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Kiana
War is only part of her story.
When I was young, I fell asleep to the song of artillery.
We were told we would win.
But the enemy never got the message.
They came from across the mist with the devil’s magic, stole our land, and enslaved our families.
And then you decided to send me, of all people, into the fire?
To bring back the secrets that would save our nation?
Are you bloody mad?
What happened, you ask? Oh, I'll tell you.
But let me start at the beginning.
Robin Hobb meets Fonda Lee in this intimate WWI-era fantasy saga of family, love, duty, and betrayal.
When I was young, I fell asleep to the song of artillery.
We were told we would win.
But the enemy never got the message.
They came from across the mist with the devil’s magic, stole our land, and enslaved our families.
And then you decided to send me, of all people, into the fire?
To bring back the secrets that would save our nation?
Are you bloody mad?
What happened, you ask? Oh, I'll tell you.
But let me start at the beginning.
Robin Hobb meets Fonda Lee in this intimate WWI-era fantasy saga of family, love, duty, and betrayal.
- GenresFantasy
Paperback
Published September 29, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
October 3, 2026
Sometimes I worry I am a harsh rater and then I read a book like this and I know there is a specific feeling that cements a book as FIVE STARS.
When I was eleven, my face exploded.
How to describe this book? It is just under 1,000 pages and I went in fairly blind. I knew there was an ongoing war; it was a dark, epic fantasy endorsed by one of my trusted friends; and it was a framed narrative (if you know me, a lot of my favourite books have this: The Name of the Wind, Empire of the Vampire, Blood Song, Whispers of the Storm).
Fifty years of war, Kiana is the daughter of a gunsmith. She is confessing and revealing her story as a grown woman, looking back on her childhood with a melancholic retrospective. The character voice was one of the best I’ve read: I felt everything Kiana did.
The opening line was perfect (quoted above). It gives you an idea of the tone and characterisation of Kiana. She was an incredible character to follow: fleshed out with an amazing development arc. She is witty, ambitious, emotional, and complex.
"I was setting the stage," I say. "Introducing our protagonist. Don’t you sympathize with her by now?"
The writing is self-aware and plays with literary conventions and expectations. I don’t want to dive into the genius because I think this is best experienced. I will say if you like: unreliable narration, coming-of-age, well-timed reveals - you will adore this.
The world-building is epic. The culture, religion, turmoil, and prejudices culminated into an immersive read. The magic system was slightly harder to grasp, but the vague answers seem deliberate as Kiana herself is unsure if it’s science, magic, religion.
I won’t lie: this is an epic undertaking. It is 950+ pages and it is a slow set up. I would say that the true ‘plot’ doesn’t start until 65%. However, trust the author and process. Not a page is wasted. You get to know Kiana so well that you don’t care you don’t know the direction of the book.
That’s what I loved about this. I got so completely lost in everything Kiana did/survived/initiated. It was a unique reading experience, especially in a book space where books are marketed (and spoiled) by tropes, predictable structures, and a driving pace.
Physical arc gifted by author.
Bookstagram
Tiktok
When I was eleven, my face exploded.
How to describe this book? It is just under 1,000 pages and I went in fairly blind. I knew there was an ongoing war; it was a dark, epic fantasy endorsed by one of my trusted friends; and it was a framed narrative (if you know me, a lot of my favourite books have this: The Name of the Wind, Empire of the Vampire, Blood Song, Whispers of the Storm).
Fifty years of war, Kiana is the daughter of a gunsmith. She is confessing and revealing her story as a grown woman, looking back on her childhood with a melancholic retrospective. The character voice was one of the best I’ve read: I felt everything Kiana did.
The opening line was perfect (quoted above). It gives you an idea of the tone and characterisation of Kiana. She was an incredible character to follow: fleshed out with an amazing development arc. She is witty, ambitious, emotional, and complex.
"I was setting the stage," I say. "Introducing our protagonist. Don’t you sympathize with her by now?"
The writing is self-aware and plays with literary conventions and expectations. I don’t want to dive into the genius because I think this is best experienced. I will say if you like: unreliable narration, coming-of-age, well-timed reveals - you will adore this.
The world-building is epic. The culture, religion, turmoil, and prejudices culminated into an immersive read. The magic system was slightly harder to grasp, but the vague answers seem deliberate as Kiana herself is unsure if it’s science, magic, religion.
I won’t lie: this is an epic undertaking. It is 950+ pages and it is a slow set up. I would say that the true ‘plot’ doesn’t start until 65%. However, trust the author and process. Not a page is wasted. You get to know Kiana so well that you don’t care you don’t know the direction of the book.
That’s what I loved about this. I got so completely lost in everything Kiana did/survived/initiated. It was a unique reading experience, especially in a book space where books are marketed (and spoiled) by tropes, predictable structures, and a driving pace.
Physical arc gifted by author.
Bookstagram
Tiktok
Review of advance copy received from Author
4.75 stars
Look, I know it’s almost foolishly bold to compare a book to Robin Hobb and GGK, but I promise Zammar Ahmer somehow actually managed to live up to those legends in Kiana. It’s an epic yet intimate WW1-inspired fantasy saga of family, trauma, love, loss, and sacrifice set against the backdrop of a beautifully rich Middle Eastern-flavoured fantasy world, and I swear I wasn’t even a quarter of the way into this absolute tome before I had already declared it a new top favourite of all time.
Now, I adore the cover of Kiana, but I don’t think it accurately represents the story hiding inside these pages. See, even though I absolutely loved Ahmer’s Book of Astea duology, I was still a little nervous going into this one because everything about the cover and blurb made me think I was about to get one of those action-packed, battle-heavy military fantasy stories that just don’t do it for me, but the opposite could not be more true. Yes, we are dropped into a brutally war-torn Middle Eastern fantasy world inspired by the WWI era, but the real focus isn’t the battles or the higher powers scheming away in the background, it’s the people caught underneath it all, and how war changes the everyday lives of the small people actually suffering through it. And that, my friends, is where our girl Kiana comes in.
