So because I noticed that there was mentionings of past events in the synopsis, I assumed this was a sequel almost immediately after getting approved for it.

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit Books for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

"Empire of Exiles" by Erin M. Evans is a pretty intriguing read with a mix of mystery, engaging characters, and a cool magic system. The premise had me interested right away—"An empire, protected from evil forces by a wall of salt, is filled with secrets and a sense of lurking danger. A young man, bored of his job, is sent to retrieve some artifacts for a pompous noble. Little does he know that these artifacts will bring a great change to the empire of Semilla When he and a room full of nobles witness a murder most foul, this young man turns out to be the only reliable witness to the murder, but no one in power believes his story. He must now join with a young mage, a seasoned archivist, and a disillusioned detective to find the truth of the attack. What they uncover will be the key to saving the empire—or destroying it for good."

One of the standout features in this book is the magic system. Mages have an affinity for certain materials, and their powers can get stronger during specific alignments, which leads to something called "spiraling." I have to say that at first, reading about these spirals was uncomfortable for me because they reminded me of myself when I had anxiety attacks. The way the characters experience these episodes and calm down is very similar to how anxiety attacks work in real life. It took me three tries to get past this discomfort, but once I realized why it was bothering me, I was able to enjoy the rest of the book.

However, the initial discomfort with the spiraling episodes did make it hard to get into the book at first. But after pushing through that, the book's strengths became clear, and I could appreciate the complex world and the intriguing plot.

“Remember this: when we don’t clear the brush of injustice, we as good as set the fire ourselves.”

Another great thing about this book is that the main characters are well-developed and interesting. Most of them were engaging, and their personal struggles and growth added a lot to the story. The villain, the Shriek, is a truly creepy and menacing presence—a twisted being with a horrifying nature. The Shriek made for a great antagonist, and I was really into seeing how the characters would deal with such a threat.

All in all, "Empire of Exiles" is a solid fantasy novel with plenty to offer. This book had plenty of twists and turns that kept me guessing throughout my reading. The unique magic system and well-crafted mystery make it worth a read, even if it takes a bit of persistence to get past the challenging parts. If you like fantasy with dark, twisty plots and memorable villains, you'll probably enjoy this one. I'm looking forward to picking up the next book and seeing where Erin will take us with the overarching plotlines she sets up in this book.

Would I recommend it? Yes, but keep in mind that if you find the spiraling episodes uncomfortable or triggering, it might take a bit to get into. Once you do, it's a rewarding adventure through a well-built world.

3.5 stars out of 5

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for an ARC of Empire of Exiles by Erin M Evans.

Empire of Exiles by Erin M. Evans is a captivating fantasy novel that takes readers on a thrilling journey through a world filled with magic, intrigue, and adventure. Set in a richly imagined fantasy realm, the book follows a diverse cast of characters as they navigate the complexities of power, loyalty, and identity.

One of the most compelling aspects of Empire of Exiles is its well-developed characters. Evans excels at creating multifaceted protagonists who grapple with their own inner demons while also facing external challenges. From the enigmatic leader with a mysterious past to the skilled warrior seeking redemption, each character is uniquely drawn and contributes to the richness of the story.

The world-building in Empire of Exiles is also top-notch. Evans expertly crafts a vibrant and immersive setting, complete with intricate political dynamics, fantastical creatures, and ancient mysteries waiting to be unraveled. Readers will find themselves fully immersed in this captivating world, eagerly turning the pages to uncover its secrets.

The plot of Empire of Exiles is fast-paced and filled with twists and turns that will keep readers on the edge of their seats. As the story unfolds, alliances are forged, betrayals are revealed, and destinies are fulfilled in unexpected ways. Evans masterfully weaves together multiple storylines, building tension and suspense until the very end.

Overall, Empire of Exiles is a must-read for fans of epic fantasy. With its richly imagined world, complex characters, and gripping plot, it's a book that will leave readers eagerly anticipating the next installment in the series. Erin M. Evans has crafted a truly unforgettable tale that will appeal to fantasy readers of all ages.

I ended up DNFing this book about 2 chapters in. I found it very confusing and based on other reviews it didn't seem like this was going to change.

