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Nym lives with her Master on a sheltered, isolated island in the province of Galia. He keeps her safe from the vile men who hunt her for her blood, which has healing properties and shields her from the world. She has no idea that she’s the last Nymph in the province, and she has no idea that the Master only wants her so he can have her precious blood all to himself; until the day he tries to cut her heart out. Jay is in exile from his home of Ireece, after the Crown Prince outlawed Nymph Hunting. But he needs the blood of a Nymph so that his little sister can have some sort of life. When he saves Nym from the knife of her Master, is he only extending her life for an even worse death? Or will his conscience save her from the torture chamber of the Galian Nymph-Keeper?
With Roots of Blood, you’re immediately pulled into the vivid world of Nym, her love of nature and all living things ensure she captures your heart. She may be naïve, but she’s strong and pure of heart. Although she intensely dislikes Jay from the very start (with fairly good reason), again, he is a strangely likeable character. His inner warring within shows that he’s not everything Nym believes him to be. From the off, Volkman has created two brilliantly complex and entirely opposite leading characters.
The world that the provinces Galia and Ireece inhabit are incredibly well built, with a rich history that as a reader, you seem to immediately understand. Volkman has, without dumping the entire backstory of the provinces on you within the first few chapters, ensured that you know enough to understand Jay’s and Nym’s motivations. Just enough is left unsaid for you to want to continue reading; and enough is revealed without leaving you questioning what has happened.
In all, a masterful fantasy novel.
S. A
First published on Reedsy Discovery as part of their ARC program. You can read the original review here.
You can buy Roots of Blood by clicking on its name. It’s available via Amazon.