The Emperor's Blades
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- Create Date：2021-06-12 08:55:59
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Brian Staveley
- ISBN：076533643X
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Summary
In The Emperor's Blades by Brian Staveley， the emperor of Annur is dead， slain by enemies unknown。 His daughter and two sons， scattered across the world， do what they must to stay alive and unmask the assassins。 But each of them also has a life-path on which their father set them， destinies entangled with both ancient enemies and inscrutable gods。
Kaden， the heir to the Unhewn Throne， has spent eight years sequestered in a remote mountain monastery， learning the enigmatic discipline of monks devoted to the Blank God。 Their rituals hold the key to an ancient power he must master before it's too late。
An ocean away， Valyn endures the brutal training of the Kettral， elite soldiers who fly into battle on gigantic black hawks。 But before he can set out to save Kaden， Valyn must survive one horrific final test。
At the heart of the empire， Minister Adare， elevated to her station by one of the emperor's final acts， is determined to prove herself to her people。 But Adare also believes she knows who murdered her father， and she will stop at nothing--and risk everything--to see that justice is meted out。
Kaden， the heir to the Unhewn Throne， has spent eight years sequestered in a remote mountain monastery， learning the enigmatic discipline of monks devoted to the Blank God。 Their rituals hold the key to an ancient power he must master before it's too late。
An ocean away， Valyn endures the brutal training of the Kettral， elite soldiers who fly into battle on gigantic black hawks。 But before he can set out to save Kaden， Valyn must survive one horrific final test。
At the heart of the empire， Minister Adare， elevated to her station by one of the emperor's final acts， is determined to prove herself to her people。 But Adare also believes she knows who murdered her father， and she will stop at nothing--and risk everything--to see that justice is meted out。
Reviews
Reu Aria
，
After starting this book on a whim I am so glad I took that chance！ The world building is AMAZING， the characters are well defined， and the writing is a joy to read！
Heba
，
Overall a solid read。 I enjoyed all 3 character perspectives though not all were written in equal pacing or frequency。 It was a tad long and drawn out in some places but I enjoyed the unique world building and a well structured magic system that hasn't shown signs of breakage， yet。 This sub-genre is definitely what I'd call diet grim dark。 He skirts the edge of some dark moments for his characters and teases for more to come but its not as depraved/ morally gut wrenching as some of the staples i Overall a solid read。 I enjoyed all 3 character perspectives though not all were written in equal pacing or frequency。 It was a tad long and drawn out in some places but I enjoyed the unique world building and a well structured magic system that hasn't shown signs of breakage， yet。 This sub-genre is definitely what I'd call diet grim dark。 He skirts the edge of some dark moments for his characters and teases for more to come but its not as depraved/ morally gut wrenching as some of the staples in the genre。 There were also a couple of 'a-ha' moments and plot devices that were handled with little care or subtlety and felt shoddy， pulling me out of the book which is why it took me a little over a week to power through barely 500 pg。Lastly， I was a little confused about the cultural elements of this book。 It's not clearly an ethno-Asian setting， and I don't normally care if there are racial distinctions in a story unless they are relevant to the plot but I found myself coming back to the question throughout this book。 Mostly because of the book cover。 Maybe I missed something。All in all， I already have the second one bought and will get to it eventually。 。。。more
Tyler Kershaw
，
This was a fantastic introduction to the world of the Emperor's Blades。 The book is full of rich character development and an interesting world， I can't wait to see where Staveley will take the story and what will happen to the characters， this book was a perfect narrative set up。 This was a fantastic introduction to the world of the Emperor's Blades。 The book is full of rich character development and an interesting world， I can't wait to see where Staveley will take the story and what will happen to the characters， this book was a perfect narrative set up。 。。。more
Levi Hardwick
，
literally couldn't put it down。 literally couldn't put it down。 。。。more
Llona LLegaCon Lalluvia
，
