"The Everlasting" by Alix E. Harrow

“This is the best book I have read so far this year. It is about a lady knight “whose legend built a nation, and the cowardly historian sent back through time to make sure she plays her part, even if it breaks his heart.””

“Some books start with hurt, and then tend the wounds by the end. Some books end with hurt, and you tend the wounds yourself. This one hurts, over and over, relentlessly. And tends, relentlessly. It’s beautiful, endlessly tragic, and endlessly hopeful. Also, I love knights so much, especially when they’re women.”

““…no throne is held easily, or for long; because a nation is a story we tell ourselves, and stories change, if you let them. Because where there is power, someone will oppose it.” One of my favorite reads of this year so far! It’s an excellent fantasy book with lush atmosphere, poignant and witty prose, complex characters, tragedy and yearning, heartbreak and tenderness, commentary on empires and the violence that upholds them, and so much more packed into it. Oh and did I mention lady knights?”

“I finished this book and had to sit and stare into the middle distance for a solid ten minutes. Harrow was able to tell a compelling story with interesting characters in a well built world, and took just over 300 pages to do so.”