The Boy from Ilysies (Libyrinth)

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For the Libyranians, men and women were seen as being equal and shared all the jobs, responsibilities, and rewards. Ilysies was matriarchal -- women ran everything because men were too unstable to be trusted with responsibility and decision making. Po grew up in Ilysies and had been training to become worthy to be chosen as a woman's consort. He felt adrift and alien among the Singers and the Libyranians -- he was having difficulty adapting. The food is running out and crops are difficult to grow in the harsh climate and soil around the libyrinth.

It doesn't help that there are now so many more people to feed since the Redemption. Po is chosen to be one of the chorus that is to travel to the Citadel of the Singers to teach the villagers along the way about the Redemption, ask for their help, and try to learn about the ancients and their ability to make the deserts bloom.

Along the way they learn that there is another group that is terrorizing the people and giving the Libyranians and the Redemption a bad reputation. Now they have an even more important mission: Meanwhile they must learn to work together as a team and chorus. Will they manage to complete their mission and return with food and a way to grow crops before those they left behind starve to death?

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Can they put aside their differences and learn to trust and respect each other regardless of whether they are men or women or what cultures they grew up in? I think Clauda probably has a total of 25 pages in the entire book and Haly not much more. The book really could have used their presence.

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But I really do hope that it is better than this one. Nov 03, Michelle rated it liked it Shelves: This is the second book in the series. Now that there is peace between the Libyrarians and the Singers, they now must turn to the task of surviving. They begin reaching out to the neighboring communities, spreading the word of what has happened.

A new character, Po, becomes the focus of the story. He is an Ilysian, and in their female dominated culture, the men are the consorts and fight between themselves for the privilege. Hurting a woman is against their culture. Po is tricked and becomes an This is the second book in the series. Po is tricked and becomes an outcast, but his powers as a healing adept may be his salvation as he joins the search for a legendary object, that has the power to green the desert.

The new elements will lead to some interesting changes in the third book in the series. Mar 08, Virna rated it did not like it. Another one that I just could not torture myself anymore by reading. I honestly wanted to DNF.

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Jan 21, Madigan Mirza rated it really liked it Shelves: I picked up this novel on a whim, and from the first page was completely hooked. I had not realized that the book is actually a sequel to Libyrinth. I frequently complain about too much exposition in books I like it when an author simply thrusts you into a world, trusting you to figure out, or at least muddle through until the clues start to come together and the rules of the world become more clear.

This book, though, is probably that rare exception, where I could have used just a pinch more I picked up this novel on a whim, and from the first page was completely hooked. This book, though, is probably that rare exception, where I could have used just a pinch more information to catch me up with the backstory.

It was a bit of a challenge, but not impossible, to figure out who was who at first. We start out knowing that Po, a lone subservient young man from the strictly matriarchal Ilysies society, is struggling to adjust to life in a new settlement, where patriarchal Singers and egalitarian Libyrarians are attempting to mend their differences.

Everyone in the settlement recently fell under the effects of a powerful magical spell, one which temporarily created peace, and inspired them to try a more permanent blending of their cultures. Naturally, once the magic fades, the hard work of creating a new society is easier said than done. The casually insulting manner towards women that Singer males cannot seem to shake causes Po to instigate frequent fistfights. As is normal for his culture, Po is often quite weepy, just another thing which causes him to stick out like a sore thumb amongst the more stoic males in the settlement.

Suffering from low self-esteem, eager to abdicate responsibility to a wife who can manage matters for him, and unable to stop himself from continually prostrating himself before Ilysian Princess Selene, who does not appreciate reminders of her former life of privilege, poor Po can't seem to figure out how to fit in. Unfortunately, Selene's ruthless mother, Queen Thela, is able to step in and take advantage of Po's naivete.

The Boy from Ilysies (Libyrinth, book 2) by Pearl North

When the settlement's struggling first crop is burned, Po is framed for it. To redeem himself, he must journey to a nearby enemy city to find the long-hidden Endymion's Rose - a legendary magical artifact that could save them all. Most remarkable, to me, was Po's utter shock and initial lack of understanding of things such as prostitution, rape, or unwanted pregnancy.

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Po's upbringing in an all-powerful matriarchy where fertility is revered, and violence against women results in an instant death sentence for the offending male and all of his living relatives leaves him completely unprepared for some of the harsher aspects of living in a patriarchy.

