International Girls and Books: Dorothy Dreyer

Saturday, April 25, 2020

Copper Mage by Dorothy Dreyer

Audience

Teenagers!

Genre

YA, Fantasy

Book Number

2 of 7

Pages

220

Recommended For and Similar Reads

Copper Mage is a thought-provoking, alluring, and enchanting sequel to Crimson Mage! There’s no doubt about it - if you read the first book, you must read the second. Similar reads are The Catalyst by Kristin Smith, The Lost Castle by Deborah Grant-Dudley, Summoned by Mckayla Eaton, Dark Gods by River Ramsey, Knight School by Richard Lohrey, or The Voice of the Sword by John Paul Catton.

Summary by Author

Arcane daggers. Mysterious Scrolls. A vengeful dark god determined to end the world.

The soldiers of the shadow army are on the rise. The ancient deity Kashmeru has the Lotus empress under his control. It’s up to the elite mages of the Empire of the Lotus to put an end to the dark god’s course of death and destruction.

But mage powers have been outlawed, and not all mages are free. As Mayhara evades the Imperial Police on her quest to gather the elite mages, Shiro must do what is necessary to escape the prison camp he’s been trapped in for years.

The collapse of the universe is at hand, and the pieces of the puzzle must be put together before it’s too late.

Our Statements

If only we could make a distinction between 5/5 star books! Crimson Mage was a beautiful and resonating introduction to the “Empire of Lotus” series, but Copper Mage was on a whole new level. Electrifying, riveting, and delectable are the only words we can use to describe this sequel. Looking back, Crimson Mage set up the plot and characters perfectly for the real climax to be in Copper Mage, making a mess of our reader’s emotions and making us highly anticipate the next book!

Review, 5/5

Opinions: In case you haven’t noticed our excitement already, we love Copper Mage and wish there was a way to distinguish this between Crimson Mage, two books which easily deserve five stars. But somehow, Copper Mage was simply better! All of the key elements were even more potent and resonating in this book, which undoubtedly does not suffer from sequel syndrome. Dreyer cranked up the intensity and speed from an already overwhelming level in this installment of the Empire of Lotus series, giving us book nerds a true fright. Adding to this, Mayhara’s lasting connection with the readers brings us to the edge of our seats every time the Pishacha shows up or a threat against the reincarnated empress is made. I'm shaken by how much these characters have been through and inspired by their perseverance! Thankfully for our attached readers, Dreyer’s adept writing style flowed into this book and erased the line between the two books, making them one. All in all, a fantastic sequel that leaves us imagining what could possibly come next.

My Favourite Thing: Once again, I'm simply in awe of the characters. Sequels are often hard to judge, but everything is straightforward with Dreyer’s Empire of Lotus series: it's perfect. The character's consistency between books is amazing. Their perseverance is inspiring. The long-term character development is eye-opening. The author did not skip planning any little detail; everything is mapped out and complex and perfect. Dreyer's displayed passion is pertinent in my appreciation for the book!

Author Information

I'm a Philippine-born American living in Germany with my husband, my two adult children, and two Siberian Huskies.

I am a USA Today Bestselling Author who writes young adult and new adult books, usually with some element of magic or the supernatural in them. I also like to read those kinds of books. Aside from reading, I like movies, chocolate, take-out, coffee, traveling, and having fun with my friends and family.

I tend to sing sometimes, too, so keep me away from your Karaoke bars.

Crimson Mage by Dorothy Dreyer

Audience

Teenagers!

Genre

YA, Fantasy, Adventure

Book Number

1 of 7

Pages

220

Recommended For and Similar Reads

Crimson Mage has a distinct, powerful, and enticing voice that reaches out to teenagers who love magic and suspense! If you have read and loved The Catalyst by Kristin Smith, The Lost Castle by Deborah Grant-Dudley, Summoned by Mckayla Eaton, Dark Gods by River Ramsey, Knight School by Richard Lohrey, or The Voice of the Sword by John Paul Catton, you’re destined to adore Crimson Mage!

Summary by Author

Upon the one hundredth reincarnation of the Lotus empress, the dark god Kashmeru would send out his shadow army—Pishacha—to destroy the reborn empress, which in turn would bring about the collapse of the universe.

The world changed at the time of the Purge. The New Asian Administration outlawed mages, forbidding any use of their powers. To protect her imprisoned family, Mayhara Guatama made a deal to surrender her mage status and pledge her life to the New Order.

Years have passed, the chaos from the upheaval long since settled. Or so Mayhara believed... until she receives a mysterious message pleading for her help.

Stunned by the claim that the empress has been reincarnated, Mayhara must choose between fealty to the Lotus empire, or honoring the decree that assured her family’s safety.

Our Statements

Crimson Mage was a gripping tale of complexity and a delightful mix between strategies of war and heartfelt relationships. What an emotional roller-coaster ride this one was! Seeing our favourite characters dragged around by their fears, duties, and loyalties (none of which overlap) was heartbreaking and empowering, especially for young girls! We loved Crimson Mage because it was emotionally stimulating and evoked a response from us as readers!

Review, 5/5

Opinions: Without a doubt, Crimson Mage is one of 2020’s best YA fantasy books! The most impressive elements were the characters and writing style. The first thing I look for when reading is connection to the characters and this was instant in Crimson Mage! Finally, fantasy characters that you relate to rather than feel little compared to their unfathomable superpowers. On the first page, we’re introduced to Mayhara and her controlled lifestyle mixed with her acute emotions. This complex and flawed personage immediately immersed us into the world of the Lotus Empire. Contributing to our love of the protagonist and setting was Dreyer’s masterful inclusion of foreshadowing, imagery, and themes which enhanced the plot and left readers gasping for more at the end of each chapter. Another impressive style of writing Dreyer used was layering, a technique not common to Young Adult and therefore appreciated. When reading, you will find that you are handed themes, bits of information, and motifs slowly, forming an intricate storyline that unfolds into a masterpiece. In Crimson Mage, each character has a different motivation and they all overlap in surprising and suspenseful ways so that no matter how you look at it, somebody is in trouble! Overall, Crimson Mage was an amazing book that we would not hesitate to reread!

Our Favourite Thing: Surprisingly, we are all passionate about the final chapter of Crimson Mage, which is a huge cliffhanger! We normally hate cliffhangers because they force you to read the second book, but in this case, it invites you to read the second book. The thought-provoking, second-to-last piece of the puzzle made our readers gasp and beg for more. It was certainly not the end of Mayhara’s story and kept the action and tension going. We loved how Crimson Mage flowed perfectly into Copper Mage, the sequel!

Our Least Favourite Thing: The only “problem” with Crimson Mage is that it is so short! We want more anger! We want more hiding! We want more romance! Luckily for us, there are six sequels that continue these elements!

Author Information

I'm a Philippine-born American living in Germany with my husband, my two adult children, and two Siberian Huskies.

I tend to sing sometimes, too, so keep me away from your Karaoke bars.