Sometimes you take a chance with a book you know beforehand might not be your preferred styles or genre, and in most cases you end up being disappointed. The Unbroken didn’t disappoint. In fact, I was thoroughly surprised with this book. C.L. Clark drags you into a rich world filled with political intrigue and a slew of raw relationships in between opposing characters.

The story centers on Touraine, a member of the Sands, which is basically the military in the story, and how she deals with the events of discord in between her vowed protection of the Balladaire government and her Qazali’s family roots. Once the pressure reaches its boiling point with the relationship between the people of both sides, it breaks into a series of events challenging the status quo and our characters. Clark spends a tremendous amount of time developing powerful themes, one of which deals with opposite philosophies and how to unite them, which is a subject that strikes right at home with the current political climate.

Although is it a slow-burn novel and you shouldn’t expect non-stop action from the book, it is a story that truly applies to the times we live in by exploring a rich world of corruption, love affairs and triangles, family reunions and treason, and political manipulation in an environment made of dust, sand and burning heat. The way Clark describes the landscape, I could literally taste the grains of salt in my mouth.

In conclusion, The Unbroken grows on you and provides a perfect mixture of political unrest, a celebration of womanhood in every sense of the word, and enough thematic spices to enrich the reading experience with a relevant story that connects to today’s issues.

3.5 stars

The Unbroken is an incredible tale of resilience against colonization.

As a child, Touraine was kidnapped from her homeland to serve as a soldier in the Balladaire empire. She was stripped of her name, her language, and her traditions and learned to embrace her colonizers. Touraine foiled an attempted assassination of Princess Luca and soon found herself in the employ of Princess Luca, serving as an envoy between the rebels and Princess Luca.

C.L. Clark deserves all the praise for their worldbuilding in The Unbroken. Inspired by France’s occupations of Algeria, Clark captured the confliction of the Qazāli soldiers who belonged to no one: the Qazāli people hated them because they served the colonizers, and the Balladaire people viewed them as less than human. It was easy to understand Touraine’s loyalty to Balladaire and her hesitancy to explore the family she left behind in Qazāl.

Despite the beautiful worldbuilding and perfect pacing, I had some hesitancies along the way. I was nervous about pairing Luca and Touraine together because they both had two very different goals to accomplish and neither was budging. I’m hesitant about the power imbalance but also curious about how Clark will address it. I was also surprised by Touraine’s journey. It was understandably messy as she reclaimed the culture that Balladaire stripped from her, but at times I thought her actions were rash and didn’t understand her end game. Those hiccups won’t stop me from recommending this book to fantasy lovers everywhere though!

The Unbroken is a complicated story of fighting for your home with a touch of magic, C.L. Clark has made their mark in the fantasy world.

Possible Triggers:
Death | Threats of rape | Trauma | Mutilation | Racism

Characters:
This story follows two points of view: Touraine (A conscript of the Balladaire Empire) and Luca (Princess of Balladaire).

Positives:
+ The writing style was clear and engaging, I had no trouble at all visualizing all the beautifully detailed accoutrements that were brought from Balladaire or the gorgeous temple that the Qazali people used to worship in. The descriptions of the city, clothing, and the cultural dances were all so very lively- fantastic imagery. Be prepared to be drawn into your surroundings while reading.
+ You absolutely FEEL what Touraine feels. C.L Clark does an excellent job of making sure you are engaged front and center to Touraine’s and Luca’s feelings. The disgust, pain, horror, despair, (and also happiness, delight, awe) of the characters are all described very very well. Understanding how the character is feeling is never unclear. I want to clarify that this is specifically from a introspection of the character to their own feelings and projecting to the readers, the feelings projecting to the other characters in the book, not so much.

Negatives:
- All of the romance in the beginning of the book seemed irrelevant. I felt that if it hadn’t been included at all, it wouldn't have changed the story in any way - it was already addressed that the cultures covered in the book are accepting of all relationships. Having random make out sessions that didn't even blip on the ‘the character has intense feelings on this’ was inane. This felt like a classic case of being TOLD that a character finds specific people very very important, but their actions throughout the story don't really reflect that particular relationship .Now, that being said, maybe it comes into play more in the next book? Maybe romance becomes more of a thing? Since this was so much more of a ‘navigating politics and cultures’ type of book, it seemed a little weird to throw in random (real shallow, unexplored) romance. Don’t tell me that a character loves/lusts/cares intensely about people, show me. Please please please make it consistent; if her found family is the most important thing
in the world to her, then don’t make them drop out of focus and be ignored for large swaths of the book.
- The magic system in the book is ridiculously vague and shallow. There are no names for it, no limitations clearly defined, no rules or regulations. Nothing was talked about WHO specifically could do the magic (as the magics seem like they are tied to regions and/or regional belief systems, it seemed weird that it wasn’t specific on WHO had access to wield it -does everyone have access to it). In the story there are 4 characters specifically that DO magic at some point and even that was lackluster. It was implied that some super amazing stuff could be done, but that wasn’t elaborated on at all. There is so much potential here, but you barely get the tiniest sip to sate your need to know. Pretty please elaborate on your magic systems! Tell me the parameters, define in solid ways who has access to it, give me a NAME, tell me its limitations, its costs, its importance to the actual culture. It’s a solid start, but please give me more.
- There are some incomprehensible logical choices the main characters make that absolutely made me throw the book down screaming ’WHY?’. This is harder to get into detail because of spoilers, but i’ll try to get to the main crux of it; accountability. The characters make choices (large, important, story changing choices) and the outcome of those choices do not reflect the severity of their actions. Any other character in the book that wasn’t the main two, would have had vastly different outcomes; Touraine was shrouded in a mantle of plot-armour that made absolutely no sense. She makes stupid choices, but all the characters around her make similarly stupid choices in their responses because of the plot armour. Touraine got away with doing so many things, so many times, that the gravitas is gone; there is always a deus ex machina waiting in the wings to sweep away the consequence.