Il Fratello "Monaco Shin" eredita il trono， l'altro fratello， comandante delle Forze Speciali "Kettral"， lo protegge da un complotto mentre in patria la sorella， Ministra dell'Impero， vendica l assassinio del loro padre Il Fratello "Monaco Shin" eredita il trono， l'altro fratello， comandante delle Forze Speciali "Kettral"， lo protegge da un complotto mentre in patria la sorella， Ministra dell'Impero， vendica l assassinio del loro padre 。。。more
Adam Pollack
，
4。5
Annette
，
Not going to lie， I had super low expectations going into this book。 Usually books in this particular fantasy sub-genre， written by men， are pretty sexist。 Staveley surprised。 There were several well rounded women characters， with motivations that did not revolve around men。 I loved the plot and the setting。 There were maybe one too many descriptions of how attractive the women were but they didn't feel out of place as they all came from the male perspective so it was consistent with the worldbu Not going to lie， I had super low expectations going into this book。 Usually books in this particular fantasy sub-genre， written by men， are pretty sexist。 Staveley surprised。 There were several well rounded women characters， with motivations that did not revolve around men。 I loved the plot and the setting。 There were maybe one too many descriptions of how attractive the women were but they didn't feel out of place as they all came from the male perspective so it was consistent with the worldbuilding。 My biggest issue was with Adare's storyline。 It felt underdeveloped and it did that thing I hate where this supposedly smart character acts like an idiot （although there was a bit of a twist to it here that I liked）。 There just needed to be one extra scene at the beginning of Adare securing her position as finance minister， showing her ability to politically maneuver in a male-dominated world。 Super excited to read the second book。 。。。more
Nick
，
First of all， I thought the story was pretty good overall。 I really liked that we were following the three siblings in three different regions of the empire and that we got to see them as individuals first （because they haven't seen each other in 8 years）。 That gives each character enough space to develop their own personality without immediately being seen as a sibling unit。Secondly， I liked how the book adressed the sexism that is happening in the empire， especially to Adare， who's the first b First of all， I thought the story was pretty good overall。 I really liked that we were following the three siblings in three different regions of the empire and that we got to see them as individuals first （because they haven't seen each other in 8 years）。 That gives each character enough space to develop their own personality without immediately being seen as a sibling unit。Secondly， I liked how the book adressed the sexism that is happening in the empire， especially to Adare， who's the first born child but not the heir to the throne because she's a woman， and how women can only be soldiers with the Kettrals and nowhere else。However， there were several things I really could not stand at all:1。 It's one of those "nothing really happens until halfway through the book" kind of situations。 Boring， next！2。 Valyn: even though this is a book about three siblings， it's pretty much a book about him and I really couldn't stand him。 I just really don't like these types of male hero characters who feel like they have to save the entire world and no one could do it better than them and blah blah blah male ego， we get it。 He's dark and mysterious， every man wants to kill him and every woman wants to sleep with him and so on。3。 Speaking of women （Ya'll already know what I'm going to say）: boobs。 All the woman are described in a boobs first， then the rest kind of way and I am so， so tired。 It's all like: big， firm boobs; pretty face （for her age）; slender and petite body， so frail， no muscle even though most of these women are soldiers， but god forbid that they have big arms and thighs。 And it's always a version of: "she's trying to hide her body under a bigger uniform but I could still see all of her curves" Ok？ Good for you， I guess？ After 8 years of being surrounded by many female soldiers Valyn still has to stare at everyones boobs as if he's never seen some before and he gets DISTRACTED by them。 Sir， please stop being a soldier， the enemy just have to wave a pair of boobs in front of your face and your done。 Great job！Also， and this is my personal favorite thing， Valyn is always staring at everyone's boobs and apparently all of the women appreciate it。 Except for one woman， and he basically argues that she wouldn't appreciate him looking at her boobs because she's a cruel and mean woman？？？？ You've heard it here first: women have to be insane and evil not to like men staring at their bodies！！！！ It's not like it's creepy or anything， no no no！！！ （I feel like this completely invalidates all the points that this book gained by talking about sexism）Now I get that this was published in 2014 and it's not "that bad" with the way it described women， but please， I would love to read one （just one！） fantasy novel written by a cishet men to， just， not objectify women？ Please？ Anyone？4。 Also: fatshaming AND tying back to the previous point the only plus-size people are men because women have to be small and petite and frail etc。In conclusion， it might have been good in 2014， but you know， there's more to read nowadays。 。。。more
Ekaterina Vasileva
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Not sureIt was good， definitely。 But something was missing。 I just couldn't find anything to like about the main characters 。。。 Not sureIt was good， definitely。 But something was missing。 I just couldn't find anything to like about the main characters 。。。 。。。more
Sergiu
，
Eh， an ok book I guess。 Decent worldbuilding， but really monotone。 If you don't like it in the first 5-10 chapters， you won't enjoy it。 I rarely felt a sense of urgency in the book， or twists， hidden stuff， no。 Everything was out in the open and obvious from the start。 I will probably start volume 2 as well， I've heard that it gets better， but I'm simply disappointed right now with the state of fantasy books I've read in the past couple of months。 With some notable exceptions， I can barely find Eh， an ok book I guess。 Decent worldbuilding， but really monotone。 If you don't like it in the first 5-10 chapters， you won't enjoy it。 I rarely felt a sense of urgency in the book， or twists， hidden stuff， no。 Everything was out in the open and obvious from the start。 I will probably start volume 2 as well， I've heard that it gets better， but I'm simply disappointed right now with the state of fantasy books I've read in the past couple of months。 With some notable exceptions， I can barely find something that keeps me captivated。 。。。more
Rob
，
A quarter turn twist on traditional epic fantasy， The Emperor's Blades blends some familiar genre elements with new ones， and stands out for its excellent writing and steadily-paced， engaging plot。 There's action， intrigue， treachery， political maneuvering， ancient secrets， terrible monsters， and an interesting take on magic。 A quarter turn twist on traditional epic fantasy， The Emperor's Blades blends some familiar genre elements with new ones， and stands out for its excellent writing and steadily-paced， engaging plot。 There's action， intrigue， treachery， political maneuvering， ancient secrets， terrible monsters， and an interesting take on magic。 。。。more
Rimi
，
4 stars Not going to say that I m in love with this first book of The Unhewn Throne trilogy， as well as not going to say that I don't like it。。 It's a good solid start for the trilogy and I want to continue。 The story is told from three persons pov， Kaden， Valyn and Adare， the three children of the Emperor of the Annurian Empire。 The siblings are not together but sent to different parts of the empire to learn different things。 Kaden， the heir of the throne was sent to a far way monastery to pre 4 stars Not going to say that I m in love with this first book of The Unhewn Throne trilogy， as well as not going to say that I don't like it。。 It's a good solid start for the trilogy and I want to continue。 The story is told from three persons pov， Kaden， Valyn and Adare， the three children of the Emperor of the Annurian Empire。 The siblings are not together but sent to different parts of the empire to learn different things。 Kaden， the heir of the throne was sent to a far way monastery to prepare him how to rule。 Valyn was sent to become a kettral， an army so he can help his brother。 But Adare （their sister） stays with their father in the capital and became a political figure， a financial minister。 The story started with the news of the murder of the Emperor， and through these three siblings povs we see how this act impact their lives。 Among the three povs， only Valyn and Adare's closely follow the main theme while， Kaden's pov tell us about the history of the empire， for the 80% of the story （which is definitely important）。 I like Valyn's pov most。 And wanted a little bit more of Adare's pov， which is only there for three to four times。 For Kaden's pov， I like some parts and some parts I wanted to skip。 The setting is good， the side characters are awesome。 There are some strong female characters too。 So overall I like the book and would definitely like to recommend。 。。。more
Whitney Jamimah
，
