The Lotus Empire

By: Tasha Suri

Narrated by: Shiromi Arserio

The Lotus Empire brings Tasha Suri’s acclaimed Burning Kingdoms trilogy to a heart–stopping close. As an ancient magic returns to Ahiranya and threatens its very foundations, Empress Malini and priestess Priya will stop at nothing to save their kingdoms—even if it means they must destroy each other.

Malini has claimed her rightful throne as the empress of Parijatdvipa, just as the nameless gods prophesied. Now, in order to gain the support of the priesthood who remain loyal to the fallen emperor, she must consider a terrible bargain: Claim her throne and burn in order to seal her legacy—or find another willing to take her place on the pyre.

Priya has survived the deathless waters and now their magic runs in her veins. But a mysterious yaksa with flowering eyes and a mouth of thorns lies beneath the waters. The yaksa promises protection for Ahiranya. But in exchange, she needs a sacrifice. And she's chosen Priya as the one to offer it.

Two women once entwined by fate now stand against each other. But when an ancient enemy rises to threaten their world, Priya and Malini will find themselves fighting together once more – to prevent their kingdoms, and their futures, from burning to ash.


Praise for the Burning Kingdoms Trilogy

“Will undoubtedly reshape the landscape of epic fantasy for years to come.” —Booklist, starred review

“Alluring, action-packed, and gut-wrenching.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review

“More than lives up to the hype with its rich and expansive world, compelling characters, cool magic system and Suri’s excellent writing.” —BookPage, starred review

Critic reviews

"This cutthroat and sapphic novel will grip you until the very end."—Vulture (Best of the Year) on The Jasmine Throne

"Two fierce women. Magic, action and adventure. Folklore of the past and imagining the future. Masterful storytelling. Kaleidoscopic, queer world-building. Robust characters. The first book of Tasha Suri’s new trilogy has it all!"
—Ms. Magazine on The Jasmine Throne

"The Jasmine Throne more than lives up to the hype with its rich and expansive world, compelling characters, cool magic system and Suri’s excellent writing, which holds it all together."—BookPage (starred review) on The Jasmine Throne

“Tasha Suri writes the female characters I didn’t realize I was aching to see in fantasy, to devastating effect. The Jasmine Throne is a fiercely and unapologetically feminist tale of endurance and revolution set against a gorgeous, unique magical world."
—S. A. Chakraborty, author of The City of Brass on The Jasmine Throne

"Like the magic in this tale of reclaiming power, The Jasmine Throne will work its way under your skin with Suri’s compelling characters and gorgeous, effortless prose.”—Sam Hawke, author of City of Lies on The Jasmine Throne

"Suri astounds with the spellbinding epic fantasy that launches her Burning Kingdoms trilogy....a fierce, heart-wrenching exploration of the value and danger of love in a world of politics and power....Suri’s confident and passionate prose expertly guides the reader throughout. This is a blade-sharp, triumphant start to what promises to be an exciting series."—Publishers Weekly (starred review) on The Jasmine Throne

"The Jasmine Throne raises the bar for what epic fantasy should be. Tasha Suri has created a beautiful, ferocious world alongside an intimate study of the characters who will burn it all down."—Chloe Gong, author of These Violent Delights on The Jasmine Throne

“The Jasmine Throne is a riveting and gorgeously-written tale set in an intricate, expansive world. [The characters] will live in my imagination for a long time to come, and I cannot wait to see what happens next!”—Genevieve Gornichec, author of The Witch’s Heart on The Jasmine Throne

"This powerful series opener will undoubtedly reshape the landscape of epic fantasy for years to come."—Booklist (starred review) on The Jasmine Throne

“A masterpiece. Suri continues to storm the realm of epic fantasy. The Jasmine Throne is the powerful, female-centric series I've hungered for—with deftly-woven prose and a pair of glorious women destined to wreck your heart.”—Heather Walter, author of Malice on The Jasmine Throne

"Lush and stunning....Inspired by Indian epics, this sapphic fantasy will rip your heart out."—BuzzFeed News on The Jasmine Throne

Humanity in fierce fragile folly of all our forms

All the sloppy wonder of humanity written as characters. The love, hope, fear, hate, and struggle of humanity in the complex narrative we construct and follow as humans is beautifully illustrated by the weave of characters and tensions. There is depth to the story overall and the ways that each character pursues their purpose and love. The trilogy is worth reading and rereading.
Narration is fantastic and consistent.

beautifully written

if you've gotten this far in the series, you already know it's going to be gut wrenching and beautiful. It lives up to my expectations and hopes

Quite good yes

I felt emotionally caught up in this story. It was quite well done, awesome narration and passionate positions. I would say the climax was predictable but not in a bad way. I’m glad good things happened for our characters after so much suffering, that’s a change of pace. Hope is alive.
I did roll my eyes every time the author used the word VAST though. So many things were vast. Vast. Vaaaasstttt.
But I loved the world and characters.

A Gripping Conclusion

The narration was superb, and the story telling had me awake until 2am listening because I -needed- to know what happened. Tasha Suri is easily one of my favorite authors, and while I'm sad to see the Burning Kingoms end, I look forward to what Suri does next.

Luxurious Imagery

I'm madly in love with this entire series. I listen to each book with the same rapt attention. You're pulled directly into the well developed world with clearly defined characters and story progression. Then, there's the complicated, but passionated love story threaded through all of the war and turmoil. Very well imagined and beautifully told stories! I'll listen again in a month or so now that I have all three books...can't wait!