It’s at times like this that I really cannot sing the praises of NetGalley enough…this isn’t due for release until early 2018…but I’ve read it…and it’s a book that I can see marking a very exciting series.
The story is intriguing. In the land of Sempera, blood is currency. Time is extracted from blood and mixed with iron to enable people to use it as payment. The wealthy, such as the Gerling family, use this process to tax the poor. It’s certainly a dangerous world, but particularly so for our main character Jules.
When we first meet Jules she is worried about her father. Determined to do what she can to support him, Jules plans to return to Everless – the palatial estate owned by the Gerlings where Jules used to live as a child – as they are offering time as payment. Her father is unhappy about this prospect, and it’s not until much later on that we get to understand why.
Watching Jules return to the place she seems to feel is home was interesting. She clearly still harbours feelings for Roan, the Gerling boy she remembers playing with as a child, and there are little clues dropped that Jules might have a part to play in events beyond the walls of Everless.
As with many books in this genre, it’s not until we have been given all the details that we start to see just how well it has been plotted. Jules’s resolve to meet the Queen and solve what she thinks is the key problem carries us happily through most of the book. We watch Jules get taken under the wing of Ina Gold, the Queen’s heir, and it was definitely interesting to watch her piece together details of her past and start to work out just who she is. At the point that we were told one or two hitherto unknown details everything clicked. It was a shock, but it made sense…it’s just a shame it happened so late on and is clearly setting us up for where Jules goes next.
I can’t wait!