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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Rating:
3.5 stars
Trigger:
Physical abuse, torture
Short review:
It was bit too scharine romance and declaration of love for my liking but overall an enjoyable read. The concept of beast taming and beast realm all too fascinating, I have overlooked some problematic parts.
That being said, I hate fated mate, romeo-juliet type love stories but Martineau has created enough complexity around couple, it is almost works in this case. I have no problem digesting Leena and Noc's said love story.
Review in image/gif:
I chose you, I chose you all....
Recommended:
Yes, if you like pokemon and Fantastic beasts
Aftermath: (possible spoilers)
It continues to puzzle some of the decision people make in YA books. The personal who has been tourched for 2 days without any food and water, how they are capable of making love first thing after rescue?
Beyond my rational thinking, or maybe I am not that romantic
But priority guys, priority....
3.5 stars
Trigger:
Physical abuse, torture
Short review:
It was bit too scharine romance and declaration of love for my liking but overall an enjoyable read. The concept of beast taming and beast realm all too fascinating, I have overlooked some problematic parts.
That being said, I hate fated mate, romeo-juliet type love stories but Martineau has created enough complexity around couple, it is almost works in this case. I have no problem digesting Leena and Noc's said love story.
Review in image/gif:
I chose you, I chose you all....
Recommended:
Yes, if you like pokemon and Fantastic beasts
Aftermath: (possible spoilers)
It continues to puzzle some of the decision people make in YA books. The personal who has been tourched for 2 days without any food and water, how they are capable of making love first thing after rescue?
Beyond my rational thinking, or maybe I am not that romantic
But priority guys, priority....
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
I received a copy of Kingdom of Exiles through BookishFirst in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Kingdom of Exiles is the first novel in a new series called the Beast Charmer by Maxym M. Martineau. I’m not going to lie to you – it was originally the cover art that caught my attention. That being said, this novel exceeded all of my expectations, and so much more. It’s described as Fantastic Beasts meets Assassin’s Creed, and it delivers on that promise.
Leena is a beast charmer, even if she is an exiled and disgraced one. Framed for committing a crime she had nothing to do with, Leena is forced to commit one of the biggest sins to beast charmers. She has to sell her beasts to make a living. Through this way of living, Leena finds herself in an even more dangerous situation, one full of treachery and assassins.
The description of this novel had me sold, and with good reason I think. That being said, having read it. I feel like the description doesn’t do the novel justice. Because I absolutely loved this book. I’m so sad that it’s over, though the fact that it’s a first in the series has helped keep my spirits up.
Warnings: Kingdom of Exiles has animal (beast) death inside, as well as kidnapping and torture. They all fit in well with the plot at hand, and more often than not you can see these moments coming ahead of time. So you can prepare yourself if needed.
Kingdom of Exiles was such a thrilling read. I loved nearly every moment, and I happily read the entire thing in one sitting. I just couldn’t put it down. The world described in these pages was lush, and I found myself wanting to know more and more about it.
I knew I wanted to read Kingdom of Exiles from the moment it was compared to Fantastic Beasts. And I’m not ashamed to admit that. That being said, this novel exceeded my hopes, throwing in a bit of a Pokemon vibe along the way. In that respect, this novel was a ton of fun. I wouldn’t have minded seeing more of the beast charming elements, but I’m sure it’ll come up in later novels.
That being said, I went into this novel with certain expectations. I sort of expected that I wouldn’t like Leena, because of the whole selling beasts bit. So I was shocked when I found myself enjoying her character, and sympathizing with her situation. It was all very well done.
Noc’s character was likewise interesting, and admittedly I think I grew to like him even faster than I did Leena. I have so many questions about his past – questions that the novel did a good job of dancing around. I’m hoping we learn more about him in the next novel.
I found this novel to be very fast-paced, but in a good way. All of the beautiful creatures, and the beast charming in general, were fascinating. I would have loved to see more, of course. But I really enjoyed what I did see; Leena trying to match the beasts with the best person for them, and so on.
