The world-building present within this book is truly incredible. It was so original and detailed, and thus refreshing and captivating to read about. Even though there were 12 kingdoms within the empire, each felt defined and the map helped a lot in keeping track of things (although I do wish cities had been marked, too!). I liked that there were four religious sects that all had a different perspective on theology - this added a very realistic touch! As the reader I could tell that so much thought had been put into the historical context, and even smaller specifics like religious rituals, treaty ceremonies, how lessons were conducted in the Children’s Palace, or the library system. Also, the songs that were included and the way drum language was woven into these, were great. These details and many, many more assisted the bigger world-building and made the place in which Tarisai lived truly fleshed-out. Yet none of this information was ever presented in an info-dumpy way. Within the narrative, there were fantastic parallels drawn between Aristar’s “unifying” actions and colonisation; I’m really keen to see where Ifueko takes this theme in the next book. My absolute favourite part of Tarisai’s world was the magic system, though. The concept of Hallows, and how much variation there was within these, was amazing. Kirah’s songhealer Hallow was my favourite as it was so interesting to me, in that singing different songs translated to different types of healing. For example, singing about weaving baskets translated to healing flesh and skin. But generally how the magic system incorporates the Ray, the Councils, and even the Peace Treaty, was so original. 

The plot was truly engrossing. It was odd because I didn’t know where it was going, but it was going somewhere and FAST. This was almost entirely to the book’s benefit. Otherwise, the elements of political intrigue kept me hooked. There were enough plot threads for a nuanced story, but not too many that it didn’t all come together; for example, the treaty between Aristar and Songland concerning child sacrifices to the Underworld, who the Lady is and why she commands Tarisai to kill the Crown Prince, and the relationships within and between the Council and the Council Apparent. 

Tarisai was a fantastic MC. She was kind and clever and I loved that she sought out the most fair and right solutions to the problems she and others faced. I loved how much she loved those around her, and her sense of responsibility for her actions. I liked the exploration of her relationship with the Lady. The narrative didn’t try to provide easy answers, and showed the confusion Tarisai felt over the Lady herself and how this impacted how Tarisai saw herself. 

The side characters were also great. Ifueko is able to quickly communicate their motivations, dreams, and concerns, so that you get a feel for them early on. This is especially true for Dayo, Kirah, and Sanjeet. I loved how they all had arcs set up as separate from Tarisai’s. 

There were two quotes that really pulled at me from this book. The first was “A caravan mustn’t travel faster than its slowest camel.” The second was “What story will you live for? What story do you live for?”
 

Safe to say, I loved reading this book! However, there was one part I didn’t like and two more I felt unsure of, hence the half-star dock. The part that I didn’t like was the numerous time jumps throughout the book. While this did propel the plot forward, it also made the narrative feel a little disjointed. The first thing that I was unsure of was that it didn’t live up to the found family reputation it has. I was expecting this trope to incorporate the whole Council, but it ended up only being shared between Tarisai, Dayo, Kirah, and Sanjeet. Even then, I would have liked to see more group moments between them described on page, rather than being told that they had happened. It’s the small moments that bring the found family trope to life. The other thing I was unsure of was Kirah and Woo Inn’s relationship. I think Woo In is a minimum of eleven years older than Tarisai, and Kirah is described as being close in age to Tarisai. So I interpreted Kirah’s age towards the end of the book, where the romance begins with Woo Inn, as being probably around 18-20. And because Tarisai is 17, the youngest I thought Woo Inn could be was 28. This just seemed like a really weird age gap to me. But as I’m not actually sure of the ages involved and thus of the age gap, I tried not to let this part affect my rating. 

All in all, I am super excited to pick up Redemptor! 

I loved the worldbuilding here, particularly the depictions of the lands we got to visit and the themes of embracing unique cultures vs assimilation. There's a darker edge to many of the systems in this world, which I also appreciated. While the protagonist was rather unquestioning of some things that should have thrown red flags(basically everything about the council), this is only the first book of a duology, so those aspects might be examined later.

The central conflict is, of course, Tarisai's struggle to break free of her mother's command. I initially got some Ella Enchanted vibes from this setup, but the resolution wound up being so much more. It wasn't enough for her to merely want to disobey, or even to desire to protect the prince with her whole heart; to break a curse of this magnitude, it would take much more than that. I also appreciated how her mother was handled in the narrative. She wasn't purely evil, but she wasn't misunderstood either; she was a complicated, wounded character who committed great harms.

Overall, I enjoyed this a lot more than I'd expected to. It helped that the romance was firmly a subplot, and there was no love triangle. I'll say that again for those in the back: this YA title has no love triangle! It was so refreshing to see a depiction of platonic love develop between two characters. There was even a prominent character who was explicitly asexual. As mentioned, this is the first book in a duology, and I intend to pick up the sequel, Redemptor, whenever I manage to find a gap in my TBR(lol).

23rd december 2022:


Raybearer is full of great lore. I enjoyed some parts of it but truthfully speaking the execution of the story the book was trying to conceive was fatally weak. It builds an interesting foundation but fails to follow through on it. 

It tries to tell many things in one book. A civil conflict due to cultural differences between the people, a centuries long conflict with a spiritual kingdom, complicated relationships surrounding the main character, and the main character's personal struggles.

The problem is, while there are parts, one thing seldom connects to the next thing. Issues in some chapters arise suddenly without letting the reader ponder upon the details of the previous scene unless its the end of a part. A lot of things end up being the fault of the MC at the accusation of the other characters, making motive of the story weak. And at one point there is a sudden introduction of romance between two characters that came completely out of nowhere.

The things I did enjoy were the bonds of the main character with her found family but I kept wishing for better explanations for everything else as the flow didn't feel natural.

Final Rating: 2.5/5

After finishing this book, I think my brain is at least 20% Raybearer. That's normal, right? I know I often shout out YA fantasy titles, but I mean it when I say this book deserves more than 5 stars. Huge thanks to @raethereviewer on Instagram for recommending this one; be sure to check out her amazing Raybearer reels!

First off, we finally have the "commanded to kill the prince" trope done in a convincing way. I see this a lot in enemies-to-lovers fantasy, and I never believe the MC will actually kill the guy... until I read Ifueko's version. The pacing here was super interesting; we flew through the initial setup and I was intrigued because I had no idea where the story was going. This book thoughtfully explores issues of sexism, assimilation, classism, and privilege. There's also a strong female lead, a diverse cast of characters, a refreshing focus on the importance of friendship and family ties in addition to romance, and asexual representation!

But the feature that stood out the most to me was the stellar world-building. I could go on and on here, so I'll try to keep it short. There so many layers to this world, and it's clear that Ifueko has meticulously crafted the culture and customs of the 13 realms of Aritsar. Even the realms that are mentioned in passing aren't made to feel like an afterthought. She not only laid the groundwork for this story but dropped a trail of breadcrumbs that will lead us right to the sequel, which I'm so excited to start. Trust me when I say, you NEED to read this book!