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kayaj's review against another edition
3.0
3 stars!
This author shows a LOT of promise! The idea for this is so unique, and I was shocked by a few of the plot twists. However, while I was surprised by a few, most of the twists left something to be desired. The ending was a bit predictable which was rather disappointing. That said, I was so interested I read this in one sitting!
I also think that the character development could have been done a bit better. I enjoyed a lot of the characters themselves but never really felt a connection. I loved the world, it was amazing! But the characters didn't quite fit.
I haven't read many books like this but it shares a tiny bit of similarities to Three Dark Crowns!
I received an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
This author shows a LOT of promise! The idea for this is so unique, and I was shocked by a few of the plot twists. However, while I was surprised by a few, most of the twists left something to be desired. The ending was a bit predictable which was rather disappointing. That said, I was so interested I read this in one sitting!
I also think that the character development could have been done a bit better. I enjoyed a lot of the characters themselves but never really felt a connection. I loved the world, it was amazing! But the characters didn't quite fit.
I haven't read many books like this but it shares a tiny bit of similarities to Three Dark Crowns!
I received an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
popthebutterfly's review
1.0
Disclaimer: I received this book from netgalley and the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Castle of Lies
Author: Kiersi Burkhart
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 1/5
Diversity: LGBT, but possibly problematic. Nonbinary elf, demisexual, bisexual.
Recommended For...: Court Intrigue
Publication Date: May 7, 2019
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: can’t recommend, dnf-ed
Publisher: Carolrhoda
Pages: 352
Synopsis: Thelia isn't in line to inherit the crown, but she's been raised to take power however she can. She's been friends with Princess Corene her whole life, and she's scheming to marry Bayled, the heir to the throne. But her plans must change when an army of elves invades the kingdom. Thelia, her cousin Parsival, and Corene become trapped in the castle. An elf warrior, Sapphire, may be Thelia's only hope of escape, but Sapphire has plans of their own. Meanwhile, an ancient magic is awakening within the castle, with the power to destroy the whole kingdom. Can Thelia find a way to protect her future--and her life?
Review: Uhhhhh I had to DNF this at 34%. This was just pretty bad and from what I’ve read on Goodreads it doesn’t do well with accurate LGBT+ portrayals. The book also just had a lack of character development and world building.
Verdict: Not for me and might be harmful to LGBT+
Book: Castle of Lies
Author: Kiersi Burkhart
Book Series: Standalone
Rating: 1/5
Diversity: LGBT, but possibly problematic. Nonbinary elf, demisexual, bisexual.
Recommended For...: Court Intrigue
Publication Date: May 7, 2019
Genre: YA Fantasy
Recommended Age: can’t recommend, dnf-ed
Publisher: Carolrhoda
Pages: 352
Synopsis: Thelia isn't in line to inherit the crown, but she's been raised to take power however she can. She's been friends with Princess Corene her whole life, and she's scheming to marry Bayled, the heir to the throne. But her plans must change when an army of elves invades the kingdom. Thelia, her cousin Parsival, and Corene become trapped in the castle. An elf warrior, Sapphire, may be Thelia's only hope of escape, but Sapphire has plans of their own. Meanwhile, an ancient magic is awakening within the castle, with the power to destroy the whole kingdom. Can Thelia find a way to protect her future--and her life?
Review: Uhhhhh I had to DNF this at 34%. This was just pretty bad and from what I’ve read on Goodreads it doesn’t do well with accurate LGBT+ portrayals. The book also just had a lack of character development and world building.
Verdict: Not for me and might be harmful to LGBT+
adrianab's review against another edition
3.0
I found a bit hard to remember all the names and the relationships between the characters. The plot was nice, fantasy - romance.
Thank you Netgalley for this book.
Thank you Netgalley for this book.
amandathebookish's review against another edition
3.0
Castle of Lies refreshed me! Despite one too many POV characters, and a bit of confusion near the end, I really enjoyed this book. It was hilarious, quirky, and magical in all the right ways.
Plus the cover is gorgeous so who can say no?
Plus the cover is gorgeous so who can say no?
kayaj's review
3.0
3 stars!
This author shows a LOT of promise! The idea for this is so unique, and I was shocked by a few of the plot twists. However, while I was surprised by a few, most of the twists left something to be desired. The ending was a bit predictable which was rather disappointing. That said, I was so interested I read this in one sitting!
I also think that the character development could have been done a bit better. I enjoyed a lot of the characters themselves but never really felt a connection. I loved the world, it was amazing! But the characters didn't quite fit.
I haven't read many books like this but it shares a tiny bit of similarities to Three Dark Crowns!
