OND ELDR. BREATHE FIRE. Raised to be a warrior, seventeen-year-old Eelyn fights alongside her Aska clansmen in an ancient rivalry against the Riki clan. Her life is brutal but simple: fight and survive. Until the day she sees the impossible on the battlefield — her brother, fighting with the enemy — the brother she watched die five years ago. Faced with her brother's betrayal, she must survive the winter in the mountains with the Riki, in a village where every neighbor is an enemy, every battle scar possibly one she delivered. But when the Riki village is raided by a ruthless clan thought to be a legend, Eelyn is even more desperate to get back to her beloved family. She is given no choice but to trust Fiske, her brother’s friend, who sees her as a threat. They must do the impossible: unite the clans to fight together, or risk being slaughtered one by one. Driven by a love for her clan and her growing love for Fiske, Eelyn must confront her own definition of loyalty and family while daring to put her faith in the people she’s spent her life hating.
Sky In The Deep was one of my most anticipated reads of 2018 and it did not disappoint. It was so much more than I'd expected. I wanted to live inside this book for.ever; I never wanted it to end. I fell in love with the characters, the world, the language, and the story.
Y'all know I love a book with a good and violent female lead, as well as intricate and slowburn plotlines. Sky In The Deep has that in spades. Eelyn is a bloodthirsty, fearless warrior, intensely devoted to her family and her people. When she accidentally runs into the brother who's supposed to be dead during a battle with an enemy clan, those two devotions are suddenly at odds with each other. Which really leads her? And what happens when she becomes attached to the same family that took in her brother?
The romance in this one is NOT AT ALL SURPRISING but so fun to watch develop nonetheless. It's intense, and quiet, and not without its angst (but not too much).
I've read some complaints about the pacing of this story, and it's true that it's a slow start for sure. The first few chapters feel a little repetitive, as do Eelyn's thoughts and struggles. For me, it really picked up about a quarter of the way in. However, it is a very internal book--so much of this is about Eelyn finding her own way in the world she lives in, and figuring out what she is loyal to, and what she wants to change in her world. She is in her own head a lot. But, you know, she's also a blood-thirsty Viking-esque warrior woman.
Should you read it? Yes. Read this gorgeous book. You're welcome.
4 1/2 Stars
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review (and then I got myself my own copy of this book because it's THAT GOOD).
Published April 24, 2018 by Wednesday Books