Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young is a standalone historical fantasy. This review will be spoiler-free.

Raised to be a warrior, seventeen-year-old Eelyn fights alongside her Aska clansmen in an ancient rivalry against the Riki clan. Her life is brutal but simple: fight and survive. Until the day she sees the impossible on the battlefield—her brother, fighting with the enemy—the brother she watched die five years ago.

Faced with her brother’s betrayal, she must survive the winter in the mountains with the Riki, in a village where every neighbor is an enemy, every battle scar possibly one she delivered. But when the Riki village is raided by a ruthless clan thought to be a legend, Eelyn is even more desperate to get back to her beloved family.

She is given no choice but to trust Fiske, her brother’s friend, who sees her as a threat. They must do the impossible: unite the clans to fight together, or risk being slaughtered one by one. Driven by a love for her clan and her growing love for Fiske, Eelyn must confront her own definition of loyalty and family while daring to put her faith in the people she’s spent her life hating.

Part Wonder Woman, part Vikings—and all heart.

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Heart-wrenching. Captivating. Page-turning. Everything I wanted and needed. Love and betrayal came together to break my heart, but then turned around and healed it too.

I have no idea why I waited so long to read this book. It was amazing. Wow. Just. Wow. From the very first page, I was enthralled. It pulled so many emotions out of me. From heartache to anger to laughter. I wish it didn’t have to end. I wish I hadn’t read it so I could go back and experience it all over again.

Eelyn was fierce and strong. She was willing to fight for what she thought was right. That is until she discovers what she thought was right might not be. Then she was faced with a decision about what to do next. Fiske was determined, loyal, and protective. His family was the most important thing in the world to him and he was willing to fight—and kill—to protect them.

The world that Young created was remarkable. I was absorbed into it from the very beginning and it did not let me go. I could see everything. The pictures that were painted throughout this novel were clear. I knew exactly what was happening and could see it all like a movie in my head.

The feud between the Aska and the Riki was delivered perfectly. I understood from the very beginning that the hate between them was drilled deep within the soul of each community, but I didn’t know why. I loved the way Young gave us more and more information throughout the book instead of doing an info dump at the beginning.

Plus there was the slow-burn romance and I am weak for those. *Swoon*

I honestly don’t know if I have anything bad to say about this book. I loved every single word. Oh, except Iri! He made me so mad. I wanted to jump in the pages and punch him on multiple occasions. However, this still worked with the story and made the tension rise between the characters in a good way!

I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars and I HIGHLY recommend this book to all historical fiction lovers AND all fantasy lovers.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