Review – The Empire of Dreams (Fire and Thorns, Book 4) by Rae Carson (5/5 stars)

Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 447 pages
Publisher: Greenwillow Books
Release Date: April 7, 2020
ASIN : B07MB5ZMB3
Stand Alone or Series: 4th book in the Fire and Thorns series
Source: Bought for Kindle
Rating: 5/5 stars

“Red Sparkle Stone is a foundling orphan with an odd name, a veiled past, and a mark of magic in her hair. But finally—after years and years of running, of fighting—she is about to be adopted into the royal family by Empress Elisa herself. She’ll have a home, a family. Sixteen-year-old Red can hardly believe her luck. Then, in a stunning political masterstroke, the empress’s greatest rival blocks the adoption, and everything Red has worked for crumbles before her eyes.

But Red is not about to let herself or the empress become a target again. Determined to prove her worth and protect her chosen family, she joins the Royal Guard, the world’s most elite fighting force. It’s no coincidence that someone wanted her to fail as a princess, though. Someone whose shadowy agenda puts everything—and everyone—she loves at risk. As danger closes in, it will be up to Red to save the empire. If she can survive recruitment year—something no woman has ever done before.”

Series Info/Source: This is the fourth book in the Fire and Thorns series, but takes place many years after the third book in that series. I bought this book for Kindle.

Story (5/5): This book tells Red’s story (who I struggled to remember because the third book in this series was released in 2013). Red was a side character in the original series. I really ended up enjoying this book a ton. We go back and forth between Red’s past and present, ultimately spending more time in the present. Both timeframes were really intriguing. The story is fast-paced and full of action and politics and I really loved it!

Characters (5/5): All the characters in here are incredibly well done. I loved Red and all the other characters we met in the Royal Guard. It was also very fun to see some characters from the original trilogy the way Red sees them and to see how those characters have changed over the years. Excellent characterization throughout the whole book!

Setting (5/5): It was incredibly fun to return to this intricately built fantasy world. This really is an awesome fantasy world and I loved reading another book set in it.

Writing Style (5/5): This book just reminded me of how much I love Carson’s writing style and of what an amazing writer she is. I wish she was writing more. This book was effortless to read, completely engaging, flowed well, and was just an absolutely perfect read. I do have an ARC of her upcoming book “Any Sign of Life” to review, so I should be reading that soon.

My Summary (5/5): Overall I loved this book and am so happy I finally sat down and read it. I love this world and these characters and Carson’s writing style is so amazing! I look forward to future books by her and strongly recommend this book to fans of the original trilogy. This book does stand well on it’s own too if you want to start with this one (of course there are spoilers for previous books in the series).