Gravemaidens

November 4, 2019
In this accessible, Sumerian-inspired fantasy debut, Kammani, a 16-year-old healer’s apprentice, must cure the dying monarch of her city-state and catch a murderer to protect her family. After Kammani’s father, the best healer in Alu, fails to save the royal son’s life, the palace seizes Kammani’s brother, along with the family’s wealth and status. The crushing heartbreak grows with Kammani’s mother’s death, and Kammani’s father becomes an alcoholic, leaving Kammani to care for him, his practice, and Nanaea, her younger sister. Then, Nanaea is selected as one of three Sacred Maidens to accompany the dying ruler, the lugal, into the afterlife. To save her sister, Kammani must heal the lugal, but there’s a saboteur in the court. An uneven tone and shaky worldbuilding result in stilted prose and unexplained plot points. Still, the concept and mystery are compelling, the pace brisk, and Coon succeeds in showing how grief molds people in different ways. The conclusion effectively avoids a cliffhanger while preparing readers for the subsequent book in this planned duology. Ages 14–up. Agent: Kari Sutherland, Bradford Literary.