I really enjoyed the first book in this series, The Tethered Mage, – see my review here – I thought the premise was a really smart one. The idea that lethal magic-users need to have their power curtailed from the time their talent becomes evident makes complete sense – as do the inevitable consequences following from that necessity… I recently read and reviewed the second book, The Defiant Heir, and liked it even more, so was delighted to be approved to read and review The Unbound Empire…
While winter snows keep the Witch Lord Ruven’s invading armies at bay, Lady Amalia Cornaro and the fire warlock Zaira attempt to change the fate of mages in the Raverran Empire forever, earning the enmity of those in power who will do anything to keep all magic under tight imperial control. But in the season of the Serene City’s great masquerade, Ruven executes a devastating surprise strike at the heart of the Empire – and at everything Amalia holds most dear.
As with the second book, the political and personal stakes in this book continue to ramp up. Amalia continues to grow from the shy academic, whose real passion was studying magical practices, to a political player in her own right, determined to push through a piece of legislation that will impact every magic-user in the Empire. I love her character progression – along with the changes that every other major character undergoes. Caruso makes that aspect of writing a series look a lot easier than it is.
All the characters work well, but two in particular stand out – Ruven is a particularly satisfying villain, who I loved to hate. His arrogant dismissal of anyone non-magical and his tendency to inflict horrible tortures just because he can – as well as his targeting of our protagonist – makes him creepy and revolting. The cleverness in the writing is that Caruso manages also make the reader aware of what is powering his nastiness, so that he doesn’t come across as a pantomime villain. The other character I became a little in love with is one of those enigmatic, dangerous Witch Lords, Kathe. His entourage of crows, his courage, his love of games and his gradually emerging more vulnerable side made him very endearing. His odd courtship of Amalia made the romantic thread running through this series thoroughly entertaining.
Caruso’s other superpower is the pacing – I found The Unbound Empire almost impossible to put down because the narrative arc works so well. I quickly became caught up in her political fight – which then turned into something else far more challenging. Caruso’s ability to ramp up the stakes compelled me to keep reading far longer than I should. The final denouement in a series needs to be able to wrap everything up and give each of the major characters an ongoing path, so the reader gets a sense of their probable future, given the life-changing events they have undergone. Caruso manages to achieve this, making this trilogy one of my favourite, most memorable fantasy series I’ve read in recent years.
Please read these books in the correct order, though – it would a real shame to mess up such a well-crafted progression by crashing midway into this outstanding series. The ebook arc copy of The Unbound Empire was provided by the publisher through NetGalley in return for an honest opinion of the book.
10/10
Hmmm. Sounds like a pretty good series! Someday, sigh….
Something to look forward to – this is a gem of a series, Jean:))
These need to go on my list- love the covers, too!
Oh I very highly recommend this series – it’s been a joy…
Wow. You are really loving this series. Got me curious now. And what a spectacular cover!
Oh yes, Laura – I think you’d love this series, too:)
I think my comment disappeared. You are really loving this series and have me curious now. And the cover art is spectacular!
No worries – I found this comment and a bunch of others that had been tucked away in spam folder! Sorry for not replying, Laura!
I’ve just skimmed your review because I’ve started reading this book yesterday, but I will be back once I’ve finished 🙂 Your rating,however, is more than encouraging!
Ooo… I really look forward to hearing how you get on with it, Maddalena!
I regret not starting this in the beginning, but now that the series is finished I’m not sure I’ll go back and start it. But if I did have time, this would definitely be my series of choice to start😁
Oh, it’s worth it… Though I completely understand your decision, Tammy – I, too, am rather swamped with books. I had a couple of rather mad sessions on Netgalley *sigh*
This was a really hard book to put down!
It certainly was! I wandered around rather lost the following day – a combination of a serious book hangover and sleep deprivation…
Glad to see such a positive review = scorewise. I’ve not read this review yet because I still have to catch up with No.2.
Lynn 😀
Oh yes – this is unquestionably and outstanding series. I loved The Defiant Heir even more than The Tethered Mage – and The Unbound Empire went on delivering…
Excellent review! I need to figure out my time so I can get reading these!
Thank you, Anne:)) I hope you can find the time, because I think you’d love this series…
Great review Sarah. I love when a villain is well written so that you love to hate him/her.
Oh yes – and this is a particularly satisfying villain. I also liked the fact that it is the relationship between the two girls that powers the narrative, rather than the romance.
Aaaand you’re “already” on book three (that’s in reference to my comment few moments ago on book 2). The downside of catching up on your books in bulk.
I have to confess, I always hesitate to read reviews of further books in the series I haven’t touched yet, but then, I enjoy reading your reviews too much to skip. 🙂
That’s such a lovely compliment, Joanna:)). Thank you so much – and I hope that in due course you can get to this series… I do try really hard to keep my reviews spoiler-free, so I hope you don’t find out more than you should if you read all my opinions before picking up the first book:).
I guess it’s a risk I have to take until I catch up with your posts… or my reading. 🙂
:)))