I had very few expectations going into this book. I'm not the biggest fan of the mystery genre and everything about the marketing about this book screamed "generic fantasy world" to me. Well, Erin Evans definitely proved me wrong in every way, and I absolutely devoured this book over a couple of sittings.

The novel takes place in a small country on an isthmus/peninsula behind a giant wall made of salt. There are evil magical creatures on the other side of the wall known as Changelings that can control people's bodies, thoughts, and actions. They swept throughout the continent, ravaging chaos wherever they went. The survivors moved all moved behind the salt wall, giving their allegiance to their emperors. This conceit for a story is so clever and Evans uses it to its maximum potential. On one hand the existence of the Changelings creates a tangible feeling of paranoia and anxiety throughout the book. Have the Changelings crossed the wall? Who is good and who is bad? While reading I kept thinking that this book was like the White Walkers from A Song of Ice and Fire turned up the maximum speed because the Changelings are not only on the other side of the wall, they can literally control people like puppets.

Evans also uses her worldbuilding to explore the ramifications of all of the survivors coming in and forming a single nation (where the title of the book gets its name). Evans fills her book to the brim with people of different nationalities, ethnicities, races, and species. For example, one of the POV characters, Yinii, is a member of a species that has horns and a third eye that allows them to see in the dark. Evans world feels so complete and lived in because the setting is full of diverse people with different religions, worldviews, and philosophies.

I do want to point out that a lot of the worldbuilding in this book is quite passive. There are no info-dumps, and as the reader you have to put a lot of the pieces together on your own. This creates some confusion in the beginning as you try and follow what is happening in both the plot and the worldbuilding. In most cases this just par for the course in reading epic fantasy, but there are some of the ethnicities/nationalities that are thrown at you with such speed that they all just felt the "same" and I didn't really make any attempts to separate the minor ones out. I would like to see this developed more in the sequels!

Empire of Exiles is also a multi-POV book, following four major characters, along with a couple of others in a series of flashbacks. The POVs are used well, and Evans nicely prevents the story from sprawling too much. Instead of the using the various POVs to expand the stories sprawl (a la Jordan or Martin), she instead uses them to give us four different perspectives on the one major single plot driving the narrative (that is, what is essentially a murder mystery). We get the perspectives of a young legal scholar, a magic user, a police detective, and a mysterious woman who is in charge of the Archives - the place where all of the cool stuff the exiled people brought with them behind the salt wall. The brief flashback chapters also intriguingly dripped information to add context to the present narrative, allowing Evans to continue to keep twisting the plot.

Evans has also imbued her novel with some interesting magic, although don't go looking for an "all magic, all the time" kind of story. Other than the Changelings that I talked about earlier, there are some people who have specialized magical power over particular elements or substances (think things like copper, ink, bronze, wool, iron, etc.). The strength of their power cycles, and at its peak the magic can overwhelm the user. This puts the magic user into an extreme state in which they are of a danger to themselves and others. Because of this, individuals with powerful skills are sent to the Archives where they can be monitored (not necessarily in a really bad way, but in a “we need to keep everyone safe” kind of way). At the Archives, the magic users become specialists in order to help preserve and document the world’s many wonders that were brought with them during the Exile. The "Spiral" creates a lot of tension in the book since magic users are so powerful, but also so unstable. This creates a particularly tense climax to the novel for a few of the characters!

And yes, there are plot twists! I'm not a reader who tries to "predict" what will happen (I just like to be shocked!), and there were definitely some twists and turns that completely got me! And, unlike a lot of other twisty or other mystery fantasies, I never felt like the twists were unfair or unearned. They all make sense in the context of the story, characters, and setting.

One aspect of the series that I am intrigued to see develop is the tone and overall "purpose" of the story. As I stated above, Empire of Exiles is a fantasy mystery whodunnit. By the end of the novel, this mystery is solved and larger political and supernatural conflicts are brewing. Some authors/series nicely transition out of these growing pains to become something greater than the small, targeted plot of their first volumes, while other series grow and meander into stereotypical "good vs. bad" epic fantasies (while others, like Era 1 Mistborn lose their way before finding their footing again). With what Evans gave us here in this first book I have no doubts that she has awesome things in store for Quill, Yinii, Medea, Richa and the rest!

Concluding Thoughts: Erin Evans has written a propulsive fantasy mystery with subtle yet intricate worldbuilding and the promise of much bigger things to come in future books.

