Morgan Rhodes

Snarky seventeen-year-old Josslyn Drake gets infected by a dangerous piece of forbidden magic and teams up with wanted criminal Jericho Nox to remove the spell corrupting her soul.

Echoes and Empires

Courtney Passio

A snarky seventeen-year-old must team up with an enigmatic criminal to cure herself of dangerous forbidden magic in the first book of a new fantasy duology from Morgan Rhodes, the New York Times bestselling author of the Falling Kingdoms series. Josslyn Drake knows only three things about magic: it's rare, illegal, and always deadly. So when she's caught up in a robbery gone wrong at the Queen's Gala and infected by a dangerous piece of magic--one that allows her to step into the memories of an infamously evil warlock--she finds herself living her worst nightmare. Joss needs the magic removed before it corrupts her soul and kills her. But in Ironport, the cost of doing magic is death, and seeking help mightmean scheduling her own execution. There's nobody she can trust. Nobody, that is, except wanted criminal Jericho Nox, who offers her a deal: his help extracting the magic in exchange for the magic itself. And though she's not thrilled to be working with a thief, especially one as infuriating (and infuriatingly handsome) as Jericho, Joss is desperate enough to accept. But Jericho is nothing like Joss expects. The closer she grows with Jericho and the more she sees of the world outside her pampered life in the city, the more Joss begins to question the beliefs she's always taken for granted--beliefs about right and wrong, about power and magic, and even about herself. In an empire built on lies, the truth may be her greatest weapon.

adriana safia

4.5 stars !
im so curious about what will happen next when they got to meet lord banyon and im pretty sure there's got to be book two ! CANT WAIT FOR IT AND THIS IS SO RECOMMENDED IF YOU LIKE MAGIC KIND OF STUFF !

Maegan Kennedy

Rating: 4⭐️

Thank you to the publisher for sending me an arc via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. 

Magic, enemies to lovers, forbidden romance, twists. So much happens in this book but somehow it works. When Josslyn Drake ends up as a magic container, she has to ignore everything she grew to fear of magic, and embrace it to help those who she cares for. 

I loved the magic system. It’s constructed very well and I think it’s been fleshed out nicely. I felt that the beginning moved a little fast but it levelled out as the book continued on. After the halfway mark I was captives and I didn’t want to put it down. 

I really liked the cast of characters and o think Rhodes set the end up nicely for the second and final instalment in this new duology.

Torrey

Want to kick that fantasy slump that you feel into in 2o21? This is the book to do it with. 

We follow Josslyn, the daughter of the former Prime Minister in a world where magic is illegal. She is a socialite, high in elite society, and a favorite of the queen. While at the Queen's Gala, she accidentally interferes in a robbery of a object that contains magic. When the magic is released and somehow ends up inside of Josslyn, she must work with Jericho, a criminal and Blackheart, who claims he will help her get rid of the magic.

This book is so well paced and every part of it was entertaining. There was never a moment in which I was bored or wished that the pacing was different. The revealing of information and the different turns in the plot are placed throughout that make it so that something new is always happening or being revealed. I just cannot say enough good things about how this book was written. There are also very unique elements that I'm so excited to see unfold. 

Let's get to the characters. I love when one character is completely ignorant of magic and the other character is completely immersed in the magical world and that is exactly what is happening in this book. Both characters are also very sarcastic which makes for some *chef's kiss* banter. They are also flawed. This can be a thing that authors sometimes forget to include in fantasy books, but both Josslsyn and Jericho are flawed in such human ways that it made them more relatable and so enjoying to read about. I love that there are characters that play a very major role in the story yet you never meet them or they are in the book for only a few pages. I'm also verrryyyyy excited to see how they will interact with Josslyn and Jericho and the story in the next book.

My biggest issue with this book is the lack of world building. Besides the fact that magic is illegal and basic information about the royal family and the Primer Minister aspect of the government not much of the rest of the world is explored. Personally, I love good world building as it feels so much more immersive. I would love to see an expansion of the world in the sequel. 

