Item: Diamond City
Rating: 5.00
Author: roundtableknight

by Francesca Flores

Meet Aina Solís. Pulled off the streets when she was twelve years old, Aina was trained to become one of the most powerful and dangerous assassins in Sumerand, a kingdom founded by immigrants, built by magic, and still reeling from an industrial revolution that’s led to all-out civil war. Fearless and willing to risk everything - and with nothing left to lose - Aina is ready to leave her wretched past behind and accept a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: to kill a wealthy industrialist named Kouta. But this career-defining move won't come easy. She will have to act against her boss Kohl, who doesn't tolerate his assassins working against him. What will be the price for her betrayal? Meanwhile, the closer Aina gets to her target, the more she craves an answer to the questions an assassin is never meant to ask: Who wants Kouta dead? And why was Aina chosen for this mission?

Now, in a city full of dark forces and hidden agendas, old rivalries and a whole new world of enemies, it's up to Aina to unravel a conspiracy that could rewrite Sumerand's history and her own future. Is it too late to save her city - and herself? Is courage born or is it bred? And what must Aina sacrifice for a second chance to begin a better, brighter life?

“If she was good at anything, it was survival, and she refused to let anyone take that away from her.”
-
So I had the absolute pleasure of being a giveaway winner and reading a copy of this ARC, and it didn’t disappoint. It follows the story of Aina Solis, a street orphan turned assassin, who’s promised her own way in life if she completes one more job for her boss, but it doesn’t go as planned. Instead she’s thrown into a conspiracy about the secreted Black Diamond that she’s only heard whispers of with her friend Teo, a girl named Raurie who’s the niece of a magic practitioner, and Ryuu, the brother of the boy she was sent to kill.
.
I loved the magic system in this world, using Diamonds to conduct energy, and the gritty feel of the city due to the mines that are bringing out these goods. The characters all feel fully fledged out and have different wants in life, but yet somehow come together for one another when needed. Also, I loved how vulnerable all the characters are, and more than that, how they have simple fears in life. For example, Aina is deathly afraid of spiders, but yet is also an assassin. It’s nice to reaffirm that even though she kills, that doesn’t mean she can’t feel anything. All in all, this is a book to definitely pick up, and I can’t wait for the second one to continue Aina and everyone else’s story.

Diamond City (City of Steel and Diamond, #1)

by Francesca Flores

Reviewed by roundtableknight on Sep 21, 2019

Reading updates