ARC Review: "Captive of the Stolen Empire" by Megan Van Dyke ★★★★★

ARC Review: Captive of the Stolen Empire by Megan Van Dyke

Exciting, beguiling, amusing and stunning, “Captive of the Stolen Empire” tells the story of Ilya Valerious, heir to city Sorrena – now conquered by Emperor Ryszard’s army led by his first-in-command captain Lucien, a masked man possessing dark magic. To him, she is an intriguing yet defiant, fiery-tempered woman, one he knows will give him ample of trouble both on the road and off. Ilya is taken hostage to the emperor’s residence, as leverage to ensure full compliance from her people, something which has been done with other heirs.

[Contains some spoilers]

On the journey, she discovers development of a rebellion against the empire, which she intends to aid by taking it down from within with the help of the other captured heirs. She decides the best yet most dangerous way to go about this is to seduce and gather information from Lucien. Of course, she does not expect things to get complicated, torn between duty and matters of the heart. Will she betray her friends or her foe she now has feelings for? Will she succeed in bringing down the empire? And the more Lucien spends time with Ilya, the more he questions his past and all he knows. But is she only using and manipulating him into siding with them?

Being a fan of the enemies-to-lovers trope and of both medieval and fantasy novels, I was immediately drawn to this story. This is the first book I have read by Megan Van Dyke and I am glad I encountered this as it is an incredible introduction to her work. With perfect pacing, an ideal story length, good characterisation and description, I was engrossed in reading this I couldn’t put it down! Megan was able to set the scene, detail fictional locations, provide lore and make it all fairly straightforward to follow. I will need to check her other novels out – posthaste!

Lucien and Ilya by marybegletsova

This is interestingly told from a dual point of view from both Ilya and Lucien. I am more used to books being either third person or first person but told from one POV, which can sometimes be too one-sided, so I really liked this. It moves the story along nicely, and it allows the reader to understand how each of them tick, what their thoughts are, and draw from this some parallels. Ilya has only ever known how to be a ruler, all of which is now taken from her and she struggles to learn who she is without her titles; Lucien has only ever known working for the emperor as he was raised by him since he was a boy, but circumstances arise which makes him question who he is behind his titles too. I loved their bond over this, the deep conversations they have about their sense of identity, and picking each other up when they need it. It is beautifully written and I think we can all reflect on the times we have struggled in finding ourselves, who we are and what our purpose is.

Ilya and Lucien are very well written, I absolutely adore them! I love the banter they have both witty and deep, and how protective he is of her. The other characters all contribute nicely to the plot and served a purpose – none of them were unnecessary. I also like the fact that there are female soldiers in the emperor’s army.

Honourable mentions of moments are the following: Chapters 11 and 12 when Ilya tries to flirt with Lucien and he removes his mask, then gifts her the bangle to protect her from magic. Their chemistry is so good! Chapters 21 and 22, one moment I was giggling and kicking my feet all giddy at the thought of him pretending to be a commoner to dance with her, the next I was screaming (then mad at those bells calling him away haha). Chapter 37, need I say any more? And Chapter 51 was everything, you will see what I mean!

Lucien and Ilya by winterofherdiscontent

There were some twists and turns, some rather predictable but did not detract from enjoying the plot unfold. The only things I would say dissatisfied me were: the ending, though I liked the plot, felt a little rushed as one minute they meet with the rebels, the next a battle; I would have liked to have learned more about how the magic worked in the world, how The Four selected people to bestow the gift; and finally, I would have liked to have seen Ilya growing stronger at the end of the book. Don’t get me wrong, I love her determination and mental resilience (she does have a few great moments in the final battle) but Lucien keeps saving her and I want Ilya to be able to hold her own. Perhaps Lucien could train her: a diplomat and a warrior? That would be an amazing combination! I’d especially love if she eventually earns magical powers, perhaps light powers to contrast Lucien’s dark illusions.

 

@saqphirc 📖 "captive of the stolen empire" by megan van dyke (OUT NOV 14TH❗) medieval fantasy romance contains: enemies to lovers, forbidden love, forced proximity, slow burn, spice, touch her & 💀, only one bed, hidden identity, magic, shifting alliances | #edit#cotse#captiveofthestolenempire#captiveofthestolenempireedit#meganvandyke#lucien#henrycavill#henrycavilledit#book#booktok#bookedit#booklover#bookworm#aesthetic#aestheticsedit#medieval#loveedit#fantasy#fantasyromance#romantasy#enemiestolovers#forbiddenlove#forcedproximity#onebed#captiveromance#thebridgekingdom#acotar#acourtofthornesandroses#acowaf#acosf#sarahjmaas#fourthwing#kingofbattleandblood#viral#fy#fyp#fypシ#foryoupage ♬ luminary joel sunny piano edit - Joel Sunny 🌞

This is, I understand, the first released book of the “Isla’s Gambit” series, so there is room for further information and character development the regards mentioned above.

If you like “A Court of Thornes and Roses” or “The Witcher” series, “The Bridge Kingdom” and “King of Battle and Blood”, this book is for you!

I am honoured to have been selected as an ARC reader for this book, and I’d like to thank Megan for the opportunity.

“Captive of the Stolen Empire” is out November 14th