While it took me about four different tries to get more than about five chapters into Furyborn, once I sat down and ground through them, the rest of this novel paid of nicely.

It was interesting to read a novel where we know the fate of one of the characters from chapter one on—Rielle’s story is more of a whydunit, in that sense. Even though LeGrand gives you her outcome, you still (usually) root for her. Overall, I disliked her character, though. She didn’t really grow much—<s>everything is handed to her so easily. Perhaps that’s because of her powers and therefore the root of why she becomes the Blood Queen, but I am going to keep on being skeptical until the next novel(s) come out.</s>

However, Eliana was easier to dislike because of her actions, but she grew much more that she was a more interesting character to me. The biggest fault in Eliana’s plot was the “twist” that I could see coming from about chapter three. It was still a cool reveal, but it didn’t have the payoff it may have had had it not been so easily guessable.

My last note is that both Rielle and Eliana’s stories follow very trope-y plots. Eliana is a Katniss-alike, down the the humanizing sibling and Rielle is a little too Harry Potter-y. But LeGrand makes it work; I was interested enough throughout the book to keep reading and (somewhat) forgave the tropes as I was reading because of LeGrand’s newness as a writer.

Will I buy the book since it’s already out? ...maybe. I’m going to sit on this one and see if I continue to think about it. But I can see it having a place on my shelf.

I received my ebook copy of Furyborn from NetGalley in exchange for a fair review.

4.5/5

This book kept me on the edge of my seat! The prologue had me hooked. I immediately wanted to know more. Each chapter was urging me to keep reading. The reason this book didn’t get a full five stars from me was the inclusion of trials. It is one of my least favorite tropes. But, this book was so good, I didn’t mind them.

The female characters are incredible! They are complex, powerful, and each different from one another. I loved seeing them learn, make mistakes, and grow throughout the book. That was one of the highlights of my reading experience.

There were a few story elements that confused me, but by the end of the book, it became obvious that they would be addressed in the next one.

Overall, this book was exciting. I was rarely bored. I loved Rielle and Eliana! It was refreshing to see not one, but two morally grey female characters in one book and I loved how their stories intertwined!

*3.75

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the free ebook copy.

Furyborn by Claire Legrand was engrossing. It was action-packed from beginning to end. One of the biggest down points is actually the dual storyline. I feel like Rielle’s storyline could have been a novella on its own. I don’t really see the point of having it in the book. I really enjoyed Eliana’s storyline and would have loved more of it! On the same trend, I enjoyed the characters in Eliana’s storyline much more than in Rielle’s. I can’t wait to see what’s next.

Furyborn is a juxtaposition of Rielle and Eliana, potentially two amazingly strong women. However, Legrand's cosmic tale, sadly, was extremely hard for me to follow. I felt like the story had too much going on, from chapter-to-chapter, in order to get a true sense of a plot. Perhaps if the stories were told in a Part I vs. Part II format, the reader could have gotten a better feel for each character and their stories instead of always jumping back-and-forth between the two characters. Just when I felt like I was getting to understand the character, the story line was jumping to the opposing one.

This is a book I almost gave up on which I rarely do. Perhaps extreme fantasy lovers or those who are able to read this book in a sitting or two will feel differently about this book.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of this book. It is always an honor to read any work of art.

Thanks to the publisher for access to this title in return for a fair review.

This is a tale told in two parts, from two different times. One fated queen will destroy their world, while another is destined to save them all.

I was all set to love this one, but I think it got overly hyped. The story itself was good, and fans of Sarah Maas and Mary Pearson may enjoy it, but I felt completely removed from the story at certain points. The sex scenes were not the best, and one specifically wasn't necessary at all. I'm also completely jarred out of the world when language is used that doesn't match. I'm not opposed to swearing, but in this case it didn't work with the context of the story.

Overall, not a horrible book, but not one I will be able to hand to many of my teen readers. 3.5 stars.

