The Throne of the Five Winds is not an easy read. Beware if you expected fluff because it is not here. S.C. Emmett illustrates a world crafted by words, rich in beautiful metaphors and subtle art of war. Like a Chinese drama, the Throne of the Five Winds display an array of court politics and the fine line people must act in a world of deceit, duplicity, and greed.

The book starts out in the land of Khir where Princess Mahara and her lady maid Yala set off to Zhaon, where she is to marry the Crown Prince Takyeo, as tribute for her kingdom's defeat to Zhaon. Trusted Yala paves the way for Princess Mahara to settle in Zhaon safely as she can. Yala is her trusted confident and blade against conflict. A complex character she is clever, graceful, strong, but above all loyal. You cannot help but fall in love with Yala, just like Third Prince Takshin and General Zakkar.

Romance is not heavily played in this book. What you have here is a story full of friendship, clever play of situations, and a dramatic segue to a complex trilogy. The ending was a cliffhanger but a satisfying one.

This book has a really promising premise but it’s woefully overwritten. It seems like author took every piece of fantasy books and smushed them altogether that in a way that makes the plot difficult to follow. I can tell however that the writing would be beautiful if it were just easier to track and each sentence wasn’t such a mouthful.

3.75

Very very unique. Hooked from the blurb and stayed for everything else. We’re there some issues? Yes. But ultimately I enjoyed it.

For some reason, I am quite the sucker for books about fighting for control of a country and throne. It is fascinating when authors let you see so many different sides of a single person, let alone a whole cast of characters. You never know just what a person will do in order to achieve their goal, or how far down into the darkness they are willing to travel beyond even what they thought themselves capable. This is not an easy or quick read, but I enjoyed the journey. This is an epic fantasy and is rich in the story telling. I cannot wait for the second book to come out!

Loved this books! Super unique premise. Couldn't put it down. Can't wait to see what Emmett puts out next! I need more!

The synopsis of the book sounded very intriguing. I really love reading novels set in Asia, therefore I could not wait to read this book. However, it took me forever to finish reading this novel. This is because of the many perspectives of various characters. These viewpoints have made the book hard to follow the storyline. I found I would have enjoyed it better if there author narrowed it down to important characters. However, the ending was really good and kept me interested for the second novel.

The Throne of the Five Winds, by S.C. Emmett, is a huge, meaty, historical fantasy/fiction that really likes to go into detail. It is a political drama, written like a historical textbook (so many footnotes) that anyone looking for a light fun read will bounce off of like they’ve run into a brick wall. Yet, for those who like their dramas complex and their politics convoluted but extensively planned out on the back end, this tome has a lot to offer. As the first book in The Hostage of Empire series, The Throne of the Five Winds is a book that will reward those with the patience to push through its glacial pacing and upset those who didn’t realize they were signing up to read something that occasionally reads like a census analysis.

Let’s start with the bad for once: this book is difficult, and sometimes straight-up unpleasant, to read. In particular, the first 100 pages read like the world’s dryest translator notes from an obscure language. You are thrown into complicated and confusing political intrigue from page one, and it is going to take a while before you even have a basic understanding of what is happening and who is doing it to whom. That being said, if you put the work in – and that is a big “if” – the book will reward you handsomely in the long run with beautifully written prose, strong characters, and political drama to rival anything to be found in the most popular fantasy series in the genre.

Our story revolves around a Khir princess hostage, given to the emperor’s firstborn son in marriage to smooth over and cement the end of a war between the empire and Khir. The main POV in the story is from a lady-in-waiting to the princess, but there are a ton of POVs scattered throughout the narrative. The court the princess is sent to is a hellscape of political espionage. The emperor is a weak-willed man whose selfish inattention to the effect his power has on those around him has built a tinderbox in the court. With two queens, two royal concubines, six princes, and a number of favored generals and magisters, the court is a free-for-all of backstabbings, subtle maneuvering, and not so subtle attacks.

The princess and her maiden are the heart of the story and have a beautiful and intricate relationship. They both feel very real, and as the eyepiece by which you are introduced to the courts, they make very likable characters you will find yourself emotionally invested in. The supporting cast of royals and important court fixtures are also fantastic. Emmett does an amazing job giving you these tiny snippets into every key player’s mind so that the conflict begins to feel very personal to the reader. I definitely had favorite characters I found myself rooting for and as the book progresses you only find yourself invested more and more in the happenings at court.