Empire of Exiles is a fantasy mystery with a cast of characters connected to the imperial archives-- a place brimming with the histories and artifacts of ten cultures. Here, those born with affinities for specific materials use their abilities to learn about the artifacts in their care. The downside of these natural talents is a boundless, consuming curiosity akin to addiction, swallowing specialists whole when they're calendrically "in alignment." When this happens, generalists are charged with bringing them back to themselves before the material takes over.

The ten ancestral groups of the empire once fled the changeling invasion and found themselves safe within the Salt Wall, now protectorates of the Semillan Empire rather than independent nations. And while the concept of changelings who can take the shape of even a dear loved one, impersonating them completely with the right training, still lives on as a source of fear in the public consciousness-- it's a distant thought. After all, changelings are safely kept out by the wall. Or so everyone assumes.

The story takes place in the aftermath of a failed coup attempt. Though it's decades in the past, it's left an indelible mark on what was supposed to be a united, peaceful empire. And this moment in time has a particular bearing on our mystery in the present. Details of the coup are revealed through the characters, but also each section of the book starts with a key flashback to clue the reader into the bigger picture.

The murder mystery is enshrouded in political conspiracy in the present with a busy cast of characters to investigate. I love a whodunnit like this where all the characters hold only part of the story. It makes me desperate for them to collaborate even as I understand exactly the distrust that keeps them apart... and all the more satisfied when I get the epic team-up I desire. Plus, the fantasy components keep readers on their toes. Without knowing the limits of the world, from mysterious venoms to saintly powers, anything could happen.

The only official investigator is Richa, and he's been told to let the case go. The assumed murderer is dead with all kinds of evidence against him, including multiple (overly?) consistent witness statements. But there's no motive to speak of. And worse, Richa's inquiries run up against the indomitable "no" of the imperial family, so his work must continue in only an unofficial capacity. Other POVs come from Quill, a scribe whose best friend was caught red-handed before killing himself at the scene before Quill's very eyes. Grieving and determined, he stands up for who he knows his friend to be even when everything's stacked against him. Meanwhile, Yinii feels torn between her affinity for ink which earns her a job at the archives, and a family who finds her specific skills impossible to understand. And my favorite of the protagonists was the one with the most complicated history -- Amadea Gintanas. She has a calm and compassionate teacherly vibe I can't help but empathize with as she organizes the specialists in her care and keeps them safe as their generalist. She's reliable and good in a crisis, even when she's roiling with PTSD and anxiety internally. Amadea is first drawn into this mess when two of her specialists' families are affected by the murder. Then, Quill seeks sanctuary at the archives. And finally, Amadea's spotty past catches up to her.

I love this book's inspiring, nerdy setting, political duplicity, and charming characters. It's a rich world with both depth and breadth. Though not necessarily dark, it definitely has that academia vibe (and just my flavor, too). Archivists argue about provenance, categorization, and the purpose of historical objects with passion. I love the mystery components, the action and revelations right up to the end, and the promise of more world-building to come. Thank goodness the sequel is just around the corner. And thanks to Orbit for my copy to read and review!

Not enough substance, too little plot to drive the story early. This had an early hook but then the pace slowed to a crawl with constant info dumps that otherwise put off what I generally found to be a plain story, heavily focussed on its characters, that were simply not the center of focus of enough of the 150+ pages I made it through. As with other reviews: while some people loved this one, others just found it meh, or burned out entirely. Not something for everyone, but my boredom with it isn’t indicative of the whole.

Thanks so much to the publisher and NetGalley for an eARC of this book in exchange for my honest review!

Empire of Exiles is an insanely unique fantasy in which the magic system is like no other I've ever read. People in this world can have an affinity for very specific things like gold, or stone, or ink. They can touch something within their "category" and know everything there is to know about where/how it was created or where it came from. However, they walk a double-edged sword because they can spiral too deeply into something and essentially become that object. It was SO different than anything I've ever read, and you combine that with the murder mystery that is taking place as the overall plot??

I can't even go into all of the things I loved about this book but if murder mystery fantasy with a magic system and worldbuilding unlike anything you've seen before sounds interesting to you, definitely give this a shot. I loved this and am eagerly awaiting book 2 in the series.