Whoop whoop！ I LOVED this book！！！In this book we follow the emperor of Annuran's three children。 His heir to the throne， Kaden has been in training to be a monk for the last 8 years。 His youngest son， Valyn， has been in training to be part of the Kettral， one of the most lauded and dangerous military forces for the last 8 years。 Finally， his oldest child and only daughter， Adare， has been in the Annurian capital with her father as， being female， she will not inherit the throne but she is learnin Whoop whoop！ I LOVED this book！！！In this book we follow the emperor of Annuran's three children。 His heir to the throne， Kaden has been in training to be a monk for the last 8 years。 His youngest son， Valyn， has been in training to be part of the Kettral， one of the most lauded and dangerous military forces for the last 8 years。 Finally， his oldest child and only daughter， Adare， has been in the Annurian capital with her father as， being female， she will not inherit the throne but she is learning the way of the court。 Early in our journey we learn that the emperor is dead and there are likely foes out to kill the emperor's heirs as well。 This book was SO GOOD！I am and forever will be a sucker for the school setting。 It doesn't have to be a magical school， any school where the students are learning to be bad asses works for me and this book was chock full of school scenes。 I am scared because Blood Song by Anthony Ryan was one of my all time favorite books ever and the rest of the books in the series didn't have the school setting and the series plummeted for me。 I am going into Providence of Fire with high hopes and a positive attitude but I already know the rest of the story doesn't feature the school setting either。Staveley is the MASTER of creating suspense in his scenes。 There were so many times while I was reading that my muscles were tensed up and my heart rate was elevated。 I LOVE when authors do this， I don't want to feel like my characters have an easy out while I am reading and I didn't feel that way reading Staveley。 He also does a really good job playing with the readers senses。 There were several times， for example， that the main characters couldn't breathe and the descriptions were done so well that I was literally starting to panic and feel like I too couldn't breathe。While the students were in the school we got so spend quite a bit of time with them and their feelings and this was when Staveley did a superb job with the character development。 I feel like each sibling， even Adare who we didn't spend as much time with， were very well fleshed out。 They were all their own characters which I think will make for a very interesting character interactions in later books given all of their different views。 The action scenes as well as the twists were super as well！If you want a SUPER solid start to a fantasy series to delve into and enjoy to the fullest I would highly recommend picking up The Emperor's Blades。 。。。more
Jeremy Randall
，
Now this is one good book。 Already got book 2。 And it makes the last trash fire I read look like an even bigger， less practical trash fire。 Guess why？No walking。 and the walking that did happen was only short and filled with yelling and cool monk magic。 also giant birds， different ways to murder and explosive arrows。 The characters were strong， had easily remembered names， had great internal monologues。 It had jackie chan type stunts and lols。 the west wing-like political intrigue and dialogue a Now this is one good book。 Already got book 2。 And it makes the last trash fire I read look like an even bigger， less practical trash fire。 Guess why？No walking。 and the walking that did happen was only short and filled with yelling and cool monk magic。 also giant birds， different ways to murder and explosive arrows。 The characters were strong， had easily remembered names， had great internal monologues。 It had jackie chan type stunts and lols。 the west wing-like political intrigue and dialogue and。 GIANT BIRDS！！！ I cannot wait for the second book to come！！！！yay for this series and boo for that last one。 :D 。。。more
Nicole
，
I love this world。 I love the visuals。 I love the world building and religion/history building。 I am excited to keep reading this world。
Reina ♡
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DNF @ 12%。Talking to Daisy made me realize how uninspired I am to finish this one。 I don't even remember starting it。 Might give it another go in the future。 DNF @ 12%。Talking to Daisy made me realize how uninspired I am to finish this one。 I don't even remember starting it。 Might give it another go in the future。 。。。more
daisy
，
