Daughter of the Drowned Empire

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Faced with death in exile, and leaving her sisters behind, Lyr has no choice but to accept a deadly contract. She has seven months to train as a warrior and pass the Emperor’s brutal test of strength—all without magic. I still felt like the world building was easy to read - except for my pet peeve of fantasy words that are too similar - & the world created was interesting. The way I felt about this book at the beginning and the way I feel now that I finished it is not even remotely close to one another. I loved it with every piece of my heart and I need the next book already!

Did I mention there is a love triangle? But wait - don’t worry! This isn’t the standard “I just can’t decide between these two love interests” plotline. There are real consequences to her actions and decisions in her relations with both Tristan (to whom engagement has been delayed) and Rhyan Hart, disgraced heir to the northern realm of Glemaria’s throne, who has come to Bamaria for sanctuary and who has become both her bodyguard and teacher. Lyr knows this – her character may sometimes be impulsive, but she is intelligent and crafty and knows there are no easy answers or ways out in this world.I love some good world building but there's a lot to take in. A dozen different kingdoms, ruling families, counsel members, imperators, magical races, animal species... and of course there's a made-up language with honorifics, titles, and full-blown sentences in the made-up language. I found myself glazing over whenever they would get into origin myths. I wouldn't say the lore is boring, but the book can seriously infodump at times. The second thing that sort of bothered me and kept me from giving this 5 stars, was the fact that the main character is a little too much YA coded and sometimes, unfortunately, feels too much of a Mary Sue for her own good, not too mention she was the epitome of TSTL. I wanted to strangle her a couple times during some scenes, but then she finally redeemed herself and I understood that her being unsufferable was probably part of her character's arc. Lyr has plenty scope for growth and I'm curious enough to read more in the series if my library gets the other books...afraid I'm not invested enough to buy them for myself tho - soz 😶 Faced with death in exile, and leaving her sisters behind, Lyr has no choice but to accept a deadly contract. She has seven months to train as a warrior and pass the Emperor’s brutal test of strength, without magic. Where this book was the first book in this series it has a lot of world building and there are a ton of words thrown at you to learn but it is delivered so amazingly that I was able to retain the information given without any issues. The story is literally that good. I am so excited for the sequel. I ABSOLUTELY need to know what happens next!

Authors, if you are a member of the Goodreads Author Program, you can edit information about your own books. Find out how in this guide. The way she's always putting others's needs above hers, the way she's simply a fighter but capable or recognizing her limits, made my newest obsession with this series possible.Rebel forces, and an invading army, are destabilizing Bamaria, just as her family’s secrets threaten to reveal themselves. It is an ambitious book. Sometimes I felt it had more on it’s plate than it could deal with and the pacing is a little unconventional but in the end, it all helped to shape the character arcs. There's a super cool magic system, Lyr's sisters who I need to know more about, and a setting that I can't wait to delve into in the sequel. But most of all...there's Rhyan.