Sylvia is the lost Heir to the kingdom of Jasad. She has been in hiding for ten years since the kingdom was burned down. A moment of anger causes her to use the magic she's concealed for so long and she captures the attention of the Nizahl Heir. He forces her into a competition but if she wins, she gains her freedom.

This was a good book! I give it 4 stars only because some of the terminology made it difficult for me to understand at times. It was a good story though and I look forward to the next one.

This is such an underrated gem full of politics and action. I'm always looking for fantastic new Adult Fantasy books in my preference range and this fit the bill! I can't believe that it is not on more peoples radars. I love when characters get into survival mode..where the only way out is to tag team with their enemy! It makes for some awesome moments and I love when all the misconceptions are cleared. This had everything you could want in a fantasy...slow burn romance, a great pace that sets the stage and has just the right amount of rage, forced proximity and all the goodness you can expect. This is a great book and I will be looking forward to the sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the ARC of The Jasad Heir!

Summary:
Ten years ago, the kingdom of Jasad burned. Its magic outlawed; its royal family murdered down to the last child. At least, that’s what Sylvia wants people to believe. The lost Heir of Jasad, Sylvia never wants to be found. She can’t think about how Nizahl’s armies laid waste to her kingdom and continue to hunt its people—not if she wants to stay alive. But when Arin, the Nizahl Heir, tracks a group of Jasadi rebels to her village, staying one step ahead of death gets trickier. In a moment of anger Sylvia’s magic is exposed, capturing Arin’s attention. Now, to save her life, Sylvia will have to make a deal with her greatest enemy. If she helps him lure the rebels, she’ll escape persecution. A deadly game begins. Sylvia can’t let Arin discover her identity even as hatred shifts into something more. Soon, Sylvia will have to choose between the life she wants and the one she left behind.

Review:
I LOVED this book! The descriptions in this book were incredibly vivid, some of the gory scenes were maybe TOO vivid ;). The world building was great. I liked that the championship competition wasn't the focus of the book - Hunger Games style. The relationships were a greater focus of the book although there was plenty of plot to keep it interesting. I CANNOT wait for the sequel!!!

Good use of tropes!

the things that kept me from loving this were the unnecessary long length and inconsistent pacing, some weak editing, and awkward writing.

Why do we still have romances with colonizer and oppressor love interests?! I’m just not here for redeeming the people who force the main character into terrible situations and hurt their people in systemic ways.

The story and setting were so good! I thoroughly enjoyed the inspiration for this story, and the characters growth throughout it. The only thing that made me hesitate was the romance - it felt forced at times and not like something that the characters would naturally fall into.

I really struggled to connect with the characters and keep interest. I had to DNF very early on after several attempts. But just because it wasn't my cup of tea doesn't mean it isn't yours! Happy reading.

That was interesting, BUT.

I love the MC and other side characters, the interactions felt natural & not at all stiff. But the pace felt a bit slow for me… and the magic system didn’t really clear. What’s the magic? What’s the limitation? What’s the cost? I needed to knowww.

The slow burn was literally slow-burning and i’m here for that. The plot wasn’t too original but it’s still interesting enough to make me anticipate the next book♥️

I’m DNFing this at 37%
I started out really liking it and then the farther I got into the more boring it got and the more confused I was. All the politics got really confusing to me to where I really had no idea what was going on or why things were happening. I just lost all interest in it. I really wanted to finish it to see if it got better and made more sense but I just couldn’t push through

The second I discovered this was a magic competition story, I knew I had to get my hands on it! Competition storylines are one of my favorite tropes, so I was dying to read The Jasad Heir, and I'm so pleased to say it lived up to my expectations!

You should absolutely read this book if you like:
* Fast paced stories
* Slow-burn enemies to lovers
* Magical competitions
* Headstrong female protagonists
* Egyptian-inspired fantasy setting

Thank you to the publisher and to Netgalley for granting me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is absolutely beautiful. It’s incredible, and I enjoyed it immensely! One of my absolute favorites!!!

Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this ARC in exchange for an honest review!~

The Jasad Heir was a wonderful surprise, Hashem's debut certainly did not disappoint! Full of beautiful prose and well-written characters, I really enjoyed this one. I do wish the training ARC hadn't been so much of the book, but i understand why it was done that way

I will start with saying I love royalty, rebellions, and actual enemies to lovers. This book obviously had all three. The plot was well executed with the pacing well done. The characters had depth and made you feel something. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I can’t wait to continue.

The Jasad Heir by Sara Hashem is an immersive fantasy with very detailed world building set in a Middle Eastern type land. The book was a bit slower in the second half but by then I was invested in the MC Sylvia. This book has political intrigue, slow burn romance, unique magic, and found family - basically everything you need in a solid fantasy!

This book was everything and I need the sequel asap!! I absolutely love political fantasy books and The Jasad Heir delivered. Add in the enemies to lovers trope and this book had me hooked. The story had twists I would never have seen coming, complex characters, and excellent world building. Thank you so much for giving me the chance to read this book, it exceeded all of my expectations.

I found myself swept up from the start of the narrative with its intense political intrigue and unique world building. While I still do not completely understand a few things, like the relationship between her two friends (not their relationship with her, their relationship with each other). However, that pails in comparison to everything else that I appreciated about the narrative like how well Hashem developed the protagonist and, eventual, love interest as well as their extremely slow-burn romance.

This was captivating. Sylvia is such an interesting character, with her sharp edges and determination not to get close to anyone, and perplexity when people get close to her despite this. I loved watching her internal struggles with identity and loyalty and trust.

Aaron was a fascinating character too, and I loved seeing the ways he bent his strict rules for Sylvia.

All of the side characters felt real and complete and I instantly cared about all of them.

The setting was completely immersive and rich and kept me wholly in the story while I was reading it. Once I was done it was hard to tear myself away.

And that ending! I need the next book like, now.

The audiobook performance was excellent and made me feel like I was in the story not just reading it.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit for providing an early copy for review.

By far the BEST enemies to lovers I have read in 2023. A fast pace fantasy novel that takes fresh new take on the usual tropes. I love a good morally grey character and that’s what Sylvia is. Just a warning -
I will always stand by her no matter what. 5 out of 5!

I really enjoyed this book. The characters, the world building, the action, all of the above! I can see why so many people were raving and wanting this book. It’s completely worth the read and you should get it and read asap!

This was an enjoyable fantasy read. The narrative was a bit tropey at times, but they were tropes that I enjoy. I loved the Egyptian inspired world and magic system. I liked this enough to continue with the series, and I look forward to seeing what happens next!