The writing was good, but the world didn't draw me in. I began to read it one night and promptly forgot aobut it in favor of other books.

I appreciate the opportunity to review. Sorry for the long delay in feedback. I'm working on clearing out my Netgalley backlog. I am DNF'ing all books that just don't work within the first 50-100 pages. Trying to find the joy in reading again by going through the hundreds of abandoned books here.

Having read Obsidian Tower first, the story felt like settling into a familiar world with a new story.

I really enjoy how in each of these stories you are introduced to how each nation approaches magic and the many different types that they all hold. From Witch Lords to alchemists and makes to artificers, all have their place in this world and all are used and respected in different ways.

I also enjoyed the characters and the romance in this story. While none of them are deeply fleshed out, they were all nuanced and likeable. Add to this that I am a sucker for political machinations and this book was incredibly entertaining.

This book was marked three years ago on my Goodreads app to read, and it an a backlist e arc on NetGalley and I so glad I finally picked it up to read it. The intricate plot surrounding a magic system of mages with no control or idea has charm and a way for an empire to control them. You have falcons and falconers who are paired, and the falconers contain them with a magic word to release and extinguish the power of their falcon, and the falcons also wear a jess that prevents them from being able to use their power. The world of Eruvia is currently in a state of peace until things are turned upside down when an heir to the empire accidentally paired with a falcon who is about to destroy the city of Raverra. It is an unlikely pair, one who wants to be free, loves her world but is unsure of her place just yet, and some unlikely allies that might spark a romance. I devoured this story and quickly ordered the other books in the trilogy.

The first novel in the Swords and Fire fantasy series.
THE TETHERED MAGE is a very good start to a series. It introduces us to some interesting and engaging protagonists, establishes the world and its "rules" nicely. The plot moves along nicely, without ever feeling rushed or getting bogged down in the weeds. If you're a fan of fantasy, then you should really check this out. Recommended.

An empire based on an alternate Venice/Rome with a unique system for maintaining power and harnessing magic. Strong political subplots, a minor romance; themes of freedom vs protection. Still engaging third time through.

I ended up purchasing a physical copy of this book because I loved the first few chapters so much I wanted to have the copy on my shelves! I know it's more of a backlist title at this point, but the world is so well-developed that you'll want to get your hands on a copy ASAP.

The concept of The Tethered Mage is what turned me on to Caruso's novel. A society where people with abilities are 'tethered' to non-magical people like falcons to a falconer, where the Haves and Have-Nots are clearly divided. Amalia and Zaira were a great pair to read and I was interested all the way through, despite it being a bit of a slower read.

I recently bought a new kindle after my old one broke. For some reason I was unable to download this title from the cloud onto my kindle, therefore I will be unable to review this title. I am sorry for any inconvenience caused

As soon as I finished this book, I bought the other two books in the trilogy, which is a good indication that I liked it. I'm not sure why it took me so long to read it - sorry Netgalley!! I think I got it right at the start of my YA burnout, and since one of the main genres was listed as YA, well.... The thing is, this book wouldn't have fed my YA-issues at all - which are usually along the lines of "Everyone is going to die! But wow he's cute - I wonder if he likes me?" I don't believe ages are ever specifically mentioned, and while the main characters don't seem older, they also seem responsible and not silly.

It's an interesting magic system/story. Lady Amalia, the heir to one of the most powerful factions in the empire, inadvertently binds a fire warlock in a falconer/falcon relationship. Zaira is understandably angry at her loss of freedom, hates the system, and trusts no one. Meanwhile, some serious political problems brewing in two of the neighboring countries.

I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series!

Amalia is the Cornaro heir, and a future rule on the Council of Nine. She never meant to throw a jess onto a fire warlock's arm and become her Falconer, but that's what happened.

Zaira had spent her life hiding her mage mark, trying to cover up the fire that burned within her. Now trapped in the Mews and facing a life of bored captivity at the whims of a rich noblewoman, she contemplates the rest of her life as the Empire's deadliest weapon.

