Thank you for my copy of Granted! This is ome.of the most gorgeous covers and I enjoyed the story overall! It was a little slow for me to get into but enjoyed the beginning of this series.

I picked this up because of the cover art (stunning!) and being interested in the brief synopsis. I struggled with a couple of things with this novel, mainly the sentence structure throughout as well as the overuse of some descriptive terms. I felt like a lot of the wording could've been edited down to get to the point more quickly and keep things moving along.

The characters within are interesting, including the main character. At times I wanted to throttle both her and the main love interest, which shows I was invested in the characters themselves. The curse aspect of the plotline was really interesting, but I kept comparing this to other fantasy novels that had a little more clarity and build up of the 'thing' the characters were facing. I also would've liked more clarity on the world itself as a whole (the stone hearted, what does each thing do, etc.). It did make me want to pick up the next novel to get more insight on what happens next and where this goes!

This was so good. I originally wanted to read it because the cover made me think of another series from a different author. I was not disappointed. Thank you netgalley and the publisher for my copy of this book.

Despite a stunningly beautiful cover, this book was not great. In my opinion the author tried to incorporate too many plot points--magic, kidnapping, family drama, love triangle (square??), and a curse. Each part felt rush and undeveloped, as did the characters. I didn't fully grasp the magic system, the romance seemed rushed, and curse seemed like an after thought at times. Because I had a hard time engaging in the plot, I ended up skimming most of the book. It is too bad, since I think that the author has good ideas, she just tried to do to much.


Thanks Netgalley and publishers for the free e-arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Did not finish this..

I just couldn't get into the story. Might of just been me and my mood but kept wanting to read other things.

Will have to try again sometime.

Granted is the first in a trilogy. It follows Sabeara the second daughter of the king of Aveladon, a kingdom that is at threat of going to war with its neighbors. After being kidnapped and then rescued by a stranger, Mid, who she falls in love with, she begins to hear about a curse on the kingdom, which she then researches after returning home, expecting never to see Mid again. However, Mid soon reappears with the revolution that he is Prince Midennan of a nearby realm and is engaged to her sister to form an alliance between their kingdoms.

I really liked Sabeara. She's a fairly typical YA fantasy heroine, but it's hard to get tired of fierce girls who are determined to figure out what's happening and fix what's wrong with their world when nobody else seems willing to. Mid was fine; he wasn't horribly appealing, but, aside from him constantly trying to convince Sabeara that it's okay for him to cheat on her sister with her, he was relatively okay. The other characters didn't receive much development, but it's possible that will happen in later chapters. Sabeara's sister, Jasper, felt particularly underdeveloped for me in proportion to her significance in the book and the importance of the pair's relationship, so I'd definitely want to see more character development and depth on her end in sequels.

I think my two main issues with this are the plot structure and the worldbuilding. Plot-wise, the book definitely feels like it spends too much time on the buildup. The crux of the plot is definitely intended to be the curse, and everything related to that, but the action instead is primarily focused on Sabeara and Mid's meeting and relevant adventures, which felt almost like they ought to have been in a prequel novella and then summarized in this book instead. I enjoyed the book once I got past that, but it did take half of the book on something that overall doesn't feel relevant enough to the overall plot, and which dragged the pace of the novel out quite a bit.

The worldbuilding definitely threw me off. For one, the relations between the kingdoms were explained in an infodump at the stare, which I didn't fully understand even as I read it. Essentially, I believe the surrounding kingdoms broke off from Aveladon, but it was unclear what exactly the different realms thought of each other or anything. Additionally, the magic system wasn't explained well enough, so I was quite confused for a large portion of the story on that front as well. Essentially, at 18, everybody in Aveladon goes to a magical tree and receives a power, the potancy of which is shown by the color of the glow that now emanates from their hearts (and thus they're known as the Stone-Hearted), as well as making them extraordinarily beautiful for some reason. I couldn't ever really figure out what determined what powers they got or what range of powers there were; Jasper got power over the wind, which seemed to be regarded as particularly powerful, but there were also people able to control the emotions of others and such.

I do think that this book has a lot of promise as the start of a trilogy, and I think a lot of my issues with it will definitely be resolved or feel more balanced out as the story progresses.

Overall, while I enjoyed Granted, I did feel like it didn't live up to its potential. More clarity in worldbuilding and a more balanced plot would have made the experience as a whole much more enjoyable. However, that definitely doesn't preclude me from wanting to read the rest of the trilogy; I do want to see where the plot goes and how the curse plays out, and I'm genuinely interested in Sabeara. Hopefully the other issues, particularly character development and worldbuilding, will be resolved later in the series. I'm giving this book 3/5 stars.

