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apersonfromflorida's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: War, Violence, and Colonisation
Moderate: Racism, Death, and Blood
Minor: Racial slurs, Panic attacks/disorders, and Slavery
elliott_the_clementine's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, War, Violence, Colonisation, Religious bigotry, Confinement, Blood, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Confinement, Slavery, Torture, and Racism
shannahtan's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
Things I liked:
- Rooted in Jamaican history
- Sapphic slow burn romance
- Elements of demisexuality
- Focused heavily on familial love and friendship
- Characters reside in a gray area that challenges your sense of morality
- Plot was a bit predictable
- Characters didn’t have a ton of depth. Faron as the Childe Empyrean continuously made rash decisions. Elara was trying to find herself and escape her sister’s shadow.
Graphic: Violence, Colonisation, and War
Moderate: Death
Minor: Racial slurs and Slavery
betweentheshelves's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The world building was also pretty well done! The magic system felt unique, and I am definitely interested in seeing where it goes next. Especially with that ending!
However, some of the writing didn't quite feel as smooth as it should be, though the book definitely hit its stride in the last third of the story. Cole is a promising debut author, and I can't wait to see her grow from here!
Graphic: Colonisation, Violence, and War
Moderate: Blood, Death, and Racism
Minor: Slavery, Racial slurs, and Panic attacks/disorders
chainingbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Colonisation and Violence
Moderate: War
Minor: Confinement, Racial slurs, Racism, Blood, and Slavery
jennireadsmaybe's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
This is the perfect example for what a queer-normative world should look like. We immediately know that Elara is a lesbian and her romance with Signey (her freaking dragon riding partner y'all!!!) is everything to me!!! When it is later revealed that Faron is demisexual, it was like a warm hug. She knows who she is and it's just wonderful.
Because of the differences in each countries magical abilities, the world building was super interesting too. San Irie's magic is very much based on an ancestral style of magic where they receive it by calling upon their ancestors. Whereas, LangIey is centered around the bond they share with their dragons. It made the idea of their previous battles and current outlook on political relations feel that much more recognizable. I would be remiss if I didn't at least mention the dragons. That's right dragons!!! It was so much fun to see how Kamilah Cole built a world around dragons where each country had a different experience and view point on dragons.
I would definitely recommend this for anyone looking to be in the dragon moment while supporting BIPOC authors and stories.
Graphic: Violence, Blood, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Racism
Moderate: Racial slurs
Minor: Slavery and Panic attacks/disorders
bookishmillennial's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
This is a Jamaican mythology-inspired YA fantasy, and in my opinion, the dragon story yall should be talking about! I love a story about sisters, and we get the dual-POV of them (Faron and Elara)!
Faron is the 17-year-old Child Empyrean, appointed by the gods as a human conduit of god-power, who is examining her post-war life and wants to be more than this famous godlike figure she has become. Five years ago, she fought against the Langlish Empire/their colonizers and is now a renowned revolutionary. Her younger sister Elara is tired of living in her infamous sister's shadow, and that's perfect because that sets us up for what comes next! I loved that both of them were yearning for something more, and they're just KIDS! *sobs in "I just want everyone to be okay" *
At a peace summit, Elara bonds with a dragon (!!!!), which is not supposed to happen, and it never has! I loved that KC used this chosen one trope, because Faron is chosen by the gods to be the Empyrean, but Elara is chosen to bond with this dragon. They're both chosen for different journeys, and while they're seemingly separate, the connection is what pulled me in.
This turn of events completely upends their lives, with war not being behind them anymore... with Elara having to enroll at the enemy Langlish military academy, and Faron being told (by the GODS! my GOD!!!!) that the only way to save their home San Irie is to betray her sister?!? WILD.
Reeve, Elara's best friend who is originally from Langley and the Langlish commander's son (!!! the drama!!!), helps Faron try to get Elara back home and unbonded from the dragon.
I adored the queer-normative world, with Elara's sapphic representation (her forced proximity to Signey -her dragon riding partner- is so delectably crafted! Going from annoyance to pining? LOVE it!), and Faron's demisexuality. With a group of characters that you really begin to root for, the found family comes naturally and I can't wait to see more of this in the next book <3
I enjoyed the contrast between the magic systems: San Irie has ancestral magic, and Langley's magic comes from the bond that riders have with their dragons. I do hope to see even more magic system explanations and world-building in the upcoming books because I'm a sucker for lore lol.
Be prepared for a cliffhanger. I wasn't! So I'm helping you by letting you know ahead of time! UGH!
Also, if you liked this, check out Kindling by Traci Chee (comes out in March 2024), as it follows a similar story premise of following child soldiers years after the war has passed, and how they are reckoning with their new realities and futures!
Graphic: Blood, Racism, War, Colonisation, Death, and Violence
Moderate: Racial slurs
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Slavery
blakeandbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Faron is the chosen one who is revered and respected after saving her people from the enemy 5 years ago. They’ve been in a time of contentious peace until now. When her sister Elara bonds with an enemy dragon unexpectedly, she is forced to attend the dragon rider academy in Langley, where she is anything but safe. Faron will do ANYTHING to save her sister. She will defy the gods, learn dangerous and new powers, and even make an ally of her sister’s best friend, Reeve…who she also hates.
This cast is so expansive and queer. Faron is demisexual, and Elara is gay. Signey is Elara’s co-rider… and maybe something more? 👀 I loved so many characters in this book and how Elara is given this opportunity to step out of her sister’s shadow to see who she is on her own. There’s found family. There’s tension. There’s betrayal and mystery and lore.
Go read this book right now! I highly recommend it, especially the audiobook!
Graphic: War, Colonisation, and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Racism, and Death
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, and Slavery
dragonsheart8261920's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Death, Slavery, Colonisation, Classism, Grief, Racism, Child death, War, Death of parent, Blood, Bullying, Fire/Fire injury, and Violence
bellebookcorner's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Told in dual POVs, Elara and Faron are both sisters that lives in a post-war world where Faron as the child Empyrean saves her country but the peace didn’t last long when Elara was found bonded to a dragon from an enemy kingdom.
This story has an interesting world building between summoning gods powers and also bonding with the dragons. Having both POVs really work out great here so we could see how each powers work differently.
There’s also a slight romance blooming throughout the story for both Elara and Faron, but I’m more interested in Faron’s love interest though especially after that ending.
I can’t wait to know what will happen to them both in the next book!
Overall, this is a great start for a series.
I’m looking forward to read the sequel cause I would like to explore more about the world building and know more about the dragons!
Thank you to TBR and Beyond Tour, Netgalley, author and publisher for giving me an e-ARC of the book and for having me on this book tour. I’m leaving this review voluntarily!
Graphic: Colonisation, Violence, and War
Moderate: Blood, Death, and Racism
Minor: Panic attacks/disorders and Slavery