If Cija’s diary pages in The City—her candid, sometimes self-justifying confessions about Atlan’s court and her entanglement with Zerd—were what hooked you, you’ll love the way Kate and Cecy’s entire adventure is told through their letters. Their witty, confessional correspondence peels back layers of secret magic, social maneuvering, and romantic complications much like Cija’s private accounts expose conspiracies in Atlan’s palace.

You watched Cija navigate Atlan’s lethal factions—priests, nobles, and army—while tethered to Zerd’s ambitions in The City. Mara of the Acoma must do the same in the Tsuranuanni Empire, turning assassinations, vendettas, and shifting alliances to her advantage. If Cija’s quick calculations to stay alive among plotters thrilled you, Mara’s chess-like maneuvering and audacious gambits will absolutely satisfy.

Cija often makes unsettling choices—bartering loyalties, dissembling, and using relationships, including her bond with Zerd, to survive Atlan in The City. Baru does the same on a grander, bleaker stage: she infiltrates the very machinery of imperial power, sacrificing pieces of herself and others to win. If Cija’s morally thorny survival tactics gripped you, Baru’s cold-blooded, devastating stratagems will resonate.

If you admired how Cija’s will and voice steer the course of wars and palace fortunes in The City, Sybel’s fierce autonomy will enthrall you. A sorceress who commands legendary beasts, she’s drawn into human politics, love, and revenge; like Cija in Atlan’s capital, her decisions ripple outward, altering kingdoms and testing the limits of power and compassion.

Cija’s fraught attraction to Zerd—equal parts peril and strategy—threads through The City as alliances and betrayals shift around them. Phèdre’s bond with Joscelin is just as charged, set amid espionage, diplomatic gambits, and invasions. If you loved how desire in Atlan complicates loyalties and reshapes the board, this lush, political romance will sweep you away.