This book was so captivating! Leena is a beast charmer and I found myself as charmed as one of her mystical beasts!
Dual POV books that are well done are my favourite and this was one of them.
I found myself falling for Noc piece by piece but what I love is there is so much more mystery in his past!

I can not say enough great things about this book!
World building - absolutely amazing
Tough sassy heroine - check
Mystery hot hero - check
Fantastic well developed side characters - check check check
Plot - yeah color me super invested and intrigued for the next book!

I’m all here for this series!!!! For anyone who is a fan of Amanda Bouchet Kingmaker series, definitely should pick this one up

Thank you to netgalley and sourcebooks for this ARC in exchange of honest review!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this book.
What a fantastic YA Fantasy. You know when you're doing something mundane around the house and your thoughts automatically drift back to the story, catching you unawares? This is one of those books. You have to keep reading until you find out what happens. It's so different, yet at the same time, not.
The plot starts out with our main character surrounded by enemies, and the adventures they have together change everything.
There's something big coming in the next one or two books and you just have to make sure you're there for the ride. I can't wait to meet more of these awesome beasts.
4.5 stars

If you like fantasy romance, you will enjoy Kingdom of Exiles!

Exiled charmer Leena Edenfrell is in trouble with the Charmers Council for selling her charmed beasts and someone has a contract with Cruor or the undead on her. Leena has made a contract with the Noc, leader of Cruor, to provide four charmed beasts in exchange for them not carrying out the original contract. Leena and Noc with other members of Cruor traveling to other places trying to find beasts to charm and match to members and keep Leena alive.

Describing Kingdom of Exiles by Maxym Martineau is difficult because there is so much going on in the story with charmers, charmed beasts and the undead of Cruor and Leena trying to charm a rare beast so she can get an audience with the Council since she was never given a full hearing before being exiled and now somebody wants her dead.

Kingdom of Exiles leaves so many questions open about who placed the contract and what is Noc’s background and I can’t wait to find out some of answers in the next book in the series.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review (Thank you!)

Fairy Tail (Hiro Mashima) meets Sarah J.Maas. We follow the two protagonists in Dual pov: Leena, a beast charmer and Noc a lethal assassin. Leena is a fugitive and Noc is cursed and somehow they end up meeting because Noc is hired to kill her. The premise is fun, the magic system and world-building are interesting. However I had some issues.
Leena is supposed to be a badass that must not be underestimated; and yet we’re told she would never be able to beat Noc or one of his group.
She is pure like a unicorn and literally, charming. Noc and his brotherhood of assassins are supposed to be lethal. But all of them end up being friendly (and not immune to her charm) to Lena almost instantly (except Kost) and Leena and Noc have strong insta-lust and insta-love going on, which felt incredible out of character. Also, Leena after meeting Noc decides to trust a bunch of assassins and take their word for granted even though the very reason she is hunted for is because someone betrayed her trust. The only thing I really loved about Leena was how much she cared for the beasts. It was really nice to have a heroine that cared for creatures.
The villain was so one-dimensional that it disappointed me. I was expecting some conflicting emotions, depth, complexity. I got none.
Nevertheless, I really enjoyed Noc’s Brothers: Kost, Calem and Oz. I liked the author built them with distinct personalities and looks. It was easy to remember each one of them and I loved them so much as supporting characters that I think they totally eclipsed Leena and Noc for me. I kept wishing to hear more about them and less of Leena and Noc. Kost was good angst, Oz a big bear we wanna hug and my favorite, Calem, was a playboy with some mystery that has yet to unfold. I also liked the LGBTI rep very much, (Noc is Bi and Kost is gay) and I think it was done well.
Overall, it was a good read, it was entertaining and I recommend it to people who enjoy paranormal romance, or fantasy romance.
Rating: 3,5.

*I voluntarily read and reviewed an ARC of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

I waited to write this review because I had so many conflicting feelings and yet here I am a month later and no better off. I liked this book, I want to read more of the series, but I did have a few issues with it.
On a weird note I kept going back and forth thinking it felt like a YA novel.

I will say the designation of Beast Charmer was a huge draw and through the book you can see why it is compared to Fantastic Beasts. I didn't fully understand it though and still wonder why regular people couldn't attempt to capture their own beasts. Also, if it is so bad to sell the beasts you catch why isn't Leena treated more like a criminal??
Noc is an assassin which is pretty cool (and here is the only Assassin's Creed feel- a guild of assassins), but I still have so many questions on how his whole thing works. How the assassin gig works and how they feel about it probably contributed to the YA vibes I was getting. That and the way characters acted.

