The Bridge Kingdom by Danielle L. Jensen: Ships, Storms, and Sharks

Join us as we discuss the world and characters of The Bridge Kingdom by Danielle L. Jensen. This is the first book in a completed series that is all set in the same world. In this episode, we discuss the political and economic systems in the world, the Bridge and Tempest seas, snakes, sharks, and just how cool and capable Lara actually is. 

Follow us wherever you get your podcasts, and if you loved this episode, leave a review — it helps new listeners find our worlds!

For sensory guides and more bookish content, follow us on Instagram and TikTok @worlds.within.pod on both 

Hosted by Alyssa Curtis & Ash Christine. Theme song by Magiksolo. Recording studio provided by Garden Groove 

Until next time, keep wandering - we'll see you in the next world!

Transcript

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Welcome back to Worlds Within, where story becomes space. We're your hosts, Alyssa and Ash, and every episode we explore fictional worlds that don't just live on the page, they pull you in, build themselves around you, and let you wander through them. This is a podcast for readers who don't just love books, they live in them. We dive deep into sensory storytelling, character perspectives, and the world-building mechanics that turn fiction into a fully immersive experience.

SPEAKER_00 0:25

It's our first episode of season four. Ash is knocking over plants already. As y'all recall, we have called this season seabound, and this idea came to us very early in the planning of the podcast, and we knew we wanted these episodes to be released in the summer. We are gonna cover six books this season, and they are all beachy, ocean, pirates, mermaids. You get the drift. Wood, okay. Well, I hope you've reapplied your sunscreen and refilled your water. It's time to go sailing into our first book. Today we are diving into The Bridge Kingdom by Danielle L. Jensen, published in October of 2018. Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_02 1:09

But first, our plot teaser. This story is full of ships and Lara needing to get her sea legs.

SPEAKER_00 1:16

Girl.

SPEAKER_02 1:17

Which reminded us both of a cruise we took at the very beginning of 2020, right before the world shut down. Before the world shut down, where we hit a storm in the Gulf of Mexico and ginger beer was the only thing that saved us.

SPEAKER_00 1:30

I don't think I've been so nauseous in my life than on that cruise. And we tried everything, but even the crew was green.

SPEAKER_02 1:37

Was green. Yeah. That was just that was rough. I think we curled up in our room eating rice with butter and just drinking ginger beer. But in the book, Lara chews on a route from Nana to calm her seasickness. So for those reasons, today we have a ginger tea.

SPEAKER_00 1:54

Known for helping seasickness and nausea. Yes, most and most excellent choice.

SPEAKER_02 2:01

So a warrior princess trained in isolation, Lara is driven by two certainties. The first is that the King Arn of the Bridge Kingdom is her enemy, and the second is that she will be the one to bring him to his knees. The only route through a storm-ravaged world, the bridge kingdom enriches itself and deprives its rivals, including Lara's homeland. So when she's sent as a bride under the guise of peace, Lara is prepared to do whatever it takes to fracture its impenetrable defenses, and the defenses of its king. Yet as she infiltrates her new home and gains a deeper understanding of the war to possess the bridge, Lara begins to question whether she's the hero or the villain. And as her feelings for Arn transform from frosty hostility to fierce passion, Lara must choose which kingdom she'll save and which kingdom she'll destroy.

SPEAKER_00 2:52

Alrighty. Okay, so this has been on my list for a long time. I think probably as long as I've been reading in the fantasy romance genre, which, as a reminder, like it hasn't been that long in the grand scheme of things. So I was quick to suggest this for Seabound because of the setting and of the world. I also haven't read anything by this author up until this point, but her other series, Saga of the Unfaded, is on my TBR because I love a Viking Norse mythology retelling. So I was like, oh, this is a great introduction and also is really inspiring me to go to that series too.

SPEAKER_02 3:29

Yeah. Saga of the Unfaded is on my TBR, but this was not. Um, which again, weird. How, how not? But it was not. How not? Um, but yeah, but I I I'm just so shocked that it was not because it has so many great things for this genre. So um very, very glad that it got moved to uh this season's list.

SPEAKER_00 3:58

So what's your first impression?

SPEAKER_02 4:00

I so okay. First, I was a little like, oh no, because we start in this this desert, you know? Very Silveran. Very Silverin. And so I'm like, oh no, is this another Quicksilver? Like I didn't want to, I didn't want to have another like sure one that I would not want to finish. That quickly went absolutely out the window. Um there was just so much to love about this book. So I'm I I would I could gush right now. Ditto. I did not want to stop. And when it was over, I didn't want to read the next book that we needed to read because I wanted to go finish it.

