Another strong novel by Barbara Ann Wright.   House of Fate is a standalone science fiction novel full of action, adventure and political intrigue.  The story revolves around an arranged marriage between two rival houses  of Meridien and Nocturnas that is prophesied to bring peace. As her cousin's Guardian, Judit is sworn to protect Noal until he marries the princess from their rival house.   Annika is the perfect wife-to-be, charming, beautiful and sweet - but wait - she is also an assassin who has been control the mind of the Meridien's groom and pretty much kill anyone that gets in her way.  

This was a fun read - lots of action, adventure and the politics added a nice edge to it all.  Both Judit and Annika were strong kick-ass characters that are nicely juxtaposed based on based on their conflicting agendas,  There's a  romance but its pretty PG and the two main characters are young (late teens) so don't expect there to be steamy scenes.   

 I really enjoyed this one and would strongly recommend it to anyone.

I just love sci-fi. But what I enjoy the most about this book is that it weaved sci-fi with action and adventure so well it just felt right. I’m so very character driven, and I feel like we were really able to connect with both of them, these badass fighters that have to figure out things in their galaxy and things about themselves. 

I loved the romance, I was sucked in and fell for them so hard and fast because the connection is immediate. Their bond is great and you don’t want for anything in this book, they really have a lovely draw to one another.

I enjoyed the action and the story, and would definitely recommend it to anyone who loves sci-fi (though that is not a necessity), lesbian romance, or adventure.

What an amazing read. I'm usually not one for sci-fi, but this one absolutely enthralled me.
Judit and Annika as characters were deeply flawed and complex in beautiful ways and they absolutely worked both as a couple but as characters in their own right.
The characters have to fight against their abusive families and have to actively fight against the toxic upbringing, but they fight so, so hard to be good people and it's wonderful to see. This is a book about carving out your own space in the universe, about going against expectations and abuse and I was gripped from the start to finish. I'd love to read more about these characters.

I was unable to review this book because of a conflict in my schedule. Sorry for any inconvenience this has caused the publisher or the author of the work. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to review for you and  I look forward to reviewing for you in the future.

This is a really good sci-fi story. Now I am a sci-fi fan and this was a really good solid story with lots of action. I really want to say bad ass but I'm not sure if that's a good descriptive word. Hell I'm using it because it was bad ass in places.

The politics took a little more concentration and definitely added to the story. The two main characters can definitely fight but they fight for different reasons. Judit is the guardian of the chosen one, who happens to be her cousin Noal. He is the head of a powerful family and he is meant to marry the chosen one of the other powerful family Annika. But Annika likes Judit and has been told to mind alter Noal so she gets all the power. But her feelings for Judit mars her mission. Then war breaks out and everything changes. OK, I've read what I just wrote and it sounds seriously confusing but it's not. It is a really easy to follow story.

My first and definitely not my last by this author. This was an easy to read, enjoyable sci-fi novel. Enjoy!


*ARC provided by publisher via NetGalley*

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2079247896

https://www.amazon.co.uk/review/R5QIYIF9R26JY/ref=pe_1572281_66412651_cm_rv_eml_rv0_rv

I would consider sci-fi my favorite genre recently and I've been trying to soak up as much of it as possible. I was especially interested in this one as it also listed a f/f romance and I felt like this was the best aspect of the book. The plot itself was a bit uninspired, but it was able to keep me rooting for our protagonists even if the plot seemed to move a little slowly through mostly predictable paces. 

If some of the other side characters had been more fleshed out, I think I would have been more invested in the world as a whole. I understand the need for more books focusing on homonormative societies and stories to be written, but honestly I enjoy it all more when that's not the ONLY thing really focused on. Makes it more realistic. 

Overall, really fun story, but with some improvements, it could be a full package.

Loved this book. Very well developed and characters are very likable.. enjoyed the book very much.

An honest review thanks to NetGalley.  This was a great book if you love sci fi, romance and a thriller this is the book for you.  The plot pulls you in, and you escape into this galaxy that you hope exists.  Barbara Ann Write is the most amazing fantasy lesbian writer out there, and she did it again!

I could not totally connect with this book because it seemed that a lot of the story was kind of a given and the reader should have already known that like the relation ship between the two Marion characters. Other characters kept saying things like "Just kiss already" or "you two should just sleep with each other" and so on but to me their relationship was not that clear yet. At the beginning the whole fictional universe and the different families and how it all worked was also a bit confusing. It was a nice story and it just has a lot of stuff going on that it could be easy to get lost but overall I would recommend that book!