The worldbuilding in this book is complex and the cast of characters fairly large. There are hints that all of the warring factions are descended from a long-ago Earth, especially when they quote novels such as Peer Gynt, Moby Dick, or Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness. The planet's inhabitants study what appear to be ship's logs as their holy texts, hoping to divine clues which will help their survival. They do rely on technology, especially personal flying jets, yet this is a world where magic is ever-present as well. Po learns to develop his skill as a healer with the use of trance-like visions where he sees a beautiful garden setting.

With it's abrupt entry into the story, and cliffhanger ending, The Boy From Ilysies is clearly the middle-volume of a trilogy. Fans of Ursula Le Guin's feminist science-fiction, with it's exploration of culture clashes and gender roles will feel right at home in the world of Libyrinth. Recommended for older teens. Jul 31, Ashley Ferguson rated it really liked it. I really enjoyed Libyrinth, and was really excited to read its sequel. And it did not disappoint! If anything, The Boy From Ilysies is even better than the first book.

This series does not suffer from second-book-syndrome in any way, and it was very refreshing. One of my favorite things about this book was that it took a previously minor character and turned him into the unlikely hero. In the first book, Po is the kinesthesiologist's apprentice and just happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and ends up flying with Clauda in the wing. At the beginning of this book, he's lost and homesick and wants to leave the Libyrinth to return home to Ilysies. But throughout the book, he matures and grows and begins to accept the other ways of life as not being so different from the one he knows.

He's definitely one of the most well-developed characters in the series and in YA in general I think, and it's a real shame not more people know about him. At the start of this book, I did not like Po at all but by the end I found myself cheering him on.

Another thing that Pearl North does exceptionally well is building a new and fascinating world. I mean, I can't even begin to fathom how she came up with this concept.

I could barely keep them straight as the reader, I can't even imagine how North was able to create this world and then expand upon it. I thought I knew enough from the first book, but somehow North gives us even more insight into the world of these books and expands the world so much. The plot moves a little slowly at first, but I think it ends up being alright because we get to learn more about Po and his feelings about the Redemption and life at the Libyrinth.

Once the group leaves and their mission is underway though, things pick up quite considerably.

The Boy from Ilysies

There is very little downtime, and we find ourselves right in the middle of all of the action. I also thought that switching back and forth between characters as narrators was a really great technique, and is done very well. Not only do we see what Po and his group are experiencing, but we also get to see a little bit of what is going on back at the Libyrinth.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who read and enjoyed Libyrinth. It's better than the first one, and you don't want to miss this next chapter in the trilogy! I would also recommend this series to anyone who is looking for an excellent fantasy series to start. They're easy reads, but I think they have appeal for both younger and older audiences.

Anyone who loves books would love this series, regardless of age. I can't wait to read The Book of the Night! May 30, Cindy rated it it was ok Shelves: I wish I could say that I enjoyed this book, but I'm not really sure what to say about it. I finished it and I just know very little of events and stuff that lead up to the plot I really feel the characters are run of the mill almost unforgettable , the plot is a bit out there, and we have a lot of people who want to get laid.

Basically, this whole book revolves around a boy who wants to get laid, but can't because the girls don't like him. Said boy is socially awkward, an outcast, etc His whole goal in life is to get laid Oh, yeah there are some other plot elements like famine, bad guys and stuff, but really all I remember is the or so pages dedicated to said boy wanting to get laid and having issues with it. I plan on reading the third book, because I feel like I need to know what happens not with the boy who wants to get laid with the other stuff , but I'm not sure I'd really recommend this book to anyone.

Apr 08, Cindywho rated it really liked it Shelves: The strange world of the Libyrarians is now seen through the eyes of Po, a teenage boy who has been brought up in an abusive matriarchal system.

The way he interprets relationships is squirm-inducing, but fascinating. Others have varying degrees of understanding how he experiences things while he's trying to break out of conditioning. Meanwhile, there's an adventure - this strange world is winding down and it needs to be saved and we get another glimpse behind the curtain. Dec 23, Aurora Celeste rated it really liked it Shelves: This is the sequel to Libyrinth and, I must admit, more delightful.

I found Libyrinth to be very good, but slightly predictable read my review here. The Boy from Ilysies didn't have any of these problems at all.

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