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florishimself's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
skycrane's review against another edition
4.0
For the most part, The Defiant Heir builds upon the setting and characters established in The Tethered Mage. That book was an enjoyable story about a young woman thrust into a position of power by circumstance who unravels a treasonous plot against her country. Amalia had been avoiding the responsibility that came with her heritage, but after the events of the previous book, she is ready to take a more active role in politics, and her successes have caused other influential people to take note of her, for better or worse. My main complaint about The Tethered Mage was that the limited cast of characters made the world feel sort of small. In a complicated story about politics, diplomacy, and intrigue, you expect lots of different actors with their own motives and plans, so when the same few characters are personally involved in every major event, things feel a little off. That problem is greatly reduced in this book by the introduction of a bunch of new characters and further development for the returning ones. It is still a bit odd how Amalia's actions control the destinies of three nations, but I guess that comes with the territory for this kind of book.
What I really enjoyed about this story was the further development of a major theme running through the first book. Melissa Caruso is clearly interested in the question of how societies would develop in a world where a small number of people are born with vast magical powers. This is a question that is touched upon in many fantasy series, but rarely does it receive the focus she gives it here. In a world where violence is the ultimate source of authority, mages have the potential to overthrow or undermine any power structure, simply by virtue their capacity for violence on a scale impossible for any normal human. Clearly, mages would have a major impact on the societies in such a world. Her theory is that they'd develop along three main lines: 1) societies where people fear magic and kill or drive out mages as soon as they become known, 2) societies where mages use their power to dominate and rule, and 3) societies where mages are enslaved by the non-magical authorities. Because of the huge military and economic advantage afforded societies that allow magic, states of the first type have been subjugated by states of the second and third type. I think the author takes a very reasonable approach that is based in observations and principles from real-world political theory, and the result is a world that feels true. Personally, I'm willing to forgive a lot in a book that explores these kinds of ideas, but that isn't necessary here because the story is also a joy to read.
I do have some complaints. For the most part, they involve Zaira. It seems like over half her dialogue consists of threats to punch and/or burn someone. She often threatens people even when she's in no position to carry out that threat, like when her magic is blocked, or she's surrounded and powerless in enemy territory, or the person she's threatening is hundreds of miles away. She's not a terrible character; she fits the common archetype of someone who acts tough and pushes people away because she was hurt and hurt others in the past. So she's a bit of a cliche, but that's not terrible in of itself. Cliches become cliche for a reason—usually because they work. However, the execution is lacking. She's all bluster and crude jokes, occasionally opening up to show some of the underlying vulnerability. She's always playing to her character, never just being a person. In general, the characters are all a little flat, but not the point that it becomes annoying or distracting. They all play their roles well, and are occasionally surprising. I definitely was emotionally invested and liked reading about them all. The only thing that bothered me was Zaira's constant "next time I see that [insert slightly profane appellation] I'll punch/burn his face off!"
There's some other interesting things going on in these books. There are definitely separate gender roles, and women (at least noble women) are expected to wear dresses, but there doesn't appear to be any sexism, and women and men equally hold positions of authority, both in politics and in the way individual families are organized. Some people are gay and that doesn't bother anyone. Or maybe everyone is at least a little bisexual? It's unclear. Either way, there are hereditary nobles who, for practical reasons need to produce heirs, and there seems to be a very involved custom around courting, and I don't really know how that meshes with the acceptance of homosexuality. Do the gay nobles just put aside their personal preferences for practical reasons of making a good match, or producing heirs? Maybe some of them take lovers for the romance but marry for blood, wealth, or position. It's weird to see a society that is so permissive in some regards but also with some very strict gender-based rules and customs regarding how Amalia is supposed to behave. It's not explored in much detail, so it's possible there are reasonable explanations for these contradictions that the author simply decided not to spend time getting into.
