The Hand of the Sun King by JT Greathouse (Pact and Pattern #1)

There are hybrid animals that wander the countryside in both the independent nation of Nayen and the invading imperialist Empire, like lion-serpents and eagle-hawks. The narrator of the book, Wen Alder, was born and raised in two different worlds. I saw these creatures as symbolic of Wen Alder since he was destined to carry on his father’s legacy by bringing the family name back into the Empire’s good graces. Since a young age, Alder has had constant tutoring (losing his entire childhood in the process) in order to get ready for a job placement exam within the patriarchal but resourceful Empire. But to others, Wen Alder is known as Forbidden Cur. He was nurtured in secrecy by his rebel Nayen grandmother, who snuck him out at night to teach him swordsmanship and teach him the mythology of his Nayen ancestry before the last of her rebel cohorts were erased from history.

Alder/Cur is an information seeker first and foremost. He makes a lifelong commitment to learning the structure of the world and how he can comprehend its underlying workings after learning (the hard way) that he is susceptible to magic. He had all of his decisions made for him up until the beginning of adulthood. His tutor brought him up alone, where 12-hour study days were typical. Despite her best efforts, A.C.’s grandmother could only impart a small portion of the power and wisdom he sought. Even after he reaches adulthood and starts to look for agency, he still finds his constraints to be dangerously constraining and infuriating.

No matter how smart A.C. is, his loyalties are constantly being put to the test in this book, which is what makes it so fascinating. He is strongly pulled to one side or the other the more he tries to tread a middle route between the two worlds he was reared in. He discovers that he is constrained by both practise and knowledge the more he attempts to push into knowing more about his magical link. I had a hard time putting the book down because Greathouse creates a constant, unrelenting tension that forces Alder/Cur to make decisions that are more and more gruesome. The cast’s objectives were constantly shifting, the prose added colour to each place, and the book skillfully balanced the development of the characters’ stories with the plot.

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There are other things discussed with a subtle grace that really stuck with me, in addition to themes of loyalty and higher knowledge. The interactions that A.C. had with his mother, grandmother, and other women in his life were exceptionally well-written and evoked powerful, relatable emotions because, as was already noted, The Empire is a strongly patriarchal culture. The cast of the book was quite limited, and special emphasis was placed on developing real connections with each people he interacted with, emphasising great characterization for practically every key figure in the narrative. Even some of the minor characters had arcs I cared about, and Greathouse left many questions about these people unanswered, leaving me anxiously anticipating what happens next.

Because A.C.’s story has a first-person reliable narrator, we occasionally receive asides such, “If I had only done X instead of Y, then the world may have been so different,” which gives some situations extra energy and makes them much more enjoyable. But that’s just a plus because the story manages to be both new and old at the same time. It’s a voyage of self-discovery, identity, sacrifice, maturity, agency, and the guts to stand up to what’s coming head-on. And a LOT is on the way.

I don’t believe this story has any weak elements. I wanted to spend more time with A.C. and in this world learning about the history of the two different kinds of magic, the bloody political uprisings, and the clever scholar who tried to make his way through the chaos while frequently failing horribly. However, despite the growing pains, there are glimpses of optimism for A.C., the Nayen people, and the survival of a fading culture and its witchcraft practises.

Wen Alder and Forbidden Cur are two noteworthy characters created by Greathouse. I struggled to support him because he is a man whose life has been split in half since birth and who has never been given the opportunity to make his own decisions. When he fails, he does so by action rather than inaction. No matter where life takes him, he is constantly driven to excel, but his superior genius doesn’t always fit in with the surroundings. Everything is intriguing. The Hand of the Sun King is easily one of my top reads of 2021 when you factor in its awesome magic system with serious repercussions, a cast of interesting, well-developed characters, and a gorgeous universe that thoughtfully explores its lore, economic problems, and religious past.