By Ms Eng Yuwen
Rating: 2.5/5 stars
I now know why we shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.
Picking up Mariely Lares’ ‘Sun of Blood and Ruin’, one would immediately be captivated by its aesthetic cover art. Panther and serpent are intertwined mid fight with the sun behind them. Arresting.
I took a deep dive into the non Western-inspired fantasy genre during the holidays and I was extremely excited to tear into this. The premise was so promising. It’s New Spain in the 16th Century. The land is scarred by oppression and there is a witch-hunt for those who still practise indigenous magic. Their culture is being erased.
It’s a supposed reimagining of Zorro—a “swashbuckling” story of a vigilante warrior-sorceress Pantera, who will serve justice for her people. Except that, by day, she was also Lady Leonora, a mixed-blood noblewoman engaged to the heir of the Spanish throne.
I admit (albeit sheepishly) that I was seduced by the dazzling promise of “historical fantasy” and “magic, treachery and romance”, but it turned out to be a catfish with an overstuffed plot and inconsistent pacing.
That’s not to say there is nothing to like about this novel.
Mariely Lares does weave in the Mesoamerican myths skilfully into her worldbuilding, writing mythological creatures into being and completely captivating me. Unfortunately, it was not enough to redeem the flaws that are quite typical of debut novels.
For starters, the book was… confusing. The plot follows a woman who leads a double life—one that she wants to lead, and another that was forced upon her—set against the backdrop of a people suffering, subjugated by their Spanish conquistadors.
As the book develops, we realise that there is an ancient prophecy that foretells of a “Jaguar Warrior” who will liberate the land and that many believe Pantera will be their liberator. This puts her between a rock (the Spanish authorities) and a hard place (those who are seeking to use her). While there is a lot happening, my main gripes are that development is easily lost in (1) a plethora of characters who appear for the sake of plot advancement and then disappear with no certainty of reappearance, (2) a whole lot switching between past and present with no clear transitions, and (3) pages and pages of detailed history that one might mistake it for a textbook.
To illustrate my point: the book opens with an action-packed scene and we meet Pantera. She is a masked vigilante cloaked in jaguar pelt on her way to save an old man and his son. Her mission fails, she is gutted and the father-son duo does not appear again until the final pages of the book???
Interspersed in this action sequence are flashbacks to the past, but without proper transition, these episodes confound rather than drive character development. The chunks of inserted history are huge stumbling blocks to an even pace, throwing the rhythm and thus the reader off.
Secondly, even after the writing became more refined in the second half, I still found it so difficult to empathise with Pantera or Leonara. The event-driven plot gave little time for the reader to really connect with her. I want to know what she is thinking and why she felt that way.
I want to be shown and not told! I am told she is powerful and masterful with a sword, but I did not see evidence of that.
If I did not feel anything for the main character, you can be sure that I have already forgotten the other characters who were two-dimensional and seemingly non-sequitur.
If Mexican history and mythology intrigues you, and you don’t mind reading through an entire glossary (it’s found at the back of the book but it would have made more sense to place it in front) before starting on a novel, give this book a shot.
I am a seasoned fantasy reader, but got lost somewhere between the overambitious plot and overenthusiastic history dumping. And as someone who prefers character-driven books, the 2.5 stars is a testament to my educator’s heart of not wanting to fail someone who has put in so much effort.