From the description, this book seemed like it would be right up my alley. None of the characters were particularly compelling to me, and I thought that Binsa could have a little *more* evil. I'm sure this book would be great for the right person, but unfortunately, it wasn't my cup of tea.

DNF at about 50%. I really loved the idea of this and I thought the concept and world were so unique!I love an unhinged and ambitious female character too.
However, this just wasn't connecting for me. I found the main character a little ineffective rather than ruthless like I was expecting, and overall the pace was slower than I'd wanted.
I can definitely see why other people would enjoy this and I think I can still recommend it to specific customers though!

I really wanted to love this book. Power hungry woman trades desires to Demon to get what she wants. Seems super intriguing, but in reality was a bit flat and slow. It was an okay book, but probably wouldn't recommend.

Rating: Really Enjoyed It, 4 stars

The Scarlet Throne is a political fantasy from the perspective of the villainess. In this, we follow Binsa who is a living goddess. She is the vessel through which the goddess of wisdom dispenses moral rulings and punishment to the people of her city. However, Binsa harbors a dangerous secret - the goddess never came to her. Instead she bluffs her way through with the help of the demon she carries.

The priests and other vessels begin to grow suspicious as Binsa stays on the throne longer than any other girl has in the past, and she must use all her cunning and ambition to scheme her way into power for longer. She uses every tool at her disposal and is willing to cross the line into blood magic, the road that her abusive mother took, which utterly destroyed her body and mind.

I thought that this book had a fascinating premise. I greatly enjoyed it. It is set in a world inspired by Nepal, and I really wanted to learn more about that world. We spend most of the time in the temple, and we get very small glimpses into the larger world. Honestly though, what the author did with the contained setting was excellent. I was overall very impressed.

I thought that the character work was incredibly well done. We really get into Binsa's mind, and she is an unreliable narrator. I found it fascinating to think of what the book would have read like had we been in the perspective of a different character. Binsa is well and truly the villain. I think that there was an opportunity where there was a glimmer of hope of a redemption arc, but it definitely passed. So that alone makes this an unusual book for me. But I did enjoy it. Binsa is messy and angry and ambitious.

I think that part of what took me out of things a little bit is that she is supposed to be about 16, and she certainly behaved much more like an adult. I know that she had a very rough childhood, but it still seemed like being in the temple from the age of 6, it just felt slightly unbelievable that she would have the knowledge and wilyness that she does. I wouldn't say that I necessarily liked her as a character or even enjoyed following her, but it certainly made for an interesting story.

I don't always enjoy following characters that I can't root for, but I was invested. Even though I really enjoyed this one, I am not 100% positive if I will read the next one. It honestly wrapped up really nicely, and the cliffhanger of an ending could just be an open-ending. So we will see what I feel like whenever the next book is released.

Overall, I had a good time with this and would recommend it if the premise sounds interesting or if you want to read a villain without a redemption arc!

Than you to Orbit and Negalley for an eARC. The Scarlet Throne is already released because I am extremely late with this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

That feeling when your mom is scarier than your inner demon.

This was such a refreshing fantasy story! It has so much going for it. First I found the world and its inspiration to be really original. Second, there is no unnecessary romance clogging up the plot with awkward moments. This story did not need a romance so it doesn’t have one. THANK GOD CAN WE GET MORE OF THESE?

I also loveddd the themes about motherhood and family. Families are tough and mother/child relationships can be especially so and this story takes such a unique approach to that.

Ultimately I think this was just a bit too long: it’s clear where it’s headed at a certain point, and we spend so much time in our MC’s head that I think it could have been shortened. But I really enjoyed it.

I love a villainous FMC with southeast Asian inspired settings! Such a good read, can’t wait for the next book.

A no romance debut with a self-actualized female main character who's willing to go far for her goals was not what I expected from Amy Leow, but oh wow!

This is a character driven story with a woman who is unapologetically willing to be unkind, cruel, and fierce. Binsa doesn't hold herself back from maintaining her power, starting down a sliding slope before diving into the deep end. The exploration of her relationship with her family, the stunning prose, and the high political stakes make her journey wild.

I do wish Binsa was an older woman maybe more towards late 20s early 30s, I feel it would have added a lot of depth to some of the less strong parts of her power struggle. Her political knowledge and subtle navigation would feel a little more genuine outside of a 16 year old.

Overall, I think The Scarlet Throne is ideal for anyone who wants to see the morally gray to morally black slide with a woman who takes her female rage and actualizes herself.

DNF at 39%. While I liked the protagonist and how hardcore she was, I thought the story as a whole was very slow-paced. I kept waiting for some kind of turning point that never came. Additionally, there were two instances of animal cruelty or attempted animal cruelty and I didn’t want to read more of that.

I like to thank the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me a chance at reading this book.

I try to give any non-western fantasy a chance, since it's so unique and refreshing in a predominantly white publishing world. With this book I felt the characters were strong, but the story was a slog to get through. I understood that she has no goddess possessing her, but a demonic god instead. This demonic god wants her soul and is just sitting tight while she continues to baffle the court.

I wanted an antagonist to show up and by the time I reached my DNF point there wasn't one.

