Bereket

Tuyo #12

by Rachel Neumeier

The stranger took four strides and stopped, facing Bereket. Taking a pouch from inside his shirt, he set it on the table. “Help me.”

Never attached, never involved, friendly but never close to anyone, Bereket isn’t a man to make strong connections to any place or person. After three years in his latest job, he’s ready to pull up stakes and move on.

But when he’s asked to help prevent a grave miscarriage of justice, well … maybe he can stick around a little longer. This job sounds tricky. And interesting. Also a little bit illegal. But legality has never mattered much to Bereket. Justice, on the other hand, always has.

For this job, he’ll go far out of his way … if he can pull it off.

A prequel novel to Rihasi

Genres: Fantasy

464 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 2, 2026

About the author

Rachel Neumeier started writing fiction to relax when she was a graduate student and needed a hobby unrelated to her research. Prior to selling her first fantasy novel, she had published only a few articles in venues such as The American Journal of Botany. However, finding that her interests did not lie in research, Rachel left academia and began to let her hobbies take over her life instead.

She now raises and shows dogs, gardens, cooks, and occasionally finds time to read. She works part-time for a tutoring program, though she tutors far more students in Math and Chemistry than in English Composition.

Reviews

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A pretty much standalone book in the Tuyo world. A certain noble is accused of committing an atrocious crime involving the abduction of young ladies. Without due process, his entire family is sentenced to death. They of the Lau, escape and trespass onto Ugaro lands. From the summer realm to the winter. The story tells of their being sheltered and aided by the winter people who in all rights should be their enemies. Plot twists begin about a third of the way into this novel and the twists accelerate as the saga unfolds. Sorcery is at play and a most nefarious scheme unfolds.

New characters are introduced and developed into the Tuyo cast of players. Namely, Bereket.

The ending alone is reason to stay with this book. If not for the slow start, I'd bump my review to four stars.

Rachel Neumeier suggests that a Tuyo 13 could be released later this year. I am finding that these books do not follow a set chronological order. In fact, this book 12 is certainly not part or party of any of the previous books. The Tuyo world is the same, but that is it.

Neumeier has a good thing going with the world she developed and she knows it.

[Mimi Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Rounded up because the author managed to tie up so many threads of disparate books here (by my count, side characters or unresolved events from at least five previous books in the series feature prominently). Containing both an Ugaro and Lau POV, this explains the intricate sorcerous scheme which led to epic events in the west borderlands, with impact reaching even Tano and crew in the far north.

Slow start, maybe too detailed in the first half but such a good last act.

[Kaa · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite Tuyo book to date. I love Bereket as a character, and the way Neumeier fits all the puzzle pieces together in the story is wonderful. It's been too long since I read any of the previous books for me to pick up most of the references, but I feel like I really need to re-read Rihasi now.

[David A Townsend · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loss and pain come to every man, unavoidable. Bad luck or sullen stupidity, the malic of sorcerers or the cruelty of ordinary men, countless wellsprings of suffering. There was nothing anyone could do about any of it, except endure, move on, and occasionally, when the chance presented itself, give someone a hand out of the morass that tried to drag them down.

[Paulina Rae · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extremely specific wish-fulfillment for people with a silence in their family that they would hope to bridge and find that secretly there has been well-meaning intent and the chance for growth and healing.

[Kat Rysewyk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can someone explain to me how Rachel Neumeier writes books that are this good and this detailed and gets them into our hands this quickly? What magic spell has she cast? Inquiring minds want to know.

Surprise, surprise, I loved another Tuyo book. This series jumps around in time a lot, and because Neumeier is more interested in fully exploring different aspects of the world she’s created than following a single plotline or character group, attempting to read the series in chronological order is a deceptively simple task. Bereket is simultaneously an early prequel to Rihasi (publication order: 9), a sequel to Nikoles (publication order: 2), and certain events in it happen concurrently with events in Hedesa (publication order: 10). A very helpful chronology in the back of the book clarifies things, but to anyone who thinks this book might be a good entry point to the series, for the love of God don’t.