In the present, Kiana is being interrogated by her nation’s military commander because he wants her to share the secrets of the enemy’s magic source that she learned while infiltrating their royalty as a spy. Unfortunately for him, my girl is a true storyteller at heart, so instead of simply handing over the information, she takes us all the way back to the beginning of her life, starting with the absolutely unhinged line, “When I was eleven, my face exploded.” And if that doesn’t immediately make you want to know what the hell happened to this woman, I genuinely don’t know what to tell you.
From there, we follow Kiana through more than two decades of her life, watching her grow from a young gunsmith’s daughter into the fearsome spy we meet in the present. I know Queen Hobb was a huge inspiration for Ahmer’s storytelling here, and I absolutely felt that influence in both the quietly stunning, emotionally stirring prose, and also in the fact that Kiana honestly felt like a female Fitz to me. Except, I have to admit that I might have loved her even more than him, which might be heresy to some, but I will die on this hill.
Her journey is such a quiet yet wild emotional rollercoaster of love, loss, friendship, heartbreak, sacrifice, duty, betrayal, faith, family, motherhood, trauma, and a truly delicious amount of human messiness, and I deeply appreciated how she carried the scars of her past (very literally in the form of her missing eye), without that trauma becoming her entire identity. She has been hurt, she has lost people, she has made mistakes, but ultimately she is still her resilient, loyal, headstrong, caring, funny, and most of all, her beautifully flawed, human self, and I loved how her first-person narration was so conversational, intimate, and vulnerable that I genuinely felt like I was sitting there listening to a best friend tell me the story of her life.
To me, Books One and Two of Kiana almost felt like a meandering coming-of-age tale with that GGK-esque ‘historical fiction with a quarter turn to the fantastic’ vibe, and I loved how there are even these wonderfully tongue-in-cheek moments in the present timeline where Kiana’s captor becomes increasingly exasperated because she keeps lingering on all the tiny details that supposedly don’t matter to the plot and dragging her story out in the most dramatic way possible. Don’t get me wrong, there are certainly some very thrilling scenes with high emotional stakes, including life on the run as a wanted criminal and one of the most intensely anxiety-inducing courtroom scenes I have ever read, but I loved the quiet moments of taking care of her ailing mother, becoming friends with my chaos babe Tara and my cinnamon roll priest Nima, and stumbling into a forbidden love situation with my swoony boy Cyrus just as much, if not more.
I mean, even the minor characters in Kiana have so much personality and complexity that they felt way too real to me, and I absolutely loved digging into the complicated family dynamics, strong friendships, and messy romantic entanglements sitting at the heart of this story. I especially appreciated how nobody feels like they are simply there to move Kiana’s story forward, and instead they have their own lives, their own histories, and their own flaws and motivations that sometimes clashed with Kiana’s or each other’s in the most painful ways possible, which resulted in the best emotional turmoil.
I honestly would have happily read another 600 pages of Kiana going through her daily life and stewing in her emotions, but then Book 3 came along and suddenly the plot really started plotting. Not only does the storytelling shift from a single first-person POV to a dual first-person POV (and I will not spoil who gets added, but I might have loved them even more than Kiana by the end), but the magical worldbuilding also suddenly becomes so much richer and deeper as Kiana begins her spy infiltration mission. Honestly, at some point I had almost forgotten I was reading a fantasy book because Kiana herself lives in a country without magic, so the world often feels grounded in this alternate historical reality. But then suddenly she is confronted with things like magical crystals, aether magic, fully sentient robots, and so much more that I just want you to discover for yourself, and I loved how experiencing all of that through her outsider perspective made it feel all the more awe-inspiring and immersive.
I do have to admit that I personally enjoyed Kiana the most when the book was what other people might call ‘boring’, because nothing is more thrilling than inner conflict and interpersonal drama to me. However, by the time things started getting truly chaotic, I was already so invested that I was glued to the page anyway, and I deeply appreciated that Ahmer never lost sight of the characters and relationships at the heart of the story even as the fantastical elements became increasingly important. The beautiful themes of family, motherhood, faith, social justice, and love sit right alongside the painfully uncomfortable themes of war, racism, trauma, discrimination, and hate, and I loved how all of it was explored with such raw, beautifully bittersweet honesty and woven into the narrative in the most organic way.
And look, I genuinely had no idea how Ahmer was going to wrap up an epic journey of this scale in a standalone, but I truly think he nailed his ambitious vision for this story with effortless grace. The use of unreliable narration through the framed narrative was honestly even more deviously clever than what Kristoff pulled off in Empire of the Dawn, and that is the highest of high praise coming from me. All of Kiana’s rambling is totally justified by the end because even the most minor details come back to have more meaning than you ever could have anticipated, and I loved how that made the relatively open ending feel so wildly unexpected yet incredibly emotionally resonant at the same time.
Well, I might have gone a bit overboard with my rambling in this review, but I feel like my babe Kiana would approve of that, so it’s all good. There is no denying that this book is a chunker, but I genuinely don’t think a single word was wasted, and Ahmer’s prose is just so smooth that I hadn’t even realised I had devoured 900 pages in a few days until it was suddenly over. Kiana is easily one of the best books I’ve read all year, and if you’re looking for a beautifully diverse, emotionally poignant, and deliciously character-driven fantasy tale to fill the Hobb-shaped hole in your life, I genuinely cannot recommend this gem highly enough.
Thank you to the author for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review, all opinions are my own. Kiana is scheduled for release on September 29th, 2026.
Look, I know it’s almost foolishly bold to compare a book to Robin Hobb and GGK, but I promise Zammar Ahmer somehow actually managed to live up to those legends in Kiana. It’s an epic yet intimate WW1-inspired fantasy saga of family, trauma, love, loss, and sacrifice set against the backdrop of a beautifully rich Middle Eastern-flavoured fantasy world, and I swear I wasn’t even a quarter of the way into this absolute tome before I had already declared it a new top favourite of all time.
