Fantasy

Empire of Exiles

Empire of Exiles

  • Downloads：6922
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-12-25 07:51:28
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Erin M. Evans
  • ISBN：0316440876
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

Magic， mystery， and revolution collide in this fantasy epic where an unlikely team of mages， scribes， and archivists must band together to unearth a conspiracy that might topple their empire。

"What makes this book special， even by Erin’s lofty goalposts， is the world she weaves around the characters。 Detailed and mysterious， a place to explore and relish。 Empire of Exiles is highly recommended！” – R。A。 Salvatore， author or “The Legend of Drizzt” and the DemonWars novels

“The beginning of a truly epic tale。 Deft worldbuilding and wonderful verbal fencing that is a delight to read。 In these pages， you are in the hands of a master。” - Ed Greenwood， creator of the Forgotten Realms and internationally bestselling author

Twenty-seven years ago， a Duke with a grudge led a ruthless coup against the empire of Semilla， killing thousands。 He failed。 The Duke was executed， a terrifyingly powerful sorcerer was imprisoned， and an unwilling princess disappeared。 

The empire moved on。 

Now， when Quill， an apprentice scribe， arrives in the capital city， he believes he's on a simple errand for another pompous noble: fetch ancient artifacts from the magical Imperial Archives。 He's always found his apprenticeship to a lawman to be dull work。 But these aren't just any artifacts — these are the instruments of revolution， the banners under which the Duke lead his coup。 

Just as the artifacts are unearthed， the city is shaken by a brutal murder that seems to have been caused by a weapon not seen since the days of rebellion。 With Quill being the main witness to the murder， and no one in power believing his story， he must join the Archivists — a young mage， a seasoned archivist， and a disillusioned detective — to solve the truth of the attack。 And what they uncover will be the key to saving the empire – or destroying it again。

“Empire of Exiles has it all: characters I love， intertwined compelling mysteries in the past and present， plot twists that keep coming， and a unique and fascinating world and magic system！" – Melissa Caruso， author of The Obsidian Tower

“Beautifully wrought and equally ensnaring， this book lived up to and then surpassed all my expectations。” – Cat Rambo， author of You Sexy Thing

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Reviews

Brewergnome ，

Neat magic， good characters。 Great reader。

Mike ，

A ruined civilization。 A sequestered city。 And a story told through the eyes of archivists who study the collected works of those cultures lost to time and war。 You can tell that Evans poured all of her nerdery into this book and it’s impressive to behold。 She throws everything under the sun into the worldbuilding and while that sometimes overshadows the murder mystery and character work， it all gels nonetheless。The world Evans has built up feels ripe for exploration and it’s setting up for a gr A ruined civilization。 A sequestered city。 And a story told through the eyes of archivists who study the collected works of those cultures lost to time and war。 You can tell that Evans poured all of her nerdery into this book and it’s impressive to behold。 She throws everything under the sun into the worldbuilding and while that sometimes overshadows the murder mystery and character work， it all gels nonetheless。The world Evans has built up feels ripe for exploration and it’s setting up for a great trilogy。 With the murder mystery solved and a larger conspiracy laid bare， I’m intrigued to see what shape the next book will take。The book is worth it for the incredible maps by Francesca Baerald alone。See this book's true fractional star score and more reviews at The Speculative Shelf。 。。。more

Cheryl ，

This book started out slow and kind of confusing， after 166 pages I was thinking of just quitting it but I continued to read， and I’m so glad I did。 It picks up the pace and everything starts to make sense。 The characters and world becomes more fleshed out and clearer。 Very different and unique world and magic system。 I look forward to the next installment of this series。

