Title: Daughter of No Worlds (The War of Lost Hearts Volume 1)
Author: Carissa Broadbent
Genre: Fantasy, fantasy romance
Publisher: N/A- Independent
Publication Date: 2019
Page count: 506
Rating:

One of my favourite aspects of the book corner of social media is that I feel like I’m never short on recommendations for new books. A lot of the bookstagrammers that I follow have been recommending Daughter of No Worlds for months now, so I finally ordered a copy from Amazon to give the series a try.

I really liked this book, though I’m having trouble pinpointing exactly what it was that was so good. The world and the magic that Broadbent built felt just unique enough. It unfolded in a slow burn over the course of the entire story, so much so that you’re still seeing the magic and setting evolving down to the very last page. The characters were really endearing, particularly Maxantarius, who might be my favourite character I’ve encountered in a long time. The plot also moved at a decent clip, with some parts being particularly action-packed.

I think the reason why I can’t pinpoint what it was that I loved about this book is that it was a combination of so many elements that are just so critical to my enjoyment of a good story. Magic, romance, flawed characters, great banter; it just had pieces of everything I like. This, combined with the actual writing, which I found in parts to be so wonderfully romantic and emotional that I was actually writing quotes down, made it a really solid read.   I’m looking forward to reading the second book in this series at some point this year.

Fair warning: spoilers ahead for anyone who hasn’t read this book.

Book Review: Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent

Daughter of No Worlds is a story told from dual perspectives. The first perspective is Tisaanah, a slave who murders her master when seeking her freedom and is forced to flee her country towards the promise of a better future. Tisaanah holds some magic, so her goal since she could remember has been to join a magical group of other Wielders called the Orders, where she can be properly trained and, eventually, convince them to join her cause in liberating the other slaves of her home country.

Tisaanah arrives in Ara, the city where the Orders are based, half-dead, but ready to beg for her place among them. They agree to allow her to train with a mentor, but as Tisaanah is nearly a decade older than other new recruits, she must prove that she can get up to speed in only six months. She’s also arrived at the Orders months after all of the mentors have been assigned, so her only available option is a man named Maxantarius, or Max, who is grouchy, disagreeable, and stubbornly refuses to teach her. It is only when Tisanaah makes clear to Max that she intends to use her training to free her people that he quietly relents and begins to train her in earnest.

Max is the other perspective within the story, though his viewpoint doesn’t come in until part two after Tisaanah has been accepted by the Orders and agreed to have a sentient source of raw magic placed within her so the Orders may use her as a tool.

By the time Max’s perspective begins, he and Tisanaah have become incredibly close. His own history with the Orders is tragic, but Max cares so much for Tisanaah that despite his efforts to disassociate from the Orders altogether, he finds he cannot leave her. Instead, he joins her by her side, and the two of them attempt to navigate both her new-found power and the devastating requirements that the Order will have of them. They embark on an epic quest to liberate Tisanaah’s friends back in her home country and serve the Orders under the dark blood oath that Tisaanah undertook in order to obtain the sentient power that now seeks to pull her apart.

Tisaanah was such an interesting character to me. Initially, she comes across as incredibly transactional, which is logical given that her entire life, she’s been a slave, an object. Even with her ability to feel the emotions of others, she uses it to understand motivations and how she can work them to her advantage. She’s always plotting about how to get where she needs to be, how she can survive and save those closest to her, so much so that she almost misses the moment when Max no longer becomes a piece in an equation to her. The moment where she realizes that they’re actually friends is kind of heartbreaking because she’s so caught up in moves in the game that she doesn’t even see it coming. Once she allows herself to be cared for though, and to care for him, she evolves a lot as a character. Initially, she’s like a cannonball, just powering her way through every decision in an attempt to get to where she needs to be, but by the time she’s been through several episodes with Reshaye and seen the devastation and destruction she can do, she begins to realize that the ends don’t always justify the means. Her internal struggle as she grapples with this was interesting to see unfold.

In many ways, Max was her perfect counterpoint. While she worked relentlessly and with brute force towards her goals, he put equal effort into refusing to accept the very nature of the powers she sought to join. He trains her, but it’s an effort to empower her, not empower the Orders. Where Tisaanah will do anything to get to where she needs to be, Max has already been down that path and seen what’s left in its wake. He’s learned all the lessons that Tisanaah insists on learning the hard way, and he patiently stays by her side, supporting her without downplaying the gravity of the decisions that she makes. This steadfast acceptance and support, combined with his witty banter and downright loveable nature, made Max one of my favourite literary characters of this year. Honestly, I’d read an entire book just about him (and I probably will, since I gather that there’s actually one available for this series).

I really enjoyed where the plot ended up heading and I think there’s so much potential for it to get really interesting from here. I’m particularly interested in what’s happened to Reshaye and what kind of role it will play for both Tisaanah and Max in the future. There’s so much Broadbent has yet to explore that I can’t wait to see where the story goes next.