Hunger Games mixed with The Age of the Seventh Sun, Aiden Thomas delivers another epic story. I couldn't put it down! Fantastic queer rep as always.

I am eternally obsessed with Aiden Thomas and all of his works, and The Sunbearer Trials is a brilliant example as to why I am so in love with Thomas' work. This book has everything you could ever want and more, and is expertly done. I look forward to further reading about this phenomenal MC.

The Sunbearer Trials is one of those books that simply demands to be read in one setting. The pace is fast and the narrative and world building is expansive. The characters are fleshed out and real. They feel like fully formed people. Thomas has a way of giving even the minor characters a sense of dimension. Even though it is a very fictional world the characters feel a part of the world and don't drop into exposition like in other stories. I look forward to the sequel.

Th Sunbearer Trials immersed me in the beautiful vibrant world of Mexican demigods. This was the perfect mixture of mythological, fantastical and dystopian premises. I found myself connecting with the main character throughout the novel, often cringing, blushing and beaming in solidarity. I cannot wait for the sequel to be immersed in this world once more.

This was so much fun! I've been waiting for a fantasy that was accessible and light-hearted, and the Sunbearer Trials is it. Its action is not too intense, its darkest moments never without hope, and its characters not without brevity. I loved the diverse, charming cast of characters, the magic, the twists and turns. This is a marvellous adventure if you like your fantasy whimsical and not too serious.

What a wonderful, amazing story!! Definitely Percy Jackson meets Hunger Games! A story packed with adventure in an amazing world full of good and evil. Sucks you into it so easily. This was my first Aiden Thomas novel. Before I had wanted to read Cemetary Boys but had always held off. Now it is a no brainer now. Such a capturing story.

What an absolute delight! This book hit all of my expectations and of course exceeded them!

Teo, a 17-year-old Jade semidiós and the trans son of Quetzal, goddess of birds, has never worried about the Trials…or rather, he’s only worried for others. His best friend Niya―daughter of Tierra, the god of earth―is one of the strongest heroes of their generation and is much too likely to be chosen this year.

But then, for the first time in over a century, Sol chooses a semidiós who isn’t a Gold. In fact, he chooses two: Xio, the 13-year-old child of Mala Suerte, god of bad luck, and…Teo. Now they must compete in five mysterious trials, against opponents who are both more powerful and better trained, for fame, glory, and their own survival.

Teo is a stubborn troublemaker who is determined to make sure him and his friends get out of the trails alive. He fights for what is right and always chooses his friends over the easy way out. He is an endearing main character who you cannot help but route for. Thomas does an excellent job at telling the story of his trans characters, and I love his own-voice experience in his books. Thomas tells the story of his trans characters in a way that is so effortless but also takes the time to bring a bigger impact to the reader who needs a big brother to talk them through the subject. It's a wonderful experience being able to read first hand how generations of kids are going to read these words and be able to find themselves on the pages.

Aiden Thomas created such a vibrant and detailed world that you find yourself effortlessly immersed. Every moment of this book felt like you were right inside the story with Teo. I felt the excitement, anxiety, and the importance of every trail while reading this book.

who would I recommend this to
Any lover of Thomas's previous books, the Percy Jackson series, or anyone interested in reading fantasy would love this book. There is an entire world being built but its completely accessible to all readers.

This book is being marketed as Percy Jackson meets Hunger games. When you say something like this it makes me think gods/demigods put in a competition to kill one another where only one god/demigod makes it out alive. Which isn’t really what we got from this. Not every competition needs to be compared to the hunger games. This is a competition with 10 semidioses and they must compete in trials to see who will become the Sunbearer. Whoever gets first place in the trials becomes the Sunbearer and whoever is in last place becomes the sacrifice. The Sunbearer will kill the sacrifice in order to keep the Sol stone lit.

