Book Review: ‘Daughter of No Worlds’ by Carissa Broadbent
Tisaanah has been a slave for most of her life, but she has no intention of staying one. She’s worked hard and saved every coin that’s ever come her way. Finally, she has the 1,000 gold pieces that her owner named as her freedom price eight years ago. She intends to buy her freedom, travel to the Order, train until she is a powerful magic user, then return to save her fellow slaves, especially her best friend, Serel. But when she tries to buy her freedom, her owner flies into a rage. He tries to kill Tisaanah for her impertinence, but suddenly he’s the one who’s dead, and Tisaanah has to flee. Tisaanah is now a “Daughter of No Worlds” in Carissa Broadbent’s first book in her new series, The War of Lost Hearts.
[Note: While I am reviewing this novel independently and honestly, it should be noted that it has been provided to me by Bramble (an imprint of Tor) for the purpose of this review. Warning: My review of Daughter of No Worlds contains some spoilers!]
Nothing will stop Tisaanah in Daughter of No Worlds
Tisaanah was ripped away from her home when she was a young girl. The slavers sent the rest of her villiage to work in the mines, a death sentence. But Tisaanah was saved because she is what they called “fragmented.”
Valtains are albino magic wielders who make up half of the magical warrior group known as “the Order.” But some people, like Tisaanah, are almost Valtain. They are partially colorless and partially colored, almost like paint was splattered against them. They are known as “fragmented” and can usually do some level of magic, but aren’t as powerful as full Valtains.
So Tisaanah was sold to a rich man, Esmaris, who wanted a fragmented eccentricity for his very own. He was kind to her, but he still owned her. When she had been with him a year, she tried to buy her freedom, and he named the price of 1,000 gold coins.
It’s an exorbitant sum, no doubt named because he thought she’d never manage it. But she does, and it angers him so much that he tries to kill her. The only thing that saves her is her magic, which in her moment of need she finds out is so much stronger than she ever thought. Instead of Esmaris killing Tisaanah, Tisaanah kills him and runs. She runs all the way to the Order that she was always told would be her salvation. But it doesn’t turn out to be what she’d hoped.
Instead of welcoming her with open arms, Tisaanah is pushed off onto disgraced ex-order member Max. Max wants nothing to do with her, but Tisannah is determined. If he won’t teach her, she’ll teach herself. Against his will, Max is drawn in by her spirit, and soon the two are getting closer than is wise.
But the Order isn’t as uninterested in Tisannah as they at first appear to be. The Order has many schemes and plenty of different plots in action. Tisannah is more important than she realizes, but that doesn’t mean the Order has her best interests in mind. Tisaanah must be careful about who she trusts if she wants to save her friends and have the life she’s always dreamed of.
An indie-published book that’s made it big
Carissa Broadbent has been writing books for a while now. She’s found popularity on TikTok and used it to successfully promote her works. She already had one best-selling series, Crowns of Nyaxia, and then she started on her next series, The War of Lost Hearts.
Broadbent independently published the series five years ago, but now Bramble is republishing the books in beautiful hardcover editions. The second book in the series, Children of Fallen Gods, was released by Bramble in December 2025. And the third book, Mother of Death and Dawn, is coming in March of 2026.
The three books follow Tisaanah and Max as she learns to control an ancient, powerful, but also dangerous and chaotic magic. If she can master it, she’ll be able to save her people from a world-ending war. If she can’t, she just might end the world. Salvation and damnation are two sides of the same coin, and no one will know which side will turn up until the very end.
Final thoughts on Daughter of No Worlds by Carissa Broadbent
This is an intense story of magic, freedom, and love. Tisaanah doesn’t have a low gear. She goes hard at everything she does. Whether it’s gaining her freedom, learning magic, or falling in love, it’s all or nothing for her. Once she’s decided on a goal, she’ll do whatever it takes to reach it. Even if it hurts others, even if she personally loses, if she reaches her goal, that’s all that matters.
Personally, I found Tisaanah a little too intense for me. Her single-mindedness was sometimes difficult to take. There were many times that I thought if she had just waited, slowed down, or pivoted just a little, things would have turned out a lot better for her and, honestly, for the people she’s trying to help too. But she just can’t help herself.
My rating for this book: 7/10
If you’re looking for some intensity in your life, pick up Daughter of No Worlds today and lose yourself in Tisaanah’s world. Just be ready for a wild ride and some potent emotions while you’re there.
Also check out Book Review: Scorched Earth by Danielle L. Jensen
