Defiant (Skyward, #4)

by Brandon Sanderson

Even now, he ruled because he had us as a boogeyman. So much death, so much destruction, so many lies. All so this thing could rise through the ranks. I’d almost have respected him if he were a warrior. But the sad, humiliating truth was that our world hadn’t been dominated for years by some ruthless warlord, but by a bureaucrat who knew how to manipulate public opinion.