Mirrored Heavens

Starred review from March 1, 2024

Serapio has been crowned the Carrion King in Tova. The avatar of the Crow God Reborn knows that he has enemies, some even closer than believed, as the clan matrons scheme to take back their power. Another god's prophecy puts Serapio on a path of death--for others and possibly for himself. Xiala is back in Teek, the island she left, as invaders take control of the people and their magic. For Xiala to claim her power, she will have to sacrifice that which she holds dear. The Sun God's avatar, Naranpa, is in the northern wastelands looking for a way to save Tova from the fiery fate she dreams about, while the Jaguar God stalks her in body and in her nightmares. No one will come out of the final battles unscathed. VERDICT Roanhorse's world of the Meridian (last seen in the series entry Fevered Star) is a powerful tale of gods, power, and the way people seek to claim both. The exquisite storytelling doesn't release readers until the final page is turned.--Kristi Chadwick

Copyright 2024 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 1, 2024
Political intrigue, a war between god-touched avatars, and grand machinations both magical and mundane provide the epic sweep of Roanhorse's finale to her Between Earth and Sky trilogy (Black Sun, 2020; Fevered Star, 2022). Serapio, the Crow God Reborn, strives to consolidate his hold on Tova, a city caught in a permanent eclipse. His enemies conspire to bring him down with military might and blood magic. Meanwhile, Naranpa, sun priest in exile, learns the ancient art of dreamwalking while struggling to find her own way to protect Tova. And Xiala, Teek sea captain and heir to the throne, finds her people threatened by natural misfortune and an unscrupulous lord who wishes to start her empire by conquering the islands. These characters' threads, and many more, are woven together masterfully to form a rich tapestry of betrayal, victory, love, and loss. The ending is not a neat bow; rather than frustrating the reader, though, it creates the sense that we've peeked in on the momentous events of another world that will continue once we look away. Fans of densely layered fantasy like Samantha Shannon's The Priory of the Orange Tree (2019) or N. K. Jemisin's Inheritance trilogy should delve into these novels for the pre-Columbian Americas-inspired world and fascinating characters.

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April 15, 2024
Bestseller Roanhorse is in top form in the satisfying conclusion to her Between Earth and Sky epic fantasy trilogy (after 2022’s Fevered Star). The future of Serapio, the newly ascendant Carrion King, hinges on comprehending a cryptic prophecy conveyed by Zataya of the Coyote Clan, a witch who reads astronomical portents as signifying that “something terrible” is coming for the people of the land called the Meridian. She tells Serapio that he faces “three wars to lose, three wars to win,” but that in achieving victory, he will sacrifice everything. Serapio believes some of the message is clear enough for him to take action, but his plans to fulfill the prophecy without losing all he holds dear face numerous challenges. Other characters, including Xiala, a sea captain belonging to a community that lives on floating islands and has mostly lost its ability to perform magic through singing, are equally three-dimensional, and Roanhorse weaves the myriad plot threads together seamlessly, building to an epic climax. It’s a worthy finale to a blockbuster series.

Starred review from May 15, 2024
Serapio's newly won rule over the city of Tova is threatened from all sides in the third installment of Roanhorse's Between Earth and Sky trilogy. Serapio, now the Carrion King, has triumphed over Tova. As he's an avatar of the crow god, his new kingdom is engulfed in a permanent eclipse. But his fight isn't over yet. The powerful clan matrons conspire to assassinate him, and outside of Tova, the bloodthirsty Lord Balam is gathering a terrible force to destroy him. When a strange old woman tells Serapio that the coyote god has a prophecy that will show him how to defeat his enemies, Serapio is eager to hear it. But the prophecy is contradictory and confusing and finishes with the promise that "in winning he would lose everything." Meanwhile, Xiala is home on the mysterious, matriarchal island nation of Teek. As she struggles to channel her strange ocean powers, Teek is invaded by Lord Tuun, who wants to force the women of Teek to build a navy for Balam's war against Serapio. Xiala must find a way to outsmart Tuun, save what remains of her homeland, and make it back to Tova to find Serapio before Balam's forces overtake him. Even as Roanhorse brings her epic story to a close, there are no simple answers here. Serapio is both a victim of the plot that bound him to the crow god without his consent and a brutal strategist when it comes to furthering his goals. Everyone from the goodhearted Xiala to the villainous Balam must contend with sacrificing pieces of themselves--and the lives of others--to achieve their ends. Roanhorse's fans won't be surprised to hear that she's crafted a complex, suspenseful, and ultimately satisfying ending to her masterful trilogy. A strong ending and a new classic of the fantasy genre.

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