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The Bone Shard Emperor Book Review
Lin Sukai has won the battle for emperor, but there is much more she must do. Political tensions are running high, and a construct army threatens the empire. Lin must convince the governors to rally by her side, but she must repair the relationships her father destroyed before it is too late.
The Bone Shard Emperor balances all angles of the political tension. Having been kept in the palace, Lin has a limited view of what is happening in her empire. But as she travels to meet the governors she begins to understand the manipulation and abuse her father wrought on them. Jovis starts to see beyond his rebellious nature and the difference between Lin and her father. Meanwhile, Pahlue and Ranami allow readers to see the governor’s side of the politics and the inner workings of rebellion. Last but not least, Nisong stands for the constructs left behind and abandoned. She seeks retribution for what was done for them and fights for a future.
While the different viewpoints showed how each side of political factions functioned and their goals, less time was spent on bone shard magic and the lore of the world. There are more hints dropped about the Alangas, but the focus remains on the politics of the world and Lin’s struggle to understand how to run her empire and the people within it.
There was also the introduction of romance into the story. However, the romantic subplot in The Bone Shard Emperor was not well developed. Subtle hints and build-up to the realization of feelings were not gone into. It felt more like making sure to include romance to entice a certain type of reader than to actually add to the story. Diving into the characters’ inner feelings and doubts about them would have made the romance much more robust and interesting.
There was also a great opportunity to add the character's emotional response in this novel, however, it did not occur. The repercussions and emotions behind discovering loved ones were used to create new beings from bone shard magic were not explored. Characters who discovered the horrific truth of their loved ones' fate quickly recovered. Given the focus on the horrors of bone shard magic in book one, adding more emotion to this pivotal point in the story would have helped connect the two novels.
The Bone Shard Emperor pivots to focus on the political tension of the world. However, the events of the second book do allude to a more magical third novel. Readers who enjoy the balance of political maneuvering and battles would enjoy this novel.
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