Savage Legion: Volume 1

The country of Crache is, on one side of the coin, a successful and productive society. Flip the coin and there is rot, corruption and cruelty. Groups of people called Gens exist like specialized businesses to produce goods or provide services essential to Crache's function. When Lexi's husband Brio vanishes, and the government tries to shut down their Gen, she must stand up for her Gen and search for her husband. Evie is tasked with finding Brio and infiltrates an involuntarily conscripted army, the Savage Legion, sourced from the poorest most downtrodden citizens. Dyeawan, a brilliant disabled girl, arrested for begging, is pulled from a squalid dungeon to join the Planning Cadre, the brains behind Crache. Savage Legion is skillfully crafted, well-written and has great world-building. The characters are complex and grow throughout the story. There are non-binary, queer and differently-abled characters. I really enjoyed and appreciated this book. It says so much about society and the treatment of those who are considered "lesser". Savage Lesion is a must read for the issues it raises and for sheer entertainment value. The sequel cannot come soon enough.

I like that the lead characters of this book are all female. Pretty surprising for a book called Savage Legion. The detail to action in this book is very complex and is easy to visualize. It is a harsh world with the Aegin that take the lower castes and throw them into fighting as Savages, not caring if they die, just that there are bodies to slow the enemy down. One of the leads, Evie is a Savage, the others, Slider, and Lexi are very different, as a disabled girl on a secret island, and a Te-Gen trying to keep her Gen from being dissolved on spurious grounds. They are all related, even though at first it seems like it is three separate stories. I liked Slider’s part the best. There is a lot of politics in this book and rebellion against the unfair system. It was a bit confusing at times, especially at the beginning but I enjoyed the book and I look forward to the next one.