Scan barcode
firefly's review
adventurous
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Death, Racism, and Blood
Moderate: Ableism, Torture, Rape, and Child abuse
Minor: Sexual assault and Sexual violence
aardwyrm's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Franticly paced and constantly challenging, this is a painful story with no good answers backed by solid worldbuilding and clever, flawed characters. The fantasy elements usually have a pretty light hand, but the tone is successfully mystical and otherworldly. The only flaw is that the relentless failures one of the protagonists experiences are painfully predictable. She tries the same thing (court a bunch of loyalties badly, betray a confidence of one to the other, get in trouble) over and over, and it gets a bit wearying.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gore, Violence, Sexual harassment, Physical abuse, Kidnapping, Grief, Blood, and Ableism
booksthatburn's review
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
THE UNBROKEN is a tale of colonialization, uprising, and a stolen child returning to her homeland as a conscripted soldier ordered to bring it to heel. Touraine is one of the Sands, the term for Qazāli people stolen as children and raised to be soldiers by the Balladaire. This puts her in the position of being used to enforce restrictions on the people she came from. Events early in the book remove her from the Sands, the people she's lived with, fought alongside, and bled with all her life to instead be in service to princess Luca. The rest of the book explores Touraine's confused attempts to figure out what she wants and what she's willing to die for, as well as Luca's desperate attempts to hold on to power through the slim thread of her uncle's distant regard and her subordinates' loyalty. One of the strengths of THE UNBROKEN is it highlights the way that someone who is marginalized in their own group but has power and privilege over another group often uses that relative power to gain a sense of control by oppressing someone else. Luca's physical disability and precarious political position lead her to make harsher choices in order to not appear weak, something that would probably be less on her mind if she weren't constantly worried about people mistaking her physical impairment for lack of will.
The tension between Luca and Touraine is very well handled, as throughout the story their dynamic as a pair constantly shifts, but they're never quite on the same page about the nature of their relationship. It showed over and over how no matter how attracted they might be to each other, the gulf of power between Luca's position and Touraine's means that it's impossible to trust any "Yes" from Touraine when Luca can have her tortured or killed for a "No". This affects everything from their mutual attraction to the treatment of the Sands to the handling of the rebels.
I love the portrayal of the Qazāli rebels, I can't discuss much there without spoilers but they were dynamic as a group and as individuals, each with their own reactions to Touraine and Luca's various intrusions on their lives, as well as the reality of life under Balladaire's oppressive colonial rule.
I'm looking forward to the sequel, I'm a little worried that it'll only get worse for the characters from here but I want to know what happens next.
The tension between Luca and Touraine is very well handled, as throughout the story their dynamic as a pair constantly shifts, but they're never quite on the same page about the nature of their relationship. It showed over and over how no matter how attracted they might be to each other, the gulf of power between Luca's position and Touraine's means that it's impossible to trust any "Yes" from Touraine when Luca can have her tortured or killed for a "No". This affects everything from their mutual attraction to the treatment of the Sands to the handling of the rebels.
I love the portrayal of the Qazāli rebels, I can't discuss much there without spoilers but they were dynamic as a group and as individuals, each with their own reactions to Touraine and Luca's various intrusions on their lives, as well as the reality of life under Balladaire's oppressive colonial rule.
I'm looking forward to the sequel, I'm a little worried that it'll only get worse for the characters from here but I want to know what happens next.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Confinement, Death, Genocide, Gore, Gun violence, Medical content, Murder, Torture, Violence, and Colonisation
Moderate: Ableism, Animal death, Child abuse, Cursing, Grief, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Racism, Self harm, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Slavery, and Terminal illness
Minor: Child death, Rape, and Suicide
CW for major character death (graphic).laurareads87's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
The Unbroken is a fantasy novel with a setting inspired by French colonial occupation in Northern Africa with two POV characters: Touraine, who was stolen as a child and taken to Balladaire where she is raised to fight for the colonial power occupying her homeland, and Luca, a princess of Balladaire given power in occupied Qazāl and desperate to prove her competence so she can take the Balladairan throne. The plot follows both characters' (and other characters') political maneuvering and shifting loyalties in the context of a rapidly growing rebellion. Overall, I really liked this novel + will definitely read the next book in the series. I thought many of the characters were very well developed + particularly appreciated Touraine's perspective; I hope that some of the more peripheral characters get more focus in the sequel. I also thought that the book was well written - the action scenes especially - and that the political intrigue was compelling. I appreciated that sexual diversity is the norm in the world of this book -- many characters are lgbtq+ but this itself is not a plot point -- and that women being in positions of power is also the norm here. I will note that while both Touraine and Luca (and a number of other characters) are queer and a number of reviews describe the book as sapphic, it ought not be construed a romance; there is an extreme power difference here (Luca has the power to deem Touraine's life forfeit given that Touraine is her empire's property) which negates consent. While the characters are both individually complex and well-developed, their relationship did not feel that way to me; I could not wrap my head around how both their decision-making processes were so deeply impacted by their personal relationship, which consisted of some moments of tension and of Luca sexualizing Touraine, and ultimately wish that the suggestion of chemistry between them had just been left out entirely.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Murder, Trafficking, Kidnapping, Gun violence, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Ableism, Child abuse, Torture, and Gore
Minor: Sexual violence and Sexual assault
cerilouisereads's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Cursing, Death, Gore, Medical trauma, Racism, Sexual assault, Slavery, Trafficking, Violence, and Vomit
Moderate: Ableism, Bullying, Confinement, Gun violence, Homophobia, Kidnapping, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, and Torture
sunflower_emily98's review
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Blood, Cursing, Death, and Torture
deedireads's review
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
All my reviews live at https://deedispeaking.com/reads/.
