Reviewed by Katy Grant
Step into a dystopian world…it wasn’t a virus, an invasion
from outer space, a military experiment gone wild or a cult set on purging the
world of its evil. We aren’t even sure if the rest of the world is still free since
they are closed off from the rest of the world. We only know of Seattle, Portland
and Vancouver where the Wilds have spread, leaving little livable space for humans.
Our food is in short supply, work is hard to find, and the government is
tightening around us.
The Wilds have taken over much of Seattle and beyond. It’s
living forests where wildlings, magical beings and mutated beasts live. There
is living vegetation all through the Wilds that would devour you if you are too
slow. My name is Val, I hunt the beasts with heart gems, our only means to
raise money to feed us, Peyton and I. She is sick and needs medicine. Peyton
found me as a child in the Wilds and brought me out to live among the humans with
Josuha, her son, and her in Seattle but the years have been hard. Josuha works
for the government and isn’t often around. So now I must hunt, kill the beasts and
sell their heart gems. It is the reason
I ventured too far into the Wilds and how I was captured by Rune. Cruel,
heartless, all he thought of was to gain the crown of the true heir from the
Heart Tree, so he might become the High King of the Wilds.
In our struggle, I used magic, I had tried to control within
me, to escape him. If other humans found out about my magic, I would be imprisoned.
But he soon found me. He threatened Peyton so we made a deal. I would help him
eliminate the Lords that controlled other parts of the Wilds, help him find the
Heart Tree. After he received the crown, he would heal Peyton and set me free.
And this is only the beginning of the dangers, action packed
adventures, mysteries, prophecies, tales of past wars, cruel, evil villains,
power hungry lords and government officials. There is a prison, Mog Morten, for
wildlings where there is untold horrors,
torture, abuse and death; while little hope of escape hangs over the wildling’s
heads. Rune and his followers have been there and escaped, broken from what was
done to them; what they saw and heard.
As the story played out it was easier to understand the
cruel unfeeling attitude Rune had towards humans and others of the Wilds. Val
is intrepid, scared but pushes forward because of her love for Peyton. In a
sense this is what Rune is doing as well, fighting for those he cares about but
refuses to admit too.
It took me a few chapters to orient myself with the surroundings,
get comfortable with the characters and begin to imagine the world that traversed.
Val, Rune, and his closet followers, Marian, Xander, and Triss grew on me as
they changed. Learning to depend on and support each other. By the end they showed
signs of change, caring, overcoming their past. This is a dark fantasy, with
hints of torture, abuse, incest, murder and death. I give Sean Fletcher full marks
for making me feel the terrors but not lay them out in the open for me to see,
except in my imagination. I loved this story, and it is only the start, with a
cliffhanger that made my heart stop and at the same time want to implement my
own torture on a few of the characters. The trilogy is complete so there is no
waiting to find out what happens next, as I plan on doing.
I recommend this series to those who enjoy dark fantasy, a
mix of unknown worlds, magic that leaves room for hope. I also recommend this book for older teens. As
a retired YA librarian, I have seen teens who would devour these tales.