The setting is amazing. Aiden did such a phenomenal job with creating such a vivid world. There is a large cast of characters. There are 10 semidioses in the trial and then we also have all of the Dios’ not only the parents but there are also other Gods involved during the trial as well. At times it was difficult for me to remember which Dios was the parent to which semidioses and what their specialty was. This book has multiple characters that have LGBTQ+ representation. That includes multiple trans characters in varying degrees of transition and gender identity. This book is so rich with representation and culture and I am so happy to see books like this being published. I did not see the ending coming and now I cannot wait to read the next book in this duology and this one hasn’t even released yet.
I received this e-arc via netgalley and am voluntarily leaving a review. Thank you to netgalley and the publisher.

I want to start with a big thank you to MacMillan Children’s Group for sending me an electronic advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Sunbearer Trails by Aidan Thomas was one of the most enjoyable books I’ve read recently. For the last little while, I’ve felt like I was beginning to age out of Young Adult books, but this novel was an absolute joy to read.

I’ve seen this tagged as Percy Jackson meets the Hunger Games, and that’s exactly what this book is in all the best ways imaginable.

As each new decade begins, ten semidióses between the ages of thirteen and eighteen are selected by the Sun Diós themself as the most worthy to compete in The Sunbearer Trails. The winner has the honour of carrying light and life to all the temples of Reino del Sol to keep powering the sun stones that keep the world safe from the evil Obsidian gods.

But it’s the loser who has the greatest honour of all — they will be sacrificed to Sol, their body used to fuel the sun stones.

Teo, a seventeen-year-old Jade semidiós, son of Quetzal, the goddess of birds, has never worried about the Trails. As a lowly Jade semidiós, he doesn’t have to worry about being chosen to compete against the children of the Gold dióses. That doesn’t mean he’s completely without fear, as his best friend Niya — daughter of Tierra, the god of earth — is one of the strongest warriors of their generation.

But what will happen when, for the first time in over a century, Sol chooses a semidiós who isn’t a gold? And what will happen when it’s not one, but two Jade semidióses that are chosen?

This book is amazing. Like, I essentially read the entire book in one night because I didn’t want to stop type of amazing.

I had a slower start to this book, but it was no fault of the writing. I’m not a big fantasy reader, and I much prefer urban fantasy settings that are grounded in a familiar world when I do dive into the genre. Despite the technology and references to social media, The Sunbearer Trials is still a pretty dense fantasy for someone who doesn’t read much of the genre. I found this a bit intimidating for the first few chapters, and I started this by reading the odd chapter here and there until I had a solid chunk of time to really dive in.

And honestly, as soon I fully committed to it and dived in, I found myself getting immediately sucked into the lore. Immersed in Mexican culture, Thomas does an absolutely incredible job at crafting a rich, vibrant world. While very different from our own, there was enough familiarity to keep it from feeling like too big an undertaking. Not only that, but some of the more modern references actually did help to ground the lore in familiarity, which made this world a lot easier to approach.

While I will be the first to admit that it took me some time to remember who all the Dióses and Semidióses were, by the mid-way point I had a pretty good grasp of who was who and what was going on.

Beyond the super rich fantasy, this novel was also exceptionally queer normative. It was actually a joy to read, and it wasn’t something that I knew I needed. Sexuality and gender are both super fluid in this novel, with queerness seemingly being the norm. So much so, in fact, that it’s the norm to have a gender celebration ceremony if someone comes out.

Our main character, Teo, is a transgender boy who, at seventeen, is well into a medical transition. There’s no hesitancy around the topic, and the character even gives himself a testosterone shot on page. With Teo, there are also a number of non-binary characters who use they/them pronouns, like a fellow semidióses AND the sun god Sol.

Gender isn’t the only thing that’s incredibly fluid, though. This book is PACKED with normalized queer representation. Teo, while unnamed, pretty clearly has a crush on a fellow semidióses participating in the trails, a friend-turned-rival named Aurelio. Teo’s best friend, Niya, is openly attracted to women. And not only that, but Niya has two dads — the earth god, and a mortal man that we get to see together on page.

So while the world buidling is great and the queer representation is fantastic, this book also has incredibly characters backed with excellent writing.