Leena ends up trusting Noc practically 100% to the point where she ends up staying in their house for the night... the house of people who have been hired to kill her and she trusts them because of Noc's promise not to kill her. It felt too easy. Too unrealistic at times, making her feel naive, which conflicted with her living her and around criminals in order to survive. She sells beasts to people to survive, but threatens to kill them if they mistreat their beasts. Which yay I'm glad she cares about the lives of creatures she's caught, but it is this "I'm a criminal, but I'm a good person" thing that I just don't think was pulled off smoothly.
On the flip side, Noc is a hardened assassin with a mysterious past who let's his attraction to an unknown person, Leena, change his life and affect everything he holds dear.

So, yes I have so many problems and issues with this book, but I enjoyed reading it. Again the beasts are cool, Noc, who is bisexual (if I'm remembering this correctly), is cursed in an interesting way, there is an LGBT side character or two, and intense moments. The story is most definitely there. I wanted to see what she would capture to prove her innocence. I wanted to know what happen at every turn and after knowing the ingredients needed for... well, I won't ruin anything, so let me backtrack and say I'm interested in reading more in order to know how things turn out. What will the assassins do now? What will the world do? What will happen to my fave assassin side characters who need all the love and attention?!

I recommend this one if you're looking for a paranormal romance with some unique takes, awesome creatures, a angsty romance between an exile and the man hired to kill her.

Someone has put out a hit on Leena, a falsely disgraced, exiled animal charmer. She bargains with the assassins and agrees to get them all animals is exchange for sparing her life. What she doesn’t know is that once a hit is made it cannot be revoked. They go on an interesting journey to find their animals. All the while, Noc, the cursed leader of the assassins is avoiding the hit and trying not to fall in love. I loved this book. The world building is incredible. It is very complex but is not a burden to the story itself. I loved Leena. Her interaction with all the animals is so touching and heartfelt, you can’t help but love her. The animals she tames are also cute and cuddly, even though they can be extremely dangerous and deadly. They are very protective of Leena. The assassins are supposed to be menacing and dark but as the story progresses they become a family and also became lovable. The final battle scene was exciting and heart wrenching and I can’t wait for the next book! There are plenty of unresolved issues and that doesn’t bother me because that means there will be more books. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me an ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

Loved this book! Read it! It is truly a cross between Assassin's Creed and Fantastic Beasts. Every new creature was imaginative and well described. The plotline flowed well and the character development was wonderful. I can't wait to read the next in the series!

I requested and or added this on a whim because it sounded interesting and totally up my alley. However, I didn't expect it to love it as much as I did and become one of my top favorite fantasy books - series. The synopsis says this is an Assassin's Creed-meets-Fantastic Beasts but TOTALLY throw in Pokemon as well there. It is honestly such a unique mashup of those three that I was completely blown away. 

Not only do we have a really unique world that's (like I said) a mashup of fantastic beasts and pokemon in a completely made up universe, but BOY is this one heck of a start to what I know is going to be one of my all time favorite fantasy series. It has some of my favorite tropes; enemies to lovers but with an angsty twist, secret identities (not yet revealed but there were some hints and ya girl has a hunch [wink wink @ Maxym]), and so many more. Everything about this story had me SUCKEd in. Once I really started getting into the story I couldn't stop. I couldn't stop thinking about what was going to happen next and had trouble focusing at work because all I wanted to do was read. You've got various magic systems with the assassins and the beast charmers, as well as political intrigue. The author also sets up a lot of hints and foreshadowing throughout the story that I think are going to lead to bigger plot points in future books and it's done subtly but obvious enough for readers to pick up on. At the same time, she really sets up a fantastic storyline in this book and I'm really excited to see how everything continues to play out.

Another thing I loved about this book was the characters. We have a pretty big cast - there's two main point of views but there are quite a bit of side characters. Three mainly - Calem, Ozias, and Kost accompany Noc and Leena throughout most of the story. The author was able to effortlessly give a unique voice and life to each of them. I fell in love with all five of them, and I'm so so excited to see what the next book brings. I do hope there will be more female characters as well since there was definitely an overarching amount of males and since Leena was such a well written badass, I expect to see more of those! What was also done really well with the characters was the relationships between them. The friendships feel very real and raw and new ones that form made my heart so happy. The romantic relationship in this book is an angst-filled enemies to lovers that had me screeching on the inside with every scene with them longing for each other.

