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skylar817's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
5.0
riellareads's review
4.0
A princess with a task, to find the next king. A man with a mission to befriend and betray her. Amalia is touring the kingdom to find a man to take the throne, after the tragic death of her brother. Rhys’s mission requires him to follow her and with every step, he finds himself strangely drawn to the innocent, trouble-marked princess. However, there is a darkness bigger than either of them and only their partnership holds the key to the salvation of their world.
This was super cute! I thought that Amalia and Rhys’s interactions were so funny and cute! Amalia was so sweet and Rhys was so begrudgingly amused and drawn to her. They were both sweet on each other (do people say that still?) and yet knowing that they could not be together. Rhys was so conflicted too, he knew that he had a mission to eventually betray her. Yet at the same time, he truly believed that it was necessary. He felt a tremendous responsibility.
The story was unfolding throughout the entire book. There was danger lurking beyond even what Amalia and Rhys knew. As they journeyed, they discovered more clues of darkness coming. Up to the last page, there were surprises! As in almost any series, I am now very eagerly anticipating the continuation of the story in Ms. Tapscott’s upcoming second book to the Riven kingdom series. Although, there were some answers by the end, there were also many more questions!
Overall this was a great book that leaves you on the edge of your seat waiting for answers!It is a sweet fantasy story that both introduces the world of the Riven kingdom with all its characters and begins the story of history and magic.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the author. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.
This was super cute! I thought that Amalia and Rhys’s interactions were so funny and cute! Amalia was so sweet and Rhys was so begrudgingly amused and drawn to her. They were both sweet on each other (do people say that still?) and yet knowing that they could not be together. Rhys was so conflicted too, he knew that he had a mission to eventually betray her. Yet at the same time, he truly believed that it was necessary. He felt a tremendous responsibility.
The story was unfolding throughout the entire book. There was danger lurking beyond even what Amalia and Rhys knew. As they journeyed, they discovered more clues of darkness coming. Up to the last page, there were surprises! As in almost any series, I am now very eagerly anticipating the continuation of the story in Ms. Tapscott’s upcoming second book to the Riven kingdom series. Although, there were some answers by the end, there were also many more questions!
Overall this was a great book that leaves you on the edge of your seat waiting for answers!It is a sweet fantasy story that both introduces the world of the Riven kingdom with all its characters and begins the story of history and magic.
I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book which I received from the author. All views expressed are only my honest opinion.
kristynebooknerd's review
5.0
This book had me invested right from the start and I am dying waiting for the next book. I was actually in a book hangover and had this in my kindle unlimited ready to read so I finally decided to start it and I am mad I didn't read it sooner. The story was fast paced and I was so invested in the characters. The world building is great and not overwhelming at all.
Amalia is a little naive about the world but that is a little understandable being that she is the princess, she doesn't really know any better plus she wasn't raised as the heir of the throne. Why is it that all male characters named Rhys automatically have my heart? Rhys is probably my favorite even though he is deceiving Amalia but he does start to regret it. I love seeing Rhys and Amalia's relationship develop over the course of the story.
I can't wait for the second book to come out and luckily that isn't too far from now. I can't wait to see how everything unfolds and see how Amalia and Rhys deal with it.
Amalia is a little naive about the world but that is a little understandable being that she is the princess, she doesn't really know any better plus she wasn't raised as the heir of the throne. Why is it that all male characters named Rhys automatically have my heart? Rhys is probably my favorite even though he is deceiving Amalia but he does start to regret it. I love seeing Rhys and Amalia's relationship develop over the course of the story.
