A- | If I could hold up another book as the PERFECT example of mythology and worldbuilding, I’d move Beneath the Haunting Sea to the side and hold this one higher up instead. Beyond the Shadowed Earth takes what was good about the previous standalone book in this universe and makes it better. Quite frankly, this book is far more compelling and impressive. Eda makes for a far better protagonist than Talia. The mythology and worldbuilding are much more extensive here. Still, although I liked the story overall, the ending was a bit meh and there were certain things that made it hard to suspend my disbelief.
This standalone book that’s set in the same universe as SEA, but you don’t need to read the previous book. It does help to read it so you can understand the mythology better, but this book tells Eda’s story rather than it being a continuation of Talia’s story. If you’re like me and the type of person who wants to understand the myths and how the universe works, then yes, you should read the previous book.
Make sure to read all the way through the end to get information about the giveaway!
Title: Beyond the Shadowed Earth
Author: Joanna Ruth Meyer
Synopsis: It has always been Eda’s dream to become empress, no matter the cost. Haunted by her ambition and selfishness, she’s convinced that the only way to achieve her goal is to barter with the gods. But all requests come with a price and Eda bargains away the soul of her best friend in exchange for the crown.
Years later, her hold on the empire begins to crumble and her best friend unexpectedly grows sick and dies. Gnawed by guilt and betrayal, Eda embarks on a harrowing journey to confront the very god who gave her the kingdom in the first place. However, she soon discovers that he’s trapped at the center of an otherworldly labyrinth and that her bargain with him is more complex than she ever could have imagined.
Set in the same universe as Joanna’s debut, Beneath the Haunting Sea, Beyond the Shadowed Earth combines her incredible world building and lush prose with a new, villainous lead.
Publication Date: 14th January 2020
Goodreads | Amazon | B&N | BookDepository | IndieBound | GooglePlay |Kobo
Still, to give a little background, Eda had banished Talia and is now Empress. We start this book with a desperate Eda trying to ensure the completion of this temple to the god, Tuer, whom she made a deal with when she was younger. However, making deals with the gods don’t always go right. Eventually, Eda is betrayed and is forced to go on this journey to Tuer’s Mountain. Eda being Eda wants to kill Tuer and — well, things happen that I can’t say because spoilers.
One of the things I adore about the mythology here is that gods are presented to us as flawed, imperfect, and (sometimes) childish beings with too much power in their hands. This parallels with Eda’s story & characterization which I’ll get into in a bit. However, one of the questions we get asked here is, “What do the gods really want from us?”
This is a question that Eda is forced to face in order to save a life — the life that she offered up to Tuer in exchange for the crown. When we meet Eda, she’s angry, desperate, and doesn’t care who she pisses off. She wants the temple built, no ifs or buts about it.
One of the reasons I adored Eda is because she is complex. On the surface, she comes off as this bratty, entitled child who is having tantrums because no one is listening to her. But peel off the onion layers and you’ll find a terrified little girl who became so desperate to be heard and to have a voice that she makes a pact with a god, not understanding what exactly the god wants from her. Plus, she straight up wants to kill said god for basically screwing her over.
Table of Contents
At the heart, this is a well-crafted villain redemption story.
Frankly, while the mythology really stands out here (seriously, Joanna is a master at mythology), it’s Eda’s journey to redemption that makes this book worthwhile. In comparison to Talia who (quite frankly) didn’t grow and develop, Eda does develop. Her relationships with Morin and Tainir should have been explored more, but what we had was so good and pure.
Oh without a doubt, she is a bitter, bitter person who truly believes it’s all the gods’ fault for her suffering. However, I found her to be such an interesting character that despite my annoyance with her at times, I couldn’t help but root for her.
Her sad story and the sh!t she needs to deal with don’t justify her actions, but I did feel for her. I especially could understand her anger at Rescarin for all his actions towards her in the name of power.
And then there’s Ileem aka maybe spoilers?
(Yeah, he gets his own section).
I wanted more from him. Fine, we are talking about gods and their amazing ability to screw humanity over for selfish reasons, but humans are just as terrifying. Look at the lengths Eda would go for power.