This was my first book by Aidan Thomas, so I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect going into it. I am very happy to say that this book was an incredible read in all aspects! Not only is the world-building well executed, but the characters are what truly make this book. Teo, especially, was so full of depth and growth throughout the novel that I was almost surprised that this book was YA. While he was a teenager facing impossible odds, there was a clear progression in his character arc, and his thoughts and actions made sense as the trails went on and the tension continued to rise.

I really enjoyed what we saw of him, and I’m exceptionally excited to see how Teo continues to grow in the second book.

Teo wasn’t the only strong character, though, as the other more central side characters all had a strong voice and a clear presence on page. Niya, loud and brash, was someone who cared with her whole heart. She wanted to help people, was excited to help people, and she cared very deeply about those that she considered friends. While she was THE badass, she also had a very big heart that was easy to see.

Aurelio, one of the other most dynamic characters, was central to the story. To Teo, he represented what it meant to be Gold. He was literally the golden boy, and he was one of the three Golds expected to win the trials. Initially, he seems aloof and self-centred, focused on himself and his twin sister and not caring for anyone also. But as the trails go on, it becomes very apparent to Teo and the reader that Aurelio is much more than he seemed.

The way that Thomas built up the isolation around the Heroes — a term for the Gold semidióses who used their powers to protect Reino del Sol — was super fascinating. It definitely humanized this group of kids who have been placed on a pedestal. Not only did we see this through conversation with Aurelio, but the class divide between the Golds and mortals became glaringly obvious closer to the end of the novel.

With all that said, I’m still not out of good things to add! The trails themselves were excellent. Each action scene was well-written and well-paced, and I absolutely flew through them before the story slowed back down before the next one. The pacing of this — an action-packed and often very tense trial followed by a bit of downtime to see our characters grow before the next one — made it so that this novel was an absolute joy to breeze through. As soon as I dived in, I absolutely did not want to stop, and read well past my bedtime to finish this book.

I think it’s clear why this book was such an easy five-star read for me. Beyond a last-minute twist that definitely shocked me but, looking back, was foreshadowed throughout the novel, I genuinely don’t even have anything to criticize. And that’s not even really a criticism; I’m just not a huge personal fan of big revelations where one character turns out to be something different than we all thought.

The Sunbearer Trails by Aidan Thomas is a quick, action-packed read with fantastic writing, wonderful character development, and exceptional world building. Not only did I love reading this, I actually can’t wait to re-read it when the sequel comes out next year! If you’re thinking about giving this one a go, I highly recommend it, as it’s probably one of my favourite reads of the year!

Very fun to follow and imaginatively told, I loved following the trials and the different characters brought together! The worldbuilding is so well done, my favourite part of the book, with memorable cast and easy to visualise descriptions.

The Sunbearer Trials, an exciting and heartfelt supernatural tale, centers on Teo, a Jade semidios (demigod), who attends his local high school. He comes across as a bit of a loner with a biting wit and a penchant for trouble making; however, his care and concern for strangers and friends alike is evident early on in the story. Niya, his Gold semidios best friend, attends the elite Academy, and though they have been apart due to school, Teo and Niya are reunited for the Sunbearer Trials, which occur every seven years. The god, Sol, selects ten children from the ages of 13-18 to compete in these elite trials to ensure the safety of their world for the next seven years.

This novel is perfect for fans of Hunger Games and Percy Jackson. The well-developed characters are equally matched with an unexpected and exciting plot, which keeps the reader's interest, and at points, has the reader on the edge of their seats. The second half of the book was unputdownable. I look forward to reading the second novel in this duology as Teo and his friends journey to right wrongs that have befallen their realm.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

The Sunbearer Trials take place every ten years, where semidioses compete to determine who will be the Sunbearer that will sacrifice the trials' losing contestant in order to replenish the sun's power.

The Sunbearer Trials puts a fresh, new spin on a deadly competition story. The book features a diverse and interesting cast of characters and a rich Mexican-inspired world. It was fast-paced, but took time and care with its slower moments to thoroughly develop the characters and the world they inhabit. As the first installment in a duology, The Sunbearer Trials also does an excellent job with balancing stakes; though things do escalate significantly right at the end of the book, the escalation doesn't feel forced so much as an inevitable conclusion to the story that has been told thus far.