This book sold me with morally grey heroines and talking cats. I knew from that alone that I wanted to read it. I did really enjoy Binsa’s character as a whole and her willingness to go all in for what she wants. It’s always interesting to see a character that commits to her villainous actions. It was also interesting to be in her POV and see how she came to each decision. I also thought the world building was well done. In terms of plot, The Scarlet Throne is more of a political fantasy, which I tend to enjoy. However, it has a slower pacing, which readers need to be prepared for. I’m personally a fan of faster paced reads, which did lower my enjoyment some with this book. I want more balance between political scheming and action. I read this via audiobook and felt the narration by Catherine Ho was good. It wasn’t a standout for me because I had to force myself to focus, but that may have more to do with the pacing rather than Ho’s narration.

Overall rating; 3.5⭐️

DNF around 15% for no particular reason, as I'm a mood reader and wasn't in a fantasy mood at the time. I fully plan on revisiting this story at a later date. I did enjoy the little I read of the book and urge you to give it a try if it seems like something you'd be interested in.

Thank you, NetGalley, for the ARC.

A really solid debut with a genuinely villainous lead. I can ALWAYS get behind books who go full send and throw the morals of their characters out the window. I do think that this book has some issues with pacing, but I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy in exchange for an honest review :)

This book was good! I liked it but didn’t love it. I definitely see potential in it and look forward to seeing what else the author does.

I unfortunately never connected to this book the way that I was hoping I would. The pacing of this one is a big sluggish and I felt that there wasn't a whole lot going on at points. I think that there is definitely an audience for this one. Especially those that love a more politically driven plot.

This was an incredibly good read! The story was beautifully written and the characters were flushed out really well! Definitely worth the read!

Binsa is a wholly realized and complicated protagonist and the setup for the narrative is so intriguing that it would be a massive feat to not be interested in this read.

The worldbuilding and scheming kept me reading and reading. I just couldn't get enough of seeing desperation transform into deliberate scheming. Power hungry protagonists are some of my favorites. There is an honesty seen in their presentations that doesn't sugarcoat the reality of being in a position of power like Binsa.

If you were a Goddess as a girl- you too would likely never want to give it up. But just how far would you go to keep it? That's what we as readers see Binsa struggle with, and her plight is understandable until her actions aren't.

If all fantasy novels this length had a protagonist as interesting as Binsa I would never stop reading them.

I eagerly await the next entry in the trilogy.

A fantasy with indian inspired mythology is great. It was a great experience and the writing style was both easy and in depth.

I received an ARC of this book by the publisher via Netgalley in an exchange for an honest review.

The Scarlet Throne is the first book in Amy Leow's debut fantasy series. There's a lot of interesting things at play here. The premise felt very fresh and original. It's a political fantasy story about a world where a handful of humans are selected to be the conduits and mouthpieces to the gods and goddesses. And power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. The beginning of the book is very slow, and the story doesn't really pick up until the 60% mark. Honestly I think the first 60% of the book could be trimmed down a little to pick up the pace. There was a moment where I was trying to decide if I wanted to DNF the book because not a lot seemed to be happening. However, I'm very glad that I stuck to the book because the final quarter of the book is great. There's a big reveal that kind of blew my mind.

The prose is strong and Leow explores a lot of ethical questions in her story. However, if you need likeable main characters in order to enjoy a book, then The Scarlet Throne isn't for you. There's also zero romance in the first book and I don't think Leow was setting up any romance for the future. So don't go into it expecting a romantasy, otherwise you'll be disappointed. This is a strong debut and I look forward to seeing how Leow develops as a writer.

I rate The Scarlet Throne 3.5 stars rounded up to 4 stars for the strong finish.

The STUNNING cover drew me to this book. It is absolutely gorgeous. I have been looking for something with themes similar to Iron Widow, Revenge, Power etc. The blurb states she would do anything to keep power, but somehow still was surprised and uncomfortable reading the beginning. Ultimately I didn't understand all the political scheming or what would be so bad about losing her status.
The writing is good and I would recommend this for people who like villain MFCs.

Thank you NetGalley for the eARC.

A girl who makes a deal with a demon in order to fake being a goddess will do anything to keep her position... anything including getting her hands bloody. Binsa is a "living goddess" a human vessel that the gods speak through and Binsa is the current vessel chosen by the gods to dispense both mercy and punishment from her place on the Scarlet Throne. Binsa has a secret though... she isn't actually a vessel, rather she has made a contract with a demon who now lives within her. Binsa will do anything to maintain her spot on the throne and with so many people trying to usurp her and replace her she'll have to go to extreme lengths to maintain her position, she'll kill, scheme, and sacrifice everything and everyone to make sure her demon is feed and that her deal goes through. This is the first book in a trilogy and this is a story on female rage featuring a morally grey main character, demons, and there is no romance at all. It's got a ton of court politics and intrigue, but it feels a bit slow and a bit much for what it is. It is a fun read however it could have been shortened considerable and the fact that this is a trilogy has me slightly concerned with the pacing of the next couple of books. I am intrigued to see where the next books go but I definitely feel that you should know what this book focuses on before going into it because there is no romance. It's a story about a character who will go the extra length to ensure her goals and who isn't afraid to get her hands bloody to achieve them.

Release Date: September 10,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Orbit Books | Orbit for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*