Heather’s Bookshelf: Tales of the Clans: Ineluctable
Author: Elsy Devaine
Released: 09/24/20
Genre: Fantasy
“I didn’t say a monster. Being a monster is something else entirely! It is legitimizing pain, cruelty. It’s believing you have the right to take a life without suffering the consequences.”
“Tales of the Clans” follows a group of protectors on a mission to safely escort a young and gifted Oracle, Aslinn, to a sanctuary. Early on, they are surprised by an intruder, Helesys, who turns out to be much more than your everyday trespasser. Their mission adapts to first delivering Helesys to The Council in order to initiate a plan to capture The Reaper, a notorious criminal.
The group of protectors are led by Tyee and his confidants Kauri, Ravaar, and Farik. Each of them have their own talents and personalities, contributing what they can to the journey. Along the way, Tyee delves into Helesys’ terrible past and her relationship with The Reaper.
When the group finally encounters The Reaper, they find out that he is also not what the legends have made him out to be. They also discover secrets about Helesys, Aslinn, and a past Oracle named Noor. The connections between them reveal intertwined secrets that have major repercussions for all those involved.
Trigger Warning: violence, murder, torture, sexual situations, adult language
Overall, I enjoyed this tale. The world building was clear, although not especially distinctive, and the main characters were well developed. Each of the main characters had their own distinctive personalities, backgrounds, and motives. I thoroughly enjoyed unravelling the pasts of those characters and the mysteries behind their choices. My favorite character was the Reaper as I appreciated delving into his past while also seeing his connection to Helesys. He also supplied some breaks in the tension of a story that otherwise delved into some seriously dark undertones. While the rest of the story was clearly developed and well paced, the romance did not seem to fit and appeared to come out of nowhere. There wasn’t really a lead up to it and it felt like it clashed with the much more interesting relationship between the Reaper and Helesys. The ending was a little bit of a toss up for me. I liked the finality of it as well as the incorporation of so many of the characters, but I also found it a little cliché and somewhat predictable. I would be interested in seeing what happens to some of these characters in future stories as the ending was left open enough for a sequel or a spin off.
I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.
OVERALL REVIEW:
A fantasy tale wrapped in intriguing characters with interesting pasts.
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