An astutely written tale that eschews fantasy melodrama to explore social dynamics.
After her father is executed by a mad queen, a girl uses magic to fight for the oppressed in this YA fantasy debut.
Dravon Galain, a former captain in the queen’s military, is about to be executed. He kneels before a crowd in the castle courtyard, which is surrounded by Dawn’s Gate, the capital of the High Desert kingdom. His wife, Audrie, and their daughters, 10-year-old Tris and 14-year-old Maggie, look on in horror, sure that Dravon isn’t the turncoat the queen believes he is. After the killing by firing squad, Dravon’s corpse is left in the courtyard. Maggie sneaks in and takes his military jacket, vowing to clear his name. She fastens the single button left on the coat and “vanishes without a sound.” Though magic is mostly gone from the world, Maggie is whisked into a dark, strange realm. She eventually wakes in an alley by the castle and receives help from Elly Babblewatts, a teenage tinkerer. Maggie soon learns that she and her family must hide from angry mobs and the queen’s hunters, called Shadow Lurkers. Thanks to the teleporting coat, she gains a reputation as a powerful witch. Eventually, she unites with oppressed people in the kingdom, including Salavan of the Lost Sabers tribe. Will they be enough to end the queen’s “empire of chains”? Miller’s series opener brings readers into a world rife with social ills, including “indentured child workers” and a queen who enslaves those critical of her governance. Maggie gradually learns more about her magical coat, traveling frequently to the eerily beautiful “Sorrow's Deep,” which provides one of the principal narrative thrills (“She finds that her vertical momentum does not carry to the next world, but horizontal momentum is maintained”). At times, the large cast and the detailed society of the author’s worldbuilding crowd out his protagonist. The reward for readers is an intriguing, fragile allied force—including the priestess Mos Marry, who wants magic eliminated—that may prove troublesome for Maggie even if the contingent topples the queen. The final scene offers a shocking moment that’s hopefully addressed in the sequel.
An astutely written tale that eschews fantasy melodrama to explore social dynamics.Pub Date: Aug. 31, 2021
ISBN: 979-8503395259
Page Count: 343
Publisher: Independently Published
Review Posted Online: Nov. 15, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.
A young Navarrian woman faces even greater challenges in her second year at dragon-riding school.
Violet Sorrengail did all the normal things one would do as a first-year student at Basgiath War College: made new friends, fell in love, and survived multiple assassination attempts. She was also the first rider to ever bond with two dragons: Tairn, a powerful black dragon with a distinguished battle history, and Andarna, a baby dragon too young to carry a rider. At the end of Fourth Wing (2023), Violet and her lover, Xaden Riorson, discovered that Navarre is under attack from wyvern, evil two-legged dragons, and venin, soulless monsters that harvest energy from the ground. Navarrians had always been told that these were monsters of legend and myth, not real creatures dangerously close to breaking through Navarre’s wards and attacking civilian populations. In this overly long sequel, Violet, Xaden, and their dragons are determined to find a way to protect Navarre, despite the fact that the army and government hid the truth about these creatures. Due to the machinations of several traitorous instructors at Basgiath, Xaden and Violet are separated for most of the book—he’s stationed at a distant outpost, leaving her to handle the treacherous, cutthroat world of the war college on her own. Violet is repeatedly threatened by her new vice commandant, a brutal man who wants to silence her. Although Violet and her dragons continue to model extreme bravery, the novel feels repetitive and more than a little sloppy, leaving obvious questions about the world unanswered. The book is full of action and just as full of plot holes, including scenes that are illogical or disconnected from the main narrative. Secondary characters are ignored until a scene requires them to assist Violet or to be killed in the endless violence that plagues their school.
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374172
Page Count: 640
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes.
The Plague has left a population divided between Elites and Ordinaries—those who have powers and those who don’t; now, an Ordinary teen fights for her life.
Paedyn Gray witnessed the king kill her father five years ago, and she’s been thieving and sleeping rough ever since, all while faking Psychic abilities. When she inadvertently saves the life of Prince Kai, she becomes embroiled in the Purging Trials, a competition to commemorate the sickness that killed most of the kingdom’s Ordinaries. Kai’s duties as the future Enforcer include eradicating any remaining Ordinaries, and these Trials are his chance to prove that he’s internalized his brutal training. But Kai can’t help but find Pae’s blue eyes, silver hair, and unabashed attitude enchanting. She likewise struggles to resist his stormy gray eyes, dark hair, and rakish behavior, even as they’re pitted against each other in the Trials and by the king himself. Scenes and concepts that are strongly reminiscent of the Hunger Games fall flat: They aren’t bolstered by the original’s heart or worldbuilding logic that would have justified a few extreme story elements. Illogical leaps and inconsistent characterizations abound, with lighthearted romantic interludes juxtaposed against genocide, child abuse, and sadism. These elements, which are not sufficiently addressed, combined with the use of ableist language, cannot be erased by any amount of romantic banter. Main characters are cued white; the supporting cast has some brown-skinned characters.
A lackluster and sometimes disturbing mishmash of overused tropes. (map) (Fantasy. 14-18)Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9798987380406
Page Count: 538
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Review Posted Online: Sept. 9, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 2023
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