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A review by snipinfool
The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
4.5 stars
Teo lived in a region called Reino del Sol which was led by diose or gods. He was a semidiose or child of a god. The more privileged of the diose were Golds and those less so were Jades. Golds were more stronger and more powerful than Jades. The Gold semidiose attended the Academy to train and became heroes throughout the land. Jades lived on the outer edges of the region and had no formal training like the Academy. Teo attended Quetzlan High, which had not been modernized in quite a while. He was the only child of the Jade diose Quetzal, who was the goddess of birds. Teo had wings similar to his mother's, but chose not to use them. Teo had recently come out as transgender and his wings did not reflect the wings of a male bird. He kept his wings bound to his back and functioned without using them.
Every ten years the region held the Sunbearer Trials. The competition involved five challenges held in different cities around Reino del Sol, eventually returning to Sol Temple. The winner would travel throughout the land to replenish the sun's energy and keep the region safe from the Obsidians until the next competition. Thousands of years ago, Sol sacrificed himself and exiled the traitorous Obsidian diose to the skies. A sacrifice at the end of the trials replicated Sol's offering. The Sunbearer Trials participants were chosen from semidiose members aged thirteen through seventeen. Teo was seven at the last trial and remembered little of the seriousness of the event. Teo knew that it was rare for a Jade to be chosen, so his plan was to enjoy being able to see the Gold cities and to eat as much good food as he could. The people of Quetzlan were hopeful that Teo or another Jade would be chosen to complete as they had not had a Jade semidiose to root for in 130 years. Surprisingly, Teo and another Jade were chosen to participate.
I had a great time reading this story. I loved Teo. He was loved by the people of Quetzlan for his generosity and kindness. His best friend, Niya (a Gold), was as supportive as a best friend should be. She was different from most Golds and liked a person regardless of their status as a Gold or Jade. The rest of the characters were well written and mutli-faceted. The descriptions of the lands the competition moved through were wonderful. As the competition moved through the challenges, I found myself reading faster and faster to get to the next part. I frequently had to re-read part of the challenges more than once so I didn't miss any of the action. I was completely invested in the story. As this is the first of a duology, there is a cliff hanger at the end. I did not see the twist coming at all. This was so enjoyable!
Teo lived in a region called Reino del Sol which was led by diose or gods. He was a semidiose or child of a god. The more privileged of the diose were Golds and those less so were Jades. Golds were more stronger and more powerful than Jades. The Gold semidiose attended the Academy to train and became heroes throughout the land. Jades lived on the outer edges of the region and had no formal training like the Academy. Teo attended Quetzlan High, which had not been modernized in quite a while. He was the only child of the Jade diose Quetzal, who was the goddess of birds. Teo had wings similar to his mother's, but chose not to use them. Teo had recently come out as transgender and his wings did not reflect the wings of a male bird. He kept his wings bound to his back and functioned without using them.
Every ten years the region held the Sunbearer Trials. The competition involved five challenges held in different cities around Reino del Sol, eventually returning to Sol Temple. The winner would travel throughout the land to replenish the sun's energy and keep the region safe from the Obsidians until the next competition. Thousands of years ago, Sol sacrificed himself and exiled the traitorous Obsidian diose to the skies. A sacrifice at the end of the trials replicated Sol's offering. The Sunbearer Trials participants were chosen from semidiose members aged thirteen through seventeen. Teo was seven at the last trial and remembered little of the seriousness of the event. Teo knew that it was rare for a Jade to be chosen, so his plan was to enjoy being able to see the Gold cities and to eat as much good food as he could. The people of Quetzlan were hopeful that Teo or another Jade would be chosen to complete as they had not had a Jade semidiose to root for in 130 years. Surprisingly, Teo and another Jade were chosen to participate.
I had a great time reading this story. I loved Teo. He was loved by the people of Quetzlan for his generosity and kindness. His best friend, Niya (a Gold), was as supportive as a best friend should be. She was different from most Golds and liked a person regardless of their status as a Gold or Jade. The rest of the characters were well written and mutli-faceted. The descriptions of the lands the competition moved through were wonderful. As the competition moved through the challenges, I found myself reading faster and faster to get to the next part. I frequently had to re-read part of the challenges more than once so I didn't miss any of the action. I was completely invested in the story. As this is the first of a duology, there is a cliff hanger at the end. I did not see the twist coming at all. This was so enjoyable!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Blood, and Death