I received an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
This author shows a LOT of promise! The idea for this is so unique, and I was shocked by a few of the plot twists. However, while I was surprised by a few, most of the twists left something to be desired. The ending was a bit predictable which was rather disappointing. That said, I was so interested I read this in one sitting!
I also think that the character development could have been done a bit better. I enjoyed a lot of the characters themselves but never really felt a connection. I loved the world, it was amazing! But the characters didn't quite fit.
I haven't read many books like this but it shares a tiny bit of similarities to Three Dark Crowns!
I received an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!
discoverelysian's review
DNF at 71%
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
The concept was good actually, I was interested the very moment I read the blurb. But as I dive into the story, I found that the plot was kinda off. At first, I enjoyed it but it went downhill so fast throughout the book. The author gave a couple of POVs but it lacks the depth of storytelling. I felt like the characters aren't well described so I didn't feel any sympathy or respect to them, not even the tiniest bit.
I'm sorry but I just can't continue. I tried really hard finishing this book until I got to the part where I fast-read most of the scenes. But in the end, I decided to give up.
ARC provided by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
The concept was good actually, I was interested the very moment I read the blurb. But as I dive into the story, I found that the plot was kinda off. At first, I enjoyed it but it went downhill so fast throughout the book. The author gave a couple of POVs but it lacks the depth of storytelling. I felt like the characters aren't well described so I didn't feel any sympathy or respect to them, not even the tiniest bit.
I'm sorry but I just can't continue. I tried really hard finishing this book until I got to the part where I fast-read most of the scenes. But in the end, I decided to give up.
kaycee_k's review
3.0
Castle of Lies follows Thelia, Parsival, and Corene when the kingdom gets invaded by elves. When they are trapped in the castle that when they meet an elf warrior, Sapphire. I enjoyed the magic in the story. It felt alive, charming & funny. Like the food cart! This story, itself, I do feel that this is a YA that is for older readers. This is a strong character lead book and while I did like the world, magic, I didn't have a favorite character.
However, I did really enjoy the author's writing style, and for that, I will be looking forward to reading more by her.
I was given a NetGalley copy to review, this is my honest review.
However, I did really enjoy the author's writing style, and for that, I will be looking forward to reading more by her.
I was given a NetGalley copy to review, this is my honest review.
spiravirgo's review
3.0
I received a copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for a honest review.
3 Stars
You know, I read a lot of books from different genres in my life and once in a while I get bored from them. They repeat the same plot, the identical characters and over use tropes and it's nothing unique that I have never seen before. But then comes a book that decides to go a different route and take risks and trying to nudge me into its tale, to be invested and to care. Castle of Lies tries that but like every ambition it doesn't necessarily succeeds.
Kiersi Burkhart tries to make Castle of Lies interesting by presenting us with a unique concept of magic being so volatile it springs to life objects from a bucket to a broom and so on and now the characters lives are flipped upside down all the while dealing with elves invading the kingdom. Straight away it begins and ends exactly as you imagine, but because of how it differentiate from other books of the fantasy genre I had to continue reading because I was curious what will happen next and so I got blinded into completing it.
The characters are give or take will either infuriates you or you'd end up liking them. They are to me more like a bland mash of carbon clay not that interesting except for Sapphire and Bayled who only kept my attention on the story cause I was worried and cared about them. The world building isn't perfect but captivated my attention but I wish the author worked on it more in order to polish on it. Her writing is simple, easy to read and nothing grandeur to give any remarks about.
Overall it's a nice book, try it or don't It is simply my frank opinion on the matter.
3 Stars
You know, I read a lot of books from different genres in my life and once in a while I get bored from them. They repeat the same plot, the identical characters and over use tropes and it's nothing unique that I have never seen before. But then comes a book that decides to go a different route and take risks and trying to nudge me into its tale, to be invested and to care. Castle of Lies tries that but like every ambition it doesn't necessarily succeeds.
Kiersi Burkhart tries to make Castle of Lies interesting by presenting us with a unique concept of magic being so volatile it springs to life objects from a bucket to a broom and so on and now the characters lives are flipped upside down all the while dealing with elves invading the kingdom. Straight away it begins and ends exactly as you imagine, but because of how it differentiate from other books of the fantasy genre I had to continue reading because I was curious what will happen next and so I got blinded into completing it.
The characters are give or take will either infuriates you or you'd end up liking them. They are to me more like a bland mash of carbon clay not that interesting except for Sapphire and Bayled who only kept my attention on the story cause I was worried and cared about them. The world building isn't perfect but captivated my attention but I wish the author worked on it more in order to polish on it. Her writing is simple, easy to read and nothing grandeur to give any remarks about.
