Review: ‘Vows of Empire’ is a Fitting End to ‘The Bloodright Trilogy’

It's hard to believe that it has been two years since Ettian, Gal, and Wen came into our lives in Emily Skrutskie's Bonds of Brass.

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Since then, their story has evolved as Ettian and Gal grew into their roles on opposite sides of a galactic struggle, and Wen morphed into an even more powerful and strong-willed character.

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In Vows of Empire, the fragile balance that holds all of this together feels like it could fall apart at any minute.

The book opens a little while after the ending of Oaths of Legacy, with Ettian and Gal on opposite sides of the galaxy, dealing with the political upheaval around the never-ending bloodright struggle.

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They concoct a plan to “win the war” in less than 300 pages and what ensues is a somewhat messy, convoluted story.

Skrutskie opts to telegraph the notion that the reader is in the dark about the cloak and dagger scheming Ettian and Gal are doing, but it's all there, right in front of us.

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It's an odd choice, to say the least, and detracts from the storytelling potential as the trio tries to solve the galaxy's problems. Somehow, in the midst of all of this, Wen overtakes Gal and Ettian's story, and I'm not entirely mad about it.

Oaths of Legacy proved that Wen was one of the best characters in the series, and Vows of Empire solidifies it.

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