SPEAKER_00 4:40

I know it was an immediate purchase. So by the way, I've read the first sentence of the second book, and I'm like, I absolutely loved this, even from the very beginning. From like, I hear you about, oh my gosh, are we gonna have another Quicksilver? Where it's like, where are we? What are we doing here? But those opening scenes, the pacing in the opening scenes, the shock in the opening scenes. Twist, twist, and then the adventure that develops and the romance and the politics and the setting in this world, the vibes, the snakes, the sharks. Like, I loved it all. I'm hooked, and I I as I said, like I'm I'm with a quickness devouring the remaining books here. Like I really loved the Bridge Kingdom, and at one point had to like pace my house reading this and go wake up my husband because I got up early to read and I was like, I have to tell you what's going on in this book because I just need to like externally process what's happening.

SPEAKER_02 5:39

See, my husband wasn't home while I was reading this, and I but I was sitting there and I'm just like, I'm like, I can't even bite my nails because they're the the the gel. But I'm just like, if I could bite my nails, they'd be gone right now.

SPEAKER_00 5:52

Oh my gosh, it's so good. Okay, so now that we've gotten through our first impressions and we're on the verge of just absolutely losing the plot here. Let's get into the art characters and kind of the emotional weight of the world. Let's understand who the players on the board are. So, first we have Lara. She is our female main character. She has been raised uh for 15 years in isolation with her 20 other sisters. The king has a harem of women, and he'd just be spreading it around.

SPEAKER_02 6:22

So at first I didn't, I and I don't know if I like miss this, but it's they talk about she was raised there for 15 years. Yeah. And the way it's presented, it's like she was taken as an infant, and I'm like, you are 15? Right, thinking like, oh, is this YA? No, but no, she was taken when she was like five, four or five. Right. And so I was like, okay, that that makes this much less icky. For sure.

SPEAKER_00 6:48

Um, and where she has been raised in isolation, uh, she and her sisters have been trained as weapons, essentially. This is to fulfill a 15-year treaty um that Maradrina, which is where Lara Hale's from, has with Ithacana. We'll get into that. Lara then learns the truth about the world and falls in love. Um, but it it it's a little too late. Anyway, Lara as a character, she is smart, she's cunning, she is incredibly brave and capable, she has a temper, she's witty. I think we just love her. She reminded me a lot of Araya from Serpent in the Wings of the Night. Serpent and Wings of Night. A little less bratty, but equally as strong and equally as many daddy issues. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 7:34

I think also a little bit more not quite cocky, but overconfident. I I think, but a little overconfident in some in some areas. Um because I will say, like, this there was a lot of times where I was like, if you would just communicate and not and like rely on your partner or your or other people and be honest, then we wouldn't have these problems. But you just had to do it all and had to think that you were in control. So there was a little bit of that, but for the most part, it's earned. So it's that's why I don't want to use the word cocky, yeah, but sometimes a little overconfident.

SPEAKER_00 8:12

That's fair. Some quotes I've pulled out here to help kind of describe Lara are so great. One is I will be the next queen of Ithacana and I will bring the bridge kingdom to its knees. Girl, yeah. Slay. Let's and slay she does.

SPEAKER_01 8:28

And slay she does.

SPEAKER_00 8:29

Uh and next one is she says, I've been trained to endure pain. And I was like, this is just being a woman. Um, but also like this is Lara's lens through which she is moving through the world. Like, I've been trained to endure pain. I am incredibly capable of handling whatever is coming my way, or so she thinks.

SPEAKER_02 8:48

Yeah. Um I love you pulled uh that Arn calls her an insufferable woman. Aren't we all? Yes. Aren't we all just at some point insufferable women?

SPEAKER_00 8:59

Of course we all we all are. Um another thing I pulled out is uh she says rage gave me, gave her focus. And I was like, oh, me. Me. Uh I've been told that when I get really angry, I get really clear and really sharp. And that's very true. So I'm like identifying with Lara's rage and focus here.

SPEAKER_02 9:19

Uh she's she's very sassy. Yes. And so she says, Give me one good, or he tells her, give me one good reason why I shouldn't slit your throat. And she forces a smile onto her face and says, It's not very creative. That had me laughing out loud. Like you're literally, you could be dead right now, and you're just like, it's not that creative. Like you could think of a cooler way to kill it. You could do this better. Let me give you some other ways that you could do this.

SPEAKER_00 9:47

So that is Lara. Um moving on to our other main character is King Arn. He is a twin born just a few minutes older and has become the king of Ithacana after his parents drowned. Very sad story there. And he doesn't really want to be. Oh no, we're starting the season off with dead mothers. Oh, hopefully that doesn't continue. Well, we'll see. We'll see. He doesn't want to be king. He at one point says, like, if it if I hadn't been born a few minutes earlier than Anna, his sister, then he he didn't have to do this. But he is committed to a sense of duty and honor and protecting his people, and he dreams of a bigger, better, brighter future for his people and for his his kingdom. Um, he really is just like a social justice hero. I love him. He's great.

