“All magic is beautiful…and terrible. Do you not see the beauty in yours, or the terror in mine? You can stop a heart, and I can stop your breath.” She is heir to a Sultanate that once ruled the world. He is an unwanted prince with the power to destroy.She is order and intellect, a woman fit to rule in a man’s place. He is chaos and violence and will stop at nothing to protect his people.His … stop at nothing to protect his people.
His magic answers hers with shadow for light. They need each other, but the cost of balance may be too high a price. Magic is dying and the only way to save it is to enlist mages who wield the forbidden power of death, mages cast out centuries ago in a brutal and bloody war.
Now, a new war is coming. Science and machines to replace magic and old religion.
They must find a way to save their people from annihilation and balance the sacred Wheel—but first, they will have to balance their own forbidden passion. His peace for her tempest, his restlessness for her calm…
Night and day, dusk and dawn, the end, and the beginning.
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Read it! You’ll enjoy it!
I was always curious about how the readers interpret a too much enthusiastic positive review. Should I start with a “wow” or a “wonderful”? It will be more convincing that Reign & Ruin deserves your attention? Maybe, but I am not that kind of person. Plus, I think that, within certain limits, there’s no accounting for tastes. Therefore, instead of starting with a (sincere) WOW, I will tell you several things that I liked.
Fantasy – The characteristic of the fantasy genre are all present. They are manipulated in a way in which you will not be tented to compare Reign & Ruin with other stories or, if you do, to see that Reign & Ruin is a winner.
Story – The author masterly succeeded a nice balance between the components of the story: romance, women position within political intrigues, adding even small but nicely done action parts.
The impossible love is a well-used theme, but J.D. (I hope it is not a breach of the etiquette to use your first name… initials , as Naime feared) brought freshness and a layered passion in her love story. Even the more explicit scenes are better and more passionate than many other consecrated authors and they could be considered as being “useful” for the story (I think I’m saying this for the first time).
Women’s position in the social and political context could very easily fall into an empty, harmful political correctness and wrong understanding of feminism. Fortunately, it is not the case. At the very end, there is a kind of “deus ex machina” which I would have not introduced as I consider that it reduces the heroine’s success, but I could see its scope in the author’s view.
A very important aspect, greatly appreciated by me, is that J.D. does not tell us but shows us everything she wanted to tell, even when it is under a dialogue form. By the way, I thoroughly enjoyed the dialogues; they are witty, they are funny or serious, they are realistic and well-conducted. The intellectual and physical aspects play together without trying to conquer the other.
Characters – Main or supporting, I did not find someone or something to not like. Everything is substantiated, supported by what it was, is or is expected to be. Good or bad, the characters evolve, revealing their true selves in the right moment within plotting evolution. I could say that many of you could discover a new “book-boyfriend”, but you will not have the courage to claim him seeing how great “they” are together.
Setting – Inspired by the J.D. experience in Lebanon, the setting is construed in Arabic notes. Having in view the common points of the Islamic world and due to my national history regarding the Ottoman Empire, in addition to the pleasure of discovering a beautiful story, I had the pleasure of trying to identify the elements and notions that J.D. used (sometimes from the French influence) in what I knew it was. Doing that I could also see better that, J.D. used the social, cultural, political, and military features for the story but did not suffocate the story with them. The necessity of establishing the proper context had reduced a little bit the pace in the first pages, but this “issue” was solved quickly.
So, if you want to discover and enjoy a new author and her story, come and navigate the Courts machinations for power and titles together with the Sultana and her Agassi.
Read it! You’ll enjoy it!
The Mages of the Wheel is my newest favorite adult fantasy series! J.D. Evans writes achingly beautiful words with her wonderful cast of characters. She has struck the right balance between tension and romance. Her characters experience deep emotions. The love scenes are raw and honest. Her world-building is descriptive with the good and the bad of these interesting cultures and their caste systems. The author keeps the pace moving with plenty of action and adventure. The court intrigue is intense and the magic system fascinating.
Each book features new characters who face their own unique challenges in a dangerous world of power and politics. In Reign & Ruin we find a world on the brink of war and one woman who has a plan that will save the people of at least two nations. Naime is an Air Mage and the sole heir to a Sultanate with a big vision and few people that she can trust. It’s lonely at the top, especially as a female, but her path leads her to a few new allies. One of them is Makram, a feared Death Mage from a neighboring land and brother to King Kinus. He admires Naime, but his loyalty to his brother comes first and his brother’s vision doesn’t align with Naime’s. Will Naime and Makram find a way forward when their kingdoms are trying to destroy them both?
3.5 Stars
So this was an interesting plot-led fantasy romance read, the first book in a new series.
It’s heavily influenced by the middle-east borrowing extensively from that culture.
It’s full of political intrigue and court politics throughout.
Set in a fantasy culture where the old ways are very much adhered to especially in regards to male and female interaction.
Here your whole reputation can be destroyed on the whisper of a rumour or the whim of a malicious destructive tongue.
This is a land split down the middle, a land of magic and mages.
The overall language used here is very much of the old-style with an almost formal but also lyrical quality to it.
So the first third of this is really slow, I was a tad bored and this did affect my overall rating somewhat.
It is well worth sticking around for the rest though as when this does actually take off this was surprisingly good.
The romance here is very slow burn and it did take a while to get moving so much so that I was initially worried about the chemistry or lack thereof but this was not an issue these two definitely developed the needed chemistry to work as a couple as this story progressed.
In fact, I adored the developed dynamic these two eventually shared together.
less alpha he-man than I was expecting also but without taking away any of Makram’s allure in the process.
He was a complex individual with a loyal warm heart and a fabulous sense of humour.
He has a deep vein of integrity and decency running straight through his core add in his humbleness and respect for others he was quite the man.
Despite the way others have acted towards him or maybe even because of it Makram has developed an almost humble attitude and lack of pretence that would otherwise not have been possible with a more lavish upbringing.
Makram is first and foremost a soldier and protector of those he cares for.
His one weakness is his brother and he is blind to his many faults making excuses for his behaviour and lying to himself.
It is only upon seeing Naime and the way she leads using her whole heart as well as her head that he silently begins to questions and the cracks begin to appear as he starts to question the blind faith he has shown all his life towards his older sibling.
Naime has a powerful vision of the future and being born female in this male-dominated society is not going to stop her ambitions or hold her back any.
She knows what she wants and has been navigating the shark-infested waters of her father’s court for years.
With her father’s health declining and an unwanted political marriage looming she walks a razor’s edge regarding her future.
What she isn’t used to is the deep feelings and perceived weaknesses brought forth by the enigmatic Makram.
While politically equipped to handle any situation in matters of the heart Naime is at a distinct disadvantage here she is very naive and unpracticed.
This plays out against the rich tapestry of magic and mystique as our two lovers fall deep for each other.
It is well written with interesting and rich side characters and despite that slow start, this was still a good read.
I voluntary reviewed a copy of Reign & Ruin (Mages of the Wheel, #1).
Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
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This was a beautifully written story with complex characters. I will definitely be looking for more from this author because this was a wonderful first try.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.