Final Thoughts:
I went into the first few chapters of this book excited. The premise on the back is awesome sounding; military fantasy, desperate odds, assassinations! The overarching cultural and political themes seemed just familiar enough (from history) but also open to awesome new things that I could learn and experience; new possibilities and understandings. However, the further I got, the more frustrated I became. The magic system is really underdeveloped, there is no consequence to stupid decisions, and the level of irrational response to actions performed was overwhelming. I would go so far as to say maybe this book was marketed to the wrong audience. This is NOT a military fantasy - there are no strong military tactics, the main character (while touted as an amazing fighter) fails to follow through, and the concepts of loyalty, dedication, discipline to all the causes in the book are constantly diminished. This book absolutely takes you for a tumultuous ride; it whips you all over various emotional responses, though -for me- it was mostly irritation, anger, and disbelief at how much Touraine gets away with. I would not recommend this book to my friends that enjoy military fantasy. Despite this, I would be open to reading more by this author; there is room for improvement, but at no point was the story uninteresting or slow.

C. L. Clark's The Unbroken was a fascinating struggle for power that played out on the page and sucked me in from the start.

It follows Lieutenant Touraine, who was forced into the colonial army as a child, and Princess Luca, who has come to the colonies in an attempt to stop the rebellion in order to gain the throne. Once in the colony, Touraine's past resurfaces, and after an unfortunate development, she ends up working for Princess Luca, mediating between the rebels that are fighting to free the territory that she was born in and the interests of the colonists. The story takes many twists and turns from here, involving quite a bit of magic and religion.

I enjoyed reading about many of the characters. Touraine is amazing; she is incredibly strong, badass, and smart, even as she deals with a dark past, warring interests, and precarious situations. Even without the other elements that I loved about this book, I would have to pick up the sequel just to see how she fares. I have more mixed feelings about Luca, the other principle character. Her background, while interesting in the few bits that we do get, seems a little underdeveloped at times, and for that reason, I have a harder time getting a grip on her. I didn't particularly enjoy her, but that may be by design; she was the ruler of a colonialist country, after all.

Some of the minor characters were also well-developed, interesting, and lovable. Jaghotai was the one that intrigued me the most, and her development still has me hooked. I also connected with some of the conscripts, and Beau-Sang's children. Other minor characters were less well-developed, but that is to be expected.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed many of the characters, while others fell flat. One of the highest points of the book, however, was that it was set in a queer-normative world. The queer representation throughout the cast of characters was amazing, and I felt at home the moment I opened the book. If you want to read more queer-normative books, pick this one up.

In regards to the plot, I thought a lot of the plot points were extremely clever and very interesting. I found myself gasping out loud too many times. It was not very predictable, but at the same time, it felt realistic (for a fantasy). There were many moments that were also incredibly character-driven.

The world-building was also incredibly intriguing. Clark sets up this colonial society masterfully, and the way they interweave religion, politics, racism, militarism, capitalism, and magic together is phenomenal. You can tell that they did their research. The magic system was partially reminiscent of the Poppy War too, so if you enjoyed that magic system, you would probably enjoy this book.

One of the other aspects of the world-building that I absolutely loved was how it changed. The rebels are attempting to gain control of the colony and take it out of imperialist hands. The shifting dynamics of power and the ways politics was exercised was incredibly intriguing, and I cannot wait for the next book to come out when more of this occurs.

This book also discusses some important themes. Principally, it deals with colonialism and the myriad oppression that comes from it. It touches on what it means to be family and who your family really is. The queer-normative world definitely makes a statement, as well. This is really only scratching the surface of what this book gets at. It was an incredibly rich text, full of insights and intriguing developments.

Overall, I highly recommend C. L. Clark's The Unbroken to people that are interested in reading more about colonialism and the fight against it. It was thrillingly inciteful. The world-building was masterful, and I will never forget some of the characters. I hope that you all pick this book up.

After the absolute tour de force of Winter’s Orbit, I had high hopes for my second Dark Horse debut of the year: The Unbroken, by C.L. Clark. This book is all about picking sides and watching characters choose between a rock and a hard place. It has a colonial African setting, which is delightfully refreshing, and an interesting premise. With all of this information bouncing around in my head, my expectations were extremely high. So, when I finally got my hands on an ARC of Clark’s debut, I was mildly disappointed to find that my impressions of the book were mixed. There is nothing enormously problematic with this piece of fiction, but it feels like it’s just slightly off in a number of small ways that add up over time to a middling experience.

