Hello, everyone! I hope you are all having a great start to the new year. I’ve finally finished The Lotus Empire by Tasha Suri. This was one of my most anticipated releases for the latter half of 2024, and I was really hoping it wouldn’t disappoint. Did it live up to my expectations? Read on to see all of my thoughts in my full review! You can also check out my review for book two if you haven’t already. 🙂

The Lotus Empire brings Tasha Suri’s acclaimed Burning Kingdoms trilogy to a heart–stopping close. As an ancient magic returns to Ahiranya and threatens its very foundations, Empress Malini and priestess Priya will stop at nothing to save their kingdoms—even if it means they must destroy each other.

Malini has claimed her rightful throne as the empress of Parijatdvipa, just as the nameless gods prophesied. Now, in order to gain the support of the priesthood who remain loyal to the fallen emperor, she must consider a terrible Claim her throne and burn in order to seal her legacy—or find another willing to take her place on the pyre.

Priya has survived the deathless waters and now their magic runs in her veins. But a mysterious yaksa with flowering eyes and a mouth of thorns lies beneath the waters. The yaksa promises protection for Ahiranya. But in exchange, she needs a sacrifice. And she’s chosen Priya as the one to offer it.

Two women once entwined by fate now stand against each other. But when an ancient enemy rises to threaten their world, Priya and Malini will find themselves fighting together once more – to prevent their kingdoms, and their futures, from burning to ash.

***Thank you to Orbit Books for providing a copy of the book via NetGalley. My review contains my honest thoughts about my reading experience with the finished book, which I purchased.***

I was so excited to finally sit down and jump back into the world of The Burning Kingdoms. The Lotus Empire was a solid conclusion to the trilogy, and it had me in my feelings at several points throughout the story. However, it was probably my least favorite book of the series.

First, let’s start with what I loved about The Lotus Empire. Suri’s writing was utterly breathtaking, as usual. I was instantly transported back into this world and had such a great time experiencing it again. The characters and their arcs were also a highlight. There were A LOT of POV characters in this one. Suri did a remarkable job of balancing the different perspectives while letting some of the smaller players of the cast have unforgettable moments.

The plot of The Lotus Empire was interesting and did manage to keep me engaged. I just really wanted to see some things in this book that it didn’t deliver. The first half of the book was very meandering, and the pace felt sluggish. Things picked up in the second half, but it still didn’t give me what I really wanted from this story, a face-to-face, huge confrontation between Malini and Priya. Most of their conflict seemed to be resolved via dreams from afar, which I found really disappointing.

I was also a bit disappointed in the additions to the world-building in The Lotus Empire. The story introduced some really cool new concepts but didn’t really do much with them. I would have loved a bit more context to the history of the war between the gods, for example. Many of the big achievements in the plot were the result of new applications of the magic system, which would have been awesome if so many of them hadn’t left me scratching my head in confusion. The yaksa, while enigmatic and quite terrifying, were also a bit of a letdown after all of the build up to their arrival. Their end was sort of noble, but I didn’t feel that their character development was really earned.

The theme of sacrifice played such a huge role throughout The Lotus Empire. So many of the characters had to grapple with how much they were willing to give up. However, I appreciated that each of them had extremely different motivations that impacted their views on the idea of sacrifice. It was fascinating to see the push and pull between the characters as they each tried to figure out how much was too much to give up. The power of faith and its relationship to sacrifice was also explored in interesting ways. I appreciated the amount of nuance the story brought to these topics.

Ultimately, I liked where each of the characters ended up. They all grew so much over the course of the story. I loved how the ending illustrated that the only way to stop the cycle of violence was to be brave enough to quit perpetuating it.

While The Lotus Empire didn’t give me everything I wanted, it did provide a satisfying conclusion to The Burning Kingdoms trilogy. After a bit of a meandering start, it found its stride and barreled into a heart-pounding finale that left me more than a little teary-eyed. I really did love this series and will be watching for whatever Suri does next. Therefore, I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars.

There you have it! My thoughts on The Lotus Empire by Tasha Suri. Have you read this series? What did you think of the finale? Let me know down in the comments! Happy reading!