An enjoyable start to a fantasy series with a historical Venetian vibe. This seemed more teen than adult to me (much like Truthwitch by Susan Dennard did) with it's characters, although it did concentrate more on political machinations and subterfuge than most YA fantasy novels do. I liked it, although I would have preferred the character Zaira to have featured more prominently with her own chapters.

(ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley)

This book has such an intriguing premise. It was refreshing to come across such a new and interesting world. I would have liked a tiny bit more backstory and explanation of the mage mark and Falcons, but I'm hoping more will come as the series progresses. I loved how the interactions and relationship between Zaira and Amalia evolved.

AHH! This was good. There was some problems with(at times, the plot sagged and the world didn't make sense) but overall this was a great book. Highly recommend

*I received a free copy of this ebook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.*

There wasn’t anything wrong with The Tethered Mage, but for some reason I just didn’t love it. It was all right. I haven’t decided if I’ll continue the series or not. I suppose I’d just depends on other books I have available. I do want to know what happens with Amalia and Marcello.

The concept of Falcons & Falconers in this book is interesting. A mage’s magical ability can be bound by a jess (in this case, a magical bracelet). That mage becomes a Falcon, and the person who applied the jess is the Falconer. The Falconer can unbind the magic with one word and bind it up again with another. The two are to work together to serve the doge (Raverra’s leader) as part of his army. If a Falconer dies, the Falcon has to receive a new Falconer within a few days to avoid dying.

Amalia was an admirable main character. She tried to make right choices, even if they weren’t in line with what she wanted. She was also quietly clever and quite smart.

Marcello was imperfect, but I liked him. He struggled to balance his military duty with what he felt was morally correct. He wasn’t always the bravest character, but I think he was justified in his fears and hesitance.

Zaira annoyed me for at least half of the book. I understand her anger, distrust, and bitterness. But those things weren’t what bothered me; it was simply her personality. She was slightly tempered and more tolerable by the end of the book, but she still isn’t my favorite character.

Note: Some swearing.

First things first. This cover is amazing. As soon as I saw it I KNEW I had to read this. Would the book be as amazing? Yes. All the yes. This book was full of magic and political intrigue. The world building of eruvia draws you in and I simply cannot wait for the next book. The ending of this was awe inspiring and left me thinking for days. Get to know the characters they are lasting imprints for you!

Magic is scarce in the empire and anyone born to it is automatically conscripted into the army as a Falcon, matched with a Falconer that for the most part controls the Falcon. Most are found young, but Zaira, one of the main characters, has survived on the streets for years hiding. But she is found out and made a Falcon against her will with Amalia, the Heir to a very powerful person in the country as her Falconer. Together they have to figure out how to tolerate one another all while being pulled into political schemes. This is a good one if you enjoy political intrigue, magic, and exploring the underlying constructs of society.

I had very high hopes for this book but it was just okay. The magic system was interesting but I didn’t care for the female main character so much. I would’ve liked to read more about the magic and less about the politics

Thank you to Melissa Caruso, Orbit Books, and NetGalley for this free honest reviewer copy of "The Tethered Mage."

I really wanted to love this book so much more than I ended up loving it. The synopsis was so catchy and interesting, bu the book started and I found it dry and plodding. There were a lot of world building details in the first half, but they felt like they slowed the book down more than flushed out scenery and history.

I started this book during the terrible reading slump of Winter, 2017. I couldn't get into it, but I figured it was the slump's fault, so I set it aside. Fast-forward to Spring, 2018 and I'm so glad I picked this back up because I really enjoyed it.

I loved the beginning. Lots of action and the world-building was well done. There is a lot to this new world but it was deftly woven into the story. I adored Amalia's character. Zaira, I was less crazy about. In her defense, she was there against her will, so her angst was justifiable, but she came off sort of like Max from Two Broke Girls, except not funny. I would have liked a lot more levity there to break up the tension. I did, however, find her growing on me by the end of the book, so, shrugs, I guess I'll forgive her.

