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4.3 AVERAGE
4.3 AVERAGE
adventurous
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:
No
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was expecting a love triangle and was so much happier to find a poly situation! One of the things I love about Kemmerer's YA fantasy series is the broody MMC, and she gave us two of them in her adult debut. I love the tension between Asher and Ky. I liked the way Jory kept surprising Ky. This book is 99% character development/romance. I wanted a little more substantial plot, but I'm definitely not mad at the way this turned out. I think this would have done well at Priory of the Orange Tree length rather than splitting it into three books, though. Even so, definitely a hit for me, and I will continue reading the series.
Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.
Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
WARRIOR PRINCESS ASSASSIN! WHAT A BOOK! i haven’t been captivated and unable to put down a book like i was with this one in so long and wow it’s good to be back. this was more than i could have ever expected and i (perhaps surprisingly in some ways) loved every. single. minute.
i came to adore all three primary characters. ky, jory, and asher are all so interesting. the famed warrior king, the brutal assassin, and the innocent princess. all true descriptors that also fail to encompass the magnitude of these characters. they are so much more than their labels. they have depth and trauma and love and quirks and i so enjoyed getting each of their points of view.
the slow burn is so well done. i haven’t read many books that fall under the why choose/threeway category but i was rooting for all of them to be with each other and actually really enjoyed seeing how different sides of them came out with each other. each character bloomed throughout the book and their love brought out the best (and wildest!) in each other
as a certified lover of banter, i was kicking my feet and giggling. ky, jory, and asher each gave and got and i was dying. they went from aggressive to seductive to serious in five seconds and i thank brigit for the whiplash. please do it again!
the political element was also so intriguing!! the alliance was the central element bringing our characters together and it plays a core role throughout. readers are left wondering all book who is behind the assassination requests and what the political play is. there is so much betrayal and double crossing and character growth and power moves.
i didn’t want to put this down - i was captivated from the start. the characters and plot were both so well written and absolutely addicting to follow. i could not get enough of this and cannot wait for book two!!!!
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
WARRIOR PRINCESS ASSASSIN is a great read for romantasy lovers. It has some fun tropes, in depth characters, political intrigue, and why chose vibes. While I think the pacing was a bit off, I really enjoyed the book and it kept me hooked.
This book has a ton of positives. But what I liked most was the POV changes and the character depth. Each character feels fleshed out and complete. Their voices felt different, their perspectives were interesting and engaging, and their roles, meant to define them (literally… it’s the title!), are actually just those, titles. And the book makes that clear.
But I do think the pacing was a bit off. All of the events take place in about a week, which, in a fantasy novel, isn’t enough time. The author does a great job balancing the information necessary for us as readers to understand the story, while also moving the plot along, but some of the connections between characters and the answers we want as readers could have been fleshed out more instead of happening so quickly.
Overall, I thought the book was a great romantasy read. I enjoyed it and I’m excited to pick up the next book!
Thank you to Avon Harper and NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual violence, Slavery, Violence, Trafficking
OHMAGOSH this book was so bingeable I am genuinely going crazy bc I have no more material to read about these characters 😫
The characters:
The Warrior — oh I was drawn to him from his first pov. Gahhhh his whole character and personality was so stable and safe it litch made me wanna find comfort in him myself. I love how he did what’s necessary for a king. He’s not impulsive and observes behaviour, assesses situations before he speaks or does anything. I loveeeed everything about him.
The Princess — as much as I understood her role in this book she was giving nothing to the overall plot. Her character just did not mesh well with me and she was a bit irrelevant at times to be honest. She felt like dead weight.
The assassin — he made me so emo 🤚 litch want to protect him with my whole body. This man just could not catch a break pls I was on the verge of sobbing for him 😭😭 his whole character just spoke to me. I loveeeed that he was competent in his role and omfds I was eating it up how he bested half the ppl in this book 💋 so satisfying
The romance:
I felt more chemistry between Ky and Asher than any of them with Jory. Like hello the actual betrayal omg the ANGST??? So scrumptious. I did see the potential with Jory and Ky but her with Asher was a mess to be honest. It always felt to me Asher was an afterthought for her.
I’m really glad with how things worked out with them though because they do make sense with each other. The soft moments??? 😫🤚 *on my knees banging my fist on the floor* no bc they were violent one second and then sweet and soft the next plsss I was living for it.
The writing:
As good as the story was, the writing felt overly formal sometimes. It was a bit rocky at the start of the book but I think as the author got more comfortable with the characters, the writing also eased up a bit. Once there was a flow to the book, it became so bingeable u would be able to tear this book away from my hands.
The world building was good but it’s not exactly the best I’ve ever read about. There are still some things that need expanding and fleshing out. I still have questions about the whys and hows. But this is definitely another aspect of the book that’s making me want to come back to this world for more when the next book releases.
Overall it was soooo good and had the perfect pacing.
