Reviews

This was an interesting beginning. I liked Deka and the other girls, and I especially liked that they get alone and don't have unnecessary drama with each other, aside from one small hiccup near the beginning of their association.

This is a pretty grim world, and I was a little underwhelmed that this is yet another anti-woman world, where girls and women and controlled in nearly every aspect of their lives, and young girls have to prove themselves "pure" or be killed when they come of age. That purity is based not on their virginity (although that is a factor too in other ways, at least where Deka was born and raised), but on the color of their blood. The hypocrisy of this is seen almost immediately

when the priests harvest Deka's blood for their own needs and greed, even while berating her for it and literally killing her again and again in the hopes of finding her final death.

It's pretty messed up.

When Deka is pulled away from her village and recruited to a new elite fighting force to battle the Death Shrieks, things appear to be turning around for her and the other girls like her. But of course, it's not all as it seems, and there is more to the monsters attacking their villages and cities. I was not expecting the twist that

the gilded ones, when they meet their final death, get reborn as Death Shrieks. Deka's abilities allow her to command the D.S. but also eventually everyone else. And they're all the offspring of the goddesses who once ruled the world, before they were banished. I thought for sure she'd be revealed to be a D.S. all along, or half-human/half-D.S.

Deka's unusual powers makes things a bit too easy at times, and the Girl Power message was a bit heavy-handed at times. It also felt a little rushed, especially given there are two more books to go, but given where it leaves off, there's probably going to be another reveal coming up, and the war of course.

The narrator was pretty good. She did a good job with the accents and voices, and even did a decent with the male voices.

lauracooleyjohnson's review against another edition

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3.0

I have mixed feelings on this book. The good: it is a debut novel by this author, she has created a rich world with interesting history, a unique twist on magical powers and a strong diverse female characters and very clear messaging for equality for women. The things I didn’t like: it was very on the nose. The narrator does a lot of telling us very directly that this is about breaking a pattern of abuse and unequal treatment of women. The exposition artificially propelled the story at a pace that didn’t match the character’s actual development, if that makes sense. Day 1: I’m a baby, so helpless. Day 2: I’m a teenager with so many questions. Day 3: realize I am powerful immortal born to save the world and balance the gender scales. Roar! Boss fight! And then the book ends.

the_sunken_library's review against another edition

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4.0

Solid YA fantasy about demons and goddesses.

Quite a lot of violent references so not for the feint of heart.

Deka is a throughly likeable protagonist and the world Forna weaves is truly magical (although I still struggle to envision what the hell an Equs is!).

caroline_slaughter's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

cath_reads_books's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.25

I wanted to like this book; unfortunately it was not meant to be.

The world building leaves a lot to be desired. I found myself constantly confused when new terms or creatures were introduced. This continued throughout the book and new creatures were even introduced in the last 30 pages, in a way that makes it seem as if you should have understood what they were the entire time.

The concepts of oppression, misogyny, and colorism are heavy throughout the novel, which is what originally drew me to it. The characters and relationships in the novel, unfortunately, are not developed enough to do these concepts justice. Each character seemed extremely one-dimensional, as if they were only there as plot devices. There’s a forced almost-romance.

The main character has an epiphany near the end of the novel that is not at all in line with her thinking or development throughout the book.

Loyalty is given and friendships are formed without any shared experience to base them on. The lack of character development contributed to the hollowing-out of important concepts, resulting in this feeling like a book without purpose.

There’s also a LOT of plot holes. Why are women not allowed to touch sharp objects if their monthly menses can reveal impurity just as clearly as a cut? Why are girls impure from their first period if menstruation is supposed to start the process of the blood becoming impure, not finish it?

How did Umu fake her death so convincingly? She is said to be truly “gone”, but if all alaki come back as deathshrieks, why didn’t she? How did Fatu escape imprisonment and then convince her same captors, who KNEW she was dangerous and not to be trusted, to put her back in a position of power where she could overthrow them?

The list goes on.

Overall, not impressed with this book. Kinda shocked it’s been made into a series when it absolutely didn’t have to be. Will not be reading the others.

Content Warnings