Fabulous reads: Trouble is brewing in the lands

The Memory of Fire, Callie Bates, Jonathan Ball Publishers, ISBN: 9781473638815

This book is the second installment of the well-received The Walking Land series.

In book one we met Lady Elanna Valtai who was kidnapped by her father’s enemy and raised in his court. When the King, who is also her surrogate father, is poisoned, all eyes turn to Elanna as the culprit. She flees to her homeland and ends up heading a rebellion against the only home she remembers with the help of her taboo earth magic.

ALSO READ: Fabulous reads – Queenly tale approaches its conclusion

Book two differs slightly as it is from Jahan’s point of view: Elanna’s love interest. The story line continues right where The Walking Land ended but it is now Jahan’s struggle and plight we follow. As the empire reels from the independence they gained in the first book, Jahan fights for peace while concealing his own abilities. When El is brought forward in chains, stripped of her own magic, Jahan must fight the revolution.

Unfortunately, this series fell completely flat. There are hundreds of deeply explained characters that are inconsequential, and the world building and magic systems are more than a little confusing. While the writing is beautiful, the pages of inner dialogue for each interaction is exhausting.

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