Overall it's a nice book, try it or don't It is simply my frank opinion on the matter.
escapinginpaper's review
2.0
I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Castle of Lies is a young adult high fantasy story that involves themes of political intrigue, romance, and magic. In a lot of ways, Castle of Lies was unexpected and even surprised me. But unfortunately, I found a lot of flaws with this book that could have largely been avoided with more editing.
CW: incest, abuse, violence/gore, questionable LGBTQ+ rep.
Plot & Setting
This story seemed to want to go too many places at once. On the one hand, this is a political intrigue story. The Holy Kingdom is ruled by a drunkard king who basically bankrupted the whole country. His daughter, Corene, is of marriagable age, but his ward, Bayled, has been promised the throne. Thelia is from a family of nobles, but she grew up alongside princess Corene. Thelia was raised to be a warrior and conspirer by her mother - believing that the one purpose of her life is to become Queen. Bayled seems the perfect path to the throne. But everything gets thrown into chaos when the King reveals he has promised Corene’s hand to a Southern Lord to secure their alliance.
On the other hand, we have the element of the elves and magic. Sapphire is an elf recently promoted to an elite elven fighting group. Their mission is to invade the Holy Kingdom and gain control over an out-of-control wellspring of magic that the humans are completely unaware of.
Once the elves make it to the Holy Kingdom, the storyline of who will be king/queen is largely forgotten about, and a few major questions I had were left unanswered. One of which was about the magic problem in the Holy Kingdom: why was the magic overflowing? Additionally, Corene's engagement to the Southern Lord is a plot point that is completely abandoned, despite the many unanswered questions and contradictions there were.
Characters
The characters in this story I have very mixed feelings about. Honestly? This read a lot like a messed up fantasy version of Love Island. All of the characters are a little bit trashy - and not in a way that's wholly entertaining. Because of the political conspiring, none of them really trust each other. Towards the end of the story, they begin to build some trust, but it wasn’t quite enough to make up for rest.
➤ Thelia - The main character and one of the POV characters. She is definitely fits in the “badass tough girl” fantasy trope. She was trained in martial arts by her mother, but she was also abused by her mother and other members of her family. Despite that, her mother’s training defines her life, and she strives to become queen one day.
➤ Corene - The princess. Corene and Thelia grew up together, and are practically sisters. But when the story starts, Thelia absolutely hates her guts because of an unspeakable thing Corene did to Thelia. I honestly thought Corene was the most pointless character. Of all the characters, she manipulates and uses people the most. But she also sees the least development, and a lot of what she does is left without motivation or explanation.
➤ Bayled - Originally from a kingdom to the North, Bayled’s parents were emissaries to the Holy Kingdom. When they died, the King took Bayled under his wing as his ward. Because of the King’s favor toward Bayled, he has been promised to inherit the throne. Bayled grew up with Thelia and Corene, and is madly in love with Corene. Honestly... Bayled was the most clueless of all the characters. He wasn't my least favorite, but I really wanted to slap him at times - He is entirely unaware of the way Corene and Thelia manipulate him.
➤ Parsifal - Parsifal is from a family of nobles left bankrupt by the King's spending. Parsifal is described as disfigured, and uses his sense of humor about his own looks to get his way with others in court. Parsifal struck me a little bit as a cheap Tyrion knock-off - he is sexually wanton, drinks too much, and makes people laugh. He also deals in secrets, and uses people’s misconceptions about him to his advantage. Of all the characters, I thought Parsifal was the most interesting, and sees the most development throughout the story.
➤ Sapphire - An elf, and the one elvish POV character. Sapphire is non-binary - the elves get the choice to choose their gender at a certain age, and Sapphire never felt completely right as a man or woman. I thought this was an interesting concept that wasn't explored enough. Of all the elves, Sapphire is the most genuine and compassionate - but at some points their naïveté got on my nerves. Their relationship with Thelia and Parsifal is a key part to the story.
Romance
Castle of Lies makes a genuine attempt at LGBTQ+ representation, which we definitely need more of in high fantasy. However, I don’t think it was completely handled the right way. (I am not a part of the LGBTQ+ community, however, so please correct me if I'm wrong about any of this.)
There is a bi character, a non-binary character, and a polyamorous relationship. The bi character unfortunately is written into the stereotype of bi people being “promiscuous” or “perverse”. They don’t really challenge this problem in the story. As for the polyamorous relationship... there is just a huge part of it that really bothered me, that I can't really explain without spoiling the story.
