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A review by arielmerm8
The Sunbearer Trials by Aiden Thomas
5.0
I read this in December 2022, but I am amplifying it now for the #transrightsreadathon 2023.
"You are a loud, impulsive, persistent seeker of justice, and that makes people uncomfortable, but it doesn’t make you bad. It makes you very good, in fact."
Aiden Thomas has a knack for creating characters, this much I knew from Cemetary Boys and Lost in the Never Woods. Both of which were created with magical elements in our existing world. In The Sunbearer Trials, Aiden has shown that he can build incredible, rich, detailed fantasy worlds, too.
Teo is a 17-year-old Jade semidiós and the trans son of Quetzal, goddess of birds. As a lesser demigod, he doesn't concern himself too much with the Sunbearer Trials, a Hunger Games-esque competition held every 10 years to replenish the power of the sun. But Teo is chosen, which sets him off on a journey of self-discovery. Teo must learn who to trust and how to trust himself while competing in life-threatening challenges against 9 of his peers- including his best friend, Niya, and his nemesis Aurielo.
I loved that, while queerness was central to this book and many of the characters, it was so matter-of-fact in the world of Reino del Sol, as not to be an issue. Teo's body dysphoria was in his wings, which were the more feminine dull brown instead of the bright, vibrant colors of male wings. This became central to his journey of trusting and loving himself.
And it ended on The. Biggest. Cliffhanger.
"You are a loud, impulsive, persistent seeker of justice, and that makes people uncomfortable, but it doesn’t make you bad. It makes you very good, in fact."
Aiden Thomas has a knack for creating characters, this much I knew from Cemetary Boys and Lost in the Never Woods. Both of which were created with magical elements in our existing world. In The Sunbearer Trials, Aiden has shown that he can build incredible, rich, detailed fantasy worlds, too.
Teo is a 17-year-old Jade semidiós and the trans son of Quetzal, goddess of birds. As a lesser demigod, he doesn't concern himself too much with the Sunbearer Trials, a Hunger Games-esque competition held every 10 years to replenish the power of the sun. But Teo is chosen, which sets him off on a journey of self-discovery. Teo must learn who to trust and how to trust himself while competing in life-threatening challenges against 9 of his peers- including his best friend, Niya, and his nemesis Aurielo.
I loved that, while queerness was central to this book and many of the characters, it was so matter-of-fact in the world of Reino del Sol, as not to be an issue. Teo's body dysphoria was in his wings, which were the more feminine dull brown instead of the bright, vibrant colors of male wings. This became central to his journey of trusting and loving himself.
And it ended on The. Biggest. Cliffhanger.