Overall I honestly have almost no complaints. One thing I wish there was a bit more of (and I kind of think more of it is coming in future books) was some history to the world we're dealing with. What's the origin of beast charmers, what's the origin of the assassin's. We get hints and bits and pieces and bread crumbs here and there but I hope more information will be fed to us for future books.

If you're a fan of intricately crafted fantasy stories with romance, lots of magic and of adventure, I really think you should pick up this novel from Sourcebooks Casablanca on June 25th. Please note this is definitely NOT young adult, but I do think young adult readers would still enjoy. I will EAGERLY be awaiting the next book in the series.

Omg, this book was glorious.
I loved every line, got lost in the story, and read straight through to the end.
Everything about it was incredible, and I can’t wait for more.
(That’s the flip side of such incredible finds on NetGalley. It’s a loooong time until 2020.)
I’ll leave a more detailed review once this book goes live.

Me and my daughter really enjoyed this book. Can't wait to see what else the author has for me to try.

The first half of this book was a little slow going for me. Thankfully once I felt comfortable in Maxym M. Martineau's world of beasts, charmers, and assassins, I was all in. There was plenty of suspense-laden action, entertaining adventure, and a romance that was refreshingly heavy for the genre. I wasn't entirely sold on how quickly Leena developed an attraction for the hired assassin who could eventually follow through with her contract. But aside from that, it progressed believably and I enjoyed the forbidden love aspect of it.

Noc is an undead guild master of Cruor-leader of a group of assassins who were brought back from the dead and must complete each kill contract assigned to them. There is no choice in the matter, it's simply a requirement that they are bound to in order to survive. Even knowing that some of his bounties are innocent, he's resigned to his fate. But it's a lonely life he leads, because even the men and women closest to him must be kept at a distance for their own good. He erected a barrier between himself and the rest of the world-a cold facade that no one is permitted to penetrate. He believes that his past is so tarnished by his misdeeds that he is unworthy of any other life anyway.

His past life is shrouded in mystery. You're given hints and clues throughout the book, and I think I have an idea as to what he's concealing but this bombshell is left for future books to be revealed. You just know that when everything does come out, there will probably be hell to pay.

Leena and Noc are similar in that they are both outcasts of society. Both fallen from grace and doing what they must, living one day at a time. Leena is a highly skilled beast charmer who has been cast out of her home, Hireath. Betrayed by the man she loved and trusted the most, she's become a loner and puts her faith in nobody but herself. Her one goal is to somehow convince the Council to hear her side of the story and end her exile. That's a little difficult to do when you're selling the beasts that you charm in order to live which is strictly forbidden by her people's laws. Then there's the whole hit put out on her by an unknown source. That tends to cause some difficulties as well. Leena isn't one to go down easily though, and she manages to strike a deal with the man bound by Cruor’s Oath to end her life. She must provide beasts for his crew in exchange for her life. If she can kill two birds with one stone and charm the beast she needs to re-enter Hireath, she may have a chance to reclaim her home and her honor that was stolen from her.

The magical beasts were something completely different for me. I really enjoyed the wide range of species and how their talents interacted and aided the group on their adventure. Leena's skill in charming them was extraordinary. Many times she was facing seemingly insurmountable challenges, putting herself in life or death situations. Yet she faced each and every one with courage and tenacity. There was a lot to love about Leena. She was a strong heroine that was dealt a crappy hand, but always finds a way to outsmart the odds. As she started to develop feelings for Noc, there was a lot of confusion on her part because he couldn't help but give her mixed signals. She knew she was missing vital pieces of information regarding him distancing himself, but she really had no idea what he was keeping close to his chest. Falling for each other could be the destruction of them both.

The end was action packed, and satisfyingly suspenseful. It leaves off in a happy for now place, but there is plenty of unresolved issues and room for the plot to grow in the following books. This is my first read by the author, and I was very pleasantly surprised. I'm always looking for more fantasy/paranormal books with a strong element of romance, and this fit the bill perfectly. Great world building, original concept, and flawed yet approachable characters that are easy to root for make a well rounded package. I look forward to continuing with The Beast Charmer series next year with The Frozen Prince.

This book was amazing. I loved it from the beginning til the end and I can't wait to get my hands on the sequel! Now I'm thinking about ordering a paperback to have it on my shelves <3.

At first, when I looked at the cover, it reminded me of middle grade covers. However, Kingdom of Exiles is an Adult Fantasy with steamy romance in it. If it's something you might like, please grab a copy when it's published (June 25th). This book deserves all the love it can get. If you do end up reading it, I hope you'll enjoy it as much as I did.

