but even a couple more pages at the start devoted to describing this world would have given the reader a firmer grasp of what this world looked like as the story unfolded.
Hopefully, we'll get more of those details in the next book which I most certainly am looking forward to.
October 7, 2018
I would have enjoyed this more if it was shorter. Stasis is supposedly about 200-225 pages long but it felt a lot longer than that.
Content warnings include:
In a world of city states, Ennek is the son of an important Chief - but as he is the younger one, his own worth is far from high. When Ennek is a boy, he visits the prisoners that have been put into Stasis, an unconscious state that seems to stop time for the ones put in it. But the prisoner he sees does what should be impossible: he opens his eyes.
Ever since then, Ennek has been plagued by nightmares until decades later, he decides he has to do something to help.
The plot is slow moving, especially in the first part of the novel. I can't even really tell what happened most of the time. For the most part it seemed to be just Ennek going about his life, feeling like he can't do anything about the circumstances anyways.
Then when things actually happen, it just seems to stagnate. Months pass without anything really happening, since Ennek "can't do anything" about the situation.
The world-building was sadly neglected, which was a shame since it could have been very interesting to learn more about the city states and the international relations, or about how magic ties into this advanced historical world.
I liked that the obvious power-imbalance between the Ennek and the later love interest (though the romance isn't a bit part of the plot) is brought up from the start and Ennek is always aware of it and refuses to act because of it, rather than it only coming up after the couple already expressed interest/entered a relationship.
Content warnings include:
In a world of city states, Ennek is the son of an important Chief - but as he is the younger one, his own worth is far from high. When Ennek is a boy, he visits the prisoners that have been put into Stasis, an unconscious state that seems to stop time for the ones put in it. But the prisoner he sees does what should be impossible: he opens his eyes.
Ever since then, Ennek has been plagued by nightmares until decades later, he decides he has to do something to help.
The plot is slow moving, especially in the first part of the novel. I can't even really tell what happened most of the time. For the most part it seemed to be just Ennek going about his life, feeling like he can't do anything about the circumstances anyways.
Then when things actually happen, it just seems to stagnate. Months pass without anything really happening, since Ennek "can't do anything" about the situation.
The world-building was sadly neglected, which was a shame since it could have been very interesting to learn more about the city states and the international relations, or about how magic ties into this advanced historical world.
I liked that the obvious power-imbalance between the Ennek and the later love interest (though the romance isn't a bit part of the plot) is brought up from the start and Ennek is always aware of it and refuses to act because of it, rather than it only coming up after the couple already expressed interest/entered a relationship.
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