Original Title: Finnikin of the Rock
Year Published: 2011
Published by: Perfection Learning
Number of Pages: 399
First Sentence: “A long time ago, in the spring before the five days of the unspeakable, Finnikin of the Rock dreamed that he was to sacrifice a pound of flesh to save the royal house of Lumatere.”
Goodreads Rating: 5/5
Plot:
Finnikin was only a child during the five days of the unspeakable, when the royal family of Lumatere were brutally murdered, and an imposter seized the throne. Now a curse binds all who remain inside Lumatere’s walls, and those who escaped roam the surrounding lands as exiles, persecuted and despairing, dying by the thousands in fever camps. In a narrative crackling with the tension of an imminent storm, Finnikin, now on the cusp of manhood, is compelled to join forces with an arrogant and enigmatic young novice named Evanjalin, who claims that her dark dreams will lead the exiles to a surviving royal child and a way to pierce the cursed barrier and regain the land of Lumatere. But Evanjalin’s unpredictable behavior suggests that she is not what she seems — and the startling truth will test Finnikin’s faith not only in her, but in all he knows to be true about himself and his destiny.
My thoughts:
This book was absolutely amazing. When I first started it, I for some bizarre reason, thought I wouldn’t like it. It was just one of those weird feelings you get sometimes, but oh boy, was I ever wrong. This book almost left me speechless. It has some twists and turns that you didn’t predict in advance and it was just so cleverly written.
Finnikin is amazing. I absolutely loved him. He is a boy who had to grow up way too fast. But he never complains and always does his best to ensure that his people don’t have to suffer more than they already do. He is our voice and guide in this book and you will love him.
Evanjalin was a character I thought I would hate. For the first half of the book, I didn’t like her because of her actions and overall personality. But in the second half, we get a reason for it and I came to love her just as much, if not more, as I love Finnikin. She is amazing and I will protect her against anyone who thinks differently.
We get several other characters that are both interesting and fun to read about. What can be said in the negative is that in the full cast there is actually just a fair few women. The positive thing about it is that all of them are strong, different and well written. But so are the men, and they play bigger parts than the women we do meet. A little more women would have been nice, but other than that the characters are amazing.
The plot is so good and you are definitely taken on a brilliant adventure. It is paced pretty perfectly and you never get bored (at least I never got bored). I was not in the mood for this type of book when I started reading it but it grabbed a hold of me and didn’t let go. That says a lot about how good this book is. The book as a whole is well written and I’m gonna pick up book number two asap!
Do I recommend it?
Holy crap, yes!
bookishwives 