{AD|GIFTED} This was quite a light and quick book to read with two equally intriguing main characters. I actually think this could have been fleshed out a bit more as what we did get was fascinating yet left me wanting more. It's not an action-packed book, being more character-driven, but it's an engaging narrative that swept me along.

Oh, my heart! What an imaginative plot! What fantastic writing! What awesome characters! And what an incredible world! "The Collarbound" is such a well-rounded, balanced, and immersive book that I feel a little bit lost now that I've finished reading. I can only hope there will be a sequel, because I'm not ready to let this world, or the characters, go.

My thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley. This review was written voluntarily and is entirely my own, unbiased, opinion.

The Collarbound is a book that I thought would be a standalone fantasy, so at least part of my rating derives from that. It is not a standalone, it is definitely a series-starter. This isn’t to say it’s a bad book because of it, but it’s a book that, when you frame it as the latter, might be enjoyed more.

However, it’s also a book where, to be brutally honest, not a whole lot stuck with me. So this could end up being a quite short review.

The best part of this book was its worldbuilding and magic system. The whole idea of mind-based duelling was fascinating, and honestly, could have stood to have played a bigger role (although perhaps it will later on?). The world too was an interesting one, with the Shadowpass and a rebellion brewing. Perhaps I would have liked a bit more depth to it, just in terms of description, since it was, at times, hard to tell who or what the Nest and the Shadowpass (and beyond it) were in relation to one another. However, this is all things I could see being further explored in a sequel.

The main characters and their dynamic was also intriguing, especially with the secrets they were keeping and the reveals towards the end. That’s another thing that I would hope to see explored more in the second book, particularly that one reveal, that didn’t really show up much here. It was drip fed you to keep you interested, I suppose, but I guess I needed more to really care about the characters much. This is what I mean in part when I say the book wasn’t hugely memorable. I can remember just about who the characters were, but I can’t remember their personalities very much. They seemed to be made up of these secrets and not a lot more.

However, I did like reading this one. It was a diverting way to spend a few hours and definitely one I’d recommend as a new voice in fantasy. I just never really loved it.

What did I just read?

I knew I had to read this book as soon as Gollancz revealed the cover for The Collarbound. I am a HUGE sucker for white covers, and I love the art style! Moreover, the synopsis: “Bound by magic, marked by war, ready to fight”, fills you with many questions! How can magic bind you? Who are you going to fight? Why are you marked by war? I was ecstatic when I received a physical arc of this book. So what did I think?

I went blind into this book, and I didn’t read any reviews or even the synopsis, which made the reading experience...interesting. The Collarbound is an ingenious story filled with mystery, intrigue, magic and tension. The reader is thrown into a world filled with magical races such as roams, khers and mages. The story starts in the middle of events with a rebellion looming which has led to an influx of refugees to the Nest. When Isha escapes to the city, Tatters, a collarbound, immediately takes notice of the strange tattoo on her face. Tatters has a strong sense that he knows this woman, but he doesn’t recall why. Consequently, Isha is struggling with memory loss. Tatters and Isha’s lives become intertwined as secrets and past memories are slowly revealed.

In a lot of ways, The Collarbound feels imaginative and fresh since it is a fantasy book that heavily focuses on intrigue, mystery and confusion. The narrative focuses mainly on slowly uncovering secrets and is gradually giving the reader a better understanding of what is going on. The Collarbound is not a story filled with action sequences or riveting pace. It is very much a slow burn story that relies on intrigue and atmosphere. When you think you start to understand what is going on, Zahabi reveals something else that will lead to even more questions.

Zahabi did a fantastic job at making me intrigued and making me want to find answers to my questions until I hit the 40% mark. I don’t mind stories with ‘confusion’ as one of their storytelling elements, but I found it too much for my taste in this story. When I pick up a fantasy book, I want to be filled with wonder, awe and intrigue. Zahabi definitely made me feel intrigued. However, since there is such a reliance on making the reader ‘confused’, I never felt a sense of wonder and awe. I found it challenging to feel invested in the characters or the plot because I constantly questioned what was going on.