SPEAKER_02 10:41

Yeah, he uh like you said, he's very committed to like for to duty. He wants to be the commander. He wishes that he and Anna could switch places, but he knows what his role is and he takes it very seriously. Um and this this I didn't understand. So they all wear masks all the time, like when they're engaged when they're kingdoms, when they're engaging with other kingdoms. Um, and sometimes if they're in, like depending on the level of battle, it's just like I I was picturing like ski masks with the slip eyes. Yeah. But uh, but his like official more king mask, uh his more armored mask um is very intimidating, which is kind of feeds the uh like vicious uh portrayal of him that other kingdoms have. And his mask had a snout like a lion's open to reveal glittering canines and horns like a bull sprouting from both temples. Not a man, a demon.

SPEAKER_00 11:44

Yeah, and it affirms like Lara's all the stories Lara's been told about King Arun and Ithacana, like and who they are. She's like, yeah, he's these are not people, these are demons.

SPEAKER_02 11:55

Yes, because while people fight them. Because while his is the most vicious, that is not out of the norm. All of them have these, like again, in this more official setting, have these very intimidating and like imposing masks.

SPEAKER_00 12:10

Yeah. So he's our love interest. Couple other characters I wanted to bring out here. Um, players on the board or major players on the board are King Silas variant and the masters. So King Silas variant is Lara's father. He's the king of Meradrina, um, and he is a low-down, dirty snake. And not even in like an actual snake that we see at Midwatch, but like a snake of a person. He has told Lara and the kingdom lies about why these people are starving. They've totally villainized the Ithacanians for his own greed and his own gain. And it's so when you find that out as a reader, you're like, the awful person leading this country or kingdom slip there.

SPEAKER_02 13:00

Uh I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I feel like it's a I feel like it's a country. Kingdom. I feel like they're the same. I don't know. In my I don't know. But uh underneath him, he is unfortunately not alone in his terribleness. Terribleness. So he has uh his master of secrets, the magpie, um, who Lara is very well acquainted with. Um, he provides her with like all of her poisons and everything that she takes to Ithacanya, and uh she is the one that he communicates or like they communicate in code via the letters. Um and then sadly, uh Master Eric, who kind of redeeming, I guess. Very duty-bound, very duty-bound, loyal. And so, like, I don't think he's a bad guy. I think he just Just because you bad guy doesn't mean you bad guy. I think he just he was you're right, he's duty bound, he's loyal, he was doing what he was told to do for his king, but obviously, like, you know, spoilers, he uh kills himself. Um like in chapter two, in chat like right away. This is yeah, it it was like, oh. And while many, many people died in that chapter on purpose, he wasn't actually not supposed to die. Yeah, he did it because he felt so overwhelmed with like guilt and remorse for what and also like I now know the seek the secret of what's happened here, and I you've just asked me to kill everyone else who was bear beared witness to this secret secret, I too must leave the world.

SPEAKER_00 14:45

Yeah. Oh awful, awful. Okay, so we hate King Xilas, hate Tay Tate. Some other people that we like though, the Ithacanians kind of surrounding King Aron. We've got Anna, who is uh his sister. She is the commander of Southwatch and just like a total badass. She is just like a woman totally in charge. And actually, the third set of duologies in the Bridge Kingdom series follow Anna, which is very interesting.

SPEAKER_02 15:15

And this is like when she meets Anna, it's one of the first of the Kenyans she meets, and it's her first indicator that, huh, I was raised to be a weapon because as a woman I'd be underestimated, but no one's underestimating.

SPEAKER_00 15:29

Women are liberated here.

SPEAKER_02 15:31

Yeah, like you are you are a warrior.

SPEAKER_00 15:35

Mm-hmm. We also have Dor, Jor, who is part of Aaron's honor guard. He's just a good guy. He's an older guy, but um, some comedic relief. He's just he's a good, a good, I don't know, part of the band. And then we have Taryn, who is also a part of Aaron's retinue and becomes a friend to Lara. We learn from Taryn that she never wanted to be a soldier, um, but she was assigned her garrison like all 15-year-olds are at Nithikana. And she's uh like many of them are just duty bound. But she doesn't want to be living this life.

SPEAKER_02 16:08

She wants to go study music.

unknown 16:09

I know.

SPEAKER_02 16:11

And then we have Nana. And part of my French, y'all, but Nana's a bitch. She sure is. She like, now I part of me is like, well, I mean, she called it on Lara. So, like, part of that was well earned. But if it was only to Lara, then I'd be like, all right, but no, she treats everybody that way. She's a very crotchety old lady.

SPEAKER_00 16:36

But she is also a healer and teaches the other healers of Ithacana. And so she is this like matriarch figure who by the way, there's no magic in this world. This is all just like physical, actual healing. Um, but there's something seemingly magical about Nana to me. Like she calls for the end of the storm season, right? She kind of, along with a shark, is the herald of the war tides. And I find that just an interesting position um for her character. In a in a world of no magic, she is still seemingly like in tune very much so with the nature of it all.

