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k_wage's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Animal death
clarabooksit's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Toxic relationship, Grief, and Animal death
Moderate: Violence, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexism, Emotional abuse, Death, War, and Fire/Fire injury
stormywolf's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Audiobook Read by Cassandra Campbell, Samantha Desz, Gibson Frazier, Joy Osmanski & Jacques Roy
Unabridged Length: 17.4 Hours
Listened at 2x Speed
Read my full review at The Wolf's Den
Overall, a solid production, but not as spectacular as I might have liked. I did appreciate being able to hear the terms Xe Xie and the slightly different pronunciation of Avalkyra than I had, but there wasn't much else in the fantasy category that had me puzzled. I also noticed a couple places where the text had "community" in place of "tribe" in the audio, so I assume those were edited later, but they were the only minor differences I caught. In short, this may be a fun change of pace for those who are used to only one narrator per book, but lands pretty standard for those of us who've experienced more complex productions.
Unabridged Length: 17.4 Hours
Listened at 2x Speed
Read my full review at The Wolf's Den
Overall, a solid production, but not as spectacular as I might have liked. I did appreciate being able to hear the terms Xe Xie and the slightly different pronunciation of Avalkyra than I had, but there wasn't much else in the fantasy category that had me puzzled. I also noticed a couple places where the text had "community" in place of "tribe" in the audio, so I assume those were edited later, but they were the only minor differences I caught. In short, this may be a fun change of pace for those who are used to only one narrator per book, but lands pretty standard for those of us who've experienced more complex productions.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing
Moderate: Animal death, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Toxic relationship, Violence, Bullying, Gaslighting, Slavery, Emotional abuse, and Sexism
Minor: Death of parent and Murder
cottonspun's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Panic attacks/disorders, Death, Toxic relationship, Murder, and Slavery
beautifulpaxielreads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Torture, and Toxic relationship
lennie_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
So I'm going to *attempt* to form my thoughts into coherent sentences that aren't just me constantly gushing about this book.
This story is kind of like Mulan meets GoT in South America. I'm not saying the world is meant to be like South America but that's the vibe I got and I'm sticking with it 👍
So a few things that I ADORED about this book were;
Veronyka
Sev being gay AF
Tristan being the cutest little bi cinnamon roll ever
The trans acceptance from Veronyka
THE TWISTS
The characters
The Phoenix's
The world building
The relationships
The multiple POVs
The hugs & affection 😭 (this is something I don't think we see enough of in Fantasy books and I really enjoyed it)
The writing style was excellent and genuinely Very funny in places. The battle scene at the end felt so tense and exciting and that's not an easy thing to achieve on paper.
The magic style was also unique. An affinity with animals isn't a new power idea as such but for it to be the protagonist's main power, and for the book to identify the good and bad ways it can be used, felt very refreshing.
My only qualms with this book are that Avalkyra (a historic character) should have been older. She was a very intense and mature character and for her to die after a war at the age of 18 felt off. I assumed her and her sister would at least be in their mid-20's, if not older. (Avalkyra is already dead when the book starts, this isn't a spoiler).
My other qualm is that as animages, I thought it was a bit odd that they still ate animals. It was sort of quickly explained that all creatures have their place but, as a vegetarian, I was like hmm, could just not eat meat 🤷♀️
Either way, I'm super excited to read the sequel!
This story is kind of like Mulan meets GoT in South America. I'm not saying the world is meant to be like South America but that's the vibe I got and I'm sticking with it 👍
So a few things that I ADORED about this book were;
Veronyka
Sev being gay AF
Tristan being the cutest little bi cinnamon roll ever
The trans acceptance from Veronyka
THE TWISTS
The characters
The Phoenix's
The world building
The relationships
The multiple POVs
The hugs & affection 😭 (this is something I don't think we see enough of in Fantasy books and I really enjoyed it)
The writing style was excellent and genuinely Very funny in places. The battle scene at the end felt so tense and exciting and that's not an easy thing to achieve on paper.
The magic style was also unique. An affinity with animals isn't a new power idea as such but for it to be the protagonist's main power, and for the book to identify the good and bad ways it can be used, felt very refreshing.
My only qualms with this book are that Avalkyra (a historic character) should have been older. She was a very intense and mature character and for her to die after a war at the age of 18 felt off. I assumed her and her sister would at least be in their mid-20's, if not older. (Avalkyra is already dead when the book starts, this isn't a spoiler).
My other qualm is that as animages, I thought it was a bit odd that they still ate animals. It was sort of quickly explained that all creatures have their place but, as a vegetarian, I was like hmm, could just not eat meat 🤷♀️
Either way, I'm super excited to read the sequel!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Confinement, Death, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Sexism, Fire/Fire injury, and Murder
caidyn's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
CW: manipulation, toxic sisterly relationship, death of an animal, and sexism
For a lot of this book, it was kind of up and down. I enjoyed it, but I wanted more while I was reading. Until the end, when I got more and I really liked where it was going. There are series where the first book sets the world and plot up for the next books and this is one of them.
Veronyka (or Nyka) and Val are sisters, sisters who are doing their best. Val is, well, a toxic sister. She does what she wants when she wants with no regard to Nyka's wants or needs. So Val does something horrible that pushes Nyka over the edge. Nyka decides to leave and go on her way to find a phoenix so she can be a rider, which has been her dream even though the kingdom that once was ruled by warrior phoenix riders (more queens than kings!) is now controlled by a council.
Except the people training riders are only accepting boys. So, Nyka decides to become Nyk so she can live her dream.
This book has a world that's so rich and I was enchanted by that aspect of things. I really loved how deep the world-building is in this and how apparent it is for the whole story. That's something I enjoy in my fantasy. Fast-paced, but with a big world behind it. There's just so much going on and the history actually ties into the plot.
I enjoyed the characters, but I wanted a bit more. As I said, the book is all about developing everything, so the characters really change over the course of the book. So, in the end, I really liked all of the perspectives. I think my favorite was Tristan, the son of the commander and a boy who's training to be a phoenix rider, while my least favorite was Sev's.
Based on the ending, I can tell that the second book is going to be absolutely explosive. And I'm so damn excited for it! Definitely a must-read for 2020!
For a lot of this book, it was kind of up and down. I enjoyed it, but I wanted more while I was reading. Until the end, when I got more and I really liked where it was going. There are series where the first book sets the world and plot up for the next books and this is one of them.
Veronyka (or Nyka) and Val are sisters, sisters who are doing their best. Val is, well, a toxic sister. She does what she wants when she wants with no regard to Nyka's wants or needs. So Val does something horrible that pushes Nyka over the edge. Nyka decides to leave and go on her way to find a phoenix so she can be a rider, which has been her dream even though the kingdom that once was ruled by warrior phoenix riders (more queens than kings!) is now controlled by a council.
Except the people training riders are only accepting boys. So, Nyka decides to become Nyk so she can live her dream.
This book has a world that's so rich and I was enchanted by that aspect of things. I really loved how deep the world-building is in this and how apparent it is for the whole story. That's something I enjoy in my fantasy. Fast-paced, but with a big world behind it. There's just so much going on and the history actually ties into the plot.
I enjoyed the characters, but I wanted a bit more. As I said, the book is all about developing everything, so the characters really change over the course of the book. So, in the end, I really liked all of the perspectives. I think my favorite was Tristan, the son of the commander and a boy who's training to be a phoenix rider, while my least favorite was Sev's.
Based on the ending, I can tell that the second book is going to be absolutely explosive. And I'm so damn excited for it! Definitely a must-read for 2020!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship
Moderate: Animal death
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