On a similar topic, there are different races, or at least different ethnic groups, but there doesn't appear to be any racism. The author barely mentions skin color, and the descriptions are pretty vague. Most Raverrans are described as "olive-skinned" or something like that, which meshes with the Mediterranean vibe going on, and the people of Vaskandar and Callomorne seem to be more pale, since they're more Northern European-ish. I noticed some reviewer was very upset about the first book because of the white people enslaving brown people thing, but I'm pretty sure Zaira's skin color is described almost word-for-word the same as most Raverrans, including the Doge himself, so.... I just don't see it. They're all the same race, Amalia herself just happens to be paler because her father was a foreigner. I guess some people are so good at getting upset at things that they don't need much of a reason.
The issue of slavery plays a major role in this series. I see it as an extension of the author's interest in how societies deal with magic. The Serene Empire has laws that essentially make mages the property of the state from childhood to death. Their use of magic is controlled, they're forced to join the military and live in a fortress, and they cannot go anywhere unescorted. You can tell that this system has seen its fair share of compromises and accommodations over the years. The mages and their families are well provided for, and some mages rise up through the ranks to hold positions of some authority in the military, though the high command is reserved for the non-magical. Despite this, they are still slaves, with all their life choices decided for them by the circumstance of their birth. Amalia, being very compassionate, makes it her mission to see the mages liberated, and she uses her influence to push for reform via legal means. Most people don't really seem to care that much; some people are suspicious of magic and want to maintain the restrictions, some people empathize with the mages and want them to have more freedoms, but the fact that nobody attempted to do anything about it until Amalia came along kind of shows that it wasn't considered a major issue, even by the mages. She clearly didn't care about the plight of the mages until it personally involved her. And once she got involved, she didn't latch onto some existing reform movement; she just made her own reform plan, from scratch. I guess this is somewhat justified since, due to her birth and connections, she simply has way more power and influence than anyone else who might've cared. But it's not like the mages were completely isolated and without influence. Those too weak to be conscripted play vital roles in society running alchemical or other magical businesses, and Ignacio was a high-ranking imperial official. Even the ones in the military are treated with respect, and they seem to turn up at society events pretty frequently (though maybe that's just because Amalia invites them?) There are rules restricting any members of elite from becoming Falconers, the intention being to limit the amount of power any one person can attain. But perhaps another reason for that restriction was to limit the influence of those who sympathize with mages. Still, members of the patrician class do become Falconers, and you'd think that some of them might have used some influence to do something before now. High-ranking member of the military support reform for practical reasons, but it takes Amalia taking charge to them to get them to do anything about it. This aspect makes the world feel kind of small, like the main characters are the only ones doing anything important. But overall, it feels like a rational development of the setting, and makes more sense if you consider Amalia's reforms only the latest in a long line of past reforms. The Serene Empire surely didn't treat the Falcons as well as they do now when they first instituted the policy of enslaving mages.
This is good sequel to a good book. If you liked the first one, then you'll like this one.
What I really enjoyed about this story was the further development of a major theme running through the first book. Melissa Caruso is clearly interested in the question of how societies would develop in a world where a small number of people are born with vast magical powers. This is a question that is touched upon in many fantasy series, but rarely does it receive the focus she gives it here. In a world where violence is the ultimate source of authority, mages have the potential to overthrow or undermine any power structure, simply by virtue their capacity for violence on a scale impossible for any normal human. Clearly, mages would have a major impact on the societies in such a world. Her theory is that they'd develop along three main lines: 1) societies where people fear magic and kill or drive out mages as soon as they become known, 2) societies where mages use their power to dominate and rule, and 3) societies where mages are enslaved by the non-magical authorities. Because of the huge military and economic advantage afforded societies that allow magic, states of the first type have been subjugated by states of the second and third type. I think the author takes a very reasonable approach that is based in observations and principles from real-world political theory, and the result is a world that feels true. Personally, I'm willing to forgive a lot in a book that explores these kinds of ideas, but that isn't necessary here because the story is also a joy to read.