You'll see this book is described as a mix of Fantastic Beasts and Assassin's Creed and I understand why. The atmosphere and world-building was really good. I got attached to the characters (beasts and people alike) pretty quickly and you couldn't have made me stop reading even if you'd tried.


(Thank you to Sourcebooks for letting me read and review an e-ARC via Netgalley)

I received an ARC of this title from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review,
Once I picked this book up, I could not put it down. Leena is a trope-defying character, both strong and vulnerable. The instantaneous attraction between she and Noc had me devouring pages as their fascination grew. Noc's inner struggles and herculean dedication to avoid hurting those he loves broke my heart.... and then stitched it up again. The world-building, character development and relationship evolution were fantastic.

Pick this one up if you are a fan of Amanda Bouchet, Kristen Callihan, C.L. Wilson and Robin LaFevers. You won't regret it!

I saw this book at book expo but was not able to get a copy went home and decided to look it up on ner galley and see if I could get a copy.
Ms Matineau has a bright future she created a world that sucks you in and make you root for the characters. I enjoyed this book. I enjoyed that the both the main character had a past life and that they had to do bad thing to survive. Not everyone was all good or bad it made for a very good book. the pacing was just right not to fast and not to slow cant wait for the next book in the series.

Thank you Netgalley and publisher!

Title...interesting....cover....I'd buy it

First in a trilogy fantasy sifi. Plot a bit convoluted and bumpy. Ideas zoom in too quickly and world building solid. I enjoyed this story about Leena and her undead assassins.

I enjoyed this debut sci-fi fantasy romance (the first in a trilogy). Our heroine Leena is a Charmer, exiled from her realm for a crime she didn’t commit, is forced to bargain with a group of undead assassins for her life. At its heart, this is a story about learning to trust and never giving up. There’s good world-building as well as character development, and a plot line that promises to entertain through the remaining two books. If you like fantastical beasts, torturous villains and lovable heroes, you’ll enjoy this. Fast read. Out 6/25.

Thanks to #NetGalley and #SourcebooksCasablanca for the ARC. The opinions are strictly my own.

What a nice breath of fresh air from Maxym M. Martineu! Wonderful debut book <3

First things First, BIG THANK YOU to Netgalley and Sourcebooks for providing me with a copy of this wonderful novel in exchange for an honest review.

Kingdom of Exiles has a release date of June 25th, 2019.
If you enjoy fantasy with a touch of romance, you should add it to your TBR now. 🙂

This story begins with Leena Edenfrell, a beast charmer, exiled by her people and alone in the world. Forced to sell her beasts to survive, she’s already low on luck when someone puts a price on her head, and an elite brotherhood of assassins has taken up the task of claiming it.

I felt like this story was if the ‘Beastmaster’ TV show of the 90s was written a million times better and then you added in other supernatural aspects and species. I adored it. Beast Charming is just a small part of the story. It did have an extreme Pokémon type feel in some cases. Haha #nerdalert! This plot was well presented and written fabulously! I’m excited to see where the next books take us.

Yes, Kingdom of Exiles is only Book one in Maxym M. Martineu’s new series.

No, book two is not out yet BUT, we do have a title and a year. Hahaha

Book Two is slated for 2020 (next year) and is called “The Frozen Prince”. It does look like this will be a trilogy, at least based on current information. Sometimes decisions are made later. #pleaseletthisbeatrilogy #closuresooner hahaha

NOW TO THE BREAK DOWN REVIEW!


“Assassins are not warriors. We don’t fight fair. We don’t battle, and we don’t give forewarnings. We strike when we know we’ll win.” – Maxym M. Martineu
High level book feel: Fantasy with sass, action, and a detailed world.

The author has gorgeous writing. Both in dialogue and in description. I was enveloped in the dingy bar atmosphere and the open spaces the characters travelled to and from. Her writing style flows very well and the pacing was fantastic. Other than the initial start, which required some build given the fantasy structure, the whole of the book is quick and smooth to read.

The world is phenomenal and I had zero issues being fully immersed from the beginning. This is such an original premise and I was immediately involved and curious about what made a beastmaster, and specifically, what made Leena tick. Maxym M. Martineu introduces more than just this ability in her novel and I do hope we get more information in later books and maybe even a spinoff?
(If she’s listening….a spinoff sounds amazing at this point, I need more information of certain characters…and history!!!) #nospoilers

The characters!! All of them!! AH-MAZING!

