I want to start by stating that this book has the grandest prologue ever. I was instantly and easily transported into a world, imaginatively and vividly described. A wrold so complex, I almost consider this as a high fantasy. The magic featuring elementals and angels and even a bit of science, as there were some kind of experiments in the book, were fascinating. Though there are still some aspects of the magic and the world in general that are still not crystal clear to me, I’m trusting book 2 will clear everything else. I liked it that magic’s involvement in the politics in this book was huge and not only the cliched who’s to be king and who’s to kick out of the throne. Though something like that happened, revenge is more likely the reason of it. This novel is dark, filled with intrigues and secrets but beautiful and most importantly, magical.

It started strong and never dulled until the end. Fast-paced and highly entertaining as it’s filled with actions and each page seemed written to entice the reader to keep reading. The writing was really good, almost lyrical. I love what the author did alternating POVs between Elliana and Rielle, it was well crafted. Some books commit the mistake of using multi-POVs and ended up creating the characters’ voice identical, it’s so hard to say who’s who. In here, however, Legrand did it well. Though the chapters are so short and the change of POV was almost abrupt, it wasn’t hard to identify who’s speaking.

Finally, the characters. Though I mentioned in my first update how much this book screams badassness and girl power because of its two MCs, I didn’t find myself really drawn to either of them. Elliana and Rielle are definitely complex characters who, when they were first introduced, are obviously in need of serious character development. They’re both too arrogant and too self-assured because of what they can do. I found Elliana as confusing and confused. She couldn’t seem to decide who and what she’s gonna be as a character; dark, anti-hero MC or the heroine type. At some point I found myself wishing she choose one and the stick to it. And Rielle I found her parts a little boring than Elliana’s. And though I love Audric, her love interest, Rielle grew on me coz she’s all Audric-this and Audric -that. But with all the things I said about these two, I didn’t really dislike them, they’re simply not my favorite.

My favorite? all the side characters: Audric, Ludivine, Navi, Remy and Simon. Oh Simon. I love him so much. And I won’t tell much about them. You guys have to read the book if you want to meet them and you would love meeting these characters. Well them and the VILLAIN, Corien. He’s one of a kind and intrigues me so much. I want to know him more and spend time with him more in the next books in this series.

Do I recommend this book? BIG YES!!! Though you must be aware of trigger Warning such as violence, abuse, even child abuse, sexual content, animal cruelty, torture, death of a parent/loved one.

I absolutely loved Furyborn. Right from the beginning I knew it was going to be a great read. Excellent characterisation, clever magical-type aspects, great world building, I just loved it all. The power struggles, the action, the dual timeline narrative, it all worked really well for me. A perfect foundation for a trilogy. It left me with questions, and wanting more to read, but that’s the beauty of the first book in a series. I can’t wait for the next!

This was an action-packed debut novel about two girls living centuries apart. There was a lot going on at once, but it wasn't too hard to follow after the first few chapters that set up the universe. While the second half was more entertaining, I still had a hard time connecting with the characters in the first half of the book for that to have made a big difference. I think a lot of Rielle and Eliana's choices made it hard for me to connect with them. I never felt like they were being fully genuine, and that affected the way I felt about the things happening to them.

"Furyborn" starts off with an incredibly intriguing prologue, showing violent and dramatic events that are obviously the culmination of years of conflict for our first main character, Rielle. When the first chapter jumped back two years to a young and impulsive eighteen year old Rielle it left me desperate to understand how she could go from the girl here to the Queen we met in the prologue. While this book ended up having a few things that annoyed me, overall I really enjoyed it and felt that the intertwined stories of Rielle and Eliana were well drawn.

After the beginning, chapters alternate between Rielle and her quest to become the Queen of Light, and Eliana a thief and assassin living about a thousand years after Rielle's death. It is clear rather early on how these two characters tie together, but I still really enjoyed the slow reveal. My biggest complaint about the book is that it felt like it took a bit too long for Eliana to stop being difficult and start to embrace her heroic side, but that could just be me getting a little tired of the "hardened assassin with a secret heart" character type. There is a bit of romance hinted at (or more then hinted at in Rielle's case) for each character, but the romance never takes over the plot, which I appreciate.

