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A review by aashna
The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas
4.0
reread before picking up book 2
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thank you to macmillan and edelweiss for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!
the sunbearer trials is a delightful mexican mythology-inspired fantasy that follows ten semidioses as they compete in a series of ten trials to restore the sol stone, which will in turn, protect their lands for the next decade.
with this book, aiden thomas has cemented himself as one of my favorite ya authors. the plot is exciting, the characters memorable, and the worldbuilding thorough.
the sunbearer trials is pitched as percy jackson meets the hunger games, and it delivers exactly as promised. each trial that the semidioses endure is more intense than the last, so as a reader, you never want to put the book down. that being said, the time between the trials didn't feel too long or difficult to get through. by cutting the intensity of the trials with some lighter scenes, the book didn't become too emotionally taxing while still remaining engaging.
as someone who usually doesn't like large casts of characters (background characters end up having one personality trait or being completely forgettable), the unapologetically queer cast of characters in this book was one of its best aspects. not only did each semidios have their unique divine power, they all had unique personalities and perspectives. what's more, at no point did i think that i knew everything about a character. with each scene, we learned more about the specific semidios's motivation which ensured that no side character was one-dimensional. teo was a wonderful protagonist to experience the trials through. he experienced so much growth over the course of the novel and his journey with his gender meant so much to me (the wings y'all the wings
---
thank you to macmillan and edelweiss for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!
the sunbearer trials is a delightful mexican mythology-inspired fantasy that follows ten semidioses as they compete in a series of ten trials to restore the sol stone, which will in turn, protect their lands for the next decade.
with this book, aiden thomas has cemented himself as one of my favorite ya authors. the plot is exciting, the characters memorable, and the worldbuilding thorough.
the sunbearer trials is pitched as percy jackson meets the hunger games, and it delivers exactly as promised. each trial that the semidioses endure is more intense than the last, so as a reader, you never want to put the book down. that being said, the time between the trials didn't feel too long or difficult to get through. by cutting the intensity of the trials with some lighter scenes, the book didn't become too emotionally taxing while still remaining engaging.
as someone who usually doesn't like large casts of characters (background characters end up having one personality trait or being completely forgettable), the unapologetically queer cast of characters in this book was one of its best aspects. not only did each semidios have their unique divine power, they all had unique personalities and perspectives. what's more, at no point did i think that i knew everything about a character. with each scene, we learned more about the specific semidios's motivation which ensured that no side character was one-dimensional. teo was a wonderful protagonist to experience the trials through. he experienced so much growth over the course of the novel and his journey with his gender meant so much to me (the wings y'all the wings