Great debut!! I actually purchased a physical copy of this book when it released because I loved it so much! I couldn't put this down. Great plot, engaging characters, and a unique world that you just want to be in! I can't wait for book 2!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

A fun romp! Loved the setting (archives!) and the characters were great but realistic and relatable. Neat magic system and worldbuilding. I’m not usually one for murder mystery vibes but there were enough other fantasy elements here to assuage me.

The unlimited possibilities of the genre make fantasy so enticing to me, and Empire of Exiles by Erin M. Evans, one of the best books of 2022, takes full advantage of that. Its setting is one of the most unique I’ve read in years. The character’s motivations, voices, flaws, and quirks are so well-defined that it is difficult to pick a favorite. The plot is a murder mystery, a thriller, and a fantasy all at once. It contains many secrets, twists, and turns that make the pages fly by. That includes flashbacks of an infamous usurper in his final days that serve as a framework device for the present-day mystery. Suffice it to say, I ate this delicious meal of a book up in quick succession. It’s the kind of book I’ll recommend to everyone to read simply so there are more people to talk to about it.

Everything starts with a murder-suicide. Quill’s best friend and fellow scrivener, Karimo, murders some important figures at a party and then kills himself at a party just as Quill arrives to hear his last words. What starts as a simple scrivener through grief is trying to make sense of how the Karimo he’s always known to take pride in the law could be the same one who commits this heinous crime. This begins a snowball effect leading to a grander conspiracy involving the royal family, a former childhood romance, a poison not seen in years, and an assassin gone missing after a failed coup. In a way, everything starts with that coup when Duke Redolfo Kirazzi’s conspiracy to usurp the crown and put his pawn on the throne. He failed, and we see his final days before his execution when his brother comes to visit. This frames the modern-day mystery to a surprising climax, with me biting my nails and foregoing sleep to finish the book. Who needs sleep anyway?


Actually, all of this starts with changelings, whether they be monsters or a race of people themselves, that can take the form of your loved ones, your neighbors, and your leaders looming over the entire story. The threat of changelings is a constant that underlines a lot of conflict in the story, especially the political ones, with their only protection a large salt wall that keeps the changelings out but also keeps them all trapped in. People of multiple nations forced to flee their homelands, histories, and cultures to all squeeze into this one nation at the continent’s edge is an idea for a world rich with possibilities. The world-building is weaved so well into the intrigue, the mystery, the conspiracy, and the overall plot that you’ll not realize you’re being taught about the Imperial Federation of Semillan Protectorates, or Semilla for short, as it goes along. Politics are front and center in this fantasy mystery thriller of a book as it takes place in Arlabecca, the capital of Semilla, the same city that contains the Imperial Archives, holding what could be saved from the old world.

However, the Imperial Archives is the backbone of this book. A request for artifacts within is the catalyst of the inciting incident; it is an integral point of interactions for the POV characters; it is where the book’s best secrets are kept and then revealed, and what may be most important of all is where we learn about the world’s magic system. People with affinity magic can speak to and manipulate particular objects like bronze, ink, and bones, but some have too much of it. The Archive’s specialists often have affinities so strong that the material they connect with can overtake them physically and mentally to the point of hurting themselves and others. This level of affinity magic reads like anxiety and panic disorders, but Evans never writes them like they are a weakness, which is both commendable and remarkable. Even when the characters think of it as a weakness themselves, they have a support system to talk them down and hype them up. Like all great fantasies, secrets about the magic of this world are hinted at throughout Empire of Exiles. Still, no matter what is revealed, I hope the excellent depiction of its similarities to anxiety disorders continues.

