Publisher's Weekly Review
Gesture and posture convey as much information as spoken words in Abraham's impressive first novel, a fantasy set in a world where poets create and bind powerful shape-shifting creatures called "andat." The Empire hangs on, literally, by a thread; the cloth industry depends on the ability of andat Seedless to magically remove seeds from cotton plants to keep commerce flowing and the barbarians in check. Seedless, who can also remove unborn children from their mother's womb, aims to drive his poet-creator, Heshai-kvo, mad with grief. A love triangle develops among a threesome-Heshai's apprentice, Maati; Itani, a laborer with a past; and the beautiful scribe Liat-as they unknowingly assist the andat in his plot to abort a wanted child. When Liat's master, Amat Kyaan, uncovers the plan, Amat must flee and live as a bookkeeper in a brothel. The complex characters all struggle to navigate a path between their duty to their Empire and to themselves. A blurb from George R.R. Martin will help alert his fans to this promising newcomer. (Mar.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Kirkus Review
Captivating first novel, first of a promised four-book series. The Andat are a sort of malevolent spiritual entity that, when bound by an order of "poets," have power that can be used as a kind of magic. In the city of Saraykeht, the local Andat, under the control of the city's poet, is used to speed cotton harvests, but that, and the economic future of the city, is in jeopardy when a conspiracy involving a pregnant foreign girl goes awry, leaving her baby dead. The intricate plot unfolds from the viewpoints of a woman trade advisor--who makes it her quest to find those responsible for the dead child--and two students of the Dai-kvo poet school--one an esteemed poet, the other an outcast--and their mutual lover, all of whom are caught in the wake of the conspiracy's crime, and who will have their lives forever changed by it. Most "otherworldly" fantasy is anything but, yet here Abraham has created an evocative world and culture that seems very strange and alien, yet still somehow feels real. The plot is a bit slow-moving, but it pays off for the patient reader and should leave fans eager for the next installment. An impressive start. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Booklist Review
Otah is a good soldier; otherwise, why would he be in charge of training a motley array of boys just learning arms? Quickly his challenges increase, as a magical menace out of legend threatens the Summer Cities. Factor in sheer human folly, and one understands why Otah has his hands full. Apart from its well-developed protagonist, this first volume of a projected tetralogy has a somewhat conventional plot. What make it a distinguished fantasy debut are Abraham's command of language, which recalls even if it does not equal that of Jack Vance, and his facility at creating fully realized settings, such as the bustling seaport Saraykhet, which exerts a particularly strong appeal to the apparently growing audience for fantasy seasoned with a dash or more of saltwater. The direction of The Long Price Quartet is hard to determine from this first volume, but after finishing it, more than a few readers won't especially care, not as long as Abraham just gives them more, as promised. --Roland Green Copyright 2006 Booklist
Library Journal Review
The city-state of Saraykeht maintains its economic supremacy by virtue of the captive power of the andat, spirits bound to near-human form by the magic of the city's specially trained poet-wizards. Master poet Heshai has held control of the cunning at Seedless for decades, granting dominion over the lucrative cotton trade, but when one of the city's noble merchant houses is betrayed, the consequences prove likely to shake Saraykeht to its foundation. Four characters become entangled in the tide of events: Maati, Heshai's new apprentice; Amat, the accounting overseer of the betrayed house; Itani, a laborer with a secret and a connection to Maati's past; and Itani's lover Liat, Amat's young assistant. Reader Neil Shah does a remarkable job with tone, accent, and inflection to individualize the cast of characters. VERDICT The Asian-influenced setting will appeal to readers wishing a change from the standard Tolkien/European-templated fantasy backdrop, and this first book in the "Long Price Quartet," originally published in 2006, is recommended for those who prefer a personal and political tale to a more epic one. ["The author's fresh approach to worldbuilding and his emergent storytelling talent make this a good addition to most fantasy collections," read the review of the Tor hc, LJ 2/15/06.]-Jason Puckett, Georgia State Univ. Lib., Atlanta (c) Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.