TL;DR REVIEW:
The Unbroken manages to flip tropes on their heads and make big statements while giving fantasy lovers all the things they love: an underdog, a mystery, magic, and a world worth fighting for.
For you if: You’re looking for sapphic, BIPOC epic fantasy.
FULL REVIEW:
Here are the things you need to know to get excited for The Unbroken: It’s a sapphic epic fantasy novel set in a place based on Northern Africa about the brutality of colonialism. With disability rep. You in yet??
There are two main characters: Touraine, who is a conscript (read: slave) in the empire’s army, and Luca, the empire’s princess whose throne is threatened by her uncle. Touraine’s company and the princess arrive in Qazāl, the empire’s colony where Touraine was born before she was taken by the empire, to try to settle the local rebellion. Soon, Touraine finds herself in Luca’s employ as a negotiator, caught between two worlds (one she doesn’t know, and one who will never accept her), trying to find a way to protect her friends who are sure to be caught in any crossfire.
Let me tell you, this plot is a roller coaster. Soooo much happens. I actually did think that the book felt a little too long, but at the same time, I’m not sure what I would have cut. It’s filled with big, full characters faced with no good choices doing the best they can to achieve their own goals. It was full of action and twists and shocking moments and had a big, exciting ending.
The depiction of colonialism here is one place where it really shines — because it shows clearly that ultimately, there are no winners, just bloodshed. No good choices, only bloody ones. The impossible dichotomy between greater good and personal safety; the prospect of dying for a cause versus preserving a life that will be, but never quite how you want.
I also always love the power of fantasy to create worlds in which society’s view of gender and sexuality need not be bound by the norms and biases we face in real life. And this book does it very, very well.
A winner, for sure. I can’t wait to read the next one.
TL;DR REVIEW:
The Unbroken manages to flip tropes on their heads and make big statements while giving fantasy lovers all the things they love: an underdog, a mystery, magic, and a world worth fighting for.
For you if: You’re looking for sapphic, BIPOC epic fantasy.
FULL REVIEW:
Here are the things you need to know to get excited for The Unbroken: It’s a sapphic epic fantasy novel set in a place based on Northern Africa about the brutality of colonialism. With disability rep. You in yet??
There are two main characters: Touraine, who is a conscript (read: slave) in the empire’s army, and Luca, the empire’s princess whose throne is threatened by her uncle. Touraine’s company and the princess arrive in Qazāl, the empire’s colony where Touraine was born before she was taken by the empire, to try to settle the local rebellion. Soon, Touraine finds herself in Luca’s employ as a negotiator, caught between two worlds (one she doesn’t know, and one who will never accept her), trying to find a way to protect her friends who are sure to be caught in any crossfire.
Let me tell you, this plot is a roller coaster. Soooo much happens. I actually did think that the book felt a little too long, but at the same time, I’m not sure what I would have cut. It’s filled with big, full characters faced with no good choices doing the best they can to achieve their own goals. It was full of action and twists and shocking moments and had a big, exciting ending.
The depiction of colonialism here is one place where it really shines — because it shows clearly that ultimately, there are no winners, just bloodshed. No good choices, only bloody ones. The impossible dichotomy between greater good and personal safety; the prospect of dying for a cause versus preserving a life that will be, but never quite how you want.
I also always love the power of fantasy to create worlds in which society’s view of gender and sexuality need not be bound by the norms and biases we face in real life. And this book does it very, very well.
A winner, for sure. I can’t wait to read the next one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Slavery, Racism, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Ableism, Confinement, and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Sexual violence
thoughtsstained's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Likes
- Touraine and the rest of the characters. For me, a book's characters make or break it. This cast within The Unbroken was so good that they didn't break the book. They broke me, instead. Touraine inspires me and frustrates me and baffles me and amazes me. Luca infuriates me and makes me want to shake her shoulders until she listens. And then you have a cast of secondary characters who I am attached to, broken by, opinionated about and have VERY intense feelings. Also, character arcs? Clark invented them, because these are MASTERFUL.