There is romance, but it's not the main focus. Act II felt slow to me, which is why I initially put this down. I think it could've been maybe a hundred pages lighter and not suffered at all. I like big books, like a lot, but some of the scenes felt like they weren't pulling their weight to move the plot forward. Also, some of Amalia's actions had me shaking my head a little, and the ensuing action that followed those questionable decisions felt too contrived as a result.

That said, the intrigue and espionage of this story was really good. I love that it kept me guessing. Sometimes the villains felt a little over-the-top. For all the talk of how ruthless the Empire is, one of the bad guys (no spoilers) sure got away with a lot, and I kept wondering how this person was still alive, but I enjoyed how the story played out and I'm excited for the next one. I want more romance and I think I'm going to enjoy Zaira (and her love life) even more in THE DEFIANT HEIR. ;)

"Figure out what you are good at and make that the game"

* * * *
4 / 5

The Tethered Mage is a Venetian inspired fantasy novel featuring hefty amounts of political skulduggery - one of my favourite things. It might be a little low on the action despite featuring a heavy-hitting Fire Warlock, but when the fights are there, they're good. Featuring two great female leads, The Tethered Mage is a solid start to a new fantasy series.

We follow the viewpoint of Lady Amalia Cornaro, daughter of one of the most dangerous women in the Raverran Empire and heir to a seat on The Council. Bookish and into creating artefacts, Amalia also has a spine of steel that gets slowly polished throughout the book as her confidence and skill in navigating the difficult political world of her mother increases. Amalia is down a dodgy street seeking out a rare book when she sees a warlock go supernova. In Raverra, mages are strictly controlled by magic bracelets that prevent them from using their magic unless their partner, their Falconer, speaks the release word. The only one able to help, Amalia slaps a bracelet on the burning woman and becomes her Falconer. The problem? Nobles aren't allowed to be Falconers.

"If Raverra wants my fire, she can have it. Let the city burn!"

Zaira is living her life on the streets to avoid becoming a Falcon. Fire mages are the rarest and more prized of them all, and Zaira would rather live her life on the run than be a caged prize, brought out only to inspire fear and wage war. Unsurprisingly, she isn't best pleased with being bound to Amalia. The two have a rocky start. Their relationship is realistic - Zaira has been dirt poor her entire life, Amalia is one of the richest heirs in the Empire. Amalia is good-natured but ignorant, good with books and not with people. Zaira has a biting tongue and years of suffering have made her bitter.

Unfortunately for them, they are going to have to get along. One of the Empire's former countries is attempting to rebel, as tension rise regarding missing children and raised merchant taxes. A secret group is trying to shake up trouble and make an alliance with the brutal nation of Vaskandar. Amalia, Zaira, and the Lieutenant Marcello Vardi are thrust in the middle, trying to keep peace. The core of this book is based on the relationships between these countries and the political manoeuvrings of their courts. If you aren't into that, this isn't the book for you! Personally, I loved it. It's got assassinations, secret deals, traitors, and plots, all set against the background of a quasi-Venetian Empire.

"My footsteps echo with the tread of legions. My breath is the wind that fills the sails of armadas. You stand within my dominion"

Perhaps The Tethered Mage is a little too long weighing in at a hefty 450 pages. It could have done with a few more sword fights and Zaira getting to let her powers loose. But it's got skulduggery, plot twists, loveable characters, a sweet romance, a bisexual main character, and chunks of wit, so I'm not complaining!

I originally read this book because I thought the cover was cool. I didn’t realize it would take me on an exciting ride filled with characters I fell in love with.

This book was amazing! The main reason? The magic. Its all about the magic. I'm so glad this is a first-in-series and there will be more because I need more!! So then we have the characters. The characters are build so well and so strong, but still flawed. And THEN there is a web of political scheming which, I will admit, had my head spinning with names for a while and I almost gave up for a minute or two there, but once I got it, I got it! It was intense!

