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C. L. Clark

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The Faithless (Magic of the Lost Book 2) Kindle Edition

by C. L. Clark (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.6 316 ratings

Book 2 of 2: Magic of the Lost

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In the second installment of C.L. Clark's Magic of the Lost trilogy, soldier Touraine and princess Luca must return to Balladaire to reclaim Luca's throne and to face the consequences of dismantling an empire.

The rebels have won, and the empire is withdrawing from Qazal. But undoing the tangled web that binds the two nations will not be easy, and Touraine and Luca will face their greatest challenge yet.

Luca needs to oust her uncle from the Balladairan throne once and for all and take her rightful place as Queen. But he won't let go of power so easily. When he calls for a "Trial of Competence" and Luca's allies start disappearing from her side, she will need to find a way to prove her might. And she knows someone who can help...

Touraine has found a home in the newly free country of Qazal. But she soon realizes that leading a country and leading a revolution are two very different tasks. And, even more importantly, if Luca's uncle doesn't ratify the treaty, the Qazali could end up right back where they started.

Together, the two women will have to come overcome their enemies, their history, and their heartbreak in order to find a way to secure Luca's power and Touraine's freedom.

From the Publisher

Magic of the Lost, The Faithless, The Unbroken, C.L. Clark

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Clark’s worldbuilding in The Faithless is just as stellar as in The Unbroken … Where the novel and series shine brightest is in their gritty reckoning with power and humanity and their delivery of an uncompromising worldview in which there are few good choices.”―Locus

"Clark's worldbuilding continues to grow...the sequel to The Unbroken extends the deliberate journey towards independence from an empire and the past, and the love in two women’s hearts."―Library Journal

Praise for The Unbroken:

“C.L. Clark gives us an unflinching story of colonialism and revolution and the people caught between. The Unbroken grabs you by the collar, breaks your heart over its knee and mends it. An astonishing debut.” ―Andrea Stewart, author of The Bone Shard Daughter

"Rife with political, familial, and romantic tension, The Unbroken is a riveting epic fantasy about a city on the knife's edge of rebellion, a tangle of alliances, and a desperate search for magic and hope.” ―K.A. Doore, author of The Perfect Assassin

"The Unbroken grabs you by the throat and doesn't let go. A perfect military fantasy: brutal, complex, human, and impossible to put down." ―Tasha Suri, author of The Jasmine Throne

"The Unbroken is a thrilling examination of love and loyalty under the crushing weight of empire. It's high adventure on a human scale―don't miss it." ―Alix E. Harrow, author of The Ten Thousand Doors of January

"C. L. Clark's epic fantasy debut reveals all the ugly, painful, deeply personal complexities of revolution against empire, captured in shimmering pointillist detail. I’m in awe!" ―Shelley Parker-Chan, author of She Who Became the Sun

"This strong debut is filled with exciting action and worldbulding, intriguing characters dealing with themes of colonization, military conscription and indoctrination, and an explosion of feelings. Readers will be clamoring for more of Touraine and Luca before they finish." ―Library Journal

"Clark conjures an elaborate fantasy world inspired by Northern Africa and delves into an international political conflict that draws on real histories of colonialism and conquest in their excellent debut... Clark’s precise, thorough worldbuilding allows this remarkable novel to dive deep into the intricate workings of colonialism, exposing how power structures are maintained through social conditioning and exploring the emotional toll of political conflict. The result is a captivating story that works both as high fantasy and skillful cultural commentary." ―Publishers Weekly

"It’s impressive to watch [Clark] meet—and surpass—reader expectations in the sequel The Faithless ... the series feels like layers of sedimentary rock, striated with colors and sheens that show the eras in which they were both born and compressed ... Whether the scene is a dance or a battle or a simple conversation, that feeling of depth and history is present on every page."―Paste Magazine

About the Author

Cherae graduated from Indiana University's creative writing MFA. She's been a personal trainer, an English teacher, and an editor, and is some combination thereof as she travels the world. When she's not writing or working, she's learning languages, doing P90something, or reading about war and [post-]colonial history. Her short fiction has appeared in Beneath Ceaseless Skies, FIYAH, PodCastle and Uncanny. You can follow her on Twitter @c_l_clark.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0B5SD2SYP
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Orbit (March 7, 2023)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ March 7, 2023
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 3320 KB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
Print length ‏ : ‎ 558 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #90,003 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #315 in Military Fantasy (Books)
- #653 in LGBTQ+ Fantasy (Kindle Store)
- #1,054 in Action & Adventure Fantasy (Kindle Store)

Customer Reviews:
4.6 316 ratings

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C. L. Clark

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C. L. Clark graduated from Indiana University’s creative writing MFA program and was a 2012

Lambda Literary Fellow. She’s been a personal trainer, an English teacher, and an editor, and is some combination thereof as she travels the world. When she’s not writing or working, she’s learning languages, doing P90something, or reading about war and (post)colonial history. Her short fiction has appeared in Beneath Ceaseless Skies, FIYAH, and Uncanny, and on PodCastle, where she is currently a coeditor. Her debut novel The Unbroken comes out in 2021. You can follow her on Twitter: @c_l_clark.

