Four Ruined Realms by Mai Corland is the sequel to Five Broken Blades, and holy moly, what an amazing follow-up to book one! I never thought I would be a fantasy fan, but dang!

Book two really delves into the fantasy of it all! The characters, the story....I actually loved it much more than book one, which I didn't think was even possible!

It's really hard to write a review without giving away to much, so just know this: you will be so enthralled in this book that it'll feel like you're living in that world yourself! It's so full of twists, turns, with an EPIC plot twist you didn't even see coming!!

Mai, you're a freaking genius!

This book was another amazing adventure. We get to see more of the magic that is only really alluded to in the first book. The stakes keep getting higher for the assassins and the consequences can no longer be avoided. I love the way they keep getting closer to one another and more honest and trusting, without trusting and without honesty. The surprises don’t stop coming and now I’ll be not so patiently waiting for the next book.

Rated 4.5 Stars

Four Ruined Realms was one of my most highly anticipated reads and it did not disappoint. I loved it. It was packed with action, adventure, distrust, twists, turns and so much more. It all made for such an amazing read. It was filled with many heart in my throat moments, just when I thought it was safe to relax something else would happen to send my heart right back into my throat. I enjoyed every bit of it. It kept me on the edge of my seat with my eyes firmly glued to the pages. It's definitely an unputdownable read, one that I very highly recommend. I cannot wait to see how it all ends.

Thank you Brittany at Entangled for the early copy 🩷

A perfect sequel?? Yes. Yes it is. I’m FERAL for an unreliable narrator, and we get 6 of them in this book. When you get that many POV’s it can be difficult to keep up with it all, but Mai does a beautiful job! I love a good heist. Add in magic and romance and I’m sold! I truly lost track of how many times I gasped in this book. Please just read this series, you won’t regret it!

Is it possible to read a series where the second book does get better in the first? Start this series you will not be disappointed. This book backs away a little bit from the Romania’s and focuses on the magical fantasy. You still have your romantic entanglements and journey with the group of misfits (love them!) and are able to see them grow on their own without the romance defining them. Absolutely amazing book thank you entangled insiders for this arc

Sequels don’t usually hit the same for me as the first book, but Four Ruined Realms is the exception. I loved it just as much as Five Broken Blades! The characters completely have my heart - they’re flawed, relatable, and make decisions that are sometimes infuriating but always understandable. Mai Corland writes them so well that even their selfish moments feel authentic.

The plot is fast-paced and gripping, with no unnecessary detours. Every step the characters take feels essential to their journey, and honestly, if this series had ten more books, I’d devour them all because nothing feels wasted.

No spoilers, but let me just say the realms aren’t the only things ruined - this book also ruined me in the best possible way.

Thank you, NetGalley and Entangled Publishing, for the ARC of this book!

Well ten hells what a wild ride Four Ruined Realms is!!! Happy pub day to @maicorland and this gem of a book! 🎉

I was over the moon excited to have received an ARC copy of this book as it’s one of my anticipated release of 2025 and it did not disappoint. Picking up where Five Broken Blades these secretive, badass characters are sent on what feels like an impossible mission each with an agenda of their own.

Four Ruined Realms explores how the group has to come together while grappling with their own feelings of anger, betrayal, confusion, shock, and lost trust after the events in book one. I enjoyed this book even more than Five Broken Blades even with the slower pacing and heavier action at the end of the book.

I loved that this book shows all the character POVs allowing for you to try and understand each characters thoughts, motivations, and plans while also comparing to the plan the group has decided on as a whole. It explores how to learn to forgive, earn back trust, or see past one’s own feelings in hopes of understanding someone else.

As expected, there were also reveals that left you reeling as more and more secrets are outed throughout the book. Mai also continued the character growth for each character throughout the book and at different paces.

To say I’m already anxiously anticipating Three Shattered Souls is quite an understatement! 😅

Thank you to the author and @entangled_publishing for the advanced copy of this book! I absolutely loved it!

Thank you to Red Tower for the advance review copy!

I love that this book included a quick recap of what happened in Five Broken Blades. It was the perfect refresher before diving into this book! This book was full of action, politics, and drama. I love all of the characters and their secrets that are slowly coming to light. This book had me totally invested and absolutely wrecked me at points. I’m so grateful there isn’t going to be a long wait for book three because I need it as soon as possible!

