Daughter of No Worlds

Daughter of No Worlds is the first volume in the War of Lost Hearts trilogy. While drawing on some tropes of the romantic fantasy genre, the trilogy’s broad geographic canvas and emphasis on militarism and politics place it firmly in the epic fantasy category. Like Carissa Broadbent’s other work, this trilogy focuses on issues of power: The protagonist is a disempowered woman whose quest for magical supremacy raises questions about power’s corrosive and corrupting influence.

The trilogy is summarized below (with spoilers) to give the reader context for the series as a whole.

Daughter of No Worlds

Tisaanah kills her enslaver in self-defense and flees to the kingdom of Ara, where she hopes to develop her innate magical gifts. She is trained by a cynical ex-soldier named Max, who eventually falls in love with her. Because Tisaanah is motivated by the desire to free her fellow enslaved people, she urgently wishes to acquire as much magical power as possible. This leads her to agree to a disastrous bargain to host the evil magical entity Reshaye, whose former Host was Max. After freeing the enslaved people of Threll, Max and Tisaanah are embroiled in a political coup staged by Tisaanah’s mentor, Zeryth.

Children of Fallen Gods

Zeryth has killed Queen Sesri and assumed control of Ara. When Reshaye kills Zeryth in vengeance, his second-in-command, Nura, names herself Queen of Ara and wages war against Tisaanah, Max, and their rebel allies. It turns out that Reshaye used to be a Fey named Aefe; another Fey allowed humans to turn Reshaye into a living weapon to stop them from abducting Fey for their magic. The Fae King Caduan, who loves Aefe, uses dark magic to possess Max and rip Reshaye out of Tisaanah. Exorcising Caduan shatters Max’s sanity, leaving him with no memories or magical powers. Tisaanah flees to Threll, and Max is captured by Nura.

Mother of Death and Dawn

To avenge Aefe, Caduan intends to wipe out all humans, allying with the Threllian Lords to accomplish this. While Tisaanah and her allies battle Threll, Max is rescued from prison by his one surviving sibling, and a pool of magic finally restores Max’s mind. The reunited heroes defeat the Threllian Lords and then battle Nura and the Fae. After Nura is killed, a tentative peace is declared between Fae and humans. Caduan and Aefe sacrifice themselves to seal the rift to the Fae dimension. Tisaanah rebuilds the lands that were lost to the Threllian slave trade, while Max turns his family’s estate into a school. They have a family and build a normal life, rising above the traumas of their past.