I received this sneak peak from NetGalley and loved it. It was completely action packed with a tense and foreboding atmosphere especially during the shoot ouot competition scenes. While I didn't immediately warm to Amani I admired her spunky attitude in this patriarchal society. I loved the setting as I havent read many good fantasy books set in the desert and it has some amazingly portrayed characters. I cant wait to buy this book especially as the sequel traitor to the throne is coming out very soon.

As this is only a sample, I can't leave a full review. But what I read has me intrigued and I was disappointed to reach the end of the sample. I'm not sure about the blend of Arabian and Western settings, but it is too soon to tell. So far, I'm loving Amani's sharp tongue and run-ins with a foreigner with an equally quick wit. The unique setting has plenty to offer in the form of clever world building and I look forward to giving it a full read once I pick up my copy. The writing seems solid and based on the beginning, I would recommend this book.

This book starts off right in the middle of action and adventure. It grips you right from the start and leaves you wanting more! I love how strong the main character is and he struggles with living in her current situation. She strives to escape and finds this mysterious foreigner that she keeps bumping into. Just where will the adventure take her next?

I adored this sneak peek into 'Rebel of the Sands' and it has made me desperate to read the full novel. Hamilton creates a fascinating world with a vibrant sense of culture and history that still feels rooted in a sense of history and reality. Her main character, Amani, is a beautifully spunky and wilful girl who faces major crises in her life and tries to fight her way through them. She is determined, sarcastic, scared, brave, and a dreamer. After the few chapters contained in this sneak peek I already found myself absolutely in love with her and rooting for her. This sneak peek absolutely entices the reader towards reading the full book!

This was a great read with excellent details. Loved the well written characters and can't wait to see what happens in the sequel.

(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

THIS IS NOT A FULL E-GALLEY. THIS IS A SNEAK PEEK.

A sharpshooter. A dreamer. A damn good liar.
Mortals rule the desert nation of Miraji, but mythical beasts still roam the wild and remote areas, and rumor has it that somewhere, djinn still perform their magic.  For humans, it’s an unforgiving place, especially if you’re poor, orphaned, or female. 
Amani Al’Hiza is all three.  She’s a gifted gunslinger with perfect aim, but she can’t shoot her way out of Dustwalk, the back-country town where she’s destined to wind up wed or dead. Then she meets Jin, a rakish foreigner, in a shooting contest, and sees him as the perfect escape route. But though she’s spent years dreaming of leaving Dustwalk, she never imagined she’d gallop away on mythical horse—or that it would take a foreign fugitive to show her the heart of the desert she thought she knew.

Pretty disappointed with this, actually. The blurb sounded brilliant, the cover is fantastic...

The biggest issue I had with this preview (and the reason I wouldn't buy it for myself) is the writing style. It is a mish-mash of trying to write a book seriously, with backstory and history etc...and then the writing itself is just hard to stomach. One such example:

"...the only folks who beloned in Deadshot after dark were the ones who were up to no good. I wasn't up to no good. The again, I wasn't exactly up to no bad either."

That just made me cringe. I don't know if the author thought they were being clever - to me, it just came across as ordinary. And that was in the first few pages...

So, bearing in mind that it was a preview and doesn't tell me the whole story, there was just too much that I didn't like for me to consider reading for myself. But I know a lot of customers who would lap it up so I am happy to provide for them...


Paul
ARH

Well written and definitely intrigued. This is a favorite author of many in our library system.

Rebel of the Sands is one of my new favorite books for one reason... Amani. She is a fantastic heroine and I was hooked on her as soon as she entered a shooting contest, hiding her gender, as a means to try to win money and escape her current life situation. While that story doesn't seem rare, it actually is rare in ya books. And in her shoes, I probably would've ended up in an arranged marriage and suffered for the rest of my life.

So combine a kick-butt heroine with magic, a djinn and horses in the desert, and I was sold. It was such a fun read and I am so excited that the sequel has finally been released. I do wish that the cover design was intact... the new designs are a little too movie-esque instead of middle-eastern-magic-and-myth.

Since this was only for an excerpt, I will not be posting a full review, but thank you for the brief re-visit to this world.