I really enjoyed this read. I thought it was fun and unique and masterfully told, and I am already so excited for the sequel!

This was a great start to a series and I'm already anxious to read the conclusion! From start to finish, you follow the story from Teo's point of view. Teo is a Jade semidiós and the son of Quetzal, the bird goddess. The story begins with the origins of the world beginning with Sol. This myth sets the stage for the different kinds of gods, which includes Golds, Jades, and Obsidians. It explains the reason for the Sunbearer Trials, which occur every 10 years, and sets the stage for this series. This book focuses on this year's Trials and Teo ends up getting chosen to compete, much to everyone's surprise, including his.

This story grabbed me pretty quickly and I loved Teo, even as he sometimes made mistakes. I loved his friendship with Niya and Xio and I loved that he had a great relationship with his mother. I also loved that he talks about his transition to male and talks about his experiences with dysphoria. There is a moment when he finally feels fully himself/male that is an absolute moment of triumph and I may have teared up for him. I thought the author did a great job of incorporating this experience into his story and it was very cool that gender is something every individual chooses, including the Gods themselves and that some of them are nonbinary or nongendered.

Regarding the love interest, it wasn't a huge part of this story, but although there was clearly chemistry between Teo and Aurelio, the focus was more on the strong friendship they had when they were both young and the sudden loss of it after the previous trials when Aurelio started ignoring Teo. I liked that the story focused on Teo learning to look past his own hurt and anger to see what was really happening. I think it helped him to see the Golds differently too, which added to the story.

The ending has a great surprise twist, although if you look back, you can see some of the clues. Regardless, it leaves me wanting to read the conclusion, so I hope Aiden Thomas is already working on it!

Overall, I found this story to be engrossing and classic Aiden Thomas. I've enjoyed everything I've read by them and can't wait to read more. This book has a little bit of Hunger Games, more of Percy Jackson, and lots of Latinx mythology. I loved exploring the different cities of the Gods with their signature stamped on them. With each city, there was something cool to see and learn. If you're a fan of mythology and adventure, you should definitely check out this series.

I received an advance review copy for free from NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I went into this book with high hopes after loving The Cemetery Boys and The Sunbearer Trials blew my expectations away. While the comparison to Percy Jackson is an accurate description, there are several things The Sunbearer Trials does better. I particularly enjoyed that the dioses were close with their children and actually cared for them, instead of just having children and then treating them like burdens or ignoring their existence entirely. Casual inclusivity was another thing I liked about The Sunbearer Trials, like Diosa Luna signing everything she speaks, and the queernormativity of the world. For example, when a semidiose comes out as trans, the entire community comes together to celebrate.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and am excited for it to be to be on shelves in September. I’m even more excited for the sequel because the ending to this was a twist I did not see coming. I cannot wait to see how this duology ends!

Very fun and creative take on the demi-gods trope that is popular in YA media. The book was engaging and well-written, and the characters were fun.

https://bruner-books.com/2022/07/31/arc-the-sunbearer-trials-by-aiden-thomas/

received this book as an ARC on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was an adventure the entire way. The protagonist, Teo, lives in an alternate world heavily based on Mexican and Aztec culture. In this society, humans live alongside a pantheon of Aztec gods and their children. These children, the semidioses are categorized as Jades or Golds, two different classes of power. Another class, the Obsidians, have been locked away for the chaos and damage they caused.

Each decade, a competition takes place, The Sunbearer Trials. In this competition, ten sesmidioses compete for the honor of becoming The Sunbearer, who brings light and hope to the entire world. The loser of the competition, however, is sacrificed to protect the world and keep the Obsidians at bay.

Teo is the semidios son of Queztal, goddess of birds. He’s a Jade, a troublemaker and not at all worried about the trials. I’m sure you can guess where that’s going for Teo.

