Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a free e-book copy of this book in return for my honest opinion.

Overall, I think it's a good YA fantasy book. It has plot twists and heists, a hint of romance, action, scheming, and playful banter. (And a great potential for a sequel).

I went into this book with a bit of hesitation because I don't read a lot of YA anymore. But it worked for me. The book follows Teisa, who is one of my favorite parts of the book. Within the first few pages, she kills someone quite ruthlessly, and it seems her main difference from other main female characters in this category (at least the ones that I read) is that she's not perfect, she can be cruel and manipulative, and I actually found that I joyed a lot of those scenes. Another thing that I really liked about the book is her relationship with Enna, who is her thief. I found their dynamic to be fun when it wasn't intriguing because Teia usually uses Enna for scheming (and to be honest I ship them together).

This book has a plot twist around the end and a heist (more than one actually), and while I quite enjoyed most of the book, these two things did pull me in deeper and make me go through the second half quickly. In a way, some small parts of this book reminded me of Six of Crows, but in very general things and I wouldn't compare the two. However, at times when I was reading, Teia did make me think of Kaz, but they're still entirely different. They both scheme and have their pawns on the political chessboard, but something that stood out to me a lot when I tried to make connections in my head, is that Teia puts herself first and anyone else is several spots below, unlike Kaz.

For me, the parts where the book lacked a little was the side characters. I felt like there was something lacking in the characters of Kyra, Alara and Tobias. Out of the three I do like Tobias the most, but these three characters did feel a bit "classic" for a fantasy book and I was hoping they would have depths that would add something unique to them, like I felt with Teia. But maybe it's just me, and I think that if Inferno's Heir will have a sequel, it would be interesting to explore these characters a bit more and maybe I'll end up feeling more connected to them.

On this note, I really hope this book will have a sequel and I'm going to keep an eye out for more books by Tiffany Wang in general.

I mean this one turned out to be very average. It definitely has its pros and cons but the overall result turns out to be a watered down Six of Crows-ish story.

Though the book has some great moments with actually funny banter, I found it soooo boring in some parts that I had to convince myself to pick it up.

I might give this book another chance in some time, but right now, it was an okayish experience.

4⭐️- This ia a YA fantasy, morally grey FMC, unique magic system, rebel uprising, slow burn//zero spice romance. Inferno’s Heir follows Teia Carthan as she navigates her older half-brother, Jura, as he ascends the throne. The Carthan line is made of fire welder’s, because TEia’s mother was from a neighboring empire, she has the ability to not only wield fire, but water as well. Jura requests Teia infiltrate the Danbreakers, a rebellian organization who has a fire weirder themselves. While Teia agrees to infiltrate the Dawnbreakers, she has ulterior motives herself for the infiltration. The last 20% will have you on the edge of your seat! It is released on October 15, 2024!!

Inferno's Heir follows Teia, the Princess of Erisia, who is somewhat of an outsider due to her deceased mother's status as a foreigner. This is a highly political fantasy and the scheming and backstabbing definitely keeps things interesting. That said, even though Teia is meant to be a morally grey character, I never really managed to connect with her. Although she is a fierce female lead, some of her actions at times seemed downright sociopathic. Overall if you enjoy morally gray heroines and political fantasy I think you will enjoy Inferno's Heir!

To preface, I'm incredibly picky with my books; I'm a hater against my will and I tend to scrutinize what I read to the last detail. That being said, I really liked Inferno's Heir. The writing was gorgeous and easy to absorb, and the worldbuilding was wonderfully dispersed throughout the novel to avoid info-dumping expositions or long stretches of fantasy jargon. I thought the plot was thought out incredibly well; the narrative built upon itself in a satisfying way where all details were important and referred back to appropriately. And of, course, the characters carried the story. I really felt for Teia and didn't think she fell into the "edgy badass snarky main character who's way cooler than all of the normies" trap that many stories of the same genre do. I could feel the humanity beneath her exterior.

I generally enjoyed the pacing--it wasn't too slow or too fast until the last quarter, where I feel like there was a pretty major tonal shift and the pacing picked up pretty quickly. However, I feel like that didn't take away from the other sections of the book and I still enjoyed it the whole way through.

What a debut!!

I want to thank the author and netgalley for this ARC.
This book exceeded all my expectations. The story was fascinating and de FMC amazing. I loved the plot and magic-system. I enjoyed it very much.

Thank you NetGalley and Bindery Books for giving me early access to this book! All opinions are my own.

I absolutely loved Inferno’s Heir! I feel like it took the typical tropes of fantasy and spun them in such a unique way. And that twist at the end! My jaw literally dropped. If you’re a fan of fantasy, definitely pick this up! 4.5⭐️

“‘We’re Carthans,’ Teia’s father said. ‘And Carthans have never been afraid of fire.’”

From the opening line I liked this book! What an incredible debut.

