Oh, is there anything like the dawning horror – 50 or so pages from the end of your book – that it’s going to be darned hard for this plot to all wrap up neatly? And as you hope against hope, page by page, it becomes grimly clear…this is not a standalone book.
Luckily I am most happy to forgive Intisar Khanani several times over, because I’m delighted that I’ll get to spend more time with the The Theft of Sunlight’s characters, as soon as I track the third book in the Dauntless series down.
Despite clearly being part of a series, I had expected this to be a standalone book, after earlier this year reading the excellent Thorn – a YA fantasy that pits the princess of a faraway land against a jealous and sometimes treacherous court.
With those events happily resolved, this second in the series introduces us to a new character, Rae – the hard working and humble daughter of a horse trader, who must navigate a new role in the same court. Rae, a straightforward and forthright young woman, is looked down on by many for her disability. As she learns the ways of the palace, Rae also learns the ways of a rough and deadly city, investigating the mysterious disappearance of children that is almost entirely overlooked by the nobles she serves.
The world building is what I enjoyed most about this book, as well as the fact that not everything is explained.
I would recommend potential readers start with Thorn, as well as The Bone Knife – a short story that precedes The Theft of Sunlight, and first introduces Rae and her family.