I saw this cover months ago, skimmed over the synopsis and was vaguely intrigued. Judging by the cover alone, this book seemed so magical. From the ice and snow background to the various tones of blue on the dress, it’s a cover ripe for the winter season.

It took a while for my attention to be captured, and I think this comes from the beginning of the book jumping right into the story of the book. I am not entirely sure what it was specifically but I guess I wanted a little more context at the beginning

I think I would maybe want to pick up a physical copy and try again but I couldn’t get into it right now

I wasn't sure what to expect with this one, and honestly I picked it up for the cover. I liked the blurb though, and thought I'd give it a try. I haven't seen anything mentioned about this one, and after reading it, sadly I can't say as that comes as a surprise. While I did enjoy it, it does come off as a bit cliché, and the basic concept is a bit over down among YA books.

Still, I did find this one interesting, and can see other readers of similar YA themes enjoying it. I just don't know that it is original enough or offers any unique changes that can make it stand out against the already rather long list of similar magical princess stories.

this was a really nice and comforting read. it didn't bring anything new to the reading table, but it was nice to just cozy up and read this generally good book.

Our bear (Sabeara) is a princess who is the opposite of her sister. Wild, child-like, ignorant, unimportant unlike her sister, Jasper but that does not stop her from loving her sister dearly. When an incident happens on her sister's Granting day, she knows she needs to leave her comfort zone and find a way to keep her kingdom safe from rebels and curse. Things can not get worse when her crush and life savior turns out to be betrothed to her sister. She doesn't want to confess to her sister because she knows her sister already develops feelings for Mid. She realizes that she can't be selfish with her feelings when her kingdom is in a dire situation even if it takes for her heart to break silently.
Even though I do find Sabeara a little bit childish but I can see her slowly maturing as she feels her responsibility to break the curse. You won't be seeing major character development in this book because it is only the beginning of her journey. But I'm hoping to see Sabeara to be a more wonderful and stronger heroine in the next book.
Her relationship with Mid is a bit frustrating and I can see it will be more frustrating in the next series. I don't like Mid and Bear's decision (which I won't elaborate more, I won't spoil haha) but if they choose a different path, one conflict can be settled down better. But it's okay as long as they will learn from their mistakes and somehow settle it in a good way. Overall their love encounter is not satisfying enough and I can't really see chemistry much from those two. Still I'm hoping things can get much more interesting in the 2nd and 3rd book though.

This one was just ok for me. I thought the idea of it was solid but I have to connect with the characters to get invested in a story and that just didn't happen with this book.

DNF @13% and so I don't feel comfortable giving it a star rating.

Don't be duped by the cover.

When I read reviews that are like OH. MY. GOD. BEST BOOK IVE EVER READ SINCE I GREW EYES FOR READING@! I immediately go and check to see if the account is another indie author, which I didn't really notice with this one, surprisingly, but I did notice that all of the glowing reviews are from people with average star ratings of 4 and up. I have no trust. How do you never read anything sucky? Everything is great?

There are many words used just so that we can be absolutely certain that the author knows a lot of words. It's really awkward, and a lot of the time it doesn't actually make any sense in the context. I couldn't get into it, in great part because of this, but also because it reads really young to me, and we are told everything. I don't like reading books where the author can't be bothered to show me how a character is feeling through actions and instead opts, EVERY TIME, to include things like "she looked at him suspiciously; he was clearly very afraid; she yelled with obvious rage" which are not direct quotes, but you get the idea, and so I had to DNF this one.

I've got lost in the beggining of the book. No podia entender nada de lo que estaba pasando porque iba todo demasiado rápido.
Las escenas de romance estaban bien hechas, pero no soy fan del insta-love.
Jasper me daba weird vibes desde el principio, siento que es un personaje que le hace falta más personalidad.
Oli, entiendo que seas sobreprotector con la protagonísta, pero media pila flaco, la perdes de vista una vez y la secuestran.
Mid, hermano, no es por ahí.
Lo de los Obscurumm o como se llamen, le falta más explicación. Si bien son los villanos, siento que les falta ese "algo" para que yio diga "uuuh lpm que hacen acaaa" o algo por el estilo.
Se concentraron más en explicar la maldición que en otra cosa.

Thank you to Netgalley for a copy of this book to review.