SPEAKER_02 17:14

Yeah. Well, I mean, she's a naturalist and she's uh, I mean, again, she's very old and she's very wise. She's, you know, spent her whole life watching and learning and studying. And so it totally makes sense that she would be in tune in that way.

SPEAKER_00 17:29

All right, so now that we know who's here, where in the world are we? Let's talk more about the Bridge Kingdom. So, first up, um, our first introduction into the Bridge Kingdom is Lara's home, um, Meridrina, and specifically the Red Desert. But we learn that Meridrina is a starving nation that is in a position to fulfill this 15-year treaty with Ithacana, which is a marriage treaty. One of the daughters has to marry the prince, who has become king within this 15 years. Um, and Silas's goal with this treaty is to gain control of the bridge, to feed his people, but it's really just for money. Because we learn that Meradrina is fighting an endless war with Valcotta. Valcotta is the kingdom to their south, um, and he is really just spending all of the money on steel and weapons, and there's very little left to buy from the market at Southwatch.

SPEAKER_02 18:26

And not only is he using this money that he's like for the steel, he's also he was allowed to pick one item that would be like tax-free. And he picked steel instead of like cows, right, or grain. Grain or something like that. And so those prices never change because there's like because that the there was no relief on those items.

SPEAKER_00 18:54

And he's fighting with Valcotta because there's a quote fertile stretch of land running down the western coast of the southern continent, the border contested by both kingdoms. In the second duology, the female main character is from Valcata. So we get more insight as you progress through the Bridge Kingdom series. But um, that's what we start off with is Merudrina and kind of building out this world and the politics at play here. One thing I wanted to call out is there's this very sweet tradition in Merudrina marriage, um, where the wife wears a ribbon braided into her hair for the first year. And this is just seemingly like a throwaway little line during the exchanging of vows between Lara and Arn. But Aaron lets that ribbon fly away. And Lara like thinks about it. She's like, the ribbon I was supposed to wear in my hair, like braided into my hair for the first year, is gone. And so I don't know, I just thought it was a nice little like additive into the world and tradition and culture for Maridrina and and kind of that that that disconnect that Lara and Arn are distinctly from different kingdoms.

SPEAKER_02 20:04

Yeah. And obviously, there was some like there's some education on both sides because he does honor her wearing the the mare the knives on her back. The knives. And I'm like, you let her wear the knives, but not a ribbon, but not a ribbon.

SPEAKER_00 20:20

I think they're not supposed to be sharp, right? They were just supposed to be dull. But haha, jokes on you, they're sharp. Haha.

SPEAKER_02 20:30

So we have two distinct places in Meradrina. We have the Red Desert, um, and you know, it's it's what you would expect of a desert, right? Uh distant mountain peaks, nothing between here and there, but scorching sand dunes and scorpions, right?

SPEAKER_00 20:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 20:46

And then you get to Vencia, which is the capital, which is uh I kind of almost pictured like Greece. Me too. Um, because they said it's be with uh a hillside of whitewashed buildings with blue roofs that always seem to gleam, its streets thrumming with people hailing from every nation. So much more lush in an appearance and in feel than this desert area that we that we start in. But also then when you compare that to Ithacenia. Wow, wow, wow.

SPEAKER_00 21:18

Wow, wow, wow. So Ithacana is a kingdom as shrouded in mystery as it was in mist. We learn that this is a series of islands stretching between two count continents, surrounded by very violent seas. So we have Meradrina and Valcotta on the southern continent, and then on the northern continent, we have Amerid and Herendel. Um, and and Ithacana is a connection point between all of them through which trade flows because the sea is nuts and crazy, and it's very dangerous and expensive to use ships. So there is um a bridge stretching above and between all of the islands. And it's it's the only way really to travel between the continents ten months out of the year because of the tempest seas. Um the storms kind of guard the shores of Ithacana, and two months out of the year without storms are called war tides, and that's typically when the other kingdoms attack.

SPEAKER_02 22:22

Um, so we have uh on either end of the bridge, we have Northwatch and Southwatch, and they're market ports. So merchants gather and trade and sell their goods, and then uh they travel along the bridge to get from one port to the other, um, escorted by Ithacanian soldiers.

SPEAKER_01 22:39

Yep.

SPEAKER_02 22:40

Again, in masks. Obviously, about Midway, you have Midwatch. Midwatch.

SPEAKER_00 22:47

Crazy. I love that they're not crazy names. They're like, yeah, this is North, Mid and South.

SPEAKER_02 22:52

Which makes sense when you are like a more military. You're a port and you're a more like militarily focused. Like, of course, these are they're gonna be watches. Yeah, it's like East Watch and so for first watch.

