Naomi's Reading Palace: The Eyes of Tamburah by Maria V. Snyder ~ Review & Teaser (@HqnTeenAus)

When it comes to Maria V. Snyder, there's every chance I am going to snap up her reads and devour them... and that's precisely what I did with The Eyes of Tamburah. It was an amazing new fantasy world, which I quickly became part of, watching Shyla struggle and fight for her life!

The Eyes of Tamburah (Archives of the Invisible Sword, #1)

Title: The Eyes of Tamburah

Author: Maria V. Snyder

Series: Archives of the Invisible Sword #1

Genre: YA Fantasy

Published: June 17th 2019

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Treasure hunting has never been more dangerous... Tomb Raider meets Poison Study!

New York Times bestselling author Maria Snyder begins an action-packed new fantasy series.

'He thinks you are the thief...'

Shyla is a researcher who resides in the underground desert city of Zirdai, which is ruled by the wealthy Water Prince and brutal Heliacal Priestess. Even though Shyla is sun-kissed - an outcast, considered cursed by the Sun Goddess - she is still renowned for uncovering innumerable archaic facts, lost artefacts, ancient maps, and obscure historical documents. Her quiet life is about to change when Banqui, an archaeologist, enlists her services to find The Eyes of Tamburah: legendary gemstones that bestows great magic to its wielder. These ancient objects can tip the balance of power and give whoever possesses them complete control of the city.

But chaos erupts when The Eyes are stolen soon after they're found - and Shyla is blamed for the theft. Forced to flee, with the Prince's soldiers and the Priestess' deacons on her trail, Shyla must recover the jewels and clear her name. A quest that will unearth secrets even more valuable than The Eyes of Tamburah themselves...

Maria V. Snyder is one of my favourite fantasy writers, so when I came across this new series of hers I was excited to dive in! She did such an amazing job creating this world and city, which is at least 98 levels of city under the soil. It was interesting to meet the characters, seeing who ran the city and what their beliefs were.

The story focuses on Shyla, a girl raised by monks, who had moved to the city and was treated like an outcast because of the colour of her hair and her skin. She kept to herself and took on small jobs to earn her money. When her one friend loses something that she helped him locate, she finds herself working for the Prince and threatened by the Heliacal Priestess. She faced a lot of challenges, she was betrayed, and was always in danger. But no matter what happened, she found the strength to get back up and push herself to succeed.

Shyla was always watching her back, but had such a kind soul. She met a lot of new people, but it was hard to trust them, as they could betray her at anytime. I’d like to see more of them to figure out what their role is in this story and whether they can be someone that Shyla can trust. It also looks like she has a potential love interest, and I'm excited to see how this relationship goes.

The Eyes of Tamburah was a fascinating read! I loved the detail of the world, trying to imagine it expanding under ground. My heart ached for Shyla a number of times, as people judged her because she was that little bit different. She was a determined girl with a big heart and was willing to do anything to save a friend. She sacrificed so much, but also learned a lot about herself. This book was just the beginning of Shyla's journey, and I'm looking forward to coming back!

It was sweet to see a little emotion from Rendor...

“You owe me a favor,” he’d said.
She waited.
“I’d like to use it.” He held up his hand, stopping her.
“This is a rather simple request. Come back alive. Not cooked by the sun or shot by an arrow or stabbed or drugged with holy water.”
“Is that all?” she teased, but Rendor was not in a teasing mood. “I’ll try.”
“Not good enough.”
“I’ll try really hard.”
“Shyla.”
“What do you want me to say? I don’t want to be injured or killed. But I can’t promise something like that.”
“All right, then I’d like something else instead.”
That seemed too easy. “What else?”
“A kiss.”

Kindle Arc Loc 3993

When Maria V. Snyder was younger, she aspired to be a storm chaser in the American Midwest so she attended Pennsylvania State University and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Meteorology. Much to her chagrin, forecasting the weather wasn’t in her skill set so she spent a number of years as an environmental meteorologist, which is not exciting...at all. Bored at work and needing a creative outlet, she started writing fantasy and science fiction stories. Over a dozen novels and numerous short stories later, Maria’s learned a thing or three about writing. She’s been on the New York Times bestseller list, won a half-dozen awards, and has earned her Masters of Arts degree in Writing from Seton Hill University, where she is now a faculty member. Her favorite color is red. She loves dogs, but is allergic, instead she has a big black tom cat named…Kitty (apparently naming cats isn’t in her skill set either). Maria also has a husband and two children who are an inspiration for her writing when they aren't being a distraction. Note: She mentions her cat before her family.

When she's not writing she's either playing volleyball, traveling, or taking pictures. Being a writer, though is a ton of fun. Where else can you take fencing lessons, learn how to ride a horse, study marital arts, learn how to pick a lock, take glass blowing classes and attend Astronomy Camp and call it research? Maria will be the first one to tell you it's not working as a meteorologist.

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