As the two girls grapple with their new relationships, the serenity of the Empire is threatened. The northern kingdoms are playing a dangerous game and the Empire's newest city is caught up in the intrigue—and the petty nobility are playing at revolution. Can Amalia and Zaira fix everything? Or will they be forced to burn everything to the ground?
~
This was a breath of fresh air.

Politics, intrigue, fancy dresses and world-building so intricate and well-developed that I was in love the entire time. Loosely based on 17th century Venice but with a life of its own, Ravarra was a fascinating city, and I also loved the history of Ardence and the Vaskandar Empire as well.

There was just so much poison, plots and more, and I really got invested once the heavy-handed romance with boring-as-fuck Marcello was shuffled into a subplot as the group ventured to Ardence to try to stop revolution and revolt and...the inevitable unleashing of power. Basically, power projection in the form of a fire warlock and her Falconer.

The relationship of Falcon/Falconer was one that I wish had been explored a little more, because there was a lot of emphasis on how freeing being a Falcon could be and how not bad a life it was...but it was still captivity and slavery, and the relationship of Falcon/Falconer could never be more than that of master/servant due to the nature of the power imbalance between the two. The lack of real discussion on these points—or the brushing them aside, particularly with Jethrin and Balos (my spelling is awful sorry)—made me a little uneasy. It was just...no.

Although I did like that two characters are faced with their child being a mage-mark, and the very real death of their child's future as a world of possibilities transformed into one road. A pleasantly comfortable road where every need is met, but a road leading to a lifetime of servitude to the Empire nonetheless.

However, despite this point—which I hope will be resolved in some way in future books with better ways to deal with the mage-marked—I really enjoyed this book.

Amalia's character arc was fascinating, as she goes from unsure bookworm to...something else.

La Contessa was the best powerful woman with zero fucks to give when it came to the protection of her daughter and her city. I enjoyed how she danced around the doge and consolidated her power like the boss she was.

Zaira was hands down my second favorite. Fierce, unbreakable and servant to no one, she was absolutely hilarious and the bisexual icon fantasy.

But my favorite character was: Ciardha.

Granted, she had like, three speaking lines, but what can I say?

I like supremely competent servants who just...appear when most needed and are super duper efficient and can (and actually probably are) running the show. It's probably why I liked Lady Savoy as much as I did.

Anywho, this book brought a wave of nostalgia. For the high fantasy books I read when I was in high school, with the high stakes and snappy dialogue and minor forbidden romance and lots of magic, to the quick plot and books everywhere.

I can't wait to read the rest of the trilogy.

And I can't believe that it took me this long to read this book.

I originally received this ARC from NetGalley for an honest review, but ended up purchasing the book to force me to read it!

I received a copy from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This one took me a little while to get into, mainly because I think there was just too much going on and too many characters thrown at me all at once. Once I kept reading though, the author established a nice pace, and allowed us to get to know all the characters she bombarded us with initially.
I loved the world building, all the multiple mysteries happening all at the same time, I enjoyed the magic, and I really loved the characters.
I can’t wait to sink my teeth into the next one.

4/5 Stars
Before I get into discussion – here’s a special thanks to Hachette Audio and Libro.fm for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review. Thanks!

The Tethered Mage is Melissa Caruso’s debut novel and the first in the Swords and Fire trilogy.

What’s the book about?

The Tethered Mage is told from the perspective of Amalia Cornaro, an heiress and the daughter of La Contessa Lissandra, one of the most powerful people in the Empire. Rather than take on the mantle of her family’s political clout, Amalia spends her time in books and libraries far removed from the games of intrigue that Raverra’s nobles play.

This all changes when Amalia, by pure happenstance, runs into Zaira, a balefire mage that has somehow gone unnoticed by Raverra’s military. Zaira encounters some thugs on the streets of Raverra, using her balefire to protect herself and Amalia. As the balefire feeds on the thugs it grows in power until Zaira loses control of it. To save her city, Amalia braves the fire and puts a jess on Zaira, a bracelet sealing her power off and binding the both of them with the magical bond of Falcon and Falconer. Hence, Zaira is the tethered mage.

All of this happens in the first chapter.