I loved this book!! I really enjoyed Book 1, 𝙁𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝘽𝙧𝙤𝙠𝙚𝙣 𝘽𝙡𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙨 last year but it had some cliche moments and a little too focused on romance with a lot of lust/insta-love. But I still gave it a solid four stars for the action, adventure, and eclectic cast of characters. Since we got to know those characters last book, this one was able to jump right into the plot, and it did. I felt like it stayed exciting from start to finish. There were moments of downtime of course, but even then I felt the anticipation of what's going to happen next. The beginning of the book has a list of characters (with pronunciations!!) and a recap of sorts, that did a great job of reminding me what had already happened and where the book left off.

Overall, I read this in about two nights and I was excited about picking it up each time. The chapters are short and a lot of them end in little cliffhangers so it's definitely one of those "I'll just read one more chapter" books. It's multi POV but none of the plot is repeated to get different character's perspectives of the same situation so the story keeps moving along.

The only thing I can think of that I didn't like, was finishing and knowing I have to wait until 2025 for the third and final book!!

Thank you to Red Tower Books, Entangled Publishing, and NetGalley for providing me an eARC in exchange for my honest thoughts.

**Thank you Entangled Publishing and NetGalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review**

To start with, this is a solid 4-star read for me. I enjoyed every single moment I was reading and could not wait to continue each chapter.

Mai Corland is freakishly good at ending each chapter on a cliff hanger, making you desperately want to continue reading. I love that so much. I hope this continues for each and every novel written in this series.

Now, onto the story!

I will refuse to spoil anything, so all I will say is that this is the second novel in the Broken Blades saga and follows the same main characters from “Five Broken Blades.” All story lines are continued expertly, more secrets are revealed (and guarded) concerning each character, and more twists and turns are experienced throughout the novel.

I would not necessarily say that any one character “developed” through the novel, but I personally love them just the way they are.

With the way this novel ended, there will absolutely be a third, and I cannot wait to delve into it.

Four Ruined Realms by Mai Corland was a very fun and intense read. The book follows the same characters as book 1 Royo, Aeri, Mikhail, Euyn, and Sora as they set off on their quest to find the golden ring before king Joon kills them. We also follow Tiyung as he rots away in Idle prison. We meet lots of new friends along the way but experience tragedy and loss as the book comes to a close.

I really enjoyed the pacing of the story once we were around 50% of the way through. The beginning was a bit slow and felt repetitive with the first book of traveling across the realm as they search for the relic, but once the story picked up, it moved and flowed well.

There’s something for everyone in this book. It relies heavily on the fantasy aspects, has a dash of romance with one closed door scene and a cast of pretty awesome characters who all have their own flaws and are trying to work through them.

The book had several twists that I didn’t see coming and I always love that. Overall, it was a solid read and a great sequel to Five Broken Blades.

If you’re intrigued, the release date is tomorrow, January 7th!

Special thanks to @entangled_publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts are my own.

4.5/5 stars

This book is a fantastic continuation of Five Broken Blades as our faves team up for yet another heist with higher stakes and war on the horizon. With heightened tensions from the last book’s betrayals, we get to see the five struggle through teaming up and trusting each other to save the people they care about.

Like the first in the series, I do find the writing to be a little choppy and could probably have done with some more line editing, but overall the story is still a fun and intense ride that will leave you both laughing and crying.

My fave character still remains Aeri——I love seeing a hyperfeminine character be an absolute badass and I will never get enough of her.

I've had this on pre-order since it was announced. I was trying to savor reading this, and I succeeded for a couple of days and then I hit the 50% mark and I had to finish it and could not put it off any more.

I appreciated the fact that there was a catch you up piece at the beginning since it has been a little while since I read the first one. It jogged my memories of everything that had happened ad I was able to jump into reading the story. I think more fantasy book series could use catch up pieces.

I continued to love all of the characters, and their many levels of secrets and lies, Aeri's biggest one is out in the open, but it's not her only one. And things are still up in the air, and the time limit is getting shorter. I yelled, screamed, giggled, almost threw my e-reader across the room. I need the next book immediately.

Highly recommend!!

