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A review by spookshow
Fit for the Throne: The Trial of Ten by S. McPherson
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.
When Varialla is kidnapped by a smoking hot stranger while on a night out, she's not too impressed. Even more so once they arrive in the Five Isles and she discovers that she now has to compete in some twisted fae game show for the crown to a kingdom she's never heard of. Varialla is just a human woman, but no one around her believes her, least of all Exekial - the fae who brought her here. With nothing else on her mind bar escaping this crazy nightmare she's found herself in, Varialla soon discovers that the only way out of the games, is through them. With her life on the line at every turn, Varialla soon discovers that the life she thought was hers was littered with secrets and lies, and that there is so much more to her than she's ever realised. Death is common in the Trial of Ten, will Varialla be able to survive long enough to learn the full truth about who she is?
I was so stoked when I received confirmation that I'd been chosen to receive an ARC copy of this book, and even more so when that copy rocked up in my mailbox! I live in Australia, so receiving physical copies of ARC books is always a huge mood lifter. After reading the synopsis for this story, I knew it was one that I wanted to read. I couldn't help but feel that the blurb read like the Hunger Games crossed with The Bachelor, and what kind of person would I be if I didn't admit to wanting to watch THAT kind of game show. This story definitely delivered on it's promise and my assumption, yet did so without getting too bogged down in the details of the TV show side of things which was nice. Yes there were scenes where Varialla's outfits were given more page time than was probably necessary, but I didn't really have a problem with that. It helped to round out the image in my head. I've always been one that has enjoyed deeper descriptions of characters, their outfits and the world around them, so this worked well for me.
The story itself had a fantastic and unique premise and it's what drew me in and had me wanting to read it. One issue that I did have however, was that I felt like there was a lot of things going on and at times the story became a bit convoluted and chaotic. We had the game show, many, many characters, the story of Varialla competing in said game show, the relationship between her and Exekiel, and we also had the deeper story line of Varialla's true identity and heritage. When laid out like that, it doesn't seem like a lot, but the way that it was written did make it feel like, at times, there was way too much going on. Don't get me wrong, I loved that there is so much to unpack here and that there is so many storylines which will make way for more instalments, I just felt like McPherson may have tried to tackle too much in the first instalment for the series. In saying that though, I'm not really sure whether any of the plot threads could have been left until a later instalment or not. You kind of needed all of that information to get a fuller picture on what was going on. Initially I struggled a little because there was a lot to take in, but by the last quarter of the book I found myself really invested in the story and Varialla and finding out where they were headed.
The characters were fun, and I really enjoyed the character of Varialla's friend in the games, the witch (I want to say Lucinda, but I'm not 100% certain whether that's her name), she was probably my favourite if I'm honest. I did not like Exekiel at all. I'm a big fan of close proximity and enemies to lovers, but there's just something about him that I really didn't like and even when he was saving Varialla from life threatening events that she found herself in, it still didn't redeem him in my eyes. I know that there's more than meets the eye and that there's going to be a deeper story to his character and his involvement in being the Protector of the Realm and the terrible things that he's done in the name of BEING the protector, but at this point in the story, I just really do not like him at all. So the spicy scenes between him and Varialla really did nothing for me other than make me dislike him more and more. Varialla is a strong character, she's been through a lot and some of this is touched on throughout the story. I did feel like she lost a little bit of that fierce female energy in her reaction to Exekiel, though I understand the reaction she was having was due to the other thing and not just because she's a lust crazed female who can't say no to a pretty face. I do wish that she was able to assert more power over that attraction though. For someone who I took to be so street smart, I did find that she was a teeny bit dense when it came to all the dropped info alluding to her true heritage as well as the connection to Exekiel. I'd picked the Exekiel thing from the second that it was mentioned as a possibility and something that is used in the games, and I'd pretty much picked up what she was not long after the first hints had been accidentally dropped by other characters. That denseness could have simply been just an illustration on how difficult it can be for us to be objective about things when it comes to ourselves, but I feel like it was more used to keep the suspense a little bit longer about certain aspects of Varialla's character and the story. Our initial meeting of a certain sea swept character had me intrigued, but McPherson did an absolutely fantastic job of illustrating the relationship between them and Varialla, as well as Varialla's distate and uncomfortable feelings towards the supposed relationship they were meant to have. Being able to really have your reader feeling such distaste and revulsion due to memories and feelings is a fantastic ability, and I really felt what Varialla was feeling towards this particular situation. In saying that, McPherson also did a great job of getting me to feel Varialla's disgust at herself for her feelings towards Exekiel as well, especially after she began to learn more about her heritage and what had been happening in the world and his involvement in it.
