Genre: YA Fantasy

Publisher: Penguin Teen Canada, Published February 9th 2021

Format: ebook

Pages: 432

Rating: 4/5 stars

Synopsis (from Goodreads):

Sixteen-year-old Deka lives in fear and anticipation of the blood ceremony that will determine whether she will become a member of her village. Already different from everyone else because of her unnatural intuition, Deka prays for red blood so she can finally feel like she belongs.

But on the day of the ceremony, her blood runs gold, the color of impurity–and Deka knows she will face a consequence worse than death.

Then a mysterious woman comes to her with a choice: stay in the village and submit to her fate, or leave to fight for the emperor in an army of girls just like her. They are called alaki–near-immortals with rare gifts. And they are the only ones who can stop the empire’s greatest threat.

Knowing the dangers that lie ahead yet yearning for acceptance, Deka decides to leave the only life she’s ever known. But as she journeys to the capital to train for the biggest battle of her life, she will discover that the great walled city holds many surprises. Nothing and no one are quite what they seem to be–not even Deka herself.

My Review:

Thank you Penguin Teen Canada for sending me a copy of this book.
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This book follows Deka, who finds out that she is not pure after her blood runs gold. What she believed to be true about her identity turns out to be incorrect, and for the rest of the book, she is on a journey of self-discovery. She gets sent to this training camp for the kingdom with others like her in order to train to kill the Deathshrieks, which are wreaking havoc on the kingdom.
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I really liked the concept of the book. It was fun and engaging, and I wanted to keep reading to find out more about Deka. She was a great protagonist who was strong and well-liked, and she was kind to her friends but also harsh to her enemies. I liked how the author revealed pieces about Deka the more we read. I also really liked the action and suspense. It was not over the top, but just the right amount for what I would consider a YA book.
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CW: violence, sexual assault, death of a loved one, torture, execution.