Series: Bhinian Empire (bk. 2) Prequel to City of a
Thousand Dolls
Genera(s): High Fantasy
Subjects: Asian mythology, shape-shifters, supernatural,
body guards
Setting: The Bhinian Empire, which is under a dome
that cuts it off from the rest of the world.
POV/Tense: 3rd person POV, past tense
rotating between Mara and Emil
Age/Grade Level: Teen
Length: 489 pgs.
HC/PB: Hardcover
List Price: $17.99
Publisher: HarperTeen
Summary/ product description: “Cast out of her family
three years ago, Mara turned to the only place that would take her—a school
where students train to protect others. But Mara is stunned when guarding a
noble girl in the Empire’s capital turns out to be more dangerous than she
could’ve imagined. More shocking still, she finds the boy she thought she had
lost forever outside the gates of her new home.
Mara
knew her life in the dizzying Imperial city would hold dangers. How could she
have known that her heart, as well as her life, would be at stake?
Empire
of Shadows will take readers on a spellbinding journey into the world Miriam
Forster first introduced in City of a Thousand Dolls—a world with a divided
society, deadly courtiers, heroic traitors, and deeply laid conspiracies.”
My Review: Empire
of Shadows is the prequel to City of a Thousand Dolls. It takes place years
before the events in that book occur. I was hoping for a sequel that would
involve the dome around the empire coming down and everyone discovering that
the world outside was different, but this is not the case. That was the only
this that disappointed me about this book. That, and it was almost 500 pages long.
It was not quite as good as City of a Thousand Dolls was, but still pretty
awesome, and I gave it four stars.
Mara is a tiger sune, but she has stayed in human form
for years because she’s afraid of loosing control again. She trained with the
Order of Khatar to become a bodyguard and regain her honor. She sets to find
the one she will pledge to. The other main character, Emil, is part of the
Kildi, a wind caste band of travelers descended from the old empire. They sell
only what the make. They’re kind of like a gypsy bandwagon, but they trade
rather than con. Emil has a fraternal twin brother named Stefan, and their
father is the leader of their group. His father holds him up to high standard
and his brother is always frowned upon for immaturity.
This is an amazing fantasy series. It’s completely
different from the generic high fantasy books that are based off of medieval
England and Europe, and other western cultures. The mythology and culture is
Asian, non-western, mainly India with some Japanese and Chinese elements mixed
in. The Sune, which are animal-spirit shape-shifters, come from Shintoism, a
Japanese religion. The story is tale of culture, friendship, romance, adventure
and discovery. Mara is trying to redeem herself, and Stefan is going after his
brother. They both are searching for something and learning. There was fight
and action with claws and weapon, humor and witty conversation, amazing world
building. It’s a well-rounded, unique fantasy that also has paranormal and
dystopian elements.
I recommend this book to those who enjoyed fantasy
books such as: Soulbound by Heather Brewer, Shadows and Bone by Leigh Bardugo, Cruel
Beauty by Rosamund Hodge, Incarnate by Jodi Meadows, and Prophecy by Ellen Oh.
Those who enjoyed paranormal books such as Vampire Acamdemy by Richelle Mead.
Also those who enjoyed dystopian books such as Divergent by Veronica Roth (the
castes are like factions, kind of), The Selection by Kiera Cass, The Jewel by
Amy Ewing, and any dystopian book that takes place in a cut off society or under
a dome.
Cover Art Review: I love the colors and the text. The
symbols still confuse me. I don’t know what caste they each represent. Colin
Anderson is the cover designer and he did the Burning Sky covers too.
