Right out the gates, Elliott picks up shortly after where we last left Sun and her companions. The Republic of Chaonia, under the direction of Queen Marshall Eirene, has struck a blow against the Phene Empire by stopping their invasion of Molossia. Eirene is ready to make her next move on Karnos and fulfill her lifelong ambition. Sun, while crucial to the battle in Molossia, is still somewhat on the sidelines at court. But when the worst comes to pass, Sun must choose to seize opportunity and take power within Chaonia. It isn’t long before the Phene Empire and its allies start to lick their chops at the prospect of taking down Chaonia once and for all. Is Sun strong enough to complete her mother’s plans?
Furious Heaven is a relentless ride that takes your hand and pulls you into its chaos. Elliott manages to make the plot a grueling marathon of a sprint. It’s a pace that allows the reader to breathe, but only enough to take in the sights and marvel at the universe before reminding you there is something even more marvelous at the end. It’s a plot that excels at being in the moment while dangling the future in front of you just enough to keep pushing. It’s a breakneck pace that will test you as a reader, and it also entertains the hell out of you. Chapters are separated by hours, days, weeks, and sometimes months, forcing you to adapt to and take in the scope of Elliott’s world and Sun’s mission. Personally, I appreciated the lack of easy breathing, it felt like a tailwind to keep going. There are chapters that function as short stories, cleverly placed in the narrative that provide a bit of a plateau in the action, allowing the reader to rest up before barrelling ahead. Much like Sun’s guiding philosophy, the book is a spear thrown at the furious heavens and the only thing stopping its flight is its eventual destination.
Sometimes it gets a little rocky with the ever-expanding cast, but Elliott puts in the work to keep the reader abreast of the situation. The three main POVs return, along with several new ones that offer interesting perspectives. There were only a few occasions where I felt dizzy starting a chapter before Elliott guided me back on the path being taken. Your mileage may vary with the one-time-only perspectives, but I personally found them to be some of my favorite chapters within the book. They often centered on somebody who is caught in Sun’s wake as she forges her destiny in real time. Considering that so many of the characters are featured in the court intrigue, these asides featuring more regular folks were great at fleshing out the changing landscape and the harshness of a spacebound empire.
Something I appreciated about Unconquerable Sun that seems expanded upon here is Elliott’s accounting ability. She gives attention to the costs of military expansion, not in the monetary sense, but the spiritual and material sense. Building or maintaining an empire incurs a tax, whether it’s on individuals or a society. Logistics, mapping, strategizing, etc are all a part of the game, and not paying attention to one will bite you in the ass. Elliot goes to great lengths to point out the strengths and weaknesses of all the various political entities within the story. The Phene Empire feels more fully fleshed out, giving it both a raison d’etre, but highlighting why such a powerful and massive empire would be prone to brittleness and corruption despite its open and dynamic past. It’s one of the rare times I wish I had an author’s notes on their worldbuilding, just to see how they piece it all together.
Furious Heaven is no picnic, but it’s rewarding as hell. The battles are epic. The scope is legendary. The characters are fun and battle their own internal conflicts as they stare down rail guns. Sun is still the mythic figure she is written to be, but is given room to doubt herself a little more. Furious Heaven is just more of what Kate Elliott offered up in the first book, and I would even say it’s handled better, despite some of its messier bits. It makes me want to read the actual history of Alexander The Great, whom the story is loosely based on, and the person my parents supposedly named me after. I can’t wait for the final book in this trilogy because where Elliott has placed Sun and her companions, things can only get crazier. If you read Unconquerable Sun, you can’t miss Furious Heaven.
Rating: Furious Heaven – Shine On, You Crazy Diamond.
-Alex
An ARC of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The thoughts on this book are my own.