A very good introduction to an intriguing new world which is a cross between and western and middle East culture. Since this was just a "Sneak Peek" of the novel, I can only say that I was very motivated to find out more about the story. I look forward to reading the entire novel.

A sneak peak that left me begging for the rest! So good. A brilliantly written book about Amani who is a picture of strength, resilience, and cunning. A talented shooter from the desert town of Dustwalk who is soon to either be married or be killed. Amani lives with her uncle and aunt who are absolutely cruel. She must find a way out and to the city that her mother always spoke so highly of or she knows she will end up unhappy, dead, or both. The writing will draw you in right from the first page. Amani's struggle will keep you invested in her and rooting for her to get out of her current situation. Twists and turns won't let you put this book down, and this was only the sneak peek! I am surely going to pick up the full book and give my full review on it on Goodreads and on my blog!

While the novel offers strong start and some seriously fantastic and creative world building, I still wasn't completely attached to the protagonist (as strong as she was) by the end of the preview. At this time I wouldn't purchase the book to continue the story.

If you are looking for a western with a sci-fi setting, this should fit the bill. Not my cup of tea, and I wasn't impressed with the writing. Not very original or very compelling. My review is based on a sneak peek, not the full book.

This teaser was perfect. I'm already hooked and thanking the book gods that I already own the book! Cannot wait to finish and see where the rest of this story goes.

This was a great sneak peek that got me excited about the coming novel. I had not read the first in the series but I will be shortly now that I have read these first few chapters. Amani is an exciting character that stands up for herself, is not afraid to get into trouble, and has a drive that will move the story along at a fast pace. I enjoyed the idea of Amani being a sharpshooter and look forward to seeing for shootouts and impossible shots in the future. The setting, brief as it was, was detailed and gave a sense of the vast nothing that surrounds Amani’s town. Excited to find out more about Amani’s inevitable romance with the foreigner and their adventures out of this small town.

Phenomenal excerpt. It is clear that Rebel of the Sands is a force to be reckoned with. I cannot wait to get my hands on the full version.

This was a fantastic little sneak peek! Engaging, exciting, with conflict and charismatic characters. Can't wait to read more.

This book made me so happy. A fantastic, strong, and capable female protagonist. A totally crush-worthy boy, and magic fire horses. Huzzah.

Amani is a sharpshooter who needs to get the heck out of her small town where woman are considered to be chattel. Its either that or become her uncle's next bride, or another man's possession. Before she can cut out completely and after a disastrous attempt at disguising herself as a boy and attempting a shooting contest, Amani meets Jin.

Jin is a foreigner, and out to cause trouble for the town's industry (gun making), but may prove her ticket out of town. He may also have connections with the growing rebellion in the desert, which could lead to an even greater adventure for Amani despite its risks and danger.

Battling magical creatures, sandstorms, bandits, and surprises, this is a wonderful start to a new YA series. Can't wait for more!

**ARC Sneak Peak from Netgalley 3/1/17**
Curses, my TBR is not liking me at all this week. And I even deleted about 100 books off of it!
Considering this preview of this particular ‘book’ is only four chapters long, it is safe to say that I’m going to have to go out and buy this book. I saw the new cover for it too and I’m just loving the hell out of it. I NEED IT ON MY SHELF!

Since this was a bit confusing to read at first since the paragraphs and line breaks were all over the place I had to get over my OCD about PERFECT LINES. But other than that this book just sucked me in within those four chapters. I liked the two main characters and can't wait to read more about them!

I can’t wait to get my hands on this and hopefully soon though.

So far so good! From this sneak peek Rebel of the Sands seems best described as a steampunk, Wild-West desert fantasy with a hint of magic. Needless to say I'm intrigued by its smart, gunslinging heroine and its enigmatic hero. Can't wait to read more...

Even though Rebel of the Sands was published a while back, I still hadn't gotten around to reading it. The new paperback cover is BEAUTIFUL and I couldn't help myself but download the excerpt. Well I'm in - I have to have this book and I have to read it all. Three chapters has me completely hooked!

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read the excerpt!