ೃ⁀➷ Thank you NetGalley and HarperVoyager for the ARC! ♥︎
𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲:
I guess who the traitor was and screamed when I was RIGHT heheh 👹👹
The characters:
The Warrior — oh I was drawn to him from his first pov. Gahhhh his whole character and personality was so stable and safe it litch made me wanna find comfort in him myself. I love how he did what’s necessary for a king. He’s not impulsive and observes behaviour, assesses situations before he speaks or does anything. I loveeeed everything about him.
The Princess — as much as I understood her role in this book she was giving nothing to the overall plot. Her character just did not mesh well with me and she was a bit irrelevant at times to be honest. She felt like dead weight.
The assassin — he made me so emo 🤚 litch want to protect him with my whole body. This man just could not catch a break pls I was on the verge of sobbing for him 😭😭 his whole character just spoke to me. I loveeeed that he was competent in his role and omfds I was eating it up how he bested half the ppl in this book 💋 so satisfying
The romance:
I felt more chemistry between Ky and Asher than any of them with Jory. Like hello the actual betrayal omg the ANGST??? So scrumptious. I did see the potential with Jory and Ky but her with Asher was a mess to be honest. It always felt to me Asher was an afterthought for her.
I’m really glad with how things worked out with them though because they do make sense with each other. The soft moments??? 😫🤚 *on my knees banging my fist on the floor* no bc they were violent one second and then sweet and soft the next plsss I was living for it.
The writing:
As good as the story was, the writing felt overly formal sometimes. It was a bit rocky at the start of the book but I think as the author got more comfortable with the characters, the writing also eased up a bit. Once there was a flow to the book, it became so bingeable u would be able to tear this book away from my hands.
The world building was good but it’s not exactly the best I’ve ever read about. There are still some things that need expanding and fleshing out. I still have questions about the whys and hows. But this is definitely another aspect of the book that’s making me want to come back to this world for more when the next book releases.
Overall it was soooo good and had the perfect pacing.
ೃ⁀➷ Thank you NetGalley and HarperVoyager for the ARC! ♥︎
𝗦𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲:
I guess who the traitor was and screamed when I was RIGHT heheh 👹👹
𝗦𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘀: 🎧
Red - PRZNT
Red - PRZNT
I have been looking forward to Warrior Princess Assassin and Brigid Kemmerer definitely did not disappoint! Follow Jory, the Princess of Astranza, and Kal, the King of Incendar, whose marriage alliance will save both of their kingdoms in war, & Asher, the assassin sent to unalive both of them before it can happen. I really enjoyed the multi POVs, and seeing how each of the characters grow and mature while they navigate political intrigue, spies, and mutual enemies while also dealing with the developing tension and attraction to one another. WPA was a fun, easy why-choose romantasy read - I am definitely excited about continuing their story! I wanted a little bit more plot with this one, but Brigid did a fantastic job setting up the story and the characters relationship that I can’t complain too much :)
Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read an eARC in exchange for my honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
fast-paced
I was very excited to read Warrior Princess Assassin due to having read and really enjoyed Brigid Kemmerer’s "Defy the Night" Trilogy. I was curious to see what she might come up with for her adult debut.
What I liked about this book, as well as her previous work, was the political plot, the issues of the Kingdoms and the question as to who might be behind the conspiracy against the Princess and the Warrior. It mainly is what kept my interest in this book. The story was also very easy to follow.
The three main characters on the other hand, couldn’t win me over. I found none of them incredibly interesting, especially the princess seemed to lack depth with those stereotypical character traits: naive, unknowing, innocent, lonely and easily swooned.
I didn’t mind the love-triangle in general, but the way it was approached did not seem to make a lot of sense to me. The book takes place over a course of a couple of days, the romantic plot seemed to advance way too quickly, which felt unauthentic, especially with the political storyline, and the way the book set off, in mind. Even towards the end of the book, moments shared between the three main characters felt a bit out of place, considering the circumstances.
I appreciate the authors approach to writing an adult fantasy book with a romantic storyline as what seemed to be the main plot, it just didn’t feel quite right. I will be looking into Brigid Kemmerer’s future releases, as well as her backlist, but this series might not be for me.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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
challenging
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
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:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
2.75 stars. This was an ARC from NetGalley. I am struggling with how to rate this one. I am a Brigid Kemmerer stan, and have devoured her YA fantasy work.. The unique word building, character development, and smooth fast paced writing are *chefs kiss*. Automatic read for me. This is her first adult romantascy novel. It feels like all the fundamentals mentioned above were disregarded and replaced with a storyline that the sole focus was to write a why choose with nothing more than nonstop sexual tension from all sides. Not a lot else happened for 400+ pages. This didn't feel very fantasy and more romance. I still enjoyed the characters and burned through the book. If the second book can get back to what makes this author great; I think the series can be redeemed. # NetGalley #warriorprincessassassin #romantasy #whychoose