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adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was my 2nd time trying to read this as the first time I dnfed. But hearing from loads of lovely bookish people online persuaded me to try it again this time via Audible on a 2 month free trial. And it made such a difference. This book was the first of a series so there was a LOT of worldbuilding, which is where the downfall may have been when I read for the first time. The language did get a bit repetitive at times, however, on the whole, I really enjoyed this book and reminded me how much I adore fantasy 😊
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Vomit, Murder
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I have seen this book everywhere on social media! There were mixed reviews, positive, negative. So after seeing all of these different takes on this book I decided to give it a try myself. See what I would think about this absolutely beautiful looking book.
First thing I have to say is I really loved the world this book was set in! How the world is sort of divided into different land areas like one was a more jungle desert area while another was described as a more snowy terrain. I thought that was nice and gave a lot more variety to the world. Also you got to see how different cultures worked in this world, there were tribes who had their own set of rules and beliefs while a kingdom followed there own rules separate from them. Also the visuals that were described were gorgeous like some scenes I did feel like I was there when I read them!
The characters were also a nice breath of fresh air in certain parts of the book! I was in the middle with Raeve, at times I loved her resilience and survival instincts when she is thrown into certain situations. Other times I thought she was too stubborn and annoying especially when it came to finding out about her true identity. There was one particular moment where I got very frustrated with Raeve that she did one thing instead of finding out more information. Despite that though I really did enjoy her love interest, Kaan. I adored his devotion to Raeve and determination about not giving her up no matter what. It is always nice to see a man who is devoted to the woman he loves! The side characters were nice, I really liked Kaan's sister and his one friend Pyrock. I thought he was a fun character and his sister was a loyal sister determined to help her brother. The other characters were okay and I can't wait to see where they go in the next book.
Dragons! Any book with dragons is a plus to me! I did hope that the dragons would be a bigger part in the plot but I can forgive it if they are more important in the next one. I loved the bond between the rider and the dragons, how when they raised the eggs that they formed a bond with them. How it was a devastating event to lose or have a hurt dragon. The plot was good, the twist at the end I did kind of see happening. But it was still a shock to learn something else in the end that I didn't see coming. I am anxious to see how they continue this plot in the next book.
This was a fascinating new fantasy debut which surprised me by how much I enjoyed it! I am eagerly looking forward to continuing this book to see where the story is going to go! I am looking forward to more dragons, more actions, and more beautiful romance to come.
First thing I have to say is I really loved the world this book was set in! How the world is sort of divided into different land areas like one was a more jungle desert area while another was described as a more snowy terrain. I thought that was nice and gave a lot more variety to the world. Also you got to see how different cultures worked in this world, there were tribes who had their own set of rules and beliefs while a kingdom followed there own rules separate from them. Also the visuals that were described were gorgeous like some scenes I did feel like I was there when I read them!
The characters were also a nice breath of fresh air in certain parts of the book! I was in the middle with Raeve, at times I loved her resilience and survival instincts when she is thrown into certain situations. Other times I thought she was too stubborn and annoying especially when it came to finding out about her true identity. There was one particular moment where I got very frustrated with Raeve that she did one thing instead of finding out more information. Despite that though I really did enjoy her love interest, Kaan. I adored his devotion to Raeve and determination about not giving her up no matter what. It is always nice to see a man who is devoted to the woman he loves! The side characters were nice, I really liked Kaan's sister and his one friend Pyrock. I thought he was a fun character and his sister was a loyal sister determined to help her brother. The other characters were okay and I can't wait to see where they go in the next book.
Dragons! Any book with dragons is a plus to me! I did hope that the dragons would be a bigger part in the plot but I can forgive it if they are more important in the next one. I loved the bond between the rider and the dragons, how when they raised the eggs that they formed a bond with them. How it was a devastating event to lose or have a hurt dragon. The plot was good, the twist at the end I did kind of see happening. But it was still a shock to learn something else in the end that I didn't see coming. I am anxious to see how they continue this plot in the next book.