Now, I adore the cover of Kiana, but I don’t think it accurately represents the story hiding inside these pages. See, even though I absolutely loved Ahmer’s Book of Astea duology, I was still a little nervous going into this one because everything about the cover and blurb made me think I was about to get one of those action-packed, battle-heavy military fantasy stories that just don’t do it for me, but the opposite could not be more true. Yes, we are dropped into a brutally war-torn Middle Eastern fantasy world inspired by the WWI era, but the real focus isn’t the battles or the higher powers scheming away in the background, it’s the people caught underneath it all, and how war changes the everyday lives of the small people actually suffering through it. And that, my friends, is where our girl Kiana comes in.
In the present, Kiana is being interrogated by her nation’s military commander because he wants her to share the secrets of the enemy’s magic source that she learned while infiltrating their royalty as a spy. Unfortunately for him, my girl is a true storyteller at heart, so instead of simply handing over the information, she takes us all the way back to the beginning of her life, starting with the absolutely unhinged line, “When I was eleven, my face exploded.” And if that doesn’t immediately make you want to know what the hell happened to this woman, I genuinely don’t know what to tell you.
From there, we follow Kiana through more than two decades of her life, watching her grow from a young gunsmith’s daughter into the fearsome spy we meet in the present. I know Queen Hobb was a huge inspiration for Ahmer’s storytelling here, and I absolutely felt that influence in both the quietly stunning, emotionally stirring prose, and also in the fact that Kiana honestly felt like a female Fitz to me. Except, I have to admit that I might have loved her even more than him, which might be heresy to some, but I will die on this hill.
Her journey is such a quiet yet wild emotional rollercoaster of love, loss, friendship, heartbreak, sacrifice, duty, betrayal, faith, family, motherhood, trauma, and a truly delicious amount of human messiness, and I deeply appreciated how she carried the scars of her past (very literally in the form of her missing eye), without that trauma becoming her entire identity. She has been hurt, she has lost people, she has made mistakes, but ultimately she is still her resilient, loyal, headstrong, caring, funny, and most of all, her beautifully flawed, human self, and I loved how her first-person narration was so conversational, intimate, and vulnerable that I genuinely felt like I was sitting there listening to a best friend tell me the story of her life.
To me, Books One and Two of Kiana almost felt like a meandering coming-of-age tale with that GGK-esque ‘historical fiction with a quarter turn to the fantastic’ vibe, and I loved how there are even these wonderfully tongue-in-cheek moments in the present timeline where Kiana’s captor becomes increasingly exasperated because she keeps lingering on all the tiny details that supposedly don’t matter to the plot and dragging her story out in the most dramatic way possible. Don’t get me wrong, there are certainly some very thrilling scenes with high emotional stakes, including life on the run as a wanted criminal and one of the most intensely anxiety-inducing courtroom scenes I have ever read, but I loved the quiet moments of taking care of her ailing mother, becoming friends with my chaos babe Tara and my cinnamon roll priest Nima, and stumbling into a forbidden love situation with my swoony boy Cyrus just as much, if not more.
I mean, even the minor characters in Kiana have so much personality and complexity that they felt way too real to me, and I absolutely loved digging into the complicated family dynamics, strong friendships, and messy romantic entanglements sitting at the heart of this story. I especially appreciated how nobody feels like they are simply there to move Kiana’s story forward, and instead they have their own lives, their own histories, and their own flaws and motivations that sometimes clashed with Kiana’s or each other’s in the most painful ways possible, which resulted in the best emotional turmoil.
I honestly would have happily read another 600 pages of Kiana going through her daily life and stewing in her emotions, but then Book 3 came along and suddenly the plot really started plotting. Not only does the storytelling shift from a single first-person POV to a dual first-person POV (and I will not spoil who gets added, but I might have loved them even more than Kiana by the end), but the magical worldbuilding also suddenly becomes so much richer and deeper as Kiana begins her spy infiltration mission. Honestly, at some point I had almost forgotten I was reading a fantasy book because Kiana herself lives in a country without magic, so the world often feels grounded in this alternate historical reality. But then suddenly she is confronted with things like magical crystals, aether magic, fully sentient robots, and so much more that I just want you to discover for yourself, and I loved how experiencing all of that through her outsider perspective made it feel all the more awe-inspiring and immersive.
I do have to admit that I personally enjoyed Kiana the most when the book was what other people might call ‘boring’, because nothing is more thrilling than inner conflict and interpersonal drama to me. However, by the time things started getting truly chaotic, I was already so invested that I was glued to the page anyway, and I deeply appreciated that Ahmer never lost sight of the characters and relationships at the heart of the story even as the fantastical elements became increasingly important. The beautiful themes of family, motherhood, faith, social justice, and love sit right alongside the painfully uncomfortable themes of war, racism, trauma, discrimination, and hate, and I loved how all of it was explored with such raw, beautifully bittersweet honesty and woven into the narrative in the most organic way.
And look, I genuinely had no idea how Ahmer was going to wrap up an epic journey of this scale in a standalone, but I truly think he nailed his ambitious vision for this story with effortless grace. The use of unreliable narration through the framed narrative was honestly even more deviously clever than what Kristoff pulled off in Empire of the Dawn, and that is the highest of high praise coming from me. All of Kiana’s rambling is totally justified by the end because even the most minor details come back to have more meaning than you ever could have anticipated, and I loved how that made the relatively open ending feel so wildly unexpected yet incredibly emotionally resonant at the same time.