Set as the first book in a new fantasy trilogy, Furyborn by Claire Legrand had me almost inhaling the book like I had been starving myself for days... almost. While I did indeed really enjoy the read (and read it within one week which is a high feat for me), there were a few components that were either unsatisfactory or just not present.
I should begin with what Legrand did execute successfully. Her world building was phenomenal. We flip flopped from the point of view of the past to the POV of the present, allowing us to not only learn about some of the major historical events that occurred within the story , but live it as well. I feel that when authors constantly bombard you with new facts about their world, it can get confusing. Legrand’s method was both innovative and unique.
Legrand’s writing was also a highlight of the book for me. She included just enough description mixed in with stream of consciousness that kept my attention and enabled me to empathize with each character.
But her character development was lacking in my opinion. Most of the characters had a grand reputation that preceded them which dictated their actions and how they were viewed in the eyes of others. These preconceived reputations limited each characters choices, rendering them much too predictable. You know how the saying goes, “an assassin is an assassin is an assassin”… (you get the point). I felt the characters lacked depth, from the conversations they had to the relationships that were portrayed.
Over all, I kept finding myself wanting to read more. Her plot and world building kept me intrigued and I will definitely pick up a copy of the second and third book. I feel confident that Legrand will only continue to get better and better with the other two upcoming books within the series.

Thank you to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Fire for providing me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This high fantasy novel was a great read! I loved the world that Legrand created as well as the characters. She did an amazing job tying the two protagonists’ stories together in lieu of the stories taking place 1,000 years apart. The arcs for each story were action packed and the alternating point of views between the two girls kept me wanting more each passing chapter. In all I give this novel 4/5 stars.

I don't know if I was biased against this book from the start or if I could really not get into it. I tried listening to it on audio but found my attention straying. I could not keep the two storylines separate. So I decided to try the book version. Same thing happened. I was not interested in the story or characters. Several friends of mine had trouble with it complaining that the sex scenes were a little much and that it was great for fangirls. This just wasn't for me. Or maybe I have been reading too many books of this nature and loved them. I had some high expectations but this one fell short. I did not finish it. It felt to similar to all the others and therefore not worth my time...at least right now. Maybe I will try again at another time.

I’m becoming more and more skeptical of YA books as the years progress, especially when certain bookish communities seem to be promoting these books with rabid enthusiasm but in this case I’m delighted to say that Furyborn was actually a great read. This book has some classic tropes like the secret rebellion, super special main character, evil empire, etc. but I thought they were well done and didn’t make me want to roll my eyes so hard they got stuck. SourceBooks has been putting out some appealing YA in the last few years and the cover art and synopsis for this book made me immediately want to read it, whether or not it had early reviews at the time.

Furyborn has two POVs, which have a unique twist – they’re set a thousand years apart. Rielle Dardenne is nobility in an age of magic and she just happens to wield all seven kinds, meaning she is one of the prophesied Queens. She must undergo a series of trials set forth by the church to determine if she is the Sun Queen, destined to save her people, or the Blood Queen who is destined to doom them. Obviously if she’s the Blood Queen, things will end in blood for her. A millennium later, Eliana Ferracora is a bounty hunter merely trying to provide for her family in a world slowly being taken by an Empire across the sea. She quickly gets tied up with a rebel group when her mother disappears and things are a headlong hurtle towards drama, battles, and a plot twist that was simple to guess from the beginning, but satisfying nonetheless. Also, there are angels that aren’t nearly so good as you would expect them to be. In fact, most of them are heartless monsters out for revenge and domination.

I was surprised to find that I liked both POVs equally. I didn’t resent switching back and forth between them or rush through the POVs I don’t like as I find myself doing in some books. Rielle was particularly interesting because you find out her fate in her first introduction, while the rest of her chapters lead up to how she gets there. I thought the use of magic and the society in her much earlier POV were really interesting and I’m a sucker for anything involving trials, so Rielle was a win for me. Eliana is a YA tough girl – she’s like 17 or 18 (I don’t exactly remember) and she goes and hunts people down on behalf of the Undying Empire for money. Gotta keep food on the table somehow, right? What I like about Eliana is that she doesn’t turn into a willing participant in the rebellion right away, she tries to play both sides of the fence because all she wants to do is find her mother the quickest way possible. The side characters were also likable, especially Ludivine and Audric who, with Rielle, formed a very likable trio of friends. Simon was also fascinating and his presence was kind of a spoiler for the reveal towards the end of the book.

Overall, I thought this was a really cool book that plenty of action and emotion to keep me hooked for the entire time. Sure, there were a few things I thought were cheesy, particularly Eliana being called “The Dread of Orline”. It was sooo melodramatic that I thought I was either going to burst out laughing or die of embarrassment on behalf of this character. I’ll definitely keep up with series as I really enjoyed this first book – it was better than your average YA book, for sure!

I've said it before, I'll say it again - when you are writing a book with alternating points of view, you need to make sure that, if you cannot have two equally likable characters you at least have two equally compelling ones.

