The Black Tides of Heaven
AuthorNeon Yang
Cover artistYuko Shimizu
LanguageEnglish
SeriesTensorate
Release number
1
PublisherTor.com
Publication date
September 2017
ISBN978-0-7653-9541-2
Followed byThe Red Threads of Fortune 
Websiteneonyang.com/books/

The Black Tides of Heaven is a 2017 LGBT fantasy novella by Singaporean author Neon Yang. The story centers around the twin children of the Protector, whose magic powers cause them to become entangled in the political machinations of their mother. It is one of the first two novellas in the Tensorate series, the other being The Red Threads of Fortune. It was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novella, Locus Award for Best Novella, and World Fantasy Award for Best Novella.

Plot summary

Sanao Hekate, The Protector, rules her empire with the help of Tensors, people who can control elemental forces known as the Slack. She opposes the development of technology for non-Tensor use and violently oppresses her populace at any hint of rebellion. As payment for the Grand Monastery's help in suppressing a rebellion, she sends her twin children Akeha and Mokoya to them.

The children train their slackcraft with the monks of the monastery, becoming proficient in the usage of their powers. Mokoya begins to have dreams which prophesy future events, particularly events involving violence; any attempt to prevent these prophecies from occurring is impossible. Mokoya suffers psychologically from the effects of her nightmares, creating strain between the twins. When the twins are almost seventeen, they undergo gender confirmation. Children in the world of the Tensorate are raised without gender, and physical differences between the sexes are suppressed by slackcraft. Mokoya chooses to be confirmed as female, while Akeha chooses to be confirmed as male.

Mokoya prophesies that a young man named Thennjay will become the next Head Abbot, despite the disapproval of the Protector. The Protector begins using Mokoya's powers to strengthen her rule but has no use for Akeha. Akeha flees the city and begins a career as a smuggler. Mokoya stays in the city, marries Thennjay, and has a daughter named Eien.

Akeha falls in love with a man named Yeongchow, who is part of the Machinist rebellion. Machinists believe that all citizens should have access to technology. The Tensors and Machinists are developing modern technologies such as guns and bombs, increasing violent conflict throughout the empire. An accident in a research lab in the Grand Monastery kills Eien and severely injures Mokoya; the Protector uses this event as a pretense for an assault on the Monastery. Akeha returns to the capital to face his mother. He bests her in a fight but does not kill her, and she agrees to withdraw troops from the monastery. Mokoya recovers and reunites with her brother for the first time in years.

Background

The novella was published on the same day as The Red Threads of Fortune, and they can be read in any order. The Red Threads of Fortune was written first, and takes place after the events of The Black Tides of Heaven. In their pitch to Tor.com, Neon Yang stated that they had more Tensorate stories to tell. Though only one novella had been written at the time, this led to the idea of publishing both debut novellas on the same day.[1]

Reception and awards

The novella has been well-received critically, with positive reviews from fantasy authors such as Ken Liu.[2] Hugo-winning author N.K. Jemisin recommended the book, praising the Tensorate novellas for their worldbuilding.[3] Geeks OUT praised the novella for its treatment of gender identity, as well as its exploration of wealth inequality.[4]

Several commenters have referred to the Tensorate world as silkpunk.[5][2]

The Black Tides of Heaven was a finalist for the 2018 Hugo Award for Best Novella,[6] 2018 Locus Award for Best Novella,[7] 2018 Nebula Award for Best Novella,[8][9] 2018 World Fantasy Award for Best Novella,[10] 2018 Gaylactic Spectrum Award for best novel,[11] 2018 Kitschies Golden Tentacle (Debut) award[12] and, as a pair with Red Threads of Fortune, was on the Honor List for the 2017 Otherwise Award[13] (at the time still named the James Tiptree Jr. Award). Yang was beaten to most of these awards by either Ellen Klages's Passing Strange[10][11] or Martha Wells's All Systems Red.[6][7][9]

References

  1. ↑ Eddy, Cheryl (24 January 2017). "J.Y. Yang's New Silkpunk Novellas Have Some of the Most Gorgeous Covers We've Ever Seen". Gizmodo. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  2. 1 2 "Macmillan: Series: The Tensorate Series". Macmillan Publishers. Retrieved 3 July 2019. "Full of love and loss, confrontation and discovery. Each moment is a glistening pearl, all strung together in a wonder of world-creation." – Ken Liu
  3. ↑ Jemisin, N.K. (6 September 2017). "The Latest in Science Fiction and Fantasy". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  4. ↑ Daniel Stalter (19 June 2018). "Review: The Black Tides of Heaven". Geeks OUT. Retrieved 23 August 2019.
  5. ↑ Sor Fern, Ong (26 Sep 2017). "J.Y. Yang's two novellas are like rojak, a surprisingly delicious blend of unexpected flavours". The Straits Times. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  6. 1 2 "2018 Hugo Awards". World Science Fiction Society. 15 March 2018. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  7. 1 2 "Locus Awards 2018". Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  8. ↑ "Nebula Awards 2018". Science Fiction Awards Database. Locus. Archived from the original on 2018-05-21. Retrieved 2018-05-20.
  9. 1 2 "2017 Nebula Awards". Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. May 19, 2018. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  10. 1 2 "World Fantasy Awards 2018". Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  11. 1 2 "2018 Best Novel Winner & Short List". Gaylactic Spectrum Awards. Archived from the original on December 3, 2018. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  12. ↑ "2017 Awards". Kitschies. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
  13. ↑ "2017 Honor List". Otherwise Award. March 25, 2018. Retrieved January 8, 2022.
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