Great pacing, great characters, great world building... Just all about a great read!
I'm a very big fan of fantasy and this book? hit up right into my alley!

The way the characters talked to each other, how they connected and their friendships and dinamics are just about great to follow this ride of a story. So many times I even forgot what time it was as I was reading because I just needed to finish that chapter to see what was going to happen and boom it was 3 am!

This book was full of surprises and twists and turns , it was beyond amazing and I happy stormed through with vigour it definitely exceeded my expectations.
the characters were amazing and the storyline was perfectly done with beautiful world building and was detailed to perfection.

This book was enjoyable for the first half or so. The world building was really unique! However, the last half was quite the slog. The characters stalled out on developing and I felt at an arm's length. A few of the tropes going on at the end are SUPER not for me. I was bored and irritated at any given time.

Why oh why have I waited so long to start this one? I need the next one like yesterday!
What an epic story. Full of magic, drama, deceit, twists and turns. Such a great book with great story telling and world building. I've read books before evolving people/birds/ royalty but nothing like this.
The whole concept with Ana, Cassie, Rafe and Xander was executed so well it really draws you in. I loved getting all the main players POV it really helps build up the story, the drama and the anticipation of what's to come. My heart was in my mouth at the end what a brutal but great finish and now I'm sitting here desperately wanting the next one. Bring it on!

The story is as beautiful as the cover. Absolutely loved it and would recommend it to any young adult or fantasy fan out there.

Beautiful cover, beautiful conflict, just needs a little work. I wish things hadn't been divided by color of wings; black wings are negative/bad? in 2020? Even if it wasn't intentional, we just need to redirect colors that "can" relate to people because even if white presenting characters are the marginalized, it still doesn't sit well. Interesting fantasy concept though...

I received the ARC for review. Unfortunately I just don't think it was for me. The writing was bland and the story itself just felt too much like every other YA book.

A total book cover pick...I mean look at that cover!

I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed reading The Raven and the Dove. A little slow start but it got better with every chapter.
Overall an enjoyable read.

3.7 stars

I unfortunately DNF’d this book quite quickly.
I didn’t enjoy the characters or the plot enough to continue reading.

I ended up DNFing this halfway through. The writing style did not mesh well and I was not interested in the romance.

REVIEW {gifted} #TheRavenAndTheDove by Kaitlyn Davis was a really enjoyable fantasy read. Set in a world of “avians” – people with wings like birds who live on a series of isolated islands floating in the sky – this story involves a trapped princess longing to be free, the reviled bastard son of a disgraced king, an assassin turned spy, a lost king fighting a forgotten war and a golden prince yearning to prove himself. On the eve of the courtship trials – where the princes and princesses of the royal houses compete to find a mate – these five fates will collide in an epic adventures. There’s forbidden romance, a brooding hero, a fierce heroine, and an action-paced magical adventure.

I really enjoyed this book! It did take me a little while to work out the world building (but it always does with fantasy books) but once I figured it out I loved it. I thought it was inventive and fresh and had some really fun new takes on a classic story. I love a brooding hero and there were plenty of twists and turns that I didn’t see coming. There were also a lot of loose ends at the end which has me really excited for the next one in the series!

Thank you to @netgalley for sending me this free copy for review. All opinions are my own

I have tried to read this book so many times, I love the cover and it has come highly recommended to me. Unfortunately I can’t seem to get into it. I don’t particularly enjoy the writing style, I feel that it is very difficult to get into it. I also guessed the romance element and I feel like it isn’t going to be something for me. Therefore I have put the join down as it is not for me. I did not finish this book.

This book was...really hard to write a review for. You know this book was uneventful and failed to capture one's attention when I literally made three different drafts for this book's review but never went through with every single one of them, because I just kept forgetting about it.

Sorry man, but this is a..no for me. It just...I just can't keep my attention while reading it, I kept zoning out. I am so sorry.

I have to admit, I've never actually read or became familiar with the Tristan and Isolde story so this was definitely a refreshing take on Greek Mythology for me—so that's one point there already. I will definitely put a note in my tab to read up more on this particular mythology because it really sparked my fascination. This book was—on a scale of 1 to 10—7 in terms of the ease with which I was able to follow with the plot.

There were many things I definitely liked about this book including the world building and it was enjoyable to read—to a point. The main problem I had with this book was its characters. Whilst I really tried to engage myself and be invested with the 'character growth', I just felt like a lot of it was just surface level. The relationship between Rafe and Lyana was a bit problematic ie it was a lil' too 'Romeo and Juliet' at times esp with the 'insta-love' and I think this definitely calls for more work. I guess that's what it's like with books that are the first in a series, so in that case I will give it the benefit of this particular character growth-related doubt.