As a Falcon, Zaira is brought in against her will by the Raverran military and conscripted into the Mews – a school and home for Falcons and their Falconers to live until the military has need of their skills. Amalia wants to go back to her routine of learning and books, but having a powerful balefire mage under her control begins to unravel her plans as political strings are pulled in every direction.

With mounting pressure from her mother, the Raverran court, and powerful enemies, Amalia finds herself at the center of a political firestorm that could burn everything she loves to ashes.

Witticisms, Criticisms, and Big Wins

The Tethered Mage is written like a YA book, but the themes and intricate knots of conspiracy are well above YA. I would say that it falls under the sub-genre of political thriller fantasy, since Amalia is the POV and she’s determined to make peace between multiple political factions. Melissa Caruso knocked it out of the park with her bright prose and interesting characterization throughout the story.

If I think I have one criticism of this book – it could have been a more satisfying read with multiple viewpoint characters. A considerable bit of the action in the book happened offscreen, with a lot of things going on in Vaskandar and Ardence. Personally, I thought a Zaira and/or Prince Ruven viewpoint would have been really entertaining and provided more meat in a story where much of the discussion happened in drawing rooms or parlors.

Really, what I’m saying is I want to have a Vaskandren book now – Witch Lords and skinwitches sound way too cool.

Which is exactly where the sequel comes in!

Look for The Defiant Heir on April 19th, 2018!

You should read The Tethered Mage if you like political intrigue, smart POV characters, Italian-based culture, vivimancy, pyromancy, artifice, and avalanche endings.

You can find The Tethered Mage on Amazon, Libro.fm, or pretty much anywhere else that has good books!

I requested this book because the cover was absolutely gorgeous and I am glad that I did. This entertained me from the beginning to end. I thought it was very fast-paced and the world building was done really well!

I adore a good fantasy, especially one with a good female lead. And it's vital to not have the romance (should it be included) not be sappy and stupid and overdone. And for fantasy, good world-building is of the utmost importance. And thankfully, Caruso hits these points fairly head on.

I enjoyed the world and the characters. The magic, while not deeply explained, worked fine. The idea that mages need to be bound to a non-magic "handler" (also called falcons and falconers) was interesting, and then throw in that suddenly a leading heiress of the realm is unintentionally roped into being a falconer, well, you have some good conflict. Toss your newly (unhappily) matched mage and handler into political turmoil, and an even better level of conflict arises.

I'll be seeking out the rest of the series. The writing is clean, the story interesting, and worth reading.

An interesting fantasy, incredibly well written. I think it would have been far more powerful had the book been written in Zaira's POV, as the tethered mage, rather than the privileged Amalia.

I loved it for its theme of people of different backgrounds forced into partnership in order to make life better. It's a good theme for now and the times to come. There's character development instead of cookie-cutter role playing. Even though I received an e-galley, I bought and read the paperback. It was worth the cost. I'll read the sequels.
(I did review the book on goodreads, and I read the sequel, too, which was EXCELLENT as a middle book)

Wow, this was a great read. It's a high fantasy that is fraught with politics, magic, and decent character development. It was a little on the slower side, but once all the plots were revealed and our makeshift crew of heroes had to stop thinking and start reacting, you get a nice bit of action, too.

The story revolves around Amalia and her growing into her role as an heir to the powerful Cornaro family. This actually takes a backseat for about half the book though, as we are introduced to Zaira, a rouge fire-warlock, who is as much a catalyst for Amalia to change as the events surrounding them. Amalia must now juggle being a Falconer (a person who controls magic users, who are dubbed Falcons) as well as the heir to one of the most influential families in the Raverran Empire. But there's some shadowy business afoot, and Amalia is thrown right into the thick of things, with Zaira right behind her.

This is listed as a young adult book, but it doesn't feel like it. The characters are nuanced and well crafted. The world they inhabit is also well developed and real. It helps that there are so many layers to the geopolitical systems, especially what the implementation of the Falcons and Falconers in the Raverran Empire could mean. Is it simply a way for Raverra to help control the powers of young magic users, or is it a way to control some of the most powerful beings in the world for the Empire's own gain? Is it even ethical? So many questions are raised, and while some of them are answered, this will probably be the central conflict throughout the series.

