The Amazing Storyworld of Phoenix Unbound by Grace Draven

It's been a week since I read Phoenix Unbound by Grace Draven and I'm still not over it. I've been in a blogging funk for a while now. Since my last post, I've read a few otherworldly romances but I haven't been inspired to write for my blog until I read this story.

I first heard of Grace Draven through Ilona Andrews, one of my favorite authors of all time. I read their blog a lot and found a post about their recommendation of Phoenix Unbound. I thought, if my favorite authors loved it, then it should be a good story, right?

Well, it was- in short- amazing. Let me tell you why.

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1. Phoenix Unbound

Phoenix Unbound is set in a fantasy world that feels very real. The big baddie is the Kraelian Empire which reminds me of the Roman Empire because they have gladiator fights. They've conquered other villages, enslaved other societies, and they demand a sacrifice of a maiden each year. (That reminded me a lot of the Hunger Games).

Gladiator by mohamed_hassan

The story also takes us to other places like the Sky Below which I pictured as the Eurasian Steppes. It's the home country of the hero, Azarion. They're horse riders and fire worshippers. I imagined Russia, Genghis Khan, Zoroastrianism. The entire storyworld felt lived in. The societies and their cultures were familiar enough from reality to paint a clear picture, and different enough to make them magical and distinct. 

The Sky Below

I think what also makes this book really good is that it doesn't shy away from dark themes. Early on, we learn that the heroine, Gilene, was raped every time she sacrifices herself for her village. We question the morality of that. There's also a scene where Azarion is beaten up and brutally raped afterward. We see there that men are not exempt, as they usually are, from violence in this world either. 

Throughout the book, there's a lot of graphic brutality and that may put off some readers. As for me, I view it the way I view reading history books. In the past, when there were still empires, selling fellow humans to slavery did occur. Gladiators were forced to kill each other for the pleasure of the ruling elite. Women were often raped and bartered and assaulted. These things happened in our history so the brutality of it is not new.

I think that's what makes this storyworld so amazing- it takes from our actual history and it gives it a fantastical twist.

Azarion and Gilene fanart by meliescribbles

Final Thoughts

Apart from the storyworld, I really did love this story. There was a bit in the middle where the pace slowed down and I got kind of bored (which is why I gave it 4/5 stars on Goodreads). But other than that, I loved spending time in this world and with the characters. I'm still thinking about the Phoenix scene when Gilene and Azarion said goodbye to each other. And the end scene where they meet again. So much feels!

On Grace Draven's website, the description for this series says: 

"The Kraelian Empire has ruled with an iron fist for centuries, its grip unyielding until the power of three women, and the men devoted to them, break it."

So, this leads me to believe the other books in the series will center around different characters. That's totally fine with me. Because Azarion and Gilene got their well-deserved happy ending and I want it to stay that way! 

(Although, I wouldn't mind it if they're featured heavily in the other books too.)