The cover for this one instantly drew me in it is stunning and was the main reason I requested to read the book.

Granted revolves around Sabeara second in line to the throne of Aveladon after her sister Jasper. Sabeara wants nothing more to be granted her powers and become stone hearted like her sister Jasper. At her sisters granting the castle is attacked and Sabeara is kidnapped by the Obscurum she is then saved by the main love interest Mid and he helps her get home, however neither of them are being truly honest about who they are.

Once back in her kingdom Sabeara finds out marriage has been arranged to the Prince of Ethydon, who is none other than Mid himself.

Determined to move on Sabeara focuses her energy on uncovering the curse that is expected to weaken the stone hearteds powers.

I really enjoyed the world building in this book there were some stunning images that were described of the various different kingdoms. I also really enjoyed the main character the rebellious Sabeara, although I must admit at the start of the story she did come across as quite weak. I put this down to the character leading a very sheltered life within her kingdom. However as the story moved on we saw her come more into her role as the main character.

Mid as a character I wasn't overly sure on the love triangle with her sister Jasper didn't really endear his character. However I did really enjoy the sarcastic humour and how him and Sabeara interacted following her rescue. So I'm willing to see how book two pans out.

Most of the other characters did feel side characters to these two and I'm hoping there is a deeper development of the supporting characters in the further two novels.

Overall as a light read I did really enjoy this story, it gave me nostalgia for 2012 to 2014 YA fiction like the Selection series. However I am hoping for more abit more depth and character development in the following two stories.

Granted - Kendra Thomas

I received this eARC FROM @netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Initial thoughts:
Little Bear - the girl who cried wolf

Sabeara/Little Bear is the youngest daughter of the Aigovel Royal Family.

She’s captured and held prisoner by the Obsidian forces then rescued by “Mid” she hides her true identity by assuming her mothers name.

The two travel companions grow fond of each other but ultimately must return home to their respective families.

Jasper, Sabeara’s older sister, is to marry for the good of the alliance between Aveladon and Ethyden. As a curse threatens their kingdoms and the Obsidian forces gather to wipe them out.

I really enjoyed stepping into this world, I loved the ‘Ehren’/‘Mid’ dynamic and the main plot line of the curse.

Very intriguing - I am really looking forward to the rest of this series.

4 ⭐️

I gave 4 out of 5 stars and immediately purchased the kindle version of the other 2 books in the series. I had to know what was going to happen next. I was gripped and invested in Mid and Sabeara’s love. The intensity and possibilities between the both of them was awesome. The story does drag on longer than it should, I feel like there were some unnecessary scenes that does not progress the plot or character building. But overall, I loved it.

Granted by Kendra Thomas is a young adult fantasy novel based around Princess Sabeara and how she sets about saving her world.

Although I enjoyed this book, I found the writing a little hard to get used to. It was a little bit too descriptive in parts and that made it feel rather slow moving.

To be honest, this was a TOUGH book to get into.

It wasn't because of the story or the world--it was simply the writing itself. Everything was so overwritten that I each page felt like torture to slug through. Having to read sentence after sentence of phrases like "provoking my hairbrush to teeter to the floor" and "the precious piece of literature' made the entire experience unbearable.

I didn't even make it through the first chapter before I gave up. It was that bad.

If unnecessarily overblown writing doesn't bother you, it's worth a shot! It just wasn't for me.

***Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchance for an honest review.***

I was captured by this book from the start! I love the unique fantasy world and the powers involved, the heart wrenching love story, and the brave heroine! The cliffhanger at the end had me reeling! This is a perfect book to get you out of a book slump! It’s nonstop from start to finish and you won’t be able to put it down!

What a fabulous fantasy world! Kendra Thomas created a refreshing fantasy world that was new and exciting!
The Story follows a princess, Sabeara (Little Bear for short) who lives in a world where everyone who comes of age is granted powers that are displayed in a color that glows from their actual heart. These individuals are known as Stone-Hearted. Early on in the story, Sabeara is kidnapped by a rival kingdom, then rescued by a mysterious stone-hearted guy. They spend several days together navigating terrain (and feelings) and ultimately developing feelings for each other. This story is such a great slow-burn and an excellent start to a quest!. Unfortunately, everything that can go wrong, does for our MC. She is resilient and strong even for her age, but that comes from.....TRAUMA! The story was amazing, and the cliffhanger, well, we love to hate them. Kendra Thomas does such a great job story-telling and getting the reader invested in her characters. I love it, and am ready for the next one!