A foreboding prophecy. A lost empress. And a battle to determine the fate of the world.
In the arduous war against the dark god Kashmeru, the elite mages have managed to track down half of the magical daggers. But the enemy isn’t far behind.
Leading the shadow army, the dark mages have won battles of their own, and the Lotus empress is still under Kashmeru’s control. But mysteries are unraveling that could help the elite mages gain an advantage—if they can survive long enough to fulfill their legacies.
Dorothy Dreyer is a Philippine-born American living in Germany with her family. She is a multi-award-winning, USA Today Bestselling Author of Romantasy, Fantasy, and Romance. Aside from reading, she enjoys movies, binge-watching series, chocolate, take-out, family game night, and having fun with friends. She tends to sing sometimes, too, so keep her away from your Karaoke bars.
Joining forces of all elite mages seems to give the Elites a slight advantage. Keeping the upper hand will be tough, though. Loni, the emerald mage, is attracting trouble with her poor decisions, old grudges, and hints of jealousy. Her background even breaks a gap between Jae and Mayhara. Moreover, Shiro is forced to face the unexpected appearance of his love, the extremists are wreaking havoc in the city, the dark mages never cease in their hunt, and Amalia's poisoning is a complication no one ever wanted. It looks like with every round won, the Elites are forced to retreat back, losing the upper hand before mobilizing again.. Suspenseful, magical, action-packed, and yet somehow very endearing story full of interesting characters, difficult situations, even more difficult choices, and challenges that try and examine everyone's character or will. Full commitment to the cause seems to be a must, and with no guarantee of survival, the tension and pressure are high. Not only the individuals but the whole team is challenged over and over again, and the slightest slip might have fatal consequences. With the twist at the end, I am now curious -more than before- what will the reaction of the elite mages be.
I didn't feel like reading my next review copy yet, so I decided to fit in another book in this series in between. I like this series so far with the short fast paced reads and I flew through this one as well. Emerald Mage focuses a bit more on the characters and some of the relationships that go well or not so well. They're also planning this big thing where they'll try and steal the daggers the enemy has in their possession. There is some progress on the scroll they have as well. This one ends on a cliffhanger and it makes me curious to read the next one.
At the end of Golden Mage the main group of mages that the story followed so far catch up with another group of mages, so now they have all the elite mages together. The start of this book was getting to know all the new mages, but luckily the author gave them all different personalities and within a few chapters I had a good feel for who was who. I liked getting to see a bit of the new mages their powers. It's fun to read about.
I liked seeing the plot point progress, with the scroll and another dagger they go after. And then culminate in their big attempt to steal the daggers from the enemy at the end of the book. I was eager to see how it all played out and the cliffhanger ending makes me want to read the next book soon. There's a bit less action in this book, but there's still plenty going on.
I liked seeing the more character focused plot lines in this one. I liked seeing how Salina was doing, how Mayhara and Yae's relationship is progressing, how Shiro deals with things, and then there are the new characters like Loni, Penny, Kamal and Yuki. I was a bit disappointed to see Loni make some less good decisions, but at the same time it did feel realistic and I think it's interesting seeing how everyone deals differently with the pressure. I liked seeing the new character integrate in the group and in Loni's case also cause some strive due to her history with some of the other characters.
To summarize: This was another great read in this series. Like the previous books this one is a fast and quick read and enjoyed it. I liked getting to know the 4 new elite mages that join the team and seeing their powers. This book felt a bit more character driven focusing a bit on the new characters and also some interpersonal things that are going on. Plot wise there's another dagger they go after as well as progress with translating the scroll. And they prepare for a big mission where they try to steal the rest of the daggers from their enemies. All in all another great read and I look forward to the next one!
