WOMS: The Republic of Salt

It’s been almost a year since we explored the Mirror Realm, and—at last—it’s time to return with Ariel Kaplan’s latest installment in her Jewish-inspired epic fantasy series, The Republic of Salt.

But reader beware! Spoilers are ahead!

Events start immediately after the first book’s conclusion without missing any beats. Asmel and Toba Bet are on the run on the mortal side of the gate as Naftaly, Elana, a severely wounded Barsilay, and the old woman are trapped on the Mazik side in the mountains North of Rimon.

Tarses hunts for them all through his agent and assassin, Tsifra, and the demon, Atalef, as he prepares his army to attack Zayit. All of them find their way to the floating city, sometimes with deadly allies guiding them along their way. However, they soon learn of Tarses’s planned siege and must decide if they will risk everything to stop him from conquering the Republic of Salt.

I don’t know about you, but I was desperate to know what happened to Toba Bet and Asmel after the events of The Pomegranate Gate. Except you would think I would have retained what happened more! I regret not rereading Pomegranate Gate before diving back into this rich alternate history. I admit, I probably wouldn’t have been as lost as I felt since The Republic of Salt picks up right where Pomegranate stopped. Literally, you hit the ground running with Asmel and Toba Bet as they flee Tarses’s grasp.

If you don’t want to bother with rereading the first book, I’d recommend reading through the dramatis persona at the beginning as it gives a spoiler-heavy refresher of who’s who in the Mirror Realm Cycle series, including nuances revealed during the first book. I should have, but I skipped it, too eager to get to the main events. That said, Kaplan does such a masterful job of sneaking in small reminders into the opening chapters, I felt caught up eventually. However, there were definitely some key nuances and hints that weren’t re-revealed until much later as the drama unfolded, so in my opinion, for the best reading and most immersive experience—read The Pomegranate Gate again before picking up The Republic of Salt. How much time between reads depends on your own retention abilities, so reader’s discretion.

I think my feeling lost contributed to wondering why the action seemed slow at first. Upon reflection, the first book probably was similarly “slow,” but didn’t feel slow because everything was new and wonderful. That’s what makes second books so difficult, I think, for authors, but Kaplan executed hers beautifully. Despite my suspicions, the action is constant throughout the book, and soon, I found I couldn’t put it down. The compulsion to read was irresistible as we travelled deeper and deeper into the mysterious Mazik world and learned more about how the Luz gate fell and the risk of reopening it.

Then, without warning, as Kaplan expertly achieves, you find you’re suddenly caught in the tide and are swept out into the depths as the tension swells, cresting in a wave so great, when it crashes down on you, you are left dazed and wondering how you ended up drenched when you were just standing on the beach a moment ago.

Translation: I still have no idea how Kaplan does it, weaving this tapestry of characters and scenes, until suddenly—BAM! The book is over and you’re left wondering how the heck she’s going to answer that monumental cliffhanger with the next installment.

There are few authors I admire enough to say this, and Kaplan is quickly becoming one of them: I really hope I can write as well as her one day. I aspire to achieve the intricacies in as rich a tapestry of characters. She is on a whole other level, playing multilevel chess like Sheldon Cooper.

Also, the worldbuilding is as lush and exotic as the first book, and I marvel at how she blends history with our beloved folklore together. The way she designs her world is how I envision our world to be, and I think that is what speaks to me so much about her work. I feel like I’m experiencing an alternate version my own imagination in her world. It’s intoxicating.

The only thing I wish I had more of throughout The Republic of Salt was Toba Bet and Asmel’s romance. I feel like it sprouted during Pomegranate Gate, and slowly budded during the first third of Republic of Salt, but then it bloomed so quickly! I wanted to see more how Asmel might have come to realize his own feelings for Toba Bet. Then again, I definitely need to reread this book since I felt I missed so much trying to remember the events of book one. I probably missed some key moments between them.

If you’re a fan of lush fantasy worlds similar to the Daevabad Trilogy and haven’t read the Mirror Realm Cycle yet, then go pick up a copy of both books today and be prepared to be swept away and enchanted by a magical world full of wonder and peril and danger lurking behind every shadow. You won’t regret it!

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