The plot of The Unbroken centers around two characters: Touraine and Luca. Touraine is a Qazali native, and slave conscript of the Balladairan empire. Balladairan feels like a pseudo fantasy France allegory (given its naming conventions and culture), and Qazali feels like a representative of France’s African colonies. Touraine was shipped off as a youth, stolen from her homeland, and forced into an experimental colonial regiment of the Balladairan armed forces. She rose up the ranks to lieutenant and has now been deployed as a peacekeeping force back in her home country. This has left her understandably conflicted as she wrestles with her allegiance to an overwhelming power that has given her a token of authority despite their constant mistreatment, and her actual homeland who resent her as a Balladairan lapdog and want nothing to do with her.

The second lead is Luca, a Balladairan princess. She has been shipped off to the colonies by her scheming regent uncle to keep her out of the way and reduce her influence. Luca, being a brilliant and cunning woman with her sights on early ascension to her throne, decides to use this semi-exile to cement her power outside her uncle’s control by rallying the colonies to her banner. After an unfortunate series of events that leave both women in a bad position, they decide to essentially team up and see if they can navigate the complicated political morass of the situation together. Unsurprisingly, a romance begins to brew between them.

You might notice that I have devoted a lot more review space than usual to the plot of The Unbroken. That is because it is easily its strongest point and what kept me coming back to push through a number of other issues that erected barriers in my path. The Unbroken’s biggest issue, which compounds all its others, is that it just feels too vague most of the time it is telling its story. Motivations feel undefined, locations feel unfinished, and sometimes dialogue feels like there are pieces of the conversation missing from the page. Here are some examples. Luca tells you that she needs to use the colonies, and their unknown mysterious magic, to offset her uncle and win back her throne. But for a very large portion of the book, Luca never explains why she needs these things, how she expects to use them, and what the end result will be. You are just expected to take these statements at face value and run with them. The main event that causes the two protagonists to fall into league is the court marshaling of Touraine for a crime that she obviously didn’t commit. There is absolutely no evidence, no motivation for the crime, a crystal clear alibi, and no clear reason why she would be accused in the first place. It feels like a moment of plot convenience to catalyze getting the two POVs on the same team – but I can’t tell if Clark just expects me to be fine with a bare-bones justification of why this is happening or if this is a comment on how corrupt the Balladairan court process is to colonials that I just missed because of how underdeveloped the cultures can feel.

Let’s talk about worldbuilding. Early on in the series, you get a glimpse of the mysterious magic of the Qazali. It is part of the driving reason why Luca wants to use the colonies as a base for her power, and that is pretty much all of the worldbuilding you get for an entire half of a book. It is agonizingly frustrating because the book noticeably ramps up in descriptives as it moves into its back half, but I don’t understand why I had to slog through the first half without a clear grasp of the world I was exploring. A point in the book’s favor is that both protagonists are actually great. I felt they were nicely complex, their romance is very believable (despite some slightly awkward dialogue here and there), and they are very different from one another in a way that compliments each other. Then we have the antagonists, such as Rogan, who feel like ridiculous caricatures. Rogan is a noble officer of the Balladairan armed forces whose entire purpose is to continually say he is going to rape Touraine with no repercussions to show you how poorly the colonial soldiers are treated. It feels absolutely absurd and instead of railing against Rogan, I found myself waiting for a more interesting antagonist to present themselves.

On the other hand, the themes of choice in the book are very nicely realized and kept me coming back despite my misgivings. I felt a lot of emotional investment in the complicated situation Touraine finds herself in and I found myself hungering to see if she could find a way to find an answer to her problems. Her story picks up significantly once the two POVs team up about 20% into the book, though the first fifth is very slow. Luca is more consistently interesting from start to finish. Her scheming makes her feel more like a treacherous royal advisor archetype and it was fun to see the troupe as a protagonist we are routing for instead of an antagonist.

Ultimately, my thoughts on The Unbroken remain unclear even after finishing it and thinking about this review. The premise and story have massive potential, and some of it is very clearly realized. However, there is a lot of energy lost thanks to the overwhelming sense of vagueness that the narrative exudes that sometimes smothered my interest in pressing further into the book. I think I still recommend this series and think Clark has a lot of promise, but The Unbroken is certainly not a flawless masterpiece.

Rating: The Unbroken – 6.5/10
-Andrew

Touraine is a conscript soldier, snatched from her homeland at the age of five. For over 20 years, she’s been raised with her fellow conscripts by the Balladairans, trained to forget her “uncivilized” behavior. Touraine knows the Balladairans are stronger than her people, that the best way to get through life is to be the best soldier she can, and one day she’ll be recognized for her achievements. One day she’ll be able to make life better for her people. But a chance encounter with rebels leaves Touraine facing execution, and she desperately takes the only way out offered to her: to work with the newly arrived Princess Luca to both negotiate with and spy on the rebels in the hopes of bringing peace to the colony. Luca wants the fighting to stop and to better the lives of the Qazali, but above all she wants to establish herself as worthy of ending her uncle’s regency and putting herself on the throne of the empire. Bringing peace to the colony in her mind will prove that she is ready to take the throne. But Touraine and Luca have differing opinions about acceptable costs to bring about peace, and it isn’t long before both women are forced to make choices from which there is no return.

