At the time I requested this book I was very interested in it. Obviously, it has been a few years since I requested this and I am no longer interested in it now. It doesn't match my current reading tastes and I apologize that I didn't read it and thank you for the kindness you showed offering it to me.

If I were doling out points for this book, I'd give it high marks for keeping me engaged and pulling me through the twists and turns Nor has to manage. I'd also give it a ton of points for its stellar and surprising conclusion (thank the book gods for great standalone fantasies).

But, I'd have to take away points for a instalove romance that I so wanted more from and for a premise that I've read many, many times before girl gets sent to the palace to marry someone she doesn't know/like (see: The Stolen Songbird, Reign the Earth, The Girl of Fire and Thorns, etc). While I don't tire of that premise too much, the story doesn't deviate enough from its predecessors to make it stand out from the rest.

Definitely an entertaining but with discernible flaws.

𝑅𝒶𝓉𝒾𝓃𝑔: 🥀🥀🥀/𝟻 ᴇɴᴄʜᴀɴᴛᴇᴅ ʀᴏsᴇs

𝒪𝓃𝑒-𝓌𝑜𝓇𝒹 𝑅𝑒𝓋𝒾𝑒𝓌:

𝒯𝒶𝑔 𝐿𝒾𝓃𝑒: Steal the crown. Save the kingdom.

𝒪𝓅𝑒𝓃𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝐿𝒾𝓃𝑒: Sometimes I wonder if it was our names that determined our fates, or the other way around.

Hug thank you to PenguinTeen for providing mr with an advanced reader copy!

CROWN OF CORAL & PEARL was a sea centered fantasy laced with political intrigue, and magical kingdoms. It was also the story of sisterly love. The story explored how beauty is only skin deep and the effects o a society functioning on the basis of beauty. CROWN OF CORAL & PEARL also had a delicious forbidden romance.

CROWN OF CORAL & PEARL was an enjoyable read that kept my interest. I recommend!

ʜᴀᴘᴘʏ ʀᴇᴀᴅɪɴɢ!
𝒜𝓈𝒽𝓁𝑒𝓎
ʙᴏᴏᴋsᴛᴀɢʀᴀᴍ & ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ sɪᴛᴇ: ᴛʜᴇᴛᴀᴛᴛᴇʀᴇᴅᴘᴀɢᴇ

Crown of Coral and Pearl
By Mara Rutherford
August 27, 2019


In Nor’s world the crown prince marries the most beautiful maidens in her ocean village and when she is left with a scar in a childhood accident, she knows she will not be picked. Instead her twin sister Zadie, will likely be chosen. When Zadie is injured Nor must go in her place but the crown prince is anything but warm and inviting, he is forbidding and unsympathetic. She must navigate the politics in the court.

In order for Nor to save her people she must work out the dangerous protocols of a court where lies and deceit run rampant.

I loved this fantasy, it was imaginative and compelling. The characters were lively and engaging. I liked Nor a lot, she was courageous and brave. One of my favorite characters I’ve read from in a while.


Thank you to Inkyard Press and NetGalley for this advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

This YA dystopian fantasy that actually held my interest, and I really enjoyed it. It was a smidge predictable but for YA that's a bit standard. However the writing was beautiful and I loved the plot and characters. The world the author built was so rich and immersive and i enjoyed it entirely.

First I absolutely love this cover! It's amazing! The stories of Llara and Zadie were so interesting and I loved every second of my time with them and in this world.

Wasn't sure what to expect with this book but it offered a unique fantasy setting that was realistic and beautiful with all the complications of real life ecological and political issues. Looking forward to the second book. I liked how strong the main character was.

Love this series and was so excited to have the chance to read this one. I love this addition to the genre.

Unfortunately could never finish this book. I kept it on my list for years (I'm so sorry) and just couldn't get through it. The writing was just not my cup of tea although I can see why many others have enjoyed it.

Did not finish this story, wasn't for me. I hope other readers enjoy this story, it's very promising and sounded amazing. I just couldn't fight my way through.

Oh, I had such a great time reading this book! This world with Varenia and the royal family was just so interesting to read! And I really enjoyed reading about Zadie and her journey, and oh, was this an excellent duology!

There is so much politics in this book. It is a fantasy, and with a royal family, but oh, the backstabbing and the intrigue were so amazing! It made it tough for Zadie, but it was fantastic to read! She is dealing with being in a totally new world, having living on Varenia her whole life, and being trapped in the mountain castle is an adjustment.

Honestly, I was worried about her going into this situation. The power dynamics between the two of them are wildly unbalanced, he's the future king, and she's a stranger from a small village that have a complicated relationship with the royal family, from events that happened centuries ago. Not to mention the fact that her island exports in almost all of their needs-and his country is the only one that they can trade with. There was very little chance that nothing was going to go wrong.