In the end, I don’t know if I can recommend The Throne of the Five Winds with a clear conscience. Although it is a heavy character/relationship-focused story with excellent political intrigue, the book has one of the slowest starts I have experienced in years and it is a little light on substantive plot. Then again, while the book wasn’t the most enjoyable it was definitely a work of impressive literary skill and many people will like it just for all its tiny details and interesting characters. You will have to decide for yourself if The Throne of the Five Winds calls to your inner reader.

Rating: The Throne of the Five Winds – 6.5/10
-Andrew

Set in a world with neighboring countries almost always at war with someone, we see Khir sending their princess ( Mahara) to marry the Crown Prince of Zhoan to seal the ending of the war. Yala, Mahara’s childhood friend, is the only lady-in-waiting to go with the princess. She is to be not only a friend, but also her blade. They are thrown into a court that is filled with people that want to see them at the very least gone, if not dead. But there are other threats that Yala will have to navigate as well. If you like political intrigue and scheming, you will enjoy this book. Be forewarned, there are A LOT of characters to keep track of. This isn’t a book to pick up here and there. You will want to set aside chunks of time to get into it.

I really love fantasy books. I read a LOT of them and I like to think I know a good one when I read it. This is definitely one of my new favourite fantasy books.

I loved the huge cast of characters. They all had their own motivations and ambitions that helped move the story along. The story itself held my attention and I flew through this book so quickly.

I will definitely be reading more from this author. Highly recommended.

Throne of Five Winds is the first novel in the Hostage of Empire series by S.C. Emmett. It’s one of the most complex fantasy novels to come out this year, one full of characters, motives, and politics. It’s been favorably compared to George R.R. Martin’s writing, and with good reason.
Zhaon hosts an imperial court full of deception and intrigue. The Emperor is aging – and getting closer to dying every day. Every person who could conceivably get their hands on the thrown has their own schemes and ambitions. Their actions are weaving a complicated web, one that is as treacherous as it is deceptive.
It all started out when the Khir Princess was summoned. What followed were the plans of six different princes and their extended families. But the real question on everyone’s mind is: who will win this contest for the throne, and who will fall?

“The mouse that moves is taken. Another proverb. The classics were stuffed to bursting with them.”

Throne of Five Winds was beautifully complicated and a delightful read. Every scene was filled with lush details that made the world inhabitants come alive. Granted, I personally wouldn’t want to live in a world so full of deception. But I sure do love reading about it!
Having finished reading Throne of Five Winds, I can understand why people are making so many comparisons to George R.R. Martin. The number of characters in this novel is outstanding. I found myself taking notes just so I could keep up as I was reading. But that’s not a bad thing – I love a novel full of characters that all have their own plots and ambitions. It makes for rich world-building and plots.
Along with being one of the most complex novels to come out this year, it’s also fairly high up there in length. Coming in at seven hundred and four pages, Throne of Five Winds is not a novel to pick up lightly (see what I did there?). But it’s also absolutely worth it. The political intrigue alone makes this novel a fascinating read. The character development and depth further rounds out what is an intensely intriguing story.
I know that Throne of Five Winds was a bit of a long read, but it was honestly worth every minute of my time. And that’s including the time I spent taking notes about each of the characters. I enjoyed it that much! I’m looking forward to seeing the next novel in the Hostage of Empire series. I hope it’s as intricate as this novel was.

The Throne of the Five Winds isn't what I expected but in the best way possible. Going in, I found the summary intriguing. I was intimidated by the large cast, but I needn't have been. It does take a while to become familiar with each of the characters and the inter-personal dynamics, but once I did, I was completed invested in the story.

I should say, a big part of why I enjoyed this book was the court/political intrigue, which is always an aspect of fantasy stories that I like, and I did think it was particularly well done here. I also appreciate an asian-inspired world that truly feels asian-inspired. I've read a few that were pale imitations of what Throne accomplishes perfectly, and it was very refreshing to read.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Watch out world, S. C. Emmett is coming to take you by storm.