Conclusion: read this book. It takes some concentration and brain power, but its worth it. Can't wait for #2!!

I found the writing of this very difficult to get in to. It just felt unfinished and rough around the edges, more like a first draft than a final copy.

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Samantha Brody's review Jan 15, 2018 · edit
really liked it
bookshelves: 2018, adult, arc-galley-pre-pub, sci-fi-fantasy

Oh, I liked this one! I’m always here for political machinations in fantasy, though I am kind of sad we didn’t get dual-POV between Amalia and Zaira? My fingers will stay crossed for book 2 at least. The characterization was a bit weak for me, but I appreciated how tightly plotted the story was and am curious to see where everything goes in the next book since I was expecting a bit more of a cliffhanger ending?

TW: “Slavery for your own good” plotline—which I *really* wish had been a bit more nuance beyond “IDK we’ll think of something re: alternative solutions to chaining people’s powers away.

**I received an egalley of the book from the publisher via NetGalley, which did not affect the content of my review in any way**

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33123849-tess-of-the-road" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="Tess of the Road" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1503583827m/33123849.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33123849-tess-of-the-road">Tess of the Road</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/357601.Rachel_Hartman">Rachel Hartman</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2282898119">3 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
Netgalley #8<br /><br />Many thanks go to Rachel Hartman, Random House, and Netgalley for the free copy of this book in exchange for my unbiased review. <br />This is the first of a duology set in the world of another of the author's characters- Seraphina. I've read that book, so I thought I'd check out this one.<br /><br />This is really good, but i dont know if I agree that twelve year olds should read it. I'm just thinking of my nieces, and there are a few subjects discussed that I wouldn't feel comfortable about them reading about in the sixth grade. But I guess kids are growing up so soon nowadays. <br /><br />Tess was always one to get into trouble. As a child she was known as a "spank magnet". It didn't help matters that her older half-sister was part dragon (read the book Seraphina). So Tess goes on a journey. The book follows her on her travails most importantly one that includes a great serpent of the underworld with healing powers that no one else believes exists. She begs for food, she falls in love, she learns truth about her best friend. It's a growth experience. <br /><br />I just kept scrolling the pages. I forgot that eventually there would be an ending and I was not ready. I was happy following Tess on her journey. Thankfully there will more than likely be a Book Two to pick up where this one left off. <br /><br />I wasn't ready for the ending. I wanted to continue on her adventure. 3.5 stars thinking about a 4
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/6595648-bam-the-bibliomaniac">View all my reviews</a>

I really enjoyed this book! I will be the first to admit that I wasn't sure about how much I was going to with the first few pages but it sucked me in and didn't let me go the entire time. The characters made this story and at the end of it I was loving them. I did think that one character was too good to be true (I like my characters to be a bit more gray) but all together if you're thinking about this book I would recommend giving it a try!

Notes: plot driven, not world or character driven. That being said, the plot was very good and this was a fast paced, relatively enjoyable read. It had an interesting premise, and I did like that the main character became less... helpless by the end of the book. Also Zaira became a great deal funnier by the end. Actually, tbh, it kinda felt like all the characters started out being almost placeholder character sketches and then became less and less stiff and more 'real' as the author worked through the story, which makes me hopeful about the next book (which also sounds like it will have an interesting storyline).

3 out of 5

Amalia Cornaro is out buying a new book when she comes across a woman being attacked. She tries to help the woman (Zaira), but things quickly spiral out of control as the woman shows her powers as a mage. Zaira starts a fire to scare the attackers away but her powers spiral out of control. A Falconer arrives and gives Amalia a jest, a bracelet that will allow Amalia to control Zaira’s powers. There are two major problems with this though, Zaira doesn’t want to be controlled and Amalia is the daughter of a member of the Council of Nine (the ruling family). Since Amalia is next in line to become the new Council of Nine (once her mother relinquishes it) this places her in a bad spot since she now potentially has more power than the other nine due to Zaira. Amalia doesn’t have time to sort this out however as she is thrust into a major political battle that could culminate into a major military war unless she can find out the truth.

