Rating: 4 out of 5.

4.5 stars

This is the dystopian book I’ve been looking for the last couple of years! Earth has been ravaged by a fever that took more than half the population. Now the world is separated into two warring countries. Cedrae who shun the fever and do everything they can to avoid it and Telusar, who embrace the fever and worship it. All Telusar citizens are subjected to the fever. Those that survive the fever are gifted with powers. The powers are unique and varied.

A group of seers announce a prophecy that will allow one country to defeat the other. They claim that one woman will lead their country to victory, but they don’t know which. One woman is Rava Vidar, a sadistic Telusar noble, the other is Elegy Ahn, who is named the “Hope of Cedrae.” Their fate is tied to one man. A man Elegy is told she will fall in love with.

Elegy is a kick-ass heroine. She is smart, creative, courageous, and kind. She is a skilled and tactical fighter, is loyal, and is dedicated to helping her country. Rava is brutal and will do anything to beat Elegy and bring victory to her country. She is singularly focused on the prophecy and stops at nothing to achieve her goal.

Theren is the MMC. His journey in this story is crazy. He’s known since he was a kid that he was destined to be a knight. He swears his allegiance to Elegy, but when the ceremony is attacked, instead of protecting her, he flees and is captured by the Telusars. He’s imprisoned and victimized by the Telusar but survives. He’s become a brutal fighter and once he’s reunited with Elegy, recommits his vows to protect her.

There is plenty of action and moving parts to the story. There are hints of a broader storyline that will hopefully be developed in the next book. I loved all the mythology of the fever, the political intrigue, and various subplots that enrich the story and keeps the reader interested. The romance between Elegy and Theren is not the focus of the book, which I appreciated. Their relationship develops slowly and it takes awhile for them to trust each other. They plot and fight well together, and hopefully the next book will provide additional interactions to strengthen their bond.

I listened to the audio of this book and was really impressed by the narrators. They embodied the characters in the story and brought them to life. The anger, hurt, betrayal, fear, and determination was portrayed through their voices and kept me glued to the book. I hope they narrate the next book in the series.

I received a complimentary audio of this book from Macmillan Audio and NetGalley. All opinions are my own.