Andrew F ，

2。5/5 Empire of Exiles didn't grab me the way I hoped。 I didn't have any particular problems with the book other than I found it a little confusing at times and bored a lot of the time。 Fantasy and Mystery/Thrillers are my favorite genres so I thought this book would be perfectly suited to my tastes。 I think I've discovered that murder mysteries just don't work in fantasy novels， at least not for me。 The Justice of Kings， a book I greatly enjoyed， also has a murder mystery and that part was my l 2。5/5 Empire of Exiles didn't grab me the way I hoped。 I didn't have any particular problems with the book other than I found it a little confusing at times and bored a lot of the time。 Fantasy and Mystery/Thrillers are my favorite genres so I thought this book would be perfectly suited to my tastes。 I think I've discovered that murder mysteries just don't work in fantasy novels， at least not for me。 The Justice of Kings， a book I greatly enjoyed， also has a murder mystery and that part was my least favorite aspect of the book。 Murder mysteries work because it's about collecting clues， red herrings and having everything come tumbling together at the end so it all makes sense。 It doesn't work as well in fantasy because you have to sacrifice necessary components to what makes a good murder mystery for worldbuilding。 The book ends up trying to do too much and ends up doing neither particularly well。I think mystery plots work in fantasy， but they probably shouldn't be murder mysteries。 Brandon Sanderson is extremely good at adding mysteries to his plot， but the mysteries are about the world。 The characters lack some knowledge about how the world works。 Mistborn is a perfect example of this。 The Fifth Season is another。 The Harry Potter books are largely fantasy mysteries as well， but they aren't murder mysteries。 Moving on， I also didn't grow attached to the characters。 This isn't always make or break it for me， but it certainly didn't help my enjoyment of the book。 The characters were all perfectly nice and likeable， but they lacked a certain something。 They feel fully fleshed out characters with complex hopes and desires。 It was all fairly surface level and strictly plot driven motivations。 I wouldn't say the character work was bad as I there was some effort to provide distinct personalities， but all of the main characters could be summarized as perfectly pleasant do-gooders with perhaps a troubled backstory， which isn't the most exciting thing to read about。 I sometimes also had a hard time following sequences of events。 Characters that I thought were far away from each other would suddenly spring up out of nowhere in a couple of sentences。 This made some of the faster paced scenes difficult to follow。 The book also dumps a lot of characters on you at the beginning and since they didn't have distinct enough personalities， it was hard to keep track of who was who。 Eventually this became a non-issue， but it made it difficult to get into the story。And that was my ultimate problem with the book is that I couldn't get into the story。 The mystery plot was ok， but nothing like a good murder mystery。 The worldbuilding and magic system were serviceable， but nothing special。 I think the author did a good job describing the world and the politics。 Essentially 10 kingdoms were overrun by a group known as changelings forcing them to safety behind a salt wall since salt is harmful the changelings。 In exchange for safety， they must submit to the rule of the emperor controlling the wall。 This led to a rebellion by one of the powerful remnant kingdoms to take the throne， but was crushed。 The story begins with the leader of the rebellion captured and being interrogated by his brother。 I found the Redolfo character to be pretty interesting so I mostly enjoyed these chapters。 But most of the book takes place 20 years later。What I didn't enjoy was the use of changelings。 This is a slightly spoiler， （view spoiler）[ but I think it's a cheap trick to use changelings to pretend to be other people。 I also didn't like how the poisons were used in the plot。 Without them there is no book， but it wasn't a direction I found very compelling personally （hide spoiler）]。Still， there were parts of the book I did enjoy。 I felt invested enough to read through the end especially since the characters were likeable。 But I definitely won't be continuing the series。 There are too many books and series out there to spend more time on something that was merely fine。 Given the large number of positive ratings， don't let my review discourage you from checking this out。 I don't think it's a badly written book so there's a good chance you might enjoy it more than me。 。。。more

Snowleesi ，

This is not grabbing me。 I’ve been reading a chapter here a chapter there for the last two weeks。 Moving on。

Sarah ，

I absolutely loved the worldbuilding and the magic system in this book。 The affinities were SO intriguing， and the characters were so detailed that it didn't take me long to fall in love with them。 The mystery was compelling， with enough twists to keep things interesting。 I can't wait to see what happens next。 I absolutely loved the worldbuilding and the magic system in this book。 The affinities were SO intriguing， and the characters were so detailed that it didn't take me long to fall in love with them。 The mystery was compelling， with enough twists to keep things interesting。 I can't wait to see what happens next。 。。。more