Not counting the flashback sections of the book, there are four point-of-view characters, each brought into the murder mystery for different reasons, with different goals and stakes to resolve what happened. Brother Sesquillo, or Quill to most, is a member of the Order of Scriveners of Parem who is better with people than the more detail-oriented part of being a scribe as opposed to his closest friend Kirimo until he witnessed the traumatic incident of his friend murdering a political figure and then killing himself. It’s heartbreaking to watch Quill become obsessed with proving his friend’s innocence as he becomes increasingly hyperfixated with grief to the point that he puts himself in the crosshairs of a greater conspiracy at work. Quill’s loyalty to his friend, his charm without being smarmy, and his cunning without being overly clever are the qualities that make him so enjoyable to read and root for. You could see Quill’s faults in anyone who had gone through a traumatic experience like him: jumping to conclusions, becoming obsessed with the murders, and acting before thinking. Amadea Gintanas, archivist superior of the Imperial Archive, balances Quill’s more erratic grief-ridden behavior by being the voice of reason for Quill and all the specialists. Due to her past trauma, she is very protective of her charges, even Quill, whom she has just met. What I love about Amadea’s depiction is so often, mental disorders are treated as a hindrance to protagonists in stories, but in what resembles PTSD, Amadea manages her trauma and uses her experience to help others. She is strong with the disorder, not because she has magically overcome it. Her past is integral to the plot, and Evans does not leave the reader hanging along trying to figure it out before laying her cards on the table.

One of those specialists under Amadea’s care is Ynni, quite the opposite of Quill in terms of personality but just as lovable. She is soft-spoken, anxious, and full of self-doubt, but get her talking about a subject she’s interested in and lights up with joy as Quill quickly learns. Her growth in confidence as the book goes on while dealing with her affinity to ink feels partially due to Quill’s influence as the two grow close but just as much her wanting to take action to help with the situation Quill and Amadea have gotten themselves into. Quill likewise learns to think things through more, be more careful, and suspect in his actions as he tries to figure out what happened to his friend. Through her eyes, we learn how harrowing it is to have an affinity and learn about the Oruzandi’s culture and how it is very conducive to Ynni’s condition. If Amadea is the voice of reason, Ynni is the voice of compassion and caution. She has a lot of empathy for others, and the readers likewise get plenty of it by reading her perspective. Richa Langyuan is a member of the Vigilant Kinship, the equivalent of the lawkeepers in Semelia. Langyun is straight-up the beat detective of the story whose chapters tend to contain all the juicy tropes of a whodunit story I love. He has a checkered past that colors his perspective on the case when his instincts tell him it doesn’t feel right. He is ordered to stop asking so many questions, but that only makes him want to ask more. When the choice of his career or the truth is presented to him, he puts the white hat on and chooses the truth.

All of this is helped by the rapport of the point-of-view characters. Amadea and Richa both have their pasts, secrets, and jobs to do, which sometimes clash, but often, you can see they have a good banter back and forth between them. Likewise, as the book goes on, it’s clear that Ynni and Quill have a growing affinity to each other. They grow closer as the conspiracy unwraps, each being there for the other, Quill casually flirting with Ynni, Ynni growing more fond of Quill as he sticks around. By the end, Quill and Ynni are so adorable together that it’s easy to put aside that their meet-cute is built on a traumatic incident and just rooting for them to smooch. Likewise, the mutual respect between Amadea and Richa feels like there might be something more there, but not necessarily. The supporting cast goes a long way, as well. From the eccentric members of the Imperial Archives to the Semelian Royal Family, each helps set the tone for the scenes they’re in and the overarching story. It helps that Evan’s dialog doesn’t suffer from people don’t talk like this, even with the fantasy concepts thrown in. It has levity, hubris, longing, frustration, flirtation, and utter fear that you can read coming out of these characters when they speak.

I could write a thousand more words about why I love this book, probably more, but I’d prefer you go out, support it, read it yourself, and get the same feeling I did when I first read it. Empire of Exiles by Erin M. Evans is a triumph of fantasy, murder mystery, and political thriller that handles grief, PTSD, panic, and anxiety disorder with tact. Its characters, from the protagonists to the supporting cast, are lovable and flawed, with villains that are inexcusable with swagger you can’t help but smile at. The reveals will have you reeling but unable to stop reading. I cannot wait to read what Evans has cooking up for the follow-up.

3.5 ⭐️ rounded up. This book was just a fun romp, however it didn’t leave a massive lasting impact. If you want a murder mystery that is setting the stage for a much bigger conflict to come in a Dungeons and Dragons-esque world with some really cool magic…then look no further. With where this book left off I am really excited to see what happens next. The major drawback is I just never felt anything for any of the characters, I was just here for the fun mystery and world.

Empire of Exiles attracted me with a combination of a great name, a cool cover, and an awesome premise. While I have some small gripes with the book, I did overall really enjoy it and definitely recommend it.