SPEAKER_01 23:07

Wow. Hungry.

SPEAKER_00 23:09

Anyway, we spend a lot of time at Midwatch because that is where Arn has been given his garrison. He is the commander, he's the king of Ithacana, but he is the commander of Midwatch. Um, and he makes it his home. And Midwatch is lush, it is a jungle. There are vines blooming with flowers of all colors. Um, there I pulled out a lot of quotes describing the setting here because it was so immersive every time I was like, Oh, we're in Midwatch. Like I know where we are and I can feel it and hear it. Yeah. Um This is about Lara, but she spotted an open window through which poured a humid breeze filled with scents of flowers and lush greenery. The view was a verdant garden, the light flat and silvery, as though it was filtered through thick clouds. The only sound the faint pitter patter of rain.

SPEAKER_01 23:57

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_00 23:58

So nice. So nice.

SPEAKER_02 24:01

Uh and this is obviously very, very different, you know, a different kind of heat than she's used to. Yeah. Because of the humidity. So she said the humidity of the air made her feel like she was breathing water.

SPEAKER_00 24:12

Oh, same.

SPEAKER_02 24:13

Constantly. We we know that feeling.

SPEAKER_00 24:15

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 24:16

Um, and then the noise of the jungle managed to be both deafening and uh soothing, a ceaseless cacophony.

SPEAKER_00 24:22

Yeah, yeah. We uh my husband and I had taken a trip to Costa Rica, and the jungle is exactly that. It is both incredibly loud, but also it's like this constant thrum of sound. So it is kind of soothing, like white noise almost, but it is so loud, especially with the howler monkeys. Yeah, oh my gosh. Um, something else about Midwatch is snakes. It's a jungle, of course there are snakes, but snakes are sneaking in through open windows, and it's it's common for like the people of the house to say, like, hey, you need to check for snakes in your sheets because the snakes like to tuck themselves in. Um so it's important to check. And this is an important thing to remember for later in the book, but I'm not gonna spoil it. And at one point they go to this little outskirt island, which I've just deemed Snake Island, um, because it is littered with snakes, so much so that Arn throws like a fish onto the beach and you see all of them like descend upon this fish, and there's this game where, well, if you can make it from here to the the door. The door for the bridge, thank you. I was like, what is the word? Then you win, right? You have to outrun all these snakes, and it reminded me. I don't know if you've all seen it, that YouTube clip of the lizard running through Snake Island. It's there's a version where Snoop Dogg is narrating it. That is what I pictured. It's just snakes, snakes, snakes, snakes, snakes, snakes everywhere. And that is Gilmore Girl's reference. Um, after Lorelei sees snakes on a plane. Anyway, enough about snakes. Let's talk a little bit more about the bridge itself. For me, it was kind of hard to picture. Yeah. I can picture these islands, I can picture a jungle, I got the seas, yep, yep, yep. But then there's just this bridge running through the whole thing.

SPEAKER_02 26:13

And it's it's not like I mean, and it's like it's enclosed. It's kind of like a tunnel. It's weird. And like the stone is like described like so specifically.

SPEAKER_00 26:26

It's a distinct type of stone, yeah. That Larb comes to like recognize even the smell of it. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 26:33

Um, and it's like built over the islands and then over the water, but like it almost she even says, like, it doesn't seem like it was built, it seems like it just was there. It was disappeared.

SPEAKER_00 26:48

It defies reason, it defied logic, and it should, by all right, not even exist. Like it's just a feat of architecture that is beyond conception. Um it was a really interesting, I don't know, piece of this world and seemingly so important, and also shrouded in mystery the same way the whole island is. Because, yeah, on the outside, it's just like, yeah, this great gray serpent, I think Lara calls it at one point, snaking through and it's hollow, yeah, yeah, yeah. But it also has secret entrances and exits, not just at like the specific ports. There are mile markers inside that no one else knows about. You can get to the top of the bridge, and then there are rings that you can then repel from. It's it's much more complex than it appears from the outside.

SPEAKER_02 27:37

Yeah, and obviously it's a very tightly guarded secret. Like if you're a merchant going through that, you are going from one end to the other, and there is no escaping once you're and you're escorted. And you're escorted.

SPEAKER_00 27:49

Yeah. It's very cool. There are some really great scenes of like with Lara traveling through the bridge, being on top of the bridge, falling off the bridge. It's very great. We love we love the bridge, if it even if it's a little bit hard to picture.

SPEAKER_02 28:04

Yeah. But I think that's kind of like the point. The point. And also like very on brand for this book. Yeah. Like it is more than you can comprehend because even uh Arn, who has seen it for his whole life, like is shocked by it and like impressed by it when he sees it, you know.

