Self-help fantasy stories have been rising in popularity over the last few years, and there are a lot to choose from at varying degrees of quality. Despite the heart behind a lot of these stories, it can be particularly hard to balance making a story that catalyzes meaningful reader introspection while also telling a story that doesn’t just read like an Instagram mental health positivity post. One barely known novel that has recently stuck out to me in the category is The Heretic’s Guide to Homecoming by Sienna Tristen.
“Life is transformation. You change, or you die.” This is the central ethos behind this fantasy travelogue. The Heretic’s Guide to Homecoming is a very emotional story about a man’s desire to change who he is and the incredibly difficult work that he needs to put in to actualize that change.
Ashamed of his past, overwhelmed by his present, and terrified of his future: Ronoah Genoveffa Elizzi-denna Pilanovani is a mess. This is a character paralyzed by a deep self-loathing. We are talking about Shinji from Evangelion levels of whiny self-sabotage here, for those who watch. His history has been a series of accidentally sabotaging every undertaking he has ever tried, and he is running out of new places to run to. When he finds himself in a tavern at the end of the world with nothing but his name, he fears his end is imminent. That is until he meets Reilin. Reilin, best described as what would happen if you crossed the personality of a typical bard with a hurricane, whisks Ronoah up into a cross-continental pilgrimage to the most sacred place on the planet. The people they encounter on the way—children of the sea, a priestess and her band of storytellers, the lonely ghosts of monsters—are grim and whimsical in equal measure. Each has their part to play in rewriting Ronoah’s personal narrative.
The Heretic’s Guide to Homecoming is a very interesting book that I think will turn a small portion of people off immediately. The narrative is intense. Almost half of the entire page space is devoted to Ronoah’s stream of consciousness, which is basically just a firehose of vitriol breaking down every single thing he has ever done wrong. Ronoah is like if the manic anxiety panic attack you have at 1 am when you are trying to get to sleep was a person. I can feel some of you already pulling away. Ronoah is unpleasant to be around, and that is absolutely the point.
This is a book about transformation and change, and neither of those is easy. This book can be a lot to read, but one of the things it isn’t is trite. This is not a story about someone being a mess, getting one single talking to about keeping the darkness at bay, and then magically healing all their bad thoughts. This is a story about a well-meaning boy who has a lot of pain and problems and the older mentor who decides to give them a hand on the chance that after helping them up 100 times, the boy will learn to stand on his own.
The series is a duology, and Heretic definitely feels like the “breakdown” half so that the second half can rebuild Ronoah. The narrative is charming. The duo travels over this mysterious world, meeting new people, exploring hidden histories, and learning. The characters are all great, with each one being a very well-established person on their own journey of change and improvement. Where these paths of growth intersect results in very emotional and beautiful scenes that spoke to me deeply as a reader and helped me think about how to better myself outside the fictional world.
The Heretic’s Guide to Homecoming is a slow-burn emotional odyssey, and I very much enjoyed it. Although the lead is hard to listen to, his measurable growth feels rewarding to witness, and I left book one feeling like I got to witness something special. If these styles of stories are something you enjoy, I think this is one of the best. It is currently criminally underread at less than 400 reads on Goodreads. I am looking forward to finishing the second half of the duology soon.
Rating: The Heretic’s Guide to Homecoming – 9.0/10
-Andrew
