"We are abused. We are used. We are bartered and abandoned. But rarely are we loved. So be it. From this day forward, there will be no daughters in Saylok for any of you to love."

Bayr of Saylok, bastard son, is haunted by the curse once leveled by his dying mother: From this day forward, there will be no daughters in Saylok. Saylok's salvation? Bayr, the son that was refused.

Raised among the Keepers at Temple Hill, Bayr is gifted with inhuman strength. But he’s also blessed with an all-too-human heart that beats with one purpose: to protect Alba, the first girl child born in nearly two decades.

What Bayr and Alba don’t know is that they each threaten the king, a greedy man who built his throne on lies, murder, and betrayal. There is only one way to defend their land from the corruption that has overtaken it. By breaking the curse, they could defeat the king…but they could also destroy themselves.

In the beginning, they’d rejoiced. Sons were always preferable. Sons were the lifeblood. The protectors. The warriors. The farmers. How foolish they’d all been.

This was incredibly hard for me to settle on a rating until I figured out why I was still so miffed about it. It wasn't good enough for above a 4 because I couldn't imagine myself recommending to anybody. But why? It wasn't like the writing was bad. The plot moved. The characters were fleshed out. So what was my problem? Why did the ending leave a bad taste in my mouth despite the hope that the characters were facing?

Ladies and gentleman. You would think that this book is about the curse. You know, the one that started everything? The one that was continually harped on because everybody was freaking out about why they didn't have daughters? The one that was done because women weren't appreciated? The one that made her son super strong so he would be the salvation that his father rejected? So you'd imagine that the curse would confront that ideology?

BUT IT DOESN'T. There is literally ONE PERSON that knows the exactness of the curse for the majority of the book. Everyone else understands that something is happening because no daughters are being born but they don't know why. And what do they do? Rape, steal, and otherwise trade for women from other places. But those women don't produce girls either. And it wasn't until LATE in the book that someone even MENTIONED the fact that everyone thought something was wrong with the WOMEN and perhaps they should consider looking at THEMSELVES. And you know what happened? Nothing. Nothing happened. They got pissed by the suggestion and dismissed it.

AND THE CURSE DOESN'T EVEN BREAK BECAUSE OF ALBA AND BAYR. You know, the son that was supposed to be everyone's salvation? Yeah. Not him. Not even her.

The book, ladies and gentleman, is actually about the king and his greed and his lies. The one that snubbed our lady curser and he never even knew it was about him all along.

fdjksal;fjdsklajfl;kdsjflka;jfkldsjalk;f.

So frustrated. REEEEEEEEEEEE.