Fantastic. Absolutely nails the smugness and insincerity of the South, along with the surprise of finding help in unexpected places. Protagonist is a perfect mix of insecurity and snark.
Thank the gods it’s a series; can’t wait to read the next one.
Three things I learned about writing:
- Narrating a character's internal debate in long-form is fine, so long as it's in the right place: when the character is away from other people. Don't do it during dialog.
- You don't need dialect to write Southern characters. Getting their facial expressions and hypocrisy right is enough.
- Finding a real-life struggle that mirrors the fantasy one is a good way to ground it.