This was a fascinating new fantasy debut which surprised me by how much I enjoyed it! I am eagerly looking forward to continuing this book to see where the story is going to go! I am looking forward to more dragons, more actions, and more beautiful romance to come.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Torture, Violence
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death
Minor: Sexual assault, Vomit, Pregnancy
adventurous
dark
emotional
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:
Yes
I’m still in my dragon fantasy era so pretty much devouring any and all books that even so much as hint at them, so when I saw the sprayed edges on this stunning Waterstones edition I knew I needed to read it.
And I’m glad to say it really didn’t disappoint! The world building was exquisitely detailed and our characters compelling and in depth; especially Raeve, our badass assassin FMC who I absolutely adored.
Her journey is full of pain, heartbreak and trauma but she overcomes it soo spectacularly, I’m honestly in awe of how strong she is— both emotionally and physically.
And her chemistry with the smouldering, dragon riding Kaan is off the charts. Their banter and witty repartee had me absolutely hooked; though I do warn it’s definitely more of a slow-burn type romance so if that’s not your thing then you might not enjoy this as much.
Kaan, one of our other POV characters (and Raeve’s infuriatingly sexy love interest) stole my heart almost instantly. He’s fabulously broody and will go to any lengths to protect Raeve but, still adheres to boundaries that she’s set— like giving her the means to leave, knowing he may never see her again. If you love alot of angst in your book boyfriends then you’re gonna absolutely love him!
We have a few other characters whose POVs we dip in and out of which I found really interesting (Veya, Kaan’s sister was probably my fave of the supporting POVs) —and really helped to flesh out Raeve and Kaan’s individual (and rather tragic) backstories.
I don’t want to say too much for fear of spoiling anything, but I will say if you loved Throne of Glass or are looking for the next high fantasy with jaw dropping twists, dragons and an intricately crafted magic system. Then you definitely need to consider checking this out! Though given some of the content, I do advise checking the TWs first.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death of parent
Minor: Rape, Vomit, Pregnancy
adventurous
emotional
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:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Violence, Vomit
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
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:
Yes
Took me awhile to get into this book but it was definitely worth it the world is incredible plus dragons!! The backstory to these characters are insane and I'm looking forward to more being revealed in the next book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Body horror, Child abuse, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Cannibalism, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Vomit, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, War
It’s just too long, too slow and too violent. And the main character is creepy, eyeing a naked man instead of politely looking away because they just met. Pretty ironic for someone who kills rapists for her to be creepy like that? I thought that was the kind of thinking that men do that a woman like that would find to be creepy. And I just can’t stand the cringey dialogue. I don’t like Raeve and we spend so much time in her head.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Murder
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
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:
No
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Confinement, Death, Gore, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, Blood, Vomit, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder
Moderate: Vomit, Death of parent, Pregnancy
Minor: Alcohol
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
I was so excited when I first heard of this book and I saw so much potential. Unfortunately, it fell flat for me. Raeve came off as an attempt at Aelin in Heir of Fire and her actions throughout the book were so inconsistent. While I understood the fixation on killing Rekk, it made her so one dimensional.
The romance betweenRaeve and Kaan was extremely rushed and didn’t make any sense to me. One minute she’s trying to kill him and one minute she’s aching to get with him.
I frequently pictured Kaan as the Boulder from Avatar the Last Airbender. The descriptions of the male characters read as cartoonish and way overdone.
For a book involving dragons, we learned relatively little about them. They were not as central to the plot as I thought they would be.
The use of the glossary andfamily tree at the end seemed like a cop out, especially considering how wordy this author likes to be. The writing was difficult for me to follow at times, so I found myself skimming pages instead of actually reading them.
The romance between
I frequently pictured Kaan as the Boulder from Avatar the Last Airbender. The descriptions of the male characters read as cartoonish and way overdone.
For a book involving dragons, we learned relatively little about them. They were not as central to the plot as I thought they would be.
The use of the glossary and
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Torture, Blood
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Grief
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Vomit
adventurous
dark
funny
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:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Torture, Violence, Blood, Dementia, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Sexual content, Death of parent
Minor: Miscarriage, Sexual assault, Vomit, Kidnapping, Cannibalism, Classism