I very quickly came to only care about one of these stories, and was immensely frustrated by how short the chapter were - there wasn't enough time to really invest in either of the stories.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire via Netgalley for the eARC of this book! Furyborn takes place in two alternating time periods a thousand years apart; and following two women — Rielle, who sets out to prove that she is one of the Queens prophesied to save her people, and Eliana, the Dread of Orline, a seemingly invincible assassin. Both women have to use all their strength and skill to try to save the people they love.
I really enjoyed watching the pieces of this story come together. There was a lot of world building in the beginning, especially in Rielle’s Chapters, so I enjoyed Eliana’s a little more, but by about midway through both parts of the story were really compelling, and a fast read! I’d recommend this to people who enjoy fantasy, new worlds and strong female protagonists.

What to say about this book?

For the first quarter, I had such a hard time with it. The story was action packed and full of fierce ladies. But I just couldn’t connect to any of them. And I honestly can’t put my finger on why. So that made it hard for me to care what happened at first.

But then that last half happened and all of a sudden I was completely engrossed. I still didn’t live the characters, but I loved the story so much that I couldn’t put it down! By the time I closed the book, I was having such a good time. I’m really excited to see what happens next!

I would definitely recommend this book to fantasy lovers. I’m still not sure what my problem was at the beginning, so I don’t think other people would share my difficulties. And that ending more than makes up for any issues! This turned out to be a great book!

I liked the premise of this book, and that's why I asked for the ARC. The individual chapters are action packed, with nicely integrated storytelling. My only nitpick is that each chapter felt too short; before I could really immerse myself into one world, the chapter switched to the other one, and it took me until halfway into the book to get a better handle on which world was which.

Thank you for e-ARC provided by Sourcebooks Fire in exchange for an honest review

4.5/5 stars

Because of it is in form of electronic, the progress that I have been making is terribly slow.


Furyborn is the retelling of Avatar Aang in female version plus with some angelic thingy. I love the Rielle part because her stories showed the progression faster than Eliane. I was waiting for so long when the hell Eliane is gonna show some power like Rielle if she was destinied to be the Queens. Eliane's part is bit draggy when I'm actually waiting her part to show off her power. But when I almost finished OMG Eliane you just show up at the right time !

Anyway this trilogy is so kicking ! The cover was hella beautiful as it fits to the story !

I recieved an advance reader copy of this book from the publisher.

I tried but could not get into this. I didn't like either of the 2 main characters. I didn't like how it started and then went backward and forward in time. I can't invest in characters that I know are going to die.

anyway, I was hopeful because I liked the cover and some of the other reviews and the intro historical document pieces before each chapter but could not even finish.

DNF.

I really could not get into this book. I pushed through and found myself disliking the characters. The two mains characters had fairly little differences and at times somewhat interchangeable

I heard so much buzz around this book in the book world, and it was definitely one of the most anticipated books for me this year. I found the plot extremely unique and this book was so ridiculously action packed. It kept me hooked from the first page to the last. The last 25% of the book or so was a bit heavy on the romance, but I felt it worked for the whole story. There were a few very steamy scenes, but they were done in a way that I wasn’t left uncomfortable.There was also a bit of swearing, but nothing too much, in my opinion.

I loved both of our main characters, Rielle and Eliana were such kick ass female characters. I will say they both had qualities that I loved, and a lot I wasn’t a fan of, but isn’t that the way some of the best characters are! The side character worked out well and served (some major) purposes.

I felt like having alternating chapters (which took place thousands of years later) was gonna to be this books biggest downfall. I thought I was going to be confused and it would be hard to follow. Luckily the way it was written made it very easy to follow between each of the alternations. The way everything meshed together just blew my mind. I didn’t see any of it coming, to say I loved it is a major understatement. If you are looking for an action packed fantasy with some romance this one will definitely be for you as well!

First of all, let me help future readers out for a minute; there's a section at the end of the book dedicated to giving you a little 4-1-1 on the world our characters live in in Furyborn. Check this out first and save yourself some confusion upfront.

Having said that, yes, the beginning is a bit confusing. The prologue was a trip to be sure. Legrand picks your mind up and drops you into her world with little regard to the fall. Fortunately, it's a short fall into said world; you get caught up to speed at about 30 pages in, give or take...if you chose to disregard my pro tip at the beginning of this review that is....(I took the time to include that gem; don't waste it!) I was quickly able to grasp the majority of the concepts and magic system and buckle down for the story ahead. Just shy of 80 pages in, I was hooked and unable to focus on anything else. Even work. Like at all. ...It wasn't until after I had finished the book that I realized there were over 500 pages to this book that I just consumed in about seven days. Managing to inhale a book of 500+ pages in seven days is a big deal for me...