Well, I might have gone a bit overboard with my rambling in this review, but I feel like my babe Kiana would approve of that, so it’s all good. There is no denying that this book is a chunker, but I genuinely don’t think a single word was wasted, and Ahmer’s prose is just so smooth that I hadn’t even realised I had devoured 900 pages in a few days until it was suddenly over. Kiana is easily one of the best books I’ve read all year, and if you’re looking for a beautifully diverse, emotionally poignant, and deliciously character-driven fantasy tale to fill the Hobb-shaped hole in your life, I genuinely cannot recommend this gem highly enough.
Thank you to the author for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review, all opinions are my own. Kiana is scheduled for release on September 29th, 2026.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Kiana (the book) is one of those books that just surprises you in all the best ways, especially when you go in thinking you’d be reading a certain type of story and then you get something completely different. There is just so many layers unraveled in a story like Kiana, one that takes the delicate hand of a master storyteller.
Kiana (the character) is requisitioned by her nation’s military to uncover some truths about their enemy’s magic source, and after completing her task, she is telling her story to her commander. But we go all the way back with Kiana, to when she was a young girl and her world completely upended. From stubborn preteen to precocious teen runaway, to a nun-in-training, to law school, through young love and parenthood, to lawyer, to spy, we get it all.
The best place to start is with Kiana (the character), this story lives and dies with how you feel about her. She is one hell of a protagonist and she is a storyteller herself. And this is where Kiana (the book) hinges, if you don’t gel with her and her storytelling, you won’t enjoy this novel. Kiana (the character) is a whirlwind as we follow her throughout nearly two decades as she grows. And we spend a lot of page time with her doing every day things, especially after the inciting incident. She’s on her own with her sick mother, a fifteen-year-old girl trying to survive, and this is where her story shines. She is headstrong, determined, loyal, caring, just so many different adjectives to describe her, but above all, she is so compelling to follow.
And where Kiana (the book) shines is when Kiana (the character) interacts with those in her orbit. Nima, a priest who is her best friend and forever platonic love, is just such a wonderful character. Tara, Nima’s street urchin friend with a devil-may-care attitude. Sophie and Ely, important characters in Kiana’s spy era. Cyrus, her first love. Each one of these characters shape Kiana and her story. All are just so great.
My favorite part of Kiana (the book) is the progressive nature of the story. Kiana (the character) being the storyteller she is, makes the book all that more engrossing. Her ability, by Ahmer’s hand, we get this all-encompassing tale that tackles intricate family dynamics, racism, classism, sexism, while also just detailing one girl’s life. And Ahmer’s prose is just so deep, so deft, so precise, we cannot help but feel we are a part of Kiana’s life alongside her. Then to make this even more great, this interview/memoir style story is interspersed with present timeline interlude scenes with Kiana’s commander, some are even troll-worthy because the commander says no one wants to hear that and Kiana just says it’s my story, sod off. I loved these little asides with banter, almost Ahmer trolling readers in the process. These are just great scenes.
But that slow build of Kiana’s life really makes this story pop. It is divided into three books and while books one and two are on the slower side, book three ratchets up the military spy story and book three can never work without books one and two. It just wouldn’t work as a story. Everything has a point. Hints and reveals are dropped in early in Kiana’s (the character) retelling, and only come out later in the story as important bits, so you need to sleuth along as you read. And in the climax, a major twist happens in terms of the magic system and you look back and realize it was all there earlier on and you might have missed it. Intricate stuff, that.
I haven’t even touched on the cool world this book inhabits. It is World War I era inspired, ie the guns, the tech, the early cars, etc. but there is also magic in the form of these items called solarite. This is a war-torn land as Kiana’s nation is at a never-ending war with the magic side. The war looms large in the background at all times and Kiana’s father’s work as a famed gunsmith is deeply woven throughout. then throw in the cool magic system where robots/speakers/telephones can be imbued with solarite, really cool stuff. I also really liked that this world is inherently Middle Eastern-inspired, down to the culture and food and name choices. And then there is a very African-coded group of people, so Ahmer institutes internalized racism/slavery biases, which while uncomfortable at times, really makes this world feel incredibly vast and lived-in. All of this is reflected in Kiana’s arc and I just loved everything about this world.
To be sure, this book is really long, it’s also a standalone, so it needs to be long. The pace is not quick either, we get a lot of slice of life moments in Kiana’s life, so be prepared for those, but again, it all comes together. There is enough action and war scenes to keep us present with the impending climax. There is just a nice steadiness to this story that a lot of authors are afraid to use. There is an interesting change that happens when the third book starts, I won’t spoil it, but I was pleasantly surprised by the twist and I’m glad Ahmer put it in there. The ending was really great and I liked how everything came together after such a journey.
Kiana is just an experience, one I think a lot of people will enjoy. So buckle up, friends, and listen to Kiana’s life, you won’t want to miss it!
*I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review
Kiana (the character) is requisitioned by her nation’s military to uncover some truths about their enemy’s magic source, and after completing her task, she is telling her story to her commander. But we go all the way back with Kiana, to when she was a young girl and her world completely upended. From stubborn preteen to precocious teen runaway, to a nun-in-training, to law school, through young love and parenthood, to lawyer, to spy, we get it all.
The best place to start is with Kiana (the character), this story lives and dies with how you feel about her. She is one hell of a protagonist and she is a storyteller herself. And this is where Kiana (the book) hinges, if you don’t gel with her and her storytelling, you won’t enjoy this novel. Kiana (the character) is a whirlwind as we follow her throughout nearly two decades as she grows. And we spend a lot of page time with her doing every day things, especially after the inciting incident. She’s on her own with her sick mother, a fifteen-year-old girl trying to survive, and this is where her story shines. She is headstrong, determined, loyal, caring, just so many different adjectives to describe her, but above all, she is so compelling to follow.
And where Kiana (the book) shines is when Kiana (the character) interacts with those in her orbit. Nima, a priest who is her best friend and forever platonic love, is just such a wonderful character. Tara, Nima’s street urchin friend with a devil-may-care attitude. Sophie and Ely, important characters in Kiana’s spy era. Cyrus, her first love. Each one of these characters shape Kiana and her story. All are just so great.
