A review by lindih
Grace and Fury by Tracy Banghart

3.5

I’m going to be honest, it took a while for me to really get into the plot, but by the last ten-ish chapters, it really picked up and grabbed my interest.

Nomi as the younger sister was set up to be very rebellious and defiant. I was excited to see her story when she was thrust into a world of royalty, makeup, and gowns that was polar opposite to her and that she did *not* want to be in. However, her storyline felt like it dragged along. Nothing really seemed to happen, and when it did, it was only for split moments at a time. I was a bit confused with Malachi and Asa because it felt like a love triangle setting up between the two brothers and Nomi, and that was off putting in itself.

I was not too thrilled with Serina when I first met her. I’ll be honest, I thought her storyline was going to be a bit boring and lackluster, but I was so wrong. I enjoyed her story much more than Nomi’s, and I loved seeing her grow and develop individuality at her time in the prison of Mount Ruin. Her budding relationship with Val was adorable. He was so great, and I can’t wait to see them again in book two, and I can’t wait to see Serina strengthen even more so.

The concept of the Graces was strange, almost harem-like, and it was just kind of awkward at moments. Essentially, the Heir picks three pretty girls a year to be his “Graces,” and when he has this whole selection of girls, he picks one to bear his children by the time he becomes the Superior. Having Malachi wander around perfumeries, horse races, balls, lunches, and whatnots with his three Graces felt so weird, like this dude’s the Heir! Shouldn’t he be doing, I don’t know, important Heir business rather than escorting three girls around whose only role is to be pretty and flirt with him? It was just kind of weird in the grand scheme of things.

The plot felt a bit predictable on Nomi’s end, especially with Asa and Malachi and what happens. I did predict some stuff right which I’m happy about, but at the same time, I kind of wanted it to surprise me. This book overall was really cute; it gave me the same vibes as something I would have read in middle or high school, kind of like The Selection series. The ending was insane, though, and I need to know what happens because oh my gosh.