Tymon's Flight by Mary Victoria

"I Don't Know What's Out There, But It Knows Me..."

Tymon is a young man growing up amongst strict priests in a seminary, an indentured orphan whose life and future have been organized in full by his guardians. Only occasionally is he able to escape his chores to visit an exiled heretic and dabble in the work of science that has been all but banned by the priests. Life for Tymon is made up of routine and dreaming, but when his friend Galliano constructs a new flying device, his desire for a world beyond the confines of the seminary suddenly seems as though it could be realized.

Tymon's world is a giant tree: its boughs divided under two massive outcroppings, upon whose branches are built entire cities for its population. Transportation is achieved with floating airships, and religion, culture and social structure are all defined by the growth and lifecycle o... Read More

Samiha's Song by Mary Victoria

This is the second book of Mary Victoria's Chronicles of the Tree trilogy, following closely on the heels of Tymon’s Flight and preceding the final book Oracle’s Fire. As is always the case with middle installments, the story neither begins nor ends, though there is more scope for world-building, character development, and getting the disparate plot-threads in place for the final book.

The setting of the story is one of its most unique aspects, as the trilogy takes place in a giant tree. To the people that live upon and within its boughs, the Tree is all there is. Their culture and society are built around the tree's life cycle, their religion revolves around concepts such as "the Sap," and the lingo is marked by sayings such as "green grace!" Entire cities are built on various boughs and ou... Read More

Oracle's Fire by Mary Victoria

The third and final book in Mary Victoria’s CHRONICLES OF THE TREE trilogy, Oracle’s Fire is a worthy conclusion to the story started in Tymon’s Flight and Samiha’s Song, wrapping up the multiple storylines and giving closure on all the characters. Although the trilogy is classified as fantasy, it veers more toward science fiction what with its distinct lack of swords and sorcery, and use of religious sects, rudimentary technology and mystical visions to shape Mary Victoria’s imaginary world.

However, the trilogy’s most unique feature has always been its setting. Perhaps set some time in the distant future (or even in an alternate dimension) the entire story takes place within the roots and branches of a colossal tree. Much like Yggdrasil, the World Tree of Norse mythology, this... Read More