The treachery in Leena’s past…it was dark, and made for a brilliant driving force in Leena’s life, as well as in Kingdom of Exile. I’ll be curious to see how Maxym M. Martineau follows it up in later novels in the series. Which unfortunately I have to wait for. Even though I’m really looking forward to learning more about the two main characters, especially now.
For more reviews check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
Kingdom of Exiles is the first novel in a new series called the Beast Charmer by Maxym M. Martineau. I’m not going to lie to you – it was originally the cover art that caught my attention. That being said, this novel exceeded all of my expectations, and so much more. It’s described as Fantastic Beasts meets Assassin’s Creed, and it delivers on that promise.
Leena is a beast charmer, even if she is an exiled and disgraced one. Framed for committing a crime she had nothing to do with, Leena is forced to commit one of the biggest sins to beast charmers. She has to sell her beasts to make a living. Through this way of living, Leena finds herself in an even more dangerous situation, one full of treachery and assassins.
The description of this novel had me sold, and with good reason I think. That being said, having read it. I feel like the description doesn’t do the novel justice. Because I absolutely loved this book. I’m so sad that it’s over, though the fact that it’s a first in the series has helped keep my spirits up.
Warnings: Kingdom of Exiles has animal (beast) death inside, as well as kidnapping and torture. They all fit in well with the plot at hand, and more often than not you can see these moments coming ahead of time. So you can prepare yourself if needed.
Kingdom of Exiles was such a thrilling read. I loved nearly every moment, and I happily read the entire thing in one sitting. I just couldn’t put it down. The world described in these pages was lush, and I found myself wanting to know more and more about it.
I knew I wanted to read Kingdom of Exiles from the moment it was compared to Fantastic Beasts. And I’m not ashamed to admit that. That being said, this novel exceeded my hopes, throwing in a bit of a Pokemon vibe along the way. In that respect, this novel was a ton of fun. I wouldn’t have minded seeing more of the beast charming elements, but I’m sure it’ll come up in later novels.
That being said, I went into this novel with certain expectations. I sort of expected that I wouldn’t like Leena, because of the whole selling beasts bit. So I was shocked when I found myself enjoying her character, and sympathizing with her situation. It was all very well done.
Noc’s character was likewise interesting, and admittedly I think I grew to like him even faster than I did Leena. I have so many questions about his past – questions that the novel did a good job of dancing around. I’m hoping we learn more about him in the next novel.
I found this novel to be very fast-paced, but in a good way. All of the beautiful creatures, and the beast charming in general, were fascinating. I would have loved to see more, of course. But I really enjoyed what I did see; Leena trying to match the beasts with the best person for them, and so on.
The treachery in Leena’s past…it was dark, and made for a brilliant driving force in Leena’s life, as well as in Kingdom of Exile. I’ll be curious to see how Maxym M. Martineau follows it up in later novels in the series. Which unfortunately I have to wait for. Even though I’m really looking forward to learning more about the two main characters, especially now.
For more reviews check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
adventurous
challenging
emotional
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Im Großen und Ganzen hat es mir gefallen.
Ich fand die Tierwesen und deren Beschreibung soo schön und hätte mir einfach noch viel viel mehr davon gewünscht und dafür etwas weniger kitschige Liebesgeschichte.
Diese ging mir auch einfach wieder mal zu schnell. Es wird eigentlich kaum miteinander gesprochen und sich dann aber ewige Liebe geschworen. Aber da es sich um ein Buch des Kyss Verlags handelt, wusste ich ja, das ich mich auf eine sehr vordergründige Liebesgeschichte einlasse.
Ich fand die Tierwesen und deren Beschreibung soo schön und hätte mir einfach noch viel viel mehr davon gewünscht und dafür etwas weniger kitschige Liebesgeschichte.
Diese ging mir auch einfach wieder mal zu schnell. Es wird eigentlich kaum miteinander gesprochen und sich dann aber ewige Liebe geschworen. Aber da es sich um ein Buch des Kyss Verlags handelt, wusste ich ja, das ich mich auf eine sehr vordergründige Liebesgeschichte einlasse.
Apparently Maxym M. Martineau is a debut author...
