The Pomegranate Gate

• Author: Ariel Kaplan
• Genre: Fantasy
• Publication Date: September 26, 2023
• Publisher: Erewhon Books
• Series: The Mirror Realm Cycle #1

Thank you to NetGalley and Erewhon Books for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Ariel Kaplan’s The Pomegranate Gate is the lyrical first installment of the Mirror Realm Cycle, a vibrant and heartfelt Inquisition-era Jewish epic fantasy in the vein of Naomi Novik, Katherine Arden, and Tasha Suri.

Toba Peres can speak, but not shout; she can walk, but not run. She can write with both hands, in different languages, but has not had a formal education. The only treasure Toba has dared to keep is a precious star sapphire, set in a necklace she must never take off.

Naftaly Cresques sees things that aren’t real, and dreams things that are. He is a well-trained tailor, but a middling one, and he is risking his life to smuggle a strange family heirloom: a centuries-old book he must never read, and must never lose.

The Queen of the Sefarad has ordered all Jews to convert, or be exiled with nothing. Toba, Naftaly, and thousands of others are forced to flee their homes. Toba, accidentally separated from their caravan of refugees, stumbles through a strange pomegranate grove into the magical realm of the Maziks: mythical, terrible beings with immense power. There, she discovers latent abilities that put her in the crosshairs of bloodthirsty immortals, but may be key to her survival. On the other side of the gate, Naftaly, intent on rescuing Toba, finds his new companions harbor dangerous secrets of their own.

Now, hunted by an Inquisition in both worlds, Toba and Naftaly must unravel ancient histories and ancient magics in order to understand the link between the two realms. More than their own lives might be at stake.

Brimming with folkloric wonder, The Pomegranate Gate weaves history, myth, and magic into an exquisite tale of fate, legacy, and friendship that will leave readers spellbound.

This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2023, and I was absolutely devastated that it took me so long to get to it! I was hoping it would meet my expectations, which were pretty high for this story. But seriously, how could they not be? An Inquisition-era fantasy with Jewish folklore sounds right up my alley. 

To start with, this is the kind of slow-paced book that I don’t mind. It gives me time to savor all of the complex aspects of the world-building, the storyline, and the incredibly detailed geopolitical aspects of both the Sefarad and the magical world behind the Pomegranate Gate. Unlike many other series I’ve read, where each book has its own individual plot with an overarching theme or mega-plot to tie them together, this one gave the impression of having the plot spread out over multiple books, so that this is more like Act I of a multi-act play. It makes it difficult to judge the plot fully, but I loved seeing how it developed and I wonder where it is going to go next. 

It was so easy for me to get attached to the characters. Toba has spent her entire life being unwell, and is used to her limitations, although they frustrate her. It isn’t until she’s in a scary situation that she realizes how dangerous they can be. But the situation leads her to pass through the Pomegranate Gate, where she’s thrust into a new kind of danger—a land full of politics and magic that she knows nothing about. Naftaly is descended from a long line of tailors, but he doesn’t have the gift for it, yet is forced into the trade nonetheless. His talent lies in dreaming, instead. When he sees Toba go through the gate, he tries to follow, but can’t. So he tries to find her in dreams, yet keeps encountering the same mysterious man.

We’re introduced to two mirrored worlds—one that is basically just a fictional version of Inquisition-era Spain, where the Jewish population, who has lived there for hundreds of years, has been given the option of converting to Catholicism or leaving Spain and all of their belongings (including all of their money), of course. Even the converted Jews weren’t above suspicion, and were often in just as much danger as they were before. The other world is a magical world full of Maziks, a race of Fae-like creatures who have magic and can be identified by their square-pupiled eyes. There’s an Inquisition-like event happening in this world as well, and it was so interesting to learn about this new world.

Jewish fantasy books have been few and far between, although recent years have seen a few published. This is one of the most Jewish that I’ve seen, with the representation threaded throughout the entire story, so that it becomes impossible to separate the story from its Jewishness. From the names (the character names are common Jewish names), to the setting (Inquisition-era persecution of Jews), to the way the characters say Hashem instead of God, and even to the way words are pluralized with the suffixes  -im or -ot instead of adding an “s” at the end of the word. It was also fascinating to learn about Sephardic folklore and history, since that isn’t as well-represented in books and especially fantasy.

I adored this story. Normally, slow-paced books aren’t my thing, but this one allowed me time to process everything that was being presented in the story. The world-building is a bit complex with the two worlds and the world-building, and the differing experiences of Toba and Naftaly. I enjoyed the author’s use of humor and found myself laughing while reading, the queer slow-burn subplot, having my heartstrings tugged on, my Jewish soul nourished, and my nails bitten to the quick after a cliffhanger ending that is making me desperate for a sequel to come out soon.