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The Purest Form of Chaos
Halfway through the 22nd century, much of the world has been destroyed by war and natural disasters. In the countries of Western Russia and Eastern Russia, a corrupt monarchy reigns. Beneath the fragile veneer of civility, the Tsar’s twisted obsession bubbles towards boiling point.
Phoenix Kashnikova is kidnapped from her prison-like home, rescued by a mysterious benefactor. A year later, Persephone is freed from her own captivity by the same man. The two young women meet in a palace in Moscow, and their lives are changed forever. The friendship formed within the palace walls is threatened by forces beyond the girls’ control, and the agenda of their kidnapper disrupts the quiet life they have created. Phoenix and Persephone struggle for autonomy against an all-powerful oppressor, on a journey that takes them across national and mental borders. Phoenix seeks to outrun the demons of her past, but for Persephone this is a fight for both her body and her mind.
The Purest Form of Chaos asks: what does it mean to love, what does it mean to be human, where do we draw the line between good and evil, and who—if anyone—is deserving of redemption?
Phoenix Kashnikova is kidnapped from her prison-like home, rescued by a mysterious benefactor. A year later, Persephone is freed from her own captivity by the same man. The two young women meet in a palace in Moscow, and their lives are changed forever. The friendship formed within the palace walls is threatened by forces beyond the girls’ control, and the agenda of their kidnapper disrupts the quiet life they have created. Phoenix and Persephone struggle for autonomy against an all-powerful oppressor, on a journey that takes them across national and mental borders. Phoenix seeks to outrun the demons of her past, but for Persephone this is a fight for both her body and her mind.
The Purest Form of Chaos asks: what does it mean to love, what does it mean to be human, where do we draw the line between good and evil, and who—if anyone—is deserving of redemption?
414 pages, Paperback
Published November 30, 2020
7 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 29, 2022
Full review and summary at https://amanjareads.com/2022/06/16/th...
Thank you so much to Eliza S Robinson for providing me with a copy of her book in exchange for this honest review.
The Purest Form of Chaos is the best dystopian hero's journey I think I've ever read. It takes all of the typical tropes and cliches and rejects them in exchange for two strong female protagonists who never once get involved in a standard love triangle.
Every complaint I've ever had about popular fantasy or adventure novels is addressed and corrected in this book. I gobbled it right up and can't wait for the sequel.
The book follows Phoenix and Persephone as they attempt to take down a corrupt Tsar in post World War 3 Russia.
Their individual strength is admirable and should be praised but it is really their friendship that attracted me to this book. It is so unbelievably rare to see two female characters simply get along, let alone actually work together for the betterment of each other and the world.
These two women bond together, help each other grow, help each other conquer bad guys, and love each other in healthy ways. And despite one of them being bisexual they never even hint at a romantic relationship with one another.
For some reason, mainstream media has for too long perpetuated the notion that women can only love each other if they also find each other sexually attractive. Women can be friends! Without being catty! Bond together women, you aren't in competition against each other!
The other main trope that is addressed is that of the rape fantasy. Somehow, it has become commonplace for consent to not be mandatory in a love story. The Purest Form of Chaos takes a strong stance in favor of consent of all degrees and I can't endorse it enough!
No, a woman doesn't have to fall in love with her kidnapper. No, a woman doesn't just learn to like it. Women are empowered here. Empowered to make their own choices regarding their bodies, their love lives, and their futures. Additionally, love is never the end goal. Love is a nice bonus but there is definitely more to life and the world.
But the book never slips into the man-hating brand of feminism. There are bad men in the story but there are also bad women. There are also good men. Individuals are evil or righteous or, more realistically, shades of both at different times. Genders are never villainized as a whole, only people are. It's marvelous.
The themes are strong and modern. It's progressive and fills me with hope for the future of the dystopian adventure novel.
On top of all of that the plot is intriguing, full of twists and turns. Which all brings us to an ending that I was not at all expecting. It's an entertaining page turner that had me engaged the entire time.
It's a well thought out and well planned book. There are some cliff hangers that need a sequel to be resolved but no loose ends within the book. If something is mentioned casually in the beginning of the book it comes back around by the time the book is over. Every character has a purpose and all of the pieces fit together nicely.
I strongly recommend The Purest Form of Chaos and can only hope that everyone who made this genre so popular with so many best sellers can please give it a chance. It's better. Simply better.
Thank you so much to Eliza S Robinson for providing me with a copy of her book in exchange for this honest review.
The Purest Form of Chaos is the best dystopian hero's journey I think I've ever read. It takes all of the typical tropes and cliches and rejects them in exchange for two strong female protagonists who never once get involved in a standard love triangle.
Every complaint I've ever had about popular fantasy or adventure novels is addressed and corrected in this book. I gobbled it right up and can't wait for the sequel.
The book follows Phoenix and Persephone as they attempt to take down a corrupt Tsar in post World War 3 Russia.
