The Tethered Mage

De: Melissa Caruso

Narrado por: Saskia Maarleveld

The first book in a spellbinding fantasy trilogy for fans of The Queen of the Tearling and The Red Queen, where two young women -- a mage with coveted powers, and the scion of a powerful family -- are magically bound in service to the Empire.

Magic is scarce in the Raverran Empire, and those born with such powers are strictly controlled -- taken as children and conscripted into the Falcon army, to be used as weapons in times of war.

Zaira has lived her life on the streets to avoid this fate, hiding her mage mark and thieving to survive. But hers is a rare and dangerous magic, one that threatens the entire Empire.

Lady Amalia Cornaro was never meant to be a Falconer. Heiress and scholar, she was born into a treacherous world of political machinations.

But fate has bound the heir and the mage. And as war looms on the horizon, a single spark could turn their city into a pyre.

The Tethered Mage is the first novel in Caruso's debut series, Swords and Fire.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Charming, intelligent, fast-moving, beautifully atmospheric, with a heroine and other characters whom I really liked as people. I couldn't put it down (I overstayed my lunch break in order to finish it.) I would love to read more set in this world."—Genevieve Cogman, author of The Invisible Library

"The Tethered Mage is the best kind of fantasy: intricate world-building, the most intriguing of court intrigues, and a twisty plot. But while readers might pick it up for those elements, they'll stay for the engaging characters and the unlikely friendships at the story's heart."—Rosalyn Eves, author of Blood Rose Rebellion

"The Tethered Mage is a riveting read, with delicious intrigue, captivating characters, and a brilliant magic system. I loved it from start to finish!"—Sarah Beth Durst, author of The Queen of Blood

"Intricate and enticing as silk brocade. Caruso's heroine is a strong, intelligent young woman in a beguiling, beautifully evoked Renaissance world of high politics, courtly intrigue, love and loyalty - and fire warlocks."—Anna Smith Spark, author of The Court of Broken Knives

"Engaging and entertaining with intrigue, a good pace, and strong characters. Zaira and Amalia are bright, bold heroes in a smartly constructed world."—James Islington, author of The Shadow of What Was Lost

"One of the best first novels in a brand new high fantasy series that I've read in ages.... If you're hungry for a new fantasy series with awesome, nuanced characters, powerful worldbuilding, and solid writing-look no further. The Tethered Mage is the book you need right now. Absolutely recommended."—Book Smugglers

"An enchanting voice and an original world you won't want to leave."—p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Calibri; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000}span.s1 {font-kerning: none}RJ Barker, author of Age of Assassins

"Breathtaking... Worth every moment and every page, and should make anyone paying attentionexcited about what Caruso will write next."—BookPage

"A rich world, political intrigue, and action that keeps you turning pages--The Tethered Mage is classic fantasy with a fresh voice."—p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Calibri; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000}span.s1 {font-kerning: none}Jeff Wheeler, author of The Queen's Poisoner

"The plotting is good, the characters interesting.... Something really special."—RT Book Reviews

"It's a pleasure to journey with shy and slightly awkward Amalia as she puts her scholarship in magic and puzzle-solving skills to good use.... Charming."—Kirkus

"Caruso skillfully maintains her plot."—Publishers Weekly

"A gorgeous, fresh fantasy debut filled with political intrigue and ethical quandary.... Highly recommend."—Girls in Capes

Loved it!

The story was amazing. the world is so vibrant. the intrigue was papable. danger and betrayl around every corner!

the performance was spot on. i really loved it!

Got Me back into reading!

I love this book so much. The world building and magic system. The characters and political intrigue. Inclusion and strong female characters... So much to love. I recommend this to all my book girlies.
Oh and a dog.

Surprising success

I read other reviews about the heroine being uninteresting and male lead simply getting a lead role just because ‘he’s there’, and I tend to agree… but the supporting characters and premise are enough to carry the book. Also, by the end, I felt like our heroine had progressed a ton. I still think we need a lot more out of Lt. Marcello to make him worthy of his status. Dynamite narrator, as with most of the books she’s done.

Captivated and enthralled from beginning to end!

There was so much intrigue and excitement I found it nearly impossible to find a moment to pause listening. It is a rare gift to so artfully blend storytelling and Rich language with the sense of adventure and unpredictability which this story aChieves magnificently! Fantastic work and I eagerly await the next novel!

great pace and growing protagonists

loved this, and didn't know I had the first and second of the trilogy. nonetheless, I appreciated the growth, albeit slow, for Amala and even Zahira. but she, Zahira grated on me a bit, but she grew into someone loveable. Lt. Verde, he's a person that is all well intentioned, but my God, just shut up sometimes, haha. overall, I enjoyed the story, and the ending people, I only guessed two out of the few who were bad... so to speak. pacing and performances, top notch.

Another Romantasy Classic

A valiant effort, more or less recognized. Story was told from a Eurocentric perspective, making it a bit easier to keep track of the geography, and characterizations. True to the genre in every way, yet with unique twists on classic tropes, helping to keep the reader engaged. Can’t wait to start on the next installment in the trilogy.

Great epic fantasy!

This is a great epic fantasy with great storytelling of a new type of magical world, engaging characters, and a plot that keeps you wanting to read more! I also recommend the 2nd and 3rd Sword and Fire books. I just wish the third book had an audiobook as well, you can only buy that paperback or Kindle version for that 3rd book.

Characters childish and frustrating

Solid fantasy with a unique magic system. I had a really hard time rooting for either of the main characters. They want to change the world but without sacrificing anything in the process, which comes across as unrealistic and grating. The falcon is more outspoken about it, demanding freedom and mocking those around her while not putting in any positive effort into changing the world she hates. The falconer spends most of the book pouting because politicians are not honest and because she just wants to be a *normal girl* but then gets angry about things being the way that they are and wonders why she has no power to make change. Girl, I'm sorry, but you have to understand the system in order to play it. I did really like the ending. It was fast paced, and the main characters experienced some of the tough choices they needed to think about in order to accomplish their goals. Overall, a solid read but I won't be looking into the sequels.

Loved this!

Second time reading and I liked even more than the first time around. Can’t wait to continue on with the trilogy

Fantastic, great narrator.

This book has everything I love. Political intrigue, betrayals, magic, romance. I thoroughly enjoyed this. A+ for narrator, she was great.

Amalia is a wonderful main character. what she may lack in physical prowess/magic ability, she more than makes up for in smarts, which is refreshing (as I also love badass MC's that'll slit your throat, and have read many of those, so this came up as something a little bit 'different' for me in that regard, and I loved it). Though, one thing I have to say is, there were a few times I wanted Amalia to get angry. maybe once or twice at Zaira.

Which brings me to secondary characters, whom I also enjoyed. I loved Zaira's personality and how she never backed down and said what she meant. I like how she didnt change her views, even at the end, for anyone. And, may I say, bi-representation, whoop! Marcello, La Contessa, Estreya. All very good characters. (forgive any misspellings)

I am definitely going to be picking up the 2nd one and watching for the 3rd one.