The first thing that I love about this book is the representation. Teo is a transgender teenager and that is not shied away from. Teo’s insecurities even branch out to his wings, a product of his mother, that are feminine and make him feel insecure enough to hide them. There are several characters that represent various parts of the transgender umbrella and Teo’s being trans is not treated as weird or uncomfortable in any way. Nonbinary characters are represented as well, in a casual comfortable way.

The second thing and possibly the best part of the book are the characters. Thomas creates a cast of semidioses who may be the children of gods, but are truthfully just teenagers, relatable in spite of their struggles being supernatural. Teo is a young man struggling with his identity and sense of self, while making trouble along the way. His best friend Niya, daughter of the earth god, is relatable, fun and willing to do anything for her best friend. Xio, the son of the god of bad luck, is sweet, charming and will definitely make you feel for him. Then there’s Aurelio, the gold who used to be one of Teo’s friends and left him behind. Aurelio made me feel a whole lot of things for him and his struggles. These kids are just real.

The only thing I struggled with this novel was some of the pacing. We were told early on that the stakes were high – that the person who loses the trials will be sacrificed. Yet, the tension did not seem to carry throughout the novel and at times I had to stop, not feeling compelled to continue. The last twenty-five percent of the novel or so, however, cranked up that tension to 100.

Overall, it’s a highly recommended novel and I hope to get a copy for my classroom library when it comes out. I am following up by reading Aiden Thomas’ currently published novel, Cemetery Boys, right now.

What an exciting and fun book! I finished it about a week ago and have been thinking about it since (including having a dream about it last night? What can I say, it’s on my mind).

The Sunbearer Trials follows Teo, a semidios who is the son of Quetzal, the bird diosa. Teo lives in a world where the gods and goddesses live amongst and are meant to care for their human citizens. As a semidios, Teo is well-loved in his own city… but as the descendent of a Jade goddess, Teo isn’t considered as powerful as his peers descended from Gold dioses. He’s therefore excluded from the special Hero training academy and looked down on by some of the Gold semidioses. But when Teo is selected to compete in the Sunbearer Trials – a great honor usually reserved for only Gold semidioses – Teo is thrust into a competition that may cost him his life.

With such a great premise, it was very hard to put this book down. I was glued to the page, desperate to know how each of the five trials Teo has to compete in would turn out. I felt more and more tense with each passing chapter! Especially as I grew more and more attached to the characters. I did not want anyone to die!!

Speaking of, I really grew to love the main characters:

🦜Teo – our main boy! Loved his strong sense of justice, his protective instincts, his determination to prove everyone wrong, and his stubbornness that too often got him in trouble
⛰️Niya – the daughter of Tierra, the earth dios. Strong, competitive, compassionate, impulsive, and a himbo (herbo? Lol) in the best possible way, she was instantly lovable
🤞Xio – along with Teo, the only other Jade semidios in the trials. (And also along with Teo, a trans boy). As the thirteen-year-old son of Mala Suerte, the dios of bad luck, Xio doesn’t stand much of a chance in the Trials. Xio was so lovable and, like Teo, I just wanted to keep him safe from any harm!! He kinda gave me young Nico di Angelo vibes?
🔥Aurelio – the son of Lumbre, the fire diosa. Considered one of the most powerful semidioses, everyone expects him or his twin sister Auristela to win the Trials. With a complicated history between him and Teo, I instantly could tell there was something deeper to him and wanted to know more.

While there were a few clunky moments as these characters and others were introduced, I very quickly grew attached to them. Love my new children.

Speaking of the other characters, though – there truly are a LOT of other characters, between the other semidioses competing and all the gods. I did have trouble keeping track of them all at first, but did grow accustomed to the world as time went on. I also found it very useful to go on Aiden Thomas’s website, where they posted the trading cards they commissioned of all the competing semidioses and their parents. Not only is the art gorgeous (it’s by Mars Lauderbaugh who also did the cover), but it really helped all the characters come alive in my head.

This was such a win for me, and I can’t wait for the sequel. Especially with that ending, whew. Can definitely say that certain plot twists took me off guard. Absolutely loved it!

Thanks to Netgalley for giving me an early copy to review.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this novel. 5/5 stars. Did not disappoint.

