I took an extended hiatus and a lot was changed in the published book, so I thought I should probably write a brief summary of what went down in Book One to refresh everyone's memories. I'll try to keep this somewhat short.
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In the dying village of Kalaro, a village feeling the effects of the Gray that has blotted out the sun, Odessa Kusa and her father, Omari, set out with some other villagers to kill the Low God, Egende, so the village may expand in the lush Arabako Forest that the god calls home. They are successful but there are casualties. Odessa is among them. The god's blood spills upon her and burst into holy flame that eats into her arm. To save her, Omari performs a ritual he had been planning to preform on himself to bind the dead god's divinity to her. Odessa survives but she is tainted and Forsaken by the gods.
After the death of Egende, a plague strikes Kalaro. Kunza-ka, the village's spiritual leader, goes to commune with the High Gods in heaven to beg for their forgiveness. It takes blood sacrifice to gain the attention of the High Gods and it is Talara, the Goddess of Rot and Ruin, that answers his call. The goddess tells him that to save his village from ruin, he must bring her the heart of Odessa.
Gathering his most devout, Kunza-ka takes the remaining hunters by force. Odessa and Omari try to flee into the Night Jungle outside Kalaro but are caught. Odessa is made to watch as her uncle and father are killed and their hearts are ripped from their chests. The villagers take part of this profane ritual as Odessa is set to burn on the altar but as the fire laps at her skin, it is nothing compared to the godsblood burning in her veins. She frees herself from the altar and leaps from the mountain the ritual was taking place atop, taking with her Obi, one of Kunza's devout.
She escapes into the treacherous Night Jungle to find a wise man that her father told her of while Kunza-ka pieces together Obi's battered body, using blood magic and a goat to make Obi a goat-headed brute with unparalleled strength and a nose for Forsaken girls.
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While running from Kunza-ka's devout, Odessa meets Poko, a fairy who offers her sanctuary. When she reaches the Fairy Court, she soon realizes the fairy's intend on feeding her to their Father and gorging themselves on the leftovers. Their Father, a giant creature with an antlered skull for a head, attacks her. Odessa, hungry and weak, is pummeled by the creature. As she if being beaten, her bloodied, burned arm bursts into hellish flame, a product of her stolen godsblood. She kills the Father, ripping its head off and setting his body on fire. Out of instinct, she drinks its blood as well while the fire from the burning corpse spreads. The blood strengthens her.
As a wildfire takes over the Court, Odessa takes Poko, who has had their wings ripped off as punishment for bringing the Forsaken girl to their Court, and threatens them to lead her out of the jungle. To avoid burning, Poko reluctantly agrees and directs Odessa to the river which she leaps into. She follows the river out of the jungle to a deserted fishing village. Obi, having lost all of his men in the fire, corners her in the village and attacks her. Odessa tries to flee into the river but is stopped by a hydra, the reason why the village is empty save for bloodstains and rubble. Trying to fend off both Obi and the hydra, eventually the hydra is wounded so badly it retreats to regenerate. Obi, now wounded, is beaten to death by an enraged Odessa.
Odessa and Poko, who have grown somewhat accustomed to being together, leave the village to find the wise man. Before they reach him, Odessa is visited by Talara inhabited the rotten corpse of Obi. The goddess tells Odessa that if Odessa can become stronger she will be spared. If she can survive and grow strong in a world in which she no longer belongs, if she has the mettle to rip the hearts from her enemies and take their strength, she may yet live to see her mother and sister again.
After a long trek, keeping evil spirits at bay and killing three human hunters from Noyo that may have wanted to do her harm, Odessa reaches the wise man, Yakun. Battered and bloodied, Odessa finally allows herself to feel safe for the first time in weeks.
Meanwhile, in Kalaro, Kunza-ka arranges a meeting with Azka, the god of Noyo, a city to the north, but Talara's plan extend far beyond Noyo. Talara wishes to make an oasis in the Grey and Noyo is to the foundation. And Kunza-ka is to be her disciple.