SPEAKER_00 28:23

So something that is less hard to picture is Arenal. And Arenal is or Aren Hall is what I've deemed just like Ithacana's Valaris. Um, it is a secret place. It is not on the maps, it is not known to the other kingdoms. Um, it's a secret island where the Ithacanians evacuate to during war tides. Um, and it feels like the true capital of Ithacania. And it's it's just, I don't know, a seemingly magical, safe, quiet place hidden behind a portcullis covered with seaweed and barnacles. Metal chimes are hanging from the tree branches, um, filling them filling the air with delicate music, is some poll quotes here, but people feel really safe here. And at one point, Arn has developed enough trust in Lara to take her there. And this is where Lara learns to swim and learns to like finally find her sea legs and deepens her love for Arn and for Ithacana and truly becomes and like stands in her power as queen. Again, a little too late, but it's just this lovely moment of peace that Lara gets to experience.

SPEAKER_02 29:37

And it's like it's a substantial amount of time. I think it's like it ends up being like the ten months, yeah, which is fantastic.

SPEAKER_00 29:44

Yeah. And then outside of the ten months, we have something called war tides. As you recall, war tides are the two months out of the year where the storm's kind of quiet, and this is when the other continents or other um kingdoms attempt to attack the bridge. This is heralded by uh a shark. Typically, when the shark comes closer to shore, um, they kind of know this is the end of the storm season, and then Nana often will say, like, the storms have ended. But they say like it wouldn't be long before Ithacana's waters were red with blood. And our first attack happens by the Ameridians, who we hate. Ooh, that first attack, though, we learn about the defenses that Ithacana has built. So stinking cool. Yeah. They got metal spikes underwater that are like busting up ships from the underside. They've got catapults that they call shipbreakers that are dialed in so well that they just never miss. And they have sharks.

SPEAKER_02 30:45

And we find out that like the sharks are trained. Yeah. Now, like, this is to their detriment because then if they fall in, they are also become prey. But these these sharks like they like eating people. They do like eating people. Um, so uh so Ithacanyans are uh drafted automatically when they're 15 for their first gallant garrison, and they have they have no choice but to fight. So most of the people that we meet have been fighting for a while. Yeah, this is their whole life. Um and you know, we first meet the Ameridians in this attack at Midwatch, but very quickly after they attack Sareth. And uh Midwatch is the closest group of or garrison to kind of come rescue them, and it is a disaster. It is a complete massacre.

SPEAKER_00 31:43

Yeah, it is awful. It is awful. And Laura at this point in the story is supposed to be like a kind of a shrinking violet, like she's just here as a princess, like married off to the king, you know? I definitely cannot in any way defend myself. Me no know how to use knives when throwing knives is her specialty, and she has incredible accuracy. So she has to step in and kill some bad guys here, which I really loved. We're like, yeah, girl, like you do it, like you prove who you are. But she does it kind of secretly as she's like making her way to Aaron.

SPEAKER_02 32:16

And like they they come across it later, and they're like, No one was over here. Yeah, how did all these people die? They were killed with their own weapons. She's like, I that goes crazy. That's that's wild. How do you know? How can you tell? And and that's Aaron's first little flag, like, hmm, something, something is not as it appears.

SPEAKER_00 32:41

Yeah. Part of this though is you see um not just the strength of the Ithacanians and understanding of war tides and like why it is such a loss when when enemies come ashore because they kill with with no regard to life. Um, but you also see how this community and how this kingdom grieves together. And after you know, the bodies have been burned, the community comes together and has like a a dinner with with dancing and celebration of life. And um, I thought that scene, in contrast with the battle at Sareth, again gave us more insight into the tradition and culture of this kingdom, um, in the same way that Laura's ribbon and like the marriage vows did for Maridrina. But it says like Laura ate grilled meat and vegetables, drank the frothy beer from a mug that never seemed to empty, and warmed her hands against the flames when the night breeze turned cool. And then instruments were brought out, drums and guitars and pipes, the music accompanying the men and women as they sang and danced. And she just wanted to sit and enjoy it and listen and learn from this peep these people.

SPEAKER_02 33:53

Yeah. It was a I I think it again that we we talked we've talked a couple of times about how she kind of learns too late. She her, she starts like realizing again on her end that things are not as they have been portrayed to her, and she starts falling in love with these people very, very quickly. Yeah. But she has this lifetime of learned, you know, thought and opinions, and she really struggles and is stubbornly against changing her mind. And it's really, really sad. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 34:27

Ugh. Laura's a great character, y'all. Okay, so that is kind of the major piece pieces of the world. We talked about who they are, where we are. We've mentioned a little bit about the other continents, like Amerid, who are just a bunch of sneaky bastards, Valcotta, who's fighting this forever war with Maradrina on the southern continent. And it is a low-key ally to Ithacenia. Kind of source. But also they are upset with Ithacenia because of the treaty that they've entered with Maradrina. Anyway, the politics in this world are so great and not complex, but not too complicated that you're like, I don't know what's going on, and I'm just gonna bypass all of this. They're complex enough and complicated enough that you're like interested, and there aren't too many people or too many players on the board that you lose track of what's happening. Agreed. Um, the other kingdom is Herendel, and this is a northern continent. We've mentioned it a little bit, but they are also allegedly entering a marriage treaty with Anna, but they never send for her. And I'm so curious about it, and I want to learn why. Well, why is it taking so long?

