Going back to the fantasy roots of this blog we have the four-book installation of the Seven Realms series.

This series is fantasy through and through with far-off lands full of fierce warriors, wizards, and morally gray characters.

The series follows two main characters with very different backgrounds.

There’s Han, a street lord turned errand boy trying to support a struggling family in the slums of Fellsmarch, city of the Fells (repetitive I know).

Han might appear to be just an average street rat, but he carries a constant mystery in the form of silver cuffs permanently stuck on his wrists.

He’s had them his entire life, they grow as he grows.

On the other side of the coin is Raisa ana’ Mariana, heir to the gray wolf throne of the Queendom of the Fells.

Being the princess means countless expectations and responsibilities.

Raisa wants to do right by her people but grows restless with everyone trying to make her picture perfect.

Normally, these stories would never cross paths,

but one fateful day, Han and his best friend Dancer are on the sacred mountain of Hanalea when they find a gaggle of young wizards.

Wizards (or jinxflingers as a derogatory term which is hilarious), are forbidden from being on the sacred mountain.

To stop them from causing mischief Han confiscates an amulet from the group, not knowing he just took it from the High Wizard’s son.

This one action causes a series of events to unfold in a story that has been waiting to happen for nearly a millennium, between a wizard and a Gray Wolf Queen.

A story that involves both Han, Raisa, and the breaking of the world.

In the first book the story starts off a bit slow.

Han’s point of view is definitely more interesting in the first few chapters, so it can be a struggle getting through Raisa’s.

But the world building of the seven realms keeps the story alive.

The Fells is the only Queendom of the realms and is under threat from outside wars… and suitors.

But within the Fells is an internal conflict between the Vale folk, or those that live in the city,

the Clans, the native people that live on the sacred mountains around the city,

and the Wizards who are trying to break the limitations the Clans put on them a millennium ago.

Much of the conflict and prejudice surrounding the Clans is equivalent to how Indigenous Peoples, or even just any people of color, are treated in America.

Many social issues are reflected in this book (if you couldn’t tell from my previous reads, I do that a lot),

and the magic system is so unique in how Wizards cast, how the Clans craft magic items, and the complex relationship on how the two interact.

This world is full of complex politics, cutthroat rivalries, and of course the classic YA romances.

The characters are dynamic, growing and making mistakes that have colossal impacts.

Definitely a fun read.

*P.S. Don’t read the spinoff series its actually awful.