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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-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
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book was amazing! It is my favorite book so far of 2025. From page one I was swept into this story and didn't want to put it down. The magic (crafted) was unique. I loved that the lore of this world was also included throughout the story.
The characters were well developed. You could tell at the beginning of the book how sheltered that Lyra had been but she learned a lot throughout the book. Roark was a morally grey character with a secret soft side. I fell in love with Roark.
This book was the perfect blend of world building, magic, conflict, and romance. I will now be pinning away for book two.
The characters were well developed. You could tell at the beginning of the book how sheltered that Lyra had been but she learned a lot throughout the book. Roark was a morally grey character with a secret soft side. I fell in love with Roark.
This book was the perfect blend of world building, magic, conflict, and romance. I will now be pinning away for book two.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Murder, Abandonment
In this first book in a new series by bestselling author LJ Andrews, we follow Lyra who is torn from her quiet life and forced to use her magic for the King, under the watchful eye of Sentry Roark.
I found the pacing a little slow initially but it picked up around the second half of the book and then the revelations just kept on coming! There was a good blend of world building, character development and plot development (although I hope some of the secondary characters will be fleshed out more in the sequel). The main male character cannot speak but uses sign language to communicate, a concept I quite enjoyed, although I found it hard to visualise how it worked in situations where he was signing by touching another character without them actually looking at him, but that's probably just me overthinking it!
A recommended read for fans of dual POV romantasy with morally grey characters and Viking fantasy.
Thank you to NetGalley and Michael Joseph for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I found the pacing a little slow initially but it picked up around the second half of the book and then the revelations just kept on coming! There was a good blend of world building, character development and plot development (although I hope some of the secondary characters will be fleshed out more in the sequel). The main male character cannot speak but uses sign language to communicate, a concept I quite enjoyed, although I found it hard to visualise how it worked in situations where he was signing by touching another character without them actually looking at him, but that's probably just me overthinking it!
A recommended read for fans of dual POV romantasy with morally grey characters and Viking fantasy.
Thank you to NetGalley and Michael Joseph for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated