I was swept up into this story and lost myself in it completely. The characters are simply excellent; they have so much depth, so many quirks, and I absolutely loved Morana's magic, how she discovered it and what she achieved with it. Her hopes and fears were so real, I really connected with her, and Percy made for a wonderful supporting character, who despite his flaws and his own fears, managed to give Morana what she needed to keep going, try again, and do better.
The worldbuilding is immersive and perfectly balanced with new/unusual terms and ideas but not to the point of overwhelm. To add another layer to the worldbuilding, the author also uses what I believe are Irish terms, concepts, and creatures, and blends them into the fabric of the story so beautifully they simply roll off the page. It made things even more immersive, and added a level to the world that is quite uncommon.
Having a necromancer as a main character is pretty unusual, and the specifics of the magic system made it even more so. I love the fact necromancers have to pay a price for raising the dead. Morana has to write their stories, while another character in the book has to make their favorite foods. The diversity of artistic expression among the necromancers was really fun, and added a lot to each character. I also appreciated how the author shows the hardships of not only moving around, integrating in new places, and learning to make a new place "home", but also the painful terror of persecution. The psychological toll of constantly looking over one's shoulder with the fear of capture, and death, looming over one all the time is portrayed with haunting accuracy, and I really appreciate the author for going to such lengths to give voice to what persecuted peoples experience.
Lastly, there is a very unusual form of representation in this book, which I truly appreciate because I've never seen it written about before. The only reason I know about juvenile idiopathic arthritis is because I have a cousin with the condition. Reading about someone who's suffered the same way, especially as it's a fantasy novel, really warmed my heart, because these unusual diseases need to be seen. More people ought to know they exist, and I really appreciate the author for raising awareness with this wonderful story.
The plot is immersive, and balances intense, high-paced action and heart-thumping terror with calmer moments of nostalgia and peaceful calm. It made the story easy to read and I kept turning the pages because everything was placed with so much care. On that note, I would be remiss in ignoring the clear attention to detail the author has given to chapter titles, because it was unusual and worked brilliantly to add yet another layer to the story. Each chapter is named after a plant, in which the English name is provided, along with the Latin genus name. But on top of that, the author includes three symbolic attributes connected to each plant, and those symbolic qualities are intricately connected to the chapter in question.
Clearly, this novel is a labour of love, and I adored every moment of it. Highly recommend to anyone who'd like to read something refreshing and different in the Fantasy genre.
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