The description of this book really intrigued me, enough that I grabbed a copy of the first book, The Annual Migration of Clouds, and read it first. The world is a post-environmental collapse with groups of people living in fairly self-contained communities with a return to a more subsistence-level of living. There is also a new disease that appears to be some mix of parasite and fungus that affects a significant part of the population. In the first book, our main character, Reid, lives in one such community, has the disease, and gets offered a place at a university, which supposedly has much more modern conveniences. That book ends with Reid heading off to the university, a trek into the wilderness.

This novella picks up right where the previous book leaves off, in the wilds heading to the university. Once there, Reid benefits from the education, better equipped society, and new friends. But she is angry at what her family and community at home must suffer when the university has so much. This book is about Reid's time at the university, pushing boundaries, exploring inequity.

While this book is understandable on its own, it is better after reading the first. You get a better feel for Reid's strong feelings of inequality. The book ends in a way that leads you to want the next one in the series. Wish that was was ready to read now, because I want to know what happens next.

We Speak Through the Mountain is a great follow up to the Annual Migration of Clouds. This picks up with Reid traveling through the mountains to make it to Howse University. I would describe this as a climate dystopian series with examinations of the collective vs the individual. I assume based on the ending that there will be a book 3, which I will definitely be on the look out for.

Thank you to ECW Press and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

ECW was kind enough to pass along the next volume of this, and YES. That fun feeling of realizing you don’t quite fit in in the place you’ve been building up in your head, further rage at how university communities treat the people around them, and oh also that there’s maybe kinda something super sinister going on too. We leave again in a bit of a cliffhanger, and I’m unsure if it’s continuing, but if it does, I’m so in.

We Speak Through the Mountain picks up from where its predecessor, The Annual Migration of Clouds, left us. Our protagonist, Reid Graham, is travelling across the post-apocalyptic wastes to reach the fabled Howse University and the promise of a cure for the disease growing inside of her.

This book will not be to the taste of everyone. It isn’t a novella to read for its plot or even its characters. Instead this is an introspective and reflective tale.

I found this a contemplative read but couldn’t help feeling that the central act of the book is missing – we head straight from the introduction into the denouement. Perhaps that’s a reflection of my own reading tastes – I tend to prefer longer books to novellas.

Readers who enjoyed the author’s first book will doubtless find much to admire here.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers, ECW Press, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

We Speak Through the Mountain by Premee Mohamed is a post-apocalypse novella where Reid, a teenager, goes on a journey through the mountains in Canada to Howse University, where she finds survivors and a system that isn’t helping other communities who need it.

Like with everything I’ve read by Premee Mohamed, I was instantly captured by the writing. Atmosphere, voice, social critique, it all shines through with laser precision while being compelling and artfully crafted. I was instantly captivated by Reid’s voice and how she is navigating this new environment that takes care of the students who arrive to study but refuse to extend any assistance to the cities that are struggling.

Cad, a disease that wiped out most of life on Earth and resides in most remaining people, appears to be dormant in Reid but is still impacting her loved ones. The reflection of real world healthcare issues, concerns regarding our future if we continue on the path of selfishness and not helping each other, and how easy it is to turn away from those who really need help even if you know it’s wrong are fully on display.

I would recommend this to fans of dystopia, readers looking for explorations of lack of healthcare and assistance in a not too distant future, and fans of Premee Mohamed.

I was drawn in immediately by the cover artwork, and further enticed by the gripping introduction of this book. While I didn’t necessarily resonate with the story, I found the writing successful, intelligent, and compelling. I objectively enjoyed this author’s craftsmanship and would be curious to see them explore new topics with their unique tone and decisive style.

We Speak Through the Mountain by Premee Mohamed

Traveling alone through the climate-crisis-ravaged wilds of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains, 19-year-old Reid Graham battles the elements and her lifelong chronic illness to reach the utopia of Howse University. But life in one of the storied “domes” — the last remnants of pre-collapse society — isn’t what she expected. Reid tries to excel in her classes and make connections with other students, but still grapples with guilt over what happened just before she left her community. And as she learns more about life at Howse, she begins to realize she can’t stand idly by as the people of the dome purposely withhold needed resources from the rest of humanity. When the worst of news comes from back home, Reid must make a choice between herself, her family, and the broken new world.
I hadn't read the first book due to not knowing that this was kind of a follow on .
However I still felt I could read it as a standalone although I'm sure my enjoyment would have been boosted had I read it first.
Reading the book I couldn't fail to be chilled at the thought that this could be something that possibly is our future to come where the haves are literally taking all that is required for themselves with regard to the basics such as air , food and water .

