The Thrice-Gifted Child by Jo Allen Ash

Jo Allen Ash

Author

The Thrice-Gifted Child

Grace Irese, sixteen-year-old desert warrior, Duncan Oaks, teenage con-artist, along with a young mystic and a doctor’s thieving son, have survived an escape from the juvenile facility on the prison planet, Emerald, against impossible odds, forming profound and unexpected friendships in the process. After rescuing Duncan’s extraordinarily gifted sister from the tyrannical warlord who had condemned Grace and Duncan to their lifelong sentences, they find neither survival nor friendship makes them immune to the new dangers facing them in The Wilds, a province devastated by an ancient war where the inhabitants are reputed to be fierce, violent and intolerant. Grace nevertheless believes the answers she desperately needs can be found there. The others are hoping only for a place to rest and regroup, safe from the violent man and his soldiers who are hunting them down. But as grandmother-quoting Duncan likes to say, “out of the frying pan, into the fire”—an adage that will prove more prophetic than any of them realize. The Thrice-Gifted Child further follows the troubled, gifted teens from The Shadows We Make (Book One in the dystopian young adult Shadow Journey series).

Reviews

In this dystopian young adult fantasy, the second of her Shadow Journey series, Ash (The Shadows We Make) combines skillful world-building and compelling characters for a fanciful tale readers will devour. Sixteen-year-old brave warrior Grace Irese and teenage con artist Duncan Oaks are fighting for their lives after escaping from Emerald, the prison planet, where they’d both been sentenced to imprisonment. Trying to make a new life on a planet where Grace expects to find answers to an urgent mystery, they save Duncan’s sister Resa—the thrice-gifted child of the title —and team up with a loyal group of friends. Their escape is short-lived, as a tyrant in their new world is determined to eliminate Grace, Duncan, and everyone in their group.

As they battle for their very existence, these brave teens fight the eternal quest of good versus evil, complete with beasts, replicants, and a lost city—and lovers of YA SF adventures will be enchanted by the ride. Told alternately by Grace and Duncan and selected supporting cast, the story takes its characters on an epic journey, rife with unexpected twists and turns that will keep readers quickly turning the pages. Grace is an especially engaging character, and her journey will resonate most. Minor editing issues at times distract, but Ash’s talent for plotting, her richly painted universe, and her well-drawn characters and dialogue compel.

The tale is imaginative and suspenseful, especially for a second book, as the heroes dare to head into the last place anyone expects, the war-ravaged, now-overgrown Wilds. Ash wrings memorable tension from their desperation, from the possibility of lost lore and magic, and most of all the pursuit of Stone Tiran’s soldiers. It all builds to a cliffhanger as the survivors battle to stay alive and debate where to travel to next. Readers who have joined their dangerous journey will likely be eager for the next installment of this engaging story.

Takeaway: This epic adventure will enchant readers who enjoy SF worlds and flawed characters.

Great for fans of: Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner’s Starbound series, Beth Revis’s Across the Universe.

Production grades
Cover: B+
Design and typography: A
Illustrations: N/A
Editing: B+
Marketing copy: A-

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