I felt so disconnected from this book, compared to the author's previous work that I adored, Coils.  I did want to try one of her Sci-Fi novels and this seemed like a good place to start since it's stand-alone.  However, while reading I just felt like I was coming in on the second or third book in a series--the world-building wasn't the problem, it was the relationships between characters.  Judit, guardian of Noal is secretly in love with Annika, who is engaged to Noal.  So far so good, but everyone in that triangle seem to be aware of everyone else's feelings and there are lines like "when are you two just going to sleep together?" uttered with casual frequency that made me wonder if I missed something.  A long history between the characters is referred to, but without actually reading it, their interactions are flat for me.  While the "main action" is a war between all of the houses in the galaxy, the relationships story, which is the heart of the book relies completely on telling and not showing.  I honestly expected much more from this author, since Sci-Fi seems to be her niche.  This one was a huge disappointment.

I loved this Sci-Fi and one thing I would not Ama for a grandmother :) I hope there is a next book though.

NetGalley for honest review.

<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32072978-house-of-fate" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img border="0" alt="House of Fate" src="https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1474335289m/32072978.jpg" /></a><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32072978-house-of-fate">House of Fate</a> by <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5810276.Barbara_Ann_Wright">Barbara Ann Wright</a><br/>
My rating: <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2085722803">3 of 5 stars</a><br /><br />
I rec'd an Arc from NetGalley/Bold Strokes Books in exchange for an honest review. Previously, I enjoyed the Katya and Starbride series (Pyramid Waltz, etc.) and anticipated nothing less with this sci-fi/romance. The storyline with Judit and Annika is well written with excellent surrounding characters. A pleasant enough read. 3 stars.
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<a href="https://www.goodreads.com/review/list/31134832-gail">View all my reviews</a>

This was a good solid sci-fi adventure. I would consider this a NA book. I'm not sure of the characters exact age, I just know they are over 18. They seem a bit young in their view of the world, but both of the main characters are pretty bad-ass. This is not my favorite book by Wright, but it was enjoyable, entertaining, and kept me reading.

Judit, is the guardian of the "chosen one". As part of one of the most powerful families in the galaxy, it is up to her to protect her cousin Noal so that he marries the other "chosen one". Annika is the "chosen one" for her powerful family. She is to marry Noal and combine the two most powerful houses. But marring isn't her only job. Trained as an assassin and fighter her whole life, she is to mind control Noal and eventually rule both houses. It is a job she is not looking forward to doing. She likes Noel, and has feelings for Judit, but if she doesn't do the job, someone else will. When war starts to break out, can Judit and Annika find out what is really going on? And can Judit and Annika have a chance to be together, or will Annika's assassin roots be too much to overcome?

I hope my summary didn't sound too convoluted, because the actually plot is not. It was really easy to get into the flow of the book. It only took a few pages to get into it and I always felt like I understood what was going on. There was also no large info dumps, which I always appreciate in these kinds of books. I love sci-fi and am always happy to get my hands on a good lesfic sci-fi book. This was not perfect, but it was a really enjoyable read.

There is a ton of excitement in this book, also lot's of political intrigue. You are always trying to figure out who is doing what. The character of Annika being a trained assassin, she was a really cool character. Her scenes were packed with a lot of excitement. Judit, is the captain of a ship, as well as a guardian. So she has a strong moral military code. The two characters really balanced each other out. And besides lot's of excitement, the book did have time to slow down and add some romance. I really liked Judit and Annika as a couple. All I could think about the whole book, is will they get their HEA?

If you are a fan of Wright or a sci-fi fan, I'd recommend this book. The way this book wrapped up, I don't think Wright has plans for a sequel. But if she does, I would absolutely read it.

An ARC was given to me by BSB, for a honest review.

I am not a massive sci-fi fan but do enjoy reading them on occasion. I thought this one was well done where you had a good balance of the action sci-fi with the romance. I felt there was good development for both characters as they went on a journey to discover who was creating the chaos in the galaxy. Both having to see some truths in their own House's and about themselves. 

The connection between the two was instant and I as the reader I could feel it through the pages. This romance definitely shows us unconditional love which I thought was sweet in two strong characters. 

Great entertaining read!

I had to DNF this book in the last 60 pages. It was too boring and I felt like I was thrown in the middle of a story that didn't give me enough time to know these characters or care about them. I couldn't really understand any of the family houses or what war they were fighting for. Mostly, I picked this ARC because the bodyguard falling for the princess is kind of a nice trope but there wasn't much from that since it was quickly changed the positions they had. Unfortunately, I couldn't get into this book.

This is a good fantasy themed book. It has a well developed story with twists and unexpected events that keep you hooked untill the end. It has two main characters both trained to fight although for different reasons. It is entertaining and not overly exhausting in rare descriptions. Even if fantasy is not your thing, like in my case, this is a recomendable book.

A tremendous amount of fun that I enjoyed as much as I did "The Fiend Queen." Ms. Wright maintains levels of authorial sophistication and complex world building that have committed me to awaiting what I hope will be a sequel in the near future.