65 reviews for:

The Tournament of Heirs

Amilea Perez

3.9 AVERAGE

karinareads13's review

5.0

Metztli and Acalan Amos are the only two heirs of the House of Life. Acalan was born to lead the empire and has prepared his entire life to do so. Metztli always knew that her job was to protect her brother and ensure that happens. When the time comes for the Tournament of Heirs, 12 heirs from the 6 houses must compete to the death. Only 2 bloodbound heirs can survive. Just days before the tournament begins, Acalan uncovers the truth of a prophecy that will change everything.

I had high hopes for this book and it did not disappoint! I love the Aztec mythology tied into the romantic fantasy. There is a bit of a slow burn leading up to the tournament, but it is worth it for the character/history building. It did not end the way that I thought it would! There were some surprise twists that I wasn’t expecting. I really enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it. I cannot wait to see where the story goes from here!

stephlovaofbooks's review

DNF.

This book had potential but it took way too long to get anywhere with the plot. I stopped at 252 out of 511 pages and was nowhere near the start of the tournament. We halfway into the book! Other things that bothered me, a lot of redundancy about the sibling’s prophecy and their destiny and their survival in a tournament that was taking too long to happen. Also, the book needed another round of editing because there were quite a few spelling and grammar errors. 

This was disappointing. I really wanted to like this one. 

catsbooks_uk's review

Sadly this was a DNF for me. I wanted to enjoy it, as the geographical and historical setting is interesting to me, but there were so many contemporary phrasings that I kept getting pulled out of the story. Characters don't speak like real people and the setup wasn't clear at all; I was just reminded over and over of the (much faster-paced) 'Hunger Games'.

Maybe a once-over with a good editor would help give this a little more life? Definitely potential here with world-building and imagination, it just didn't seem quite ready yet. I can see YA readers enjoying it. 

readingwithmrleo's review

adventurous mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

I feel sad not giving this book a higher rating because I think this story has so much potential and I loved the author’s creation overall, but I honestly had trouble getting through the book. I’ll explain, but this is clearly a me problem and I still feel like this book could be loved by many. And while reading it, the images in my head were so vivid, the setup with the beautiful Aztec inspiration, I was kind of craving a movie version of the book, could really imagine it. So, I still think it was a good one.

Let’s start with what I did enjoy! First, the characters were super well crafted, they were easy to love and fun to get to know. I really liked the special bond between siblings, that is something I truly enjoy seeing in books. Both POV were as interesting to me, so I was always looking forward to seeing more of each character. And they had amazing character development throughout the story.

The main idea of the book was intriguing, and I was looking forward to discovering what was truly going on and how the big tournament would evolve. The Aztec mythology was super interesting, loved the culture so much and I wanted to know everything about it.

I did surprisingly quite love both romances in that story. I say surprisingly because I’m not super fond of instant love and one of the romances was that trope. But it was still sweet enough to make me like it and the imminent tournament to the death made it make sense (I’d probably do the same if I knew I could die tomorrow, ya know?). Anyways, Metztli’s story was my favorite though, with so much tension, angst and enemies’ vibes. Not going to lie, her love interest was probably my favorite character (with the dog ofc), I was rooting for him since the start!

Now, on to the things I had trouble with. My first problem was with the length of this book. I won’t mind a lengthy book if it makes me forget it’s actually long, but with this one, I kept waiting for the tournament to start and it really felt like just this: waiting. I think maybe it would have helped if the ratio had been the other way around like a 40% of set up and then 60% of tournament… but the wait was too long for me, and I lost my interest. There was also quite a bit of repetitions in our character’s inner dialogue, which started to get annoying when you are waiting for action to start but feel stuck with the same thoughts on repeat.

Which brings me to a second point: I do like to be in our characters head, but I feel like most of the time it was a lot of telling, thinking, and not a lot of acting, showing things happening. Even through the tournament, there were a lot of chapters where it was mostly waiting and once again getting inner dialogue or exchanges instead of action. I’m not sure I would have minded that much if the book wasn’t stating in big bold letters that this is a tournament to the death. I expected so much more action because of that… when, in reality, there is maybe 20% of this book that actually shows some action. And when a book is over 500 pages long… it leaves a lot of pages with not much happening to move the plot forward in my opinion, which was a disappointment for me.

I liked the idea of the prophecy, but it stretched for so long with absolutely NO clue on what it actually was. It was just repeating that there is a prophecy over and over without saying anything new and letting us know repeatedly that everyone knew about it… except us and Metztli, apparently. It got frustrating for me to be honest.

