The Phoenix Empress by K. Arsenault Rivera

                                                      Title: The Phoenix Empress

                                                      Series: Their Bright Ascendancy Book 2

                                                      Author: K.Arsenault Rivera 

                                                      Published: Macmillan-Tor/Forge Oct. 2018

                                                      I received an ARC from Tor Books through Net Galley for review.

 

The Phoenix Empress, the sequel to K Arsenault Rivera's wildly buzzed about The Tiger's Daughter, an epic historical fantasy in the vein of Patrick Rothfuss and Naomi Novik.

Since she was a child, the divine empress O Shizuka has believed she was an untouchable god. When her uncle, ruler of the Hokkaran Empire, sends her on a suicide mission as a leader of the Imperial Army, the horrors of war cause her to question everything she knows.

Thousands of miles away, the exiled and cursed warrior Barsalyya Shefali undergoes trials the most superstitious would not believe in order to return to Hokkaran court and claim her rightful place next to O Shizuka.

As the distance between disgraced empress and blighted warrior narrows, a familiar demonic force grows closer to the heart of the empire. Will the two fallen warriors be able to protect their home? Goodreads

 My Thoughts

The Phoenix Empress is the second novel in Their Bright Ascendancy adult fantasy trilogy. This series is very unique in a lot of wonderful ways. The main characters are female warriors and leaders prosperous despite cultural norms. There is also a prominent female/female relationship even though this was not easily accepted in this world. I also enjoyed the setting of this epic historical fantasy series. There are not many fantasy novels with an Asian like setting. These are the elements that completely won me over with this series.

The main characters Shefali and Shizuka  are by far the strongest part of this novel. They were brought up by strong leader warrior mothers, and they were trained to be the same. Their story seems like they are a legend. They beat so many odds in order to be together. Their relationship is beautiful with a very solid foundation. This second book explores some of the details of the hardships they have faced during a time apart, and also loads of political intrigue that ensues when they are together.

Another big positive aspect of this series is the setting. I really enjoyed the Asian based world that K Arsenault Rivera has built. She put in the time to make an expansive world with several different groups of people with different customs, norms, and political atmosphere. This is the kind of world that is perfect to get lost in, and absorb all the nuances.

I would recommend the Their Bright Ascendancy and therefore The Phoenix Empress to fantasy fans that like a slow burn character focused story with a lot of atmosphere, political intrigue, and a lovely romance.

My Rating: 4.5 stars