Darren McGowan ，

Everything I was looking forWhile starting out fairly average， this turned out to quite interesting。 The author found a way to ad layers upon layers of plot to keep you guessing right through to the end。 You start off with a simple murder but then you've got a very unique magic system， mabey some gods， some nasty changelings（bad guys） and one diabolical main character。 Turned out to be a great way to end the year。 Everything I was looking forWhile starting out fairly average， this turned out to quite interesting。 The author found a way to ad layers upon layers of plot to keep you guessing right through to the end。 You start off with a simple murder but then you've got a very unique magic system， mabey some gods， some nasty changelings（bad guys） and one diabolical main character。 Turned out to be a great way to end the year。 。。。more

Emily ，

I think this story has soooo much promise， and while I had a few minor issues with the first installment， I will be reading the sequel in the hope that Evans can deliver on what she set up。First of all， I love the world Evans has created in Empire of Exiles， especially reading her Twitter threads of all of her inspirations and ties to history and how it all connects。 That being said， I wish she had spent some more time describing the actual physical appearance of people and things。 What color ar I think this story has soooo much promise， and while I had a few minor issues with the first installment， I will be reading the sequel in the hope that Evans can deliver on what she set up。First of all， I love the world Evans has created in Empire of Exiles， especially reading her Twitter threads of all of her inspirations and ties to history and how it all connects。 That being said， I wish she had spent some more time describing the actual physical appearance of people and things。 What color are Ashtabari tentacles？ What do Yinii's horns look like？ How does Tunuk look in different light？ These weren't answered， and I just needed a little more description to fill out this world。Building on this， I think the pacing could have been a bit quicker in the middle， but the end was truly just off to the races in a fun way。 I liked the reveals， and nothing felt like "too much。" By the time I got to the end， the reveals had set up a great premise for the next book， and I'm much more excited for it than I was in the middle。On the whole， I think this book was a bit clumsy， maybe even should have been a 3 star rating， but it has too many things I love - archives， history， sweet characters， interesting cultures， mystery， romance and more。 I can't wait to see the world， magic system， and characters fleshed out even more。 。。。more

Vi ，

Conspiracy。 Murder。 Magic。 Empire of the Exile is an introduction to a world where many nations have been destroyed by infestation of changeling beings。 Converged under one nation and protected by the Salt Wall， they all pledge their allegiance to survive。 However， discourse led to a failed coup and the tempted Usuper is hanged。。 Or is He？Rich in layers of world building with diversity of ethnicity/beings， religion， and unique magic system， Evans takes us on a journey of many emotions。 Innocence Conspiracy。 Murder。 Magic。 Empire of the Exile is an introduction to a world where many nations have been destroyed by infestation of changeling beings。 Converged under one nation and protected by the Salt Wall， they all pledge their allegiance to survive。 However， discourse led to a failed coup and the tempted Usuper is hanged。。 Or is He？Rich in layers of world building with diversity of ethnicity/beings， religion， and unique magic system， Evans takes us on a journey of many emotions。 Innocence before a heart wrenching murder。 Believing in yourself and questioning social constraints。 A story of growth and friendship and justice。 Once you get pass understanding all the players in the novel， the story flows like water。 I love the plot building and the adrenaline spike I felt at the final battle。 I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait for the next one！ 。。。more

Sarabeth ，

Twists and turns and full of magic; just perhaps not in the way you immediately think！ Cannot wait for the next book in the series！

Ashley ，

Thank you to Orbit & NetGalley for an eARC。 This book was rich in fantasy themes with a murder mystery buried within。 I liked the world， the affinities， and even some of the characters。 This book can get dark at times， but it doesn’t dwell on that。 I did find some of the chapters long winded， i。e。， a character is internally fleshing out a decision for 2-3 pages。 The initial info dump in the first chapter threw me off as the names are hard to even imagine pronouncing and it took me a bit of time Thank you to Orbit & NetGalley for an eARC。 This book was rich in fantasy themes with a murder mystery buried within。 I liked the world， the affinities， and even some of the characters。 This book can get dark at times， but it doesn’t dwell on that。 I did find some of the chapters long winded， i。e。， a character is internally fleshing out a decision for 2-3 pages。 The initial info dump in the first chapter threw me off as the names are hard to even imagine pronouncing and it took me a bit of time to pick it back up between 30-60%。 Once I reached about 70%， I couldn’t put it down。 There’s definitely a large ending and it sets up for a sequel quite nicely。 I hope the sequel has a recap though and another dramatis personae/glossary so that I can keep all of the names， places， and objects straight！ 。。。more