One of Neumeier’s greatest gifts as a writer is her ability to convey culture through tone. A book like Hedesa, written from the perspective of an Ugaro character, reads very differently from a book like Rihasi, from the perspective of Lau characters. Neumeier showcases that ability in Bereket to great effect. Most of the book is centered on the titular Bereket, a Lau mercenary/thief/kind-of-sketch-but-clearly-good-hearted-dude, but every third chapter, we switch perspectives to follow Siga inTemara, an Ugaro warrior we first met seventeen years before the events of this book, when he offered himself as a tuyo sacrifice in Nikoles.

Bereket and Siga’s chapters read like they were written by completely different authors, and I mean that as a compliment. It’s not just that these are different kinds of people, but that they’ve been raised in completely different cultures and contexts. Siga’s narration is formal and restrained, and extremely precise—the Ugaro don’t even use contractions. Bereket’s language is much looser and more informal, reflecting not only his only-sometimes-legal actions but also Lau culture in general, at least when compared to the ritualized and highly formal practices of the Ugaro.

As to the characters themselves, they’re great. It took me a little longer than usual to get into Bereket, but that was mostly because the plot here is pretty complicated and I wasn’t sure where it was going for a long time. Bereket is a loveable rogue type, not too interested in keeping things legal but very interested in doing things like getting kidnapped kids out of bad situations. He’s a bit of a drifter and only takes jobs he wants, and when a former temple dedicat (one whose dedication was destroyed by the sorcerer in Tasmakat, yet another connection to the wider story) offers him a very interesting job, he can’t resist getting sucked in. And in the winter country, Siga’s tribe, the inTemara, is still extremely bitter towards the Lau after the events of Nikoles seventeen years earlier, yet when a Lau family begs for shelter while fleeting an extending death sentence for a crime they did not commit, he feels compelled to break custom and help them.

Having the perspective switch back and forth between Bereket and Siga also lets Neumeier explore the fundamental misunderstandings that still occur between the Lau and the Ugaro. (Ryo and Aras have done a lot to bridge that gap and will doubtless continue to do so, but they’re only two men and they can’t be everywhere.) Again and again, one people describes the other as “barbaric.” The Ugaro see the Lau practice of extending certain criminal sentences to fall on the families of the guilty, even innocent children, as absolutely indefensible, while the Lau are often lacking in respect for the warlike, “uncivilized” Ugaro tribes. The history in Nikoles does not help matters, and there are other tensions, like the lingering influence of the former inTasiyo (Tano’s old tribe, seriously the WORST people around.) (My sweet baby Tano!). And the book also does a really good job reminding readers why sorcery and sorcerers is just so scary and so dangerous. It’s not like Neumeier hasn’t explored that ground before and done so very well, but for whatever reason it hit me all anew in this one.

This review is getting pretty long, and there’s so much I haven’t even touched on. In classic Tuyo fashion, Aras comes in at the end to set all to rights—but Ryo’s back, too! And we find out why the Moon suddenly turned away from Tano and his team in the Tarashana country! And there is so much setup for future books that I’m even more excited to read about! *insert incomprehensible, excited flailing*

I think the highest praise I can give Bereket is that while it made me even more eager for the next Tuyo book, it also made me want to go back and reread the whole thing, particularly Nikoles and Rihasi. And trust me, with the size of my reading list, I really can’t afford to. But when a book makes me want to drop everything and just bury myself in this world and hug these characters tight? That is a really, really good sign.

Bottom line, these books are dope as hell and they deserve a much bigger audience. The standard disclaimers apply; if you can only handle fast-paced action, this won’t be the series for you. But I loved Bereket and I continue to love the world of Tuyo to bits and pieces.

(And as always, please, more Tano!)

