The Worldshapers, Episode 171: Samantha Mills - The Wings Upon Her Back

A chat with Locus, Sturgeon, and Nebula Award-winning author Samantha Mills about her debut novel, The Wings Upon Her Back.
Website
samtasticbooks.com
Instagram
@samtasticbooks
Bluesky
@samtasticbooks
About the Book
In this gripping debut novel from acclaimed Nebula, Sturgeon, and Locus Award-winning author Samantha Mills, a disgraced soldier fights to make sense of her world and the gods who abandoned it.
The Wings Upon Her Back is an action-packed, devastating exploration of the brutal costs of zealous loyalty.
Zenya was a teenager when she ran away to join the mechanically-modified warrior sect. She was determined to earn mechanized wings and protect the people of Radezhda, the city she loved. Under the strict tutelage of a mercurial, charismatic leader, Vodaya, Zenya finally became Winged Zemolai.
But after twenty-six years of service, Zemolai is disillusioned with her role as an enforcer in an increasingly fascist state. After one tragic act of mercy, she is brutally cast out and loses everything she worked for. As Zemolai struggles for her life, she must question her sect, their leader, and even the gods themselves.
Praise for The Wings Upon Her Back
[STARRED REVIEW] “A triumphant debut novel.” ― Booklist
[STARRED REVIEW] “An absolute must-read.” ― Kirkus
[STARRED REVIEW] “Intricate and intriguing." ― Publishers Weekly
[STARRED REVIEW] “Complex and haunting.” ― Library Journal
About Samantha Mills
Samantha Mills is a multiple award-winning author living in Southern California. She has published a dozen short stories, appearing in Uncanny Magazine, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, Strange Horizons, Escape Pod and others. In addition to winning the Nebula, Locus, and Theodore Sturgeon Memorial awards for her short story “Rabbit Test” in 2023, Sam has also been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, made the Locus Recommended Reading List and the BSFA long list multiple times, and was included in the best-of anthologies The New Voices of Science Fiction and The Year’s Best Science Fiction & Fantasy 2023.
She grew up in Southern California, where she still lives with her family and cats. She graduated from the University of Santa Cruz with a B.A. in Pre- and Early Modern Literature, and received a Master’s in Information and Library Science from San Jose State University. In the other half of her life, she is a trained archivist specializing in primary documents, with a particular focus on helping local historical societies and research libraries preserve and manage their collections.
When Sam isn’t working, writing, or taking care of children, she’s watching B-movies, binding books, and crocheting stuffed animals.

[@KyleMaxwell]

Read this over the last week or so and it really worked for me as an exploration of high-control religions and grappling with faith.

[@nemopolo.travel]

Hi Edward, nice to see you here. I'm also a TH-camr in Regina, and I would like to get to know you.