One of the things that I liked best about "Furyborn" is that it is very well paced for the first novel in a trilogy. The plot moves along decently and there is enough plot and character development to make you feel like it was worth reading this book even though it means a longer wait until resolution (sometimes I find that first books in a series can be infuriating in setting up mystery after mystery without providing any payoff). Once I got into the story I really enjoyed this book, and when I finished I was immediately annoyed because reading an ARC means I'll have to wait that much longer to see what happens next.

While this novel is a bit reminiscent of Game of Thrones and the Hunger Games (pay attention to the costumes!), make no mistake, it definitely stands on its own as a fantastic adventure!

My only issue with this book is that I have to wait for numbers 2 and 3 to come out! In this story, you don’t just follow the characters, you become the characters! And when you are not immersed in the story, you feel as if something is missing and you cannot wait to go back in.

This is a story about immense power, and what happens when too much power resides in one person; or in this case, two. Two women, a thousand years apart, and yet with a bond that surpasses time and space. One is the Blood Queen and the other is the Sun Queen. The Blood Queen means death and destruction and the Sun Queen is the savior. However, this is not a feminist novel in the sense that men are evil. Quite the contrary, there are quite a few men in these women’s lives that show them love and devotion and the desire to protect the at all costs. There are also men who would destroy everything to serve those of a higher power, whether that is good or evil is something that the reader must judge for themselves.

I cannot overstate how unbelievably good this story is! The heroines make mistakes, some quite costly, and have to overcome their own inadequacies in order for the prophesies to come true. Still, they are relatable. It is easy for the reader to imagine themselves in those situations.

Filled with magic and intrigue, lies and terrible truths, Furyborn is a story not to be missed!

WHAT AN EXCELLENT BOOK!

It is an amazing story told in a fantasy where magic and secret powers exist. It is told at two points in time, spaced 1,000 years apart. The story starts at the end of the first story, and then goes back to the beginning. THe second story is related somehow to the first, but it takes time to understand how.

This story includes Kings and Queens, good guys and bad guys, good angels and bad angels, the empire and the resistance, strange powers, prophecies and trials, love, and then some.

I loved the characters, I loved the stories, and the only problem that I have with it, is that I will have to wait for Book #2!

If you like a good, engrossing yarn, then this is the book for you!

I initially posted the wrong review here. I will come back and post the correct one when it's finished. Sorry.

This was an interesting read for me; totally outside my normal wheelhouse, but everything I had heard about it was good so I decided to give it a try. (You know me, if there aren’t half-naked men on the cover, lol!) There were definitely parts I enjoyed-the first few chapters were kickass and exciting and totally dragged me in. Of the main characters I was definitely more interested in Eliana than Rielle, though there were aspects about the Queen that were intriguing. The prologue was what sucked me into the story and while it gave away some of the future happenings, it also set up the need to know exactly what happened with Rielle.

Rielle Dardenne is the daughter of the Lord Commander of Celdaria and she is hiding something from almost everyone. Her ability to control all seven elements of magic which means she will either be the savior (Sun Queen) or the destruction (Blood Queen) of her kingdom. A thousand years in the future, Eliana Ferracora is a bounty hunter (the Dread of Orline) for the Undying Empire that has seized her city of Orline, forced to kill rebels until women and girls start disappearing…including her mother.

The story is told in alternating chapters, and while I understand the choice honestly for me it made it really hard to follow the story sometimes. I would have preferred each half of the story to be presented separately with the necessary overlaps presented at the end. And that is totally my personal preference as I know other readers have liked that the format allowed contrast between the characters. For me though I ended up reading through Rielle’s chapters faster because I wanted to get back to Eliana’s side of the story.

But it’s not really Eliana…I just wanted to get back to The Wolf! He was definitely my favorite character and I’d love a side book just about him. I don’t want to say much about him because the discovery of the full role he plays in the story as I didn’t expect the big reveal. Well, I did but my brain was strained trying to figure it out how it happened until the full explanation. Part of the reason behind that is the length of the book, which I felt was overly long. There were some areas where I thought the story could have been condensed, less exposition and more action. Don’t get me wrong, there is a certain amount of background that needs to be set, but there is a point where it becomes too much. For me, that were the chapters around Rielle and the trials she undergoes to prove she is the Sun Queen.