Customer reviews

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316 global ratings

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Sarah Loving

Amazing 2nd book!

Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2023

Verified Purchase

Thank you to Orbit Books, C.L. Clark, and NetGalley for the ARC. Light spoilers in this review.

I loved this book. It is the second book in the Magic of the Lost Trilogy. I have a love-hate with second books. They are usually excellent or don’t hold my attention. This book was amazing. We deep-dived into the political aspect of Balladaire. Luca is still looking for magic but is not the center of her story in this book.

This trilogy explores colonization and how it affects the civilization before and after. Balladaire believes anyone that has religion is uncivilized. This has happened throughout our history. Just beliefs that have many gods are viewed this way. I studied history in college. C.L. Clark does a fantastic job of showing how colonization affects a society.

Luca and Touraine have some tension in this book, like in the last book. Touraine does have PTSD from the first book, which is understandable. She is conflicted and trying to find her place. Luca is focused on taking her rightful throne.

There are twists and turns in this book. I can’t wait till the next one comes out. This trilogy is worth reading.

4 people found this helpful

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Moore71011

A great sequel!

Reviewed in the United States on March 7, 2023

I was a bit nervous with this one because sometimes the second book in the series can be well, not great. Honestly, I thought this was an improvement to book one! I think the characters grew leaps and bounds in this one and it was really great to see. This is a women-focused MC book and they are awesome. I love them all and think that their voices are so distinct. Sometimes I struggled in book one because there is no notice of a change in the character POV. Sometimes it happens a paragraph later and you are left a bit confused. In this book, their voices are so much easier to distinguish.

I was not the biggest fan of Luca in the first book. She came off as pretty ridiculous and very un-caring at times. I'm glad to say that she has finally grown on me in this book. I'm not sure if it's because she's in her place and fighting her people inside the walls that made her more interesting. Regardless, I think the character growth in this book was huge. It has me excited to see where she will go in the next book.

Touraine was a huge improvement in this book! She was so focused on one thing that she couldn't see the bigger picture. She was also naïve that it drove me crazy. She grew into a force to be reconned with and I was here for it. I was waiting for her to become the person that everyone around her sees. I will say that I needed many more chapters of Pruett though. She might be one of my favorite voices in this book and we don't get enough. I think she's set herself up for a great book 3 though.

My biggest issue with this one is that the plot doesn't move much. It's more character-focused, which isn't a bad thing. With this being full of politics that can happen but I wanted a little more with the size of this book. It made the pacing a bit slower and feels like a lot of setup for book three.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one, and even better than book one. I thought the romance was developed much better throughout this one. Sometimes a slow-burn romance just hits better! As I mentioned before, this more of a character focused book but that's okay because the growth is worth it. I am looking forward to book three and seeing where these ladies end up!

2 people found this helpful

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TipsyTenoh

YO

Reviewed in the United States on April 21, 2023

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Okay in true lesbian fiction fashion the first one is butch action oriented the second one is femme strategy centric. LOVE IT. As in the first one this author really does not let things resolve. EVER. It's hard but cool and emotional. The characters just nuke each other with emotional damage and then have to work through the fallout THEN NUKE EACH OTHER AGAIN. It's a satisfying progression nonetheless because boy howdy these are some of my favorite tropes like ideal. I might go about it a slightly different way, but the story beats are still glorious. I love the cursed eyes trope and the blundering into the magic of the gods that many characters are falling into. I LOVE the cover art and I am very excited for Book 3!

3 people found this helpful

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Dorothy Megan Turk

done it again

Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2023

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Clack has once again created a story of tragic longing, love, and magic! Normally I don't sway to tragedy, but I'm glad I gave this Trilogy a chance. I am looking forward to their next book.

