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The Rarkyn's Familiar: An epic action and adventure fantasy (The Rarkyn Triogy Book 1) (The Rarkyn Trilogy) Kindle Edition
Monster, her mind whispered again. She sensed the darkness twitch inside her; gathering its strength to consume her. Soon.
"A stunning debut." —Aurealis Magazine
"Steeped in other-worldly magic and adventure." —Andromeda Spaceways Magazine
An orphan bent on revenge. A monster searching for freedom. A forbidden pact that binds their fates.
Lyss has heard her father's screams, smelled the iron-tang of his blood. She witnessed his execution.
And plotted her revenge.
Then, a violent encounter traps Lyss in a blood-pact with a rarkyn from the otherworld, imbuing her with the monster's forbidden magic-a magic that will erode her sanity.
To break the pact, she and the rarkyn must journey to the heart of the Empire.
All that stands in their way are the mountains, the Empire's soldiers, and Lyss' uneasy alliance with the rarkyn.
But horrors await them on the road-horrors even rarkyns fear.
The most terrifying monster isn't the one Lyss travels with.
It's the one that's awoken inside her. Monsters of a feather flock together.
THE RARKYN'S FAMILIAR is an epic, dark fantasy perfect for fans of Andrzej Sapkowski's THE WITCHER, Leigh Bardugo's GRISHAVERSE and Brandon Sanderson's MISTBORN.
Awards:
2023 Sir Julius Vogel Award Winner (Best Youth Novel)
2022 Foreward INDIES Book of the Year Bronze Winner (Young Adult Fiction)
2022 Aurealis Award Finalist (Best Young Adult Novel)
2022 Indie Ink Award Winner (Best Friendship)
2022 Indie Ink Award Winner (Prettiest Prose)
2022 Indie Ink Award Winner (Side Character MVP)
2022 Indie Ink Award Finalist (Best Debut)
2022 Indie Ink Award Finalist (Best Morally Grey Character)
2022 Indie Ink Award Finalist (Writing the Future We Need: Mental Health Representation)
- LanguageEnglish
- Publication dateFebruary 12, 2025
- Reading age15 - 18 years
- File size1.0 MB
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From the Publisher



Product details
- ASIN : B0DX476W3T
- Publisher : Caelestis Books
- Accessibility : Learn more
- Publication date : February 12, 2025
- Edition : 2nd
- Language : English
- File size : 1.0 MB
- Simultaneous device usage : Unlimited
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Not Enabled
- Word Wise : Enabled
- Print length : 492 pages
- ISBN-13 : 978-1738620081
- Page Flip : Enabled
- Book 1 of 2 : The Rarkyn Trilogy
- Reading age : 15 - 18 years
- Best Sellers Rank: #641,901 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #746 in Teen & Young Adult Dark Fantasy eBooks
- #1,039 in Teen & Young Adult Epic Fantasy eBooks
- #1,052 in Teen & Young Adult Dark Fantasy
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Nikky Lee is an award-winning author who grew up as a barefoot 90s kid in Perth, Western Australia on Whadjuk Noongar Country. She now lives in Aotearoa New Zealand with a husband, a dog, and a couch potato cat. In her free time, she writes speculative fiction, often burning the candle at both ends to explore fantastic worlds, mine asteroids and meet wizards. She's had over two dozen stories published in magazines, anthologies and on the radio.
Her fantasy, sci-fi and horror fiction has won three Australian Aurealis Awards, two New Zealand Sir Julius Vogel Awards, Bronze at the Foreward INDIES Book of the Year, three Indie Ink Awards, and a Ditmar Award for Best New Talent.
Customer reviews
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Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book's pace engaging, with one review describing it as a fast-paced fantasy with action-packed scenes. Moreover, the character development receives positive feedback, with one customer noting the strong female protagonist. Additionally, the world-building is praised for creating an exciting epic, with one review highlighting the fresh magic system.
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Customers enjoy the book's pace, with one customer describing it as a fast-paced fantasy, while others appreciate its simple plot and action-packed scenes.
"The Rarkyn's Familiar is a wonderful novel. The main character is a strong woman with realistic weaknesses and flaws...." Read more
"A nice story exploring the changing dynamics between a person and the beast they're trying to benefit from having a relationship with...." Read more
"...Nikky Lee creates an exciting, thrilling, absorbing world. It’s a wrench to put the book down and come back to your own life...." Read more
"...of injustice, hope, and creatures misunderstood, terrifying, and wonderful. Highly recommend!" Read more
Customers appreciate the character development in the book, with one mentioning that the main character is a strong woman.
