I don’t normally read series out of order, but I put a hold on this book after finishing the first book in the series, mistakenly assuming that it was the next in the series due to how heavily it was being promoted to me. Turns out it was being promoted due to being the most recent book. Whoops!
The Empress of Xytae is the fourth book in the ongoing Tales of Inthya fantasy romance series written by Effie Calvin. Like most romance series, each book focuses on a specific pairing. Interestingly, it looks like book 3 revisits the pairing from book 1. Book 4 mentions events from all of the previous books, so I really don’t recommend reading them out of order, especially since there seems to be a meta-story involving the gods.
That said, the central story of The Empress of Xytae stands well enough on its own. I never felt lost at any point, I would just think to myself “Oh this must be the main couple from Book 2.” I’m not even particularly worried about having been spoiled on the events of the previous books as honestly, they’re romances, you generally know how they’re going to end.
Every one of these books features a F/F romance. In The Empress of Xytae, our two heroines are Ionna, heir apparent to the imperial throne of Xytae, and Vitaliya, a runaway princess from the kingdom of Vesolda. This is something of an opposites attract scenario: Ionna is quiet, serious, and has spent a lot of time alone. Vitaliya is outgoing, friendly, and happy-go-lucky.
The two have to flee Xytae’s capital city in the wake of Ionna’s father’s death, and what follows is a bit of a roadtrip adventure as they have to avoid the priestesses of the war goddess and find allies in order to Ionna to ascend to the throne.
Each of the heroines has magical powers gifted by a specific god. Ionna can detect lies and make protective shields thanks to her gift, and Vitaliya is blessed by the god of agriculture, which allows her to do things like make trees fruit out of season — pretty handy when you left town with just the clothes on your back! The two use these powers to survive and to sway allies to their side.
The main appeal of this series, to me, is that it takes place in a world where same-sex relationships appear to be universally normalized. As well, there are three recognized gender identities: male, female, and neutroi. The main pantheon includes deities of all three identities, and we see all genders represented in the cast of characters, although in the two books I’ve read I’ve not yet seen a major neutroi character. There’s brief mention in book 1 about the ability to magically change one’s gender presentation as well, something that most people try temporarily, but that one can do permanently if they are trans.
The main appeal also leads me to my main complaint, however. Despite the fact that queerness is accepted, cis-het-binary identities are still treated as the norm. We primarily see men and women married to each other, and I haven’t yet encountered any depictions of neutroi people in relationships, or people who took advantage of gender-changing magic.*
This is something I encounter from time to time in books, where an author has imagined a world where queerness is normalized, or where magic has solved XYZ problem, but has failed to really think through how such a world would be different. I think in a world where there was zero stigma against marrying people of the same gender, or presenting in a non-binary way, or using magic to make your body match your gender identity, these things would be pretty common, and it’s always disappointing when a book set in a queer-affirming world is somehow less queer than my Facebook friend list.
That said, these books are still enjoyable and I really like reading queer stories where the conflict comes from something other than homophobia.
For The Empress of Xytae, my only other main complaint is that I found Vitaliya to be a little immature for her stated age of 20. She is upset at her father for remarrying, and her reaction and how she thinks about the situation through most of the book felt more in line with what I would expect for someone at the more emotionally volatile age of 11-14. Not that 20 year olds can’t be unreasonable, but I would have expected it to be expressed differently.
These books are romances, and there is pre-marital sex, but it’s all implied and happens off-page. So if you’re looking for a steamy F/F romance (which is my usual preference), this is not the series for you. However, if you’re not concerned either way with on-page sex, or you’re looking for a nice queer fantasy romance to share with a young reader who isn’t ready for explicit sex scenes, these are a very good choice. I’d say the violence is about on par with most non-grimdark fantasy, and I’ve not yet encountered even the threat of sexual violence. The series isn’t quite fluffy or cozy, but it’s relatively low-stress and you’re guaranteed a Happily Ever After style ending.
*Update January 18 2021: I read Book 2, Daughter of the Sun, over the weekend, and I am happy to say that it demonstrated much more diversity of queer relationships. One of the main characters has two fathers, we encounter another M/M married couple, and we see a marriage between a young woman and her neutroi beloved. Consider my complaint retracted with regards to this series as a whole, although I feel like my observation remains valid.
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