There is a reason I keep coming back to Aiden Thomas, I have yet to be disappointed by one of his releases and this book is no different. The Sunbearer Trials follows Teo, as he and his fellow Semidioses compete for the title of the Sunbearer. The role given to the winner, who sacrifices the loser of the trials in order to keep their home safe for the next decade. 

The Sunbearer Trials is home to incredible world building. The book starts with prologue of sorts which is used to set the scene for everything that comes after, explaining the world, how the trials came to be, and why. Throughout my reading I found myself regularly flipping back to both it and the map on the inside cover, and using them in a similar way that I would a glossary in a high fantasy novel. Throughout my reading it was easy to tell just how well thought out the world was, and I loved getting to experience it through the eyes of the characters who experience it first hand. 

Teo is such a fun protagonist. There is a quote close to the end of the book where he is told “troublemakers make change” and I don’t think there is a better way to show exactly who he is as a person. And pairing him with a character like Niya who thinks with her muscles, but has a heart of gold just amplified his best traits. It’s incredibly clear that Thomas thought out every single character to their fullest, and one of my biggest wishes in the next book is that we get to spend more time with the supporting cast and we get to see the complex and interesting characterizations and relationships that get a bit shoved to the side in this novel seemingly because of the importance of the plot.

 While the world building is very impressive, and the characters are fun and enjoyable, the plot was what really carried the story for me. Thomas does an incredible job of sprinkling hints for whatever twist he throws at the end of the book, they are typically easy to catch onto but vague enough that it leaves you with theories instead of a solid answer as to what will play out. He has a particular balance of showing you enough about a character to make you question, but never to spell it out, which is what makes his novels so much fun to read. The twist never comes out of nowhere, but I find myself patting myself on the back when one of my theories ends up correct (or almost correct in this case).

I cannot wait to be able to finish this duology. It only took his first two books for Aiden Thomas to claim his spot as favorite writer, and this does not seem to be a fact that will change anytime soon. Right now I’m just wondering who I will have to bribe to get an ARC of the second book in the duology.