A HUGE shoutout to Red Tower Books/Entangled Publishing for my early access to a digital ARC of Four Ruined Realms by Mai Corland. This is one of my most anticipated Fantasy releases in 2025!

Last year I fell in love with Corland’s band of misfits, 5 of the deadliest thieves, assassins, and spies in the Yusan kingdom. The action of book 2 picks up immediately after the cliffhanger of Book 1, so you need to read these books in order! Corland masterly writes 5+ 1st person POVs, and she does so craftily, that I was never confused and each POV retained their unique personality and voice. Fast chapters moved this propulsive plot quickly along, and the character arcs and budding relationships between the thieves developed nicely. The gang continues to tackle a new mission while juggled their own desires/fears of betrayal. This book contains another round of fun reveals, and perfectly sets up the next book!

Four Ruined Realms is the second installment in Mai Corland's fantasy series, and it marks a notable step forward from its predecessor. While the first book had its moments—particularly with the intriguing poison master and well-executed plot twists—it struggled with underdeveloped characters and a slow pacing that left me feeling somewhat detached. I gave it a cautious 3 stars. However, this sequel has shattered those reservations, delivering a story that feels more polished, engaging, and emotionally resonant.

One of the standout improvements in Four Ruined Realms is the character development. Each of the main characters felt more fleshed out, with their motivations and actions aligning seamlessly. In fact, Corland has managed to achieve something particularly challenging: crafting characters that you genuinely dislike without them feeling out of place in the narrative. Disliking a character’s actions while still understanding their perspective is a testament to Corland’s growth as a writer.

The pacing of this book also hit a much better stride for me. Unlike the slower, character/plot-driven focus of the first book, this sequel finds its strength in a medium-paced, plot-driven narrative. It strikes an engaging balance, keeping the story moving without sacrificing depth. The improved flow and structure make the worldbuilding and conflicts much more accessible.

That said, the multiperson point of view occasionally worked against the story. At times, it felt repetitive, as certain scenes were retold from multiple perspectives without adding significant new insights. While this approach can enrich a story in moderation, it occasionally bogged down the momentum here.

Despite this minor critique, Four Ruined Realms is an impressive follow-up that exceeded my expectations. Its stronger organization, improved character arcs, and engaging plot have left me genuinely excited for the next book in the series. Corland has clearly found her stride, and I look forward to seeing how the team’s adventures unfold from here.

Rating: 4/5

eARC courtesy of Entangled/Red Tower Books - All thoughts above are entirely my own.

THIS ALL DAY!!! The first book was so good and this one did not disappoint. So excited to see how this series continues to play out. I’m in love with the sprayed edges of these as well. So many versions and I want them all

Loved loved loved this book! To me, it was even better than the first book, which does not happen often. Great storytelling!!

5/5 but I’m not happy. I don’t know how many times my heart was broken and I wanted to throw the book across the room. Next one needs to hurry up because we need some revenge. 👏🏼👏🏼

This series has my entire heart. I honestly love everything about it and can’t help but want more, more, more!

THOUGHTS 💭
🏹 I love all the different perspectives in this series! You get so much insight into all of our different characters, their stories, and their secrets.
🏹 This book has bursts of excitement intermixed with quieter, important moments that define relationships and our characters’ next moves.
🏹 The humor is sardonic and snarky and I found myself chuckling throughout the book.
🏹 This book is suspenseful - I enjoyed the “What’s going to happen next?” and the “How will they get out of THIS?” You don’t know what’s coming in this impossible mission of theirs.
🏹 GAH THAT ENDING! I love these characters and this story and can’t wait for more.

Thank you so much to Mai Corland, Entangled Publishing, and Red Tower Books for the ARC of this book!

Four Ruined Realms continues to follow a group of 5 outcast assassins as they try and save a world on the brink of collapse. They all have a shared mission to stop a rising dark power but lies and betrayal could tear them apart. They must confront their own personal demons while discovering ancient secrets that could save their realm. If they don’t, their world will be destroyed.

I enjoyed this book even more than the first. There was more character development, fantasy, and action that made this a fast paced read. In this book, you see what the characters are willing to sacrifice to succeed. This book left me heartbroken, and wanting more. I can’t wait for the next book in the series! Thank you so much to Entangled Publishing, NetGalley, and Mai Corland for the chance to read this ARC and fall even more in love with this series!