Review - The Obsidian Tower (Rooks and Ruin, #1) by Melissa Caruso

Title: The Obsidian Tower (Rooks and Ruin, #1)

Author: Melissa Caruso

Publisher: Orbit

Pages: 496

Release Date: 2nd June 2020



Blurb from Goodreads: 
 

The Obsidian Tower begins a bold new epic fantasy trilogy in which the broken magic of one woman will either save an entire continent-or completely destroy it.

 
As the granddaughter of a Witch Lord of Vaskandar, Ryx was destined for power and prestige. But a childhood illness left her with broken magic that drains the life from anything she touches, and Vaskandar has no place for a mage with unusable powers. So Ryx has resigned herself to an isolated life as the warden of Gloamingard, her grandmother's castle.

At Gloamingard's heart lies a black tower. Sealed by magic, it guards a dangerous secret that has been contained for thousands of years. Until one impetuous decision Ryx makes leaves her with blood on her hands-and unleashes a threat that could doom everything she loves to fall to darkness.

 Goodreads | Amazon UK | Amazon US
 




My Review:

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Little, Brown Book Group UK and NetGalley*

Ryx is the black sheep in her family because of her magic which sucks the life from everything she touches. She has been living at her grandmother's castle of Gloamingard for several years as the Warden, but is unable to use her magic to help her homeland, unlike the rest of her family. Instead, Ryx uses her knowledge and talent for politics to try and placate neighbouring countries as she attempts to avoid war.

For as long as anyone can remember, Ryx's family has guarded a tower at Gloamingard. No one knows what is in the tower, only that the Door must never be opened.

But one day, the worst happens and Ryx finds herself with the Door open and a visitor dead.

Ryx will have to deal with the fallout of the events at Gloamingard, but what was behind the Door? Is it still contained or has it been released?

Going into The Obsidian Tower I was very intrigued to read it as it sounded like an interesting book, which it did end up being.

Ryx was a good protagonist - she was relatable and likeable, and I found her interactions with the other characters interesting and enjoyable to read. It was also good to see how she reacted in different situations.

Other than Ryx, my favourite characters were Severin and Ashe, whose personalities I liked.

The setting of Gloamingard was interesting and a bit creepy at times. I would like to find out more about the different lands that were in the book.

The magic was interesting and I liked finding out more about the different types.

The plot was enjoyable, but did take a little while to get going, and there were a couple of lulls for me. The book went in a different direction to what I thought it would, so that was unexpected but good. I have an inkling of what a big plot twist in one of the sequels could be, but I'll have to read them to see if I'm right.

Overall, this was an enjoyable read that I would recommend.