I started out a bit confused because there are a lot of different names to keep up with for places and people. Eventually though you get used to that. It continues throughout the book but in time you start to pick out which ones are more important to keep track of and which ones aren’t quite as important.

The archives make a very intriguing center point for the story to revolve around. Between the information found there, the people being trained or coming to get help there, and the relationships forming there, there are always more layers of intrigue being peeled back. It’s also the place where we experience and learn about much of the magic, which is different to me from anything else I’ve read. I’ve always loved magic having a cost to the user and this one is quite interesting.

I really liked the characters. Quill feels pretty realistic. His age shows through his overeagerness and righteousness in a way that experience burned out of some of the other characters. He is excitable in a way that doesn’t always benefit his character and steers him wrong a couple of times but that just endeared him even more to me and made him feel more lifelike, which is important in more ways than one in this story.

He isn’t the only character that makes mistakes sometimes but what I love about this book is that this is often pointed out by others or makes sense in the situation due to the emotions the characters are experiencing. They’re so deeply affected that it’s difficult to see past their fears or other feelings in a way that feels relatable. The frantic energy of spiraling in particular is conveyed really well.

I did sometimes find this book a little bit too convoluted. There is a lot of intrigue and I loved learning about the political machinations but sometimes it was really difficult to keep up with the small details that seem to make all the difference. I also felt that sometimes the characters focus on clues that feel rather flimsy in the situation but it is convenient to do so to move the story forward. In contrast to that though, it also stunned me a couple of times in a good way. I love it when a book takes me off guard and makes me go OOOHHHH out loud. This one actually managed that more than once.

So while there were a couple of things that didn’t completely work for me, overall the positives heavily outweighed those. I wanted to read this book any chance I got because I had to know what would happen next. I love how the action is mixed up with the intellectual in this story and can’t wait to read the next one.

To begin this review, I’ve been excited about this book since I heard about it at the Gen Con Writer’s Symposium 2022, and when I got an e-ARC from the publisher through NetGalley, I was excited and wanted to read it soon…but then life got busy and my reading slump kept me from reading a lot of what I wanted to. So, when I finally got around to picking this book up, the finished copy had been out in the world for months, and I had already purchased it. Now my finished copy is also signed, since I had the privilege of meeting author Erin M. Evans at Gen Con 2023.

I liked this book, but I wanted to love it. It took me longer than I would have liked to really get drawn into things. We begin the book with a before scene, from just after an attempted coup, and I found that section to be rather interesting and compelling…and then we jumped forward almost a few decades, and with new characters to follow, I had to readjust and while it was good, I didn’t feel that same drive and interest.

But I stuck with it, because I wanted to know what would happen, and I wanted to get more information about the uprising and attempted coup. And I’m really glad I stuck around, because the story really starts to build.

There’s a lot of time spent getting to know the characters and the world, and slowly weaving these threads of characters and intrigue together. If you keep going then the tapestry that is woven from all of these elements really becomes something quite fascinating. As more gets revealed, the pieces start to come together, and it makes you really want to keep going to learn more.

I’m also just a sucker for a seemingly motley crew of individuals with different skills and abilities coming together to solve a larger problem or a greater mystery. And I did really start to enjoy Quill and Amadea and Yinni and Richa.

I should also point out that I really found the magic system to be interesting, especially considering that it seemed to cause many of the characters to have to deal with panic spirals and panic attacks. Even more than that, a number of characters have to face PTSD and are dealing with grief, on top of these panic spirals, and I appreciated that none of these characters were portrayed as weak because of this. In fact, they were seen as strong because they had these struggles and faced them.

Anyway, I’m glad I read this book, and I definitely plan to pick up book two, which is set to be released in April 2024.

This is an epic fantasy that just screamed like something I was going to love and I DID! It takes place decades after a brutal failed coup attempt. A young scribe arrives in the capital city and suddenly finds himself at the center of a murder that could threaten the empire. To discover the truth,  he teams up with a mage, an archivist, and a detective. So a whodunit mystery set in an epic fantasy environment, reminds me a little of The Justice of Kings, one of my favorite books so my love for both of these is definitly shared, we have a winner.