Nichole ，

This is the perfect blend of fantasy and mystery。 I love that it's very character driven， but also has a fantastic plot。 All the characters are great。 There's even a sprinkle of humor here and there。 We start out following Quill， an apprentice scribe。 He's been sent by a noble to the Imperial Archives to retrieve some relics。 These relics belonged to a very powerful family。 The relics would be dangerous in the wrong hands。 Quill's request will have to wait because people with ties to the Archive This is the perfect blend of fantasy and mystery。 I love that it's very character driven， but also has a fantastic plot。 All the characters are great。 There's even a sprinkle of humor here and there。 We start out following Quill， an apprentice scribe。 He's been sent by a noble to the Imperial Archives to retrieve some relics。 These relics belonged to a very powerful family。 The relics would be dangerous in the wrong hands。 Quill's request will have to wait because people with ties to the Archives specialists are turning up dead。 Talk of the relics is dredging up the past。 Specifically the coup that failed 27 years ago and killed thousands。 Are these things all tied together？ Did I mention changelings？I loved this book。 I loved the world。 I can just picture the salt wall keeping the changelings out。 The cast of characters is fantastic。 I'm very excited for the next one。 Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for an e-arc。 。。。more

Adeline ，

4。5

Isabella ，

First off， thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review。 Also， congratulations and thanks to Erin M。 Evans for publishing this novel。Empire of Exiles presents the tropes you think you know from new and interesting angles。 This fantasy-meets-mystery novel follows several unique characters as they attempt to untangle the motivations behind a shocking murder， as well as their own backstories。 Although the work contains less action than many contemporary fanta First off， thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for my honest review。 Also， congratulations and thanks to Erin M。 Evans for publishing this novel。Empire of Exiles presents the tropes you think you know from new and interesting angles。 This fantasy-meets-mystery novel follows several unique characters as they attempt to untangle the motivations behind a shocking murder， as well as their own backstories。 Although the work contains less action than many contemporary fantasy pieces， its worldbuilding and characters propel the story forward。Empire is extremely character driven。 Each character feels distinct and fleshed out， and you can hear their voice in Evans’ writing。 As the story progresses， the author feeds the audience bits and pieces of their past and personalities， prompting the reader to study the characters as if they were mysteries themselves。 The cast interacts well with each other， and they promise interesting futures！As for the plot， it revolves around discovering the murderer and his/her/their motivations。 I thought Evans did a nice job of keeping the audience engaged with clues and intrigue。 Most of the book takes place in the archives， and very little action occurs until the end， which I believe may prove positive or negative depending on one’s personal preferences。 The ending indicates a larger series; although this book laid ground for upcoming works， it does not feel like setup， but rather a story in its own right。 If you are willing to sacrifice a traditional fantasy quest for a motely crew of interesting characters and their development （that was meant in the best way）， this book is for you。 It is quirky， fun， and engaging。 I look forward to the rest of the series！ 。。。more

Eric ，

Absolutely superb！

Bethany Dickey ，

I am very soft DNF'ing this at 180 pages because I do NOT know what is going on？？ But the reviews are so glowing？？ May come back to this later I am very soft DNF'ing this at 180 pages because I do NOT know what is going on？？ But the reviews are so glowing？？ May come back to this later 。。。more