Can all debut authors write fabulous stories like this please?
Thanks :)
Needless to say----> 5 Stars!!!
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Blog: http://glimpsesofmybooks.com
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Can all debut authors write fabulous stories like this please?
Thanks :)
Needless to say----> 5 Stars!!!
For full review and more Subscribe/Like/Follow
Blog: http://glimpsesofmybooks.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glimpses_of_my_books
GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/59441021-glimpses-of-me
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-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:
Complicated
The world building in this is truly lovely. I enjoyed the heck out of this book and only have some extremely minor nitpicks to mention.
Our female lead is Leena. Leena comes from a place where the people are known as Charmers, and they use what's essentially an innate ability to draw others to them to tame magical creatures. When the book starts, Leena has been exiled from her home for crimes she hasn't committed, framed by an ex who did commit said crimes. Understandably, she has some trust issues. She's also doing a bunch of illegal stuff to get by. But her competence is established very early, as is her tendency to genuinely care about others, even when she maybe shouldn't. Leena is an intensely likeable character from the get-go.
When a contract for a hit is put on her, Leena forces her way into the guild that has taken the contract and negotiates with the head of the guild, Noc, to get the hit rescinded. Noc, who's got ninety-nine problems of his own, makes a deal that if she can get the guild four creatures of a certain level of skill, he'll "handle" the contract. What Leena doesn't know is that by the rules of the guild, the contract can't be rescinded, barring having the person who ordered it rescind it or killing that person, and Noc simply intends to kill her once he's gotten the creatures.
In fairness, Leena has forced her way in by way of almost killing his second, so he thinks he's dealing with some kind of criminal mastermind, basically, but I will say, I was pretty side-eye-ey about this.
Anyway, Noc and the three other assassins Leena is going to provide with creatures have to go on a road trip to go get the creatures. You'll be shocked to find out that Noc and Leena fall in love along the way. Then there's a BUNCH of exterior problems that have to be overcome for that love to be even mildly viable. For those that this might bother: this is the first in a planned six book series, and there are elements of the plot that are not resolved at the end. That said, it ends at a HFN place and it doesn't feel like you'll die if you can't begin the next book immediately.
All right, my nitpicks, and they really are minor. I like very much that Noc is clearly queer--he's had past relationships with both men and women, there's no question that he finds both men and women romantically interesting. However, in a world where there does not seem to be an issue with queerness, at least so far as I can discern, the fact that it is his past heterosexual relationship that sets off a war, and that he ends with Leena because, as one of his male near-lovers explains, "she's the missing piece," it fronts his m/f relationships in a way that his m/m relationships are not. I don't actually think this was intentional on the part of the author. Especially as the relationship between Kost (the near-lover) and Noc has settled into deep platonic love, it doesn't feel as though it's meant to be dismissive. Even so, it would have been really easy for the relationship that began the war to be the one between Noc and his male lover because...their society doesn't have our hang ups. And sure, you have a bit of a kill your gays issue there, but not really, because a) several of Noc's past lovers are dead because Noc has been living with a curse with that as the end result, and b) Kost is still alive and we are introduced to another queer character at the end of the book that it's heavily suggested will play a larger part in the coming books/is interested in pursuing Kost.
Also, with the exception of a few minor characters here and there, for a completely different world, everyone seems weirdly pretty white.
If you are someone for whom characters keeping secrets from each other bothers you, I would tell you to proceed with caution. Both characters have serious secrets, and they are not revealed until well into the book. Some of Noc's STILL have not been revealed to Leena, which is a little squicky, if I'm being honest. They both have good reasons for keeping quiet as long as they do, everyone's motivations in this book make sense, but if that's a thing for you, well, reader beware.
And finally, there's a point in the book where Noc assumes something he is told which is exceedingly vague and he's really dumb AF to make the assumption he makes means one thing and it actually means something completely else which screws Leena six ways from Sunday. Again, it makes sense why he makes this assumption, but also, there's a decent amount of 'because plot' that happens there, which also might be a thing for some peeps.
