Sunday, September 6, 2020

Warrior of the wild by Tricia Levenseller

Life is hard for eighteen year old Rasmira and her people.  They live in a harsh world where they live at the whim of a powerful god who demands tribute each year for the the boon of letting them live their lives.  Rasmira knows she is lucky to be the daughter of the village leader, she and her sisters have never gone hungry, but there is a lot of pressure for her to succeed too.  Her father has great expectations of Rasmira, expecting her to be just as deadly as the boys that are training to be warriors, and only her adult trial stands between Rasmira and her destiny.  It is not easy being her fathers daughter though, the boys she has grown up with and trained beside resent the special treatment she appears to receive - the praise heaped upon her as they receive curses, not just from her father but from their trainer as well.  

Rasmira is used to being alone and apart, but recently she has discovered that there is more to life than training and fighting monsters.  Entering her trial seems like a reward at the end of the uphill fight she has faced - but then disaster strikes as her trial is sabotaged and Rasmira has no choice but to either complete her mattugr or face banishment and certain death in the wilds beyond her village.  The mattugr she is given is no simple task, they never are - she has to travel across the wild and kill the god who oppresses her people.  Rasmira has seen the god in action and knows that he has powers that protect him, making it almost certain that she will fail her mattugr and remain banished forever.  

Her father and village have underestimated her determination though, and as Rasmira sets out to find the god Peruxolo and end his life she knows that she will find and kill the god or die trying.  The wilds are a dangerous place, filled with monsters and creatures that are deadly, but in Rasmira also finds beauty and some surprising allies where she least expects them.  As she fights to survive long enough to complete her task, Rasmira finds herself learning some surprising lessons.  But will it be enough to keep her alive long enough, and give her the knowledge she needs, to complete her mattugr and return home?

I picked up a copy of Warrior of the wild after reading The shadows between us hoping that the story would be as good, and was pleasantly surprised to find that it was just as good if not better.  Both books feature strong young women who know what they want and are not afraid to do whatever it takes to get what they want - in Rasmira's case she is not only a skilled warrior who trains hard to be just as good as they boys of her village, she also has a strong sense of honour, and justice.  I found the world she was in particularly appealing because it has echoes of Viking mythology, but also because it made sense (even if the monsters are somewhat creepy and scary).  

The story flows and develops, and you see Rasmira change and grow as she faces new challenges and ideas.  The characters around her also change and grow in different ways, and it is all too easy to picture her world and the people in it.  At times I was cheering for her, at other times I wanted to shake her, and other times it felt like a friend was facing danger and there was nothing I could do to stop her walking right into it.  This is a fantastic novel and while it does feel as though the story is complete, it is a world that would be worth visiting again if Levenseller happened to write more stories set in the world.

If you like this book then try:

Reviewed by Brilla

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