In the third installment of the Powerless fantasy romance series, 18-year-old Paedyn Gray, (who’s been persecuted and hunted for her lack of supernatural powers) has now been asked for her hand in marriage by the king. Paedyn sees the opportunity to mend a land divided between the mundane Ordinaries and the gifted Elites. But to accept his proposal, she will need to sacrifice her own heart. For her heart belongs to the king’s brother.
Following the events at the conclusion of the second book, Paedyn stands in front of Kit, the King of Ilya, facing judgment for her crimes. Instead of punishment, she is asked for her hand in marriage to unite a divided land and strengthen the kingdom once more. Shocked and confused, Paedyn has no choice but to say yes.
Yet many of the Elites—humans who acquired supernatural abilities after surviving the plague—are none too thrilled with an Ordinary as their new queen. Despite her popular nickname, the Silver Savior, Paedyn has no special gift. No supernatural power. She is indeed an Ordinary, one of many such people whom the late King Edric sought to capture, deeming them inferior and worthy of death.
To prove herself worthy of the crown, King Kit and the royal court decide to put Paedyn through another set of Trials. Only this time, must she compete alone and prove her bravery, benevolence and brutality, the three traits considered to be the core virtues of a strong Ilyan ruler.
Now Paedyn must travel through the water of the Swallows and survive the Scorches crypts to show the kingdom that she is worthy to rule.
But no trial is harder than hiding her love for Kai, the Enforcer at the command of the king … and his soon-to-be new queen.
This time, Paedyn’s not sure she will survive. Worse, she must sacrifice her heart for a divided land filled with those who live in fear and those who wish her dead.
Fearless has quite a lot of spiritual content, as indicated in the next section. However, none of it is explicitly Christian.
As mentioned, the world we encounter in Fearless is divided between two different groups of people who survived the Plague.
First, we have the Elites, those with supernatural abilities such as mind reading, invisibility and ability to create illusions. The Ordinaries, however, have no power at all. The rulers of Ilya believe Elites are superior, a chosen people. And the Trials put their abilities on display.
Death is referred to as a physical being. It’s said that he is always near, and on someone’s doorstep––and he’s an “old friend” whom Paedyn has narrowly missed meeting countless times. Kai, the king’s Enforcer, is also very familiar with death: Every time Kai kills someone, he states his soul has been stained again.
Sailors believe in a city called Astrum (star in Latin). A place where people “live in a constant state between dawn and dusk.” And where shadows mean power.
Kit shares that he once believed his father to be a god among man.
Paedyn tells Kai to make her a martyr if she dies in her own individual Trials.
When looking at Paedyn, Kai is so overwhelmed by her beauty that he says there is “something so ethereal in this moment that I may just believe there is a God.”
At Paedyn and Kit’s wedding the Scholar calls the union a “holy matrimony.” That said, while examining her wedding dress Paedyn recalls the night she spent with Kai and how her “sins laid bare” before him.
In a flashback, King Edric says that Paedyn is crying out sorrowfully to a God who is uninterested in her suffering. Elsewhere, Kit explains to Kait and Paedyn details of the Plague, saying how the king claimed the Elites were chosen people by God.
Paedyn describes the bats she fights off in the Scorches as “demons that dwell in the darkness.” Someone speaks the words “See you in the sky” to a character who has died, suggesting an afterlife.
Kit, becomes the new king of Ilya after his father, King Edric, is killed by Paedyn. He wants to make Ilya a strong kingdom again and thus plans on opening its borders and trade partnerships with the nearby kingdoms.
Kai is the Enforcer of Ilya and stands at the command of the king. His duty is to protect the king and queen, and he is one of the strongest Elites. As a Wielder, he can take on any Elite’s abilities if they are near him.
Calumn is the newly freed leader of the Resistance. He is a close advisor to Kit and the closest thing to family Paedyn has left.
Queen Zailah––beautiful, power-hungry queen of Izram––has ruled for nearly a decade. Some believe she killed her own husband for the throne. Kai tells Paedyn that even though the queen has led Izram to become a plentiful, thriving land, she still doesn’t trust Ilya’s Elites.