My favorite part of Kiana (the book) is the progressive nature of the story. Kiana (the character) being the storyteller she is, makes the book all that more engrossing. Her ability, by Ahmer’s hand, we get this all-encompassing tale that tackles intricate family dynamics, racism, classism, sexism, while also just detailing one girl’s life. And Ahmer’s prose is just so deep, so deft, so precise, we cannot help but feel we are a part of Kiana’s life alongside her. Then to make this even more great, this interview/memoir style story is interspersed with present timeline interlude scenes with Kiana’s commander, some are even troll-worthy because the commander says no one wants to hear that and Kiana just says it’s my story, sod off. I loved these little asides with banter, almost Ahmer trolling readers in the process. These are just great scenes.
But that slow build of Kiana’s life really makes this story pop. It is divided into three books and while books one and two are on the slower side, book three ratchets up the military spy story and book three can never work without books one and two. It just wouldn’t work as a story. Everything has a point. Hints and reveals are dropped in early in Kiana’s (the character) retelling, and only come out later in the story as important bits, so you need to sleuth along as you read. And in the climax, a major twist happens in terms of the magic system and you look back and realize it was all there earlier on and you might have missed it. Intricate stuff, that.
I haven’t even touched on the cool world this book inhabits. It is World War I era inspired, ie the guns, the tech, the early cars, etc. but there is also magic in the form of these items called solarite. This is a war-torn land as Kiana’s nation is at a never-ending war with the magic side. The war looms large in the background at all times and Kiana’s father’s work as a famed gunsmith is deeply woven throughout. then throw in the cool magic system where robots/speakers/telephones can be imbued with solarite, really cool stuff. I also really liked that this world is inherently Middle Eastern-inspired, down to the culture and food and name choices. And then there is a very African-coded group of people, so Ahmer institutes internalized racism/slavery biases, which while uncomfortable at times, really makes this world feel incredibly vast and lived-in. All of this is reflected in Kiana’s arc and I just loved everything about this world.
To be sure, this book is really long, it’s also a standalone, so it needs to be long. The pace is not quick either, we get a lot of slice of life moments in Kiana’s life, so be prepared for those, but again, it all comes together. There is enough action and war scenes to keep us present with the impending climax. There is just a nice steadiness to this story that a lot of authors are afraid to use. There is an interesting change that happens when the third book starts, I won’t spoil it, but I was pleasantly surprised by the twist and I’m glad Ahmer put it in there. The ending was really great and I liked how everything came together after such a journey.
Kiana is just an experience, one I think a lot of people will enjoy. So buckle up, friends, and listen to Kiana’s life, you won’t want to miss it!
*I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review
September 1, 2026
Well here’s something that hasn’t been explored much. A World War inspired fantasy that reads like gritty, inspiring and emotional diary.
I found this one absolutely fascinating. You are transported to this world of rifles, guns and planes. The opposition wielding magic and superior strength. The battlefields are gory, chaotic and unsettling. It paints a grim picture of the times in this world.
Kiana is a gunsmith’s daughter. Scarred terribly by an accident at her home years before. This is her journey. It is told through a military inquisition after her capture.
It’s a harrowing tale and a true battle of survival and heartbreak. The compassion and steadfast determination Kiara demonstrates continually captivates.
I won’t go into spoilers but let’s say she’s wanted by some individuals in the first half. It makes for some tense reading.
The second half of the novel deals more with why she’s detailing her life story. It’s a dangerous mission within enemy lines.
Kiara (the book) does a great job of capturing the clandestine mission in a desperate attempt to change the tide of the war. It’s so very different from the world we follow.
The characters are fantastic here. All fleshed out with some heroic, kind, broken and vile. Kiara herself is just a regular woman caught up in a huge mess. The danger is always real.
Really enjoyed this and look forward to continuing the series.
Thanks to the author for providing this ARC.
I found this one absolutely fascinating. You are transported to this world of rifles, guns and planes. The opposition wielding magic and superior strength. The battlefields are gory, chaotic and unsettling. It paints a grim picture of the times in this world.
Kiana is a gunsmith’s daughter. Scarred terribly by an accident at her home years before. This is her journey. It is told through a military inquisition after her capture.
It’s a harrowing tale and a true battle of survival and heartbreak. The compassion and steadfast determination Kiara demonstrates continually captivates.
I won’t go into spoilers but let’s say she’s wanted by some individuals in the first half. It makes for some tense reading.
The second half of the novel deals more with why she’s detailing her life story. It’s a dangerous mission within enemy lines.
Kiara (the book) does a great job of capturing the clandestine mission in a desperate attempt to change the tide of the war. It’s so very different from the world we follow.
The characters are fantastic here. All fleshed out with some heroic, kind, broken and vile. Kiara herself is just a regular woman caught up in a huge mess. The danger is always real.
Really enjoyed this and look forward to continuing the series.
Thanks to the author for providing this ARC.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Kiana is certainly a tome—900 pages of it—but somehow, it never felt like one. The pacing is surprisingly strong for such a massive book, and the story flows beautifully. I never found myself thinking, "okay, we could probably have cut a few hundred pages here" There was always something pulling me forward.
And Kiana herself is such a big part of why this worked for me. She’s incredibly engaging, and that woman loves to yap. I genuinely enjoyed listening to her tell her story, getting lost in her thoughts and experiences and watching her make sense of everything that happened to her. She feels like someone you’re actually spending time with rather than simply following through a story.
Which makes it all the more interesting because her story is anything but cute. This is a dark and brutal book, full of despair, betrayal, loss, and some genuinely painful moments. There were times when I felt absolutely miserable for these characters. But despite all of that darkness, there’s still hope here. And I think that balance is what made the story hit as hard as it did. It never felt like misery for the sake of misery; there was always something worth holding onto.