**Thank you to Penguin Teen for giving me this arc to read and review**

Anya ✨

I absolutely fell in love with Morgan Rhodes’ writing in Falling Kingdoms in fact her brilliant writing and characters brought me out of a years long reading lull. So naturally I was beyond excited for this book and let me tell you - it did not disappoint. It has everything I would want in a fantasy novel and the enemies to lovers trope tops it off. The twists and turns are unique and enjoyable rather than predictable. I cannot wait for this series to continue!

Tatiana Alvarez 

I feel so honored to have been gifted an ARC of this amazing book. I'm the BIGGEST fan of Falling Kingdoms and nearly died of happiness when I saw Morgan Rhodes was back at it again.

Echoes and Empires is book one in an upcoming duology. Told in first person POV, readers are immersed in the life and mind of Josslyn Drake, a snarky and privileged 17 year old girl. Josslyn was the daughter of the former queen's advisor, but unfortunately her father was shot and killed a year prior. Still trying to remain relevant, Joss attends the Queen's Gala where art pieces stolen by an infamous magical criminal have been recovered. In this empire, magic and people who preform magic, are viewed as evil and corrupt. The use of magic is forbidden and will lead to imprisonment or death.

However, things go drastically wrong when a thief attempts to steal a magical artifact, only for it to fall and open, releasing the golden magic straight into Josslyn. Knowing that she is now a target, Joss has to team up with the thief, the Blackheart, also known as Jericho, as they attempt to find someone to extract the magic from her so Jericho can continue on with his mission.

Unfortunately, nothing is as easy as it seems. The duo gets stopped and thrown into a Queen's prison, which is essentially land locked in time. There they have to work for the keep and figure out how to escape this unescapable prison. Not only that, they need to find out answers about the magic still in Josslyn. Time is running out and secrets are being uncovered. Josslyn's once posh life is turned upside down as she figures out that the life she once knew may all be a lie.

This book is intoxicating. Starting off with characters, Rhodes knows how to write a strong female lead who is slightly naive to the world around her, but quickly adapts to her new reality. As for her males, Jericho is probably the love of my life. A mysterious bad boy who is witty and slightly a jerk at times? Uhm sign me up!

This hits all of my favorite tropes as well, the main one being enemies to lovers! This book is definitely a slow burn romance, but ugh so worth it. Plus it has a one bed situation!!! Y'all know this troupe is like the best thing ever. There's no instant love here, which I love as well.

The plot is amazing and perfectly paced. Usually in book one, the author will spend a lot of time building up the world so the story line moves rather slow at first. I did not feel like this book did that. There never was an abundance of information and everything about this world was told throughout the story. I loved when we got towards the end and the memories began to totally deconstruct the life of Josslyn and answer questions I had from the beginning. Ugh, it was just so perfectly written!

I loved this book and I hate that I'm going to have to wait forever for the next. Please do yourself a favor and add this to your tbr.

Hannah Picken

Lisa

Maren Temple

A snarky seventeen-year-old must team up with an enigmatic criminal to cure herself of dangerous forbidden magic in the first book of a new fantasy duology from Morgan Rhodes, the New York Times bestselling author of the Falling Kingdoms series. Josslyn Drake knows only three things about magic: it’s rare, illegal, and always deadly. So when she’s caught up in a robbery gone wrong at the Queen’s Gala and infected by a dangerous piece of magic—one that allows her to step into the memories of an infamously evil warlock—she finds herself living her worst nightmare. Joss needs the magic removed before it corrupts her soul and kills her. But in Ironport, the cost of doing magic is death, and seeking help mightmean scheduling her own execution. There’s nobody she can trust. Nobody, that is, except wanted criminal Jericho Nox, who offers her a deal: his help extracting the magic in exchange for the magic itself. And though she’s not thrilled to be working with a thief, especially one as infuriating (and infuriatingly handsome) as Jericho, Joss is desperate enough to accept. But Jericho is nothing like Joss expects. The closer she grows with Jericho and the more she sees of the world outside her pampered life in the city, the more Joss begins to question the beliefs she’s always taken for granted—beliefs about right and wrong, about power and magic, and even about herself. In an empire built on lies, the truth may be her greatest weapon.

Echoes and Empires

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