CAWPILE rating: 2/10 STAR rating: ★I was so， so looking forward to this so the fact that I'm giving it 1 star pains me。 I read Skullsworn back in 2019 and enjoyed that well enough， especially the worldbuilding and it was some of those same worldbuilding elements in this novel that earned it the 1 star I'm giving it。 The female characters in this novel were godawful， both in terms of the way they're described and the way they're treated by the narrative and male characters around them。 Had CAWPILE rating: 2/10 STAR rating: ★I was so， so looking forward to this so the fact that I'm giving it 1 star pains me。 I read Skullsworn back in 2019 and enjoyed that well enough， especially the worldbuilding and it was some of those same worldbuilding elements in this novel that earned it the 1 star I'm giving it。 The female characters in this novel were godawful， both in terms of the way they're described and the way they're treated by the narrative and male characters around them。 Had some other issues but I'll go into those when I， hopefully， get around to typing up a longer review。 。。。more
Bruce
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The trilogy as a whole is decent the first book is the best and it slowly drops off from there but I would recommend it is worth your time to read all three
Tina
，
Although i enjoyed this book， I skimmed the chapter's relating to one of the characters。 I wanted to stay with the main drama and having to put attention towards another thing happening in another area was annoying。 I still haven't gone back and reread those chapters。 I don't think i missed much。 Otherwise， the 2 main characters and their situation was enough to drive the plot forward。 I can see this story being converted into an action movie。 Super fun and I love their world and the mythology。 Although i enjoyed this book， I skimmed the chapter's relating to one of the characters。 I wanted to stay with the main drama and having to put attention towards another thing happening in another area was annoying。 I still haven't gone back and reread those chapters。 I don't think i missed much。 Otherwise， the 2 main characters and their situation was enough to drive the plot forward。 I can see this story being converted into an action movie。 Super fun and I love their world and the mythology。 I plan to read the next book。 。。。more
Caitlin
，
After the death of the emperor， his three children must prepare for their roles in the empire， while uncovering a conspiracy surrounding their fathers death。 The Emperor’s Blades has sat unread on my shelf for years， for no apparent reason other than I felt like ignoring it。 So， let me just say that if you’re like me and have been ignoring this book for no reason， now is the time to pick it up。 I regret not reading this sooner， because I adored it。 It had everything I could have wanted from a fa After the death of the emperor， his three children must prepare for their roles in the empire， while uncovering a conspiracy surrounding their fathers death。 The Emperor’s Blades has sat unread on my shelf for years， for no apparent reason other than I felt like ignoring it。 So， let me just say that if you’re like me and have been ignoring this book for no reason， now is the time to pick it up。 I regret not reading this sooner， because I adored it。 It had everything I could have wanted from a fantasy novel。 All three of the kids， Kaden， Valyn， and Adare， are fascinating and fun to read about。 All three of them are following very different paths for their roles in the empire， and it was really great having different points of view not only giving you an idea of what they were like as characters， but very different glimpses of the way the government was run。 It also gave such good perspective to how all three of them were preparing for their roles， and their fears， and how they handle the death of their father and the idea of conspiracy surrounding his death。 I loved everything about all three of them， and I can’t wait for more。 This also has some really great fantastical creatures。 If you’ve been wanting to read anything with giant war birds， then look no further！ And really， who doesn’t want to read about giant war birds？ That’s what I’ve been reading about for months now since I finished this。 There are several other interesting beasts， and I really loved the world building surrounding all the different creatures we encounter throughout the story。 The politics in this were more mild than I expected， considering it was about the death of an emperor。 But we still get a good grasp of the history of the empire， and some background into the politics。 I am hoping for more in the next books， but it was enough to grab my attention， I just really like politically charged stories。 If you’re more indifferent to politics in fantasy， this one isn’t too overwhelming or overbearing in the story。 All in all， I can’t recommend this enough。 It was so much fun， and has everything I could want from a fantasy story。 If you have any interest in fantasy， you really need to give the series a chance。 Giant war birds should convince you if nothing else did。 。。。more