Engaging story, empathizing characters, steady pacing, wonderful prose, intricate world-building, and attention-grabbing action sequences; The Throne of the Five Winds has it all.

I must also say that I’m impressed with Emmett's action scenes. The first half of the book was more fast-paced than the second half but I found the mix of great characterizations, exciting action scenes, and the gradual world-building inclusion to be incredibly entertaining so that even though there’s a slight lull after the interlude in the halfway point of the book, I remained thoroughly immersed.

Despite the size of the cast, I never felt the story slow to try to fit them in. Instead one often took over where another left off, something that actually seemed to work well in this case. Sometimes, in fantasy, there are so many threads and story arcs going on that an approach like this won’t fly, and instead might completely wreck the pacing, particularly if some of the characters are uninteresting or slow. I never found this problem, however; the pacing was good, and I never found myself bogged down by a character arc I found uninteresting.

This book pulls no punches when it comes to magic, war or violence with just the right amount of humor to keep you going through this 600+ pages tale.

[3.75 stars]

I received a free e-arc of this book provided by the publisher - Orbit Publishing via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

You can continue to read my review down below, or check out my video review here: https://youtu.be/XYeijW5yAOY

I was really excited for this book, because it is an asian inspired deeply political high fantasy, which is the type of book I typically reach for.

While there are many different point of view characters in this book, it felt like protagonist of the story was Komor Yala, who is the lady in waiting to the princess of the Khir. The princess is being sent to Zhaon to marry the Crown Prince, because Zhaon has won a great battle with the Khir. The marriage is a truce between the two countries. The princess doesn’t really have a choice in the matter, and she is supposed to go with a retinue of ladies in waiting. But, all the noble young ladies of Khir are finding excuses not to go, so Komor Yala is the only one to accompany the princess.

For basically, the entire story, we are navigating all of the intricacy of the Zhaon court.

I love the political side of this book! It has a really well built world and I loved all the nuances of the court. But this book is really long and terribly slow.

It felt like it took forever to get to the action. Then, the action didn’t quite live up to the build up in this book.



Characters:
There are some really great characters in this book. I think character is the strongest aspect of this book. I loved the main character Komor Yala. She is very brave. She is such a strong female character. She can fight, but only does it when she has too. She is very smart, which is what I love most about her. There are also, hints at potential romances with one or more male characters in the book, but she never lets that overshadow her life or her duty, which I loved about her.

Then we have the princess Mahara. While I like her as a character, I did feel she was a little bland, but I did like her relationship with the Crown Prince Takyeo. Takyeo was actually a character that I ended up really liking. He is such a truly good person, but it works against him, because he is not very good at all the political machinations of the court.

There are two other princes that make a pretty big impact in the story as well. First is the third prince Takshin. Takshin is my favorite character. He has the best backstory of all the characters. It is tragic and heartbreaking but at the same time is such a good character.

Then there is Zakkar Kai, who also has a good backstory. He was originally not a prince. He was originally an orphan, because it village got destroyed and her was the only survivor. The King took him in to be raised in the military. Now he is the general of their army. I also feel sad for him at times. From the very beginning, it is obvious he has an attraction for Komor Yala, but he is also the general from the battle that killed her brother, so she is not having any of it!

I love the dynamic between the two of them and some of the other character relationships. It think the relationships and the characters really made this book stand out. I loved every second of it!

Plot:
The plot was some difficult for me. I love a good political fantasy, but this plot was so slow! It felt like nothing happened in the first half of this book. Mind you, it is a 700 page book, so that’s 300 pages of almost nothing! But the book did string me along and kept me interested enough that I wanted to know what would happen eventually. But there was not action.

The last about one third of this story did have some really good action. But I just felt like the payoff for that action didn’t really end up going where I wanted it to go.

Worldbuilding:
I’m a little torn on the world building as well. Some aspects of the world building I really loved. While there were other aspects that really annoyed me. It was a really well built world. I loved the political side of the world building and everything going on in the court. I loved the culture, and human side of the world building.