H。M。 Long ，

Wow， okay。 This one took me a minute to wrap my head around （there's a broad cast of characters and a huge， detailed world - I recommend the print version so you can reference the gorgeous map， etc）， then it proceeded to sweep me away and worm into every corner of my mind。 Awesome worldbuilding， wonderful characters， a found family that made my heart ache in the best way， and an absolutely delightful mystery to unravel。 I loved it！ Wow， okay。 This one took me a minute to wrap my head around （there's a broad cast of characters and a huge， detailed world - I recommend the print version so you can reference the gorgeous map， etc）， then it proceeded to sweep me away and worm into every corner of my mind。 Awesome worldbuilding， wonderful characters， a found family that made my heart ache in the best way， and an absolutely delightful mystery to unravel。 I loved it！ 。。。more

The Cosmic Circus ，

I really loved the characters and there was some great development by some of them。 The overall mystery was engaging and the dangers Quill and his friends faced were exciting。 There was some romantic tension but it stayed as tension and didn’t interfere with the overall adventure really。 Overall a very nice offering from Evans。Read the full review at: https://www。thecosmiccircus。com/book-。。。 I really loved the characters and there was some great development by some of them。 The overall mystery was engaging and the dangers Quill and his friends faced were exciting。 There was some romantic tension but it stayed as tension and didn’t interfere with the overall adventure really。 Overall a very nice offering from Evans。Read the full review at: https://www。thecosmiccircus。com/book-。。。 。。。more

Hazel Books ，

The book starts with two brothers- one is sentenced to death for trying to overthrow the throne and the other is trying to find out his motives。 Fast forward to present day- Quill is sent to the capital to fetch some things from the imperial archives。 People begin to ask questions and are suspicious where this request is coming from and why。 Things go awry when he finds his best friend with a bloody knife in a room full of injured people and watches his friend take his own life while saying some The book starts with two brothers- one is sentenced to death for trying to overthrow the throne and the other is trying to find out his motives。 Fast forward to present day- Quill is sent to the capital to fetch some things from the imperial archives。 People begin to ask questions and are suspicious where this request is coming from and why。 Things go awry when he finds his best friend with a bloody knife in a room full of injured people and watches his friend take his own life while saying some strange proverb。 Quill knows his friend would never do something like this， but the evidence is stacked against his friend。 As he works to uncover what really happened and prove that his friend is innocent， he finds that loyalties to the throne aren’t what they seem and the same family that tried to overthrow the throne years earlier has their hand in another revolution。I really enjoyed this book！ Magic and mayhem， a mysterious rogue assassin and a wide cast of characters who may not be who you think they are- this book will have you turning pages to the end！ There are a lot of characters in this book， but there is a list provided at the beginning of the book to help you keep them all straight。 This is book one in the series， so be sure to watch for the next one！Thank you so much to Orbit Books for a copy of the book in exchange for a read and review。 All opinions are my own。 。。。more

Katelyn ，

3。5⭐️The actual plot and mystery of this book was absolutely page turning。 I wanted to know who was behind the murders and unravel the story of the past rebellion。However the world building was a bit lack luster。 I spent a lot of the book confused with the different aspects of the world， but that could just be me as I’m newer to more complex fantasy worlds， but I did want to point it out。 I was able to understand the world near the end of the novel， but I wish we got more detail at the beginning 3。5⭐️The actual plot and mystery of this book was absolutely page turning。 I wanted to know who was behind the murders and unravel the story of the past rebellion。However the world building was a bit lack luster。 I spent a lot of the book confused with the different aspects of the world， but that could just be me as I’m newer to more complex fantasy worlds， but I did want to point it out。 I was able to understand the world near the end of the novel， but I wish we got more detail at the beginning or more throughout the novel。 Thank you to orbit and net-galley for an e-book in exchange for my review。 I will be reading the next book to see what happens！ 。。。more