Overall, I would recommend this book to those that love high fantasy novels; it isn’t what I would consider a romance which is my normal genre of choice. There are some romantic elements though, and I think those will come out more in the subsequent novels which I definitely want to read. While I think this is being touted as YA, with some of the darker themes, I would definitely recommend this for an older teen audience and not younger. (Of course, the maturity of the reader will factor in!) I do hope the story tightens up in in the next 2 books in the trilogy, but am looking forward to learning more about Rielle and The Wolf and how their story progresses!

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the chance to read this early!

I received an ARC from Net Galley. This book had me hooked from the very beginning. I tend to read a lot of YA novels, but this one...

I know this one isn't even out yet, but I want the rest of the series already. The book is written from 2 different perspectives in 2 different times. I can honestly say I was shocked at some points, but it totally made sense once everything was explained.

You come to really like the two main female characters and want to know more about their lives and families.

A book about two queens? At first I was hesitant. The back and forth took a little bit to get into, but once I found the groove, I was completely hooked. To be honest, I don't know which one I liked more. Since this book is HUGE, I read so much about each of them, it's hard to choose.

I will say that this had quite a bit of spice for it being a YA book, so there's a little heads up for ya.

And I really don't wanna say too much without giving it away. If you're looking for a new fantasy to get sucked into, I say you should pull up a chair and dive into this. Go in blind and stay with it and you can thank me later.

The story follows two girls deciding how best to use their power, and I loved them both! Rielle and Eliana are both lovely and flawed, each with her own strengths and weaknesses. This book was a badass ode to feminism, and the best way I can recommend it, is to fans of Game Of Thrones and Vikings. Furyborn was a super fun book that was definitely worth the hype!

When I first heard about this book, I really wanted to get my hands on it. I thought that it sounded fantastic and that cover was amazing. Once I read the prologue, I thought that I was going to love this book so much, because it started off so interestingly. Then we got to the first chapter and I liked Rielle a lot. Then the next chapter was Eliana and she was alright and so the book goes, switching back and forth. My biggest problem with this book was that I didn't understand the point of having these characters spread so far across time and sharing their story every other chapter. Maybe if it had been a part one with Rielle and then the second part Eliana, then I might have enjoyed it more than I did. The writing for this book is amazing, I do have to give the author credit for that. I just wasn't such a big fan in the layout of the book. I'm hesitant in the thought that this is going to be more books and how they might be the same in the sense that it will continue the back and forth. Usually I find that Im not a huge fan in switching points of views, but since this was written in third person, I didn't think I would mind too much. It didn't bother me so much as the time difference bothered me. That and I wasn't a huge fan of Eliana to begin with either.

I'm giving this book a solid 4.5 stars but rounding up hoping that the publisher will gift me with the sequel when it come out! :)
This story tells the story of Rielle and Eliana-both strong women. One is a kick ass fighter and the other has incredible magical abilities. Magic is pulled from the "empirium" which is the life force of all living and non-living elements in the world. One story is told from the past and one from the present. What I liked about this book was that the author plays with who is the "good" character and who is the "evil" one. I could kind of see that traditional definitions of both were not in play here.
I deducted half a star because I couldn't follow what Eliana's opinion of Simon was. One minute she seemed really drawn to him and the next she seemed to belligerently not care what happened to him. I need to know if he's the romantic interest! lol
Can't wait to read the next book in the series. Thanks for NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the ARC in return for my honest review.

Well, this was rather…underwhelming. This book has received so much hype, so I was excited to be approved for an eARC. But alas… This didn’t at all meet my expectations. Not saying it was bad, but rather… Well, read my review below and maybe you’ll see.

Thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing a free, digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

First off, let’s talk about that cover. It’s so gorgeous! And if you’ve been following the YA book community, you might have heard of this book. I believe even FairyLoot included a physical ARC of it in each of their boxes a few months ago. I mean, talk about a hyped book! And honestly, I really thought I would love it, and yes, there are parts I really liked but then… There weren’t, lol.

Diving into the prologue, I thought this was going to be another “redemption story” for one of the main characters. This thinking led me to forever have a bad taste about that same character throughout the rest of the book. However, I’m glad to report it’s not necessarily like that, though… Maybe some of the blame for what happens can fall on her, in some way. But I will say I absolutely love how the characters are tied together, not just in the “two women, one thousand years apart” thing.

