Book Review: Child of the Kaites by Beth Wangler

4/5 stars

There is a lot to commend about this book. I’ve never read anything quite like it… retellings are often fairy-tales (Cinderella, Beauty and the Beast, etc) but the author took a biblical story and re-imagined it. The characters were well written and unique in their own ways, and the grammar/sentence structure was technically perfect. Which, ironically, is one of the reasons why I don’t think this was a 5 star for me. I didn’t get much of a “voice” for Rai, the main character and the point of view the book was written from. Even though the technicality was really good, it came across a little dry. But don’t let that stop you from getting this book.

I really enjoyed picking out the various themes that were familiar from the story of Moses, but the author also adds her own, too, making it less predictable. Especially if you’re familiar with the Exodus story.

The kaites and aivenkaites were interesting, and toward the end became fairly predictable (another reason this is 4 not 5 stars) but the action was heart-pounding and pretty constant throughout the book. You barely get time to breathe before Rai and her merry band are on the run countless times from the aivenkaites. There were instances where I had to force myself to relax and take a deep breath