By Kelly Waldron, Opinions Editor
Many readers know Victoria Aveyard as the author of the young adult fantasy series “Red Queen,” but Aveyard has released a second fantasy trilogy that will open readers to a whole new realm of sword fights, mythical creatures and, as always, a battle against fate.
The Realm Breaker trilogy (Realm Breaker, Blade Breaker and Fate Breaker) follows Corayne, a moral pirate’s daughter who longs for adventure outside of her cottage by the sea, and her collection of unexpected companions as they navigate saving their realm, Allward, from the destruction of “What Waits” (the novel’s equivalent of the devil) and the people he lives through.
Don’t expect your typical romance-filled fantasy novel, for this trilogy focuses on elements of found family and slow trust building. Although you will find some slow burn romance throughout the series, I wouldn’t suggest this novel if you are more interested in romantasy than traditional fantasy.
As an avid mood-reader, I only stumble upon fantasy occasionally, so this trilogy was my first fantasy collection in several months, but it was everything I could ask for in a fantasy series.
Corayne isn’t “the chosen one,” rather she was the easiest of the remaining “Corbloods” to find and convince to join the fight against an unexpected evil. Her group of companions, as the novel tends to call them, alternate saving one another and needing to be saved. Dom, Sorasa, Andry, Sigil, Charlie, and Valtik all show strength, friendship and bravery in different ways. There’s not one specific “weak link,” or damsel in distress, which builds an even closer bond throughout the group. Every character is independent, yet they all find connections with one another.
Even the main villains, because there are arguably multiple, aren’t your traditional bad guys. Any reader who has read Red Queen and knows the intricate layers of Maven will understand how Aveyard likes to write villains. Her villains are no different in this novel.
Betrayals, poison, murder and greed are laced through these characters, but underneath is broken childhoods, abandonment, and societal failures. Their actions are fueled by their backstories and the people who worked against them in the past. Every time you think you can hate the villain, something new is revealed to make you second guess yourself. If you tend to be very empathetic, good luck reading this series because I feel as though, after reading the entire series, that I cannot confidently say I don’t like the villains.
Overall, the Realm Breaker trilogy is an adventure. The reader is taken across deserts, mountains, sea, snow, battlefields, and forests from over five different perspectives. With multiple plot twists that surprised me and a collection of characters that I loved equally, it will definitely be added to my list of favorites.