I really enjoyed reading this arc! It was super well set, means the world building is amazing and weaves in with the story very naturally. You never felt like there was desctription and action alternating but everything was very packed together and blurred, which made a new experience for me. I liked the story and think it was even better than the first one!

I read the first book in this series almost three years ago while surreptitiously resting my kindle on the keyboard at the few stations at work. I’d been fresh out of my mycology course and was fascinated by “cad” and Premee Mohamed’s craft. This sequel, however, surpassed its predecessor in about a million and one ways. I loved Reid’s character here and the earnestness of her classmates. The climate fictions aspects of this felt very real with the tremendous disparity between the average person and the Howse students. The environment here felt so real and Reid’s emotions were conveyed so elegantly that I felt angry and excited and sad right alongside her. The science here was, once again, so very interesting with the complexities of the intricacies of cad and Reid’s struggle with being apart from something (and other many things) for the first time in her life. I am desperately hoping we get another book in this series as I can’t wait to see what happens to Reid—and Clementine and St. Martin—after the events of this novella.

This was one the rare instances where the sequel surpassed the original by a mile. I was pretty ambivalent about the first book in this series, but I heard so many people telling me that the sequel was a different vibe. Honestly, this could be read as a stand alone.

The actual writing by Premee Mohamed was superb. It felt so clean and lyrical throughout and all the detail about this new world was really well crafted. The social commentary throughout was obvious, but also subtle.

I would definitely recommend this!

"We Speak Through the Mountain," the second novella in Premee Mohamed's "The Annual Migration of Clouds" series, quickly plunged me into a world grappling with a climate crisis. The story follows Reid, a strong-willed and relatable protagonist, on her journey to Howse University, and how she navigates university life so far away from home.

Mohamed's writing is beautifully descriptive, and the world-building is thorough, being seamlessly woven into the narrative. The writing is also brilliantly clever, where pushes and pulls to portray the character’s emotions perfectly. Reid's panic is palpable through the prose, maintaining a relentless pace.

While the inclusion of scientific jargon may challenge some, my only qualm is that the brevity of the story leaves me craving more exploration of characters like Clementine and St. Martin.

I wholeheartedly recommend this novella to dystopian fiction, sci-fi lovers, and science enthusiasts. This novella promises an engaging series continuation, which I can’t wait to explore further.

Thank you to NetGalley and ECW Press for an eARC in exchange for my honest review. And of course to Premee for writing such a wonderful book!

Wow just… wow. I was kindly gifted this ARC on NetGalley and for a short book this took me a long time to finish and I loved every second.

At least every chapter I had to put it down to think about the world, the possibilities and the parallels to our own future, the moral challenges for the characters and just the pure emotion that is so intelligently conveyed through this book.

I can’t write a long review without a tonne of spoilers but know that this book will be on my mind for many days to come. These characters and this setting will be sticking with me and you will not regret giving this novella a go.

This novella is a follow-up to “The Annual Migration of Clouds”, which I have not yet had a chance to read. However, I had an inkling that I’d be able to read it as a standalone, and for the most part, that is true. There were mentions of previous events from time to time, but not so much that I was confused or pulled out of the current story.

Premee Mohamed is fast becoming one of my favorite authors. “The Butcher of the Forest”, coming out in about a month (February 2024) is a five star read. While I prefer the novella just mentioned, I did enjoy this one also.

Reid is a fascinating character, traveling to attend a university that first served as a bunker for the wealthy and connected before the world went to hell. She has a unique perspective of life outside the dome/barrier of Howse University (note: life is brutal outside) and is introduced to a very cushy life inside the dome. Reid is understandably suspicious and angry about why the scientists inside can’t/won’t help those suffering and dying of a horrific disease outside.

She ain’t afraid to shake things UP.

You can pick up a copy of this in June. And now I must go do things backward and read the previous novella set in this world. 😁

Many thanks to NetGalley and ECW Press for an eARC in exchange for my honest review. Please keep the stories coming, Premee!!

This series is so important to me!! In a rare occasion, the sequel also surpasses the first book!!!!

Reid's story picks up right where we left off in Annual Migrations, and continues. After making the decision to attend, she makes her way to the very real Howse University situated in the Rocky Mountains. The region is astonishingly beautiful. Lush, full of flora & fauna and incredible geology, as well as the domes and school itself, are discovered to be shockingly luxurious and technologically advanced. A very stark difference from Reid's home, the barren and lackluster campus that can barely support its population. However, the beauty of her home is in the way that the community is knit together, the families that care for eachother and the knowledge that is preserved and passed along. It appears the Rockies stunning facade is making up for something here...

With room for a third in the series, I can't wait for what else Premee has in store <3 Big thanks to ECM Press for my ARC