Alright a few warnings for the unaware readers out there; sex, murder, violence, animal cruelty, immorality, promiscuity, and fbombs abound...

This book has a GOOD premise. I really liked how it was structured in combination with the gap of time between the two women and their stories. With each chapter alternating between the view points of Rielle in her time and Eliana a 1000 years later, it made me anxious to find out how they tied in together. I really liked this. It made me want to read more and more until I understood how they were connected. I also liked how long it took for that connection to be revealed.

The plot was... initially, just okay, but improved a bit over the course of the book. I enjoyed the plot of Rielle's part of the story, it flowed well and for the most part didn't make me cringe...the plot, not her character...I'll get to that in a minute. Eliana's though....action, fighting, escape, recoup, and repeat for way too many times before we get to the crux of the story - the final battle, if you will. I do enjoy a plight of action and survival, but this one was overwrought. I feel like Legrand really could have cut out at least a few of these set-ups and scenes and still accomplished the same thing. I like the direction the plot is going...now that we're going there a bit more decisively...there are a few caveats that I'm leaving out at the moment, though. There were some obvious directions the plot was going to go and will probably go, but anymore I've come to find that some cliches are just part of the gig.

I liked both Rielle and Eliana. They've got their flaws, for sure, but I did enjoy reading about them. Eliana more so than Rielle. Rielle...well she needs a little less focus on how powerful she is and more focus on being in control of not only her powers, but her non-powered-human-self too. That chick is all over the place. The more I read from her point of view the more I found myself disturbed by her character.Eliana. My biggest complaint about her character is that she seems indecisive about who she is. Is she reeeaaally the cold-hearted, cruel "Dread of Orline" or is she fooling herself and everyone else around her?? Either be the badarse bounty hunter you're made out to be or be the ashamed, angsty girl you crumble into when alone for more than five minutes. Pick one.I also enjoyed Simon's character, he was probably my favorite for most of the book. He kinda got on my nerves in the last action scene and subsequent ending to the book though...some how the strong, mysterious character he'd been throughout the book began unraveling as Eliana came to know more about...well everything. By the end of the book it seemed like we were left with this almost creepily devoted man with a penchant for codependency. The peripheral characters were okay but they definitely could have used some more depth. I'd spend more time introducing them than talking about them so I'm not going to waste my time or yours.

The inter-character relationships could use some improvement. I liked Eliana and Simon's relationship but I had a hard time connecting with Harkan, Rozen, and even Remy who are all "important" in Eliana's life. On the other side of our time gap...I was wholly unimpressed by the character relationships with Rielle....Yeah, I'm sitting here trying to pick through my brain to come up with something about them, but the main parts about Rielle's chapters that I remember are about power and the Sun Queen Trials. How sad.

The writing was good in that I didn't feel like I was reading, which is always a good sign for me and almost always indicative of a speedy read. However, there were some gag-inducing-what-the-eff-provoking, abominable lines that were off-putting.

In short, I liked it but I didn't love it. The premise and the writing are the saving graces of this book and ultimately what held my interest the most. It was a quick read despite the towering number of pages - probably due to the writing. It's got some things I didn't like and some things I hope improve with the next book in the series. ...Which I'm fairly certain I'll be picking up.

As a girl who has spent her life growing up surrounded by royalty and within the comfortable confines of the castle, Rielle Dardenne is no stranger to privilege and prestige. With best friends like the Crown Prince and his beloved cousin, Rielle has never doubted that she fits into the world made of gold and glitter. And even though she harbors a secret that bubbles just beneath the surface of her sharp and adventurous facade like so much boiling lava, the raven-haired beauty has a keen sense of belonging. She has security.

While the world of Avitas is full to the brimming of the thick and ever-changing waters of magic, there are none who can wield all seven of the talents and control the waves they bring. Rielle is no stranger to the experiences intertwined with the mystique of magic and its familiars. Almost everyone has some power. Everyone uses it to their advantage. And while some magical talents are more revered than others, everyone is allowed a modicum of respect when it comes to the things they can conjure and manipulate. Rielle’s only problem has ever been trying to choose just which magical talent she will allow the world to see. She could never dare to show all of the mysteries that she holds so close; to do so would mean to put herself into certain danger.

There is a prophecy of a pair of women who shall grow to carry all seven of the points of magic deep within them. The women will be able command fire and weather, possess water, bend iron to their very whim. They will be great and they will be mighty. They will possess the ability to bring light and shake the earth to its very core.

