After yet another decision paralysis about what to read next, I devoured the book I picked in less than a week. Sure, it’s not a long book, but still…

The book focuses on Shanti, a young woman and the prophesied savior of her scattered people – people who, more than any, tend to possess strong psychic powers and an empire bent on brutal expansion would want to use that power to squash any resistance. So, she spends most of her time on the run while hoping to find more of her people to unite them.

Unfortunately, things don’t always go well, and she ends up overusing her power and knocking herself out. She’s found by a bunch of trainees under Captain Sanders and taken to their town to recover – and see who she is. It turns out, the city is well organized and quite wealthy, but the idea that a woman could be a warrior is foreign to them, so almost every move Shani makes ends up a hilarious frustration to both her and her hosts.

As she recovers, Shanti refuses to act like a good woman, and instead ends up pushing the boys who rescued her from a frightened bunch afraid of their potential into young men who might not exactly follow the rules but have their results, to the surprise of their trainers.

Things become much more strained when it turns out that Cayan, the leader of the town, also has some powers, similar to hers, even though untrained and relying on his intuition. This leads Shanti to question some parts of her quest, especially as it seems that her enemies are getting near, and that Cayan, with his untrained powers, could easily be exploited by them and put his own people in danger.

When the town comes under attack, Shanti shows her worth as a warrior, defending the town along with Sanders’ men – as well as dealing with the attack’s aftermath (saying more would be quite a spoiler).

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Read date: 19.-24.6.2026
Published: 3.7.2014
Goodreads/Amazon rating: 4,13/4,5
My rating: 95%
Length: 335 pages
My highlights

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The book has quite a fast pace and a lot of humor caused by Shanti’s attitude and her not mincing her own words. Shanti herself is a great character with her own troubled past and her flaws that build up what she his and how she acts, knowing that her past and future both have moments full of hard and questionable choices to make.