Monika
，
4。5
Aljowharah
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 this was very average。 the plotline i looked forward to the most based on the synopsis was the shortest one， and very rushed。 this book promised me a princess navigating a dangerous political game but i got like 7 chapters of her mostly being an idiot and not doing her job as minister even though she wants to prove the men who look down on her for being a woman wrong， barely any politics， and her randomly kissing the regent of the throne she just met because he showed her a tiny bit of "respect" this was very average。 the plotline i looked forward to the most based on the synopsis was the shortest one， and very rushed。 this book promised me a princess navigating a dangerous political game but i got like 7 chapters of her mostly being an idiot and not doing her job as minister even though she wants to prove the men who look down on her for being a woman wrong， barely any politics， and her randomly kissing the regent of the throne she just met because he showed her a tiny bit of "respect" （after the book established she had some bitterness over never being able to take the throne or at least be regent despite being the oldest and having the goddess's eyes）。 the already dull kaden destroyed his "self" and now doesn't have emotions making him MORE dull *flashbacks to bran stark*。 valyn had the best chapters because solider training and trails are a classic fun time but none of the 3 were standout characters， i'll forget all of them soon enough。 the whole "evil creatures coming back into the world" plot is very cliché but some authors can make it interesting。。。 not this time。 all the twist were obvious too。 overall i had some mindless fun here but i'm not so sure i'm picking up the next one。 。。。more
Ali Mohebianfar
，
امپراتورِ آنور طی دسیسه چینی هایی به قتل رسیده。 فرزندان امپراتور جدا از هم باید به تنهایی به راز قتل پدرشون و هویت دشمنانی که براشون کمین کردن， پی ببرن。 کیدن， فرزند ارشد， نزد راهبان شین در حال یادگیری اصول و آموزه هاییه که پدرش باور داشت از اون امپراتور قدرتمندی می سازن。 ولین， فرزند دوم， نزد مخوف ترین سربازان امپراتوری که بر پرنده هایی غول پیکر پرواز می کنن， در حال تبدیل شدن به یک آدمکشه。 و در نهایت ادیر， تنها دختر امپراتور， در کاخ و میون دشمنان تنها مونده و باید به هویت این توطئه گرها پی ببره。。 امپراتورِ آنور طی دسیسه چینی هایی به قتل رسیده。 فرزندان امپراتور جدا از هم باید به تنهایی به راز قتل پدرشون و هویت دشمنانی که براشون کمین کردن， پی ببرن。 کیدن， فرزند ارشد， نزد راهبان شین در حال یادگیری اصول و آموزه هاییه که پدرش باور داشت از اون امپراتور قدرتمندی می سازن。 ولین， فرزند دوم， نزد مخوف ترین سربازان امپراتوری که بر پرنده هایی غول پیکر پرواز می کنن， در حال تبدیل شدن به یک آدمکشه。 و در نهایت ادیر， تنها دختر امپراتور， در کاخ و میون دشمنان تنها مونده و باید به هویت این توطئه گرها پی ببره。。。 اما شاید قضیه فراتر از یک دسیسه چینی ساده س！ شاید پای چیزی باستانی تر وسط باشه！ جلد اول از سه گانه ی نخست Unhewn Throne با شروعی جذاب و نفسگیر از همون سرآغازش توی دلم جا باز کرد。 پرداخت شخصیت ها عالیه و یک به یکِ شخصیت ها به خصوص شخصیت های اصلی رو میشه درک و لمس کرد。 البته که در این جلد در حق ادیر کم لطفی شده و پردازش ضعیف تری نسبت به کیدن و ولین داشت که امیدوارم در جلدهای بعدی به این کرکتر هم توجه بیشتری بشه。（دلیلش هم اینه که کلا توی این جلد فقط 5 فصل کوتاه به ادیر اختصاص داده و باقی فصول بین کیدن و ولین تقسیم شده）غالباً قصه های فانتزی رو که روایت چند شاخه دارن و داستان به طور همزمان در اقلیم های مختلفِ جهانِ قصه پیش می رن， بیشتر دوست دارم و خوشبختانه این کتاب هم جزو همین دسته بود。 از همین نظر برام یادآور نغمه آتش و یخه و این یکی از دلایلیه که از همون اول کاری از این مجموعه خوشم اومد。قلم نویسنده در توصیف و مونولوگ و دیالوگ نویسی روونه و پیچش خاصی نداره که بخواد خواننده رو گیج کنه یا اونو به دوباره خوندن پاراگرافی وا داره。 از کلیت قصه و اتفاقات راضی بودم به جز چند جایی در فصل های پایانی。。。 انتظار نبرد و مراحلی دشوارتر و خونین تر داشتم。 به نظرم پایان این جلد می تونست قوی تر باشه， با اینحال این ضعف اندک باعث نمیشه که نخوام جلدهای بعدی این مجموعه جذاب رو بخونم。 با عشق سراغ ادامه ش میرم و حتم دارم که قراره جلد به جلد جذاب تر بشه。پ。ن: تا به اینجای کار شخصیتای موردعلاقه من: ولین， پایر و رامپوری تان هستن👌 。。。more
shauna
