This was wonderful book that instantly transported the reader in to a new world. it was a pleasure to read with strong characters and a vibrant storytelling.

This is a series of three interconnected short stories. I've never read anything in this series before, but since it's a prequel I don't think I missed anything.

The main character is Ceda, an orphaned girl who's sworn revenge on the Twelve Kings because of what they did to her family (I don't actually know what they did; that isn't discussed in this book). She's a pit fighter and can handle herself. In the first story, she thinks she's being targeted by two mysterious twin boys but then discovers that she's truly being sought by a monstrous erekh for her dreams. There's some beautiful imagery and language in the story.

The second story is weaker. Ceda is linked by dreams to the imprisoned erekh and finds that she must aid the monster or suffer herself. After this one, I was about ready to set the book down. There was nothing especially wrong with the story, but nothing that made me want to keep reading either. This is the problem with short works- it's hard to make the stakes engrossing enough to keep the reader (at least if the reader is me) around.

I did read the third story, though, because it started with a pit fight, the first one described thus far in the book. That got me through the remainder of the book.

The theme here is obsession and redemption. A monster is obsessed with Ceda and wants her to suffer because of its own monstrous nature. While it was difficult for me to understand why the monster was so powerful, it led Ceda to some imaginative solutions. The magic in this book is interesting and beautifully described. While Ceda didn't have much to her in the way of individuality that sets her apart from many other plucky heroines- she's an orphan, streetwise, a good fighter, strong-willed- I am curious to read a full length book about her to see if the depth of a full length novel will draw me in further. I'm also uncertain if the author is drawing on actual Eastern mythology or if it's made up- I'm curious about that too. So the book did its job well enough to intrigue me to read more, and I suppose that's the measure of a successful story.