An orphaned girl, powerless and destitute. An Endless War, that threatens to consume everyone in its path. Magic amulets, that hold the promise of victory.
After Damira witnesses the brutal slaughter of nearly her entire clan by a roving warband, she resolves never to feel helpless again. With nowhere to go, she, her brother and a friend surrender to a warlord, resigned to becoming little more than pawns in the Endless War.
But when Wei Fang, a warlord wielding magic amulets threatens to destroy anyone who stands against her, Damira must choose. Will she seek to master the power of the amulets and make a stand against the brutal Wei Fang? Or will the power behind the amulets destroy her first?
Having read the first two books in this series, I had high hopes for this third part of the story. I was not disappointed. Each book has its own main character and unique storyline that can stand alone as a great fantasy read, but there are also elements that connect these worlds within a bigger world. This book feels even more like a stand-alone story than the first two, but there is a brief section where you’re reminded what’s going on in the rest of the…well, world, quite literally. But mostly, you’re reading about this new and before-unknown setting.
Far, far across the sand from that main world we’ve gotten to know, THIS section of the world feels very different. I LOVED how it felt like a real place with its own history and cultures and beliefs and politics, etc. etc. The author clearly had everything mapped out in her head and worked to make each clan and culture distinct. You quickly and completely understand how these peoples have been in an “Endless War,” and the tension and suspense is immediately infused in the story because of how clearly the characters are forced to struggle for survival while living in fear. From the very start of the book, you can feel the weight of this reality on the main characters’ shoulders.
Puerto’s heroines often start a bit naïve and are forced to learn quickly. I’d say that Damira is a bit ahead of the curve because she’s already quite capable as a hunter and horse rider, and she often butts heads with her leader-figure brother. But she is a girl. And in this world, that means she has to do extra to prove herself. I did very much like that, despite his traditional mindset, Syzyan does listen to her and knows she’s smart. And Shagonar is a good balance to Syzyan and also a good love interest – it’s a subtle romance and just the right amount for this story. Although at times these three disagree and take sides, it never feels like you have to side with one over the other because you can understand each of their viewpoints and you root for them all.
The plot has several twists and turns and adventures. The pacing is great. There’s quite a bit of action but also great heartfelt moments of dialogue. I was never bored. (Confession: It took me forever to read this book because of “real life” distractions, but I could pick it back up even after long periods and NEVER forgot what was going on because the writing always drew me right back in.) At one point I feared Damira might go the way of Daenerys from “Game of Thrones,” but in a lot of ways that remains to be seen. The ending allows a lot of room for future books, and WOW has this book covered a lot of ground already.
I highly recommend this book as either a stand-alone fantasy read or as a follow-up for anyone who’s read the first two books in the series. It has adventure, action, excellent world-building, creepy magic, characters worth rooting for, and truly great writing.
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This is not the first time JD Estrada has written middle grade fantasy stories. His Daydreams on the Sherbet Shore have been described as whimsical bedtime stories with a lot of heart. That same heart was the main driver for this story. Like most of his works, Given to Fly was written longhand in one of the best gifts Estrada has ever received in his life. A long time ago, his wife gifted him a hard cover notebook. The image on it was particularly special to him. She had asked him what image meant the most to him. Without batting an eye, he looked up the image to the Pearl Jam single by the same name. A couple of months later and with misty eyes, he had a hard cover notebook with that same image and the name could only be Given to Fly. But what to write about…
In honor of the band that has inspired his life so much, all proceeds for Given to Fly and all other Estrada books for the remainder of 2018 shall be donated to Actionforjackson.org in support of #EBAwareness. Epidermolysis Bullosa is a family of rare genetic disorders that affect the body’s largest organ: the skin. Eddie Vedder (lead singer for Pearl Jam) has worked hard to support this cause. It is a small token of gratitude for everything the band means to Estrada and aligns with his #Humans4Humans efforts to support different causes and try to make a positive impact through his writing and any other efforts to support good causes that help our fellow humans.
Find JD at:
Sunshine Somerville 