I think a lot of times I’ll read so much modern world fantasy or low fantasy that I’ll forget how fun a full fantasy with a heavy emphasis on the world-building and the magic system is. I know this happened with The Unspoken Name and definitely was the case with this book. I’ll admit (quite easily) that magic systems can and do confuse me and that was present here. I didn’t understand much of it so I hope that’ll be different when I return to it. Or I just enjoy the book and not understand everything! I’m good with that too.

I thought the characters were interesting but the emphasis in this book clearly was on the world-building and the plots. Not that the characters didn’t develop, but I could tell it will be gradual development. I think with series; characters can be introduced and developed over the series but most of the world-building and magic systems should be introduced and explained in the first book. And that’s what Bolender did here!

I liked Clae. He had a fun, dry sense of humour and he kept a lot of his personality closed off, though you were still able to get a feel for his personality. I liked Okane too. He has an incredibly difficult backstory and trauma that they haven’t explored enough. I also think he has more power than he realises and I’d like to see that improve.

I liked Laura as a narrator, though I probably would’ve preferred Clae as that spot but that’s because I liked him more. I hope in the next book she’s able to fully come into her personality and then I’ll like her some more. I hope that Laura and Okane don’t get into a relationship over the series. I just really don’t see them as a romantic couple. Friends, absolutely. Confidants. Even Laura essentially being a pseudo-mentor to him. We’ll see what the author does.

I liked a lot of the world building elements, but there were parts that confused me. If the main character is such an anomaly for eschewing traditional gender roles, how come some of the main characters with power in the world are women? It didn't make sense, and I hope that things like this will be reconciled in the future. But I loved the "western fantasy tradition meets anime" feel that the book had, and I really liked the sense that magic, no matter what the PR machine says, is neither good nor bad. It is a tool, and it is only as bad or good as the use it is put to. That was well done. But the "teacher withholds valuable information" bit is just horribly overplayed cliché at this point. But the world felt, on the whole, well thought out an it was an interesting place full of interesting people. And it was written so compellingly -- seriously, so much action! -- that it was hard to put down.

I won't be recommending this for my library to purchase because of the specific nature of my library. But I will be recommending that other libraries buy it, including the two public libraries in my area

While I wasn't a personal fan of this novel, I know a LOT of my customers who will be. It simply didn't feel as original as I hoped, and 'borrowed" from too many other novel.s.

Interesting monster-hunting urban fantasy, but not one that grabbed me. It's hard to say why as there's nothing wrong with the writing or the plot, but I struggled to stay invested, and DNFed at 24%.

I did not know what to expect from City of Broken Magic and was pleasantly surprised with the unparalleled diverseness of the plot and characters! I enjoyed reading this story from the start because it doesn't linger too long and dally in places where it shouldn't. The pace was on point and the dialogue left me questioning nothing. I fell into this book and finished it in record speed. I'm normally a romance reader, but this book and others like it make fantasy a great runner up! I highly recommend this book!

Thrilling story with a plot that kept me turning the pages, really well written with great characters. Highly recommend to everyone who is a fan of this genre. Really great addition to the sci fi genre.

I'm still having mixed feeling about the city of broken magic.

This book is set in a world where magic is both embraced and feared. People use magic amulets , but when they get broken the magic kinda leaks?! And there is a crew (with 3 people) to control the magic and they're always on short of people.

Started off with a ghost buster vibe , this was fun. But the magical system was confusing and the writing could've been better.

Anyway , I did enjoy the book for the most part.

Thanks NetGalley and the publisher for giving me a digital ARC for reading and reviewing.

In this fairly recognizable post-Industrial Revolution world, magic is both friend and foe. Enchanted amulets are useful in all sorts of ways, but let one become empty or damaged, and an infestation of vicious magic, taking the form of a jellyfish-like “monster” will erupt, consuming everything in its path. In the city of Amicae, as elsewhere, Sweepers clear out such infestations, but they are few in number. Two, to be precise, the notorious, irascible, scoundrel-with-a-heart-of-gold, Clae Sinclair, and his apprentice, Laura. Soon they acquire a third, one of the very few humans to possess innate magic. But the situation in Amicae is unstable, with government propaganda proclaiming that there is no infestation problem and Sinclair’s team fighting an increasingly desperate battle with the odds stacked against them.

I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, the system of magic and its evil manifestations is reasonably fresh, and I liked the characters a great deal, especially how their relationships evolved over time. On the other hand, I found much of the magical terminology vague and confusing. “Monster” could mean anything from a tyrannosaur to Cookie Monster to a serial killer to a thing-that-goes-bump-in-the-night. I never got a clear visual of these, and I really wish they had a better, more descriptive name. Amorphic, toxic ink-squid would do, amorphs or ATIS for short. Likewise, “Gin” and “kin” (don’t ask me why one is capitalized and not the other; I haven’t a clue) and a host of other terms for magical energy.

My biggest disappointment, though, was that I thought the story was setting up for a romance between Laura and Clae. She’s beset by other people in her life who want her to be less than her potential because of her sex, except for Clae, who consistently demands her best and refuses to coddle her. A dozen subtle moments make clear her growing tenderness for him, her compassion for his tortured past, and her maturity within their relationship. Perhaps the author saw that as an easy, predictable outcome, but I relish stories where characters force one another to grow, and then to grow in love.

City of Broken Magic is the first book in the new Chronicles of Amicae series by Mirah Bolender. Released 20th Nov 2018 by Tor, it's 400 pages and available in paperback, ebook, and audio formats.