Look, the COVER? The fact that this is marketed as PJO?? I NEEDED IT. I...it was so good but also like THE CLIFF HANGER? I DID NOT EXPECT THAT. I SHOULD HAVE BECAUSE IT MAKES SENSE BUT WOW.

Anyways. Teo is trans and there is a lot of discussion about LGBTQ things and it's beautiful to see in a novel. I love the discussions and normalcy of being trans, or pronouns, and realizing gender dysphoria and all the things that have really been missing from YA lit. The inclusion of the deaf community is beautiful as well.

The world building is magical and the system of gold/jade/obsidian with demigods and Mexican and Latinx heritage and myth influence is enchanting and even the diversity of cultures and experiences is beautiful to see. Normally I have a lot more to say about such a fantastic novel but I AM AT A LOSS FOR WORDS.

Tea is hilarious and has wings. His tension with Aurelio is phenomenal. Niya is Toph but more. Xio is...Xio. I just SO MANY GOOD THINGS.

For anyone going into The Sunbearer Trials expecting a spin on the Hunger Games in a Mexican-inspired fantasy world, this book is not that. In fact, I almost could’ve sworn the marketing changed tune since the initial pitch because for some reason my perception of the story from the initial blurb was that it was going to be a high stakes, life-or-death competition a la the The Hunger Games, or at least address similar thematic issues. It is not. The tone is much lighter and the world building - for all that it attempts to be a sprawling landscape of cities ruled by demigods - feels oddly under explained.

The greatest threat to any of the characters is that one of them will be sacrificed by the ruling champion of the Sunbearer Trials, of which the main character is unceremoniously thrown into with no preparation. It’s a shaky start from the get go, because any time the hero’s main “quest” is prompted not by their own violation but someone else’s action, the book automatically loses its sense of agency. Theo is a passable underdog type of character, and I love the casual trans representation that his character brings to the story. But his actual arc through the book seems to hit its peak by the 20% mark when he finally decides to use his wings. Then it’s just a steady flatline till the end. And it’s a predictable ending, one you could anticipate from even the synopsis of the book and a vague understanding of Theo’s innate goodness as a protagonist.

As is typical in YA fantasy, there is a romantic subplot in the book. But it’s actually a tastefully minimal one that doesn’t drive the direction of the story. Even better, Teo and his overly stoic love interest Aurelio have actual chemistry together and genuinely embody the Grumpy x Sunshine dynamic so many stories try to sell. I’ve seen this advertised as enemies to lovers, but it’s much more estranged childhood friends to lovers and that works just as well. I won’t say Teo or his interactions with the other semiodios will stick in my mind as a memorable cast of characters or charming friend group. But I will say this is one of the better written YA romances I’ve seen in a while.

Overall, I think The Sunbearer Trials is a hugely important step for YA fantasy with it incorporating a casually trans and gay main character in a Mexican-inpsired world. It’s unique in a lot of ways, but what it gains in terms of breaking ground in the genre, it loses in rehashing a very predictable, low stakes storyline of trials that never really seemed to pose a threat to any one character. And that was up to the final moment when one of them was destined to die. I’m interested to see where the series will go from here now that it has the space to move away from these very formulaic trials, but I will say I’m coming away from the book slightly disappointed.

Thank you to the publisher Feiwel & Friends for providing an e-ARC via NetGalley for an honest review.

Adored Cemetery Boys? The Sunbearer Trials is better! What makes this story so stunning is the beautiful descriptive writing, flawed and fully fleshed-out characters, and queernormativity interwoven with Mexican mythology.

For a few chapters, I thought, I like it, but will I really love it? Then the choosing of the competitors started, and OMG my heart suddenly pounded in my chest, and shivers ran over my body. Of course, I loved The Sunbearer Trials! I rooted for Xio so much, and the butterflies in my stomach fluttered more and more violently each time Teo and Aurelio interacted with each other.

I love how Aiden included body dysphoria differently than authors usually do. The emotions that ran through my body when Teo finally felt fully male! Wow!

I urge you to read this story and can’t wait to read the second book of this duology!