Review: Seasons of War by Lindsay French

July 22, 2026

Synopsis:

Sergeant Zayne Riven was born to take his father’s place as the emperor’s right hand man, and he intends to use that power to destroy the regime from within. Trapped inside the corrupt regime he wishes to destroy, Zayne plays loyal war hero while secretly fighting both sides of the war. He is determined to rise to the top and destroy the emperor, even if it means destroying his soul along the way. That is until one political prisoner shatters all of his plans. The emperor has captured the rebel woman Zayne once secretly saved. The woman he could never stop thinking about. And now Zayne has been ordered to break her spirit and use her to crush the uprising.

Kira Stiles is a true revolutionary. She papers alleyways with forbidden news and hijacks the emperor’s magi-tech to write messages of rebellion across the sky. And she would die a thousand deaths before helping the emperor destroy the rebels. Captivity will not break her, not even at the hands of the grumpy and brooding Sergeant Riven. But as her imprisonment stretches on, Kira begins to suspect that the infamous war hero Zayne Riven may not the heartless loyalist he seems. He may secretly be as dangerous to the emperor as she is.

Zayne faces an impossible choice. Her life or the fate of the entire rebellion.

Review:

This is one of those books that I was really looking forward to reading, but it kind of left me feeling not completely satisfied in the end.
The story came with a lot of promise. We are in a time of war, and the reality of it, the death toll, the frustration, and the constant fight for survival are portrayed very well. It felt so hopeless, and parts of the world were suffering so intensely that I had to take breaks before I could continue reading.
Then we have our beacon of hope. Kira is a rebel who first met Zayne (though unknown to her at the time) three years earlier. Since then, he has been helping her constantly. What Kira didn’t know was that he was a soldier fighting for the opposing side. Despite the suffering he endured throughout his childhood, he managed to keep something good inside him. A little bit of hope that drove him to help the other side. When they meet again a few years later, their bond only grows stronger, and they find themselves caught in an impossible situation.

There were so many things about this book that I enjoyed, but there were also parts that felt slow and dragging, and I never truly connected with the characters. I was constantly waiting for that one moment when everything would click, but it never fully happened for me.
This book is on the longer side, and I think I would have enjoyed the experience more if it had been a bit shorter. With such a dark and heavy atmosphere throughout, it didn’t completely work for me, although that may simply come down to personal preference.
If you prefer books that take a slower approach to storytelling, this one might be perfect for you.

🌙 Recension: Seasons of War (The Unbroken Saga #1) by Lindsay French
📚 Genre: Dark Dystopian, Fantasy
📅 Release Date: July 21, 2026
📗 available in various formats – included in Kindle Unlimited
📱 Read as: Kindle
💸 I received a free copy and am voluntarily leaving a review.
🗣️ Language: English
📆 Pages: 631
⭐️ 3/5