The world building is interesting with some nice twists. The cities are more like disconnected independent city-states. The female protagonist is fascinated by other cities and collects pictures of other cityscapes to use in a collage in her room. Although introduced as a fairly rigid male dominated society, there are strong female characters in positions of power who seem to be flouting the system without especial repercussions. I don't know if the author plans to address that in future or if it's just a tacked on background, but I did find it somewhat odd/jarring.

The monsters are very nasty indeed. The introductory scene in the book was creepy/horrifying enough that I had deep reservations about reading further. I persisted and did enjoy the book. I did, admittedly, find the pacing and development a tad slow, but overall a well made story. This is the first of a multi-book story arc, so there are a fair number of dangling plot elements at the end of book 1.

There is some rough language but nothing more extreme than the average modern NA fantasy. There is very little romantic content, just some mild teasing and banter, with a small bi-acceptance dialogue worked in, which I thought was nice. The dialogue is well written (although a bit over-the-top snarky now and then).

It often takes a couple books for a new series to really find its way. I'll be sticking with this one for another book or two before making a decision.

Three and a half stars rounded up for the quality of the writing. Especially impressive for a first time author.

An enjoyable read with an interesting magic system and story world, although the latter could have been a little more developed and consistent rather than relying on familiarity with certain recent fantasy genre tropes. I liked the friendships between the "sweeper" and apprentice characters. I did find that the MC, Laura, read more like a teenager than a woman in her early twenties. I guess there are reasons for that, given Laura's life and home situation, but it did give the book a sort of YA feel that didn't always mesh with the plot. There was also some odd pacing, with slow sections that found my mind wandering, but it did improve in the second half. I will most likely read the next installment when it comes out.

An intriguing story idea that could have used a little more development but kept me reading to see where the characters would end. The world needs more heroes and this book gives you several to root for. It will be interesting to see where the author takes them from here.

I received a copy of this story from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was okay. It didn't blow me away but it kept me interested enough to keep reading. Laura, Clae, and Okane are all lovely, unique characters. I'd be happy to bother Clae all day. But they weren't terribly compelling; I wasn't drawn in and invested in their individual stories.

The concept is definitely one of the more original ones I've read so props for that! But the mechanics of magic and how it all works were difficult to understand at times. I wrapped my head around enough of it that the story still worked but I felt like there were gaps in my understanding.

My biggest problem was the writing itself. So much of it felt like exposition. I would read parts and think, "I'm being told this to explain things that have or will happen." It was a lot of telling and not nearly enough showing.

While I did finish this book, I'm not sure I'd read the sequel.

I was pretty excited to read this book but honeslty I couldn’t get on with the writing. I liked the premise though and it has potential!

I had a very hard time getting into this book. At first it seemed like an urban fantasy that was only a bit off, but then the more you read you realize it veers much more into fantasy, and that kind of lost me. Some fun ideas, but just didn't grab me.

Overall this was enjoyable, but not a series I'll be reading. I loved the world building and the magic system. These were the strongest aspects of the book. I was not taken with any of the characters.

It's no secret that I really struggled with most fantasy books I read last year. Whether it was just a series of poor books or I just needed a break from them, I only read about 5. I was eager to jump back into them in 2019 as I love the fantastical elements, quests, good vs evil, and all the other amazing themes and plots fantasy offers.

I started with City of Broken Magic. It's an urban fantasy that's had the chance to be amazing, but a few things prevented me from completely adoring it. I felt the world-building could have been done a little better. This is important in fantasy books and helps create lush, complex book if done right. There were a few plot points and ideas that were either different than what the synopsis said or not fully fleshed out. Aside from that though, I did enjoy this book. Laura was a great character and I am interested in seeing where this series leads.

The theme, the characters, and the setting all seemed like I would enjoy this book. However, this would be one of the first titles I have received to review that I could not finish. I got more than half way through this title and that is because I tried really hard to finish it. I could not get into the plot or the character. The main character was, well boring. There was nothing about her that had me invested in her or the story that was unfolding. There are going to be people that like this story I am just not one of them.

I had a difficult time getting into this book. I've started and stopped teaching or several times. I'm afraid to say it was a did not finish for me.

The world feels very familiar: literally stratified cities, magic that works to kill monsters, etc.. That doesn't mean that this isn't the start of an engaging book, just that there's a little weakness in the world building that my mind was easily able to fill in based on other books.

The big plus here was Clae and his complicated relationship with the police, the population and his family. Laura's desire to be a Sweeper doesn't diminish even when faced with Clae's reluctance to explain a lot of their work to her (the city having decided that the history of Sweepers isn't important enough to teach) and the danger they find themselves in almost daily. Adding Okemo to the mix was just wonderful. Of course, that lack of history and knowledge lend themselves to future books, where I suppose we'll learn more about the Magi and those caves, not to mention other cities.

eARC provided by publisher.

Clae Sinclair is the Head Sweeper of Amicae. Clae and his apprentice Laura take care of any infestations in their city. Amulets hold various magic. They can be used for everyday household things like cooking, or in jobs for speed, pretty much everything. But when an amulet gets broken, it becomes the possible host to an infestation. An infestation will destroy everything around it until it's stopped. That's where the sweepers come in. They make sure broken amulets are taken care of properly, and they fight any infestations that arise.

Somebody has it out for Clae. Would they really unleash multiple infestations on the city just to get back at one man? It looks that way.

This story was good, but not great. I thought the magic system sounded interesting, and I liked the characters. I doubt I will continue the series though. It just wasn't that memorable.