However, this is very much a case of a book not being to my taste. I usually prefer stories with a more direct writing style. If you are a reader who enjoys stories where you have to ‘go with the flow’ and don’t mind ‘confusion’ as one of the main storytelling elements, then The Collarbound is for you. Zahabi does a fantastic job at slowly uncovering what is going on in this story, which will be very satisfying for some readers.

Unfortunately, this way of telling a story doesn’t work well for me but will work well for other readers.
Therefore, I am giving this book a 3 / 5 star rating since I enjoyed the first 40% of the book and can appreciate what Zahabi has crafted in this story. I can definitely see many readers giving this book a much higher rating.

A special thanks to Gollancz for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

The Collarbound is an imaginative fantasy novel set in a vividly described world of mages, non-mages with even mention of giants. It’s a slow burning novel that pulls you into the story as the characters gradually reveal more of themselves and their world.
This is a world where mages rule and the non-magical are consigned to practical jobs such as farming. We meet humans but also another race, the Kher who are definitely second class citizens and looked down upon by almost everyone. The mages are housed in The Nest, a giant citadel right on the edge of the world and from there, they govern their part of the world. However, on the other side of the Shadowpass, things are very different and rebellion is brewing.
The main protagonist, Tatters, is a mage who wears a golden collar meaning that he is a slave. Who collared him remains a mystery for much of the story. He exists on the edge of society and earns a living by helping trainee mages develop their skills in mind magic. One night he meets Isha, a trainee mage with a kher tattoo across her face and something about her sparks his interest.
I loved a lot about this book. The world building was intriguing and I loved the references to the giants who built the Nest and created the collars. I also liked the magic system with its emphasis on mind magic. However, I felt that the characterisation was a bit uneven. I loved Tatters and felt that his character was well developed. I also enjoyed the depiction of the Kher and the details that we learned about them and their society. Sadly though, the other characters were a lot more two dimensional and didn’t really hold my interest.
This was an enjoyable read and I was sufficiently interested in the world and the characters to want to read the sequel when it comes out.
Thank you to Net Galley and the publishers for providing me with this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A really interesting tale that draws you in right from the beginning with the mysterious collar bound mage, the magical school, the girl with the forbidden tattoo that makes her a pariah in her society and, intriguingly, the world that is completely flat. This is in no way a comedy Discworld, but a vivid and exciting story of magic, sorcery, lost children and kings. I can't wait for the next installment

"The Collarbound" is set in a magical world where the high mages of the Nest rule over the lesser in the world, specifically those without magic like the "brutish" Khers. Apprentice Isha meets slave and collarbound Tatters as they navigate the world deciding where to side in the upcoming rebellion. Author Rebecca Zahabi creates an imaginative and innovative world where she navigates conversations about race and power.

Although the idea is strong, the execution is lacking. Zahabi starts with strong depictions of the various social groups in the novel, however the majority of the characters lack personality or character development, including Isha who lacks motivation or self-authority thus making it difficult to connect with her, or have any sort of opinion about her. Additionally, although the prose was beautifully written, the details provided did not add to the plot, characters or the world, making it difficult for to find value in the details or create any interest in the story. Finally, the story lacked a sense of flow or transitions resulting in it feeling like discordant scenes of action with no continuity or overall intention. The result was that this 400+ page novel felt stuck in exposition without a discernible climax. I believe if this had been appropriately edited down and combined with the content of the 2nd volume, it would create one full complete novel.

I received this as an electronic advance review copy via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.

I didn’t think I would enjoy this book so much but I’m currently sitting on the edge of my seat, metaphorically of course, waiting for the second book because this book had it all for me.

Following the story of Tatters was something I really enjoyed, it was different and interesting. And following Isha’s story was very mysterious, I think that might play a factor in why I couldn’t put the book down. I needed answers about Tatters and Isha, a strange pair yet I really loved the friendship that came to be between them.

