Genevieve Cogman's Favourite Fictional Worlds

In The Invisible Library, the story is set in a context of multiple alternate worlds: while they are all recognisably Earth, some have magic, some have technology, and some have both. Quite a number of these worlds have recognisable parallels to periods of history as we know them in our time and place, while others have obvious divergence points. And the way that the more chaos-tainted of them fall into fictional tropes doesn’t make life any easier for a travelling librarian.

 

There aren’t yet any definite cases of a librarian arriving in a particular world and finding it an exact mirror of a fictional world. This doesn’t mean that it can’t happen, of course – just that nobody’s recorded it yet. (Or nobody’s come back from such worlds…) Of course, if it was me being transported (rather than a competent librarian), then I would add a few stipulations. Generous travelling budget, bodyguards, staying well out of any war zones… 

 

One of my favourite fictional worlds to visit would be Emelan, the world of the "Circle of Magic" books by Tamora Pierce. The magic structure is interesting (personally, I want to know if I’d have ambient magic with patchwork and quilting) and I’d like to travel and meet the characters. Naturally I’d want to take in the high spots (such as Winding Circle), or the mages’ university in Lightsbridge. I’ve really enjoyed reading these books, and am looking forward to future ones: the world is very believable, both politically and metaphysically, and it’s a joy to watch the younger characters develop and to find out more about the older ones. It’s a world where you can imagine ordinary people existing, and living happily, as well as the more powerful or extraordinary ones.

 

On the more exotic side, I’d like to visit the world of the "Gentleman Bastard" series, by Scott Lynch. It’s a dangerous world, but it just sounds so very interesting, and it’s written with a richness and depth of description which I love. Admittedly this is probably one of those worlds which I’d want to view from behind a heavy barrier or while escorted by a lot of bodyguards, but it still captures my imagination. The Eldren glass bridges and towers of Camorr, the food and drink, the theology, the seas around Tal Verrar, the powers and rules of the Bondsmagi, and exactly what’s going to happen with the use of magic and what might result from it… It’s a gloriously intense, ferociously-described world. 

 

We will now turn to something more contemporary, as I would like to spend some time in Ben Aaronovitch’s London, from his "Rivers of London" series. I’ve lived in London when I was a student there, but the way he writes it makes me wish I’d spent more time just noticing the city that I was living in. I’d also like to learn Newtonian magic (no cerebral haemorrhages, I promise!) and I’d have a standing start, since I still remember a bit of basic Latin from school. More seriously, the background and the characters are fascinating, and I’d love to know if the River Aire in Leeds has its own deity. (Probably a rather fabric-focused one, given Leeds’ manufacturing history.) Aaronovitch is a brilliant writer, but he’s also a sadistic one, because he leaves us readers begging for more details. What has happened with magic in the rest of the world? Why are some people growing younger? Waiting for the next book here…

 

Still in the Earth-related area, I’d like to visit the world of Naomi Novik’s "Temeraire" series. Admittedly most of the world is currently on a war footing, and admittedly in a lot of that world, given the time period, women are restricted in their occupations and rights, but, well, dragons. I’ve been an addict of this series since book one (one of my frequent re-reads) and I have been interested throughout by the cultural and historical impacts of introducing dragons since their domestication – well, if that’s the word for it – and how things have been changed as a result. My favourite character on the human side is undoubtedly Admiral Jane Roland, who is awesome. I am also looking forward to finding out more about the long-term changes in the United Kingdom with the increased rights for dragons, women being openly known as serving in the Aerial Corps, and so on.

 

I’d also like to visit the Chicago of John M Ford’s The Last Hot Time. I think it’s because he really conveys a sense that this city is a place where magic has entered the world. (Though as the story shows, there’s more to it than that.) The elves are real, but different: they are convincing as a race which is not human, but which have their own aims and purposes and emotions. The system of magic is never actually precisely detailed, but it is conveyed in a way that gives an emotional understanding of its worth and its costs. As with all John M Ford, it’s one of those books that you keep going back to, and find something new to appreciate each time. And Chicago, in that world, is the same – people keep on going back there, and nobody ever wants to leave.

 

Oh, and if I get an extra wish – Ankh-Morpork. Because everyone should visit the Big Wahoonie.