I just finished listening to the audio book of Tribe of Midnight and I had to come straight here and tell you all how good it is. So please grab your beverage of choice, put your feet up, and enjoy as I tell you why you NEED to read this book.
In the Tribe of Dawn, one must always follow the rules:
Never steal from a neighbour
Never curse the skygods out loud
Never lie to the High Court
Never wander into the East woods alone
Never speak to an enemy clansman
Never approach the boundary
Never, ever cross the boundary
The rules must always be followed.
Lilian Utopiv is wandering through the woods alone one afternoon when she sees a boy across the boundary. She knows the rules. She knows what will happen if she breaks them.
With secrets unravelling at every turn, and an enemy tribe hungry for her blood, Lilian is pushed to her limits–physically, mentally, spiritually. Her enemies want her to be a coward. They want her to spill her secrets. They want her to turn on the Sungod she serves.
But she can’t. Or her tribe will pay with their lives.
Title: Tribe of Midnight (The Skygod Tribes, #1)
Author: Iris Knox
Link: https://www.amazon.com/Tribe-Midnight-Iris-Knox-ebook/dp/B09B941BG2/
Rating: 5 Stars (and if it was possible, I’d give it even more!)
Review: I have never been so mad that I didn’t write a book. Reading this book, I WISHED I had been the one who had written it, I loved it THAT much.
Aside from being mad at Iris Knox that she gets to be the one to claim this wonderful story as her own, what did I like? Well, for starters, the world building was incredible, the world Knox has created for this story is fully formed and described in rich detail, without being overwhelming or including too much exposition.
The two tribes, the Tribe of Dawn and the Tribe of Midnight, absolutely came to life for me, everything about them was so well thought through and described throughout the story. I felt as though I could have been standing right beside Lillian as she stumbles across the boundary and is taken prisoner by a warrior from the opposing tribe.
The plot pacing was perfect, fast enough to keep me interested from start to finish (it’s a relatively short book, at just 155 pages, or 4 and a half hours for the audio book) but never rushed. I grew to love Lilian for her strength and loyalty, and to hate Wyren for his cruelty, over the course of the book, and I loved discovering more of the Midnight Tribe’s city and culture as Lilian did.
This book is Romeo & Juliet meets Red Riding Hood meets epic fantasy, with elements of The Sin Eater’s Daughter by Melinda Salisbury, The Remnant Chronicles by Mary E. Pearson, and a hint of M. Night Shyamalan’s The Village. The enemies to lovers (more like enemies to even worse enemies) romance reminded me of Serpent & Dove (without the steam – or really even the romance), and I’m struggling to see how Wyren will ever redeem himself for his horrific actions in this book, if we’re ever to see Lilian and him fall in love in a future book. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for a Darkling/Tamlin vibe, as I can’t forgive Wyren for his awful treatment of Lilian and I don’t think Lilian should either.
Tribe of Midnight sets the scene for what will be an absolutely incredible high fantasy series, with two rival tribes destined to do battle on the lavender fields every Solstice, and two fiercely loyal and skilled tribal warriors who will do anything to protect their people.
Only one wears a red cloak, but which one is the wolf? Read Tribe of Midnight and make up your own mind…
I listened to a free, review copy of the audio book (thanks Iris!), but I actually bought the ebook back when it first came out, and I’m so glad I have both. The audio, narrated by Cassondra Ladd was brilliant, with English and Scottish accents to distinguish the two tribes, and I’m definitely going to read the ebook before book two comes out (which will hopefully be very soon, please Iris!!) to reimmerse myself in this brutal and captivating world.
Happy reading,
Lyndsey
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Lyndsey Hall | Author 