Hopefully this isn’t a major spoiler however I am not one to read books with heavy romance, the romance in The Collarbound wasn’t like anything I’d come across before. It wasn’t shoved into my face, it was there in the background and each time the characters interacted I found myself becoming excited because I was looking forward to the romance. It surprised me a lot.

The world that Rebecca has built is something marvellous, in this world there are mages, humans and khers. I don’t really see the need to go into full detail about the mages, and their magic, it’s pretty straightforward and I liked that. Khers are awesome, I really do look forward to learning more about them!

The most compelling factor of this novel is the mystery, there’s a great satisfaction to unraveling it.

Last thing I will be adding is this: the world is on the brink of a war yet instead of having the characters rushing around preparing, we get to see how the characters are connected to the war. This is definitely a book I’ll be reading again, probably once it’s published so I can buy a physical copy and I’ll be waiting patiently for the sequel.

"Maybe we can't save it, he admitted. But we'll have to try."
The Collarbound drew me in with its cover and then capture me completely with its story. This book flew like a lightborn (some inside humour there for you for when you read the book) and I only wish it hadn't ended or that I hadn't read an advanced copy and thus have to wait longer for the second book.

The story is set against the backdrop of a rebellion unfolding outside the walls on the central city, the Nest. Within the Nest Mages learn to communicate and fight within each others mind, while untalented humans go about their daily lives. Existing in this world too are a race called the Kher, tattooed, horned humanoids with clay-red skin who are treated as second class citizens. The narative is split between two main characters: Tatters, a collarbound mage who has broken his collars obedience spell and fled the war, and Isha, a tattooed mage who is brought in from the outer provences and thrust into the midst of Nest politics.
The plot unfolds slowly, feeding your droplets of backstory to the politics and the war, always just enough that you are still hungry for more.

The characters were well crafted and each had sufficient depth to them that even the minor ones you felt a connection to. Isha comes to the Nest remembering little about her past and we learn about her as a character at the same pace she learns about herself. Tatters tantalises us with secrets of his past, tiny flashes of his life before the rebellion, when he lived across the Shadowpass, a dangerous and dark passage seperating the lands the Nest rules and the lands beyond (this did remind me slightly of the shadowfold in Shadow and Bone). I really liked Tatters as while he started off as a devil may care sorta person who was drifting through his life in the Nest, we learn about a much deeper side to him, a past filled with pain and loss.
Where Zahabi really brought extra depth to this world was the Kher. While it would have been easy to just focus on the main Mages and their politics and conflict, she took the time to show us relatable characters from the Kher and make us feel engaged and sympathetic towards them. Much like Sanderson did with the Parshmen in Stormlight Archives, we delve into the culture and people of the Kher, and come to know them much more than just the downtrodden slaves, but an entire civilisation that you are left wanting to know more about.

A notable absence from the Collarbound, especially given that it takes place with a rebellion raging, was the presence of fight scenes or wars (at least for now). The Mages learn to mindbrawl, projecting themselves into each others minds and fighting using mental imagery and emotion, and we see this in the form of training and teaching. The crafting of this magic system was imaginative and enjoyable, as we can see how personalities and power shape what you can and can't do within this system. Even when an all out mindbrawl occurs we only glipse the outskirts of it as the characters try to comprehend the savagery of attacks.
But the story doesn't feel like it lacks anything without this. The story is all about the characters, their relationship and the secrets and histories they have. Maybe the next book will ramp up the fighting but this was a perfect portion of it for the first book. We are left feeling that we know more or less about the setting and its recent history, about the characters and their relationships, but also that there is still a lot for us to uncover.

I went into this book with only one questions - what is this book about?
And I've left it with a thousand questions and a burning desire for answers.

Beautifully wrought dark fantasy, driven by character interaction, intrigue and mystery rather than bald action and warfare. It’s a well told story with characters that give up the goods on themselves slowly. You find yourself invested before you realise it and then let wanting more at the end. The world building was amazing and the themes were poignant and thought provoking. I look forward to the next book.