When I opened Broken, I was immediately pulled into a world brimming with tension, betrayal, and the complicated weight of carrying other people’s lives inside your own head. Drema Deòraich’s story follows Alira, Galen, and Thrace as they navigate shifting identities, political intrigue, and the brutal cost of survival among human and unammi factions. The author builds a layered tale of power struggles, loyalty, and moral compromise, where every choice feels like a thread tugging at the larger web. The book is about what it means to stay whole when you are forced to fracture yourself for the sake of others. The writing has a pace that rarely lets up, and the dialogue carries a sharpness that feels lived-in. The shifting perspectives, the sudden bursts of violence, and the moments of quiet reflection all come together to create a rhythm that feels alive. At times, the narrative voices inside Alira’s head became almost overwhelming to read, but I realized that was the point. It mirrored her chaos, her crowded sense of self. I found myself admiring how boldly Deòraich leaned into that confusion, refusing to make it easy for the reader, because life inside a fractured mind is never easy. Beyond the writing, I was moved by the book’s ideas. Questions about identity, about whether survival justifies the blood on your hands, and about how much of yourself you can give away before there’s nothing left. I was thinking about these ideas for a long time afterwards. I felt both sorrow and admiration for Alira. Her choices often frustrated me, yet I couldn’t help but ache for her struggle. The themes of slavery and exploitation, woven into the politics of the factions, hit me hard. They were ugly and uncomfortable, and that’s exactly why they mattered. Deòraich didn’t flinch from showing cruelty, and in that honesty, the book had teeth. Reading Broken reminded me of Frank Herbert’s Dune in the way it blends political intrigue with questions of identity and survival, but it feels more intimate and raw, pulling me closer to the characters’ inner battles. I’d recommend Broken to readers who love science fiction that challenges them. If you like tales that balance heart with grit, that mix character-driven drama with political maneuvering, this book is more than worth your time. --Literary Titan, Reviewed 9/21/2025

I wouldn’t classify this as an easy read, even though the prose is smooth and craftsmanship is solid. The poor protagonist truly struggles in this installment, and in ways that are quite unique. I’m being vague on purpose to avoid spoilers. Watching one bad decision after enough made me wince, but kept me turning pages. I suspect it’ll do the same for you. Lines I found memorable: -”That [plan] went beyond dangerous and ran screaming into the territory of suicidal” -”...testament to her sense of confusion as if someone had opened her skull and stirred her brains.” -”Twilight hovered, waiting its turn on the landscape.” If you read book one, you can expect more of the same quality here. That same differentness thrums throughout, and the deep character development runs even deeper here.