Blog Post goes live July 18th

Empire of Exiles is, for me, probably the most under represented fantasy I’ve read in a while. For one, the cover does not do this justice. This book is a complicated, multi PoV story with a murder mystery at it’s heart. But you’d never guess that from the map and random objects we get. So take my advice, even if you read no further - ignore the cover. Read the blurb and if you’re interested dive in, it’s so good.

The mystery itself is fantastic. Our first PoV character is Quill who is in the city at the Archives to request material for someone in the royal family. The Archives works as a giant library of sorts for this empire’s races. Artifacts, books, records. It’s all housed here and managed by Specialists (those with magic that allows them to talk to these man made materials) and Generalists who assist the specialists. Think of them as magical librarians. Quill works in basically a legal assistant role. While in town waiting on those artifacts he sees a shocking and gut-wrenching murder occur involving his closest friend.

From there he works with Amadea, the head of the Specialists in the Archives, Yinii, one of the Specialists, and Richa who is a Vigilant (basically a cop). Slowly this turns into more than just a murder mystery as the players involved are and were involved in revolutions and the founding of this empire of exiled races, chased from their homelands by Changlings and kept safe by a large Salt Wall.

The one flaw I’ll point out is that this story is slow to start and slow to build the world. It doesn’t do a bad job but the beginning can feel a bit like a sink or swim situation. It took some time before I was able to fully grasp what things and why characters were in positions they were, but once I had a handle on what was happening I flew through this. The characters are interesting and flawed. The story is engrossing and I was glued to those last 200 and some pages like a feral person.

The magic system is also something I loved. The majority of it is based around the idea of people having affinities for man-made or manipulated things. Bronze, ink, glass, etc. Some people have affinities, low grade abilities to sense and see the materials. The next level up are Specialists who can communicate, manipulate, and sense the materials. However at this level the skill is dangerous as it’s possible to fall into an obsessive state where you simply become the material, inadvertently killing yourself. These states come in cycles and this is why these individuals work in places such as the Archives. The next level up is the Sorcerers, who are constantly on the cusp of that state. In a constant state of madness and tension and are terrifying beings that can turn into that material. Including other people. Such a clever and fascinating system, and thinking about it in conjunction with the Changelings… I have theories!

I can’t wait to read the next, I’ve already pre-ordered it and I can’t wait to see more people pick this up. Please give it a shot if you haven’t yet, it’s well worth it.

This is an interesting one to review. If I were to rate the characters and the writing style I think the review would be closer to 4/4.5 stars. However, while the concepts were all fantastic the actual execution of those elements of plot were really overworked. The world building is simultaneously lush and exceptionally muddled and confusing. The lore of the world is rich and also vague and puzzling. Every element of the plot felt like a double edged sword, just when you think you understand the world/politics/history you are left with 5 more questions that don't get answered. I almost feel as though this book attempted to lay out too much of the political and historical lore of the world that was not entirely relevant yet for the plot and it wasn't done in the smoothest way.

The plot conceptually was interesting and I really liked the characters. I am hoping on a reread my fondness will only grow since the foundation for a great book is there, and I expect by book 2 the world will find its footing. I did really enjoy this but I just found it left me wanting.

I adore everything Erin M. Evans writes. She has a way to spin plots within plots. Can't wait for book 2

DNF at 33%

So much of this book sounds interesting! I love the various vocations of the main characters. I loved the world building and history of this place, with the giant salt wall keeping all the changelings out. I like the "era" the world seems to be set in, which is kindof pre-modern but perhaps age of enlightenment. I even liked most of the major characters.

Alas, the first third of this book has SO much info-dumping. Each page is absolutely littered with new characters and types of people and pairings of magic and I just couldn't be bothered to learn all of this up front. My interest kept waning, and finally I had to throw in the towel.

A ruined civilization. A sequestered city. And a story told through the eyes of archivists who study the collected works of those cultures lost to time and war.

You can tell that Evans is a massive nerd who poured all of her knowledge into this book. She throws everything under the sun into the worldbuilding and while that sometimes overshadows the murder mystery and character work, it all gels nonetheless.

The world Evans has built up feels ripe for exploration and it’s setting up for a great trilogy. With the murder mystery solved and a larger conspiracy laid bare, I’m intrigued to see what shape the next book will take.