Princess Teia is an outcast within her own kingdom, and is willing to do anything to maintain some control over her own life. Her half-brother and soon to be king, Jura, rules with terror and an iron fist. Teia joins the underground rebels with her own plans of betraying them to Jura to guarantee her safety. However, upon working with the rebels, the lines between enemy and friend become blurred, and everyone involved has their own motivations and plans for the rebellion and kingdom.

I loved this so much; I laughed, I cried, I was angry, I was anxious, this book took me through it all. I really enjoyed the political intrigue, there are plots within plots. The world building was seamless, consistent and easy to understand. I felt connected to the main cast of characters, and had a sense of understanding for their ambitions and desires.
Teia is interesting as a main character; she’s morally grey and ruthless in getting what she needs, but her circumstances are difficult, and I understand her actions. The story raises lots of questions about morality. Where do we draw the line in pursuit of change? How many people are we willing to sacrifice to keep ourselves and our loved ones safe? How far are we willing to go for vengeance and for power?

“She learned that every person had a breaking point, no matter how well hidden it might be. And if Teia needed to hit that spot with a mallet, if she had to shatter someone completely to get what she needed, then so be it.”

The witty prose and inner musings of Teia had me cackling the whole way through. The dark humour and sarcasm was great. The friendship and found family was beautiful. I also loved the sprinkle of romance too, it helped break up the largely political plot.

I came into this thinking it was a standalone, but that surely can’t be the end of the journey? If there is going to be a book 2 (I sincerely hope so), I will most definitely be reading it. I’m not ready to say goodbye to Teia and co.

Thank you Netgalley and Bindery Books for this ARC.

I received this e-ARC from Netgalley, and the review I'm leaving here is voluntary 😊

Now that that's out of the way: what a book! I've become a regular reader of YA/NA books over the last year or so, as I have students who read this age range, and I like to be able to recommend stuff to them. This, wholeheartedly, will be a recommendation.

Ms. Wang weaves an expert fantasy full of intrigued, politicking, rebellion, and subterfuge alongside a strong cast and a wonderful protagonist. Teia's strain with her cruel half-brother, her concerns about being shipped away or killed, and her interactions with the Dawnbreakers had me utterly captivated throughout the novel.

However, what truly drew me in was when Teia's plans shifted, and when she realized that maybe, just maybe, she could dethrone her venomous sibling.....

A wonderful read and an author I'll certainly be looking out for more from.

Wow, where to start. Inferno's Heir was such a fun read. I really liked the concept of the story, including the magic only being welded by the royal family. I loved Jura as a villan, he was perfect, the right about of sadistic and evil. And I really enjoyed Teia as our MC and her battle with what to do throughout the book. Enna was also another fund character that I liked. I will say Kyra for me... I understand why she was that way, but she was so annoying. And I liked the light chemistry between Teia and Tobias, it didn't feel rushed or forced and I like that we're left waiting to see what happens next and to see if their situationship is savable.

The ending through me off a little, but I did assume once she started having thoughts of the throne that she would try and make it happen. The ending was a little too fast paced, especially compared with the rest of the book. It felt a little rushed, but I still liked how the story ended.

Inferno's Heir was easy to read, I literally binged most of it in one day. It was different and not your typical fantasy style novel. I actually liked that it was very light on the romance, it worked for this story.

Give me some good characters and I will follow your story anywhere - and I was thrilled to meet Teia, half-sister to the murdery, soon-to-be-king Jura. Teia is morally charcoal, but she has to be, because with her parents already gone and Jura almost on the throne, she knows that her life is in severe danger.

An opportunity appears and Teia is ready to seize it and trade it for her safety, but it is not that easy. As a determined Teia realizes that this is not as clear as choice as she initially thought, there are choices to be made that will impact not just Teia but the rest of the kingdom.

I was Team Teia from the moment I met her - and I loved her journey from the first page to the last.

3.5 Stars
I want to start by saying that this book was by no means bad, just not necessarily what I am looking for.

Let's start with the positives. I am a sucker for any kind of elemental magic system and I think this one was well-developed for its fantasy world. The world building was great; not too much info dumping even though it is a first book. The characters were intriguing and I appreciate that a character that was marketed as morally grey was actually morally grey and not just a moody teenager. Writing a debut fantasy novel is no small feat and I absolutely applaud Tiffany Wang for her hard work.

However, there was a few issues that I couldn't really get past. The pacing was great for me until about 60% of the way through. Past there it felt like the author maybe had to keep the book to a certain minimum word count because it felt like we were really rushing through the ending. Building on this, I feel like large chunks of the plot were left out. For example, later on we hear a lot about what has happened in the previous two days without actually living through them; the main character just recaps the events for the reader (which I'm not really a fan of).

Overall, if you're looking for a fast-paced fantasy, found family, determined fmc story, I recommend giving this a shot!

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!

