Hey you! yeah you! Are you Hispanic/Latinx? Are you a member of the Alphabet Mafia? Do you find yourself looking for that representation in the books you read? Well look no further, The Name Bearer by Natalia Hernandez is the book you need! As an Afro-Latina I truly love that this story is set in a world (Tierra Madri) that draws in a blend of different Latin American cultures from things like our language, our food & drinks, our clothing and even some of our traditions. Making me feel right at home. Add in queer characters and found family trope and ya girl was hooked.
The First book in the Flowers Of Prophecy series tells the story of a young girl chosen to live her life as the Name-Bearer, whose sole purpose is being tasked with the naming of the future monarchy from the Flowers of Prophecy. Taken from her family at the age of three our Name Bearer knows nothing outside of her life in the castle and her training as the Name Bearer. At the age of thirteen that time comes, the prince is born and off to the flowers she must go. Only things don’t go as planned, the Flowers of Prophecy refused to name the prince instead they decided to fuck her whole world up by telling her that there is another child that should be receiving a name. What? The? Fuck?
Having seemingly failed in her duties and getting her shit rocked the Name-Bearer has no choice but to get the hell out of dodge, being named a traitor to the crown our young protagonist must go into hiding. Dun dun dun. We then find our Name Bearer living amongst the Daughters of Danray for 10 years, discovering who she is as a person and training to be ready to complete her new mission. Find the unnamed prince.
The Name Bearer is definitely a setup for the novels to come, expanding on the world building and the characters we will come to love. It does leave on a cliff hanger but that just makes you want to dive right into the next one.
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