House of Sky and Breath

Hunt is a fallen angel who is at least 200 years old, though he looks like a man in his twenties. Dark-haired, dark-winged, and very good-looking, Hunt is a soldier in the 33rd battalion, the army of the governor of Crescent City. Hunt is quiet, brooding, and possesses a sharp sense of right and wrong. Though at the start of the novel, he wants to focus on himself and Bryce, he reverses his detached stance and decides to help the larger cause of the Ophion rebels. Hunt’s reluctance to join a battle stems from his past trauma. Hunt and his love Shahar rebelled against the Asteri many years ago, for which he was mutilated and enslaved, and Shahar was killed. The horrific violence he has witnessed makes Hunt loathe to participate in any kind of war.

Hunt experiences several effects of trauma, including an initial unwillingness to trust people. Yet as the narrative proceeds, he forms a bond with Celestina, Baxian, and Ruhn, softening and warming to them. Hunt also doesn’t let the past define him and make him bitter. As he tells Bryce, having seen much death, Hunt prefers “to see people enjoying their lives” (48). Because of the immense power he wields and his hot-tempered nature, Hunt tends to be overbearing. He also tends to be overprotective of Bryce but keeps this in check out of respect for her autonomy. In Bryce’s worldview, this transformation takes Hunt from aggressive man to “approachable asshole” (53). Thus, Hunt’s character shows a willingness to learn and evolve. When Pollux insults Bryce, he does not jump in to defend her honor in the manner of the classic saving knight; instead, he knows Bryce can defend herself.

Ruhn is Bryce’s older half-brother and Crown Prince of the Avallen Fae people. He possesses the power to wield shadows and the gift of telepathy. Although he is 75 years old, he looks to be in his twenties because he is a Vanir. Ruhn is good-looking, covered in tattoos, and appears to be a privileged, hedonistic prince. In keeping with the theme that appearances are deceptive, the narrative shows there is far more to Ruhn than the spoiled prince. Ruhn has been emotionally and physically abused by his father through his life; his tattoos hide the burns the Autumn King inflicted on him as punishment when Ruhn was a boy. Yet, Ruhn does not let the abuse turn him into an abuser. Ruhn is a generous friend, a true ally to his beloved sister Bryce, and can be very perceptive of his own faults. Unusually for a Fae man, Ruhn does not feel threatened by powerful women, as he shows multiple times through his pride and support for Bryce. He doesn’t resent Bryce’s superior powers and even wants her to succeed their father as leader of the Fae.

Ruhn’s character arc becomes more pronounced in his conversations with Agent Daybright, which have him questioning and reconsidering his privilege. When Day reminds him that Ruhn can tend to be superficial because he can afford it, Ruhn stops to examine his entitlement. Though he falls deeply in love with Day, he is rattled by the reveal that she is the Hind, someone who has blood on her hands.