I was little annoyed when it can to the names of plant and animals etc. Because there would be subscripts. It would have an unfamiliar name, that you would have to go to the subscript to read the description, which would be of something that is familiar in our world, that we actually do have a name for. I just felt like it unnecessarily took me out of the story, and that the author could have just used the familiar name for it without taking away from the story at all.

Writing Style:
I didn’t really enjoy the writing style in this book. The author had a tendency to set up a really interesting political situation in a subtle way, and then proceed to overexplain it (which is just a pet peeve of mind. I hate when authors do that.)

Then there were also instances where the author would explain a situation in perfect detail and I would understand everything and was ready to move on, then the author would find a metaphor to summarize what just happened, which annoyed me to no end! I felt like I was reading the same think over and over, just written in different ways.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. I loved characters and the politics! But the way the worldbuilding was done and the structure of the writing made this book difficult for me to read. I ended up giving it 3.75 stars.

I always enjoy a good political fantasy. There’s something about the scheming and drama of courtly maneuverings that is always appealing. I think perhaps it has to do with the fact that one often enjoys reading about the heroic characters, but a good amount of page time is also given to the villains who are equally fun to read and hate. Add on top of that a fantasy setting in an Asian-inspired setting, and you’ve got a book I’m quick to request!

After a drawn out war, two young women find themselves cast adrift in the court of their former enemy. One has been sacrificed to a political marriage and the other is her friend and handmaiden, also a hostage of the tenuous peace. However, all is not well at court as a battle of succession is beginning to slowly play out behind the scenes, where everyone has their own agenda and no one knows who to trust.

First things first, this was a loooong book. And in this case, that is both a good and bad thing. On the good side of things, the extended length of the story allows the author to fully explore this complicated world and the many characters she has peopled it with. It is clear that character exploration is not only one of the author’s strength but the area in which most time is devoted. Given the sheer number of character presented and their complicated interwoven connections, loyalties, and rivalries, the length of the book is necessary for readers to fully gain a grasp on who is who in all of this.

I also appreciated the detail that went into the world itself and the varying cultures, languages, and traditions at play. In the beginning, I did feel quite lost trying to piece it all together, feeling almost as if I was missing some previous book that had explained it all more. But as the story progressed and I simply allowed myself to sink into it, things began to come together. This was made easier by the fact that the author’s style of writing was lush and beautiful to read, popping off the page in a way that felt both classical and poetic.

The downside of the length also has to do with characters and this world. While the characters are all very well drawn, it takes a long time to feel overly invested in any one of them. Mostly, again, because I was having a hard time keeping track of who was who in it all. Honestly, it probably wasn’t until halfway through the book at least that I felt very confident in any of this.

The story is also very slow moving. As I said, the author clearly enjoys spending a lot of time building up each of the many characters. This is then combined with a meticulous look into the court politics that can go on. These maneuverings range from very subtle turns of phrase that hide cruel insults within seeming banalities, to outright assassination attempts. This is the type of book where the action is very muted, mostly restricted to these smaller moments. But as the story goes on and the more invested you become into each character, these small moments are capable of being just as thrilling as a grand battle.

In the end, the length of this novel and one’s own preference with regard to pacing is likely what will determine your enjoyment of the story. I do wish that a bit more action had been included. And while I was eventually able to make better sense of who was who and become more pulled into the story, it still took quite a long time. Long enough that I fear many readers may not make it. If you enjoy slower-moving stories that revel in complicated worlds and large casts, than this is the book for you.

Rating 7: A bit long and slow to truly feel caught up in, but the author excels at world-building and character development.

"Two queens, two concubines, six princes. Innumerable hidden agendas."

Yala and Princess Mahara are in the lion’s den after their home of Khir is conquered by the forces of Zhaon and the Princess is wed to their Crown Prince. Yala, serving as Mahara’s lady-in-waiting, uses her intelligence and fearlessness to protect herself and Mahara in a realm fraught with danger around every corner.

This hefty read includes multiple plots, numerous characters, and a thrilling set-up for further political games. While I partially chose this book for the beautiful cover, there was a magnetism in the storytelling. Yala remained strong, despite her demure manner, and the events at the end of the book were unexpected as a result. There is so much to say about this book, but mere words cannot express the incredibleness of The Throne of the Five Winds without the experience of reading through it.