Dorothy Dreyer has done it again!! Emerald Mage is #comingsoon so get ready! We are getting closer to the big showdown between the Mage Elites and Kashmeru and his merry band of Dark Mages!! Holy crap guys, this one is a littlw heartbreaking, I won't lie. The struggle is getting to some of our favorites in this ragtag band of heroes. I am rooting for them so hard but my heart is in my throat!! I can't wait to see what’s next!! 5 stars and all the thumbs up!!!
All the elites are together but they aren’t quite a team. There are some bitter and unresolved feelings between a few from the past but no one wants to talk about it quite yet. The person with the biggest problem is Loni and unfortunately she causes some problems herself. After feeling bitter seeing Jae and Mayhara being close she sneaks out to feed an old addiction. This causes a ripple effect of issues for the whole team as they deal with this. Around the same time the witches we met earlier show up and inform them that they have been targeted by the dark mages as well. Plans to gather more information and clues move forward though. As they are preparing to raid a gala for the last of the daggers they run into extremists that are familiar to Shiro. One of the team gets injured in the crossfire causing a change up of the plan since it must still happen. The end had a huge cliffhanger which just made me go straight to the next one. I think Kamal is my new favorite. He is an elite for a reason and he is just fun. We some development between Jae and Mayhara finally which was nice, took 4 books but worth the slow burn. As much as Loni causes issues I see the why and I feel for her. This was a good middle ground of what is to come now that we have all the players.
Oh my goodness! This story just keeps getting better and better. It has so much drama and suspense with twists and turns throughout it. We learn so much about all of our characters and the pain they have gone through to get to this point. This is extremely well written and the entire series is addictive as it is stunningly beautiful. I love how unique the story is. It is so intriguing that it draws me in and doesn’t let go until I reached the end. I can’t wait to see what happens in the next book. This entire series is a must read!!!!!!
Summary: A mix of many fantasy and SF themes. Doesn't quite work for me, but lots of action and the plot moves along quickly. Refreshingly short (except of course the next book follows on, so not really) Fourth book very similar to books 1 to 3 I found I have no interest in pursuing this series to its end
Plotline: Underlying plot seems unlikely, but having said that it all moves on very quickly
Premise: No. It just doesn't work
Writing: The reader is right there in the action and an interesting set of characters
This is book 4 of the Empire of the Lotus series. I love this series. The character work is great and the story is very well written. The plot was interesting with a great flow. I loved the book cover!!! I would recommend reading this book and series. (I received this book as an arc and am leaving a voluntary honest review)
Emerald Mage (Empire of the Lotus Book 4) by Dorothy Dreyer is an amazing story to read. This is book number four out of seven in this amazing series that I have been so hooked on. I highly recommend this story to everyone who loves reading.
I read a complimentary Advanced Reader Copy of this book & am voluntarily leaving an honest and unbiased review.
“Empire of the Lotus” by Dorothy Dreyer, is a series that blends epic and urban fantasy with and Asian themed apocalyptic world into one of the most original stories of the moment. Each new installment continues the story around Mayhara and the reincarnation of the Lotus Empress, deepens the story, adds new elements to the world, and explore the characters in the story, showing new aspects and characteristics.
“Emerald Mage”, the fourth installment on the series, continues the fight between the dark god Kashmeru and the forces of light, represented by the elite mages, who have successfully gathered a half of the magic daggers. Unfortunately, Kashmeru is rapidly gaining footing, the dark mages have won some battles and the Empress is still in Kashmeru’s hands. The fight demands its toll, the elite is struggling with keeping a unite fighting front, surrounded by different views and opinions, jealousy, and old queries. But as, to defeat Kashmeru, unity is paramount, they have to quickly set their different apart before their inner turmoil bear fatal consequences. This is a special fast-paced story, that takes the reader in stride until the fast approaching cliffhanger 😊
Dorothy Dreyer's “Empire of the Lotus” is a beautiful epic tale that mixes Indian, and East Asian mythology, carefully crafted descriptions, and a great variety of characters, to create a wonderful fantasy world, with added layers of dystopian.