Review: The Empire of Gold

The Empire of Gold by S.A. Chakraborty
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It's taken a few days for me to compose my thoughts about The Empire of Gold both because of its length and complexity and because I just can't believe it's over. *sobs* I also needed time to stop my restless fangirling and flailing about Shannon Chakraborty. I've successfully toned it down for this review to simply "Shannon Chakraborty is one of the best fantasy writers out there." She writes fiction that isn't formulaic, that is richly informed by culture and history, and in which characters grow and evolve. She writes female protagonists who are complex and bold and who aren't defined by men. She writes about people choosing to do the right thing even against the longest possible odds, because it's the right thing to do.

The Daevabad Trilogy began with The City of Brass as the story of Nahri, a charming grifter and con artist living in Cairo, who unwittingly uses healing magic she doesn't know she has, summons a bundle of trouble, ends up in Daevabad, a fictional magic city somewhere in what we would consider Afghanistan. There, she is held a hostage of sorts because of her skills and a magical lineage that she knew nothing about, looked down upon, and ultimately married to an Emir who didn't even want to marry, against her (and his) wishes. Yet she also finds her gift for healing is the thing that makes her happiest. In fact, she tenuously cultivates a happy and productive life. She loves three men in very different ways. She loves her husband, Muntadhir, as a friend. (Because, reasons...) She also loves her husband's brother Alizayd, who is something of a kindred spirit, as a friend. And she loves Darayavahoush, a man with a horrible past, in a romanticized fashion that turns out to have been rather simplistic. When her own largely unknown past comes roaring back at the end of the second novel in The Kingdom of Copper, she miraculously is transported back to the home she remembers, Cairo. Luckily, she is with Ali, perhaps the truest and best-hearted friend she has. She is home again, but at what cost to those she's left behind? And her return to Cairo means we are again left with the questions about who Nahri is. How and why did she even come to Cairo in the first place when she was a child, given what we think we know about her ancestry? And who has she become in the years she's lived in Daevabad, her ancestral home? Is she still just a charismatic grifter? And what about Ali, who has undergone his own mysterious transformation over the course of the first two books- from a beloved brother and son, struggling with his reluctant role as protector for his older brother to an outcast and man with dark secrets and, seemingly, secret alliances. At the end of the second book, the events and losses have left him utterly devastated. He is cast far from the only home he's known, in possession of power he never wanted and which, as the third book opens, he shockingly finds he is completely unable to use. And he's not alone. As The Empire of Gold opens, the magic is gone for almost everyone. Except, rather frighteningly for Dara, ifrits, peris, and marids, of course.

In this final installment in the Daevabad Trilogy Nahri and Ali must make difficult choices. When they are offered the possibility of a very different life, first in Cairo, then in Ta Ntry, they find themselves tempted, but they are haunted by those they left behind. Ultimately, their journey to find peace within will lead them to find peace for Daevabad, and its denizens who have survived Manizheh's devastating slaughter.

One of the many things I have grown to love about Chakraborty's writing is that in Nahri she gives us a mature woman, who pragmatically learns to make the best of her situation. When Nahri is told she will marry Muntadhir, she doesn't act out, she befriends him, and they do indeed marry but on their own terms. When she loses her healing magic for a time, she falls back on human medical techniques she has learned and read about. Nahri always manages to adapt, to make the best of her situation. In the end, against the expectations of her potential position, she crafts a life for herself in which she can be happy and explore her intellectual interests. Alizayd and Dara also evolve as characters, each learning to face various truths about themselves head-on. Evolution and adaptation turn out to be integral to the outcome for Daevabad's survival.

As sad as I am that this trilogy is at an end, I look forward to whatever Shannon Chakraborty has in store for her readers. She's a marvelous writer.

I received Advance Review Copies of this book in exchange for an honest review.

~ ~ ~

Want to buy a copy of The Empire of Gold from your local independent bookstore? Click HERE.

Want to buy the audiobook copy of The Empire of Gold and have a portion of the sale benefit your local independent bookstore? Click HERE.

Want your eBook purchase of The Empire of Gold to benefit independent bookstores? Click HERE.

Follow Marzie's Reads on Bloglovin'

View all my reviews on Goodreads

© Marzie's Reads 2017-2020, All Rights Reserved.