To be fair to this book, I think that I just had entirely wrong timing for it. It's mid October, I am a college student (which goes without saying that I'm depressed and overwhelmed and stretched thin... gotta love college life #thisisacryforhelp), and this book is headache inducing and honest-to-God just another stressor in my life.

I get what the author was trying to do with it--and I'll likely update this review and come back to this book in the summertime, or a time where I feel I have the energy to decipher these characters, but reading this book at this point in my life was just a burden.

This isn't a light read, and it isn't particularly enjoyable either. What I mean by that is that I do love a good Asian-inspired political web book (I'm literally OBSESSED with Steel Crow Saga), but what Steel Crow Saga has that this lacks is an attachment to the characters. The Throne of the Five Wings is heavy focused on plot and character-webs, but not so much the characterization or heart I should say.

This book is for a specific audience; I think you might enjoy a lot if these complicated political stories are your cup of tea. But at this point in my life, I'm reading to escape stressors and to enjoy myself, and this book was offering the opposite.

The premise seemed really interesting and I was looking forward to getting started, but it seemed like the first 10-15% of the book I had trouble getting pulled into the story and put it down multiple times in favor of other competitors for my attention.

This is not a high octane, action-packed extravaganza, but the court intrigue and inter-personal relationships are a solid draw. Once I figured out the path the story was going, and became familiar with the key characters I was pretty heavily invested. This is a well written entry to a trilogy that I am looking forward to reading future installments of.

I was initially drawn to The Throne of the Five Winds by its gorgeous cover. Then I jumped in and began reading it and was blown away by the huge page count. It is definitely the epitome of an epic fantasy novel. In order to keep up with the large cast of characters, I definitely could have benefited from a family tree or a flowchart. It took me quite a while to finally feel like I had all the main characters figured out.

As with any new fantasy series, a great deal of world building is always necessary in the first book. The Throne of the Five Winds was definitely no exception. In addition, you're learning how all of the characters are connected. There are six princes, since the emperor had two queens and two concubines. That's obviously going to eventually create problems.

Even though it took me a while to work my way through The Throne of the Five Winds, it was well worth the time investment. It was such a fun read. I look forward to reading the next book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

If you're looking for bloody battles or magical duels or epic quests . . . look further, cause this is definitely not the book for you. There is no magic here, no quests (unless you consider 'trying to stay alive in a palace with more assassins per capita than there are bankers in Manhattan' to be a quest), and the only (physical) battles end well before our narrative begins. But if you, like me, find court intrigue absolutely riveting, then oh god do I have the book for you.

The newly-reconstituted Empire of Zhaon, the Land of the Five Winds, has just defeated its fierce neighbor Khir in battle. As part of the surrender terms, the Great Rider of Khir's only daughter has been dispatched to marry the Crown Prince of Zhaon, accompanied only by a single (quite fierce) lady-in-waiting. The two women must navigate a palace that's less a snake pit than a bloody, shark-filled ocean, as the Emperor's health worsens, his six sons (and their mothers) vie for power, and enemies beyond their borders begin to plot.

The writing here is absolutely superb. This is a very long book (the first of a series), with a decently large cast of characters, but at no point did I ever have trouble remembering who was who, who was allied with whom, etc. And the author is one of those truly gifted writers whose prose I can just fall into; her language has cadence, rhythm, depth---beauty to spare. Her scenes are exquisitely crafted, conversations with double meanings crafted so brilliantly I was literally in awe, each word honed to absolute perfection.

Fans of books like The Goblin Emperor, or political/court drama in general (or even regency romances---the romance factor here is clear and present, though never overdone) will find a lot to love here. (But with way more assassination attempts. Seriously, there is a ridiculous amount of assassination attempts in this book.) This is a book I'll probably be pulling out to comfort-read on rainy days for years to come, and I'm really excited for the sequel.

(As an aside, it's mentioned in the back extras that S.C. Emmett is a pseudonym for Lilith Saintcrow. Never in a million years would I have guessed that! I've read some of her other works--some I liked a lot, others that weren't my cup of tea--and this is definitely the most ambitious writing, worldbuilding-wise, I think I've seen from her yet.)

Overall: highly, highly recommended.