THE UNBROKEN is a book that takes an unflinching look at colonialism and the insidious mindsets that creep into the most well-meaning of people. It does so through two utterly flawed characters, Touraine and Luca. Touraine spends a good chunk of the book trying to prove herself to the Balladairans who kidnapped her. In her mind, her people lost, there’s no point in resisting, there’s only showing her masters that she is “civilized.” Surely, because life is fair, she will be recognized for her hard work and she and her troops will be given the respect they deserve. But of course, life isn’t fair or simple, as many of the people she crosses paths with point out. Touraine’s left adrift trying to figure out who she is, living in that horrid middle ground between Balladairan and Qazali that she was forced into when she was conscripted.

Luca, meanwhile, is a “good” colonialist. She’s here to make reforms so that the colonized subjects aren’t mistreated. In other books, she’d be one of the heroes. And while she’s well-meaning, her altruism is crippled by the fact that she views this colony as “hers” and just wants the rebels to sit down and accept that fact. And that’s the heart of the conflict between the rebels and the crown: both sides view the land as theirs, and neither is willing to relinquish control. Luca’s constant need to take what isn’t simply given to her undermines her better nature, making her a grayer character than I anticipated.

Into this whole mess of power dynamics enters the relationship between Touraine and Luca. And here’s where your mileage may vary a bit. I was completely on-board with the 75% of this arc. The author was fully cognizant of the inherent power imbalance at the heart of the relationship, and doesn’t cross lines. The two come together in a way that’s natural but still fully aware of the problems, and Touraine does grow into someone who demands her equality. But this is a book full of betrayals and manipulations and bloody death, and both women go to some awful lengths in pursuit of their goals. Yet somehow, through it all, they’re still into each other. It makes for a few repetitive beats as they keep trying to save each other from the consequences of their actions, even as the world literally burns around them. At some point you have to acknowledge there are things you can’t get past and that the other has crossed the line. You can’t just keep going “Well, she helped orchestrate the death of a bunch of people on my side, but she means well.”

THE UNBROKEN is a story of the bloody mess that results from colonialism, and does so through its fantastic character work. Touraine and Luca pull this story through, even while they’re both making a mess of a situation. The author easily puts you into their heads as they try to sort out a problem much bigger than either of them. Through these characters, we see the compromises and devastation that can happen as two sides try to find a way to either coexist, or quash the other completely. While I had some mild frustrations at the end, the set-up for book two is intriguing, and I look forward to seeing how things continue to unfold!

3.25 stars.

I enjoyed the first third of this, but things took a turn in the last third regarding the character's choices and the motivating factor of those choices that I did not particularly love, which continued until the end of the novel and ended up lowering my final rating. I did appreciate the thematic explorations of colonialism/imperialism and the complexities therein and thought the world-building was intriguing (the novel is very much based on the French colonization of North Africa, i.e. Morocco/Algeria). As I mentioned previously, though, my biggest critique of the novel was the character development (or lack thereof) as both of our main characters make a number of very questionable choices throughout the novel, which to me had very obvious and foreseeable negative repercussions. This was particularly true of Touraine, so I do wish that we had gotten a bit more development of her loyalty to her fellow soldiers, as I did not feel that was strong enough to warrant a number of the choices she made. I also found this to be quite plotty/fast-paced, but that's also coming from a reader of primarily literary fiction.

Thank you to the author and Orbit for providing me with a free early copy of this work through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The Unbroken will be out on March 23.

Included as a top pick in bimonthly March New Releases post, which highlights and promotes upcoming releases of the month (link attached)

TL;DR: THE UNBROKEN is a breathtaking epic fantasy. Set in a second world echoing the French occupation of North Africa, it explores war, politics, colonialism, love, trust, and belonging. It comes out March 23 and you're going to want to read it ASAP. Here's the first two chapters in case you already can't wait: <a href="https://www.orbitbooks.net/orbit-excerpts/the-unbroken-by-c-l-clark/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">https://www.orbitbooks.net/orbit-excerpts/the-unbroken-by-c-l-clark/ </a>

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for providing an ARC in exchange for a fair review.

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Listen: in full transparency, I requested this book for the cover. Sure, people Tweeted about how great it is, but I've read a lot of great fantasy (and a lot of fantasy that was supposed to be great but wasn't). But. Look at those arms and tell me you're not *a little* in love with Touraine already. Go on, I'll wait for you to scroll back up.

You're back? Awesome.