While reading this novel it kept having a YA feel to it: courtly flirtations, civil duty, forbidden romances and a potential rebellion. The characters are well written with Zaira being my favorite. I thought her transition from angry woman living in the slums to a more trusting woman was done perfectly. It didn’t feel forced or fake, I really enjoyed how Amalia earns Zaira’s trust by helping her find the one thing she wants most in life (surprised it took Amalia so long to figure it out though). The pacing in the novel was okay, the beginning third was slow as everything is introduced but the novel quickly picks up again at the end. I was surprised at the betrayal at the end, I never saw it being who it was that poisoned Amalia. Initially I hated the idea of the jest, it felt like a form of slavery to me. Although I still don’t really like it I’ve learned to make peace with it, I hope in later novels Amalia fights to have them removed.

Overall an enjoyable fantasy novel, I plan to continue the series. I would suggest this to anyone who likes YA fantasy novels. Thanks to Orbit and Netgalley for this ARC.

Lately I have been particularly lucky when choosing debut novels to read, and The Tethered Mage was one such great find: the story is set in what looks like an alternate version of 18th Century Venice, with the city of Raverra and its canals and waterways as the playing field; my past visits to the real Venice helped me to see the city being described here, adding to the enjoyment of a well-painted background. Raverra has extended its influence over the surrounding countries, particularly the neighboring city of Ardence, whose restless nobility feels the ever-increasing need for more independence, the fires of freedom further kindled by the powerful realm of Vaskandar whose ambitions are equal only to its ruthlessness. Raverra, however, has been able to maintain its standing thanks to the strong politics of its Council and ruling Doge and to its ability to exploit the magic of gifted individuals.

And it’s indeed with the magic system that this novel forges an interesting path, because the rare and precious mages that are Raverra’s strength and deterrent are carefully screened since infancy for the tell-tale colored ring around their irises, and once discovered are corralled to the island enclave of the Mews, where their powers are harnessed through a bracelet called jess. The jess tethers each mage (or Falcon) to their handler the Falconer, in a partnership that only death can dissolve: according to a person’s point of view, such an arrangement can be seen either as slavery or symbiosis and that is one of the story’s main themes, the ethics of channeling useful or potentially dangerous abilities by effectively placing a gifted person under life-long tutelage.

Zaira is a formidable and quite unique fire mage, the most dangerous kind, and she’s been able to move under the Falconers’ radar for a long time until she’s forced to unleash her powers in self-defense: that’s when Falconer captain Verdi enrolls the help of a young woman to put a jess on Zaira, not knowing that his improvised assistant is Amalia Cornaro, heir to the most powerful woman in the Raverran council. Amalia finds herself saddled with the responsibilities of a Falconer, a duty that clashes with those imposed on her status as The Contessa’s daughter, and what’s more her Falcon deeply resents her both as a Falconer and as a representative of the pampered ruling class.

The dichotomy between these two young women, so very different in origins and character, is one of the supporting themes in The Tethered Mage and makes for a very interesting journey in which both of them have a great deal to discover by getting to know each other, overcoming diffidence and prejudices: the trope of very different people thrown together by fate and having to learn how to cooperate is one I’ve always found interesting, and in this case I appreciated it even more because it avoided the clichéd pitfall of the man/woman pairing that turns from hate to love. By linking these two girls and having them cooperate through a crisis, we learn more about the society they live in and at the same time we get to know and like them as characters – with the added bonus that the increased understanding of each other does not change who they basically are but more simply the way they perceive their counterpart.