Thing is, the moment he came onto the page and started flirting with Eda, I guessed what would happen. Sometimes, guessing is fun, but this was pretty obvious and I didn’t like that. It frustrated me because I’ve seen it before and I’m kinda over it.
Still, I can deal with this. Why?
Surrounding this story is well-crafted worldbuilding.
The worldbuilding is rich and expansive. We see more of this universe here compared to SEA which I adored because we do get to see a bit more of religion in action as a result. I’m not the most religious person, but I do believe that if you’re going to have anything to do with mythology and beliefs, you also need to explore how the gods are worshipped and faith.
Additionally, the world itself is written in a way that I could vividly imagine the surroundings.
What about other aspects of the writing?
Let’s talk pacing.
Look, this is a short book — my ARC is 389 pages. The pacing isn’t as bad as SEA. It’s an improvement. But I’m impatient and I found myself asking, “When was the real action going to begin?”
Had this been part of a series, I would have been less fussy about this because there’s still room for expansion. But this book is a standalone; part of a wider universe, sure, but a standalone nonetheless.
Thankfully, this didn’t follow the same issue SEA had where that book only picked up towards the end. EARTH gets going about 40% of the way in I would say? Huge improvement in my opinion, especially because there was stuff happening beforehand.
But I wanted to get to the part Eda tries to kill a god. It’s why I wanted to read the book in the first place: I wanted to see this selfish, power-hungry young woman’s journey as she tries to kill a god.
Now let’s talk about the ending.
No spoilers, but I thought the ending worked pretty well all things considering. I do think how things turned out for Eddenahr was just silly. I legitimately rolled my eyes.
Like I said before though, this is ultimately a villain redemption story and Eda’s ending is a satisfying way for her story to end. She got exactly what she deserved. What she does with her ending is up to the wind and I hope Joanna leaves it at this.
Overall?
This is another standout book by Joanna Ruth Meyer. She really has this awesome ability to create these awesome mythologies and stories that I’m looking forward to seeing more of her work. While this book has it’s ups and downs, this has become one of my favorite reads of 2019.
Despite my whining about wanting the pacing to be better, I do think Eda’s story works as a standalone. Her story is done and there’s no need to keep going. The ending she got might not satisfy some readers, but it’s an ending that Eda deserves.
Do I recommend it?
Yes, absolutely think you should give this book a chance.
Music to Listen to While You’re Reading
- Gods & Monsters by Lana Del Rey
- Captured by Sami Matar
- Rebirth by Juan Sánchez
- Tear You Apart by She Wants Revenge
- Satellite Heart by Anya Marina
- Holy Ground by Within Temptation
- Broken Pieces by Apocalyptica featuring Lacey Sturm
- Storm The Sorrow by Epica
- Nightmare by Avenged Sevenfold
- Goodbye by Her Songs
the Fantastic Flying Book Club Book Tours — Join the Conversation.
I want to thank FFBC and Page Street Kids for providing me with the ARC and giving me this opportunity to take part in this blog tour. Make sure to check out the other reviews by other bloggers & to go to my Instagram to check out the post I made there.
About the Author
Joanna Ruth Meyer hails from Mesa, Arizona, where she lives with her dear family, a rascally feline, and an enormous grand piano. When she’s not writing, she’s trying to convince her students that Bach is actually awesome, or plotting her escape from the desert. She loves good music, thick books, looseleaf tea, rainstorms, and staring out of windows. One day, she aspires to own an old Victorian house with creaky wooden floors and a tower (for writing in, of course!).
Check her out @ the following social media pages:
Goodreads | Website | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
Okay, now for the fun and cool part.
Giveaway, Giveaway, Giveaway!
Page Street Publishing is giving away ONE finished copy of Beyond the Shadowed Earth. This giveaway is open to US/Canada residents only & it is open until 22 Jan. 2020 00:00 GMT+1. Enter here!
Embed Code: a Rafflecopter giveaway
There is also an Instagram exclusive giveaway. If you haven’t visited my Instagram yet, head on over to @mooncoffeebooks to get more information.
Leave a Reply