Thank you NetGalley and sourcebooks bloom books for the arc. I was hoping for a more heavier read but it was still an overall good story. If you are looking for a light magical read that touches on the tarot cards definitely pick this book up. Kristin Cast pulls this story together in her own unique style. I love this author and have yet to be disappointed.

This book's premise was interesting, and I think it had a lot of potential buttttt it fell way flat. There was little to no world building and the romance felt rushed. The FMC was probably one of the most pathetic I have ever read. She was extremely desperate for male validation and emotionally irrational. The MMC would tell her she needs to watch the way she speaks and speak in the century she fell into aka the medieval ages and instead she just continues to speak in her normal modern cadence. This book less than a three star but the smut was good, and I enjoyed the MMC he was the only one who was well written. Everything else felt like a wattpad book come to publishing. I am not sure how the series will continue but I do not think I will continue to read.

This was okay. It was a quick read, but I feel like what I was expecting the book to be about from the description was really not what we got. The tarot card aspect was why I was so interested in this book, but it was a much more minor part of the story than it seems. The character interactions and romantic aspects were all good, but nothing to write home about. I think that if the pacing was a bit more slowed, and the story was able to breathe a bit and feel less rushed, the book would be a lot better. It wasn't necessarily bad as is, but I just thought it was okay.

This was a super quick and easy read & generally ok. However, I think I was oversold on the description, as I felt like the tarot card/deck did not really come into play near as much as expected. I was expecting more interaction with actual embodiments of card characters (one of my favorite series is arcana chronicles by Kresley Cole so I think that's why I am bias/why I was thinking that would happen). The MFC & MMC relationship was nice. Cute banter, decent (but lower) spice, but nothing that I will remember in the coming weeks/months. It definitely has a YA feel. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC opportunity.

I liked the world of Towerfall, the descriptions really painted a beautiful picture. The story was very engaging and Kane sounds absolutely dreamy. My only issue was the over use of “good girl”.. I love it when a MMC calls the FMC good girl, but it felt repetitive through certain sections of the book. 3.5 rounded up to 4 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and SOURCEBOOKS Bloom Books for the advanced reader copy of The Empress by Kristin Cast. If you are a fan of Kerri Maniscalco’s Princes of Sin series you’ll enjoy this new release! It’s got twists and turns in a re-imagined world where nobility are cards on the Tarot deck. At times it felt almost too rushed to get to the point but overall it was a well plotted and paced book. Kane and Hannah are compliments to each other and Hannah’s character development was crucial to her likeability for me. Overall a good addition to the genre!

In this tarot-inspired romantasy, Kristin Cast takes our downtrodden and people pleasing modern protagonist to another world with a handsome knight and medieval villages. If you are someone who enjoys Cast's writing, or if you grew up reading the House of Night novels, I can see you enjoying this more grown up and spicy novel. It wasn't my favorite, as the pacing felt rather rushed, but the concept for the world is fun and interesting. This will more than likely be a standard hit with romantasy readers wanting a quick jaunt.

I really wanted to like this book but I felt it fell short. I liked Hannah and Kane and their romance worked really well, but there were too many parts while reading that took me out of the story. I do feel that there will be people that enjoy this story, but this one was just not for me. Thank you for the opportunity to read this one I really appreciate it!

I loved the premise of this book and it had the potential to be amazing however a lot of it didn’t work for me. But the main issue I had was I really disliked both main characters. I couldn’t get behind them or the romance. Plot also felt under developed and I really wish they would’ve spent more time worldbuilding. There was so much potential in this book however just didn’t work for me. Thank you Netgalley & Bloom for a copy of this E-ARC.

3.5 stars

I was super excited about this book since I grew up reading House of Night and loved everything about them. When I saw that Kristin was writing an adult romantasy novel, I was immediately stoked to read it. Overall, this book was good! I think the premise of the story was unique and interesting. The characters were diverse.

I struggled a little to like most of the characters except a couple side characters - the FMC is honestly a little frustrating since the entire time she's more focused on a relationship with the MMC and her romantic entanglement with him, her frustrations that he won't allow a relationship based on feelings, only sex, as well as her repeatedly saying "I don't want a relationship, I'm independent, I'm taking a break from men, etc." It felt a little contradictory to her initial goals and wants. Not to mention, she is pretty quick to get mad at him for having a past she is not aware of and then forgives him super easily after being extremely mad at him. Felt a little whiplashy.

The story itself was very cool, I really liked the premise. However, I felt that it was resolved a little too easily, and I would have liked more backstory and world building.

All in all, this was way more of a romance than a fantasy, and it wasn't fleshed out as much as I would have liked. But I did have a good time reading it and it is a very good first adult romantasy book! 

Thank you to Kristin Cast & Team, and Bloom Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The. Cover. Is. So. Freaking. Gorgeous 😍. The red spredges and iridescent foil are stunning.
The Empress is my fav Tarot card and I love love love seeing her on the cover of a book by one of my fav authors.
I love the world of Towerfall, a fantasy realm where Tarot comes to life with Doppelgängers, luxurious castles and gorgeous gowns.
Hannah, the FMC, grows a lot in this book. She starts out so insecure and bullied, both in love and career. Things just keep going from bad to worse in her modern day life. But by the end of the book she is more confident and making momentous decisions. Kane, the MMC, is an interesting and sometimes frustrating mix of charming rescuer and self-centered warrior.
You can expect lots of steamy banter, fast-paced action and Tarot inspired magic.
And I think there’s a lot of potential for a deeper dive into Towerfall as the series continues to develop. I’m excited to see where story goes from here!