Their individual strength is admirable and should be praised but it is really their friendship that attracted me to this book. It is so unbelievably rare to see two female characters simply get along, let alone actually work together for the betterment of each other and the world.
These two women bond together, help each other grow, help each other conquer bad guys, and love each other in healthy ways. And despite one of them being bisexual they never even hint at a romantic relationship with one another.
For some reason, mainstream media has for too long perpetuated the notion that women can only love each other if they also find each other sexually attractive. Women can be friends! Without being catty! Bond together women, you aren't in competition against each other!
The other main trope that is addressed is that of the rape fantasy. Somehow, it has become commonplace for consent to not be mandatory in a love story. The Purest Form of Chaos takes a strong stance in favor of consent of all degrees and I can't endorse it enough!
No, a woman doesn't have to fall in love with her kidnapper. No, a woman doesn't just learn to like it. Women are empowered here. Empowered to make their own choices regarding their bodies, their love lives, and their futures. Additionally, love is never the end goal. Love is a nice bonus but there is definitely more to life and the world.
But the book never slips into the man-hating brand of feminism. There are bad men in the story but there are also bad women. There are also good men. Individuals are evil or righteous or, more realistically, shades of both at different times. Genders are never villainized as a whole, only people are. It's marvelous.
The themes are strong and modern. It's progressive and fills me with hope for the future of the dystopian adventure novel.
On top of all of that the plot is intriguing, full of twists and turns. Which all brings us to an ending that I was not at all expecting. It's an entertaining page turner that had me engaged the entire time.
It's a well thought out and well planned book. There are some cliff hangers that need a sequel to be resolved but no loose ends within the book. If something is mentioned casually in the beginning of the book it comes back around by the time the book is over. Every character has a purpose and all of the pieces fit together nicely.
I strongly recommend The Purest Form of Chaos and can only hope that everyone who made this genre so popular with so many best sellers can please give it a chance. It's better. Simply better.
January 3, 2021
I received a copy of this book for a fair and hones review. I was a little worried when I started to read this tale. I had agreed to read it and it sat on my shelf for a bit. Then when I did finally pick up to read it pulled me into a world that was dark and twisted. The two women and the world they have to live in to keep a piece of themselves to not go crazy within the palace. The journey to discover that very thin line between good and evil was amazing. There were time I had to put the book down and just take a breath for the twists are very in your face. I did enjoy it and the world was so vivid like you just feel into the story. This a story of survival, friends and a little bit of self-discovery.
January 8, 2020
I had the honour of reading this book way before its release and I could not have been more excited about it! It lived up to my expectations and definitely surpassed it.
Eliza Robinson set the book in a future that may well become reality one day and came up with a story full of many twists and turns that make it a very intriguing read. The characters were very well-developed and felt like real people. It seems as though I really knew Persephone and Phoenix and I became invested in their beautiful friendship. It is very refreshing to see more authors write about friendships between women, rather than making them rivals. In this novel the female characters did not fight with each other over men, they were passionate, strong and directed their joint efforts towards trying to change their society for the better. The characters really grew into their own personalities throughout the novel and it was interesting to see the relationships between them develop in distinct ways as well.
I highly recommend this novel to everyone who wants to read a truly original story full of human struggles, friendship, love and beautiful poetic language.
Eliza Robinson set the book in a future that may well become reality one day and came up with a story full of many twists and turns that make it a very intriguing read. The characters were very well-developed and felt like real people. It seems as though I really knew Persephone and Phoenix and I became invested in their beautiful friendship. It is very refreshing to see more authors write about friendships between women, rather than making them rivals. In this novel the female characters did not fight with each other over men, they were passionate, strong and directed their joint efforts towards trying to change their society for the better. The characters really grew into their own personalities throughout the novel and it was interesting to see the relationships between them develop in distinct ways as well.
I highly recommend this novel to everyone who wants to read a truly original story full of human struggles, friendship, love and beautiful poetic language.
May 12, 2020
This is one of the most captivating books I have ever read. Mystery after mystery plot twist after plot twist, it will keep you on your toes. However, not only is it filled with surprises but also set place in an incredible world. I think my favorite part of the whole book (next to Kai who is ultimate bae and I wish he was real so I could date him) is the world building. Eliza Robinson manages to create such a rich world that’s is simultaneously bleak and full of hope, artificial and natural, dystopia and freedom. The world building reflects perfectly on some of the main themes of the book: the duality of human, of good and evil. If I had to sum up this book with three words I’d say: political, thrilling, and revolutionary.
April 3, 2021
The story is too immature for me. The world setting has issues with logic. If you're a reader who doesn't analyse or think during reading, you won't see any problems with the character arcs and the plot.
Vocab is good. The message is hidden behind many redundant lines. This book could have been much shorter.
Vocab is good. The message is hidden behind many redundant lines. This book could have been much shorter.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews