This convincing secondary world fantasy cleverly juxtaposes traditional high fantasy with a more industrialised setting, using three distinct perspectives to braid together the overarching story. Underpinning a narrative of high-stakes political intrigue alongside more prosaic machinations from the not-quite-adult protagonists, Kaufman utilises the concept of semi-embodied gods to challenge ideas of organised religion in thoughtful ways appropriate to the audience.
Containing some quite brutal violence, the author does not shy away from consequences for poor decisions, and there are real ramifications for the characters’ choices, which adds to the engaging style of the book. The three main characters are distinctive in their growth, and secondary characters are rich in their depictions, allowing the reader to immerse in the world and the events of the story.