- A complex plot that doesn't shy away. If you've heard anything about this book, you've probably heard that it is a story that faces the consequences of colonialism head on and doesn't stop to make sure the readers are comfortable reading, instead digging down deep and showing you the truth in all of it's complexities. Yet, at the same time, it's so layered and becomes more and more complex the further along the book goes and just...wow. Wow.
- So hard to put down. Like, friends, it's been so long since I snuck in reading time wherever I could find it. From staying up too late and becoming a zombie the next day to sneaking in just one more chapter in-between meetings at work; to today, damned and determined to find out how this book ends, only to have my partner walk into the bathroom and ask if I'd noticed that the water had almost drained out of our bathtub while I read (I had and I was shivering, but I couldn't just get up; I only had 30 pages left!).
- QUEERNORM WORLD. I loved this so, so much. Also, seeing bi characters on the page just warmed my heart in ways I haven't really experienced yet.
Dislikes
That it ended? That I don't know what the letter contains? That I don't have arms like Touraine in real life!?
Rating
Rating
This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and it did not disappoint. In fact, it's my second five gem read of the year. Don't sleep on this, friends. It's so good.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Violence, Racism, and Death
Moderate: Ableism and Torture
Minor: Rape
adancewithbooks's review
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Thank you to Orbit and Little Brown Book Group UK for the review copy in exchange for an honest review. This does not change my opinion in anyway.
Normally I am not at all drawn to military fantasy. However when you see a cover with that amount of fierceness in a character, it certainly wants to make you give a book a chance. And I'm glad I did.
The Unbroken is about colonization, identity and what that all entails. Stolen children, brainwashing, rebellions, treason, trying to find one's footing in a world that has cut away all the land for you to stand on. And I think that is what makes this miltary fantasy stand out from others I've read in the past. It is completely character driven with two characters being the spill of it all.
Touraine is a soldier who was stolen as a child from her homelands and raised in the empire. Now she has to fight against her own. But she doesn't feel like they are her own. She is loyal to the empire as she has been taught to believe. Yet she never quite fits in there either. Always just some dirt under someone's sole. Never a ful person. And when everything is swept from under her feet, she only has her own to look at.
Luca on the other hand is the crown princess to the empre that wants to claim her throne. And she wants to do that by breaking the rebellion and bringing peace to the colonies. But what about an actual conscience and seeing what the actions of you and yours have caused?
There are so many bits and pieces weaved throughout the story that it becomes so much more than a military fantasy. It is an exploration of colonization and who you are in the world. What it is you really stand for. And along the way I fell in love with so many of the side characters. Gil who stands by Luca always, Touraine's mom, the rebel leaders. They all have so much that shaped them who they are.
Having said that, it is a beast of almost 500 pages and I would have liked just a smidge more of action in the middle to really be invested. Now I lost investment here and there. I did get it back, but I needed a little more to make this a 5 star read which it could have been for sure!
Normally I am not at all drawn to military fantasy. However when you see a cover with that amount of fierceness in a character, it certainly wants to make you give a book a chance. And I'm glad I did.
The Unbroken is about colonization, identity and what that all entails. Stolen children, brainwashing, rebellions, treason, trying to find one's footing in a world that has cut away all the land for you to stand on. And I think that is what makes this miltary fantasy stand out from others I've read in the past. It is completely character driven with two characters being the spill of it all.
Touraine is a soldier who was stolen as a child from her homelands and raised in the empire. Now she has to fight against her own. But she doesn't feel like they are her own. She is loyal to the empire as she has been taught to believe. Yet she never quite fits in there either. Always just some dirt under someone's sole. Never a ful person. And when everything is swept from under her feet, she only has her own to look at.
Luca on the other hand is the crown princess to the empre that wants to claim her throne. And she wants to do that by breaking the rebellion and bringing peace to the colonies. But what about an actual conscience and seeing what the actions of you and yours have caused?
There are so many bits and pieces weaved throughout the story that it becomes so much more than a military fantasy. It is an exploration of colonization and who you are in the world. What it is you really stand for. And along the way I fell in love with so many of the side characters. Gil who stands by Luca always, Touraine's mom, the rebel leaders. They all have so much that shaped them who they are.
Having said that, it is a beast of almost 500 pages and I would have liked just a smidge more of action in the middle to really be invested. Now I lost investment here and there. I did get it back, but I needed a little more to make this a 5 star read which it could have been for sure!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Murder
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Rape
More...