I also really loved the cast surrounding Kiana. There are a lot of people here, with some characters coming and going while others become a more permanent part of her life, but they never blur together. Everyone feels like their own person, with their own personality, motivations, and place in Kiana’s story. For a book this long and with this many characters, that’s no small feat.
By the end, I was genuinely invested in this world and its people, and I’m very happy to know there are more stories to come. Kiana was an emotional, sometimes brutal, but ultimately very rewarding read, and I’m definitely looking forward to seeing where this world goes next.
And I have to give Zammar Ahmer some well-deserved praise here because Kiana makes it 4/4 for me. I’ve read all four of his books now and I’ve genuinely loved every single one. That’s a pretty damn impressive track record, and I’m excited to see what he comes up with next.
And Kiana herself is such a big part of why this worked for me. She’s incredibly engaging, and that woman loves to yap. I genuinely enjoyed listening to her tell her story, getting lost in her thoughts and experiences and watching her make sense of everything that happened to her. She feels like someone you’re actually spending time with rather than simply following through a story.
Which makes it all the more interesting because her story is anything but cute. This is a dark and brutal book, full of despair, betrayal, loss, and some genuinely painful moments. There were times when I felt absolutely miserable for these characters. But despite all of that darkness, there’s still hope here. And I think that balance is what made the story hit as hard as it did. It never felt like misery for the sake of misery; there was always something worth holding onto.
I also really loved the cast surrounding Kiana. There are a lot of people here, with some characters coming and going while others become a more permanent part of her life, but they never blur together. Everyone feels like their own person, with their own personality, motivations, and place in Kiana’s story. For a book this long and with this many characters, that’s no small feat.
By the end, I was genuinely invested in this world and its people, and I’m very happy to know there are more stories to come. Kiana was an emotional, sometimes brutal, but ultimately very rewarding read, and I’m definitely looking forward to seeing where this world goes next.
And I have to give Zammar Ahmer some well-deserved praise here because Kiana makes it 4/4 for me. I’ve read all four of his books now and I’ve genuinely loved every single one. That’s a pretty damn impressive track record, and I’m excited to see what he comes up with next.
September 30, 2026
I highly recommend Kiana for those looking to immerse themselves in an intimate, character-driven work with the backdrop of an epic and tragic conflict.
Full review on SFF Insiders:
https://www.sffinsiders.com/blog/revi...
Full review on SFF Insiders:
https://www.sffinsiders.com/blog/revi...
Review of advance copy received from Author
Book. Of. The. Year.
Holy crap y'all.
I've never read an ARC so Ima try to do a proper review for once because this book deserves ALL THE LOVE.
I enjoyed the author's previous series a lot, so when I heard he'd written a "loveletter" to my QUEEN Robin Hobb, I knew I had to jump on and see what it's about.
I did not expect to be as blown away as I am.
This isn't like most books where the characters are part of a plot. In this case, the plot is basically one character's life. It's like a memoir, like you're sitting in a room with Kiana and chatting like old friends.
And the thing is, I LOVE Kiana. She is my favourite character since...I mean honestly, since Fitz. She's funny, hard-working, endearing, flawed, insecure, and so so so so so relatable. I saw myself in her SO much. The best part was seeing her grow up across the book (I honestly don't know how a dude captured life as a girl/woman so well!)
So it's basically about her life in this world. Her country has WW1 era tech and they're at war with a country that uses magic. Kiana somehow ends up getting recruited for a mission by the army. But before she tells us what happened, she wants to tell us everyything else (and I so here for it!)
This isn't a crazy action-packed book with insane twists and fights and stuff. There is action, don't get me wrong, and it is INTENSE but only because I love the characters so much and don't want them to get hurt. But this book is 100000% about the journey. I literally just wanted to sit and spend time with Kiana and her friends. There is a fair bit of slice of life, and believe me if those aren't the best parts.
But even apart from that, it's never boring. There is absolutely a plot and it's super interesting because you don't see it at first, then it all starts coming together and blows your mind in so many amazing ways.
The world and magic are so interesting and I love how they never overwhelmed me. It's reaally got that 1910s feeling, which I've never read in fantasy.
So the book is divided into three parts.
Pt. 1 - Such an amazing introduction, with so many intense scenes. Kiana is young but so loveable and I was so worried for her in so many parts.
Pt. 2 - It's slower and some people might find it boring. I loved it. It's maybe the deepest most beautiful exploration of grief and love I've ever read in my life
Pt. 3 - It's almost an entirely different book! This is where things go crazy and you start seeing so much more about the world and magic and the way things are all coming together. I fell in love with the new characters here. And towards the end, there are so many interesting unreliable narrator tricks...I found it all so fascinating and fun
I already said Kiana is amazing, but I adored every single character in this book. Even the side characters are so full of life.
Honestly, the book is not as long as you think. This is a full story! Most books are part of a series, which are way longer! So much stuff happens here that I think the length is so well earned.
And then there's the writing. This is SO easy to read. The words fit together so well. Every now and then, there's some beautiful poetry. But mostly it just feels like Kiana. Like I'm there with her and she's telling me her story.
The ending isn't like some crazy insane battle thing like Way of Kings or whatever, but it's so understated and powerful and just left me feeling all sorts of feelings. I'm still buzzing over it.
gaahh I can't do this book justice. It is different from Hobb, but it has the same sort of vibe? That sense of loving a character so much and being invested in their relationships/life? It was just perfect to fill the hole in my heart after Assassin's Fate!
Holy crap y'all.
I've never read an ARC so Ima try to do a proper review for once because this book deserves ALL THE LOVE.
I enjoyed the author's previous series a lot, so when I heard he'd written a "loveletter" to my QUEEN Robin Hobb, I knew I had to jump on and see what it's about.
I did not expect to be as blown away as I am.