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PREMISE The Emperor has been murdered， leaving the Annurian Empire in turmoil。 Now his progeny must prepare to unmask a conspiracy。 His son Valyn， training for the empire's deadliest fighting force， hears the news an ocean away。 And after several "accidents" and a dying soldier's warning， he realises his life is also in danger。 Yet before Valyn can act， he must survive the mercenaries' brutal final initiation。 The Emperor's daughter， Minister Adare， hunts her father's murderer in the capital。 C PREMISE The Emperor has been murdered， leaving the Annurian Empire in turmoil。 Now his progeny must prepare to unmask a conspiracy。 His son Valyn， training for the empire's deadliest fighting force， hears the news an ocean away。 And after several "accidents" and a dying soldier's warning， he realises his life is also in danger。 Yet before Valyn can act， he must survive the mercenaries' brutal final initiation。 The Emperor's daughter， Minister Adare， hunts her father's murderer in the capital。 Court politics can be fatal， but she needs justice。 Kaden， heir to the empire， studies in a remote monastery。 Here the Blank God's disciples teach their harsh ways， which Kaden must master to unlock ancient powers。 But when an imperial delegations arrives， has he learnt enough to keep him alive？ REVIEW This book is excellent。 And I really mean - EXCELLENT。 🤩🤩 I think the best thing about this novel is the characterisation - of Valyn and Kaden especially， but also the many side characters who were all very believable。 The three siblings make up the POV chapters， however， it is the two brothers that get most time。 What makes them so interesting is that their paths are very different。 Valyn is learning to become a deadly killer。 He is becoming a Kettral - and the training scenes here are truly gruesome， especially the final initiation test。 Kaden， heir to the throne， is learning to "vaniate" which is state of blankness and nothingness。 The shin monks want Kaden to empty himself of all emotion。 This training often requires him to be buried for a week so that he can't move， or to walk up and down a mountain over and over again blindfolded。 He isn't learning to fight or understand court politics。 He （unknowingly at first） is learning something more important。 This allows for chapters to contrast nicely。 We are getting some fierce fights and disturbing brutality with Valyn - and then reading something much slower and contemplative with Kaden。 And it is never boring。 Adare， though her chapters are sparse， allows us to see what the court is like， which is basically a cesspit of intrigue with a murderer lurking somewhere。 This is what Kaden must rule over one day - and it becomes quite obvious as we go aong that Adare's emotions are getting her in trouble。 She knows who everyone is， all the histories， the rules; but she is easy to manipulate because she can't hide what she thinks。 I hope her character will have more space going forward。 She makes many mistakes in this novel， but by the end she sees what she has done and why。 I have a feeling that their father had set them all on these very different paths so that when he died they would be stronger together as a unit。 Kaden's traning will enable him to detect lies and distance his decision-making from emotion。 Adare will know who everyone is at the court and which traditions are important to whom。 Valyn will be able to defend them all。 At least that is what I think the Emperor had in mind before he was murdered， but now these three siblings need to find each other before the murderer find them。 The world-buidling here is immense and I feel like we are only scratching the surface in this first novel of the trilogy。 Since Adare's chapters are few， we get an insight， but not an indepth one， to the relgious orders seeking to gain power。 Through Kaden's chapters with the Shin monks， we learn about the old Gods and the old wars they fought with the humans。 At first these all appear to be seperate， but as the novel progresses we discover they are linked。 Through Valyn， we learn about some of the old magical powers that have lingered。 There are some humans who can use "wells" which they draw power from - making them extremely powerful。 Disdained by many， often murdered as children， these "leaches" try to hide their powers， however， some of them appear to have ingrained themselves at court。 The Kettral （the assassin crew that Valyn is part of） allow leaches to become one of them because of their superior fighting skills， but elsewhere they don’t find such a welcome。 I compared the Unhewn Throne series in my previous blog to Game of Thrones - which is a bold statement。 There are many authors who have a claim to that comparision and there are so many epic series out there。 True， it isn’t as complex， there aren’t as many POV characters， and we aren’t getting any POV’s from characters outside the one royal family。 