A big thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing a free copy in exchange for an honest review!

It isn’t often that a book wins me over like The Throne of the Five Winds did! I usually know my general sentiment towards a book within the first fifty pages or so. My mood will change for better or worse as the story unfolds, and a 2-star book might make it to 3 or vice versa, and once in a while, a 4- or 5-star book plummets to 1 star because of an unforgivable sin. When I began this book, which I received as an eARC from Orbit and NetGalley, I was not feeling it.

Moreover, I really dislike it when someone tries to sell me a series by saying “for fans of Game of Thrones.” Because, like it or not, Game of Thrones is mainstream now. It’s like saying “for fans of Harry Potter” or “for fans of Marvel movies”—that’s not a useful category any more. And I honestly don’t think this book is very much like Game of Thrones, for many reasons, but hey, that’s not what this review is about.

Lady Komor Yala (house name, first name) has been sent from her home country of Khir to Zhaon. She accompanies her princess, Mahara, who is a bride and tribute to the Crown Prince of Zhaon following Khir’s rout at the battle of the Three Rivers. Yala and Mahara are alone in Zhaon, with no other Khir around them, forced to adapt to a strange culture. There are 6 princes of Zhaon, from 3 different women—two queens and a concubine. A second concubine of the emperor has adopted a son, General Zakkar Kai, who is unpopular with some because of his humble origins. Yala and Mahara barely have time to catch their breath before the latter is wedded and the assassination attempts begin.

People are going to tell you this book is long. Boy is it ever—but I don’t see that as a particular stumbling block, and I don’t think that’s even what those commenters are really picking up on. Sure, it’s long, and we could discuss how the story might be streamlined. But perhaps what we’re actually noticing is that almost all of the scenes in this book are two-handers, or perhaps three-handers in a pinch. There are certainly some larger crowd scenes, often action scenes. Yet so much of this book comprises private conversations between two characters, often involving intrigue veiled behind courtesy. That’s why this book feels longer than it is: everything is embedded within subtext, and so it takes twice as long to say. There is a lot of dialogue but also a lot of stillness, and S.C. Emmett’s description tends towards the poetic, with many quotations from writers in this world and comparisons of people’s movements to calligraphy.

Emmett also tends towards the “hard no” side for exposition and is even so hardcore as to put “untranslatable” terms into the book with footnotes explaining their meaning in English. So that adds to the initial learning curve. Frankly, I don’t blame anyone for noping out within the first twenty or fifty pages. It’s not easy to get into this book.

But if you persevere, you might decide it’s worth it. The Throne of the Five Winds has so many tropes of fantasy/historical fiction: palace intrigue, succession crises in the making, subtle love triangles, capricious queens and princes, a dying emperor, and assassins lurking behind every arras. Despite this surfeit of tropes, though, the book never feels that clichéd. The cornucopia of characters allows Emmett to wend and wind the plot through this world with a narrative deftness that keeps us on our toes.

There are downsides, of course. Another reason I couldn’t get into the book at first is that I didn’t feel invested in any of the initial protagonists. Why did I care about Yala being sent away from her home country? Who is this Kai dude, and why should I care about him and this emperor? Which of these princes am I supposed to care about? Similarly, the antagonists are two-dimensional. We’re supposed to like most of the protagonists and dislike most of the antagonists. Even Takshin, who is a fairly obvious antihero, is supposed to be the “lovable rogue,” in contrast to the Second Prince, Kurin, who is portrayed as an inveterate schemer. Emmett tries to give Queen Gamwone some depth by making it seem like her gambits are merely a way of ensuring the survival of herself and her sons in the limited ways she can as a woman in this world … yet the narrative voice of the book is so biased towards portraying her as a rude, vindictive, and petty woman that this little attempt at balancing the scales is insufficient, to say the least. And as far as the Khir nobility goes … we get, what, 4 scenes with them?

In other words, The Throne of the Five Winds has all the intrigue I love in a political fantasy novel. Nevertheless, it is still quite messy in some ways, and its characterization is shiny yet not always substantial. Emmet’s writing is beautiful in most cases, particularly as we watch Yala grow in her appreciation of her new home. I recommended this book to a coworker who enjoys reading sprawling court epics.

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