Meredith Katz ，

This was SO engaging and SO thrilling。 I actually haven't read Evans' Forgotten Realms books， but I picked this up because I'd heard they were incredibly well written （and I've seen the price increases around them since they went out of print compared to so many others）。 So when I saw the ARC， I jumped at it。I'm so glad I did。 The characters are wonderful， all very rich， often abrasive， each of them dealing with their own situations and own lives; nobody stands in to serve anyone else's story， t This was SO engaging and SO thrilling。 I actually haven't read Evans' Forgotten Realms books， but I picked this up because I'd heard they were incredibly well written （and I've seen the price increases around them since they went out of print compared to so many others）。 So when I saw the ARC， I jumped at it。I'm so glad I did。 The characters are wonderful， all very rich， often abrasive， each of them dealing with their own situations and own lives; nobody stands in to serve anyone else's story， they just exist and react to the narrative naturally。 The lead characters have great chemistry， and I appreciated the number of female leads。 As a queer author and reviewer， even when I'm not reading a book with lgbt+ protagonists my bare minimum is seeing if the world acknowledges that we exist in it -- and this does that， casually and early on。 The story here is convoluted and sharp， and the magic system is fascinating （I LOVE the affinity spirals and how they both show great power but also fantastic drawbacks）。 The only thing I wasn't entirely sold on was the Changelings' being sheer forces of chaos and destruction when we also see them thinking and talking like people， since a society can't exist out of sheer forces of chaos and destruction -- but we get all that from the characters' povs， and the narrative itself doesn't seem to think they're entirely correct about it。 I'm excited to see if the next book develops that more。Really， truly enjoyed this。 Can't wait for book 2 and to spend more time with these characters。 。。。more

Peter ，

Loved it。 Great， subtle worldbuilding and a terrific cast。 Also， a good first in a series that promises more while still wrapping up THIS story。 Very good， highly recommended。

Amanda Estes ，

slow start but good read I received this from a Goodreads giveaway。 I had a hard time at the beginning but it picked up and was very enjoyable。

Sacha ，

DNF for now。 My kindle copy didn't download the whole book for some reason so I am trying to sort that out。 Definitely plan on finishing once it's fixed。 DNF for now。 My kindle copy didn't download the whole book for some reason so I am trying to sort that out。 Definitely plan on finishing once it's fixed。 。。。more

Jesse Campbell ，

A rich， captivating world， with boundless wit， charm， and incredibly endearing--not to mention interesting--characters。The salt wall and its sorcerers is such a cool concept， and the affinities/specialists mentioned throughout the story were a refreshing take on the usual base four elemental abilities。Erin's dialouge is some of the best I've read， and the life she breathes into her characters had me scrambling to hold all of my faves。 The family dynamics within the main cast were incredibly whol A rich， captivating world， with boundless wit， charm， and incredibly endearing--not to mention interesting--characters。The salt wall and its sorcerers is such a cool concept， and the affinities/specialists mentioned throughout the story were a refreshing take on the usual base four elemental abilities。Erin's dialouge is some of the best I've read， and the life she breathes into her characters had me scrambling to hold all of my faves。 The family dynamics within the main cast were incredibly wholesome， and the antagonists were captivating and complex。 The more the story progressed， the more I was sucked into the spiral。 Erin did an excellent job in crafting characters with unique struggles， all woven neatly into the overarching， expertly crafted， mystery。The magic system felt fresh and familiar， and learning about its ties to anxiety hit really close to home。I wanted to devour this book--and did--while savouring ever moment within this intricate world。Also coffee， pancakes， rabbit skulls， the yearning complexities of old and young love， the grief of lost life， and getting shivers at the mention of ink and nails。Empire of Exiles is definitely a top read of 2022。 I will be recommending it to EVERYONE。 。。。more