"...spoilers, I recommend this book for its fast-paced story and excellent character arcs. The magic felt relatively fresh and interesting...." Read more
"...This fantasy book had such a great cast of characters and a plot that was simple but moved quickly...." Read more
"...Intricate magic systems, dynamic characters, action packed scenes, and fascinating bonds will draw you in and leave you wanting more...." Read more
"...The rich character development takes you inside this world and makes it hard to put down (the mark of a truly great book.)..." Read more
Customers enjoy the world building in the book, describing it as an exciting epic with a fresh magic system.
"...The magic felt relatively fresh and interesting. I enjoyed my time with it and will pick up the sequel." Read more
"...Nikky Lee creates an exciting, thrilling, absorbing world. It’s a wrench to put the book down and come back to your own life...." Read more
"I was hooked right away with the unique and complex magic system and characters that make you love them...." Read more
"...I'm all here for a girl and her monster. The magic was very cool and the world building kept me intrigued...." Read more
Reviews with images

A must-read fantasy!
Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on May 4, 2024The Rarkyn's Familiar is a wonderful novel. The main character is a strong woman with realistic weaknesses and flaws. On a journey to cure herself of a terrible bond with a creature called a 'rarkyn', she faces dangers and persecution from all sorts of people. The rarkyn speaks to her and she begins to learn that perhaps it isn't the bad guy she once thought.
The worldbuilding is subtle and deep without being boring. There are very few parts which could be considered infodumps, with the vast majority of the worldbuilding being shown through dialogue and the main character's senses. The author respects the reader's intelligence.
Without going into spoilers, I recommend this book for its fast-paced story and excellent character arcs. The magic felt relatively fresh and interesting. I enjoyed my time with it and will pick up the sequel.
- Reviewed in the United States on June 12, 2022A nice story exploring the changing dynamics between a person and the beast they're trying to benefit from having a relationship with. The feathery Rarkyn made me think of the garuda in Perdido Street Station. Good but. Big respect for so much passionate marketing effort Nikky Lee put into this book.
- Reviewed in the United States on January 7, 2023I’ve just finished my second read of Nikky Lee’s exciting epic, The Rarkyn’s Familiar. It’s the story of Lyss, an orphan girl bent on avenging her father’s death at the hands of the Empire’s merciless soldiers. By accident, she bonds with a monster—a Rarkyn from the Otherworld. Their only hope of freeing themselves from the bond—and for Lyss to prevent the madness it will bring—is to seek a cure in the heart of the Empire itself. They set off on this dangerous journey, pursued by the Empire’s relentless soldiers and a powerful mancer who has his own reasons for wanting to capture the Rarkyn.
The first time I read The Rarkyn’s Familiar, a month or so ago, I read it fast (if you can read a long book fast) because I was so eager to find out what happens next. This time, I read it slowly, because I wanted to savor and appreciate the amazing world this author has created for us. From the nomadic huts of the Wildners to the simple villages and dangerous Otherworld creatures our characters encounter on their epic journey, and finally to the complexity of the viciously authoritarian Empire--this is a world that invites us to listen and learn. I learned that not all valuable creatures in the world are human—there are other species, with their own lives and values and goals. In fact there may be more than one world (Is Terresmir Terra?) Perhaps some creatures can move between different worlds. And perhaps human magic is not the only kind of magic possible, or even the most powerful. Yet perhaps communication and relationships between the species are possible. And, as Lyss discovers, perhaps the greatest struggles are with the monsters within ourselves.
Nikky Lee creates an exciting, thrilling, absorbing world. It’s a wrench to put the book down and come back to your own life. I’m eagerly waiting for the next volume of the trilogy. Can’t wait to re-enter Terresmir.
- Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2024This was a very unique fantasy with a complex world and magic system, but I struggled to understand those complexities which made it drag for me.
I love learning about different magic systems, but this one never clicked for me. I never felt like I really understood how the magic and the Otherworld worked, which left me feeling frustrated. Maybe I just wasn’t paying enough attention at the beginning of the book, but I’m usually pretty good at picking these things up.
It was a slower paced book, and there’s nothing inherently wrong with that but I had difficulty with it. There was a lot of journeying through the wilderness together. When action was happening it was exciting though! I think maybe if it had been shorter the pacing would have worked better for me.
Where I think this book really shone was the relationship between Lyss and the Rarkyn. Their arc from enemies to reluctant allies to friends was done very well as it happened gradually and believably. I loved their bond at the end!
I also really enjoyed how the characters backstories were doled out gradually through dreams, flashbacks, and letters. It was fun to piece together what had happened to them.
Overall I think if you’re prepared for a slower paced book with a complex world and magic system you might enjoy this.
Thanks to the author for the copy.
- Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2024I was hooked right away with the unique and complex magic system and characters that make you love them. The world is complex and the plot fairly simple. There's great underlying tension, while giving lots of time for the two main chars' relationship to form, which was awesome. When things come to a head, it's all on. I was flipping pages as fast as I could to see what would happen. All the characters in the story have their own tale to tell, including the antagonist. It's such a cool world full of injustice, hope, and creatures misunderstood, terrifying, and wonderful. Highly recommend!
- Reviewed in the United States on November 17, 2022I had been seeing a lot of good things about this book and I think it lives up to the hype! This fantasy book had such a great cast of characters and a plot that was simple but moved quickly. Skaar was wonderful and the antagonist was great, especially when his full motives were unveiled. The ending has a cool moment that reminded me so much of Attack on Titan. This story held my attention pretty much throughout the whole book. I enjoyed Lyss' journey; I appreciated that she was a normal girl caught up in all this. I'm all here for a girl and her monster. The magic was very cool and the world building kept me intrigued. I do think the book could have done with a glossary (I'm a glossary girl) since there were terms and things that I did fully grasp until later.
Top reviews from other countries
- Elise CarlsonReviewed in Australia on June 17, 2023
5.0 out of 5 stars A deeply immersive YA fantasy adventure
The characters are well developed, their stories meaningfully intertwined and the writing let me feel as though I journeyed alongside them. This is a richly built fantasy world, touching seams with an Otherworld, from whence magic creatures can travel. Both worlds have their own magic system, and the human population disagree about who can wield magic and how, those repressive of magic holding the upper hand as the story begins.
The story has the familiar master and apprentice trope, but the twist is this master of magic is himself a magical creature, tutoring a human. And he's still learning to control his own magic. Meanwhile young Hane also has great promise with magic, though he falls in with an experienced magic wielder who seems to wish both Lyss and her tutor great ill.
This is a story of pursuits across the wilderness, allies, enemies and people whose motives and goals are less clear cut. Each character has their own clear goals and most are sympathetic —save the kind of baddie you love to hate. A very entertaining debut. I'll definitely want to read the whole trilogy.
- EMReviewed in the United Kingdom on October 19, 2024
4.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book
I loved this book, the characters and the world building were fantastic and the magic system and the aether and how the characters interacted with them was super cool.
Skaar and Lyss are great main characters and I loved their different PoVs, and I really enjoyed the slow unfurling of the mysteries surrounding them.
Will definitely be grabbing the next book, I highly recommend
- N. BrookeReviewed in Australia on May 21, 2022
4.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully crafted writing
This book has such beautifully crafted writing. A few lines were just perfect, and it was a joy to read. It's an epic fantasy with excellent intricate worldbuilding and the classic hero's journey, which is always a great storyline. I loved the characters, although my favourite ended up being Hasek who was only a minor character, but he came across quite vividly even though he wasn't in many scenes.
I would have rated it 5 stars except that I think it could have moved a bit faster in the beginning or been condensed a bit. Also, I would have liked a bit more tension between Lyss and Rark, they seemed to accept their predicament and become allies a little too quickly. And I would have liked to see their friendship grow and have greater compassion for each other - they did have this, but it felt like it was only because of the bond instead of actually liking each other. I think a stronger friendship between them would have increased the stakes in the action scenes, making the reader more emotionally invested. But overall, it's still a very enjoyable book.
- Veronica StrachanReviewed in Australia on May 22, 2022
5.0 out of 5 stars Thoroughly entertaining
The Rarkyn's Familiar was written to remind us that no matter how many stories there are out there, a clever author can always find ways to bring us a new and unique tale. Lee has absolutely delivered in this first of an epic new series, The Rarkyn Trilogy.
It's a superbly written fantasy, slick and effortless to read. A thoroughly entertaining twist on the tale of a bonded familiar.
But this adventure of murder, kidnapping, revenge and magic has a slew of factors that push it above your everyday read. Before you realise it, you're following the well-written arc of Lyss and Skaar as they slowly unpack their changing understanding of themselves, their worlds, and their burgeoning interdependence. This was so well done. I really loved it. The plot shared amongst the multiple POVs compels you to turn another page. The magic/psychic system is brilliant and the rest of the world building complex and satisfying. Lee weaves in snatches of the larger world, twists and teasers in the layers of plot that make you impatient for the next volume.
A fabulous read. Bring on Book 2.
- Susan LeeReviewed in Australia on January 8, 2023
5.0 out of 5 stars A stunning debut novel
A stunning debut novel that keeps the reader wanting more. Well-developed characters lead you through an intriguing world of magic. I recommend reading it once just to enjoy the twists and turns of the plot and a second time to enjoy how well the novel is written and the world building crafted. I can’t wait for 2nd book in the trilogy.