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A review by a_perennial_reader
Beneath the Keep by Erika Johansen
4.0
This book is a prequel to the Queen of the Tearling series, but it pretty much works like an independent book.
That being said, I did read all the books in the series before picking this up.
I have to add a trigger warning here for child abuse, sexual assault, physical violence, and cruelty.
This book is about The Tearling, an idea of a utopian kingdom created by William Tear who is a firm believer in equal rights. Thousands of years later, The Tearling is a far cry from the utopia that William Tear imagined.
This is a society ruled by an autocratic Queen whose only desire is to be in power and incite fear; a society teeming with greed, selfishness, and corruption. The gap between rich and poor is huge and insurmountable. Apathy and cruelty are abundant. This is a society that is rotting from everywhere and well on verge of collapsing.
In the midst of this, rumors abound about Blue Horizon - a group of 'Robin Hoods', who believe in creating 'The Better World'. And their hope is the crown princess, who they think to be the True Queen, the one who will lead them to the Better World.
We follow a lot of characters in this book. From the ruthless Queen Arla and the crown princess and the utterly spoilt prince to the poorest of poor farmer Aislinn, I loved all the characters.
But most of all I loved Christian or Lazarus. He was my favorite character in the Queen of The Tearling series as well and I absolutely loved following his story in this book. When he was a baby, Christian was sold in the underground hovel called 'Creche'. The Creche is where the worst of the worst of depravities flourish. Children, babies, and newborns are sold into the Creche and are abused, sexually assaulted, or made to fight and kill each other. Christian was a part of one such boxing ring. Having seen and experienced the worst of humanity from a very young age, Christian never believes that he could ever break out of the Creche. We follow his story as well as the story of several others as they fight for what they believe.
This book gave me much-needed insight into several characters that I felt were missing in the original series. I loved knowing about Elyssa, the crown princess, and her beliefs, and why she was the way she was. Niya was another strong character. She is Elyssa's maid and loyal to Elyssa (not Arla), but she has her own personal motives behind this. I was completely surprised by Aislinn. She is a very poor farmer coming from a region that is suffering from the worst drought in the history of the kingdom. Even at the young age of fifteen, she stands up for what is right even in the most impossible situations and is never afraid to face her adversaries. I just loved her arc. From been scared and oppressed, she goes to become the driving force of a massive rebellion. Simply because she dared. I really loved her guts. Arlen Thorne was another very interesting character. Imagine every bad a person could have. Arlen Thorne is an embodiment of that. I had so many questions about him when I was reading Queen of The Tearling and most of my suspicions about him were cleared in this. I loved knowing about his back story as well.
This book is not for the light-hearted. The author has done such a fabulous job of weaving into her story the idea of what a dystopian world, or simply what our REAL world could look like if humans are given free rein to act on their worst, most selfish wishes. The cruelty of the rulers and the dictator is so well described, it's almost too much to digest. It was really difficult for me to read about the hideous things done to the children in Creche. But then again, this is the reason why I am so amazed by this author's work. Because this reflects the bitter truth that we might not want to face. That if left unchecked, this is exactly what humanity will come down to. In her foreword, the author warns correctly that our world - the real world is very much in danger to become like the rotten Tearling. This book is a slap to our face, a warning, that this is where we are headed, until and unless we don't take action now. This seriously shook me to the core. Because this is true. This scarily, hauntingly true.
The ending shook me. It was emotional, and I knew what was going to happen ultimately because I had read the Queen of The Tearling book and that starts off from where this one ends, but I was still shaken up by that ending.
I would end by saying that this book delivered fabulously. The characters, even the negative characters were superbly crafted. The plot was great. This was definitely a thought provoking book and I am glad to have got a chance to review it. I would like to thank the publishers for providing me with the ARC.
That being said, I did read all the books in the series before picking this up.
I have to add a trigger warning here for child abuse, sexual assault, physical violence, and cruelty.
This book is about The Tearling, an idea of a utopian kingdom created by William Tear who is a firm believer in equal rights. Thousands of years later, The Tearling is a far cry from the utopia that William Tear imagined.
This is a society ruled by an autocratic Queen whose only desire is to be in power and incite fear; a society teeming with greed, selfishness, and corruption. The gap between rich and poor is huge and insurmountable. Apathy and cruelty are abundant. This is a society that is rotting from everywhere and well on verge of collapsing.
In the midst of this, rumors abound about Blue Horizon - a group of 'Robin Hoods', who believe in creating 'The Better World'. And their hope is the crown princess, who they think to be the True Queen, the one who will lead them to the Better World.
We follow a lot of characters in this book. From the ruthless Queen Arla and the crown princess and the utterly spoilt prince to the poorest of poor farmer Aislinn, I loved all the characters.
But most of all I loved Christian or Lazarus. He was my favorite character in the Queen of The Tearling series as well and I absolutely loved following his story in this book. When he was a baby, Christian was sold in the underground hovel called 'Creche'. The Creche is where the worst of the worst of depravities flourish. Children, babies, and newborns are sold into the Creche and are abused, sexually assaulted, or made to fight and kill each other. Christian was a part of one such boxing ring. Having seen and experienced the worst of humanity from a very young age, Christian never believes that he could ever break out of the Creche. We follow his story as well as the story of several others as they fight for what they believe.
This book gave me much-needed insight into several characters that I felt were missing in the original series. I loved knowing about Elyssa, the crown princess, and her beliefs, and why she was the way she was. Niya was another strong character. She is Elyssa's maid and loyal to Elyssa (not Arla), but she has her own personal motives behind this. I was completely surprised by Aislinn. She is a very poor farmer coming from a region that is suffering from the worst drought in the history of the kingdom. Even at the young age of fifteen, she stands up for what is right even in the most impossible situations and is never afraid to face her adversaries. I just loved her arc. From been scared and oppressed, she goes to become the driving force of a massive rebellion. Simply because she dared. I really loved her guts. Arlen Thorne was another very interesting character. Imagine every bad a person could have. Arlen Thorne is an embodiment of that. I had so many questions about him when I was reading Queen of The Tearling and most of my suspicions about him were cleared in this. I loved knowing about his back story as well.
This book is not for the light-hearted. The author has done such a fabulous job of weaving into her story the idea of what a dystopian world, or simply what our REAL world could look like if humans are given free rein to act on their worst, most selfish wishes. The cruelty of the rulers and the dictator is so well described, it's almost too much to digest. It was really difficult for me to read about the hideous things done to the children in Creche. But then again, this is the reason why I am so amazed by this author's work. Because this reflects the bitter truth that we might not want to face. That if left unchecked, this is exactly what humanity will come down to. In her foreword, the author warns correctly that our world - the real world is very much in danger to become like the rotten Tearling. This book is a slap to our face, a warning, that this is where we are headed, until and unless we don't take action now. This seriously shook me to the core. Because this is true. This scarily, hauntingly true.
The ending shook me. It was emotional, and I knew what was going to happen ultimately because I had read the Queen of The Tearling book and that starts off from where this one ends, but I was still shaken up by that ending.
I would end by saying that this book delivered fabulously. The characters, even the negative characters were superbly crafted. The plot was great. This was definitely a thought provoking book and I am glad to have got a chance to review it. I would like to thank the publishers for providing me with the ARC.