The Merciless Ones

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Except, of course, those forces upholding the patriarchal system do not want to be dethroned, nor want the way Otera is governed to change. Deka and her friends are fighting for an Otera where gender equality is the norm. At lot of the humour and wit of The Gilded Ones, and the friendship bonds that Deka and her friends have, seems to be a little missing here. Instead, the focus switches over the (excessive) use of Arcane Objects and Divine Gifts, which never really made an appearance in Gilded. Phenomenal and extraordinary! Forna’s breathtaking use of language depicts a thrilling journey through an epic world, rife with danger and deception, as an obedient girl survives the patriarchy and becomes a warrior. Unquestionably, the best fantasy of 2021.”—Kim Johnson, author of This is My America The Nottinghill Carnival takes central stage in this story about families, memories and the power of dance and festivals. Author Yaba Badoe tells... Sadly, this really didn’t live up to its predecessor and falls into several of the traps and issues that second books in a trilogy suffer from: super powered MC, contrived plotting meant to force a turning point in the series, large info dumps for a super expanded world, slow pacing.

Fans of The Gilded Ones and Children of Blood and Bone will love the second book in an epic fantasy series about a girl who is the key to saving the empire--or its greatest threat. In this follow-up to The Gilded Ones (2021), a 17-year-old young woman must defeat divine beings to save the lives of her bloodsisters. Yet hidden secrets threaten to destroy everything Deka has known. And with her own gifts changing, Deka must discover if she holds the key to saving Otera… or if she might be its greatest threat.

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And WE HAVE PLOT TWISTS AND BETRAYALS GALORE! Some I saw coming, others I had to follow the clues for. And it's because of those plot twists, that the book ends on a semi cliffhanger, but at the same time has a good amount of stuff wrapped up. The foremost among them is Idugu, a militaristic version of Oyomo, the sun god worshipped in Otera. Let’s just say Elder Kadiri and his ilk are arguing that those like Deka need to be exterminated once and for all, and are whipping up the majority population into a killing frenzy, with religion as the main weapon.

I do also struggle slightly with the writing style, sometimes I feel it’s overly descriptive in places also has quite a bit of internal monologue that gets repetitive. However, the world Forna created is as magical as it is brutal. The only part that I didn't care for was Deka making these rash decisions without thinking things through and getting others hurt. I thought she'd be more mature since she's grown to be an excellent leader, but at the end of the day she's still young and learning. Hopefully in the final book, she'll listen to her friends more and be more careful with everyone's safety. RECOMMEND IT FOR: If you want an impactful, brutal, - this is the one to get! If any series should be made for TV – it’s this one. Where the disconnect between books really comes through though, is in how this evolves from a “take down of the patriarchy, feminist rage arc” to a generalized fight against all inequality. We see it first with several characters decrying the position of women at the top of the power chain, while men are viewed as less than by the Mothers, and then it evolves to include other marginalized communities and groups of people. I feel like I can understand where the author was trying to lead us with this, but I also can’t say it felt as well executed in the way feminist rage against the patriarchal power structure was presented and discussed in book 1.

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The side characters were also great! They were all pretty well-developed and likeable, and the bonds between them and Deka were all so lovely. I adored Deka and Britta’s friendship- Britta was so supportive and caring, and that was amazing to see! 💕💕 It was giving found family vibes, which I LOVED. You guys know how much I adore that trope 😉😉😜😜 So, yeah, really liked the characters!! Catch up now before Forna’s planned trilogy is turned into the next major movie franchise.”— E! Online I felt this book was a lot more polished than the Gilded Ones and a lot more intricate. I enjoyed the action scenes and since the stakes are higher – the heart pounding action started early on. The Merciless Ones is the second thrilling installment of the epic fantasy series in which a young heroine fights against a world that would dare tame her. Deka glaubt, ihre Bestimmung gefunden zu haben. Als Tochter der vier Göttinnen kämpft sie für die Freiheit der Alaki, Todesrufer und all der anderen Frauen Oteras. Aber auch ihre Gegner, die Jatu, sind stärker geworden und plötzlich nicht mehr so leicht zu besiegen. Anscheinend werden sie von einem Gott unterstützt, aber allein die Existenz dieses Gottes stellt Dekas Weltbild erneut auf den Kopf.

The Gilded Ones is a fierce, unflinching fantasy that marks Forna as a debut to watch.”—Kiersten White, New York Times bestselling author of And I Darken I am in love with the Deathless series! First, The Gilded Ones blew me away with the amazing story of Deka and her finding out more about herself, and then The Merciless Ones threw some twists and spins I never expected and savagely devoured! After Deka freed the Gilded Ones and took her place by their side, life has continued to be full of battles and blood. She is the Nuru, one true daughter of the goddesses, and she is set to awaken them and bring equality to her kingdom. But things are more complicated than that, and as Deka journeys to fulfill the Gilded Ones' wishes, she will unearth many revelations that lead her to wonder whether her mothers are even who they say they are. The girls are powerful, the danger is real, and the characters are engaging and diverse. Forna has accomplished something really special here, equal parts subversive and fun.”— TorThe Merciless Ones is the second in Namina Forna’s “Deathless” series. For a follow-up novel, I thought The Merciless Ones did a decent job in furthering worldbuilding and character development. It took me a bit to get into, but once it got going, the book had me hooked! (Of course, spoiler warnings for the content ahead if you haven’t read the first book, The Gilded Ones.) I think that since the first book explained the world and what was going on, we were able to just dive into the story. I really loved Deka's journey here as she stopped blindly following everyone and started really thinking for herself. Not only that, but she surrounded herself with such a great group of people to support and help her - and that just made all of the difference. I also really like how the main focus of the story isn't romance as so many YA's lean to. Yes there is a romance but it doesn't take over this dire world situation and instead, their relationship grows as they both grow. It felt natural and loved seeing the little moments we got of them.

Without spoiling much more of the book, I’ll just say, consider reading the “Deathless” series. I think it is a decent YA series with a compelling story. (Looks like there’s a third book in the works, which I am very excited for!) You have to start believing in yourself, Deka, in your own mind. Your own soundness. If not, others will take advantage of you, turn your uncertainty into a weapon. Learn to trust in yourself. That is one of the primary marks of a great leader. A general.”See, I was planning on reading this in two or three goes to stretch it out, but once The Merciless Ones sunk its claws into me, it didn't let go and I had to read the whole book at once, naturally. The lgbt characters are featured a lot more too. As well as slightly different but no less important themes.