That being said, I still think that this was impressive for a debut, I did love the author’s writing, it was good, and she was definitely able to get me intrigued, invested and make me fall for the characters she created. I loved it enough to want to continue the series and know what will happen next for sure. I grew attached (not sure I will get over my heart getting broken like that!!) and I need answers, a vengeance, something, you know?

Huge thanks to the author for the most wonderful PR package. All opinions are my own.

P.s. Sorry for the late post on here, wanted to leave a few weeks after release before I posted this because of my rating but it ended up being a super hectic month and I find myself only posting now.

sarahhopereads's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes

4.25

hannahs_bookish_adventures's review

4.0

4.5 ⭐️
1.5

kmartbooks's review

slow-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.25

This book sets itself apart with a strong focus on family bonds and a refreshingly unique setting that enriches the fantasy genre. At its core, the book is about siblings Acalan and Metztli navigating the high-stakes competition of the Blood Bound Tournament, but the story takes its time establishing a sense of culture, politics, and personal dynamics before plunging into the danger of the tournament.

The pacing of the introduction is both a strength and a weakness. The time spent building the world, exploring the main characters, and introducing the other competitors adds depth, but it also risks testing a reader’s patience. There's almost no action until after 60% of the way through. A more concise opening might have maintained the richness while improving the momentum.

Where The Tournament of Heirs truly shines is in its setting and characters. The Mesoamerican-inspired world feels both vibrant and underutilized in fantasy, and Perez does a fantastic job weaving cultural elements into the story. Acalan and Metztli are compelling protagonists whose sibling bond is the emotional anchor of the story, refreshing in a genre often dominated by romantic-based plots. Speaking of which, while romance takes a backseat, it still adds an interesting layer that I’m curious to see explored further in future books.

The ending delivers on the tension and I'm excited to see where this one goes. As for the dog sidekick, I loved the inclusion of a dog, though its improbable training and breed confusion (I think it was supposed to be a Mexican hairless, yet this one is described as furry more than once) left me confused. I’m hoping it turns out to have some magical significance because it adds a fun dynamic.

This is a thoughtful, character-driven fantasy with a strong cultural identity and plenty of promise. While it requires some patience to get through the slower start, it is worth it for readers looking for something fresh in the genre.

Thanks so much to MTMC Tours and the author for the complimentary copy. This review is voluntary and all opinions are my own.

janlslitlibrary's review

adventurous emotional mysterious slow-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? Yes

4.5

heartscontent's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.0

A big shout out and thank you to the author for providing me with a complimentary copy in exchange for an honest review!

I’m going to split this review down the middle—unlike my usual style—to expand upon the things that worked for me and the aspects I struggled with. Some of these aspects might repeat under both categories, because there are elements within them that were great, while others I’d like to share my thoughts on. 

I’ll start with the aspects of The Tournament of Heirs that workedfor me.

From the very first page, I was extremely drawn to the writing in the book. There was emotion and heart in abundance and while I was surprised to see this in a book promoted to be brutal and competitive, I was extremely glad for it. The writing ensures that the readers are well aware of the effect the tournament has on those who are to engage in it, those who are to watch them and of course, the Gods who designed it.

Personal Anecdote: In fact, I enjoyed the writing so much, even just 5% into the book, that I reached out to the author to gush (twotimes) how much I was liking it! Thank you Amilea for being so warm and welcoming despite my sliding straight into your DMs uninvited.

This leads us, of course, to the world building. Despite what the blurb claims, the book doesn’t dive straight into brutality and violence, in fact the actual tournament only begins about 60% into the book. This means that the book has a lot of time (as it’s a little over 500 pages) to establish characters, their personalities, their cultures, their circumstances and the overall nature and rules of the world. I would say however that quite early you’re fairly sure of everyone’s roles, emotions, personalities and responsibilities. Surprisingly, the reader can pick up on the underlying plot points quick enough that you know what the primary purpose is and are waiting anxiously to see it unfold. (Another tie in to how well TToHwas written that you settle in fast and comfortably into the book.)

The plot, as mentioned earlier, is very clear to the readers from about 10, maybe 15% into the book and given how long the characters have to interact with one another, it only gets further established in our minds. 

The characters in any story are extremely vital to how I feel about a book. TToH alternates neatly between the perspective of both heirs and while dual perspective are not my favourite, I easily saw the purpose for it in this book and found myself quite interested in both of their thoughts fairly equally. At one point of the story there is an influx of characters—which the author prepares us for muchearlier—and they’re all written in a way that ensures you’re perfectly capable of separating characters from one another. Even if it doesn’t happen immediately, in a few chapters, you’re well aware of who’s who. 