Sapphire is the non-binary character, and I found the concept of this really interesting. However, it isn’t really developed in the story. The author definitely could have used this character as a platform, and I think that opportunity was missed.
Moving away from the LGBTQ+ aspect, there was a particular romance in the story that I found really problematic. Two of the characters that get involved with each other are cousins. Okay, I guess you could argue that in a medieval setting, getting involved with your cousin wasn't so strange. However, we are in 2018 - do we really need to be writing fantasy stories where cousins love each other?? I was also disappointed because without the aspect of the characters being cousins, this romance would have been one of the highlights of the story for me.
Writing
The writing was a big miss for me. There was a lot of potential, but some serious, heavy editing was needed. One of the major problems was the dialogue. In some parts it's just... so cheesy and cringe-worthy. One of the things I hated the most was the fact the characters refer to their parents as "Mommy/Mom" or "Dad/Daddy". Maybe this is very nit-picky of me, but it just felt... so wrong in this setting.
There are also some really bizarre and at times disgusting analogies for certain situations. One example is when one character kisses another, making someone else jealous. The character who kissed uses this sentence to describe their guilt:
(Poop garden being the castle's sewer system.) Like.... okay?? Is this visual necessary?? There were numerous instances of very weird analogies like this, and I don't understand their purpose. Are we supposed to laugh? Supposed to feel disgusted? I wasn't sure whether the author wanted us to take the story seriously in instances like this.
At other times, the vivid descriptions worked really well, such as this instance at the beginning, where Thelia's hatred of Corene is being established for the reader:
This description makes me feel kind of gross - but in a good way because Corene is so miserable.
Conclusions
I think this story had some solid bones. But covering that are a lot of flaws - it's just unfortunate it wasn't edited a little better. I liked the political intrigue, I liked the magic. Heck, I even liked how miserable and trashy the characters were. Some of the characters did see some decent development throughout the story, which I appreciated too. Unfortunately, the things I liked just were enough to outweigh what I didn't like. I don't know if I would continue this series, but I could see myself giving this author another try in the future.
Review also posted on my blog!
Castle of Lies is a young adult high fantasy story that involves themes of political intrigue, romance, and magic. In a lot of ways, Castle of Lies was unexpected and even surprised me. But unfortunately, I found a lot of flaws with this book that could have largely been avoided with more editing.
CW: incest, abuse, violence/gore, questionable LGBTQ+ rep.
Plot & Setting
This story seemed to want to go too many places at once. On the one hand, this is a political intrigue story. The Holy Kingdom is ruled by a drunkard king who basically bankrupted the whole country. His daughter, Corene, is of marriagable age, but his ward, Bayled, has been promised the throne. Thelia is from a family of nobles, but she grew up alongside princess Corene. Thelia was raised to be a warrior and conspirer by her mother - believing that the one purpose of her life is to become Queen. Bayled seems the perfect path to the throne. But everything gets thrown into chaos when the King reveals he has promised Corene’s hand to a Southern Lord to secure their alliance.
On the other hand, we have the element of the elves and magic. Sapphire is an elf recently promoted to an elite elven fighting group. Their mission is to invade the Holy Kingdom and gain control over an out-of-control wellspring of magic that the humans are completely unaware of.
Once the elves make it to the Holy Kingdom, the storyline of who will be king/queen is largely forgotten about, and a few major questions I had were left unanswered. One of which was about the magic problem in the Holy Kingdom: why was the magic overflowing? Additionally, Corene's engagement to the Southern Lord is a plot point that is completely abandoned, despite the many unanswered questions and contradictions there were.
Characters
The characters in this story I have very mixed feelings about. Honestly? This read a lot like a messed up fantasy version of Love Island. All of the characters are a little bit trashy - and not in a way that's wholly entertaining. Because of the political conspiring, none of them really trust each other. Towards the end of the story, they begin to build some trust, but it wasn’t quite enough to make up for rest.
➤ Thelia - The main character and one of the POV characters. She is definitely fits in the “badass tough girl” fantasy trope. She was trained in martial arts by her mother, but she was also abused by her mother and other members of her family. Despite that, her mother’s training defines her life, and she strives to become queen one day.
➤ Corene - The princess. Corene and Thelia grew up together, and are practically sisters. But when the story starts, Thelia absolutely hates her guts because of an unspeakable thing Corene did to Thelia. I honestly thought Corene was the most pointless character. Of all the characters, she manipulates and uses people the most. But she also sees the least development, and a lot of what she does is left without motivation or explanation.