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Laura Darnell

Intense political fantasy romance

Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2023

Verified Purchase

Where to begin?
Basically every character is some shade of grey. No one is all good or all bad.
And the author frequently compares the political machinations to chess, which it is, but like x10. There are so many plots atop plots atop plots and it's so freaking good! You never know for certain how each new move will play out.
I cannot wait for book 3!

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Katrin

Great continuation of the series

Reviewed in Germany on February 29, 2024

Verified Purchase

A great book with many twists and a refreshing genre and world.
Can't wait for the next book!

Emma G

As great as the first, I'll be buying the physical copy for my collection

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 9, 2023

Verified Purchase

I didn't realise how much I had missed these characters. So many emotions from these books, I really get sucked into the world and feel the tension.

Costanza Micciché

Migliore del primo ma con molte riserve

Reviewed in Italy on May 17, 2023

Verified Purchase

4,5 stelle molto soggettive.

Amo l'impronta politica mescolata al fantasy. Non tanto la politica "sporca", quella delle lotte di potere tra dinastie e potenti, ma quella che va alla radice e tira in ballo i modelli politici. Per questo motivo The Masquerade Series è per me l'esempio perfetto, e una delle mie serie preferite.

La serie scritta da C. Clark, autorx di The Unbroken e The Faithless, aveva tutti i presupposti per diventare un altro esempio. Purtroppo non è così.

Piccolo riassunto: la serie ricalca la lotta dei paesi nordafricani contro il colonialismo francese. Touraine, dopo essere stata rapita da piccola e deportata a Balladaire, dove viene "educata come una cittadina civile e una soldatessa", ritorna a casa a Qazal e viene coinvolta nella ribellione contro gli imperialisti stranieri. Viene così a contatto con la principessa ereditaria, Luca, con la quale intesse un rapporto complicato di odio/amore. Dico complicato, ma per come è reso nel primo libro è molto CONFUSO.

The Unbroken ha molti difetti, prima di tutto il potenziale sprecato della protagonista Touraine, ma anche la debolezza di Luca. Entrambe non sembrano veramente sapere che cosa volere fare di quello che hanno per le mani. Luca, per me, si è salvata perché comunque ha un abbozzo di idee e vuole smantellare l'impero, a patto di trovare la magia.

Queste intenzioni permangono anche in The Faithless, dove Luca è la protagonista principale. Luca agisce nel suo ambiente, a Balladaire, e in effetti all'inizio sembra che questo favorisca il suo "fiuto politico". Il problema è che si trova ad affrontare il suo stesso tutore, suo zio, che è decisamente più astuto e conosce la politica meglio di lei.

Questo secondo libro risolleva la narrazione del primo, che dopo la prima parte diventava stanco e ripetitivo e confuso, anche grazie all'arrivo di due nuovi pov, di cui uno mi è sembrato molto interessante. Ho come la sensazione che questo pov avrebbe potuto tranquillamente sostituire quello di Touraine che, come al solito, ho trovato insopportabile.

The Faithless mi è piaciuto leggerlo, devo ammetterlo. L'ho divorato in quattro giorni, cosa che per The Unbroken era stato impossibile, è stato divertente, scorrevole e mi ha anche lasciato molte domande. Il problema è che, però, non succedono eventi che ti fanno dire "Finalmente!". Non c'è la suspense o la paura per le sorti dei pg che potrebbe esserci per Baru Cormorant a cui vorrebbe ispirarsi ma non ce la fa proprio (okay, tranne per Luca, che ormai ho preso sotto la mia protezione più per affetto personale che per altro). Lo scontro politico, che qui dovrebbe basarsi su uno scontro di idee, alla fine diventa confuso e banale, un semplice scontro tra due persone che vogliono il potere per loro stesse.

In conclusione, la serie di Clark non è malissimo. E forse è proprio questo il punto: è un eterno "c'è di peggio ma cè anche di meglio". Non impatta, non crea alcun vero legame con chi legge. La scrittura di Clark non è male, anzi, quindi ho voglia di leggere altre sue opere in futuro, e sicuramente terminerò la trilogia di The Unbroken perchè, appunto, non "c'è di peggio ma anche di meglio". Voglio vedere cosa succedere a Luca, mentre spero che Touraine finisca in cima alla Bastiglia e non ne esca più, per amore dell'umanità 😂.

Forza, Cherae Clark. Credo in te.

(E comunque la scena del muro era cringe ma bella. Ho riso da sola per mezz'ora.)

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laida Ruiz

If you liked The Unbroken, you would love The Faithless.

Reviewed in Spain on April 3, 2023

Verified Purchase

The story continues right where it was left the first book, and let me tell you that it is worth it and it gets better.