Review: The Soulstealers, by Jacqueline Rohrbach

 

Arnaka Skytree grew up believing she was chosen to bring new magic to the world. As the heir to the cult of druids responsible for keeping their floating palace habitable for the wealthy aristocracy, she’s expected to wield her power as those before her did: by culling the souls of peasant women.
But when Arnaka learns more about the source of her magic, and that her best friend’s soul will be harvested, she embarks on a journey to end the barbarous practice and to restore a long-forgotten harmonious system of magic practiced by the original druids. Along the way, she discovers she’s not the only girl chosen to restore balance to their world—many others have powerful magic inside, and with them, she will tear the floating palace from the sky so everyone can live in the sun—out of the shadow of the eclipse.

The premise was definitely interesting. Jacqueline Rohrbach's The Soulstealers is a well written Young Adult novel that nonetheless doesn't quite deliver, an intriguing and dark tale whose lukewarm delivery doesn't do it justice, juvenile at times despite the subject matter. There's so much to explore: the conflict between mother and daughter, brother and sister, between classes, between sexes. Occasionally, gems shine through; but on the whole it feels scholastic, unearned. The brutality of the magic system is almost glossed over after an explosive first chapter and the occasional moving reminder, with the narrative taking big leaps in time that don't help matters. By the end, I wasn't even sure of the protagonist's age.

Amidst the war for freedom and peace, the romance bit came out of left field, a sort of enemy-to-friends-to-lovers that progressed way too quickly to be satisfying. I enjoyed more the growing friendship between Arnaka and her servant, along with the glimpses we got of Arnaka's friendship with the girl who would have to become her sacrifice. We also got asexual representation, with one (1) line about not wanting to kiss anyone, and the matter is then swept away. If you want to read this book because of the alleged asexual representation, which is what I wanted to do, I'm afraid this isn't the book for you.

The Soulstealers is a good fantasy book for a young reader with little experience.

✨ 3 stars

Snippet: Burning Roses, by S.L. Huang

 

When Rosa (aka Red Riding Hood) and Hou Yi the Archer join forces to stop the deadly sunbirds from ravaging the countryside, their quest will take the two women, now blessed and burdened with the hindsight of middle age, into a reckoning of sacrifices made and mistakes mourned, of choices and family and the quest for immortality.

"We are just two old women… Old women who have hurt their children". S.L. Huang's Burning Roses is a novella on the short side that manages to package so much in so few pages, weaving retellings of many Western fairy tales with a Chinese myth into a queer story that explores how flawed parents can damage their children, and how to come back from there and atone for it. It's a beautiful gem that also presents and explores multiple wlw relationships.

✨ 4 stars

Review: Legends & Lattes, by Travis Baldree

 

After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time. The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success — not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.
If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won't be able to do it alone. But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.

You don't need a big conflict to make a good story. Travis Baldree's Legends & Lattes is a cozy fantasy novella set entirely in a coffee shop, detailing Viv's journey as she puts up her sword and navigates the exciting life of a barista. This includes renovating, decorating, and finding partners to join her on this adventure. At its core, it's a book about connections and warmth and building up a new life.

The novella is absolutely brimming with life and warm feelings and so many great characters, from the succubus showing up to bartend, to the carpenter with big ideas, and the cook with even bigger ideas, to the magic student, to the lute player. The coffee shop grows, and Viv with it, building connections with so many people and falling into a delicate love story with the succubus, a fantastic character on her own right. Viv's ragtagag band of adventurers show up as well, to help and support her. Even the local crime boss isn't immune to a cup of good coffee and a delicious cinnamon roll.

Legends & Lattes is just what you need if you want to read a cozy high fantasy with low stakes.

✨ 3.5 stars

Review: The Keeper's Six, by Kate Elliott

 

It’s been a year since Esther set foot in the Beyond, the alien landscape stretching between worlds, crossing boundaries of space and time. She and her magical travelling party, her Hex, haven’t spoken since the Concilium banned them from the Beyond. But when she wakes in the middle of the night to her son’s cry for help, the members of her Hex are the only ones she can trust to help her bring him back from wherever he has been taken.
Esther will have to risk everything to find him. Undercover and hidden from the Concilium, she and her Hex will be tested by dragon lords, a darkness so dense it can suffocate, and the bones of an old crime come back to haunt her.

Badass mom to the rescue! Kate Elliott's The Keeper's Six is an adventure-filled, action-packed novella that features a 60-years-old protagonist, something we don't ever see much of. Esther is an excellent protagonist, experienced and shrewd despite her aches and pains; it was a delight to watch her talk circles around everyone, gleaning information about her son's whereabouts with her negotiation skills and finally finding the truth. I also loved to see her Jewish faith deftly incorporated in the narrative.

This was really a well-rounded novella. In a short amount of pages, Elliott depicts her world and makes you really understand everything of its complexity; the explanations never feel like info-dumps, although having a character who conveniently needs everything explained by the protagonist certainly helps; but those conversations never feel forced. The character in question is fascinating, his past much more so, and in general this story is really organic when it explores the team's past: you get the sense that you really know the members of Esther's Hex, masterfully sketched out in a few words and dialogues.

This is a mix of sci-fi and fantasy; we start off in modern day Australia and make our way to the in-between. I hesitate to call this portal fantasy because it's implied that the dragons used some technology to make the Keeps, more than magic, although magic is certainly used throughout the story. The dragons are fascinating, especially our big bad, and the central mystery slowly unraveling itself, teased ever since the beginning, is worth the wait.

Taking center stage of the narrative is a beautiful established queer relationship between a human man and a non-binary dragon, who met under less than ideal circumstances; the dragon, Kai, has a horrific past that catches up with them and threatens their happiness.

The Keeper's Six is a delightful action-packed adventure that finishes too soon.

✨ 4 stars