Manzakar is the first book in the epic fantasy series The Slave Soldier, written by R. Laham, and published by Oliver Heber Books. A touching story about exploitation, imperialism and subjugation, with two main characters full of soul and personality, who we will be following since they are sold as children slaves to the kingdom of Anzor after being captured in their Gohar land.

Tikran and Coxani were sold to Anzor as children, trained from young age to become loyal servants to the kingdom; they both aspire to become manzakars, elite slave soldiers being those that fight for Anzor, as their own citizens do not fight. Even if it's a high honour, they are still slaves, used to conduct Anzor's violence and keeping the own Gohari people subjugated; when Tikran sees the brutality of Anzor's occupation during his first campaign, he will have to confront the harsh truth and how they are tools for occupation, having to choose between his position or defending the Gohari people.

Tikran's journey is one of discovery and growth; he's a brave character, but also a bit naïve about how manzakars are used by Anzor until he's on the own Gohar. We could say he's a good man, even when he was a child, trying to help Coxani; but seeing him rebelling against years of indoctrination was the moment that totally sold him into me. Coxani gives also us a POV onto how heavily biased against women is the Anzor's society; she might be a manzakar because of her own work, but she's still expected to be the concubine of another man and have siblings. She's intelligent, but also really stubborn, and honestly, that's what saves her many times.
We have an excellent duo of main characters, with a third in discord, Naran, that is also memorable, playing into the danger when needed, but in a secondary spot in comparison with the other two.

Laham gifts us a marvelous setting, inspired by the Middle East, well detailed and that also serves as a parallel to nowadays conflicts; the author is not afraid of portraying the crude details of war and violence, so let me tell you this is a dark book. We see how the events of the world push our characters towards a more radical stance, as the only way to answer those systemic injustices.
The pacing is a bit irregular for my taste, feeling rushed towards the end, but giving enough time to develop the characters; there's a healthy exploration of different types of romance which adds to the plot.

Manzakar is a great debut, an epic fantasy that is not afraid to portray the crudest aspects of the world, kickstarting a series that also has place for hope. I'm curious to see how the author will continue the series, but definitely, it has my total attention!