The cultural aspects in this book, I enjoyed so much. While I agree it’s part of the world building, I want to mention it separately just for the love I felt for it. 

Another aspect I’d life to mention separately, even though it technically falls under characters is relationship dynamics. There were several types of relationships in this book, from parental, to sibling, to rival, to vague and they were all cast in the perfect light by the writing and I enjoyed how much emotion is brought into each interaction between the different characters; even if sometimes that emotion was bitterness or anger. 

Now, let’s gentle tip our toes into the aspects of the book that didn’t work for me personally. 

As fantastic as the writing and world-building were, there was a small issue that appeared initially that slowly grew over the course of the first 60% of the book. Initially, I loved that there was a bit of time before the Tournament began. But by the 30% mark, we knew so much about the Tournament and it was already built up so much in our minds that you’re wondering where it is at this point. So you can imagine by 60% you’re quite… exhausted waiting for the Tournament to start. It’s now two times the anticipation, two times the hype and four times the expectation. 

Sadly, this expectation is not met. The Tournament does not come across as brutal as it seems or the expectations the readers have for it from all the information and anticipation render it that way. I think maybe the struggle was that the blurb promotes this book as a fight for the throne/power but the book itself is … not that. While the Tournament is spoken about a lot, the book doesn’t centre around the competition itself, as much as the emotions related to it, the hidden lore behind it and the bigger storyline beyond it. I think it would work greatly in the author’s favour if the blurb was tweaked to speak less about the Tournament itself and instead focus on the … bigger plot point beyond it. That I think would ensure readers don’t go in with an expectation that they’re bound to feel disappointed about. 

There was also lots of things that we are kept in the dark about, despite the first sixty percent that does a lot of world building. Which makes me wonder if that was intentional? I would say there was some rush in some of the connections in the book (typically in the romantic ones), which I honestly got in some ways. For one, everyone’s living in a maybe-there’s-a-tomorrow-maybe-there’s-not state of mind and that does of course colour everyone’s interaction. However… there is a sense of connection between the characters that’s both… elusive at times and not at other times. I’m mostly understanding of it, but it’s sometimes a little disconcerting when it slips into the more elusive nature of itself, where it goes from feeling deep to not at all. 

The pace dances between even, swift and slow as it tries to balance the reader’s experiences of the drawn out anticipation that goes on for many days before the Tournament, the not-as-brutal Tournament and the borderline insta-connections that toe the line of being plot props at times. 

Three stars. This book has so much heart, it’s impossible that it does not move you. 

Please check trigger warnings as always, the book has content and themes that can be triggering and difficult for some. Happy reading. 

davinareads's review

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

One of the first things that caught my eye about this book was the incredible effort the author put into her PR boxes and artwork. They’re some of the most beautiful promotional materials I’ve seen, and they reflect the love and care she has for her story. It’s something to be proud of!

Aside from the stunning artwork and bookish goodies, let's talk about the story. This is where my opinion might differ from the majority.

The Tournament of Heirs is labeled as a New Adult Fantasy and marketed as The Hunger Games meets Aztec culture—essentially a dystopian tale with a cultural twist. Personally, I found the story closer to All of Us Villains than The Hunger Games, which might be a better comparison.

As a dystopian novel, it follows a storyline that will feel familiar to many readers, especially those who have read a few books in the genre. While the inclusion of Aztec culture added a unique and intriguing layer, I felt the story struggled to offer something truly fresh or unexpected.

At over 500 pages, the book felt longer than necessary. Some sections were repetitive and overexplained, which slowed the pacing and made it harder to stay fully engaged. With 63% of the book serving as an introduction, the buildup felt too drawn out. Although there were many events, they didn’t always feel like they moved the story forward meaningfully. Additionally, I would have loved more vivid descriptions in certain areas to enhance the setting.

That said, the cultural aspect was wonderful. I loved being immersed in the Aztec-inspired setting—it was vibrant and rich, though I wished for even more depth. The mythology was one of the most fascinating parts of the book and made for an engaging learning experience. I also really enjoyed the dynamics between the siblings, which stood out as one of the strongest elements of the story.

Overall, I think this book might resonate more with readers who are newer to the dystopian genre or those who enjoy a slower, more detailed narrative. Even if it wasn’t entirely for me, I admire how the author brought Aztec mythology to life and portrayed the sibling dynamics so well. All of this could make it a worthwhile read for the right audience.