I look forward to Amalia and Zaira's friendship growing and I hope they can continue to learn from each other. Its the best relationship in the book, which doesn't mean the other's aren't bad or boring; Zaira and Amalia play off each other so well. Amalia's love interest is good too, as he gets to be our view into the strict military structure of the Ravarran Empire. He's so earnest that sometimes he doesn't see how policies that he must uphold can harm individuals. It doesn't make him a bad person, in fact he is really good, it just takes him a long time to realize that some policies aren't always helpful.

I love this book, and hope the second will do some more with Zaira. She's the best. Caruso takes her time setting everything up, and that might cause people to give up on it, but the payoff is totally worth it. Highly recommended for YA fantasy fans, or fans of the genre all together. Its worth it.

I really enjoyed this book. The writing is elegant and beautiful, and it had a fascinating concept which was very strongly developed. Those with powers, or the “mage-marked,” are taken in at a young age when their powers are discovered, and trained to be “falcons” in the country’s army. They are linked to a “falconer” who binds their powers, trains with them, and protects them. Our main character and narrator, Amalia, is the heir to the throne and mistakenly gets bound to a rogue falcon, Zaira and drama ensues. Learning all about the organization of the falcons was super intriguing and was a great vehicle for these relationships. I really liked all of the characters in this story. They were complex, strong, and unique. Amalia was especially interesting, and I loved the growth she had throughout the story. Marcello Verdi, a leader for the falcon army, was super likable, but I wish there would have been a bit more chemistry between him and Amalia. I liked their romance development, but there was some spark missing for me. Zaira was super feisty, with some great one-liners, and I can’t wait to see what becomes of her in the rest of the series. The plot is super political, and there was a lot going on. At first it seemed a bit disjointed, but the more I read the more it all began to click together and make sense. All of the separate points set up the mystery really well, and led to a huge plot twist that I did not see coming. The last quarter of the book was nearly impossible to put down, and I immediately put the second book on my TBR. I really was pleasantly surprised with this book, and I’d definitely recommend it to anyone who loves a story full of political intrigue and magic.

A very interesting fantasy read! One girl was born with the power that comes from wealth and prestige and another with the power to burn down whole cities, literally. After a mishap, both girls are bound together as Falcon and Falconer, whereby the power to wield fire is tethered to will of the nobility. Action, Power, Intrigue, Romance, a little bit of everything within a jam-packed novel.

Although I did genuinely like both Zaira and Amalia and thought they were well fleshed out characters, I would love for the narrative to have been about the person who is being held and controlled against her will rather than the person who feels terrible for having to do the controlling (but really it’s for the best and there are no other real options and everyone needs to suck it up).

*spoiler alert- there is commentary about the social structure and the need to take down the wealthy and un-imprison the children soldiers with power, but it is unclear as to how successful this will be, I imagine it will be further addressed in the later books*

Before I get into the nitty gritty, you must read this series. It's incredible. Here's why.

First, you are in for an action packed book with humor, political mystery, and vast character growth that will make you cheer and cry for these beautiful women who come into their own.

Amalia Cornaro is the daughter of a fearsome political mastermind, but she's far from being her mother. She prefers to read and practice artifice designs. You can imagine her frustration when she winds up becoming a falconer to a fire warlock who wants nothing to do with her. Now Amalia must carefully navigate being a political power piece while maintaining her independence as the Cornaro heir. Not only this, but she's got to do it while trying to win the trust of her Falcon, Zaira, who doesn't trust her one bit.

There are so many different characters in this book who all have history with the Cornaros or the Raverran empire, and Amalia's growth comes from trying to learn how she can save Raverra from war while also protecting her Falcon from being an unwilling weapon of war.

I really loved this book because it was female empowerment mixed with some romance and politics. I typically do not really enjoy heavy political books but this wasn't politics for the sake of politics. It was intrigue and how does Amalia learn and grow in this setting. The author really used what was happening in the environment to develop extremely interesting characters. That's what is supposed to happen, but rarely does it actually happen this well.

If this was all too long-winded then just read the book. You won't regret it!