I'm Reading Anne Rice's Vampire Novels Right Now And While It Is More Sensual And Graphic In Ways - Tumblr Posts
One of my favorite parts of any fantasy, including Keeper of the Lost Cities, is the inclusion of multiple races. My Roman Empire (one of six, anyways, lol) is the idea that humans could've been alive when other "homo-" species and Neanderthals and stuff existed and the fact that they would've had to interact. It's the same with the question, "What would happen if aliens came to Earth?" There's this weird knowledge that they are also intelligent and have these similar processes to us but they have fundamental differences to us, because they're different species.
Maybe it's because they're slightly less developed ("perfected"), such as Neanderthals to humans or us to some weird scifi aliens. Maybe it's because they have longer life spans (Fae, elves, vampires, y'know) or they live in completely different places with maybe different magic systems or something (mermaids who live in the OCEAN with more storm powers and powers of seduction versus fairies who typically live in more natural areas than humans with weird druggy shiz and mischievous abilities or sometimes nature powers/godlike ones).
Either way, there's a deep dive into completely different habitats and biological patterns and in a good one it might even have to look at what makes humanity what it is. Why is this species different from humans? What fundamental traits do humans have that they maybe don't, or have a more evolved form of? That's also why I am happy to see Shannon at least mention that cultural progress and innovation is so slow in the Lost Cities versus in the human world because she takes this idea of mortality rushing humans to do things faster versus immortality kind of allowing elves to be more sluggish.
Sophie coming to the Lost Cities, and even being born in the first place, ushers in a weird sense of urgency to the elven world that they hadn't had before. More death, more reform, more modernistic ideals slamming into their society before they can fully comprehend it as a human raised girl and two organizations who have studied humans extensively all try to change the world.
Gnomes are pretty cool for this reason too since they're so different in their plantiness and alternative powers and different diseases. They are so clearly different from other species and I think its interesting they seem to care a little less about the fact that they were literally uprooted from their home than they should be. As plant humans, they also probably care more about their own survival and sticking around than the reforms that other species might start which is why once they root themselves in the backyards of elvin homes they're content remaining there.