THE EMPIRE WARS

Two young women, trapped on different sides of a tyrannical regime, become connected through their shared oppression.

Eighteen-year-old Coa Rangecroft has been forced to enter the Great Hunt, an annual tradition that takes place over the course of seven days in the totalitarian Arctic nation called the Allied Force. Soldiers target and hunt down the foreign participants, and the family members of anyone they kill are publicly executed afterward. Few of the hunted even survive until the fifth day, but Coa is harboring a secret: She’s a fireborn who possesses magic, a rare ability among the world’s remaining population. Fellow captive Hazen Creed appears to be onto Coa’s powers, and, despite being a fellow Great Hunt competitor, he also seems to be looking out for her. Coa finds she may have yet another ally in Ife Størmbane, a princess from the Makari-African Empire who’s married into the most powerful family of the Allied Forces; she has plans to do far more than just save Coa. Debut author Phenix’s poignant storytelling will evoke strong emotions from readers. While the story contains a lot of exposition, the robust worldbuilding is supported by the alternating first-person perspectives of Coa and Ife. Most characters are white; Ife is dark-skinned.

An absorbing fantasy novel with dystopian themes that explores human endurance in its varied forms.