The overarching plot of this duology boils down to the crown, and who is the one who should wear it, between the brothers and their sister. Well, that and Nor discovering what she wants, out of the whole wide world with new options for her to explore. Oh, and the magic, and how that works. There were some really intense moments, and clever plans, and I really enjoyed how it all came together!

Loved reading these books, and I can't wait to read more by Mara Rutherford!

Nor has dreamed of seeing the beauty of the human world Illara, but her beautiful sister is chosen to be queen. After Zadie is injured, Nor is sent in her place.

I really liked the world building. The ocean village of Varenia was lovely. Bloodstones and blood coral were really cool. The momentum slowed when the plot reached Ilara though.

For someone who grew up with an emphasis on beauty, Nor’s relationship with Talin seems superficial.

I was hoping that while Cereb was bad, Takin would be too with the lion fish remark. This book would have been far more interesting if Talin had been a bad guy. But he enables his very unstable older brother so maybe that’s a subtle flaw.

All in all a solid three stars. If you’re wanting a ya fantasy with mermaids and sisterly bonds, this is the one for you.

I have elected not to read and review this book due to time constraints. Thank you for the opportunity.

This was an interesting take on ocean and land lore. I loved the sister switch and the take on how the land with all the resources except fresh water is under the thumb of the land empire. Overall a good book, deserves a sequel for sure!

While perhaps relying a tad too much on the tried-and-true elements of quintessential young adult fantasy titles, A CROWN OF CORAL AND PEARL was a quick and very fun read. I loved the setting, and thoroughly enjoyed the dynamics between Zadie and Nor!

On my TBR pile for awhile now but I really enjoyed it. Nice cover and title but the blurb had me wanting this one!

What did I like? This had an interesting story line and it enthralled me. Twin sisters identical except for a scar where beauty is held high. Only one can marry a prince… it has a mermaid type quality.

Would I recommend or buy? This was an easy book without a ton of drama. I really felt this could have kept going with another book. Four stars. I’d definitely read more by this author!

I received a complimentary copy to read and voluntarily left a review!

What a wonderful escape this turned out to be. Confession: I love mermaid and mermaid-esque books. This one doesn't have any actual mermaids in it but it does have twin sisters from a sea kingdom who have a special affinity for possibly-magical pearls and corals. It also has powerful rival kingdoms with nefarious--I love that word--intentions, royal brothers who may not be exactly who they seem, a dash of political intrigue, cave monsters, and plenty of romance. This book, my friends, is much more than a pretty cover.

Two sisters, Nor and Zadie, are twins and best friends who live in a village where villagers reside in houses on stilts in the ocean. Their mother has planned and prepared for them to be valid princesses so the Elders can choose one of them for the prince’s wife when he’s ready to rule. Nor has a scar on her face caused by a scrape against a blood coral so the villagers assume that Zadie or Alys will be chosen by the Elders. Zadie and Nor have been best friends with Sami since they were young and now Zadie and Sami are in love, so Zadie doesn’t want to leave home. Nor has always wanted to explore the world beyond the village. When Zadie is chosen, she’s desperate to do anything to stay with Sami. After she acts on her desperation, Nor’s life is turned upside down. She travels to New Castle in the mountains far away from home so she can meet and marry the prince who turns out to be cold and unkind. Nor gathers some allies and vows to do everything she can to take care of her family, village and the kingdom she’s going to be the princess of someday. 5 stars for this fantasy involving sibling sacrifice and strength!

This was enjoyable but really just a run of the mill YA fantasy. Nothing stood out too much to me but I did have fun reading it.

Wow. This is one of the best YA fantasy books I’ve read in years and honestly, I am a little disappointed that it isn’t talked about more!

I feel like this is going to be one of those raving reviews where I just talk and talk and talk about all of the positive aspects of this book … and it would be accurate to do that because there isn’t much that I didn’t enjoy!

There is a heavy romance subplot and I’ll be honest, at times I wasn’t sure where I wanted it to go. Okay, okay, actually I did. But damn, Mara Rutherford had me conflicted and section guessing myself a times! I really feel as those one of Mara’s strengths in this is writing nuanced and complicated characters, who have distinct positive and negative qualities. That said, I was totally invested in the romance of this book and am more than happy with where it’s gone!

The world building, as well as well as history/mythology in this book is fleshed out nicely and fully realized. Sometimes there will be grey areas in fantasy, where the world building is lacking and your mind is like “OKAY BUT WHY?”, however I didn’t feel that at all in this book. The mythology is closely tied to the world building and I feel as though Mara did a fantastic job of making sure readers have a good grasp of things before we loose ourselves in the story.

Needless to say, I highly recommend this book and am looking forward to reading the sequel!