I feel like I wanted a bit more world exploration, there is a great world that has been built in this initial instalment, and there's a rich history as well which are fantastic foundations for a solid world and story. I'm hoping that we get to explore the world itself a little bit more in the next instalment as I feel like it was a bit of a lost opportunity here. Things were touched on and the world hierarchy and functionality was easily understood, I just wanted more from the world side of things I think. I still think the idea of the games is absolutely fantastic and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with that as we didn't get to see who was crowned the winner. I feel that some people might look at this as a messy smut fest with no real depth or bones to it, where for me, this was a decent first instalment for a series that felt a little bit convoluted at times, but I feel that it did a great job at giving us an overview of the world, how it works, the key issues here, one of the biggest ones being the political side of everything and where Varialla stands amongst it all. It set up all the foundations for a strong story to progress from and I am really looking forward to where it's going to head. Do I feel that this story could have been streamlined a little more to make it a bit easier to follow, yeah maybe. Do I still feel that it's an interesting read that kept me entertained and wanting to know what happens next? Yes. Books don't have to be perfect to be enjoyed, they just have to be able to grab the reader and have them empathising with the character's plight, and this one did that for me. Yes the pacing was a little bit too slow moving at times, but I put that down to the fact that there was a lot to take in and in order to not just info dump that, the story did have to slow down a lot and take it's time working through details.
All in all, this was an entertaining and unique read and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens as the series progresses. I'm not a huge fan of the love interest at this point, but I'm open to McPherson being able to change that as Exekiel and Varialla's character evolve with the story.
When Varialla is kidnapped by a smoking hot stranger while on a night out, she's not too impressed. Even more so once they arrive in the Five Isles and she discovers that she now has to compete in some twisted fae game show for the crown to a kingdom she's never heard of. Varialla is just a human woman, but no one around her believes her, least of all Exekial - the fae who brought her here. With nothing else on her mind bar escaping this crazy nightmare she's found herself in, Varialla soon discovers that the only way out of the games, is through them. With her life on the line at every turn, Varialla soon discovers that the life she thought was hers was littered with secrets and lies, and that there is so much more to her than she's ever realised. Death is common in the Trial of Ten, will Varialla be able to survive long enough to learn the full truth about who she is?
I was so stoked when I received confirmation that I'd been chosen to receive an ARC copy of this book, and even more so when that copy rocked up in my mailbox! I live in Australia, so receiving physical copies of ARC books is always a huge mood lifter. After reading the synopsis for this story, I knew it was one that I wanted to read. I couldn't help but feel that the blurb read like the Hunger Games crossed with The Bachelor, and what kind of person would I be if I didn't admit to wanting to watch THAT kind of game show. This story definitely delivered on it's promise and my assumption, yet did so without getting too bogged down in the details of the TV show side of things which was nice. Yes there were scenes where Varialla's outfits were given more page time than was probably necessary, but I didn't really have a problem with that. It helped to round out the image in my head. I've always been one that has enjoyed deeper descriptions of characters, their outfits and the world around them, so this worked well for me.
The story itself had a fantastic and unique premise and it's what drew me in and had me wanting to read it. One issue that I did have however, was that I felt like there was a lot of things going on and at times the story became a bit convoluted and chaotic. We had the game show, many, many characters, the story of Varialla competing in said game show, the relationship between her and Exekiel, and we also had the deeper story line of Varialla's true identity and heritage. When laid out like that, it doesn't seem like a lot, but the way that it was written did make it feel like, at times, there was way too much going on. Don't get me wrong, I loved that there is so much to unpack here and that there is so many storylines which will make way for more instalments, I just felt like McPherson may have tried to tackle too much in the first instalment for the series. In saying that though, I'm not really sure whether any of the plot threads could have been left until a later instalment or not. You kind of needed all of that information to get a fuller picture on what was going on. Initially I struggled a little because there was a lot to take in, but by the last quarter of the book I found myself really invested in the story and Varialla and finding out where they were headed.