SPEAKER_02 35:40

Well, and I wonder, like, obviously.

SPEAKER_00 35:43

Do I have to wait for book five?

SPEAKER_02 35:45

Oh, jeez.

SPEAKER_00 35:46

Right. Maybe. I gotta live.

SPEAKER_02 35:49

I wonder if it's partly partially to do with the whole sneaky bastards and the Hammeridians. Yeah. And like all of that.

SPEAKER_01 35:59

I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 36:00

I don't know. Okay. Anything else about the world before we get into some pull quotes? No. I'm good. Let's do it to it. This is early on. This is when Lara is at the oasis um in the red desert where she has been raised and trained. And it says the scent of the oasis drifted over Lara on the faintest of breezes, the smell of fruits and leafy things, the char of cooking meat, and above all, water. And just what, like, I don't know, I'm reminded of of Ceris and and Zilverin and just like the thirst for water and understanding we're in this desert and Lara's ability to just like have the scent of water be so recognizable. I liked that.

SPEAKER_02 36:44

Um obviously growing up in the desert, Lara doesn't have a lot of experience with water. And so when she when she gets to uh on the boat to go to um Ithacenia for the first time, um, this is the first time she's really seen or smelled or experienced the sea. And so she she tugged aside the curtain to get her first look at the sea, the scent of fish and brine in the air. There were white caps on the water and the rise and wall of the rise and fall of the waves stealing her attention. And I like I I love when like I love when I get on a boat for the first time, like for like a cruise or whatever, and I like you get out to sea and you just the rocking and I'm glad you like it.

SPEAKER_00 37:32

Well, I mean Laura didn't love it.

SPEAKER_02 37:33

I well, Laura didn't love it, and to be fair, we didn't love it the one time that we wrote to you.

SPEAKER_00 37:38

Not at all, not at all. And as she's traveling across the the sea from Maradrina to Southwatch, it's only about an hour of a trip, but um, it's Laura's first time on a boat, and it just she's like, This does not feel good, and describes the clouds hanging low over the white capped sea, shifting and moving like sentient beasts, and just not she's like at one point like gripping the railing, like, oh my god, just get me off of this, get me onto land, please. We get a lot of descriptions of water, I mean, which would make sense for a seabound, but the violent winds that come with the storms, the way the sea is churning every time. Um, but we also get some like quiet mentions of water, too, like when Lara um first takes a bath at midwatch in the hot spring and says the sensation of being wholly immersed in warm water was an unfamiliar delight. And she's just starting to find these moments of peace despite her circumstance.

SPEAKER_02 38:46

Um yeah, I the the descriptions of storms were fantastic, which because we get a lot of them. Um and uh I see that you you have a birds within moment.

SPEAKER_01 39:00

What?

SPEAKER_02 39:00

I mean loosely that's so weird. I know.

SPEAKER_01 39:03

I'm really I'm really shocked. Who would do that?

SPEAKER_02 39:06

Um so we you know we get the uh care the ceaseless deluge of rain were regular occurrences, but then uh like again, I was really just obsessed with the jungle. Me too. Her description. So Laura took a deep breath of the humid air, tasting the salt of the sea on the soft breeze, and smelling the damp earth, which again, coming from a a desert, yeah, so new for her. A silver mist drifted through the jungle canopy, the air filled with the drone of insects, the call of birds, and the screeches of other creatures for which she had no name. And like she's just she's trained, obviously, to take in all of the answers or all of the details of a situation, but there's just so much for her to take in, and she realizes how much she doesn't know, and she almost thirsts for that knowledge. She likes wants to explore and know, and not just in the context of doing what I need to do, but also like, I wanna know.

SPEAKER_00 40:05

Yeah. I wanna know. It's so good. Okay, I think we're ready for portal moments. As you all recall, at the end of every episode, we talk about our peak portal moment, the moment where we felt the most immersed, where the world felt the biggest, the realest, the scariest, where it took up the most space. I'm gonna let you go first. You actually referenced mine.

SPEAKER_02 40:26

Really? Um, and uh I will say it was really hard to pick one. I know because not where we're like there were some books last season where I was like, I'm picking this because it's the closest thing I can find. We're looking at you, Whispering House. This was oh my gosh, which one do I pick? And you you you referenced the one I settled on, which was the first time that Lara goes to the hot spring between her room and Arun's room. Because one, it is it is the first moment of peace for her, like you mentioned, and like that's not something she's ever known, you know? And so to to find that. But then also, like, she's never really truly taken a bath. Yeah. Like there's just so much new about it for her, but also from like a personal standpoint of like, I've I like I would love to sit in a hot spring like that. And like it it kind of reminded me of your portal moment from Quick Silver.

