The Blood Vier: An Actually Amazing and Clean YA Fantasy Thriller // Review

5 min read

I lifted my chin and stared Death in the face, remembering a time not so long ago when I had begged him for my life as he dragged me into the unknown.

Not yet, I whispered.

The Blood Vier by Christy Harrill blew me away on so many levels. The exceptional plot, writing, and even design of this book make it a must-read. Find out why in this review.

Plot

A puzzling murder.

A crumbling diarchy.

A Blood Vier summoned to quell the ashes of corruption.

Taryn wants nothing to do with the father who abandoned her. She bolts at her first chance at freedom, only for a mysterious man to track her down, revealing her father was murdered and she is the key to finding the killer. She strikes a bargain, traveling to the kingdom’s capital where she becomes an unwilling player in a political game against the opposing sovereignties and her father’s suspected killer.

As a Blood Vier, a blood heir capable of claiming her father’s position, Taryn is now the prime target of assassination for her interference. She seeks evidence to bring down her deadly opponent, enlisting the help of the cocky prince and a despised healer. But as her father’s secrets begin to slowly unravel, Taryn is caught between duty and freedom, questioning where her allegiances lie and how much she is willing to sacrifice.

Treason haunts the kingdom halls, death stalks close behind, and betrayal is only the opening act. Taryn has spent her life shrouded in secrets and deception, and she’s done playing the pawn.

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The plot kept me constantly guessing how things would turn out and how the characters would solve their current predicament. If Harrill can write one thing well, it’s politics. And she can write more than one thing well. Political tension and turmoil are the driving conflict of the book and never make for a boring scene.

The secondary point-of-view character’s chapters, however, mostly felt like unnecessary moody introspection. Most of the information revealed came up again later in other ways. The chapters only really served three purposes.

1. Fulfilling the unwritten law that all Young Adult books must have a broody male lead.
2. Showing Taryn is an entitled jerk who needs to chill and stop being so brash.
3. Making the climax not feel contrived and random.

These aren’t necessarily bad things. But his scenes are few relative to the rest and add little in terms of the actual story. Just information. That being said, they’re few and short enough that they don’t hinder anything or slow things down.

Other than that, it was awesome. Some vivid and amazing scenes really made the story come to life, and there is twist after twist that you don’t see coming. I finished the book and immediately bought the second—that’s how good it was.

Characters

Taryn is a typical YA fantasy female lead character. She’s impulsive, entitled, rebellious, and kind of a blockhead. Vladimir’s scenes paint this in a negative light, which kept me going even though I was not a big fan of her actions.

However, fortunately for the author (so she doesn’t have to hear my rant about grumpy female leads), Taryn redeems herself. By the end, she’s still far from perfect, but no longer is she bitter.

It feels like a conscious rebellion against the typical female characters of modern literature, putting them in the real world where they have to either grow or suffer. I welcome this departure and look forward to seeing how Taryn continues to grow over the rest of the series.

The token love interest, William, was equally not insufferable. His initially carefree and arrogant personality proves itself much deeper, showing a king in the making.

His relationship with Taryn wasn’t a typical goopy, hand-holding, heart-beating ordeal. While circumstances outside their control mean they gain affection for each other, reality prevents the relationship from advancing. Frequent review readers will know I loudly denounce romantic subplots, but this one was palatable.

The rest of the cast was interesting and diverse, and while they weren’t allowed much time to bloom in this book, they’re well-developed and realistic. I look forward to seeing them grow over the series.

Theme & Content Warnings

The Blood Vier centers on a theme of forgiveness. It comes up often and guides the story. I greatly enjoyed how it was integral to the plot and center stage in most scenes.

And while the book is not really Christian fiction, there are scattered references to Christianity. Once, in desperation, Taryn calls out to God for rescue; it’s unclear if she is a Christian or merely throwing out some last hope of safety.

William mentions having prayed, and Taryn is surprised he believes in something other than himself. Later, at a grave, a cross stands over a heap of stones. But other than that, though the author is Christian (and I have in fact met her father and gone to her church, both of which are strongly Christian), the book is not overtly Christian. A Biblical worldview shines through in many places, though.

Content warnings are mostly related to violence. One character describes the situation he found Taryn’s father in—impaled by his own sword and surrounded by seven bodies burnt beyond recognition.

Later, in one particularly shocking scene (and it is ramped up to be shocking, which plays into the story) a bad guy slits a woman’s throat, and Taryn watches as she lifelessly falls to the ground.

Taryn also briefly considers if she might have been an illegitimate child a few times. But Harrill always kept these mentions discreet and are no more detailed than similar mentions in the Bible.

Overall

In one sentence, my opinion is, “This was pretty awesome.” It has enough twists to make one collapse from dizziness, intriguing characters, a powerful theme, and is clean enough to recommend to almost anyone.

It’s an explosive start to a promising series, and I look forward to seeing how these characters and situations develop further. I’ve already finished book two and am hooked.

And as always, thanks for reading!

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