Admit it: you're also crushing on her already, aren't you? I thought so. Just wait until you get to know her. Because, y'all. I'm deeply in love with this woman. She was kidnapped as a child from her homeland, Qazāl, to become a soldier for the colonizing empire of Balladaire. We start the book with her on a ship back to Qazāl for a mission. On the same ship? The princess of Balladaire, Luca. She should ascend the throne soon, except that the regent, her uncle, insists she must prove herself ready. Luca's mission: to strengthen the empire's hold on Qazāl, where rebellion is stirring.

The thing that I loved most deeply about this novel, though, was Touraine's struggle to understand who she was. I've certainly never been kidnapped and trained as cannon fodder for wars that were not of my own making. Still: I'm the daughter of immigrants; I've also spoken to a number of other immigrants and members of diaspora through my work with <a href="https://www.khoreomag.com" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">khōréō</a>. This feeling of not knowing where you belong--of not quite fitting in in either place (or, worse, of being told that one part of your culture 'doesn't count'; yes, this happened to me and yes, I'm still bitter about it.)--is a haunting one, and seeing it reflected in Touraine's own thoughts as she tries to find her way in the world was deeply meaningful. I'm so grateful to Clark for putting it to the page.

This book is sprawling in its scope, exploring intensely human relationships against a background of colonialism, which Clark interrogates ruthlessly. While there's a clear core arc to this novel, it's also a setup for an entire trilogy; the author plants seeds that will certainly grow into either bouquets or ensnaring vines in the coming books. There's also a LOT at stake beyond the intertwined politics of, and power struggle between, Qazāl and Balladaire; we learn of other peoples who seem to have magic, an art that Balladaire has lost.

Because of the complexity of the politics at play and the need to introduce the potential for magic and its laws from partway through the book, rather than "naturally" from the start, the novel slows a bit in the middle. There's just so much to show. Even so, I have to urge you: pick this book up and stick with it. It's worth it. I promise.

The last thing I'll say in praise of this book: it's a queernorm world. The sheer number of badass women loving each other in whatever way they know how made my little bi heart so, so happy. I loved it because of how easy it was for people to love whomever they wanted to, at least in the abstract. I loved how hard Clark made it for a happily ever after to happen and how she somehow, through all of it, made sure that there's always hope. 

In all, I recommend this book with my whole heart to anyone who loves epic, complex fantasy with a lot of badass women and queer relationships. I've been shouting about this book from the rooftops since page 10. I can't wait for it to be out in the world so y'all can revel in its amazingness with me. I <s>hope</s> know you'll love it as much as I do.

CW- murder, blood, sexual assault, torture

The Unbroken is a political fantasy that follows two women in a war-torn world.
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I enjoyed this book, but ultimately I thought it was really slow. I felt as though it could have been condensed. The subject matter could get pretty heavy, and it was hard to get through it.
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However, I really enjoyed the world building in this! I loved the setting and the how the world was developed. I also liked both of the main characters, although they both would act out of character frequently. I absolutely LOVED some of the side characters though!
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Overall, I thought it was fine, but nothing great. Pacing and lack of solid characterization made it hard to get through.
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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

The Unbroken is an African inspired political fantasy. The plot is slow paced (it took me over three weeks to get through), and the characters are a bit unlikable, but I still enjoyed reading this book.

We follow two main characters. Luca is the Princess/queen regent. Touraine is a soldier fighting for the empire that kidnapped and trained her. Touraine ends up working for Luca to infiltrate the rebels in the city.

The Unbroken is politically driven with very little action. There is a romance between the two main characters, but it is a small side plot. I recommend this book if you’re looking for a diverse fantasy and don’t mind a slower plot.

One Sentence Summary: Though Qazāli, Touraine was taken as a child to be raised and trained to be a soldier in Balladaire and is now being sent back to Qazāl with others like her, right into the heart of a brewing rebellion that will have all of them torn between loyalties to blood and crown.

I've seen The Unbroken on many anticipated reads lists (I'd been looking forward to reading it as well) for good reason. This book features an incredible North African-inspired world, a clash been worship of gods and worship of no gods, the effects of colonialism, a rebellion, a main character with torn loyalties, and more. This book really packs in it and manages to explore all of it. The Unbroken is, in many ways, an astounding book, though I also found myself wanting a bit more.

The Plot: A Complex Story That's Also Easy to Read

As a young child, Touraine was taken from her home in Qazāl to be raised and trained to be a soldier in Balladaire, the country that invaded and colonized Qazāl. All she knew was Balladaire and all she wanted was to rise to the rank of General. She worshiped General Cantic, who trained her all her life. But, when she arrives in Qazāl and manages to save the Balladairan princess's life, she attracts notice, and is identified by a rebel, tearing her loyalties between blood and crown.

Princess Luca is the rightful ruler of Balladaire, but, after her parents died from the Withering plague, her uncle pushed her over and took the crown. In order for her to prove her worthiness, she must quell the rebellion in Qazāl and bring the colonies to heel. Luca, though, wants to do things her own way and make both parties happy. To do that, she needs someone she can trust and someone the rebels can trust.

With their stories inextricably twined together, Touraine and Luca discover there's far more at play in the colonies, far more unrest, and threatens to tear them apart just as they're starting to care for each other.

