I don’t remember how I found out about The Root. I think it was on one of those collages of books about fantasy books that have representation or fantasy worlds that aren’t the standard Lord of the Rings style worlds or something. And I have developed a problem with impulse buys.
The Root follows the story of Erik as he discovers that he is a Blooded, a person descended from ancient beings that has powers that he can use to defeat the Angelics that are invading the world and kidnapping people. In a mirror dimension, Lil is an apprentice to her Holder, dealing with her parents death and taking care of her sibs as she’s pulled into a world of politics and intrigue.
The two stories are told interspersed throughout the book, but I would highly recommend readings one storyline, and then the other. They are both interesting stories, but learning two different set of universe rules at the same time is a lot all at once. On top of that, Erik and Lil don’t share any scenes together, don’t communicate with one another, and don’t really interact directly, so you aren’t missing anything by doing it one arc at a time.
Lil’s universe in particular threw me quite a bit. This might be a me thing, since I was reading the start of this while dealing with the commination wildfire smoke and creosote fumes, but I don’t think I ever really understood Lil’s universe outside of the broad strokes. It didn’t get in the way of the story, but I was always aware that I didn’t ever quite know what happened.
I did enjoy both of the stories, though! Erik’s is much more about the action and adventure, where Lil’s follows the intrigue of the people who hold a lot of power trying to keep things from falling apart. There’s a large, diverse cast of characters with varying perspectives and information that all compete with one another so you need them all for a fuller picture, which is exactly what I like. I would absolutely recommend the book, though maybe read it when you aren’t dealing with smoke inhalation.