It has been three years since the events of The Ice Ghost, and while Quiller has spent that time under the tutelage of the ancient quantum computer Quancee, he has also allowed himself to become more distant from his tribe, the Sealion People. Not only does his time apart from them make him feel like more of an outsider than ever before, but all of the knowledge Quancee is imparting to him about the nature of the world around them just adds to that divide.
Quiller's infrequent visits to his family means he has missed a lot in the intervening years. For one, it turns out that Jawbone is turning 13 years-old soon and is about to undertake a ritual climb of the quest wall. Once he reaches the top of the multi-day climb, he will emerge a man with a new name and, hopefully, a spirit helper. Lynx and her husband, RabbitEar, are rightfully nervous of the climb. While they have both done it in their youth, some children have fallen to their deaths during the event. Lynx is all the more nervous since Jawbone's strange spells are happening more frequently. During these events, the young boy becomes unresponsive and, at times, looks like he is dead. The wisemen of the Sealion People believe that his soul is leaving his body and going on a journey, and that this means that Jawbone will become a powerful wiseman himself one day.
While Lynx is, of course, concerned that Jawbone might have one of his spells while in the middle of his climb, the fact that Jawbone has started talking about another boy living in his head and occasionally coming out to talk to Jawbone just adds more fear and confusion to Lynx's concerns.
While Quiller has some insight into what might be going on with Jawbone, he doesn't have much direct involvement with the young boy's story. Instead, he finds himself constantly at odds with the last Jamen. Where Arakie was a teacher to Quiller who helped him understand what Quancee was, Jorgensen seems to be opposed to Quancee, even though Quancee is apparently the reason the Jamen are able to live for centuries. Jorgensen claims that Quancee is failing and constantly pleads with Quiller to let the Jamen dismantle the quantum computer. He claims that he can repair some of the computer's functions, but Quiller can't help but feel like Jorgensen has some ulterior motive in mind and must rebuff the ancient human over and over again.
The Ice Orphan: The Rewilding Reports - Book 3 is a strange installment in the series. For one, it's hard to see exactly where Kathleen O'Neal Gear is taking the story as a whole. By the time this book ends, some characters have died (nothing new in The Rewilding Reports really) and many characters feel like they are still in a state of transition. Jawbone's own story on the quest wall is a strange one, and I can't help but wonder if the results of that journey will have a more significant impact than is first apparent. Since I am having a hard time seeing where the story overall is going, I can't be sure one way or another. While I'm sure it will have some lasting effects, if there isn't more there than what is on the surface, then it seems odd to spend so much screen time on this event. Like with the other two books in this series, by the time The Ice Orphan ends, the fate of the Sealion People, and really all of the characters in The Rewilding Reports is uncertain. Where these characters will go is up in the air, much less how they get there.
While The Ice Orphan had some unexpected elements to it, I'm still in for the long haul on this one.
