4.5*
When the lovely Emma @ Miss Print recommended that I read The Diabolic, I took her seriously. For one, she knows what she's talking about. For another, I traded for the damn book over a year ago, so why even had I not read it yet? 🤔 So I read The Diabolic, very much enjoyed it, and raced to request the sequel!
I will say it was extra-nice to have the events of The Diabolic so fresh in my mind. And The Empress absolutely didn't disappoint. It was really mostly a win, so let us talk first about what I loved, while being vague enough to not spoil anything for either book!
- The plot was so wonderfully twisty! Ohhh I love a twist. And it is so hard these days for me to feel genuinely surprised by a plot twist. But The Empress shocked me over and over again. The author isn't afraid to go there.
- It is dark, incredibly so at times. I think this ties into my first point, and how the author isn't afraid to make some shocking choices. But it's more than that- it's dark in a way that makes sense to the world. Makes the reader feel what it would be like to live in Nemesis's situation.
- Moral gray areas FTW! The characters all have to make so many decisions. To betray or be loyal, to kill or be killed, and so much more. It isn't even just Nemesis that has to grapple with these tough calls, all the characters face really hard choices. And is there a right or wrong? It kind of reminded me of The 100, where all the choices might be crap and in the end, the characters just have to do what they think is best. And we all know that if I am comparing something to The 100, I clearly loved it.
- Space adventures! Who doesn't love space adventures? I feel like the worldbuilding in book two was even better than in book one. I understood the world so much better, understood a lot of how things got to the current point. Lots of questions that I had were answered, and the worldbuilding became so much more believable to me!
- The ending blew my damn mind. Like, jaw on the floor. And now I have to wait a year for book three. Sobs.
The only thing that prevents me from going full five-stars is that there were a few times that the political aspects of the book took over a little too much and I found myself skimming a bit. But otherwise, this was an incredible sequel and I cannot wait for more of the world and the characters!
Will I Read the Sequel: Um, clearly.
Bottom Line: Filled with impossible decisions, dark twists and turns, and characters who basically can't seem to catch a break, this sequel was a fabulous follow-up!