Tuesday, December 14, 2021

SciFi/Fantasy Book Review: Year of the Reaper by Makiia Lucier

 




Year of the Reaper is a YA Fantasy novel from author Makiia Lucier, whose prior fantasy Tower of Winds duology (Isle of Blood and Stone (Review Here), Song of the Abyss (Review Here)) I enjoyed.  That duology featured a very different type of fantasy setting, an Island Kingdom with a culture of peaceful exploration rather than conquering.  Neither book was anything truly remarkable, but they were enjoyable for younger side of YA offerings, and so I was intrigued when I saw some talk about this latest offering.  

And Year of the Reaper is another very solid YA offering* that doesn't really manage to break out from the pack.  The story features one incredibly predictable twist that any experienced reader will see coming - even in the target age group I suspect - but also features a number of plot points that go in different directions to how you'd expect.  It's executed well enough, with a very enjoyable main character, very solid dialogue, and some solid secondary characters, so if you're looking for an enjoyable YA book to read or to give someone, you won't go wrong here.  It just wouldn't necessarily be super high up on my list.  

*This could again be considered on the younger side of YA, as the romance involved is entirely chaste, although there is a good amount of violence and there are multiple moments dealing with war and medical atrocities committed by people off page, which probably takes this out of Middle Grade.*


------------------------------------------------Plot Summary--------------------------------------------------------
Three years ago, Lord Cas, younger brother to the Lord of Palmerin, was captured by his country Oliveras' longtime enemy nation of Brisa, and was made to suffer as a beaten laborer because of it.  But when the plague came, all of those around him, enemy and captive alike, were killed, leaving Cas free and alive, but with a new cursed ability to see the spirits of the dead around him.  Now, Cas is finally making his way back home, into a very different world, where a marriage between a Brisan Princess Jehan to Oliveras' King Rayan has finally led to peace between the two nations, and the plague finally seems to be abating. 

But Cas' final path back home comes with even more surprises.  First he encounters a strange girl who steals his horse, and whom he rescues from a tree, a girl who winds up being the King's half sister Lena.  Then he discovers that the King and Queen have temporarily relocated to Palmerin, where everyone thinks him long dead.  And Finally, he arrives just in time seemingly to stop an assassination attempt by a mystery archer on the King's baby heir.  

Cas finds out quickly that things aren't quite the same as before, and that his brother has at least one secret he isn't telling him.  But as Cas and Lena attempt to figure out the truth, and to stop the assassin before he or she strikes again, they find that the attempts stem from such secrets of the past, which are finally coming back to light.....
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Year of the Reaper does a number of interesting things with the setting, which is inspired by events that took place during the Black Plague (such as a princess whose journey to another nation wound up ending poorly due to the plague).  Most notably, Lucier does not try to explain everything she references, or even that plays a more active part, whether that be how the plague is spread by rats (like in our world), how the new non corrupt health inspector used that knowledge to save lives, or most specifically - our protagonist Cas' ability to see the spirits of the dead.  In other novels with a similar thing, such an ability would be a major secret with major implications, or there would be some big discovery or about how it came about, but here it's just a thing that's there - Cas survived so much death, and he became connected with it seemingly, and it's just part of him.  The way it doesn't make Cas some kind of special person or chosen one is really refreshing compared to the usual way this type of ability shows up in other stories.  

Which is not to say that Cas and the other characters don't have their own personality traits and developments that are delved into.  In Cas you have a hero who just wants answers, who wants to be good and isn't vengeful, even as he also still does hold grudges towards people who wronged him (which makes it hard for him to be super polite to the Queen, from that country, for example).   Cas is good and lawful, but not dumb, and his attempts to do the right thing make him enjoyable to read.  Love interest and secondary protagonist Lena is also a nice contrast, as a historian rather than some princess to be rescued, who also wants to be free of the rules of the throne and of stuck up nobles who jealously act out at her.  Cas' brother and the soldier Bittor who spends the most time with Lena also work really well as solid secondary characters, who each have their own motivations and backstories.  And Lucier does a great job with the dialogue between all these characters, which is highly enjoyable to read, even cracking a joke here and there.  

Which again is not to say that Year of the Reaper doesn't have a few predictable moments that prevent this from standing out.  The major twist in this book is revealed about 75% of the way through, but any experienced reader will have guessed it from the book's prologue, and it happens exactly as you'd expect.  The antagonist's eventual motivations are very understandable, but even after discovering them, the protagonists find themselves shocked that the antagonist would do these things, which was also a bit frustrating.  Not everything is so predictable - the King's reaction to the twist is a nice surprise, since it doesn't go one of the two obvious ways it would normally go* - but it's enough to make this book feel a bit more pedestrian than it might otherwise do.  

Spoiler in ROT13 for the twist:  Fb gur gjvfg vf gung gur Cevaprff naq ure orfg sevraq, gur nzonffnqbe'f qnhtugre, fjvgpurq vqragvgvrf naq gur Cevaprff jnf yrsg sbe qrnq jura gurl jrer wbhearlvat guebhtu cynthr svyyrq ynaqf gb gur Xvat, naq gung gur erny Cevaprff fheivirq naq vf gur nagntbavfg.  Nal rkcrevraprq ernqre jvyy ernq gur cebybthr, qrgnvyvat n zbzrag yrnivat oruvaq crbcyr jvgu cynthr sebz gung wbhearl naq vagebqhpvat gur gjb jbzra, naq thrff gung gur cevaprff naq gur orfg sevraq fjvgpurq cynprf naq gung'f gur uvqqra frperg, fb gur snpg gung guvf vf cynlrq sbe n ovt frperg qbrfa'g ernyyl jbex.  Ohg gur Xvat'f ernpgvba gb svaqvat bhg uvf dhrra vfa'g gur erny eblny vfa'g gur hfhny bar - arvgure n qrpynengvba gung ur ybirf ure ab znggre jung be n pehry pnfgvat bss bs ure sbe orgenlvat ure.  Vafgrnq ur'f pbasyvpgrq nobhg vg nyy, naq fraqvat ure njnl znvayl orpnhfr jung zvtug unccra vs ure angvba fraqf fbzrbar gb purpx hc ba ure naq qvfpbiref gur ehfr (juvpu pbhyq yrnq gb jne).  Vg'f n centzngvp ernfbavat (rira vs vg qbrfa'g fgvpx) gung vf jbexf engure jryy.

Overall, Year of the Reaper is solid fantasy based upon historical events, with solid characters and some surprises, which when combined with a predictable twist add up to an enjoyable YA novel that just fails to really stand out.  YA readers won't leave this book disappointed, but there's a lot else out there for them to pick up instead if they're looking for something to read.

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