If you like morally gray character, try this book. I liked Eliana more than Rielle. I find myself liking all of the characters really. In the beginning, I wasn’t sure I would, and I’m left trying to figure out if Rielle was mostly just a pawn, and why she didn’t forever push aside the thoughts in her head. She walked a thin line–between the power she knew she had and what she could obtain with them and the love she had for her friends. As for Eliana, I knew were her story was going the instant a certain someone reappeared in her life. I liked that and Eliana herself. I guess the next step is to see if and how Eliana struggles with this legacy.

There was a lot of info-dumping in the beginning chapters. The world is vast and grand and so much has happened in the thousand years between Rielle and Eliana, and I imagine there’s much the author wants to explore in the later books. I’m really interested to see how exactly the two similar yet different worlds of these two protagonists came to be. That might be the only thing that makes me want to continue reading this series. Other than that… Eh, I could skip it. *shrugs*

I feel bad that I got this ARC when they were giving it away to the first 500 netgalley members who clicked the link. I got caught up in the hype surrounding the book, and didn't really take the time to think to myself, hey, you don't really like high fantasy, don't click! I did give the book a try, and I think people who love high fantasy, are going to absolutely love this. I'd recommend it to fans of Throne of Glass and Game of Thrones.

Pros:

+ Diverse protags
+ Interesting worldbuilding
+ Badass magic system
+ Complex relationships
+ Gooooorgeous cover! lookatit!!

Cons:

- Rielle’s chapters (the other MC) are decidedly Not My Thing
- I really couldn’t tell you my favorite character
- Hypersexualized (which I will go into)
- Loooong, very loooong

Furyborn is exactly the book everybody (right now) wants to read. We’ve got so many hits on the trendy topics it’s basically a diverse YA fantasy free-for-all. It’s well-written and has an interesting (though I heistate to call it unique) set-up. Basically, it’s a gussied-up Throne of Glass. If you’re into that.

The only bad thing is for me, being able to say a book is “like Throne of Glass” is basically an insult of the highest order.
Now don’t run away screaming! I know, I’m in the minority. And I don’t necessarily mean to apply it to this book as an insult. More to the effect of “promiscuous and overly-confident crown-sanctioned assassin who fails at every damn turn stars as our lead and we are supposed to basically just bow down because though there’s no evidence to suggest she can count to twenty with her shoes on much less be a competent assassin, SHE’S TOTALLY A BADASS AND SHE’S GOING TO TELL YOU SO OVER AND OVER AND OVER”.

I kid! She can count to twenty with her shoes on.

I guess I should explain.

Furyborn stars two leading ladies separated by a thousand-year gap, Rielle and Eliana. Rielle is a prophesied queen-angel-destroyer-gifted-with-all-elements... thing. Eliana is an empire knife-for-hire who is otherwise known as... [loud sigh] The Dread of Orline.

As Rielle’s story is more of an origin story (how she became queen, murdered her husband, and screwed up the country--don’t worry, we learn this all in the prologue), most of the action is central to Eliana. When she is forced into making a deal with rebel assassin Simon, aka the Wolf, to find her presumed-kidnapped mother, her world will be turned upside down.

Like any YA fantasy, there’s romance and swashbuckling action and probably some yucky almost-rape scenes or something. Totally normal stuff for teens. Which I should probably say: if you’ve got young teens who are avid readers, maybe wait on giving this one to them. I honestly felt like this was meant to be an adult book with the amount of sexual mentions (All Eliana does the first third of the book is her not-boyfriend) and on-page sex scenes and wet dreams and mind rape and almost-rape scenes and seductions-for-info and prostitution for any number of reasons. And as both the MCs are bisexual, it felt a little bit like hyper-sexualization for that sake. It was trying to get brownie points for sex positivity while also being nasty while also writing into the Promiscuous Bi trope (maybe not intentionally, but I noticed it) and it just turned me off completely (no pun intended).

If none of that bothers you, or if you just disagree with me, that's fine. If you're looking for interesting worldbuilding in your fantasy, you may enjoy this one.

A free copy was provided by the publishers via Netgalley in exchange for honest review. Thank you!

Everyone, I am hereby predicting that Furyborn is going to be the next big thing! Because it is so, so good and totally lives up to the hype. It's a dark fantasy novel that is feminist, diverse, and so gripping that it keeps you turning pages. Oh, and it makes me wish I could draw, because the character descriptions are just MADE for fan art!

