Monday, May 11, 2020

The First Girl Child

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The First Girl Child is a 2019 historical fantasy-romance by Amy Harmon. It was published in August 2019 by 47North. The story is set during the Viking era. I discovered the book while browsing Kindle Unlimited one day.

The novel takes place in the kingdom of Saylok. The story follows Bayr of Saylok, the bastard son of a powerful chieftain who is haunted by the curse his dying mother cast upon the land. With her dying breath, she cursed Saylok to not have any daughters. Raised among the Keepers at Temple Hill, Bayr is gifted with inhuman strength. But he’s also blessed with an all-too-human heart that beats with one purpose: to protect Alba, the first girl child born in nearly two decades and the salvation for a country at risk. Now the fate of Saylok lies with Alba and Bayr, whose bond grows deeper with every whisper of coming chaos. Charged with battling the enemies of their people, both within and without, Bayr is fueled further by the love of a girl who has defied the scourge of Saylok.

Overall, I think this book was a miss for me. Judging by the blurb, I was expecting a novel that was a mix of fantasy and historical romance, but the book doesn't quite deliver. It is a historical romance with just a dash of fantasy elements thrown in. The magic system of curses and blood runes was under utilized in my opinion. The magic system itself had potential, but it wasn't expanded upon enough or taken proper advantage of. The system was unique and could've made the story interesting, but seemed to mostly serve the purpose of setting the plot in motion and being referenced occasionally later on. The curse itself created an interesting conflict, there are no girls being born and no one knows why, but it too is shunted to the side to focus on the romantic plot. I was also expecting something a little more action-oriented, since this is a Viking romance. There's nothing inherently wrong with the way the story is told and what plot elements received the most emphasis, but this novel simply wasn't for me.

Another issue I had with The First Girl Child was the overall pacing. The novel takes place over the span of about twenty years. It's a slow burn romance with not much action. There are parts of the book that move very slowly and I feel could have been consolidated down or explored in a different, less meandering way. It felt to me, upon finishing, that there were a lot of scenes that didn't really serve a purpose. If the author had chosen to skip over some of those moments, the book would flow a lot more naturally. The issue with pacing also applies to one of the later plot twists. The twist is introduced too late in the plot to be effective and by the time it happens, I was already expecting it. Due to the amount of filler, and amount of discussion happening in the story about Saylok's daughter problem and its consequences, it was almost a given how the king of Saylok would try to resolve the conflict. It also felt ineffective because it didn't conflict with the plotline I was the most invested in. I was curious about when and how the truths about Bayr and Alba were going to be revealed, not what the king was scheming about. So, I didn't really find the twist to be very groundbreaking.

I found it somewhat difficult to connect with any of the characters. The reader is meant to connect with Bayr and Alba, being the main characters, but they don't have much substance. It was hard to feel invested in their relationship as a result as well. The king of Saylok is the villain of the story, and it's very clear from his first appearance that he's meant to be the villain. Every subsequent scene is meant to show how evil he is, but the reader already knows that and those scenes instead put emphasis on the other, secondary characters around him, which doesn't feel intentional. I found myself liking the secondary characters, such as Ghost and Dagmar, more than the main ones, because they had much more nuance and complexity to them.

This review has been negative so far, but I don't want it to seem like I completely hated the book or the author. Harmon is a very skilled writer. The prose was captivating and made it difficult for me to put the book down, despite the aspects I mentioned above. She creates a vivid picture of the world of Saylok and, despite my disappointment in this novel, I want to read more of her work. I found the core idea of this story intriguing, but not the execution.

The First Girl Child was a book that didn't quite work for me. I expected a different story than I ended up reading. I don't want to discourage others from reading this book simply because it didn't fit my tastes. Romance isn't a genre I tend to enjoy, but I wanted to give the story a try. If romance is a genre you enjoy, and this story interests you, I hope my opinion doesn't sway you from deciding to read it. It's objectively a good book, just not the one for me.

Rating: 2.7 Stars

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