Review by Booklist Review
In Reid's thought-provoking fantasy, a pagan girl lacking her people's magic and a shunned prince whose monotheistic religion calls for her blood come together to save their homeland from a foe greater than each other. Every few years, the king's holy warriors, the Woodsmen, take a wolf-girl from Évike's forested village; in exchange, they are spared the king's retribution. Without magic, Évike is worthless to both groups--except, she learns, as a sacrifice, for when the Woodsmen demand a seer, the village's táltos sends Évike instead. This deception is uncovered when forest monsters decimate their party. Without a seer, Prince Gáspár believes the king will fall to Gáspár's zealot brother, Nándor, who intends to seize the throne and start a holy war. In the spirit of mutually assured destruction, Évike and Gáspár regroup with a new plan to save a king they both hate, battling monsters, religious intolerance, and their own feelings. With a setting rich in detail and folklore, a fascinating look at the complex morality of religious disagreements, and an enemies-to-lovers romance between strong characters, this is an excellent debut.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Reid's fast-paced debut examines religious freedom through the lens of myth and magic. Every few years, the Holy Order of Woodsmen travel to the pagan village of Keszi to take one of their magic-wielding wolf-girls on the orders of the king. This year, when the woodsmen demand a seer, Keszi's matriarch instead hands over Évike, the only wolf-girl without magic. Reid's atmospheric prose evokes fairy tale enchantment as Évike and the woodsmen traverse a forest filled with monsters. When one attacks, forcing Évike and the sullen Woodsman captain, Gáspár, to fight together to survive, Évike's lack of magic and Gáspár's true identity as the shunned heir of the kingdom are revealed. To save her village from being massacred for their deception, Évike agrees to help Gáspár prevent his zealot brother, Nándor, from usurping the throne. Fantasy romance fans will enjoy watching tortured Gáspár and fiery Évike warm to each other over legends, monster battles, and their shared outcast status as their quest takes them into the frozen north. But their arrival at the capital places Évike in danger as she faces off against the power-hungry king and Nándor's fanatical followers. The convincing enemies-to-lovers romance, fascinating religion-based magic system, and thoughtful examination of zealotry make this a notable debut. Agent: Alexandra Machinist, ICM Partners. (Jun.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
DEBUT Lacking magical powers, Évike has never been valued by her village. When the king's Woodsmen come to the village for a human tribute, Évike's foster mother offers her up. The Woodsmen take Évike on a long, hard journey to the city, during which she and the crew's one-eyed captain slowly come to rely on each other. It comes out that he is Gáspár, the heir to the king. But Gáspár's bastard half-brother wants the throne, and their evil tyrant of a father is likely to acquiesce. Should Évike help Gáspár? He might be her best hope to save herself, her long-lost father, and her persecuted Yehuli community. VERDICT This dark, YA-crossover, coming-of-age fairy tale really only has its Eastern European atmosphere going for it. The action focuses almost exclusively on Évike and Gáspár, who are very two-dimensional. Readers expecting something like the Grishaverse or Naomi Novik's books will be disappointed.--Laurel Bliss, San Diego State Univ. Lib.
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A young woman from a desolate village and a disgraced prince must join together to save the kingdom from the prince's violent, religious zealot of a half brother in Reid's debut fantasy. Évike, the only woman in her pagan village without magical abilities, is shunned and bullied because the gods have chosen not to grace her with power. So when members of the king's Holy Order of Woodsmen make the perilous journey through the forest to take a "seer," a pagan woman with the power to see the future, Évike is offered up as a substitute. The King, who represents the dominant, monotheistic state religion called the Patrifaith, steals a pagan woman every year to use as a blood sacrifice. Rather than lose someone with the power to foresee ruined crops and other dangers, Évike's village is happy to send her to die instead. But when all the Woodsmen except their captain are killed off by forest monsters, Évike learns he is no ordinary Woodsman but Prince Bárány Gáspár himself. Gáspár is desperate to give his father, the King, a magical edge to a war he is currently losing. Otherwise, Gáspár's despotic brother, Nándor, will have the chance at a hostile takeover, and if Nándor is on the throne, everyone outside the Patrifaith is in serious danger. That includes not just Évike's village, but other groups like the Yehuli, who follow a lightly fictionalized version of Judaism and include Évike's long-lost father. There is an overreliance on simile in the prose, and sometimes the action gets muddled, but overall this is an impressive debut. Reid's academic background in ethnonationalist religious history is used to great effect here, and she shows how folklore is bent and twisted to fit the dominant culture of the moment. Reid wades thoughtfully into thorny conversations about religious persecution, identity, and personal sacrifice. Compelling, complicated, and worthwhile. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