Billie ，

Empire of Exiles Erin M。 EvansFantasy MysteryNetGalleyYears after a Duke's failed coup， the empire moved on。 Quill， a scribe apprentice is sent to retrieve artifacts from that coup from the Archives。 Then there is a murder and now Quill， along with a detective， and those who work in the Archives， search for who did it and to stop them from doing it again。The blurb claims Quill is the MC。 No， he's one out of three main characters， and there are a bunch of minor。 And I wish I had stopped reading w Empire of Exiles Erin M。 EvansFantasy MysteryNetGalleyYears after a Duke's failed coup， the empire moved on。 Quill， a scribe apprentice is sent to retrieve artifacts from that coup from the Archives。 Then there is a murder and now Quill， along with a detective， and those who work in the Archives， search for who did it and to stop them from doing it again。The blurb claims Quill is the MC。 No， he's one out of three main characters， and there are a bunch of minor。 And I wish I had stopped reading when I knew I didn't care about the characters because they were poorly described， as was the entire world。 When the first few pages of this book were a listing of characters and events， along with other stuff， I about DNFed it right there because I knew either there were way too many characters， or the author was using it as a guide so they could get away with lazy descriptions。 I was right on both accounts。This book could have been so much better if the author cared about the characters and the world。 It's a very interesting concept， but there's no backbone， just sentences of summaries。 Some of the characters have tentacles and horns， but not explained。 It's as if the author had a murder mystery all written， but at the last minute decided that because fantasy was popular， they would change the world and add some 'fantasy' elements。 And the flashbacks to the past were not needed， just added to the page count。Honestly， the blurb is a lot better and more entertaining than the entire story。 1 Star 。。。more

Sahitya ，

I’m really regretting not reading this book before the release despite having an arc but I couldn’t help it coz I was sick for many days。 Even when I started and found myself completely engrossed in it， I couldn’t finish it quickly coz the cold weather has been hard to manage and I was finding it hard to hold the book for a long time with freezing hands。 But here I am with a review because I somehow managed to finish it and I’m just so so happy that I got to read it。 I was very intrigued by the I’m really regretting not reading this book before the release despite having an arc but I couldn’t help it coz I was sick for many days。 Even when I started and found myself completely engrossed in it， I couldn’t finish it quickly coz the cold weather has been hard to manage and I was finding it hard to hold the book for a long time with freezing hands。 But here I am with a review because I somehow managed to finish it and I’m just so so happy that I got to read it。 I was very intrigued by the premise of this book since the first time I saw it。 And then we got the lovely cover and also the arc which had the stunning map as the temporary cover， and it all made for great anticipation。 And wow was I glad to see that all my expectations weren’t wrong。 The author has created a very ambitious world with multiple kingdoms （or protectorates）， cultures， species and infused this book with all their histories and lore， while never being infodumpy。 I can’t say I understood or remember all the details but if you go checkout the author’s Twitter page， you’ll definitely understand a lot。 But what amazed me more is that in this epic fantasy world， the author gives us a murder mystery - a mystery that may have empire level consequences， conspiracies abound with interconnecting threads to an old coup attempt， and a group of characters each with their own motivations trying to unravel it all。 The writing is engrossing right from page one and if I wasn’t having trouble with the cold， I would have finished this book in one sitting。 The magic system with affinities towards materials， specialists who need to be protected from going to spiral and becoming one with their material， and sorcerers with powers beyond just understanding materials - it’s very unique and interesting and the way it’s written just makes for extremely compelling reading。 We only meet a few characters with affinities like bronze， ink and glass but the way their spirals are written is wow。 The author called it a magic system resembling anxiety and I think that’s a perfect description。 And that’s another thing I felt the author wrote very well - characters suffering from ptsd and anxiety， both related or not to magic， making all the stakes feel very very real。 How can I not talk about the amazing characters too when we have so many of them。 Amadea is a superior generalist of the Imperial Archives - calm and capable one who can bring down her specialists from any bad spiral， the strong and observing kind who remembers everything， gets things done， and protects everyone under her charge。 But how she hides all her past anxieties under this cool facade， just hanging onto the threads of the present so that her traumatic past doesn’t wreak havoc on her mind - it’s all written very well and makes her a very compelling and easy to love character。 The author peels the layers of her character chapter by chapter， which is very much integral to the whole mystery of this story and it’s just masterfully crafted。 Then there’s Quill who starts off the book by being amazed at being able to get a tour of the archives （and I was amazed along with him） but is suddenly thrust into a murder mystery and the death of his friend - he might not understand what’s happening but he is determined to get to the truth of it all come what may。 His strong convictions and sometimes impulsive nature made him such a fun person to follow along。 Yinni is the only specialist we actually get a pov of and it was such a unique experience getting to understand the magic system through her。 The way the ink makes her feel， how every element around her is calling her to become ink， how she is struggling all the time to not give up control， while also battling the expectations of her family - but ultimately she is also invested in the mystery and just wants to protect her friends， even if it means she might spiral bad。 Finally we have Richa to round off this cast， who is a vigilant or investigator who encounters obstacles whenever he is trying to solve this murder mystery but is persistent enough to pursue the truth， even when it puts his job in jeopardy。 He doesn’t know exactly whom to trust but is won over by Amadea’s protective nature and Quill’s passion and he also takes his oath to protect the empire seriously， even if the imperial family itself is ready to stop him。 Along with this unforgettable cast of main characters， we also have many other side characters like the other specialists at the archives， the main suspects of the murder from various protectorates， the members of the imperial family who we don’t know much about and may or may not be related to our main cast; and Redolfo Kirazzi who may not be technically present but his past coup attempt against the imperial family is the main undercurrent of this entire story， the consequences of his actions so vast that no one is even in a position to comprehend them all。 In the end， I don’t know if I’ve articulated properly but I want to emphasize again that I adored this book。 The author gives us a perfect blend of both the epic fantasy and murder mystery genres， a great multicultural and queernorm world， a unique magic system， and a cast of characters immensely memorable。 I was thoroughly entertained and intrigued， and that little sneak peak of the next book at the end is already making me all excited for the sequel。 I’m gonna have so much trouble making my end of the year favorites list next month but I feel strongly that this book will make its way onto it。 。。。more