This isn't like most books where the characters are part of a plot. In this case, the plot is basically one character's life. It's like a memoir, like you're sitting in a room with Kiana and chatting like old friends.
And the thing is, I LOVE Kiana. She is my favourite character since...I mean honestly, since Fitz. She's funny, hard-working, endearing, flawed, insecure, and so so so so so relatable. I saw myself in her SO much. The best part was seeing her grow up across the book (I honestly don't know how a dude captured life as a girl/woman so well!)
So it's basically about her life in this world. Her country has WW1 era tech and they're at war with a country that uses magic. Kiana somehow ends up getting recruited for a mission by the army. But before she tells us what happened, she wants to tell us everyything else (and I so here for it!)
This isn't a crazy action-packed book with insane twists and fights and stuff. There is action, don't get me wrong, and it is INTENSE but only because I love the characters so much and don't want them to get hurt. But this book is 100000% about the journey. I literally just wanted to sit and spend time with Kiana and her friends. There is a fair bit of slice of life, and believe me if those aren't the best parts.
But even apart from that, it's never boring. There is absolutely a plot and it's super interesting because you don't see it at first, then it all starts coming together and blows your mind in so many amazing ways.
The world and magic are so interesting and I love how they never overwhelmed me. It's reaally got that 1910s feeling, which I've never read in fantasy.
So the book is divided into three parts.
Pt. 1 - Such an amazing introduction, with so many intense scenes. Kiana is young but so loveable and I was so worried for her in so many parts.
Pt. 2 - It's slower and some people might find it boring. I loved it. It's maybe the deepest most beautiful exploration of grief and love I've ever read in my life
Pt. 3 - It's almost an entirely different book! This is where things go crazy and you start seeing so much more about the world and magic and the way things are all coming together. I fell in love with the new characters here. And towards the end, there are so many interesting unreliable narrator tricks...I found it all so fascinating and fun
I already said Kiana is amazing, but I adored every single character in this book. Even the side characters are so full of life.
Honestly, the book is not as long as you think. This is a full story! Most books are part of a series, which are way longer! So much stuff happens here that I think the length is so well earned.
And then there's the writing. This is SO easy to read. The words fit together so well. Every now and then, there's some beautiful poetry. But mostly it just feels like Kiana. Like I'm there with her and she's telling me her story.
The ending isn't like some crazy insane battle thing like Way of Kings or whatever, but it's so understated and powerful and just left me feeling all sorts of feelings. I'm still buzzing over it.
gaahh I can't do this book justice. It is different from Hobb, but it has the same sort of vibe? That sense of loving a character so much and being invested in their relationships/life? It was just perfect to fill the hole in my heart after Assassin's Fate!
October 16, 2026
Kiana was a book that grabbed my attention first with the beauty of a cover, but also with the addition of it being a story inspired by the World War 1 era. While military stories are not typically something I venture into, the idea of it being a fantasy retelling of that time intrigued me.
Trying to write a review for this beast of a book has been quite the challenge. Not because it was bad or had few positives, but because I can't fully think how to explain this book without giving spoilers that could potentially ruin the enjoyment for other readers. Starting this book, I knew very little going in. I didn't even fully look at the entire synopsis in the description, and I think that helped my enjoyment of not knowing ahead of time what I was truly in for. So let me try my best to give a review without spoiling too much for future readers.
Kiana was quickly established as such an enjoyable character to follow. You begin the story with her being questioned about events that happened during the war time, but the reader will find out quickly that Kiana is not just your average main character, she's a story teller. The reader is given a story framed by Kiana and how that affects the events of the story was one of the best parts.
As we follow the narrative told by Kiana, the reader is introduced to a unique world and history that feels somewhat familiar, yet quite alien at the same time. Zammar has a beautiful way of writing, and although this book is close to 1,000 pages and a slow burn at times, I never found myself bored or wishing it would be ending soon. Zammar takes time to truly let you learn about Kiana and the type of character she is. You learn about the world and events through her eyes and experiences, and the way you get to slowly experience the story is one of the strongest qualities of this amazing story.
Being a fantasy there is magic, and while that is an important plot element, the fantastical elements take a back seat for the majority of the story. The true magic for this long tale is, for the most part, the characters. While you see instances of the war and how that is affecting the world of the story, and magic is a component that gets a little more developed in the later parts, the main focus is Kiana and who she is interacting with at specific parts of her life. Character development is always a fun topic to cover when talking about stories, and this is one of those books I think handles the growth of those you are following very well.
I could honestly continue to gush over this book and the incredible story Zammar has crafted for his readers, but for now I will just say I HIGHLY recommend picking up this story and giving it a read. Discovering the tale of Kiana and her adventures she takes time to tell was a true delight and something I look forward to others experiencing. I can't wait to see what the author has in store for us next, because if it's anything like this, us readers are going to be in for a treat for sure!
*I was given an advanced copy for an honest review*
Trying to write a review for this beast of a book has been quite the challenge. Not because it was bad or had few positives, but because I can't fully think how to explain this book without giving spoilers that could potentially ruin the enjoyment for other readers. Starting this book, I knew very little going in. I didn't even fully look at the entire synopsis in the description, and I think that helped my enjoyment of not knowing ahead of time what I was truly in for. So let me try my best to give a review without spoiling too much for future readers.
Kiana was quickly established as such an enjoyable character to follow. You begin the story with her being questioned about events that happened during the war time, but the reader will find out quickly that Kiana is not just your average main character, she's a story teller. The reader is given a story framed by Kiana and how that affects the events of the story was one of the best parts.
As we follow the narrative told by Kiana, the reader is introduced to a unique world and history that feels somewhat familiar, yet quite alien at the same time. Zammar has a beautiful way of writing, and although this book is close to 1,000 pages and a slow burn at times, I never found myself bored or wishing it would be ending soon. Zammar takes time to truly let you learn about Kiana and the type of character she is. You learn about the world and events through her eyes and experiences, and the way you get to slowly experience the story is one of the strongest qualities of this amazing story.