Whew! The Unbroken is quite a book. But it's so incredibly easy to read, so easy to just fly through the pages. It's like sand falling through an hourglass. The story just flows and drags the reader along with it. There were so many times I was sucked in and so many times I couldn't believe just how much I had read. For a story that really packs it in, it goes by in the blink of an eye.

The story is complex. There are about a million things going on, but it's also really easy to keep track of it all. Touraine and Luca were the perfect characters to carry it all off, to expose all the secrets and machinations for the reader. Still, there were some unknowns, but that just heightened the mystery of what, exactly, was going on and what was going to come next. There were so many times I was wrong, so many times I was surprised. The one thing I didn't like was that Touraine always seemed to be thrown out, cast aside, and set upon her own path. It did feel the plot was being a little heavy handed with her as she could have just walked right off the pages at so many different times, but the story always turned her back.

The other thing that bothered me was that I felt like I was missing out on something. I felt that a lot of really interesting things were happening off the pages. I don't know if it was because other characters were handling those things or because it was left of intentionally, but I felt a lot of fascinating events and machinations were off page. There were leaps between chapters where things started to get really interesting and then the next chapter would jump to something else. Still, there's enough of what is on the pages to keep readers interested. While more of a political intrigue novel, there's still a lot of action.

Overall, The Unbroken is an incredible, wide ranging story that touches on so many things. It showcased how colonization affects the colonized country and its people, creating the perfect kind of tension for this story. There are clear social classes, as well as interesting crosses between the boundaries. I loved the magic system that drew an even greater divide between Qazāl and Balladaire, and how it played out before Touraine's eyes. This story is intricate and is definitely balancing a lot of things, but not a single thing falls over, not a single thing is extraneous. It all came together beautifully for an incredible story that is both the start of a series (of which I have no clue where it's headed) and a standalone fantasy.

The Characters: A Story of Two Women

While there are a number of characters, ranging from Touraine's fellow conscripts to Luca's guards to the rebels, The Unbroken is told by Touraine and Luca. I really enjoyed getting the story from a woman who had been stolen from her homeland and a woman who wanted her crown more than anything.

The characters were all amazing and came to life to me. I could feel Luca's desperation, Touraine's crisis of identity, the rebels' desperation, and the bloodthirstiness of General Cantic. No matter how little or how much a character was seen, they each had unique personalities that easily set them apart. That isn't to say I didn't mix up some of the more minor characters, but, by the end, I knew who was who.

I really liked Touraine, but I also really wanted to like her more. She was something of a lost soul. I liked that she thought she had found her place, found her career path, but that the veil keeping her naive and loyal was ripped away. She was faced early on with coming to terms with who she was and who she wanted to be. Much of the story was devoted to her development and changes as the story unraveled around her. At the same time, I felt like she was kind of all over the map. Her loyalties kept shifting, her ideas kept changing. Though I did love that, once she had decided, she was committed.

I had similar feelings about Luca, though she felt a little more stable than Touraine. She had her goal in sight the whole time and was willing to try as many avenues as possible to get what she wanted. Despite her disability, she's sharp and smart. She was caught just as Touraine was between Balladaire and the rebels, but she always maintained an eye on her goal. I liked how she was often unsettled by the things she had to do, the things she had no power over, but, though it all, she proved herself a princess, if not a future queen.

The Setting: North African-Inspired

The setting is what really drew me to The Unbroken. Set in Northern Africa, I didn't really know much beyond that. I suppose I was thinking Egypt and Morocco as I'm embarrassingly not familiar with African geography. But then the bits of French thrown into the story kind of threw me, until I was watching Jeopardy! and there was a clue about the French colonizing Algeria. Then I was thinking Algeria, but kept thinking Tunisia fit better (not that I know anything of either country, but I just kept thinking Tunisia while reading).

The entire story is set in Qazāl, though both Touraine and Luca had flashbacks to what life had been like in Balladaire for them. It was fascinating to see how different it was, drawing a sharp difference between the green and tree-filled Balladaire with the deserts of Qazāl.

I loved everything about Qazāl. It felt dusty and brown, very apt for a desert. But there were also various kinds of dress and references to particular animals that helped bring the African feel to life. Yet, it's stark and has an unwelcoming streak. There's a culture clash between the Qazāli and the Balladairians so it also has a very militaristic feel to it. The magic was also quite unique, and the ideas around it created a further divide between the two countries, as well as fear in Touraine. But my favorite part was that it was explored by two people who shed new eyes on it, one of whom who had never been there and the other who had been taken from it while very young. They came to Qazāl with very different ideas and were affected by it in different ways, so it was interesting to see the world for what it was and then get a veil drawn down as the reader sees it through either Touraine's or Luca's eyes.

Overall: An Incredible Start to a New Fantasy Series

Seriously, The Unbroken has so many elements in it that it's impossible to explore all of them without writing endlessly. All of it is deftly handled and woven in absolutely perfectly. I loved the characters, I adored the world, and I was intrigued by the story. I do wish more of the most interesting events had happened on the pages as I felt a little left out sometimes, but, what was on the pages, was really interesting and served to further developed the characters and the story. Overall, reading The Unbroken was a delightful experience and I can't wait to find out what happens next.

