We Ride the Storm

A warrior, an assassin, and a princess pursue their destinies against a backdrop of war and political intrigue in this dense epic fantasy, the first in Madson’s Reborn Empire series. Princess Miko Ts’ai lives on a razor’s edge—the potential heir of the Asian-influenced Kisian Empire, her life is in daily peril thanks to her proximity to her stepfather’s throne. Assassin Cassandra Marius is hired by a Kisian courtier to prevent a politically expedient marriage between Miko and a nobleman from the Europesque Chiltaen Empire. Meanwhile, warrior Rah e’Torin is exiled from his Levanti tribe and struggles to keep his people safe from the Chiltaen Empire, which sees them as barbarians. When all three paths intersect in the midst of a re-eruption of hostilities between Kisia and Chiltae, Madson (the Vengeance trilogy) cleverly uses the characters’ distinct perspectives to piece together a crafty political chess game, hitting all the hallmark tropes of epic fantasy in the process. Though the result feels more like setup for the next in the series than a narrative in its own right, the intricate worldbuilding and memorable characters will appeal to genre fans. Agent: Julie Crisp, Julie Crisp Literary. (June)