While on the topic of series continuation, I feel like there is definitely a lot of things that could be explored further in the next books such as—for starters—happiness for Xander. Petition to #protectxanderatallcosts—I felt like he was done the most dirty in this book and I AM NOT OKAY WITH THAT. Lyana and Cassi's friendship—which was one of the other interesting parts of this story—is also another avenue that can be enriched in the next books. I also really liked the whole concept of the division between the kingdoms—'above in the sky' and 'down below', it really sets up the world for vivid and highly evocative political and fantastical intrigue.

This book definitely felt, if I am to compare with other first books in a series, on the same echelon as 'Throne of Glass'. For that reason I will rate this 3 out of 5 and I am hoping to be more excited and invested in these characters (and the overall story) in the subsequent books in the series

I got around to reading this during my March ARC reading vlog and overall really enjoyed this book! Definitely want to pick up the sequel plus I loved the gorgeous cover!

ˇhis is the first book in a series that I have been wanting to read for a while but unfortunately I was left wanting more in the ways of world building and flushing out the magic system.
I know that first books can be deceiving for what the whole series has to offer so I will be picking up the next book and giving it a fair chance. Many of my favorite series didn't have the greatest first books but made up for it with their sequels.
Thinks I loved:
- The Courtship Trials. I loved this concept so much it hurts!
- I am always a fan of the star-crossed lovers trope and it was done very well in this book.
- The yin and yang angle <3
This I disliked:
-The plot/ story felt a bit all over the place. Like I was being pulled in many directions and didn't really know where I was in the story some of the time.
- I had trouble pronouncing some of the more made up character's names.
3 1/2 of 5 stars

This was a fantasy with a setting unlike anything else I’ve ever read before, and I’m always pleased when that is the case. On top of that, I though the characters were extremely well fleshed out and I love the relationship between. the two main characters. The pacing of the story felt slow but sure and overall made for an enjoyable reading experience overall. I’m very excited for the sequel!

I really enjoyed this book. It had everything that I love In a book and I honestly couldn’t put it down. The characters were amazing, the storyline pulled me in instantly.

So happy to finally read about a main character who is black, where the story is not fully focused on her race. This was everything and more, and I cant wait to see what else happens in this series!

<i>I received an earc from netgalley in exchange for an honest review</i>

Ok, so I didn't really know too much going into this book besides the fact that it is ya fantasy and a Tristan and Isolde retelling. But that was definitely enough to spark my interest. The tale of Tristan and Isolde has become somewhat of a favourite of mine when it comes to retellings so I was really excited to read this.

I didn't end up loving it though, as you can probably tell from the fact that I gave this book 3 stars.

It took me a couple of tries to even really start this book. I can't really say what it was but it didn't really manage to spark my interest while reading. And once I finished the first few chapters I could already tell that I didn't really care too much about the characters. Despite the fact that I really wanted to. The main characters (Lyana and Rafe) didn't feel the most original but would usually be the type of characters that I like in books of that genre. Broody guy with a tragic past and a girl that longs for more than just a life in a gilded cage and she has healing powers. Colour me intrigued.
But like I said I just couldn't really care about the characters. They felt a little flat and maybe a bit under developed?
But then again I really liked Cassi and Xander (although I gotta admit I usually root for the King Mark figure in these retellings).

I thought that the world and its magic was really interesting but I would have wanted to learn more about it. I also thought that the idea of bird-human-hybrids was a cool idea and having different courts with different species. But again, we sadly didn't get to see too much of that (but maybe in a sequel...).

One thing though that is usually a make or break for me is whether you're aware that you're reading a retelling. In a good retelling you totally forget about the original tale and it's twists and turns. You forget that you shouldn't be surprised by the turn of events but sometimes you read a retelling and all the time you just think "oh yeah, that is a retelling of Tristan and Isolde...". I constantly had the original tale and characters in front of my eyes and the story didn't really feel like it's own to me. It just didn't intrigue me enough to make me forget that this isn't an "original story". And that's a pity because I have read retellings where I was slapping my own forehead at the end because I was so surprised by the events unfolding that I forgot that I should have seen it coming.

But I do have to say that there was one thing (that I'm not gonna name here because of spoilers) that was kind of a huge thing going on in the background. It was one of the things that felt really original to me (besides the whole magic and bird aspect) and I really wanted to see where this was going. The last few chapters were a lot better and gripping to me than the first about two thirds of the book and they definitely made me want to continue with the series. I see a lot of potential for character growth and to hopefully give the characters a bit more depth.

All in all a slow read for me, not gonna lie, but in the end it was worth it. It felt more cohesive towards the end and the characters started to feel a little more palpable to me. Will definitely continue with the series.