Rachel （TheShadesofOrange） ，

3。0 starsThis book had a lot of elements that I normally love。 In many ways， this was my biggest challenge of the book。 I felt that it was doing too much in this debut novel。 The characters and plot were good， but not particularly unique or special。 I always hope that an Orbit debut will be a favourite。 This ended up being fine， but not particularly memorable。 Disclaimer I received a copy of this book from the publisher。

Maleesha ，

An extremely entertaining fantasy debut。 I had no idea librarians and archivists could be so exciting。 I love a good found family trope， the characters were loveable， the plot was interesting and went along at a steady pace。 Not too slow and not too fast， just right。 I will definitely be picking up the sequel to this。

gwendalyn _books_ ，

Empire of Exiles by @alltheerinyes ⁣ Books of the Usurper， #1Orbit Books orbitbooks_us orbitbooks_uk @hachetteuNovember 8th 2022 -Multiple Perspectives -Complex Characters -Mysterious Artifacts -Shape Shifters -Political Intrigue Empire of Exiles by Erin M。 Evans is the first installment in a absorbing new fantasy series。 This book was a perfect read， take a lock-room murder mystery infused into a spectacular high fantasy。 Don’t get me wrong it has incredible world building， but to me it’s defin Empire of Exiles by @alltheerinyes ⁣ Books of the Usurper， #1Orbit Books orbitbooks_us orbitbooks_uk @hachetteuNovember 8th 2022 -Multiple Perspectives -Complex Characters -Mysterious Artifacts -Shape Shifters -Political Intrigue Empire of Exiles by Erin M。 Evans is the first installment in a absorbing new fantasy series。 This book was a perfect read， take a lock-room murder mystery infused into a spectacular high fantasy。 Don’t get me wrong it has incredible world building， but to me it’s definitely a character driven tale。 The characters are well thought out and well developed。 The political intrigue， mysterious artifacts kept me reading until way past my bedtime。 I really enjoyed the superb execution， the author strategically lays the world building and magic system， along with history。 Creating an enjoyable slow burn， thrill-ride of a mystery。 An epic fantasy that will submerge you within its pages。 Told in multiple perspectives that give the reader a panoramic point of view。 The dual timeline intertwines and the reader understands the cause and effects of events。One of my favorites reads of 2022， patiently waiting on the next installment Loved it 🤎📖✍🏻⁣⁣⁣#orbitbooks #orbitbooksus #erinmevans #empireofexiles #booksoftheusurper #fantasybooks #bookstagram #instabooks #igreads 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Empire of Exiles

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Empire of Exiles&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Empire of Exiles&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0