The characters were fun, and I really enjoyed the character of Varialla's friend in the games, the witch (I want to say Lucinda, but I'm not 100% certain whether that's her name), she was probably my favourite if I'm honest. I did not like Exekiel at all. I'm a big fan of close proximity and enemies to lovers, but there's just something about him that I really didn't like and even when he was saving Varialla from life threatening events that she found herself in, it still didn't redeem him in my eyes. I know that there's more than meets the eye and that there's going to be a deeper story to his character and his involvement in being the Protector of the Realm and the terrible things that he's done in the name of BEING the protector, but at this point in the story, I just really do not like him at all. So the spicy scenes between him and Varialla really did nothing for me other than make me dislike him more and more. Varialla is a strong character, she's been through a lot and some of this is touched on throughout the story. I did feel like she lost a little bit of that fierce female energy in her reaction to Exekiel, though I understand the reaction she was having was due to the other thing and not just because she's a lust crazed female who can't say no to a pretty face. I do wish that she was able to assert more power over that attraction though. For someone who I took to be so street smart, I did find that she was a teeny bit dense when it came to all the dropped info alluding to her true heritage as well as the connection to Exekiel. I'd picked the Exekiel thing from the second that it was mentioned as a possibility and something that is used in the games, and I'd pretty much picked up what she was not long after the first hints had been accidentally dropped by other characters. That denseness could have simply been just an illustration on how difficult it can be for us to be objective about things when it comes to ourselves, but I feel like it was more used to keep the suspense a little bit longer about certain aspects of Varialla's character and the story. Our initial meeting of a certain sea swept character had me intrigued, but McPherson did an absolutely fantastic job of illustrating the relationship between them and Varialla, as well as Varialla's distate and uncomfortable feelings towards the supposed relationship they were meant to have. Being able to really have your reader feeling such distaste and revulsion due to memories and feelings is a fantastic ability, and I really felt what Varialla was feeling towards this particular situation. In saying that, McPherson also did a great job of getting me to feel Varialla's disgust at herself for her feelings towards Exekiel as well, especially after she began to learn more about her heritage and what had been happening in the world and his involvement in it.
I feel like I wanted a bit more world exploration, there is a great world that has been built in this initial instalment, and there's a rich history as well which are fantastic foundations for a solid world and story. I'm hoping that we get to explore the world itself a little bit more in the next instalment as I feel like it was a bit of a lost opportunity here. Things were touched on and the world hierarchy and functionality was easily understood, I just wanted more from the world side of things I think. I still think the idea of the games is absolutely fantastic and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens with that as we didn't get to see who was crowned the winner. I feel that some people might look at this as a messy smut fest with no real depth or bones to it, where for me, this was a decent first instalment for a series that felt a little bit convoluted at times, but I feel that it did a great job at giving us an overview of the world, how it works, the key issues here, one of the biggest ones being the political side of everything and where Varialla stands amongst it all. It set up all the foundations for a strong story to progress from and I am really looking forward to where it's going to head. Do I feel that this story could have been streamlined a little more to make it a bit easier to follow, yeah maybe. Do I still feel that it's an interesting read that kept me entertained and wanting to know what happens next? Yes. Books don't have to be perfect to be enjoyed, they just have to be able to grab the reader and have them empathising with the character's plight, and this one did that for me. Yes the pacing was a little bit too slow moving at times, but I put that down to the fact that there was a lot to take in and in order to not just info dump that, the story did have to slow down a lot and take it's time working through details.
All in all, this was an entertaining and unique read and I'm looking forward to seeing what happens as the series progresses. I'm not a huge fan of the love interest at this point, but I'm open to McPherson being able to change that as Exekiel and Varialla's character evolve with the story.