I do have some complaints. For the most part, they involve Zaira. It seems like over half her dialogue consists of threats to punch and/or burn someone. She often threatens people even when she's in no position to carry out that threat, like when her magic is blocked, or she's surrounded and powerless in enemy territory, or the person she's threatening is hundreds of miles away. She's not a terrible character; she fits the common archetype of someone who acts tough and pushes people away because she was hurt and hurt others in the past. So she's a bit of a cliche, but that's not terrible in of itself. Cliches become cliche for a reason—usually because they work. However, the execution is lacking. She's all bluster and crude jokes, occasionally opening up to show some of the underlying vulnerability. She's always playing to her character, never just being a person. In general, the characters are all a little flat, but not the point that it becomes annoying or distracting. They all play their roles well, and are occasionally surprising. I definitely was emotionally invested and liked reading about them all. The only thing that bothered me was Zaira's constant "next time I see that [insert slightly profane appellation] I'll punch/burn his face off!"
There's some other interesting things going on in these books. There are definitely separate gender roles, and women (at least noble women) are expected to wear dresses, but there doesn't appear to be any sexism, and women and men equally hold positions of authority, both in politics and in the way individual families are organized. Some people are gay and that doesn't bother anyone. Or maybe everyone is at least a little bisexual? It's unclear. Either way, there are hereditary nobles who, for practical reasons need to produce heirs, and there seems to be a very involved custom around courting, and I don't really know how that meshes with the acceptance of homosexuality. Do the gay nobles just put aside their personal preferences for practical reasons of making a good match, or producing heirs? Maybe some of them take lovers for the romance but marry for blood, wealth, or position. It's weird to see a society that is so permissive in some regards but also with some very strict gender-based rules and customs regarding how Amalia is supposed to behave. It's not explored in much detail, so it's possible there are reasonable explanations for these contradictions that the author simply decided not to spend time getting into.
On a similar topic, there are different races, or at least different ethnic groups, but there doesn't appear to be any racism. The author barely mentions skin color, and the descriptions are pretty vague. Most Raverrans are described as "olive-skinned" or something like that, which meshes with the Mediterranean vibe going on, and the people of Vaskandar and Callomorne seem to be more pale, since they're more Northern European-ish. I noticed some reviewer was very upset about the first book because of the white people enslaving brown people thing, but I'm pretty sure Zaira's skin color is described almost word-for-word the same as most Raverrans, including the Doge himself, so.... I just don't see it. They're all the same race, Amalia herself just happens to be paler because her father was a foreigner. I guess some people are so good at getting upset at things that they don't need much of a reason.
The issue of slavery plays a major role in this series. I see it as an extension of the author's interest in how societies deal with magic. The Serene Empire has laws that essentially make mages the property of the state from childhood to death. Their use of magic is controlled, they're forced to join the military and live in a fortress, and they cannot go anywhere unescorted. You can tell that this system has seen its fair share of compromises and accommodations over the years. The mages and their families are well provided for, and some mages rise up through the ranks to hold positions of some authority in the military, though the high command is reserved for the non-magical. Despite this, they are still slaves, with all their life choices decided for them by the circumstance of their birth. Amalia, being very compassionate, makes it her mission to see the mages liberated, and she uses her influence to push for reform via legal means. Most people don't really seem to care that much; some people are suspicious of magic and want to maintain the restrictions, some people empathize with the mages and want them to have more freedoms, but the fact that nobody attempted to do anything about it until Amalia came along kind of shows that it wasn't considered a major issue, even by the mages. She clearly didn't care about the plight of the mages until it personally involved her. And once she got involved, she didn't latch onto some existing reform movement; she just made her own reform plan, from scratch. I guess this is somewhat justified since, due to her birth and connections, she simply has way more power and influence than anyone else who might've cared. But it's not like the mages were completely isolated and without influence. Those too weak to be conscripted play vital roles in society running alchemical or other magical businesses, and Ignacio was a high-ranking imperial official. Even the ones in the military are treated with respect, and they seem to turn up at society events pretty frequently (though maybe that's just because Amalia invites them?) There are rules restricting any members of elite from becoming Falconers, the intention being to limit the amount of power any one person can attain. But perhaps another reason for that restriction was to limit the influence of those who sympathize with mages. Still, members of the patrician class do become Falconers, and you'd think that some of them might have used some influence to do something before now. High-ranking member of the military support reform for practical reasons, but it takes Amalia taking charge to them to get them to do anything about it. This aspect makes the world feel kind of small, like the main characters are the only ones doing anything important. But overall, it feels like a rational development of the setting, and makes more sense if you consider Amalia's reforms only the latest in a long line of past reforms. The Serene Empire surely didn't treat the Falcons as well as they do now when they first instituted the policy of enslaving mages.