Edric is the former king of Ilya, the father to both Kit and Kai. He trained Kai to be a brutal killer; and he trained Kit to take up his crown and continue his plot to eliminate all Ordinaries. He taught Kit to always be one step ahead.
We read many uses of the s-word, “d–n,” “h—,” “b–tard” and “a–.” There’s one use each of “b–ch,” “p-ssed,” “p-ss,” “bulls—,” “pr–k” and “d–mit.” We read two uses each of the f-word and “d–k.”
Residents of Ilya often use the word Plague as a stand-in for God’s name: “thank the Plague,” “Plague knows what,” and simply “Plagues!”
There is a lot of violence, too. Paedyn is constantly reminded of her friend Adena’s gruesome death: She was skewered through the heart by a large tree branch during the Purging Trials in Powerless.
Numerous people get stabbed with a dagger. Some die from an explosion during a parade. Others are killed by a sea creature in the Swallows. Paedyn faces the new king shackled in chains that are covered in blood.
Both Paedyn and Kai talk about past killings and how much they wish to never have to kill again.
During her first Trial, Paedyn is scratched and bitten by large bats, encounters a skeleton, fights off bandits (one of which gets stabbed in the head by a crown) and cracks her head on a rock.
Paedyn has a scar in the shape of an “O” above her heart that was carved there by the former King Edric before she killed him––a memory she recounts multiple times throughout her time in the palace. A character is bound and gagged when attempted to be thrown off a ship.
One character is purposely shoved into a fire and suffers severe burns.
We read the late Queen Iris died in childbirth.
Two characters battle in a bloody and gruesome fight to the death, with one ultimately being stabbed in the chest by a sword.
Another character neglects to dodge a weapon and is stabbed.
Many characters drink alcohol, specifically wine, champagne and rum. A common place for the brothers to hang out is in the wine cellar, getting drunk and sharing memories. Paedyn drinks too much at one point and experiences a hangover.
Kai is drugged twice. The crew on the ship gamble and drink rum.
Kai and Paedyn are very much in love, though it takes quite a while for them to confess such feelings. They share plenty of kisses. They bathe together in a tub and sleep with each other a few times as well.
Despite this, Paedyn is engaged and preparing for her marriage to Kit throughout the entire book. Kai and Paedyn mask their feelings for each other in public but long for one another in private. As Paedyn describes it, “I may be wearing a wedding dress meant for the king, but it’s his brother I continually run back to.”
The two of them often flirt with each other as they call each other “pretty Pae” and “Prince.”
It is hinted that two girls like each other when Kai notices his cousin Andy holding hands with a girl named Jasmyn while at dinner.
[Spoiler Warning] Elsewhere, we learn about marital infidelity that happened in the past.
None.
The finale to Kai and Paedyn’s love story, Fearless is a combination of dystopian fantasy and romance.
The story paints a picture of how consuming power can become. As Paedyn’s maid tells her, “Most people don’t realize there is more to life than power.” Though Paedyn scoffs at the comment, it is a good reminder to readers that life is not defined by the amount of power one has. And there is much more meaning in life itself.
Despite the positive message of recognizing one’s inner strength, there’s a lot of content here too. Though the scenes are not terribly graphic, readers will still encounter deception, manipulation and plenty of bloodshed. Plus, a lot of profanity and sexual content in Kai and Paedyn’s relationship
This epic fantasy filled with romance and adventure makes for an engaging read. However, families with young fantasy fans will want to approach this journey with much-needed caution.
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Natalie Dean is Plugged In’s 2025 Summer Intern. A native from South Dakota, she recently graduated from South Dakota State University with a degree in Journalism and in the fall will be pursuing a master’s at Liberty University. Growing up in the Black Hills, Natalie enjoys spending her time outside, whether that be riding bikes or kayaking with her sisters, walking the dogs or going on long hikes. Her love for movie soundtracks stems from her sister asking, “what movie is this from” and “name the movie scene.” She has a passion for writing and hopes to one day be a published author.
