
The City of Snow & Stars by S.D. Howard
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The blurb: A gritty YA Christian Fantasy tackling difficult topics surrounding abuse, human trafficking, and the question “Why does God let bad things happen?”
A girl who can duplicate herself.
A prince on the run from his future.
A man hiding from his past.
A fate that binds them together.
Gifted with the power to perfectly duplicate herself, Trinia flees from her power-hungry father who wishes to use her ability for his own means. Born of the ancient Airgíd race that once ruled with an iron fist, she’s hated by all, and now she must seek their help to stop the coming genocide.
Jayden wants nothing to do with his birthright as the Crown Prince of Ungäar. Having faked his death nearly three years ago, he finds himself caught up in a string of events that pull him away from his desire for freedom, toward a fate he’s tried to escape.
A man of legend, Údar sought refuge in the Forest of Nex to nurse his bitterness and anger toward Elohai for his wife’s death. But Elohai has not forgotten him, nor is his calling fulfilled. Drawn out of hiding by the promise of revenge, he finds the world has changed… and not for the better.
My review: This book was offered to me by the author for an honest review. I read the blurb “…tackling difficult topics surrounding abuse, human trafficking…” and was unsure if I would be able to handle graphic scenes of this type, but decided to give it a read anyway.
First up, let me say one thing to make it perfectly clear…
There are no graphic scenes in this book that might keep you awake at night or upset you in any way. I have to say that although the message comes across, it is done in a gentle way to raise awareness but not traumatise the reader. The author has done an awesome job in this regard.
The book is a Christian Fantasy story and apart from the abuse and human trafficking themes, there is (of course) the religious theme as well. I was impressed by how the author tackled this theme too. It was subtle. I did not feel preached at, not even once, yet the messages were clear and concise. And because the words were part of the story flow, I heard them. One in particular stayed with me all day because it was something I needed to hear at that time.
The five main characters are diverse and fit well together. There are moments that you can’t help but smile, while at other places you feel the tension or the hurt or the confusion. You know what I mean. The emotions of everyday life. Their backstories are explored and we get a good idea where they are all coming from. At present, my favourite character is Jayden. I think he’s going to have a tough ride through the series, but he has a good heart despite his mischievous ways.
The world is vast and well described. I don’t think I have a good grasp on the world itself, but this is the first book, so it is setting up for what is going to come.
Fantasy readers will enjoy this book. It has all the ingredients for an exciting storyline over several books. I love fantasy and have read many series over the years that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed and this book did not let me down. The characters drew me back. I wanted to know what would happen to them next in the book. But I also want to know what will happen in the next book, so I guess that confirms I would definitely read more from this author.
Recommended.