Inferno’s Heir is a solid debut. Although, I disagree with others comparing it with Six of Crows, that’s not fair.

Tiffany Wang did a beautiful job with writing this one, I loved how it was written, truly.
The cover is stunning and immediately captured my interest.

The story itself is fun, witty and engaging. Books with heists have a very special place in my heart and Inferno’s Heir made its way in to my heart as well.

A huge thanks to NetGalley, Bindery Books and Tiffany Wang for the opportunity to read Inferno’s Heir.

🔥First, I have to mention the stunning cover—it's what drew me in initially to this book, and after I read the synopsis I had to request it.

🔥In “Inferno’s Heir,” we follow Teia, the king's half-sister, who is embroiled in a deadly struggle for survival as her brother seeks to get rid of her. Teia allies with a group of rebels aiming for the throne, and the adventure, complete with two thrilling heists, that made me think of Six of Crows.

🔥While I found some plot points lacking in logic, which prevented me from giving it a full five stars, the writing style and character depth were impressive.

🔥The ending hints at a potential series, and I’m eager to see where Teia's journey will lead next.

3.5 stars!

I didn’t love this book but also didn’t hate it but I feel like this book wasn’t meant for someone like me. I say that because I don’t love political fantasies because they just hard for me to follow in general, regardless of what book it is. There wasn’t a ton of politics in this book but definitely enough.

I was really lost in the beginning of the book because there was a lot of info dumping imo and I had a hard time following. It definitely picks up the second half of the vol and things get much more interesting. The beginning was just hard for me to get through. There were also too many characters for me personally to follow and understand who is who.

I really liked the authors writing though. Very mature and enjoyable to read. I really like the way Teia was written as a character because it felt like she was a hero and a villain at the same time and it was interesting feel support for a character like that. I just wanted her to succeed haha.

Thank you Net Galley and Bindery Books for this ARC!

This book really wasn't for me. The pace moved very fast and there were so many different characters that i could not keep up with them. I like the general idea of the story but I just could not get into the story. Thank you netgally for the arc!

Maybe I go in with too high of expectations for books that get all the attention. This just didn't grab me the way I thought it might. The characters weren't developed enough for me to understand their motivations, so I didn't really care about them. With most of them hovering in the moral gray areas (and whining about it), I found myself hoping they'd all be killed off at some point. I know this is part of a larger series, so maybe once the rest of the story comes to light it will all make sense.
It is a moderately paced adventure with fun fantasy vibes. It was an enjoyable read but won't make my faves list this year.

This debut book was incredibly awesome. It's been a while since I read a true fantasy book and I was enraptured by the world of magic and political schemes I found. In addition to this, the characters were so interesting - everyone had something going for them even if it just was being plain awful (I'm looking at you, Jura). My only problem was that I got kinda lost when they talked about the different countries but I don't think I missed something important.
Thanks to Violetear Books and NetGalley for giving me this arc in exchange for an honest review.

A fun fantasy debut about Teia, an outcast half-sister of the soon-to-be king. The character development and world building are intriguing, and it is easy to get engulfed in the story, making the 400 pages breeze by.

Looking forward to reading more for this (hopefully) series and author.

I expected a lot more from this book based on how well the prose and the line level are.

I cannot stress how well Wang curated her prose. Every sentence was well constructed and the description really stood out. I personally really enjoy all the quirky gen z slang insert that she made fitting for the time period of this book.

The plot: I expected a LOT more from the plot, but it reads like 2017 YA fantasy, following the hype of Six of Crows. The long pacing really made me forget there is a heist going on. The point of Teia, who planned to betray the Dawnbreakers for her own gains, did not return for the majority of the book. And the attempt to circle back to it got less and less convincing when the girl literally almost died twice for them.

The magic system: Seems to only be fire and water even though there are Five Kingdoms and they all have different abilities. Kyra's role in the book was heavily diminished to make Teia more special.

The characters: are pretty much cookie-cutter of tropes.
- Teia: A Halfling princess, who goes around saying she's morally gray for half of the book (when in reality her actions are actually in good will and needing context) and that she's a Halfling (personally, I wouldn't even know she was supposed to be half-Asian until I saw the FC on the author's tiktok). In the world where everyone has very white names, like Teia, Tobias, Jura, Kyra etc, it makes you wonder why she doesn't use this opportunity to include more East Asian / Chinese cultural aspect.
- Tobias: grumpy
- Alara: poison master, supposedly femme fatale trope without really doing anything about it
- Enna: a thief who ALWAYS steals hehe quirky
It got tiring after the 50% mark.
And Jura. For a person who appears on the front cover, you would AT LEAST expect to see more of him in the book. He is just #abadguy through and through. The characters feel very one dimension.

Personally, I think the writing is strong for a YA debut, but without a strong plot, Inferno's Heir sadly reads like when you hired Greg Fraser for the cinematography but a plot written by Wattpad studio.