Fav tropes:
Tarot 🃏
Spicy 🌶️
One bed 🛏️
Insta-ish love 🔥
Fake marriage💍
Banter for days 😏
Morally gray MMC 🩶
Enemies to lovers ❤️‍🔥
Forced proximity ⛓️
Secret identities 🎭
Doppelgängers 👯‍♀️
Mirror worlds 🪞
Castle life 🏰
Royalty 👑
Portals 🕳️
Curses 🔮
Magic ✨


Fav quotes:
“Magick doesn’t make mistakes.”

“There’s a loyalty in animals not found in people.”

“What kind of Ren Faire nightmare is this?”

“What’s a chad?” 😂


#theempress #towerfall #kristincast #romantasy #fantasyromance #bloombooks #readbloombooks #netgalley #arcreview #bookreview #bookstagram

Thank you Kristin Cast, Bloom Books, and NetGalley for sharing your book with me!

Firstly this was on my anticipated reads for 2025 so to receive the arc was amazing and did not disappoint. Secondly, as a tarot reader I was so happy to see the cards being used in a such a beautiful story.

If you love seeing FMC’s go on a fantasy journey while really growing as a person you’ll love Hannah. If you love a grumpy but flirty morally grey MMC then Kane is your man. As Hannah travels to a parallel “world”
that brings all the royal political intrigue, we see our characters battling to right wrongs with a fake marriage trope! Yes please!

Excited to see what is still to come from Kristin Cast, really awesome debut!

Thanks to netgalley, the publisher bloom books & author Kristen cast for the ARC of this book! I loved it and I absolutely fell in love with Kane (swoon) and fawn, I need more now! Caught my interest from the first page! It’s a must read

3.75 stars! Was this an intense romantasy that tore my heart apart? No. Was it silly at times? Yes. I had a fun time with this and loved not having to think too hard about the plot.

I loved the premise of this book and it has potential to be a real winner. It’s a something fans of time travel fantasy would enjoy.

I found the fmc to be a bit annoying. There was a lack of confidence within her that could’ve elevated the story. I didn’t believe in the relationship between the main characters and found it hard to root for them. The banter didn’t make a lot of sense and their relationship felt awkward.

A bit more character development and time spent explaining the magic system would help this story hit another level. I’m interested to see where this story goes.

This is such a fun use of tarot cards! And there’s definitely more to be explored in any future books with tarot as a theme.

I found this to be a lighthearted quick read. However I never really liked either the FMC Hannah or MMC Kane. Their sexual attraction for one another felt like it came out of nowhere and was the entirety of their relationship.

I really liked the side characters of McDougall and Marion! And the connections with their “mirror versions.” I just realized that I don’t find the instant friendship between Hannah and Marion odd, because I’ve experienced that with female friendships. (But the immediate situationship between Hannah and Kane doesn’t feel genuine to me.)

Thank you to NetGalley and Bloom Books for an ARC of this book. This is my honest review!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Kristin Cast for providing me with a complimentary digital ARC for The Empress out January 7, 2025. The honest opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I’ve read one other book by this author, so I was excited to check this one out. I really love time travel stories. I thought this one was really fun with the fantasy aspect. I think marriages of convenience can be fun in stories. There were a couple things that I wished were a little more fleshed out. It felt a little too instalove or maybe instalust in some parts. I’d love more backstory into Kane’s story. Maybe things will be more in depth in the next book.

I would recommend this book to anyone to enjoys time travel fantasies!

Thank you to Bloom Books, Kristin Cast, and NetGalley for giving me an eARC of The Empress in exchange for my honest review.

This book was surprising to me. Overall, it has a lot of great themes in it that I tend to enjoy. After Hannah finds herself in another realm under the protection of Kane, she is forced to enter into a fake-marriage, in order to find what she needs to take her back home. However, magic is illegal and if they find out how she got there, she will be killed. To make matters worse, something sinister is going on inside of the castle, and it seems as though Hannah might be the only person who can stop it. Overall, the premise sounds amazing and the world as a whole could be so well done. However, there was something about it that I felt was lacking.

When I think about it, there are two things that I wished this book contained. First, I wish it had more character development. I felt like Hannah really struggled with confidence, and suddenly at the end she has all this faith in herself. In addition, her romance with Kane felt both rushed and forced, which was also a struggle because it felt more like I was being told that they loved each other, then believing it myself. The second thing I struggled with was the world-building. There is this whole realm and magic system that readers are briefly introduced to, and then it never comes up. We know very little about the world, and even less about the magic system. I think I just wanted more. The premise of this book was great, however, there was something about the execution that I struggled with. I did enjoy the plot and the side-characters of this story. I will say that I feel like the second book is being set up to contain more world-building, and hopefully we learn more about the magic system as a whole. I am willing to give the second book a chance when it comes out because there were parts of this that I enjoyed, and I do see room for growth. In these situations, I like to give the authors some credit because somethings these things (such as less on the world and magic) are done purposely, and though we will follow different characters, I am hopeful that the next book will be a success.

Thank you Netgalley & Bloom for a copy of this E-ARC.
I was immediately drawn to this book by its stunning cover and intriguing blurb—it had me hooked from the start! The first chapter set the tone for something unique, and while the story took some unexpected turns for me, I think it offers an interesting perspective on modern society and technology.

While some elements didn’t align with my personal expectations, I know others will resonate with its take on technology and the challenges of the digital age.

I’m just genuinely confused by this? The plot had potential to be an absolute winner. It was unique and explained in a way I screamed when I received this. And as much as I’ve tried I could finish this. The plot felt half developed and that I was always about to be in the know but also still unsure what was even happening half the time. Unfortunately I’m not sure this is the book for me.