I can't wait for the second book to come out and luckily that isn't too far from now. I can't wait to see how everything unfolds and see how Amalia and Rhys deal with it.
wildfaeriecaps's review
5.0
After a slow start (really, only the very beginning and maybe because I'm not a dog person?), I really enjoyed this story. It wasn't *predictable* exactly, but only one thing happened that I didn't entirely see coming. That didn't detract from my enjoyment at all--I read a lot and it's common for me to see what's going to happen. I enjoyed Rhys and Kent. Amalia is.. growing on me. I hope she matures a bit, though. Excited to see what happens in book two!
annaaugustineauthor's review
5.0
Ahhh it was so good! I’ve already started book two and I can’t stop
rampion12's review
5.0
Well that wasn’t the best idea to start at 11:30, but hey, I live on the edge. Sleep deprivation be damned
mediocrechelsey's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars I really enjoyed this! It was super fast paced. I enjoy the world building and magic system. The banter is really great between the two main characters and I’m excited to see where it goes! The two twist I really didn’t guess but I’m also dumb when it comes to that stuff.
intheend's review
2.0
Not much going on in this book. I didn't like how naive the h was and always needing to be rescued by the H.
raeanna11's review
3.0
2.5
I like these books because they are short and sweet. However, I like the other series (Crown and Crest) better so far. This series seems very juvenile, especially when the main character is supposed to be like 22. It wouldn't be as annoying, if she was 17-19.
I'll probably keep reading the series because I can't invest my time in something better right now. That way I won't feel obligated to neglect my responsibilities to continue reading.
I like these books because they are short and sweet. However, I like the other series (Crown and Crest) better so far. This series seems very juvenile, especially when the main character is supposed to be like 22. It wouldn't be as annoying, if she was 17-19.
I'll probably keep reading the series because I can't invest my time in something better right now. That way I won't feel obligated to neglect my responsibilities to continue reading.
tinydonats's review
3.0
This is a forbidden love story, not an enemies-to-lovers like I was expecting. And it was so fluffy. I didn't hate it.
I've been reading a lot of dark, enemies-to-lovers, and this one was just so pure in comparison. Okay, not pure since there was a lot of lying and hidden motives, but the romance came so easy and it was refreshing to see two characters so innocent in their feelings for each other. They couldn't help their feelings and, though they knew they shouldn't, they didn't do something stupid but told the truth when it mattered. There were times it was almost too sweet for me, being that I have been reading so many stories about villains and evil characters. Rhys is no angel but he is not as evil as he thinks he is. I've read too many evil characters to consider him a villain, sorry Rhys.
The characters aren't super deep yet and to be honest, I would probably dislike most of them if I wasn't so surprised at how soft the romance was haha. I really was expecting a darker book since I've been reading a lot of darker books so this caught me off guard.
The main character is a sheltered and defenseless, but I don't think she does anything ridiculously stupid. Maybe I'm just not that invested to care truthfully. If the characters had more personality and were fleshed out more, I probably would question and critique things more, but taking this at face-value, the actions are fine and the plot keeps going.
The book was pretty straight-forward and easy to read. Felt like a good ol' easy YA romance. There are things to fix, mysteries to solve, and truths to be revealed. That is just enough plot to keep me interested in the series. I'm not sure if things will improve as the series goes on in terms of the depth of characters and actions, but we shall see.
I've been reading a lot of dark, enemies-to-lovers, and this one was just so pure in comparison. Okay, not pure since there was a lot of lying and hidden motives, but the romance came so easy and it was refreshing to see two characters so innocent in their feelings for each other. They couldn't help their feelings and, though they knew they shouldn't, they didn't do something stupid but told the truth when it mattered. There were times it was almost too sweet for me, being that I have been reading so many stories about villains and evil characters. Rhys is no angel but he is not as evil as he thinks he is. I've read too many evil characters to consider him a villain, sorry Rhys.
The characters aren't super deep yet and to be honest, I would probably dislike most of them if I wasn't so surprised at how soft the romance was haha. I really was expecting a darker book since I've been reading a lot of darker books so this caught me off guard.
The main character is a sheltered and defenseless, but I don't think she does anything ridiculously stupid. Maybe I'm just not that invested to care truthfully. If the characters had more personality and were fleshed out more, I probably would question and critique things more, but taking this at face-value, the actions are fine and the plot keeps going.
The book was pretty straight-forward and easy to read. Felt like a good ol' easy YA romance. There are things to fix, mysteries to solve, and truths to be revealed. That is just enough plot to keep me interested in the series. I'm not sure if things will improve as the series goes on in terms of the depth of characters and actions, but we shall see.