I found Zaira to be the most fascinating of the two – not least because there is so much about her that is barely glimpsed, leaving a great deal of mystery about her past: she’s strongly independent, although the choice of keeping apart from others stems from some dark, dramatic roots, and she’s also brash and outspoken, and quite proud of that – to the point that contact with the higher strata of society fails to compel her to soften that approach, with quite amusing results. On the other hand Amalia, despite being the first-person narrator, comes across as slightly less interesting because of the shades of predictability that weigh on her character: if I liked the fact that she’s what we would nowadays call a “nerd”, due to her preference to magical and technical studies over politics or fancy parties, I felt that part of her journey was overshadowed by the required romantic entanglement and her role as the problem-solving heroine.

What makes Amalia stand out, however, is the relationship with her formidable mother: the two women are often in disagreement over Amalia’s life choices and her mother’s need to groom her as a successor, but instead of taking the path of all-out conflict they bridge their differences through mutual respect and a deep love that comes across quite strongly even if it remains mostly unexpressed. If anything, this novel is a showcase for strong female characters that know how to work with difficult situations and overcome many obstacles: as I said, Amalia is less effective in this field if compared with her mother or Zaira (or the Contessa’s right-hand helper Ciardha, a character I hope will get more narrative space in the next novels, because she’s beyond intriguing), but her willingness to put herself to the test and not give up, even in the face of unsurmountable odds, more than makes up for that.

Apart from the characters’ journey, The Tethered Mage is enriched by the fascinating power plays that constitute its backbone, a complicated dance of political expediency, back-room plotting and outright betrayals that speed up the pace in the second half of the novel and that kept me glued to the pages until I reached the resolution. And if the “bad guys” sometimes feel a little over the top (especially when they tend to explain their dastardly plot to a soon-to-be-killed-captive, as in the oldest narrative tradition), or if their identity is too easily gleaned, the story is so exciting that it’s not difficult to put the Inner Critic to sleep so that we can lay back and enjoy the adventure, one that I will be happy to follow in the next installments.

I held off on reading this one for a while, and I regret that immensely. This was a fantastic political fantasy read! Filled with magic and romance and political machinations, it kept me guessing right through to the end.

As far as debuts go, this was top notch. A very well thought out world and plot, especially in terms of the political aspect. From an empire, to independent city-states, to cities of rebellion and garrisons shielding magic, Caruso covered the whole spectrum of government rule and diplomacy. And the best part of it all? It wasn't confusing. Normally, these kind of tales you really need to pay attention with it. With the strange fantasy names and rapid-fire pace of introduction, it wasn't difficult to follow. It was very...grounded? I don't know how to explain it, but it was just so well done! That, and the plot itself was equal parts intriguing, believable and fresh. It didn't feel cliché or overdone at any point, which kept me flying through it.

The writing itself was wonderful. Easy to read and follow with several beautiful little literary surprises sprinkled throughout. Some phrases Caruso used were just fantastic, and I wish I'd written them down or saved them. The pacing was good as well. At no point was I bored or wanting to skip any parts.

The world building was fantastic as well. Each city visited was unique and easily pictured in my mind. The history that is fed to the reader throughout (although not a lot) was also interesting. The particulars of the magic aspect may have been my favourite part. I loved the different levels to it! Some people are warlocks, with crazy destructive powers, while others are artificers, people who use wires, beads and runes to weave spells. The premise of falcon and falconer in regards to the different mage marked was so cool. I really enjoyed the dynamics that came with that relationship, positive and negative. I also really liked that even people without the mage mark were learning about the magics as well, like alchemy and artifice.

As for the characters, I loved each one. Amalia (love that name) was a main character I could get behind and very much root for. Her life and dealing with problems were understandable and relatable. I liked that she was one of those well read in artifice magic. Zaira was a firecracker, holy. I had to laugh at a lot of her little quips because they were so good and so very much her. The love interest was great too. Very organic relationship with plenty of roadblocks along the way. All I will say is there haven't been too many couples where I was thinking "And KISS" every time they got together. Caruso made me wait, but it was worth it.

My only complaint was it was a little too long. But other than that, I really enjoyed this. I can't wait for the second.
4.5/5