➤ Bayled - Originally from a kingdom to the North, Bayled’s parents were emissaries to the Holy Kingdom. When they died, the King took Bayled under his wing as his ward. Because of the King’s favor toward Bayled, he has been promised to inherit the throne. Bayled grew up with Thelia and Corene, and is madly in love with Corene. Honestly... Bayled was the most clueless of all the characters. He wasn't my least favorite, but I really wanted to slap him at times - He is entirely unaware of the way Corene and Thelia manipulate him.
➤ Parsifal - Parsifal is from a family of nobles left bankrupt by the King's spending. Parsifal is described as disfigured, and uses his sense of humor about his own looks to get his way with others in court. Parsifal struck me a little bit as a cheap Tyrion knock-off - he is sexually wanton, drinks too much, and makes people laugh. He also deals in secrets, and uses people’s misconceptions about him to his advantage. Of all the characters, I thought Parsifal was the most interesting, and sees the most development throughout the story.
➤ Sapphire - An elf, and the one elvish POV character. Sapphire is non-binary - the elves get the choice to choose their gender at a certain age, and Sapphire never felt completely right as a man or woman. I thought this was an interesting concept that wasn't explored enough. Of all the elves, Sapphire is the most genuine and compassionate - but at some points their naïveté got on my nerves. Their relationship with Thelia and Parsifal is a key part to the story.
Romance
Castle of Lies makes a genuine attempt at LGBTQ+ representation, which we definitely need more of in high fantasy. However, I don’t think it was completely handled the right way. (I am not a part of the LGBTQ+ community, however, so please correct me if I'm wrong about any of this.)
There is a bi character, a non-binary character, and a polyamorous relationship. The bi character unfortunately is written into the stereotype of bi people being “promiscuous” or “perverse”. They don’t really challenge this problem in the story. As for the polyamorous relationship... there is just a huge part of it that really bothered me, that I can't really explain without spoiling the story.
Sapphire is the non-binary character, and I found the concept of this really interesting. However, it isn’t really developed in the story. The author definitely could have used this character as a platform, and I think that opportunity was missed.
Moving away from the LGBTQ+ aspect, there was a particular romance in the story that I found really problematic. Two of the characters that get involved with each other are cousins. Okay, I guess you could argue that in a medieval setting, getting involved with your cousin wasn't so strange. However, we are in 2018 - do we really need to be writing fantasy stories where cousins love each other?? I was also disappointed because without the aspect of the characters being cousins, this romance would have been one of the highlights of the story for me.
Writing
The writing was a big miss for me. There was a lot of potential, but some serious, heavy editing was needed. One of the major problems was the dialogue. In some parts it's just... so cheesy and cringe-worthy. One of the things I hated the most was the fact the characters refer to their parents as "Mommy/Mom" or "Dad/Daddy". Maybe this is very nit-picky of me, but it just felt... so wrong in this setting.
"I sit across from Daddy, who ignores me even though he hasn't seen me all week."
There are also some really bizarre and at times disgusting analogies for certain situations. One example is when one character kisses another, making someone else jealous. The character who kissed uses this sentence to describe their guilt:
"I am the shit and piss overflowing in the poop garden."
(Poop garden being the castle's sewer system.) Like.... okay?? Is this visual necessary?? There were numerous instances of very weird analogies like this, and I don't understand their purpose. Are we supposed to laugh? Supposed to feel disgusted? I wasn't sure whether the author wanted us to take the story seriously in instances like this.
At other times, the vivid descriptions worked really well, such as this instance at the beginning, where Thelia's hatred of Corene is being established for the reader:
"Corene isn't made of queen material - never has been. And illustrating my point: she can't even hold her liquor. She worms across her bed in her silk nightgown, spilling wine across the blankets."
This description makes me feel kind of gross - but in a good way because Corene is so miserable.
Conclusions
I think this story had some solid bones. But covering that are a lot of flaws - it's just unfortunate it wasn't edited a little better. I liked the political intrigue, I liked the magic. Heck, I even liked how miserable and trashy the characters were. Some of the characters did see some decent development throughout the story, which I appreciated too. Unfortunately, the things I liked just were enough to outweigh what I didn't like. I don't know if I would continue this series, but I could see myself giving this author another try in the future.
Review also posted on my blog!
xandra5bc64's review
2.0
DNF @ 30%
I spent way too much time not caring.... I just have better books to read!
(I received this eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review... but I got it from the “read now” section, so I don’t think it’s a big deal.)
I spent way too much time not caring.... I just have better books to read!
(I received this eARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review... but I got it from the “read now” section, so I don’t think it’s a big deal.)