Furyborn (Empirium #1)

By Claire Legrand

Rating: 4/5 Stairs

This was a fun beginning to the Empirium series. It’s fast-paced and full of action. To me, it definitely felt like an introduction to the characters and story to come in the next two books. Two queens have been prophesied, the Blood Queen and the Sun Queen – one will destroy the world and the other will save it.

The book begins with the death of Queen Rielle. From there the chapters alternate to send the reader both back and forward in time. Back two years to learn how Rielle rose to power to become the Sun Queen, prophesied to save the world. And forward 1000 years deep into the rise of the Empire we follow Eliana, the Dread of Orline. The Dread spends her days  hunting down rebels to keep her family secure.

I really liked that this book featured two strong female characters. While Rielle’s story was exciting, I wasn’t quite as interested in it since we ultimately know the outcome of her fate from the first chapter. The backstory does provide understanding and ultimately, I think will make the reader more sympathetic to her choices and fate.

I enjoyed Eliana’s story immensely. She is strong-willed and independent, and everything she does is based on what she thinks is best for those she loves. She doesn’t always make the right choices, but her loyalty drives her, and her conscious and sympathy grow as the story moves forward.

Along with the strong women, magic plays a large part in this fantasy. In Rielle’s time, certain people are blessed with magic, and it is a strong piece of her story. But 1000 years later, magic is the stuff of legends, many believing it never existed in the first place.

Furyborn is action-packed and a fun introduction to the trilogy. The two female characters are both strong and flawed, and anything with magic always adds an element of fun. I’m looking forward to see what happens next!

Many thanks to BookishFirst for providing me with a copy of this book.