"Skyhunter" by Marie Lu

Skyhunter (Sept. 29, 2020) by Marie Lu.

*This is the first book in a duology.*

When Talin Kanami was eight years old, her homeland of Basea was invaded by the Karensa Federation. She and her mother fled north to Mara in terror and in pain. 10 years later, and Talin hasn’t spoken since the night Basea was invaded due to vocal cord scarring and emotional trauma. She uses sign language, knowing the languages of Basea and Mara. Mara is the last free nation (on this side of the sea), and Mara’s legendary Strikers are the only warriors standing between that nation and annihilation by the Karensa Federation, run by the young, sickly, tyrannical Premier, Constantine Tyrus. Talin, against all odds and through all of the bullying, is a Striker (thank you, open-minded Firstblade Aramin Wen Calla). Strikers don’t just battle the enemy soldiers, but, most specifically, they battle Ghosts. Ghosts are formerly human, but become “monstrous war beasts” after dark poison is poured down their throats. They are grotesque. To kill them, “you must bleed a Ghost out, cutting it at its neck, the only place with a vulnerable vein.” If a Ghost bites a human or scratches them with their poisonous fingernails, one must cut that person’s throat before s/he turns. And if it’s one’s own Shield (a.k.a. Striker partner) … uff da. With Redlen (Red) Arabes’ appearance, he may be the miracle weapon Mara so desperately needs. He’s the Skyhunter. Together with her friends and fellow Strikers Adena Min Ghanna and Jeran Min Terra, they plot to destabilize Karensa. They’ve pledged their lives to Mara and to one another. Strikers are “Bringers of Death,” “Assassins of Monsters.” They are Mara’s saviors and they will give their everything.

            Wow. This first novel in a duology from Marie Lu, one of my favorite authors, blew me away. This story isn’t only another science fiction fantasy set in a dystopia (references to the civilization of the “Early Ones” could be construed as Earth as we would know it) with some battle here and there. No. It runs much deeper than that. Not only do characters have varying skin tones, but Lu doesn’t steer away from xenophobia in her story, with Talin taking the brunt of it (the “Basean rat”). The trajectory of the story, from start to finish, is fast-paced and engaging. The world is expansive, darkly exciting, high-action and brutal with a core group featuring a main character and primary supporting characters that aren’t without sympathy. The way Lu writes is as well-balanced as a perfect sword.