Being a fantasy there is magic, and while that is an important plot element, the fantastical elements take a back seat for the majority of the story. The true magic for this long tale is, for the most part, the characters. While you see instances of the war and how that is affecting the world of the story, and magic is a component that gets a little more developed in the later parts, the main focus is Kiana and who she is interacting with at specific parts of her life. Character development is always a fun topic to cover when talking about stories, and this is one of those books I think handles the growth of those you are following very well.
I could honestly continue to gush over this book and the incredible story Zammar has crafted for his readers, but for now I will just say I HIGHLY recommend picking up this story and giving it a read. Discovering the tale of Kiana and her adventures she takes time to tell was a true delight and something I look forward to others experiencing. I can't wait to see what the author has in store for us next, because if it's anything like this, us readers are going to be in for a treat for sure!
*I was given an advanced copy for an honest review*
Review of advance copy received from Author
I was selected to be a beta reader for this book and received an early copy.
I went into this novel expecting an action-packed, WWI-inspired fantasy. Instead, I was taken along the journey of a girl who has her entire life pulled from beneath her and is forced to overcome adversity with the help of friends and a found family. While there are visceral action scenes, they take a back seat to a deeply personal character study. We watch Kiana transform from a helpless girl into a capable woman who uses her growth to fuel her when she sets off on a mission.
I loved getting to know the characters, and their interactions were an absolute treat to read. Every single individual has a distinct personality that makes them feel alive. Even the side characters are brought to life so vividly that I quickly became invested in them.
Although the story is long, its length allows us to fully soak in the author's rich world and spend enough time with Kiana to truly understand her and her relationships. This unhurried pacing also enhances the moments when the story does quicken, amplifying the tension and anxiety.
Ultimately, however, my favorite aspect of this book is the author’s writing ability. It’s simply beautiful. The prose is brilliantly crafted, the descriptions are vivid, and the people and places effortlessly spring to life in the imagination. Regardless of whether the subject matter sounds like your usual cup of tea, you should read this book simply to experience the brilliance of the writing.
I went into this novel expecting an action-packed, WWI-inspired fantasy. Instead, I was taken along the journey of a girl who has her entire life pulled from beneath her and is forced to overcome adversity with the help of friends and a found family. While there are visceral action scenes, they take a back seat to a deeply personal character study. We watch Kiana transform from a helpless girl into a capable woman who uses her growth to fuel her when she sets off on a mission.
I loved getting to know the characters, and their interactions were an absolute treat to read. Every single individual has a distinct personality that makes them feel alive. Even the side characters are brought to life so vividly that I quickly became invested in them.
Although the story is long, its length allows us to fully soak in the author's rich world and spend enough time with Kiana to truly understand her and her relationships. This unhurried pacing also enhances the moments when the story does quicken, amplifying the tension and anxiety.
Ultimately, however, my favorite aspect of this book is the author’s writing ability. It’s simply beautiful. The prose is brilliantly crafted, the descriptions are vivid, and the people and places effortlessly spring to life in the imagination. Regardless of whether the subject matter sounds like your usual cup of tea, you should read this book simply to experience the brilliance of the writing.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I received an early version of this book by the author, and I was very impressed with the quality of the story, characters, and prose.
Readers enter into a WWI-inspired fantasy world and are thrust into a gritty, brutal story revolving around a teenage girl's dedication to her family and her journey to find her own path. Kiana is a brilliant storyteller and the use of the first-person narrative structure, coupled with flashbacks, is really successful. The characters are well developed, and even if I didn't agree with the choices some of the characters made, I understood their motivations and reasons for acting in the way they did. I found Kiana especially to be very relatable and easy to empathize with. The setting is described beautifully; the author's writing ability cannot be understated. I found this book to be less intense on the fantasy elements than the author's previous works. It was incredibly easy to immerse myself in this world and get lost amongst the battles, relationship arcs, and growing mystery about the enemy side and how all the pieces come together in the end.
I highly recommend this book. It was a fun, gripping, and engaging read that had me hooked from beginning to end!
Readers enter into a WWI-inspired fantasy world and are thrust into a gritty, brutal story revolving around a teenage girl's dedication to her family and her journey to find her own path. Kiana is a brilliant storyteller and the use of the first-person narrative structure, coupled with flashbacks, is really successful. The characters are well developed, and even if I didn't agree with the choices some of the characters made, I understood their motivations and reasons for acting in the way they did. I found Kiana especially to be very relatable and easy to empathize with. The setting is described beautifully; the author's writing ability cannot be understated. I found this book to be less intense on the fantasy elements than the author's previous works. It was incredibly easy to immerse myself in this world and get lost amongst the battles, relationship arcs, and growing mystery about the enemy side and how all the pieces come together in the end.
I highly recommend this book. It was a fun, gripping, and engaging read that had me hooked from beginning to end!
October 23, 2026
This is beautifully written and very unique. The story has a lot going for it, and I was certain it’d be a 5-star read. Sadly, it started to lose direction somewhere around 40%. I understand the intention behind the plot choices, but it really meandered for a long time, and felt so slice of life it was a shock when suddenly we got the fantasy elements back. The fantasy aspects where sidelined for so long I felt there were two separate books in one. Some everyday life scenes really dragged for a long time with nothing much happening.
This is still an excellent, intelligent read of literary fantasy.
This is still an excellent, intelligent read of literary fantasy.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Full video review here: https://youtu.be/Naau2rnGbDs
I was a beta reader for this story and found it so difficult to put down once I started! A deeply intimate character driven story that at the same time organically builds out the world and setting in a very satisfying way. I was blown away by how much I fell in love with this one!
I was a beta reader for this story and found it so difficult to put down once I started! A deeply intimate character driven story that at the same time organically builds out the world and setting in a very satisfying way. I was blown away by how much I fell in love with this one!
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