I reviewed these books separately back in 2021 but they were on my favorites list for that year, so they need a separate post!! Also, I really need to read them again.
The Sword in His Hand
Synopsis: When a strange young woman named El, washes up on the shores of Darcentaria, brought somehow by a strange metal craft that is now a burning wreck, there is plenty of suspicion about her. The villagers wonder if she’s an agent of their cruel oppressors, the Dalriadans, sent to spy on them? Or is she from the Outside – the legendary lands that lie beyond their borders. Torsten Eislher has spent the last nine years wrongfully imprisoned. His uncle, the empire’s ruler, used him as an example to any who might oppose him. But now, as a young swordsman, and having escaped the fate planned for him, Torsten is staying alive and one step ahead of his uncle’s soldiers by keeping a firm grip on his sword. He hates anything to do with the Outside; but when he is inexorably drawn to El, he finds himself questioning everything he’s been told about her world. The hunt for Torsten and El is started in earnest when the ruler, Jurien Arminius decides to take the Outside world’s advanced military for his own. But it’s not just Torsten and El that he’s looking for, there were two others that landed with her. And he will stop at nothing to win the war against the rebellion that could destroy his empire.
The Secret of Fire
Synopsis: The world of Darcentaria has been changed forever because Julien Arminius opened the door to the Outside. Because of the Outside’s influence, the Rebellion has fallen and El and Torsten are fighting to get back to each other. Through their journeys, they meet unlikely allies and learn surprising truths about each other. As well as the Outside and the beginnings of Darcentaria itself.
I appreciated that this fantasy series had little to no magic, clean and with themes of faith, family and loss throughout.
There are mentions of the guards forcing themselves on the women prisoners, and El deals with a lot of suggestive behaviors and more from the strangers that she’s around while traveling through this world – but nothing too descriptive, thank goodness!
I thoroughly enjoy Fischer’s writing – I’ve since read several of her books and her imagery and themes are so beautifully done. I highly recommend this duology!
~Laura
I have also reviewed The Nightingale Trilogy Review!
the start of a good life 