4 out of 5 stars

I read this book because a number of people in my writing group recommended it and I really enjoyed it. It’s a well-paced, interesting, fast read with a lot of gorgeous details and intriguing world building.

The basic synopsis is that in this alt-world there is a civilization inspired by the pre-Columbian Americas and they’re preparing for a solar eclipse which is supposed to solidify the power of the Sun Priest and their retinue of believers. However, there is something traveling across the ocean, something dangerous and ancient that may disrupt this society’s way of life.

Honestly, I think my favorite part of this book was the world building. It’s effortlessly done, very few exposition dumps, and it feels real and tactile. There are giant animals that can carry humans, there are versions of mermaids and human vessels for gods, and there are various levels of magic. I love when an author really stops to think about how adding magical or scifi elements will affect society (as oppose to being like here’s magic that can produce wealth at will and it’s freely available to everyone but there’s still massive poverty!) I felt that Rebecca took the time to really think things through while still giving herself room to go some cool things with crows. I’m also a big sucker for pirates and seafaring adventures so the the fact that one of the main characters of this book was a pirate mermaid meant I was in love with the story by page one.

The characters are entertaining and endearing, but could have been more developed. The strongest character is Serapio, the young man connected with the dark, dangerous thing that can destroy everything. I love his struggle and his story and he’s one of the more tragic characters I’ve read in a long time. I liked Xiala. the mermaid pirate, until about midway of the book and then I felt she became a motive for Serapio and stopped being her own character. Naranpa was a little too naive for me to really connect with, although I found the intrigue she was involved in very interesting.

STOP READING IF YOU WANT TO AVOID SPOILERS

SPOILER ALERT!

Ok, if you’re still reading, you’re ok with spoilers. Like I said, I really liked the book, but I didn’t really buy the romance between Xiala and Serapio at all. It felt very platonic to me and even though there are references to smells and lust, it didn’t feel genuine at all. It also wasn’t handled in a way that let Xiala continue to be her own character. Instead she gets subsumed by Serapio’s arc and turns into a character whose sole purpose was to mourn Serapio before his death and to have sex with him so he could “feel human” before he sacrificed himself. I am growing tired of the “isn’t it sad character x has to sacrifice themselves/was raised to never know love, but don’t worry now they’ve had sex for the first time so they know what it’s like to feel loved and human so it’s all ok” trope. Likewise, I didn’t find the relationship between Naranpa and Ikran all that compelling either but maybe because it added to my frustration about Naranpa’s naivety/ignoring what’s directly under her nose! (when Naranpa saw the scratches on Ikran’s neck after the Crow Matron died and didn’t put two and two together because she was jealous, I wanted to scream. )

I’m not sure what Okoa’s POV added to the story. He’s a nice character, but didn’t really add anything to the narrative we didn’t already know. He provides a brief glimpse into the doomsday cults, but it’s not enough to justify dedicating a whole POV to him. I’m also not sure why Naranpa’s brother was introduced so late when he wasn’t going to serve any further purpose in this book. I’m sure the author has plans for him in the second book, but adding him here doesn’t do much except assure us Naranpa is safe, which could have been held off until the very end when Serapio realizes he hasn’t killed the true Sun Priest or even in Book Two.

Finally, the book ends very abruptly and it feels slightly unfinished.

But overall, it was a very enjoyable book and I look forward to the sequels.