Whether this was happy, sad, or angry feels. I ended up feeling all spectrum of emotion from beginning to end for these characters.

Leena was is such a strong lead. She is everything that I hope for when reading, as I have a pet peeve of dumb heroines.

Leena is not dumb. Ms. Edenfrell is not weak or silly. She is smart, driven, and empowered. She is then matched with a hero that has equal parts to compliment her. Even the side characters are fully flushed out and I, naturally, do have a favorite. (I have a thing for the shy, strong types *shrug*). As mentioned above, I would love to have a spinoff surrounding some of these side peeps. That’s how well she’s done in writing their story ARCs. <3 <3

Needless to say, the side characters make my heart happy and the main characters make the story worth every moment.

Please keep in mind that this is an ADULT FANTASY book with romance. I say this as I know a lot of YA Fantasy has become popular and they include romance, but it’s not the same as adult sexy. So please be aware of the sexiness for any young adults or other audiences that are uncomfortable with more risqué content.

Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone that enjoys paranormal romance and fantasy. Maxym M. Martineu Has created a world that I will easily revisit and I will absolutely read the next books as they are released.

Overall Rating: 4.5 Stars
Plot: 4 Stars
Character Development: 5 Stars
Dialogue: 4 Stars
Writing: 5 Stars
Happy Reading!

Ash~

Kingdom of Exiles is the first book which introduces two different classes of beings. One charms mythical beasts aka the Charmersand the others are undead assassins aka the Cruors. But the two main characters are the ones that drive the story forward. Leena and Noc strike a bargain that could set them free from whatever they are searching for but first they had to trust each other and ultimately they might betray each other as well. There is also a reluctant attraction between them. Kingdom of Exiles will definitely keep a reader guessing what the story is all about and how it will end. It’s a great start to what is shaping up to be a great fantasy series.

Kingdom of Exiles is the first installment in author Maxym Martineau's The Beast Charmer trilogy. This story revolves around two main characters: Leena Edenfrell and Noc, a Cruor Assassin who is hired to kill her. Leena is what's known as a charmer. A Charmer is a person who possesses the rare ability to summon magical beasts which is why the series is being compared to the book Fantastic Beasts. Charmers are only as strong as the beasts they keep, and Leena is one of the strongest around. Leena, who was sentenced to a lifelong exile from her former home, makes a living any way she can.

Which often means selling her beasts which is supposed to be forbidden. It's hard for Leena to sell the beasts since she has a connection to each of them and knows exactly what they offer her each time the are called. In fact, she carries a book around her neck with each beast she has in her bestiary. After meeting and defeating a Cruor assassin, Leena makes a deal that will not only save her life, but out the person who was responsible for marking her for death. She must provide four magical creatures to the Guild Master and 3 of his men in order to stay alive.

Noc is the Guild Master of the Assassin's group known as Cruor. The Cruor are undead. They raise those they can't live without which often times means loved ones or life long friends. They are not easily defeated or swayed. When an assassin takes a job, they are very successful at completing their mission. Until Leena defeats one of Noc's men and he is forced to take on Leena's bounty. The real point here is that there is magic attached to each bounty and the assassin who takes it. If the assassin fails, they forfeit their life. So, now Noc has to find a way to have Leena provide him and 3 of his men with 4 magical beasts while also uncovering the person who initiated the bounty.

Leena is a pretty decent character with a bit of bravado and vulnerability mixed in. Noc is charismatic, secretive, and brilliant. He knows how to box people in, and get the most out of them. I really got to enjoy the secondary characters who join with Noc and Leena on their mission to collect 4 beasts. Kost is the assassin who failed to kill her, Ozias takes a keen interest in Leena right from the start and sticks by her side throughout, Calem is the flirty, wild assassin who looks for a challenge any where he can find it.

It took a bit to get into this book, but I will say that it is worth your time to take a chance with the book. The romance was pretty predictable but at least it wasn't love at first glance. I know it's a paranormal romance, therefore there will be romance involved in the story. Yep, that's for sure! I would have loved to learn more about Noc and who he really is. He is holding a key piece of the equation to who he was before he raised from the dead and became an assassin. Hopefully we will find out more when the second book comes out next year.

The Beast Charmer Series:
Kingdom of Exiles (June 2019)
The Frozen Prince (coming early 2020)
The Shattered Crown (coming late 2020)

I really enjoyed this one! The magic was cool with the animals and I enjoyed the characters a lot. It was a little slow in parts but overall I really liked it. Definitely a good book for people who liked fantastic beasts but with a little romance.