Amazing sequel, but soul crushing

Anna Stephens - one of my favourite authors. And I hate her as much as I love her! My poor soul...

The first book in this series, especially the ending, was already grim and gritty. This one is a lot more traumatizing yet. Have comfort food ready!

When I started The Jaguar Path I was a bit afraid about having forgotten a lot from The Stone Knife as it's been so long. However that wasn't a problem at all. I quickly remembered all of these characters again and was sucked right back into it. There's was enough memory jogging to get you back on track, but it was done in such a seamless way you didn't even notice it.

The absolute strength in this book is two fold: the characters and the unpredictability that comes along with it!

And believe me, this book does NOT go where you expect it to go. The characters all go through so much, and it's adapt or die. How far can you adapt though, and still stay true to your core? How much can you take before you break? Once you're broken, can you be mended?

Stephens really doesn't coddle her characters, oh no. They go through the most horrendous things, and they are tested to their utter limits. However, she masterfully handles these situations. Instead of it being gratuitous, they all further the character depth and development, and are integral to the story. The trauma is written incredibly realistically and handled sensitively, which makes it all the more painful when reading, but it also makes you care for them even more. I loved how much this book made me think and ponder, and how I had to take breaks just to digest things.

(And I won't spoil what, but I can tell you we don't just get horrible news, there's a few bright moments of hope and light as well.)

From all these challenges they are changes beyond who they were, and this makes the story deviate from what you were expecting in the most surprising, but fascinating ways. Some people end up on the opposite side of where they started, some people get pitched against their former allies, some nemesis are suddenly on your side, and in all the chaos you completely lose sight of who's side your even on. The "good guys" do horrible things to survive, the villains are actually quite human, and in fact there's so much more than just two sides to this story. By the end I really couldn't say who I was rooting for. Everyone and no one at the same time - in the best if ways. I adore stories that don't give you an easy choice, or tell you what to think.

What else was amazing about this?

I loved the world building that seems I soured by tye Aztec society, and the deep ideas behind it.

The prose is smooth, easy to fall into, with some really nice turns of phrase that had me back track to really appreciate them.

I actually can't point to anything I did not like, outside of it being over...

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