Devin Madson: We Ride the Storm

 Hi everyone

This is my review for Devin Madson's We Ride the Storm, this is book one in The Reborn Empire series.
I got my book from Bol.com, it has a nice cover and an interesting blurb on the back.

"War built the Kisian Empire and war will tear it down.
Fifteen years after rebels stormed the streets, Kisia is still divided. Only the firm hand of the god-emperor holds the kingdom together. But when a shocking betrayal destroys a tense alliance with neighbouring Chiltae, all that has been won comes crashing down.
In Kisia, Princess Miko T'sai is a prisoner in her own castle. She dreams of claiming her empire, but the path to power could rip it, and her family, asunder.
In Chiltae, assassin Cassandra Marius is plagued by the voices of the dead. Desperate, she accepts a contract that promises to reward her with a cure if she helps an empire fall.
And on the border between nations, Captain Rah e'Torin and his warriors are exiles forced to fight in a foreign war or die."

I really didn’t enjoy this one.

The characters were very one-dimensional, and some existed only to further the plot. Characterization is really important to me, and the lack of depth made me not care about a single character, so I lost interest halfway through.
The story was predictable and very cliché, and the worldbuilding was almost non-existent. The dialogue and actions of the characters had me sighing and rolling my eyes at their stupidity.
Also, completely unnecessary rape scenes never sit well with me, and that cost the book a star right then and there.

At least the writing was good.

Have you read We Ride the Storm? Did you enjoy it more than I did, or did you feel the same way? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Happy reading.
Helena