Thank you so much to PrideBookTours for sending a copy of this book and for allowing me to take part in this amazing tour! - (ad-gifted)
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Goodreads Synopsis
Orphaned and forced to serve her country’s ruling group of scribes, Karis wants nothing more than to find her brother, long ago shipped away. But family bonds don’t matter to the Scriptorium, whose sole focus is unlocking the magic of an ancient automaton army.
In her search for her brother, Karis does the seemingly impossible—she awakens a hidden automaton. Intelligent, with a conscience of his own, Alix has no idea why he was made. Or why his father—their nation’s greatest traitor—once tried to destroy the automatons.
Suddenly, the Scriptorium isn’t just trying to control Karis; it’s hunting her. Together with Alix, Karis must find her brother…and the secret that’s held her country in its power for centuries.
Review
First off can we just appreciate the amount of diversity in this book?! With queer pirates and an asexual main character, this was an epic debut novel that I thoroughly enjoyed. Add in the fact that this is a dual POV story with the other one being an automation who actually has feelings and this book became a new favourite.
The premise for this book really had me hooked and I quickly fell in love with all of the characters in this book. I loved her determined Karis was to escape and find her brother. Whilst she made stupid decisions in this book, she did them out of love and realised the consequences of her actions. She was a very relatable character who was dealing with the struggles of being alone along with the realisation that she isn't like every other girl. Alix was an interesting character and I found his thoughts and the way he processes what is going on so intriguing. He's tired of being seen as an object or weapon and justs wants to find his place in the world.
The secondary characters were so unique, especially Zara the captain of the pirate ship. Zara is witty and fierce so it was absolutely impossible not to grow attached to her spunk and braveness. Her crew is amazing and again full of diversity with a nonbinary character!
The magic system was so different! I honestly loved the idea of runes being used to control automations and the use of ledgers! I would have loved to learn more about them and really wish this story had been a duology! The only reason I didn't give it a five star review is that I felt like there could have been a bit more character development. I do feel at times Karis was overshadowed as a main character and just would have liked her more in the forefront.
Overall this was an amazing book that I recommend any fantasy lover reads!
Rating: 4/5 stars
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