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4.03 AVERAGE
4.03 AVERAGE
Easy read with some nice but simple world building, got me hooked immediately with the hint to an enemies to lovers in the future but kept me interested because of the plot.
Nothing terribly wrong. Mediocre writing and shallow, obvious characters. Not bad but not great
I felt incredibly lucky to be an ARC reader for this book. Seeing as this is my first time, and unsure who the author was, I was very unsure of myself in how much I would enjoy reading it. I consider myself a very picky reader. I had to give myself a few hours for post-book clarity before I wrote this review.
I truly and genuinely enjoyed this book. I will not lie, I think I held a lot of skepticism towards the beginning. The world building and the personalities that were being developed were going strong, and I was waiting for the excitement to dissipate. It never came.
I am a rather newer fan of the fantasy genre, and I have read some of the new big names. I genuinely have no doubt this one will be one of the next. The plot was unique. While I'm sure others will be more critical of this new series, however if you enjoy fantasy and developing theories and just overall having to stop and think about what's gonna happen next, youre bound to like this book. The powers and the way the trials work are fascinating. I truly wonder how Lauren came up with such a clever concept.
The characters were also great. There are a lot of new names that hit quickly, but you get to know some the important ones that stand out fairly quickly. The others? They have a clear personality but if you manage to read between the lines, then you see what secrets they might hide. Without any spoilers, I can see why some may argue that some of the character's actions may be predicatable, but if you fully immerse yourself in the story and enjoy your read, your jaw will just be hanging open for the entire last half of the book.
100% pre-ordering a hard copy as a trophy for my shelf.
I truly and genuinely enjoyed this book. I will not lie, I think I held a lot of skepticism towards the beginning. The world building and the personalities that were being developed were going strong, and I was waiting for the excitement to dissipate. It never came.
I am a rather newer fan of the fantasy genre, and I have read some of the new big names. I genuinely have no doubt this one will be one of the next. The plot was unique. While I'm sure others will be more critical of this new series, however if you enjoy fantasy and developing theories and just overall having to stop and think about what's gonna happen next, youre bound to like this book. The powers and the way the trials work are fascinating. I truly wonder how Lauren came up with such a clever concept.
The characters were also great. There are a lot of new names that hit quickly, but you get to know some the important ones that stand out fairly quickly. The others? They have a clear personality but if you manage to read between the lines, then you see what secrets they might hide. Without any spoilers, I can see why some may argue that some of the character's actions may be predicatable, but if you fully immerse yourself in the story and enjoy your read, your jaw will just be hanging open for the entire last half of the book.
100% pre-ordering a hard copy as a trophy for my shelf.
“You seek and say the truth, but others lie to you. They’ll never lie to you again and now your trial is at its end”
This was a great first novel from this author! I really enjoyed the idea of the trails for the different courts and how everyone’s gift is based on how you complete it. And the fact that Valors trail broke when Lystra completed hers. Also so curious as to what her new power will be after completing truths.
The characters and character development were very entertaining but I will say I got bad vibes from Evander right from the start. Sar and Bash are two of my favorites and look forward to reading more of their stories.
One thing that did bother me was that I wish we learned more about Torryn and his background. It’s seemed that he pretty much disappeared in the middle of the book. But I’m sure the second book will bring him into the limelight.
Overall I throughly enjoyed my time reading this book and cannot wait for the journey to continue in the second one! Thank you to Lauren for choosing me as an ARC reader!
adventurous
fast-paced
I tried to like it.. but I just couldn’t with all the holes in the plot and just inconsistencies. It could be a good book and I have no doubt the next one written will be good, but for this one it’s a no for me. Also a YA read.
*I was kindly given a ARC copy of this book.*
My spoiler free honest review: I loved the concepts and idea of this story and was intrigued by the characters.
I think if I had found this book when I was a tween I would have enjoyed it more. The writing is very young YA and it was hard for me to get sucked in because of that, but I’m also in my late 20s and I think that worked against me. I found the style of descriptions and conversations kept taking me out of the story and I was sadly unable to get immersed and invested into the world. I did not end up finishing it because I just couldn’t connect with the writing, even though I was very excited by the synopsis and interested in exploring the world.
I think this book would be appreciated by a younger YA fantasy audience more than adults who like YA fantasy.
Also, to be honest, I didn’t love that the Trials were used as a cuss/exclamation. “Trials, you scared me” as an example. It didn’t make sense as a word choice for me.
My spoiler free honest review: I loved the concepts and idea of this story and was intrigued by the characters.
I think if I had found this book when I was a tween I would have enjoyed it more. The writing is very young YA and it was hard for me to get sucked in because of that, but I’m also in my late 20s and I think that worked against me. I found the style of descriptions and conversations kept taking me out of the story and I was sadly unable to get immersed and invested into the world. I did not end up finishing it because I just couldn’t connect with the writing, even though I was very excited by the synopsis and interested in exploring the world.
I think this book would be appreciated by a younger YA fantasy audience more than adults who like YA fantasy.
Also, to be honest, I didn’t love that the Trials were used as a cuss/exclamation. “Trials, you scared me” as an example. It didn’t make sense as a word choice for me.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
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:
Complicated