One will be a savior, a queen made of sun’s very luster and warmth.

The other, a vicious villain made from blood and all that is dark fear.

When a dangerous situation puts Rielle’s best friend and the object of her affections into mortal peril, she cannot stop herself from (quite literally) riding to his rescue. Prince Audric is set to lose his life to a team of mysterious assassins, and Rielle is the only person who can save him from the untimely fate. Full of overwhelming emotion and unable to control the power within her, Rielle unleashes the devastation she’s trapped inside of her body for so long and revels in the freedom it allows. She has known from childhood that she houses more than one power, and she suspects she is the whispered vessel for all seven. But she never expected to show her destiny in this public a fashion. And once the cat is out of the bag, there is no turning back. There is no closing of Pandora’s box of delights – and terrors.

But Rielle would never regret the choice to save him.

Audric Lightbringer is her obsession. Growing up side by side on the castle grounds, the daughter of the Captain of the Guard has always known she didn’t have a chance at the prince’s heart. She always knew she would eventually have to shove every feeling she had for him as deep as she could bury and watch as he became her best friend’s husband. Ludivine is Rielle’s confidante and the woman she considers her sister in all things but blood, and it is she who is destined to take her place beside Audric in matrimonial harmony. Ludivine is of the proper stock, a veritable princess of the land and beloved by all, while Rielle is nothing more than a scrappy commoner with questionable heritage and a murky past. Watching her two best friend’s lives become planned and projected on paper right in front of her like so many business arrangements, Rielle had all but given up hope that she could one day possess Audric for her own. But that didn’t mean she could stand by and watch him die; not if there was something she could do to prevent it.

And what thanks?

After showing the full force of her powers in front of Audric and half of the city, Rielle must face the King and his many trusted advisors. There are whispers that she is the Sun Queen in all of her saving glory, but others wonder if she may have more nefarious blood running in her veins. Her power is both awe-inspiring and terrifying, and there are some who are concerned with the lack of control she possesses. It is no secret that Rielle Dardenne is a wild card, a girl who plays by her own rules and who revels in taking risks. How can the girl be tamed, if even her own father cannot control her? And what if she is merely a sheep in wolf’s clothing . . . a pretender of the Sun Queen, and in reality . . . death, incarnate?

The Blood Queen?

Tasked with seven trials to prove her worth and the control she has over each element of magic, Rielle fights to keep her life and her heart intact. As the months go on and she is pushed to the limits in public and in private, she finds herself consumed with a new friend and mentor from the most unlikely of places. Living within her mind like a parasite is a curious creature, an angel . . . a handsome stranger who is part of a race that was defeated and exiled from the lands due to the cruel and unusual torture and demonic dealings associated with angelic kind. Rielle struggles to maintain her sanity the more Corien begins to appear inside of her mind; the angel wraps her innermost thoughts with the tangled web of masterful lies and manipulations. Rielle has a hard time choosing right from wrong, which is exactly where the angel wants her to remain.

Leaving death and destruction in her wake, will Rielle be able to resist her true destiny? Or will she embrace the prophecy and take her place in devestation?

More than a thousand years later, the woman known as the Dread of Orline roams the city streets as a lethal bounty hunter and hired assassin. After her lands were conquered by the Undying Empire, Eliana Ferracora turned to the only life she felt could sustain herself and her family – one of crime and malcontent. Trained by her mother in the arts of death and violence, Eliana believes herself to be immune to danger.

A threat grows across the city, one that is leaving the women within the gates on the brink of terror and ruin. Stolen out of beds in the middle of the night by a dark shadow or snatched from their kitchens at dawn, the women of the city are disappearing without a trace and at an alarming rate. The situation reeks of depravity and desperation, almost as if something wicked is ramping its way up. When her mother becomes one of the taken, Eliana must team up with a notorious bounty hunter – a rebel known as the Wolf – and journey far from her home into the depths of the rebel camps. Can she be trusted, and can she trust those around her? What Eliana uncovers beneath the surface of the rebellion and the power it fights against will shock her, but will she be able to believe her connection to an ancient prophecy? Or is she doomed to repeat past mistakes and burn everything to the ground?

Furyborn is the newest novel by librarian and mid-grade/young adult author Claire Legrand. No stranger to the fantasy genre, Legrand has worked hard to begin building her own world complete with a nest of thieves, haughty royalty, ruthless assassins, and magical beings in what will eventually become a trilogy. While the story of two fiercely independent and somewhat reckless women has been hailed as “the must-read book of the summer” for young adult to new-adult readers, the book has proven to be very polarizing already. The book has been marketed heavily, saturating booklists and finding its way into exclusive subscription boxes full of like-minded bookish loot.

