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Marquese Enid d’Tancreville’s whole world is falling apart. Despite her powerful magic, she had to flee her homeland to avoid death at the hands of a rebellious mob. Then the ship that was supposed to take her to safety in a neighboring country was attacked and she had to fight for her life again. Now another ship has attacked her and she is being drafted into the Albion Navy as a sea mage. As she tries to adapt to her new life, her worldview changes. New alliances are made and new pacts are felt that will change her life again when she finds out what The price of redemption is really in this debut novel by Shawn Zimmerman.
(Note: Although I am reviewing this novel independently and honestly, it should be noted that it was provided to me by Saga Press for the purpose of this review. Warning: My review of The price of redemption contains some spoiler!)
Danger and uncertainty everywhere for Enid in The price of redemption
It seems that Enid d’Tancreville has no luck at all without bad luck. An angry mob kills her family and nearly finishes her off as she tries to escape her homeland of Ardainne. Then the ship she is escaping on is tracked down by an Ardainne warship. When they overtake her ship, Enid is killed just for being a member of the aristocracy. But before the ship can catch up with her, an Albion ship overtakes the Ardainne ship.
Enid hopes her ship will escape, but when the Albion ship deals with the Ardainne ship, it comes after her. After they hijack her ship and demand ransom, the Albion’s captain makes Enid an offer. She is a powerful mage, although she is not trained in navel magic. His mage was killed in battle against the Ardainne ship. If she serves as his mage until they reach port, he will get her there faster and safer than the ship she is currently on.
Enid is not thrilled with his proposal, but concludes that this is her best chance to achieve her goals, so she agrees. Going from a Marquess to a Sea Mage is a shock to say the least, but with each passing day, Enid feels more at ease. Perhaps she has found a new home here at sea with her new crew.
Carpenter mixes pirates and magic in The price of redemption
Okay, technically, Carpenter does not write about pirates. All ships in The price of redemption are part of their respective country’s navy. But they roam the ocean, hijacking ships and either ransoming them (by stealing their cargo), taking them over to add to their navy, or sinking them. This all sounds a lot like piracy to me.
Then he mixes magic into it. The really cool thing is that Carpenter does with magic is to make it universal. Everyone has the potential to use magic in their world, and in fact almost everyone can do simple spells like tying knots or keeping things dry. But everyone has a different skill level and not everyone can do the really difficult spells, which is why it’s so important for the ships to have mages around.
The best comparison I can think of in our world is technology. Everyone can log in to their email (most of the time), but we still need IT because not everyone can run a network. The difference is that IT is often treated like crap here, in The price of redemption Mages are given due respect for their abilities. While Enid has to prove herself before the crew will fully accept her, having to prove her abilities is a way to earn respect, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Once she’s proven she can hold her own in battle, the crew is very happy to have her on board.
Secrets cause some character problems for Enid
Enid is a very mysterious character. On one hand, that makes sense. She’s fleeing a revolution that wants to kill her, not because of what she did, but because of her birth. Enid has also done some horrible things to escape. They were all in the name of survival, but that doesn’t make it any less bloody. So, of course, she keeps things to herself. The problem is that she’s not just hiding things from the other characters. Carpenter also leaves us readers in the dark about much of Enid’s past and her true feelings and intentions. Unfortunately, this makes it difficult to build a connection with Enid. Her reticence also suits us, and I personally just didn’t care about her or what happened to her.
Carpenter did a much better job with Captain Nath. Nath is more open about his desires and his ambition, which comes from a desire to prove himself rather than a desire to actually have power or wealth, makes him a likable character. He is kind and leads through respect and kindness. But that doesn’t make him a pushover. He believes strongly in following rules, although he bends those rules just enough to avoid becoming a prude. Enid is perhaps the main character of The price of redemption, But Nath is the one who saves the story and keeps the readers interested.
The price of redemption is just the beginning
If daring fantasy is your thing, then The price of redemption is the perfect summer read. Nath is a very active captain, so there is a lot of action in Carpentry book. There is some romance, but it is not the focus of The price of redemptionthis is an adventure book, so if you’re looking for some excitement, this story is for you.
The Is Carpentry first book, but it will not be his last. It is only the first in the Tides of Magic series. Nath and Enid end up working very well together. At the end of the story, it looks like they are going to be a very formidable duo. I’m excited to see what they do next.
Rating: 7/10
The price of redemption from Shawn Zimmerman will be released on July 9, 2024. Planning on picking this book up for summer reading? Let us know on social media at @mycosmiccircus!
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