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I keep forgetting how much these books don't believe in normal pacing; not that they drag, but that they really don't think in a normal three act structure.
And it was great to see some old friends again, but also I get the sense that Neumeier is trying to feel out the theology in these books. And the moral ideology goes hand in hand with that. I somehow expected this book to be much more "stuff going on on the side", but it definitely isn't. I blame Bereket himself for that.
I did appreciate how psalm-like some of the invocations sounded and also, in general, the way Neumeier is interested in different kinds of goodness.
Also I really need to reread Tasmakat now that it's out in audio.

[Genevieve Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

Me: Wait, sex work is normalized and institutionalized in this world, so how can a brothel be illegal?

Me 2 pages later: Oh. Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Bereket follows our eponymous main character, a sometimes mercenary/vigilante/bandit/Ocean's Eleven team member/guardsman. He's a man with his own mysterious set of principles and his own agenda. When a desperate former Dedicat appeals to him for help, afflicted by the aforementioned principles, he reluctantly takes on what is sure to be a difficult and annoying job.

Those with memories stronger than a goldfish's will remember Bereket from Rihasi. I'm a little embarrassed to say that I fully did not even recall his existence. Luckily though, it forced me to re-read Rihasi which was a thoroughly fantastic experience.

This book takes place before Rihasi, but is still extremely Rihasi-coded, if you know what I mean. Sadly, the public-trial-for-capital-crimes-before-Lord Aras section in this book is much shorter, but still a DELIGHT. Have I mentioned that I LOVE a public-trial-for-capital-crimes-before-Lord Aras moment? Truly one of the MOST satisfying and glorious moments of the human experience.

What we have here that we didn't have in Rihasi is a strong Ugaro perspective, following Siga inTemara. The inTemara are the tribe that hates Lau and forbids them to enter their lands. Siga has thought this was too harsh for a long time; when a desperate Lau man shows up on the shore of the Winter Country claiming to have been framed for a crime he didn't commit, Siga shelters him against the prevailing orders of his father, the inTemara warleader.

The whole book is very much about the balance between justice and mercy, which becomes EXTREMELY overt and blatant at the end of the story. Even though I am dumb enough to forget about Bereket, it hopefully redeems me a little that I did clock Siga's constant focus on the Sun.

I'm doing a bad job with this review, but as usual the entire story was a joy to my heart from beginning to end. Some highlights:

• Bereket's dedication to seeing his job through with all the ingenuity of an entire Mission Impossible team was awesome. He's such an interesting character: a core of unwavering principle paired with ruthlessness and petty self-interest. His undercover work... riveting. When he first went into the brothel I was like... no way. To go undercover like that would be so incredibly brutal. What kind of a man is Bereket? And then later I was like, Oh.

• WHAT Shavet family member was running the salt mines. I almost want to guess it was Taranis, except that he was relegated in the east, not the west. Did he have bitter and resentful children?

• This series has and continues to do such an effective job at conveying the revulsion and creepiness of sorcery.

• Iokeos!!!!!

• I love when there's just SO much divine intervention and it doesn't ruin the story even a little.

• I love Siga's uncompromising devotion to his honor, and how it's contrasted with whatever Bereket has going on.

• RYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO. That's my guy!! I love the outsider POV we get to see of Ryo and how Strange and Peculiar he comes off to the other Ugaro.

[Mateja · Rating 5 out of 5]

For some reason, I thought this was a continuation of Tano’s story, so I was a bit annoyed when I realized it’s actually a prequel to Rihasi. Naturally, I wasn’t very happy when I started reading and (unjustly, I know! :) ) kind of resented Bereket for it.

Anyway, he ended up becoming one of my favorite characters in the series. I’m a bit ashamed to admit that I didn’t immediately connect who he was supposed to be in Rihasi, even though I read it just last year.

That said, I really like that Bereket is a morally gray character, something I rather missed in the Tuyo books. What makes him especially interesting is how he navigates morally questionable situations; he’s willing to bend rules or step outside the law, but only when it aligns with his own sense of justice. He’s also, of course, very competent and, as we know from Rihasi, loyal to his employer. He simply wouldn’t take a job that conflicts with his own moral standards.

We also get perspectives from Siga inTemara and Ugaro, who I believe was a very minor character at the end of a Nikoles book. There isn’t much recounting of those events, but there’s enough to connect the dots. Because of what happened in Nikoles, the inTemara really don’t like the Lau, and trespassing on their lands is a serious offense, punishable by death. When a Lau family flees into inTemara lands hoping for safety, Siga chooses to help them, as the man claims he was falsely accused, even though his father, their leader, would be very angry.

This story nicely connects several books, including Hedesa, when the Moon’s focus shifts elsewhere. There are a lot of nice little crumbs from different books, which I really enjoyed. As always, I loved this book and I’m convinced the author can’t write a bad one in the Tuyo world. :D

I really hope we get a sequel with Bereket as one of the perspectives, I would absolutely love that. I’d especially like to learn more about his history from his own point of view, a recounting of events rather than another prequel.

[Yasaman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got an advance copy from the author's Patreon.

I really enjoyed how much this was this fantasy world's equivalent to a hard-boiled PI noir mystery novel, with Bereket as our hard-boiled PI/mercenary with a difficult past and a somewhat more gray morality, and Markios as the client in dire need of help to prevent a miscarriage of justice. The other POV in this novel, Siga inTemara, is not so much in a noir mystery, but his POV is a neat contrast to Bereket's: Siga is a righteous and honorable man, with a strong sense of justice, and that makes for a fun juxtaposition with Bereket, who certainly has his own sense of justice, but one that's much more flexible.

Really hope we see more of Bereket. He was a lot of fun, and a fascinating character. To my delight, he's basically the whole Leverage team in one person, and reading this book after Rihasi makes his role in that book retroactively much more delightful. Also, I remain impressed with Neumeier's POV work, which is very strong. Despite some superficial similarities to Esau, Bereket's voice is his own, his POV full of details that speak to his difficult past and his particular abilities.

My one quibble with this book is that it got tough to keep track of the big cast of characters, and the scheme Bereket and Markios were trying to unravel. I did end up really needing that character index in the back.

Content note: references to CSA, rape, human trafficking.

[Kim Aippersbach · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must-read if you've read Rihasi. Bereket is one of my favourite characters in the whole Tuyo series. I laughed out loud more than once, just because he's so ... Bereket!

The switch into Siga's POV was jarring at first, because he's such a different character, in a different place with very different circumstances, but it quickly becomes clear how they're connected, and the two characters are interesting foils to each other.

Rachel loves exploring mentor-mentee relationships, and I loved this one (not going to spoil who it is!) She's also always looking at questions of honour and decency, and Bereket (the character) is a very fun way to question what makes a man decent and honorable.

I strongly recommend reading Rihasi first, even though it happens later. And you might want to reread Nikoles, if you haven't recently.

I'm aiming my review at fans of the Tuyo series wondering if you want to read this latest book: yes, yes you do. I don't recommend Bereket as an entry point, however; it would spoil far too much. Start with Tuyo: it'll hook you and then you'll be glad she keeps writing more books set in this world!

[Mary Soon Lee · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

This is the most recently published book in the Tuyo series, though it takes place before one of the previously-published books. It has two point-of-view characters (Bereket + Siga) whose storylines eventually intersect. I liked Siga very much, loved Bereket, and also loved several of the supporting cast, notably Markios and Tikoen.

I've read eight books in this series. I find the fantasy setting/magic compelling, the storytelling very effective, and the characters wonderful. This particular book was read in a great and very enjoyable rush while on vacation. Two thumbs up. Bereket forever!

Four and a half out of five rogue stars.

About my reviews: I try to review every book I read, including those that I don't end up enjoying. The reviews are not scholarly, but just indicate my reaction as a reader, reading being my addiction. I am miserly with 5-star reviews; 4 stars means I liked a book very much; 3 stars means I liked it; 2 stars means I didn't like it (though often the 2-star books are very popular with other readers and/or are by authors whose other work I've loved). Occasionally for fiction and often for poetry, I omit a rating.

