The Kingdom of Copper by S.A. Chakraborty

Title: The Kingdom of Copper
Author: S.A. Chakraborty
Series: The Daevabad Trilogy, #2
Pages: 621
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Release Date: January 22nd 2019

**Contains spoilers for The City of Brass!**

      “S. A. Chakraborty continues the sweeping adventure begun in The City of Brass conjuring a world where djinn summon flames with the snap of a finger and waters run deep with old magic; where blood can be dangerous as any spell, and a clever con artist from Cairo will alter the fate of a kingdom.
    Nahri’s life changed forever the moment she accidentally summoned Dara, a formidable, mysterious djinn, during one of her schemes. Whisked from her home in Cairo, she was thrust into the dazzling royal court of Daevabad—and quickly discovered she would need all her grifter instincts to survive there.
      Now, with Daevabad entrenched in the dark aftermath of a devastating battle, Nahri must forge a new path for herself. But even as she embraces her heritage and the power it holds, she knows she’s been trapped in a gilded cage, watched by a king who rules from the throne that once belonged to her family—and one misstep will doom her tribe…
      Meanwhile, Ali has been exiled for daring to defy his father. Hunted by assassins, adrift on the unforgiving copper sands of his ancestral land, he is forced to rely on the frightening abilities the marid—the unpredictable water spirits—have gifted him. But in doing so, he threatens to unearth a terrible secret his family has long kept buried.
      And as a new century approaches and the djinn gather within Daevabad’s towering brass walls for celebrations, a threat brews unseen in the desolate north. It’s a force that would bring a storm of fire straight to the city’s gates . . . and one that seeks the aid of a warrior trapped between worlds, torn between a violent duty he can never escape and a peace he fears he will never deserve.”

“And then he took off, sprinting toward the cliff edge. He ran as fast as he could and when the cliff gave way to air, he kept going, hurling himself into empty space. For one petrifying moment, he was falling, the distant, rock-strewn ground he was about to be dashed upon rushing up…”

S.A. Chakraborty’s delivers another imaginative and extraordinary story with The Kingdom of Copper, the second novel in the Daevabad Trilogy. Following the events of the first book, Nahri, once a street thief, is fully immersed in Daevabad’s royal court. As the last surviving Nahid, Nahri has been named the Banu Nahid, healer and leader to her people. Ali, prince of Daevabad, has been exiled, but circumstances force him to return to his home, a place he is no longer welcome. Nahri and Ali both must navigate the moods of a tyrannical king while trying to protect the most vulnerable in the city. But they must do so alone as their friendship was severed the moment Ali cut down Nahri’s Afshin, Dara. Five years have past, but the hurt still remains. Daevabad is already on the brink of a civil war as tensions between the tribes and the shafit inhabitants comes to a head, but it is an unexpected player from outside that threatens to bring the city to its knees.

Chakraborty writes some of the most mesmerizing characters I’ve ever come across in a fantasy. Nahri’s very existence challenges many of the preconceived ideas the people of Daevabad have. She grew up without family and without ties to her heritage. Accidentally summoning a daeva led her to another world where djinn rule and while this knowledge led to Nahri gaining power, the most important discovery for her has been learning more about her family. Still, there are a lot of secrets in this city, and no secret is benign. Despite being at odds with people with enormous amounts of power, Nahri isn’t afraid to challenge them. Though her allies are few, she’s always thinking ahead and is willing to take the path less traveled if it means keeping power out of the hands of those who would readily abuse it.

I had issues with Ali in the first novel like his need to always play the hero, which got him into all kinds of trouble, and his naivete, which led him astray on many occasions. Ali, five years older, is more mature and maybe a little humbler. He is returning to the father that cast him aside and a brother who is less than welcoming. Still, he hasn’t lost his moral code and in a place where shafit, offspring of humans and djinn, are mistreated, Ali is one of the few djinn who will stand up for them. Unfortunately this often pits him against his father the king and more recently the heir and Ali’s brother, Muntadhir. This latter relationship has shifted from the first book and although Mundahir has been loyal to the family name, it is clear that Ali exhibits characteristics that would make him the better leader, something that does not go unnoticed by their father and which sows even more animosity between the brothers.

Dara has always been my favorite in this series. His life has been devoted to service, both voluntarily and compulsory. His connection with Nahri was completely unexpected and ultimately led to him being severed from her. Dara’s greatest strength is his loyalty but it’s also his greatest weakness. He’s been used over and over again as someone else’s weapon and though he may want to escape from the endless battles, he’s still willing to sacrifice freedom for someone else’s cause. As complex as these leads are, Chakraborty still infuses just as much intricacy into her secondary characters. I can’t think of a single flat character and continually marvel at how well Chakraborty juggles all of these different personalities in a consistent and compelling way.

The Kingdom of Copper is full of political machinations, dangerous secrets, and flawed characters whose foolhardy beliefs may spell doom for them all. This sequel is can’t-miss and I am counting down the days until we get the finale.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★
(5/5)