Week 51 Reviews: Blades of Magic, Blades of Illusion

From Goodreads:
It is not a peaceful time in the Algardis Empire. War is raging between the mages and seventeen-year-old Sara Fairchild will be right in the middle of it.

She just doesn't know it yet.

Sara is the daughter of a disgraced imperial commander, executed for desertion. Sara is also the best duelist and hand-to-hand combatant in Sandrin. She lives quietly with her family's shame but when challenged about her family's honor, her opponent inevitably loses.

On the night she finds out her father's true last actions, she takes the Mercenary Guilds' vows to serve in the emperor's army. Using her quick wits and fierce fighting skills, she earns a spot in the first division. 

There she discovers secrets the mages on both sides would prefer stay hidden. Dark enemies hunt her and soon it's not just Sara questioning the motivation behind this war.

While fighting mages, blackmailing merchants and discovering new friends, Sara comes across something she's never had before - passion. The question is - can she fight for her empress against a mage who might unwittingly claim her heart?

This is year one of the Initiate Wars. Sara is hoping it doesn't become the year she dies. 

From Goodreads:
Sara Fairchild, duelist and combatant, is out for vengeance. Her father was betrayed. Her mother is dead. All she has left is her desire for revenge and a quest for answers.

Now a member of the Mercenary Guilds' elite guard, she fights on the front lines of her empire's first civil war. But Sara’s priority isn't winning the war for the crown or empire. It's finding out the true circumstances of her family's downfall while keeping one mild-mannered scholar alive.

As emotionally detached as she is from everyone around her, Sara can't seem to shake the stubborn affection of her one friend. When she stumbles upon the secrets of the leadership of the Empress's highest command in the field, Sara will be forced to decide how deep her loyalty is to the crown…before they kill her off and everyone else standing in their way.


Secrets aside everyday on the warfront is a life under threat from the ultimate enemy and yet as Sara quickly finds out, darkness resides on both sides of the war lines.

My Review:
Oh, it was so great to read these books! While I desperately want the last book in the Courtlight series, it was so great to be introduced to Sara and her world! She's a warrior, and her family's been beaten down, but they're not out yet! Very different from Ciardis!

Sara was pretty bad ass, she's been training as a warrior for basically her whole life. And then tragedy strikes and her father is killed as a traitor and Sara's life is turned upside down, though this book starts after the fact.

She has a justifiable anger towards the world, and it fuels her. Her journey is in no way easy, and it's just beginning-at first, survival. And then her mom is killed and then it's justice/revenge. It wasn't easy to read because it was hard for Sara, but it just pulled me in to read!

The beginning of Illusion, I was right there with Sara, of the unfairness of what had happened. Given her mission, it would've been better to let that simmer below the surface, especially since it weakened her position. But yeah, Sara has integrity like that!

Loved these books, and I can't wait to see where Sara's journey will take her next!

Author: Terah Edun
Series: Crown Service #1, 2, Algardis Universe #1, 2
Read: December 18th, 18th, 2017
Source: Ebook.bike, Author for Review
Reason Why: Love her books, and they're Historical Fiction 2017 Books and a Prequel & Sequel Challenge 2017 Books!
Publisher: Terah Edun
Published: March 31st 2014, December 17th 2017

Blades of Magic:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars

Blades of Illusion:

5/5 Hearts

5/5 Books

5/5 Stars