This is good sequel to a good book. If you liked the first one, then you'll like this one.
caitlinjohnson's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-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
3.5
KATHE, my favourite boy <3
Amalia and Zaira were, as always, so much fun to read, especially the growing affection that Zaira starts to feel towards Amalia whilst simultaneously being exhausted by her. It was nice to see Zaira be a voice of reason for Amalia when they were at the Conclave and remind her not to simply rely on Kathe's words.
Zaira's growing relationship with Terika, and the lengths she's willing to do to and things she's willing to do to protect her and keep her safe, were almost swoon-worthy.
I'm not sure if Marcello is intended to be Amalia's endgame but Kathe has won me over by a mile and I really hope they end up together (or she ends up single)
Amalia and Zaira were, as always, so much fun to read, especially the growing affection that Zaira starts to feel towards Amalia whilst simultaneously being exhausted by her. It was nice to see Zaira be a voice of reason for Amalia
Zaira's growing relationship with Terika, and the lengths she's willing to do to and things she's willing to do to protect her and keep her safe, were almost swoon-worthy.
I'm not sure if Marcello is intended to be Amalia's endgame but Kathe has won me over by a mile and I really hope they end up together (or she ends up single)
mellhay's review against another edition
5.0
The political games are visible here. In both Vaskandar and the Empire. These plots and plans and twists keep me listening. I want to know what will happen or how things will change when someone does something unexpected.
The characters feel to be alive, keeping me cheering and hoping for them. I'm loving all the aspects I'm getting here! All are weaved together, creating the people by their plans and choices in life and politics.
Melissa has moved up to one of my favorite writes with this book.
****FULL REVIEW TO FOLLOW****
The characters feel to be alive, keeping me cheering and hoping for them. I'm loving all the aspects I'm getting here! All are weaved together, creating the people by their plans and choices in life and politics.
Melissa has moved up to one of my favorite writes with this book.
****FULL REVIEW TO FOLLOW****
themanfromdelmonte's review against another edition
5.0
Terrific. Unputdownable. Ordered the last in the trilogy to be delivered today. Amalia Cornaro goes from strength to strength with her irascible fire mage by her side. Admittedly, killing one Witch Lord would be unfortunate but killing two begins to sound like carelessness.
The mixture of romance, action and politics is nigh on perfect as Amalia learns what it means to be a player and to have true power (and to make terrible decisions). After this little lot she’s going to be a target for all sorts of shenanigans. I can’t wait!
The mixture of romance, action and politics is nigh on perfect as Amalia learns what it means to be a player and to have true power (and to make terrible decisions). After this little lot she’s going to be a target for all sorts of shenanigans. I can’t wait!
eherbord's review
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
melissalurie81's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-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
harborwriter's review against another edition
5.0
I loved it! The characters, pacing, and world building are all just so good! I loved the first book in the series too, and this one is even better. I’m very much looking forward to the rest of this author’s books!
justagirl22's review
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
katieconrad's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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? No
4.0