SPEAKER_00 41:27

Um, from Court of Winter?

SPEAKER_02 41:29

That's what I meant. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 41:30

I was like, wait, you threw me off.

SPEAKER_02 41:31

I was like, I was just thinking that was Lara. Yeah. And uh just like the the peacefulness and the serenity, and like that you can find that moment in this like crazy situation that you have found yourself in. Uh I just I felt very like at peace and restful in that in that situation.

SPEAKER_00 41:52

I love that. Mine is the exact opposite. There is no peace in my portal moment. Uh, this is the battle at Ayla, which is after Sareth. At this point, Aaron agrees to let Lara come along, but only as a healer, because she has been able to stitch up some wounds, and he's like, Oh, fine, if you have to come, I guess you can come, but you will stay over here with the healers, hidden, don't be found. And the way Lara is watching this battle play out on the beach, and the way it is written, too, everything is like interrupted with and the boats kept coming, and the boats kept coming. Like these long boats kept coming from the ships out in sea, delivering more and more and more of these enemies to the battle. And it's just tragic and awful. And Lara is watching people that she is growing to love and care for deeply be slaughtered on the beach, and she's like, I cannot sit by and watch this happen. And so she starts sprinting back and forth, dragging people with her back to the healers. She's taking action, she is just trying to help save people, and then finally, finally, she hears the like the shipbreaker go off and land and hit the ship. And it's just the relief of finally it got calibrated and unstuck and it worked. But Lars just like I don't know. It's just this moment where she's like, I'm committing to this, and I'm running out there, risking my life to help save people that I've been trained to think are my enemies. Ugh, so good.

SPEAKER_02 43:32

So, what's so interesting about that though is she's still a little bit conflicted.

SPEAKER_00 43:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 43:38

Because she she could fight, but she doesn't want anyone to know yet. But she's like, I can also heal. She's like, I'm gonna, I'm gonna help how I can without ruining, like without revealing who and what I really am. And it's like she hates it, you know? And it's just it's such a it's such a compelling moment for her. Man, it's so good. It really is. I think that that might be a wrap. Oh, I don't want it to be over. I know. Thankfully, there's so many more books. I know. But that's a wrap on this episode of Worlds Within, where story becomes space. Before we go, let's give the Bridge Kingdom our immersion rating on a scale of one to ten portals.

SPEAKER_00 44:25

I'm going nine out of ten. I had a really strong sense of place. The world came alive for me without being overdone. Um, the politics, as we talked about, were complicated enough without being confusing. They were still interesting. I do, I think what would have kicked me over to a 10 is some slight magic. Just a little bit. Not I don't want a lot. I don't want a complicated magic system. I just want a little bit, maybe.

SPEAKER_01 44:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 44:51

But still very, very like incredible nine out of 10 here.

SPEAKER_02 44:56

Yeah, I was also gonna go with a nine out of ten because I just I couldn't put it down. Oh no. And like to my detriment, stayed up way too late reading it one night. Um, but yeah, it was it again, complex complex, but without being too complicated and very vibrant. And the fact that I'm like this whole book was a portal moment for me. Just really, it it was really, really well done.

SPEAKER_00 45:22

What a way to kick off the season. Yeah. Gally. Thank you for joining us as we brave the tempest seas in the bridge kingdom. This book is the first one in an incomplete series, as we've talked about, but it is organized in duologies. Laura's story continues in The Trader Queen, um, which I think we're both ready to make our next read. I desperately need more of these islands, more politics, more banter, more bridges, and yes, probably even more snakes and sharks, because I like the animals. As mentioned, the other duologies do follow different female main characters, but are all within the same world. So um believe books three and four, follow uh uh a woman from Valcotta, and then five and soon to be released six, uh, follow our beloved Southwatch commander Ana.

SPEAKER_01 46:09

Nice.

SPEAKER_02 46:10

Up next, we're diving into the depths with a Wraith Beneath the tides by Amelia J. This is described as Pirates of the Caribbean meets Atlantis, the Lost Empire. Oh my gosh! It definitely delivers. Yeah. So find an eye patch and your spy glass, and because it sounds like we have some exploring to do. Until then, follow along on Instagram and TikTok and tell us where did this story become space for you. Bye. Thanks again for joining us for another episode of Worlds Within, where story becomes space. Follow us on Instagram and TikTok at Worlds Within Pod for more episodes, sensory guides to your favorite books, and more.

SPEAKER_00 46:48

And don't forget to subscribe on your favorite podcast streaming platform. Bye!