A review by paperbacksandsketchbooks
Reign Returned by Katie Keridan

mysterious slow-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

3.0

Thanks to Book Sparks and the author for the gifted copy!

Reign Returned is book one of the Felserpent Chronicles, a YA fantasy novel following Kyra and Sebastian as they work together to retrieve a sword from their version of an underworld.
Kyra is gold-blooded and Sebastian is silver-blooded, and long standed feuds have their kinds hating each other. But they both have things the other wants, so they put their differences aside and help each other out.

I thought the story had a unique concept. The world building felt a bit disjointed to me and I will admit I was a tad confused sometimes. The world also seemed very complex, and I feel like if it were simplified by just a hair maybe some of my confusion would be cleared.
This book has a slow start. It picked up speed about halfway through, at which point I really wanted to know what happened. We started getting into the action and more things started coming to light - it was fun to read.
I liked the whole "fated mates" concept of this book. The story was laid out in an interesting way with the dream sequences and dual POVs. And it ended on a cliffhanger, so of course I need to read book two!
Overall, this was a solid YA fantasy. It wasn't anything mindblowing, but I still think those who enjoy fantasy novels will enjoy this book.