That said, Leena's a great leading character, and Noc is pretty darn good. Kost, Calem, and Oz are all deeply engaging, and the found family happening in this is *chef's kiss*. As a plus, the creatures are interesting, and sometimes adorable. Most of all, I never felt like the plot got in the way of the characters or the relationships, which I feel like 99.9999% of plots do.
Our female lead is Leena. Leena comes from a place where the people are known as Charmers, and they use what's essentially an innate ability to draw others to them to tame magical creatures. When the book starts, Leena has been exiled from her home for crimes she hasn't committed, framed by an ex who did commit said crimes. Understandably, she has some trust issues. She's also doing a bunch of illegal stuff to get by. But her competence is established very early, as is her tendency to genuinely care about others, even when she maybe shouldn't. Leena is an intensely likeable character from the get-go.
When a contract for a hit is put on her, Leena forces her way into the guild that has taken the contract and negotiates with the head of the guild, Noc, to get the hit rescinded. Noc, who's got ninety-nine problems of his own, makes a deal that if she can get the guild four creatures of a certain level of skill, he'll "handle" the contract. What Leena doesn't know is that by the rules of the guild, the contract can't be rescinded, barring having the person who ordered it rescind it or killing that person, and Noc simply intends to kill her once he's gotten the creatures.
In fairness, Leena has forced her way in by way of almost killing his second, so he thinks he's dealing with some kind of criminal mastermind, basically, but I will say, I was pretty side-eye-ey about this.
Anyway, Noc and the three other assassins Leena is going to provide with creatures have to go on a road trip to go get the creatures. You'll be shocked to find out that Noc and Leena fall in love along the way. Then there's a BUNCH of exterior problems that have to be overcome for that love to be even mildly viable. For those that this might bother: this is the first in a planned six book series, and there are elements of the plot that are not resolved at the end. That said, it ends at a HFN place and it doesn't feel like you'll die if you can't begin the next book immediately.
All right, my nitpicks, and they really are minor. I like very much that Noc is clearly queer--he's had past relationships with both men and women, there's no question that he finds both men and women romantically interesting. However, in a world where there does not seem to be an issue with queerness, at least so far as I can discern, the fact that it is his past heterosexual relationship that sets off a war, and that he ends with Leena because, as one of his male near-lovers explains, "she's the missing piece," it fronts his m/f relationships in a way that his m/m relationships are not. I don't actually think this was intentional on the part of the author. Especially as the relationship between Kost (the near-lover) and Noc has settled into deep platonic love, it doesn't feel as though it's meant to be dismissive. Even so, it would have been really easy for the relationship that began the war to be the one between Noc and his male lover because...their society doesn't have our hang ups. And sure, you have a bit of a kill your gays issue there, but not really, because a) several of Noc's past lovers are dead because Noc has been living with a curse with that as the end result, and b) Kost is still alive and we are introduced to another queer character at the end of the book that it's heavily suggested will play a larger part in the coming books/is interested in pursuing Kost.
Also, with the exception of a few minor characters here and there, for a completely different world, everyone seems weirdly pretty white.
If you are someone for whom characters keeping secrets from each other bothers you, I would tell you to proceed with caution. Both characters have serious secrets, and they are not revealed until well into the book. Some of Noc's STILL have not been revealed to Leena, which is a little squicky, if I'm being honest. They both have good reasons for keeping quiet as long as they do, everyone's motivations in this book make sense, but if that's a thing for you, well, reader beware.
And finally, there's a point in the book where Noc assumes something he is told which is exceedingly vague and he's really dumb AF to make the assumption he makes means one thing and it actually means something completely else which screws Leena six ways from Sunday. Again, it makes sense why he makes this assumption, but also, there's a decent amount of 'because plot' that happens there, which also might be a thing for some peeps.
That said, Leena's a great leading character, and Noc is pretty darn good. Kost, Calem, and Oz are all deeply engaging, and the found family happening in this is *chef's kiss*. As a plus, the creatures are interesting, and sometimes adorable. Most of all, I never felt like the plot got in the way of the characters or the relationships, which I feel like 99.9999% of plots do.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Violence