I used this review copy to inform my interview with Victoria Aveyard on the Fantasy Inn podcast: https://thefantasyinn.com/2021/04/27/e81-victoria-aveyard-interview/

I am glad I gave this book, Realm Breaker by Victoria Aveyard, another chance!

I had DNF’d it last year, and I think my brain just wasn’t ready for learning a new fantasy world. I primarily listened to this, and it was a really great audio.
Will definitely listen to the 2nd one when it comes out later this year.

The characters, the world, the time period. I love all of it. One book was not enough, I need more. I fell in love with this band of misfits from the very beginning, and I can't wait to see where their stories lead.

Realmbreaker was good, but it was confusing at times. It was a dense fantasy book with a fairly large page count.

Victoria Aveyard went all in with the intricate worldbuilding which included a ton of descriptive writing. I found myself struggling with the first few chapters and almost DNFd it more than once. However, I will say push through and keep reading because it does get better! I liked the multiple POVs. I really enjoyed the characters - especially Dom and Andry! I can't wait to watch the characters grow.

Also... THAT ENDING has me impatiently waiting for the next book because I Need to know what happens next

Realmbreaker is a strong start to what I hope is going to be a great new high fantasy series. I highly recommend reading it.

This book starts slow, but has an amazing adventure. You will travel along with the characters as they decide if they should save their world or destroy it! I could not put it down.

I will be recommending this book for purchase as an addition to our school library. Thank you for the opportunity to read.

Realm Breaker is set in Allward, a world where Spindles - doors to other realms - are thought to be a myth, as are the Immortals and Elders, beings who can manipulate the Spindlegates that connect Allward to other realms. The prologue details a disastrous battle which takes place when Companions of the Realm seek to stop Taristan, a rogue Immortal, and his wizard accomplice from using a Spindleblade to tear new spindles between realms to aid the evil entity he worships. Half the companions are human and half are Immortals. The only two who escape with their lives are Elder Domacridhan and Andry, squire to the knight Cortael, who manages to flee with Cortael's spindleblade. When the story begins, Dom and Andry are heading to a Spindle temple to thwart Taristan's plans. They must engage the help of Corayne, secret daughter of Cortael and a pirate queen, who has the corblood required to wield the spindleblade. Along the way they enlist the aid of assassin Sorasa and others to help their cause. Shifting viewpoints and flashbacks detail the characters' backstories, setting up the quest to protect Allward and make sure the Spindles that can open destabilizing passages between realms are closed. This complex tale will have readers spellbound as the ragtag band of heroes overcomes one challenge after another

A ton of students love this author but I was never into her previous work. This book though really shows the author's growth and development. I bought a copy for the library and will be getting one for myself as well.

I just could not get into this book. It is a very slow start with too much information up front and not enough story to hook the reader. I tried twice and I actually plan to try again when less busy, but for now dnf. Sorry.

Aveyard missed the mark here. There are too many characters with too little development. There isn't enough to make the reader particularly care about any of them. She does a lot of telling and not a lot of showing. The plot drags on for pages and pages with nothing happening, and then there will be a brief flash of excitement and we are back to nothingness. The villain feels like a poor man's Sauron. I'd say it's a poorly executed good idea, but the book drags so much that I'm not even totally sure what the idea is, even after finishing it. Some diehard fans will enjoy it, but it felt like an overall miss.

This a tome for sure. Students who love epic fantasy and who have read through Sarah J. Maas' backlog will for sure enjoy this. Many POVs, sweeping world, and action packed. Keep this one in your classrooms for independent reading. It'll be a popular one.

Meh.

I mean, it was ok. It had the potential to be really good, but it was missing...something. I still can't articulate what that something is, but it was enough to keep me from being really invested in this book.

This book was a little difficult at the beginning, just because it introduces A LOT of characters all at once. It took as bit to sort them out. And then the characters keep being problematic. I mean, I liked them, but there was nothing compelling about them, so I ended up just not caring about them, or about what happened to them.

The villain was also an issue for me. We have the classic *he's going to destroy the world* scenario, but the villain isn't really written to command terror. He's a mustache-twirling Snidely Whiplash-type, and it just didn't work for me.

Overall, I was disappointed with this one.

I wish I had enough time to finish this book before it was published! What I've read has stuck with me and I can't wait to purchase the audiobook so I can listen in the car!

Realm Breaker by Victoria Aveyard has been one of the biggest and most pleasant surprises of 2021, for me. However, I also felt similarly with Red Queen back in 2015, at least until all of the sequels proceeded to ruin the series for me (mostly)… However, I have hope that the sequels to Realm Breaker will not mess with my mind and heart in the same way! Victoria Aveyard is a master world builder and composes beautifully-written characters whose current lives and past backgrounds draw you in completely. While I was hooked immediately with the stunning map, the introduction to Corayne in chapter 1, Andry in chapter 2, and Sorasa in chapter 5 really, really captivated me. While I am still out on Dom’s character, I also really loved the supporting characters, Erida, Ridha, and Valtik, too, to name a few! The concept of light and darkness as presented in Realm Breaker (and many other fantasy series) never ceases to amaze me. Following in the footsteps of Brandon Sanderson, Sarah J. Maas, and many more, Victoria Aveyard has all of the tools at her disposal that she needs in order to write and complete a stellar, best-selling fantasy series that could surpass Red Queen and prove her growth and adaptability as a writer and author.

Pleasantly surprised with this book. I didn't expect it to be an entire novel of "getting the gang together" but I liked that it spanned as long as it did while moving the actual plot forward. I think it's a great set up to a series that I'll definitely continue!

I loved the “Red Queen” series, so I was very excited to begin this journey and very grateful to NetGalley for letting me read this early!

Victoria Aveyard just has a way of telling her stories that transports you right into the setting. Realm Breaker did just this and more. I enjoyed the structure of having multiple POV’s without it being too much to follow.

The concept of a young girl being thrown into an unknown world, being chased by a murderous assassin and the inclusion of a crazy witch had me reading past my bedtime. I truly enjoyed this one!

Another great work by Aveyard with a whole new cast of characters to follow and love. Reminiscent of the classic found family trope with magic and mystery.

Disclaimer- I don't usually like reading fantasy (I'd rather watch it, tbh), and I also don't usually enjoy series. BUT- Aveyard's "Red Queen" series was awesome and so I leaped at the chance to read her newest one. "Realm Breaker" has a bit for everybody- pirates, assassins, bounty hunters, wizards, villains who don't die, magical zombie like creatures, power hungry queens, etc. so there's obviously characters you can root for. Personally, I wanted more slow burn villain romans, but that's just me. The book definitely builds the world and sets up for a fantastic series, so stay tuned!

This book was an interesting read. There was a lot of excellent world building and since this was the first book it was more focused on the world building and characters then in getting the plot moving but it was really interesting even with so many characters being thrown at you. I can’t to read the next book and see where these characters end up.

Thanks to Harperteen and Netgalley for the complimentary copy of this book in e-book form. All opinions in this review are my own.

A very long yet inoffensive YA fantasy that feels forgettable compared to other current genre offerings.