[Grey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read via the author's Patreon!

Yet another banger of an entry to this series. I can't imagine a more fitting cry of the age than the sun and moon dedication in this book - may we all see such justice and mercy in our lifetimes. All the characters were fascinating, and I immediately want to go back to Rihasi (or at least the end of Rihasi) to see where things left Bereket again. Bereket and his relationships with Markios and Tikoen were so important to me... I hope Siga and Markios can become such good friends... I loved seeing how determined Siga and his father were to not let their difficult feelings get in the way of their relationship, and their tribe, and just - justice.

And every time there's a new novel in this series, I fall in love with all the new people, to my own surprise, given how attached I get. A whole new host of people in this world I'd love to see again after this! Wishing them all well! And WHO is that man to the far, far west who is neither Lau nor Ugaro?? Cannot wait.

[Rowan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Copy received from author's Patreon.

Another fun, well-characterised read set in the Tuyo universe, with largely new characters (Bereket is a secondary character in Rihasi). I enjoyed the relationship between the roguish Bereket and his extremely upright employer Markios. This is sort of theoretically a murder mystery, although it reads more as an adventure novel, and there is a suitably convoluted question about who is guilty of and/or being framed for what.

There's a secondary plot among the Ugaro, which is a many-years-later sequel to Nikoles, about the Ugaro tribe who are still offended after the murders in that novel, and their fraught relationship with their Lau neighbours. I very much liked the ending of that plot, although it's hard to explain without spoilers.

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Probably one of my favorite characters in this series

We have two competing narratives, one from Siga's perspective (he's a good guy with a lot of conviction) and the other from Bereket's (he's the one that fascinated me, he's got a strong Trickster vibe), that culminate into one Gordian knot of an investigation. I'm going to encourage folks to reread earlier books in the series before starting Bereket because I did *not* and so spent a lot of time jogging my memory about who did what and when.
I love this series. Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys anthropological or non Tolkien/ non European fantasy.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Tuyo book is ALWAYS worth a read. Lots of interesting characters here that I hope we get to meet again, a spectacular geological event, a teensy tempting taste of Ryo, Aras in full judicial fig, a very interesting glimpse of the normalization of Ugaro/Lau relations across different areas of the border, and a delightfully complicated fun little sorcerous conspiracy.

Also it took me a bit to warm up to him but I fully want to keep Bereket now, and I hope we see him again. Who do we think he is?? Does his short curse seem *ahem* slightly longer than usual??

[grosbeak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another nice installment in the series. I'm really enjoying the turn toward financial intrigue and related shenanigans in the Summer Country, and this one delivered with such exciting incidents as breaking someone out of a penal labor colony. The entwined story about the inTemerara was really well done, and the resolution of the silent conflict between Siga and his father was moving; I appreciated how deftly Neumeier portrayed the lingering effect of the events of Nikoles on communities on both sides of the river.

[Nicole Luiken · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bereket is an interesting character, both a secret crusader for justice (though he tells himself it's just a game) and not above petty thievery, and VERY capable in all manner of roles that he assumes. A fun plot and a surprising ending.

[Elizabeth · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series. She writes very well (no grammatical mistakes that I saw, enough laying down background without it feeling like it’s homework for the story) and I’ll continue to read each one that comes out.

[Ron Richards · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favorite author

Delivers again! Bereket is an interesting character. There is obviously Much more to.his story. He affects events much more than most others realise, & the ones who do realise it are very few but very aware.
As with all Neumeiers books Highly Recommend

[MSJ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hope we see more Bereket in future!

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic as always.

[Adena Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the complexity of Bereket. He rivals Tano for dysfunctional background and interesting life choices, and I hope to see what he gets into next. (Please!?!)

[K Hancock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this. I'll now go back and re read Rihasi.

[Mariam · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

[Susie Pyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

bereket

Any and every book in this series is amazing! I loved this one as I expected I would. Time to read through all theTuyo books again!!