This is a dual-perspective book that follows the stories of two young women, Rielle and Eliana, who are coming of age in different time periods, but hold the fate of the world in their hands. Both women are complex, powerful, and not clearly good or evil. They refuse to be constrained by society or the people around them, are often violent, but also love deeply and fiercely. I adored both of these women. There are great side characters who are richly drawn and relationships that are beautifully portrayed. Some of the side characters create important nuance, showing that compassion and gentleness can be a strength rather than a weakness. We get positive female friendships without jealousy, a very touching brother-sister relationship, and some pretty steamy love interests.

Which makes this a good time to note that while it is marketed as YA, this book feels much more adult in content and should probably be read by mature teenagers. There is some explicit sexual content and contains some trigger warnings for violence, death of children and parents, torture, and non-graphic sexual abuse. So yes, this is definitely a darker book. But, it still feels hopeful. It is, in some ways, about what it means to retain your humanity in the midst of pain and violence, and to believe in a better future even in the face of great darkness.

The world-building in Furyborn is really great, and I just wanted more. We learn a great deal from Rielle about the culture and religion of her people, which is fascinating. Eliana lives a long time in the future and from her, we get to see hints of the history that has transpired since Rielle. The mythology is rich and has me itching for a more expansive understanding. A key component to the story is that humans have long been at war with powerful "angels". We learn a little bit about them, but I can't wait to find out more in future books. The magic system is an elemental one, but I do wish we had more fully fleshed out rules about how it works. We know that the "empirium" is what makes up everything, and somehow magic users tap into it. Rielle is even able to see the empirium, which is unusual.

There is a lot of adventure and intrigue, which I loved. The chapters alternated between perspectives and they were often on the shorter side, which kept me reading longer. Rielle's chapters were often punctuated by a series of magical trials and they were all really well-written and depicted vividly. Eliana travels to a few different locations which added great flavor to the book, and hints at the variety of cultures we might encounter later in the series.

Finally, I want to mention a bit about why I say this book is feminist and diverse. Obviously, you have two powerful women as protagonists, but it goes beyond that. I mentioned the positive female friendships as well, but there were also little things that struck me as interesting. For instance, there are male sex workers depicted in the book rather than just female. There is also some casual LGBTQ representation. For instance, Eliana is bisexual, two male side characters are married, and there is a harem that includes both men and women. I also liked the fact that we see Rielle and Eliana dressed up on occasion, with Rielle even being a total badass fighting with magic while wearing beautiful costumes. I always appreciate representation of women who can fight, lead, and also be feminine when they want to be.

This is much longer than my typical reviews, but it's just such a great book and I had a lot to say! Seriously, go pick it up when it comes out! It's probably going to make my top books of the year. I did receive an e-arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The back and forth narration of Rielle and Eliena was not satisfying because the format made it difficult to read continuously without skipping every other chapter. However, the world building was strong and the characters interesting. This would appeal to ya fantasy fans.

I couldn't get into this book. I'm sorry. I need to stop requesting fantasy. NetGalley just made it enticing, so I couldn't help myself.

3.5 stars - This new adult fantasy was action-packed and entertaining, but left me with mixed feelings.

When the book began, I found myself constantly comparing many elements to other well-loved fantasy books. As the story began to develop I realized it truly is just some of the best fantasy components compiled into one story.

In terms of the characters, they were (for the most part) well rounded and morally gray which helped them feel super authentic. The two main characters blended together at times and I completely understand why the author chose to write them that way. However, I didn't like constantly switching between their POV's due to the different time eras they each lived in. I often found myself struggling to keep track of all the political figures that were constantly brought up in each time period which was frustrating.

After the first quarter of this book, it held my interest enough to want to know how it ended. There were several twists woven in at different points in the story and while they weren't surprising, they were still entertaining. Unfortunately, the ending was a complete let down. I spent 512 pages wanting to learn what events changed certain character's ethics and wasn't rewarded with any solid answer.

Even though Furyborn wasn't the biggest hit with me, this series will definitely be popular with others. I've actually already recommended this to my husband who reads much less critically than me. I'll continue to read this series as it's released but I just hope the author gives us more answers sooner rather than later.