These Stolen Lives

Six years ago, Mora survived the Skøl invasion, an event which destroyed her family, stole the land and means that she must pay for the right to live. As a ‘repayer’, someone who has lived life without paying, she owes the Skøl a debt and her life is no longer her own, but at least she wasn’t culled like so many others- a fate still facing anyone who can’t pay. When she learns that Zako, a twelve-year-old boy she has known all his life, has tried to kill his owner, the magistrate, Valour Venor, soon to be governor of the North Western Counties, Mora knows she has to act. However, in freeing Zako and smuggling him to tenuous safety, Mora and her friend, Kit, find themselves drawn deep into a perilous and dark mystery.

‘These Stolen Lives’ is an incredibly powerful, hard-hitting novel which mingles raw events of past invasions and occupations with imagined details of a fantasy world. The brutality of the Skøl and the law-enforcing Branders, the constant racism, inequality and fear in which the indigenous peoples suffer daily are so vividly described that the story is not an easy read, but one which challenges and forces the reader to reflect and empathise.

And yet, through all the hardship, moments of joy, of kindness and of love shine through. The kindness and courage of the Scarlets who agree to shelter Zako make a stark contrast to the brutality and ignorance of Venor; the blossoming feelings between Mora and Kit is worlds away from the threat of sexual assault. The importance of cultural heritage and the powerful identity this forges is clearly shown as the oppressors try to destroy and the oppressed remember.

Against this chilling background, an extremely tense and compelling mystery unfolds, taking the reader to the very edge and then allowing them to relax for a moment before dealing a crushing blow at the end. There must be a sequel coming…

These Stolen Lives

Sharada Keats

Scholastic ISBN: 978-0702325120