Thank you to Angela Man at Orbit for a review copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

The book gave me everything I look for in a book. There was suspense, there was action and there was tragic romance. This was a fantasy story that blurred the lines between loyalty and picking sides.
The story was easy to follow along with stakes increasing higher and higher. The writing was not my favourite but I didn't mind it.
Overall, this books is something I've never read before and I look forward to reading the sequel.

First and foremost the queer/LGBT+ rep in this book is amazing. I loved all of the representation of the characters and the fact that all of the MC's are queer women was even better. I would say the story took quite a while to get to the point, but when it did I was blown away.

"You don't find a life. You have to make one, with the people around you and the causes you put your strength into."

This fantasy provides a nuanced examination of colonialism, using North Africa as a model (cue the Arabic! Yay!). Clark shows how different actors justify or suffer under colonial power depending on their varied circumstances. Our primary avenues for approaching the topic are the perspectives of Lt. Touraine and Princess Luca. Touraine was conscripted into the Balladairan army as a child, where she was stripped of family, home, and language to serve the imperial power. Now, she returns to Qazāl, a homeland that doesn't feel like home, as a soldier trying to care for her subordinates and seek advancement in a system designed to fail them all. Her path crosses with the Balladairan Princess when Touraine foils an assassination attempt, earning a favor she will soon need to call in.

This is a story fraught with brutality, tangled loyalties, and loneliness. I was drawn in by Touraine's difficult choices, her fight against nearly insurmountable odds, and her quest for a vanishing chance at fairness and connection. Princess Luca's story was less enticing. I found her quest for power to secure her throne frustrating as she did the right things for the wrong reasons or went about meeting worthy goals in the wrong ways. Because I didn't care for her as a character, her chapters dragged for me, and it also prevented me from supporting the first flames of romance between the two.

This fantasy tackles difficult questions and provides untidy, gritty answers. It's a masterful examination of colonialism, both the brute force and the insidious control. The path Touraine makes for herself is hard-won, and seeing her fight for each inch could be grueling in the moment but is ultimately satisfying. I recommend this as an opportunity to grapple with these topics alongside the characters and specifically to fantasy readers seeking a story with a military bent and/or a central, star-crossed sapphic romance.

This book was more complicated than I was expecting. Politics, prejudice, personal freedom, religion, magic, lust, respect, habit, power... Everything was constantly pulling at each faction, each character, each thought. I think I got whiplash from the sheer number of times Touraine changed her mind.

The characters (Touraine, Luca, Jaghotai, Djasha, Aranan, Cantic, LeRoche, Rogan, Pruett, Tibeau... Honestly, everyone) were so messy. Every single character stood out, made mistakes, felt human and real and raw - whether they were fighting to survive, reaching for power, or just trying to be good people. And as the plot kept going, as events kept going down, I kept wondering "how much more can we take?" And "when will it end?" Because there was just SO MUCH.

There were a few things that stood out as Falling short for me, though. The timeline being the biggest one. Efforts to orient us in the passage of time felt like an afterthought at best. The plot would pick up and it would take maybe two chapters before a random side comment told you it had actually been months since the last plot point. Every single time I had to stop and be like "wait, what? What happened between then and now??" Also, there was a location that kept being mentioned - we even started to go there before events got in the way - but we never actually get there. It kept coming up, over and over, so I kept waiting to see it. Instead, Clark broke the law of Chekov's gun and we never got to see it. Also Pruett - I think she needed to be a lot more present during the meat of the story. Instead, she feels like an ornament or a convenient plot device. Oh, she's still a fantastic character and her thoughts and voice are super clear; but she wasn't utilized to her best potential.

Like... Do I really have to wait however long for the next book?

One of the great military fantasy debut in years!!! The pace is great and the characters are so intriguing. Love that this book is set in a Northern Africa inspired world instead of the typical Euro centric world of past fantasy works. Great to have the two female main characters. The queer rep in this book is well written. Will be looking forward to more from the author

I received this from NetGalley for review

I really enjoyed this book. It is a really interesting, politically heavy, fantasy world, light on the magic and fantasy though.

While I loved the two main characters, there were a few times I questioned their actions. Once in a while, I would ask myself, WHY. With both Luca and Touraine, I would think they went against character in some instances.

While I enjoyed the romance element, it still seemed a little underdeveloped to me and I would have liked a little more development there.

The politics and the rebellion though, this part was FANTASTIC. I loved the Rebels and seeing the inner workings of the politics of this empire!

The ending seemed a little rushed in parts but I am very excited to read book 2 whenever that comes out.

“They have no right to determine how the rest of us live.”

Now this was probably one of the most unique reading experiences ive had. The Unbroken is a story about colonialism and freedom. I’ll start off by saying the story itself is written in the perspective of a colonizer princess and a lieutenant from the colonized land who as a child was taken and brainwashed by the colonizers.


“How long do they have to be patient on their own soil?”