As I dug deeper into this novel and the mystique surrounding it, I spoke with several other reviewers and fantasy readers and found one thing to be for certain – in truth, readers seem to either love it with a zest that rivals Rielle’s obsession for Audric, or despise it about as much as Eliana does being told what to do. There is hardly any middle ground for Furyborn, which is interesting in such a genre and targeted age bracket. Young adult to new-adult readers range from ages 15 to about 25, and their tastes are as refined as their expectations are heavy.

Unfortunately, I landed on Eliana’s side of the coin with this one.

While the premise of two queens and the ultimate battle between good and evil is always a good idea, and the aspect of fallen angels mixed within the essence of magic was enough to draw me in, it was not enough to keep me within its grasp. The further I read into this (giant) book, I felt cheated. Annoyed. Pissed off. More annoyed. More pissed off.

The opening of this novel is so strong and viciously cruel, I thought I was immediately hooked. I love my heroine to be drowned in agony before I watch her rise from the ashes like a beautiful phoenix. I love my villains to be mixed with relatable qualities and for that fine line of love-to-hate-them to really develop. So when I saw we were opening with baby being born to a most-hated-woman and the baby is then ripped from her arms before a battle, I was so ready. I don’t think it’s any surprise who the Sun Queen and Blood Queen ultimately end up being, but to see that I was going to watch their stories develop from conception and travel with them as they grow – I was intrigued and excited. There are few things I love more in a fantasy novel than the aspect of world-building and a good quest. Have some magic thrown in and I am all for it. But this book . . . it kept promising me things and then snatching them away like I was some fat kid on the Keto diet.

Rielle’s trials? Seven of them. All seven seemed contrived and pathetic. It was painfully obvious she was going to win them all and as each one came to pass I kept wondering, am I really supposed to care? Were these even real challenges? Rielle’s story was so intent upon pressing the point that she had always hidden her magic but then automatically she knows how to use it? It felt like the author was much more concerned with describing Rielle’s outfits than in her actual athletic and magical prowess, which was odd considering the author wanted us to also view Rielle as some big time badass. Rielle was in fact, whiny and self-loathing (not in a good way – believe me, there is a difference). She was vain and ridiculous.

The character of Ludivine? I won’t spoil it for you, but her story was really quite stupid. I literally laughed out loud when her true essence was revealed – seriously.

Audric is supposed to be this handsome and charismatic prince; he’s enough to make resident badass Rielle swoon and forget everything when in his presence. Instead, he’s dull and seems to lack basic intelligence or athleticism. Rielle was just as one-dimensional, which was such a let down because hello . . . we all love a strong female, right? It’s what we were promised, right? I wanted to enjoy her story so much, but I found myself anxious for the pages to turn so that I could get back to Eliana’s plight.

Although,

Eliana seemed like a cheap knock-off of Aelin Galathynius from the epic Throne of Glass series and multiverse. That is something that truly irks me. If I wanted a replica, I’d buy one off of Ebay. Be original. Please.

I don’t even know if I should attempt to touch my feelings on how this book was marketed as having a bisexual main character. ‘Cause, she’s not. It was a shady marketing technique and I didn’t appreciate it. It felt like a hollow nod to the community and was not presented the way it was promised.

There were so many scenes in this book that felt strange and out of place. For example:

Rielle is having a dream that has her all hot and bothered. She wakes up and masturbates. Then she realizes that there are assassins in her room, ready to kill her. What? They all just stood around watching her before deciding to go in for the kill?

WHAT?

No. Just, no.

I give this book 2 out of 5 stars, and I will not be revisiting the series for book two or book three. I don’t recommend this book to anyone, and I certainly don’t recommend anyone spending the hefty hardcover price for it either. Save your money and buy Throne of Glass.

Ah man, I am more disappointed and sad about this than you are. I can't believe I didn't like this. I really couldn't care less for this book and it's characters. Like, it did get interesting for just a tiny bit but that was it. Then it got just to be a means to an end. The thing is I don't like angels. Maybe that was the problem. But other things also felt unoriginal. Just. Argh. The romance, the plot.–I was confused through it all. I was so bored. Everything fell short for me. It sure had a lot of potential but sadly it didn't work for me.

Special thanks to NetGalley and the Publishers for this review copy.