The First Girl Child - Amy Harmon

Historical Fantasy

Rating: 8/10

This book begins with a curse.

A woman, a loyal warrior that has never wavered in protecting her people, lies bleeding to death after giving birth.  She has made her way to her estranged brother to leave the child in safe keeping, away from his power hungry and evil father, a man who would soon be King.

Moments before her death, she bemoans all the ways in which women are abused, proclaiming that there will no longer be any more daughters born.

The book tells the story of her child, Bayr, who has been gifted with inhuman strength and a warm and unflinching heart. When the first girl child in decades is born, he becomes her self-appointed protector. As the years pass, their bond grows deeper even as the stakes become greater for each of them. We also get to know Dagmar, Bayr’s beloved guardian. A man who as the son of a warrior had to come to grips with having the soul of a keeper.

I love intricate, and interesting world building, and the author delivers with her creation of Saylok. A society with distinct clans, unique magic and mythology, keepers of the temple whose purpose is to uphold the rules of the gods and an abundance of compelling characters and plot threads.

An utterly absorbing and mesmerizing read that you are sure to get lost in.

Book Pairing(s): The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang, The Lost Queen by Signe Pike, Queen Of Tearling by Erika Johansen