To be completely honest, i was so drained, in the first 60% of the book, and not in a good way. I kept face palming and wanting to claw my eyes out after reading every line, because the perspective was completely from that of the colonizers and i kept screaming, Touraine (the mc) “OPEN YOUR EYES, DONT BE SO DUMB.” “WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU”. And the princess Luca? Yeah i hated that bitch with every ounce of my being. And thats when i realized I’m meant to hate these perspectives. This is exactly what the author had intended to do.

Touraine, was a victim. She was brainwashed and trained and BEATEN DOWN into thinking the people of Qazãl, her original birthplace, were uncivilized, that they were wrong and the Balladairans (the colonizers) were right. And yes she has her own thoughts, yes she sees that this may not be right, but i forgot that Touraine was doing nothing but surviving. A single misstep, a single wavering of loyalties and she’d lose her life and this paired up with the brainwashing, can i really blame her?.

Then there is Luca. I hated her pov, her thought process. Because that is EXACTLY how colonizers think. That is exactly how they talk and treat the rest of us. They bring up reasons, they call it logic and yeah no, none of it justifies your fucking actions? You have a fucking choice and you continue to choose that way. That is on you. And from the way its written i think that was the exact reason this perspective was included. To show how disgusting and self centered actual colonizer mindsets are, that there is no reasoning with them unless it benefits them and the author showcases this brilliantly. I still hate Luca’s character and at the same time appreciate what the author wanted to accomplish because it was done spectacularly.

“We pray for rain.”

In terms of character growth, the character arc of Touraine was done so so well, i have nothing but praise for the author. The book does such a good job breaking down the psychology of such a character and telling a story in such a realistic way, aaah just amazing. And this arc felt even more impactful because the necessary dislike and hate from me as a reader was built in the first half of the characters arc, so when growth happened, it shone dazzlingly. I’ll note that despite the work on the mcs, side characters could have been developed more!

Now the world building and magic. People need to understand world building does not translate to countries. Because we spend the entirety of the book in the same country and yet the history, different parts of that country, the culture, health conditions, all of this builds amazing world building. The magic system too, was explained really well AND NOT in an info dumpy way either, it was sprinkled throughout the book!

The plot, battle sequences, AND THE PLOT TWISTS AAAAAH. Chef’s kiss!

Now with things I didn’t particularly enjoy (even at the end). The romance. Its a colonizer x colonized romance so it in itself was uncomfortable to read about. I’m still collecting my thoughts on it, but what i can say is that it was not handled entirely badly, yet it wasn’t handled the best way either, it also why i’ve not given this book 5 stars. Within this romance by the end, the colonizer was not glorified. It wasn’t anything like ahh my love my colonizer my savior. No nothing like that, we can see that the author had truly tried to separate the romance from this perspective even at the end and for the most part, succeeded. I just think that this could’ve been emphasized better or id prefer to not have this romance at all. With the side “villain” it wasn’t a notable villain, so thats a bit ehh. And i do wish there had been more political aspects, and luca’s character arc to have been moved to some other direction.

“This must be what it’s like to stand at the edge of a cliff and decide to jump.”

All in all, this was an impactful and important book. The author is brave for tackling this issue in this particular way and honestly there were so so good moments (tears around the 82% mark) and just AAAh, it definitely deserves more recognition. Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for providing me with an eARC in exchange of an honest review.

I received an early copy in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Orbit Books and NetGalley.

Touraine is a soldier who was taken from her home to serve an empire. She returns to Qazali on a mission, bringing her home to her birth place. Soon she is embroiled in local politics, torn between the overbearing General Cantic and Luca, the beautiful local governor in their struggle for power.

For me The Unbroken was slow burn for the first 70 percent. While I enjoyed reading, much of the focus was on world building and character development. It was difficult at times to tell where the story was going. A few unexpected twists make it even harder to predict. Thankfully, everything comes together in the end for an epic finale.

I have similar experiences reading the wonderful novels by N K Jemisin, so Clark is in good company. Like Jemisin, once things tie together everything clicks into place. This is the story of a subjugated people and a rebellion. Yet it is also a story of the hard choices everyone in power has to make along the way. They each have to grapple with the question of whether their sacrifices were worth it. Some of them learn that winning isn't everything. It's how you win that matters most.

You might expect a story about imperialism to be grim and violent. The Unbroken avoids gratuitous violence, focusing instead on the relationships between the factions. Many of the older rebels carry with them decades of trauma that we glimpse briefly through their guarded façade.

While there were a few minor issues that bugged me, I was overall satisfied and impressed. I didn't fully understand the motivations of the rebels for most of the book. I'm still not sure if I understand completely. The book also feels a bit limited in scope. Most of it takes place in the same town and a few surrounding outposts. This is likely to be a positive for those who are tired of learning the names of multiple cities and continents in other sprawling fantasy epics. I get the impression that book 2 will open up the world and explore additional areas.

The Unbroken rewards those who stick with it to the end. I look forward to the continuation in book 2. If you enjoy mature gritty fantasy, do not miss The Unbroken. You will not be disappointed.