The Reader Trilogy

I first encountered this series because one of my English Language Learners was reading the Spanish translation of the first book. I was asking her about it to check her comprehension and it sounded like a fascinating book. So I went to her teacher, who happens to be the amazing Erin Summerill (the author of the Clash of Kingdoms series) and borrowed her copies of the series. I'm so glad I did.

This series is one of those amazing stories that just gets better and better as it interweaves more and more characters together and there's always a surprise that you didn't see coming. And as I've said many times before, I've always loved books about books. This reminds me a lot of series like Inkheart and Ink and Bone.  And the characters were so engaging that I felt drawn in almost instantly. I loved each book in the story but I'll try not to give too many spoilers!

The Reader, by Traci Chee, is about Sefia, a girl who has always spent her life on the run. First, she runs with her aunt Nin but then Nin is kidnapped and she must figure out how to survive on her own. Luckily, she still has the book that her parents gifted her before they died--though she can't read it. It's the only clue to her past, her present, and her future. She now must use it to find Nin and maybe solve the mystery of her family and who they are. Even though she feels solely responsible for carrying out this mission, she might just take a chance on the boy Archer that she meets along the way and hopes he can help her.

The second book, The Speaker, continues the story as the Red War between all of the kingdoms continues to draw closer and the world wonders whether the prophecies about the war will come true. Sefia and Archer continue on the run, trying to find out more about their pasts, their presents, and their futures all while relying on the book that she has now taught herself to read. 

This book especially really pulled me into the secondary plot lines and one of the plot twists nearly made me drop my book in shock. When I told my students about it, they were as equally enraged as I was! I feel like I didn't really love the magic in this fantasy world until the second book and it started to make a lot more sense and Sefia really began to grow her abilities. So while the first book was good, this one sealed my love for the books.

The Storyteller is the third book. The last book of a trilogy always carries the most weight because it has to neatly wrap up the entire storyline and leave the reader satisfied with the ending. In this book, we find out whether or not Sefia and Archer will fulfill their destinies, end up together, and save the future of the world amidst the devastation of the Red War. Sefia can no longer trust the book when it's led her down so many wrong paths but can she avoid a future that has already been written? The nature of destiny is seriously debated in this book. 

I loved the major expansion of the world in each of the books. First, we are simply focused on Sefia and Archer and their world, then it slowly grows to include more and more characters, more kingdoms, more fates intertwined. The whole world in this book just feels so vast but the characters feel so personal. Sometimes I feel really overwhelmed by a fleshed out fantasy world but this one drew me in.

I didn't know much about Traci Chee before but her most recent book, We Are Not Free, about the Japanese Internment, came out in 2020. I quickly added this one to my "want to read" list. And she has yet another YA fantasy book coming out in 2022.

I'd say there's a little too much longing, making out, and veiled sexual content for my little 7th grade students in conservative Utah but this would be great for high school kids. I'd recommend it for adults and teens alike who love books about books, fully-fleshed out fantasy worlds, magic, and romance! You can purchase a copy of the first book here.