However， there is something about the style of Brian Staveley's writing that really struck a chord with me。 Perhaps it's the way threads of narrative continue into each chapter （despite the siblings being far apart）， or perhaps it's the wit of some of the side characters that reminded me of Tyrion， or maybe it's the sense that this book edges on the right side of grimdark to be dangerous but not depressing， something GRRM mastered too。 Or maybe it’s just I haven’t read a book this quickly since A Game of Thrones。 I can’t quite put my finger on it。 Valyn was my favourite character。 I also really liked some of his crew， Gwenna and Ha Lin especially。 I really felt for him at times， he was put in some precarious positions yet always remained grounded。 Likability of main characters is a big draw for me and this is a major plus in The Emperor’s Blades。 There are no dragons in this novel （so far anyway） but there are kettral， which are massive eagles that Valyn and his crew can fly。 （If Valyn fails to deliver someone or something to the Annurian equiavelent of Mount Doom， questions will be asked！！） 🦅🦅🦅 There are other monsters too which were cool。 This isn’t The Witcher by any means， but these strange creatures are well drawn out and add an additional layer of menace to the plot。 I don't give starred ratings in my reviews， however， the fact I've already opened the sequel is evidence enough that I really enjoyed this book！ Brian Staveley is releasing a new book in July 2021。 It is also set in this world with some of the same characters。 I’m reading through this trilogy， then am going to start the new release， which I hear is absolutely blowing ARC readers away。 If anybody has read these books or plans to， let me know in the comments。 。。。more
Kelsey Ketcham
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This is the first book in such a long time that I would wake up thinking about and then debate whether I wanted to keep reading or go back to sleep。 Such a riveting story， that weaves beautifully together as it moves on。 I now need to read the rest of the series。
Stephen
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I was very pleasantly surprised by this book。 Great characters， good plot， and vivid locations combined for a great read。 Can’t wait to start book 2！
Roham soltani
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اگه بخوام برای این داستان نظری بدم فقط میتونم بگم که دست مریزاد به این نویسنده。
Jon
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Meh。 Has some good bones， but the character development and choices （or lack thereof） of curse words just irked the living hell out of me。 At one point I was like "I swear if they say Kent Kissing one more time I'm gonna burn this audiobook。" Meh。 Has some good bones， but the character development and choices （or lack thereof） of curse words just irked the living hell out of me。 At one point I was like "I swear if they say Kent Kissing one more time I'm gonna burn this audiobook。" 。。。more
Sofía
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It took me over 200 pages to really get into the story。 The pacing is very slow and it didn't feel like anything was going anywhere， but once you get the hang of the characters and the story， you fly through it。 It's packed with action， suspense and betrayals。 It gets your heart pumping and you really fear for the characters from time to time。 It's clearly a set-up book， it lays the foundations for the next books and you get some info-dumps from time to time， which can be a bit annoying in the b It took me over 200 pages to really get into the story。 The pacing is very slow and it didn't feel like anything was going anywhere， but once you get the hang of the characters and the story， you fly through it。 It's packed with action， suspense and betrayals。 It gets your heart pumping and you really fear for the characters from time to time。 It's clearly a set-up book， it lays the foundations for the next books and you get some info-dumps from time to time， which can be a bit annoying in the beginning since you just want something to happen， not a history lesson。 Even if it takes a really long time to actually feel like something is happening， I think it's a great start。 A faster start to the story would probably have made it flow better and made me， personally， be interested in the story way earlier。 I'm glad I pushed through。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Emperor's Blades
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Emperor's Blades&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft
The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,The Emperor's Blades&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0