I loved HER SOUL FOR A CROWN so much. Sometimes you just need a standalone fantasy and this beautiful story was giving us everything.

DNF @32%

Wasn't liking the main characters, and the plot was not pulling me in.. Premise sounded good though..

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the early review copy of this book. These opinions are my own.

Actual Rating: 4.25

The Important Highlights
This is a standalone romantasy novel inspired by Anula, the first Queen of Sri Lanka. Creative liberties were taken for this debut novel. This was told in third person from Anula and Reeri's POV. This slow burn has epic political intrigue.

My Unhinged and Messy Thoughts
I really enjoyed learning about the culture in this book. Even though the author made it clear that she took creative liberties, it's evident that she did a TON of research. The story was extremely compelling although it felt much longer than it actually was. There was always something going on though. The pacing was steady. I think this book is going to be super popular when it releases!

In Conclusion
I wouldn't necessarily read this again but I am excited for my deluxe first edition to show up!

I unfortunately had to DNF because the writing wasn't for me. The beginning scene felt a bit weird & forced.

"For readers of Sarah J Maas, Scarlett St. Clair, and Tasha Suri's The Jasmine Throne, this epic, slow-burn romantasy inspired by Sri Lankan mythology follows a fierce orphaned young woman with an affinity for poisons and revenge who would do anything to end the reign of heartless rajas - even sell her soul to the most dangerous cursed god of all - the Blood Yakka, Reeri.

Anula Ramanayake of Anuradhapura calculated her ascent the moment she was orphaned - when her village burned in an endless war and the gods forsook her prayers. First, she would marry the raja. Then, she would poison him and take the throne for herself and her people. But when an unexpected coup thwarts her careful plans, Anula is left with one desperate option. She offers her soul to the cursed gods she renounced in exchange for the crown.

In the Second Heavens, Reeri the Blood Yakka, the most dangerous and powerful of his clan, hears her prayer. For eons, he's waited for such a valuable offering - one that could finally give him the chance to kill his divine tormentor and return his fellow Yakkas to their former glory on earth. Reeri accepts Anula's bargain, tethering them until their goals are achieved, or until they die.

As the war presses on, Anula must move quickly or lose her chance to become the first raejina. But while she is skilled at many things, especially in stopping hearts, the closer she grows to Reeri, the more she finds her own heart at risk. And when the time comes to fight enemies both human and divine, Anuradhapura and the Heavens will never be the same."

For fans of romantasy and Monstress.

This is a romantic fantasy based on Anula, the first queen of Sri Lanka. While it was definitely interesting and very unique, I found it to be confusing with quite a few holes. First off, the romance felt very forced and purely physical. I honestly have no clue how they could be in love with each other outside of trauma bonding because they know nothing about each other and their whole relationship is based on proximity and the bond. The spicy scenes were also such an afterthought and completely unnecessary. Second, there was enough conflict in this book to fill an entire book series which made it incredibly confusing. There is the soul ripping deal with Reeri and the Yakkas, the Kattadiya, Wessamony, and the war with Polonnaruwa. Because of it, there wasn't time for any of the conflict or the resolutions to really develop and play out properly leading to lots of loopholes and whiplash from one problem to the next. The end was insane there was so much going on. Third, I wish things were explained earlier in the book and it felt like the order of things was just a little off. Lastly, the word "mayhap" and phrase "bee stung lips" are used way too much and it really got on my nerves (mayhap is used 67 times in the book).
In general, while this was a really cool concept, it was too much for a single book and I really wish it was developed more.

I was gifted this book from netgalley for an honest review.

unfortunately, I had to DNF this book at 60%. i just couldn't get into the storyline or characters.
the writing isn't bad it just wasn't for me, and it didn't feel fleshed out enough. I need the story to flow better in order to keep my interest.

I am sure plenty of people will love this book, but again, it just wasn't for me.

Thank you for the arc!

DNF
Unfortunately, I couldn't quite get into this due to the writing style and characters. The,

What must one do to achieve justice? How can one determine good from evil? Can something/someone be both good and evil? All of these questions and more came to My mind as I was reading “Her Soul for a Crown” by Alysha Rameera. Follow the main character, Anula, as she works through the various challenges in her life. They start with the destruction of her village and her family and continues through what should be the best, and maybe the hardest, choices for her country. There are many unexpected twists and turns that happen in this book!

This was a hard book for me To get into and finish; though by the end of the book I didn’t want to put it down. I think that one of the biggest challenges for me is my lack of knowledge of the Buddhist and Hindu religions and the ancient history of Sri Lanka. At the end of the book there is a Glossary and Name Pronunciation Guide. I wish that these sections would have been placed at the beginning of the book. I feel I would have been able to follow the storyline better. A brief description of the characters in the Name Pronunciation Guide would have helped as well.

Thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca for providing me a copy of this book and selecting me to review it on NetGalley. All opinions stated are my own.

#hersoulforacrown
#sourcebookscasablanca
#netgalley

DNF @ 45%
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I was so excited about this book. Especially after reading the author's note at the end (yes, I read it before finishing the book). This book is based off of the first queen of Sri Lanka who had six husbands, that she supposedly poisoned. (I'm definitely going to go down a rabbit hole reading about this woman).

Unfortunately, the story wasn't engaging for me. Often times, big events would happen that should have affected everybody outside of the main cast of characters, but we never hear about the court's reactions to these events. I also felt like the romance was weird and awkward. I also had a hard time keeping everybody straight.

I think some people will enjoy this book, but it was a miss for me.

Review goes live August 28

A story of revenge and betrayal with unmatched levels of yearning. The book did start a little slowly, but by god did it pick up pace, so many plot points meant I was never bored when reading. Anula and Reeri matched each other so well and it was so lovely to read as they slowly learnt more about each other and as they connected.

Every time I had to put this book down I really didn’t want too. I can’t wait to read more of Alyssa Rameera’s work. This book will resonate with romantasy fans that love emotional turmoil, enemies to lovers and high stakes.

Slowing down and letting me savor this would have allowed me to enjoy this book more. We start off strong, as the world building is lush, and I found myself in a vibrant world that felt like the first Assassin's Creed game mashed with a Bollywood set. But quickly this world fell into trope city, where characters became archetypes of their romantacy predecessors, and the revenge plot devolved into every other underwhelming quest for vengeance. There didn't seem to be anything new here, which I expected more from the blurb and atmosphere. This reminded me a lot of "For She is Wrath", but a little more unique.

I didn't like that we didn't see the consequences of the Rajas being overthrown. How were there no revolts, or coups, or court gossip revolving around this? Everyone just continued on with their day?

There is also insta-lust in this. Romantacy is allergic to slow burn and tension and angst at this point. I think because of the way the blurb for this book read, I'm more disappointed than I would have been if I just picked this up blind. The characters didn't do much for me, the world didn't remain as lush as it started, the plot was predictable, and the romance was lack luster.

Thank you Net Galley , the publisher, and author for providing me with this arc!

This book has ruined me for every other romantasy to come :')

- slow burn desi enemies to lovers with a dual POV
- poisons, revenge, feminine rage & political intrigue
- power dynamics b/w well-developed deities
- sapphic side characters & beautiful, beautiful prose
- Sri Lankan mythology inspired adult fantasy
- fast-paced, puzzles, artifacts and plot twists

I am a simple reader, if I see fantasy in the wild inspired by South Asian mythology and imbued with feminine rage, I will be slamming that add to TBR button. Her Soul for a Crown delivers more than what it promised, I was all for the fast pace and the beautiful prose. Love seeing a true enemies to lovers with the slowest of slowburns and chemistry so fiery the only thing hotter than it is the feminine rage that burns through those pages. The worldbuilding is intricate perfection and the political drama keeps you on your toes -- so much fastpaced suspense?? i was screaming at the plot twist after plot twist towards the end, that climax made me feel SO much rage and despair and just bookish gremlin screeching in general -- all I am saying is this was an EXPERIENCE and I have a new favourite autobuy author :d If you loved The Jasmine Throne by Tasha Suri & The Tiger at Midnight by Swati Teerdhala, this should be the next on your TBR.

Reeri is the sweetest little MMC who deserves so much, and Anula is a deserving fierce queen, heck, I would bargain MY soul for her to have and keep the crown.

Thank you so much Netgalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for the advance review copy. All opinions are honest :)

"There were so many ways to stop a heart"
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for early access to this book.

This book started off slow and confusing, but I've noticed the good ones always do. Anula is the embodiment of a badass FMC who learns and grows with the story. She starts her journey with a fixed plan for justice and somewhere along the way the plot develops into something otherworldly!
Mixed plans of betrayal, slow burn, faith, and a brawl of the divinities later, Anula is a new person entirely. I highly recommend this book to any who value fantasy with a romance subplot.

This definitely could have been a 5 star read, but it started off slow and I had some trouble getting into it at first, though the middle and ending are worth it.

I just had the hardest time getting into this story, maybe because I went from one of my favorite reads of the year to this, but it just was not my cup of tea.

Throughout it was a realy good story but in some places I got out of it.
It enjoyed it but not as much as I wanted.

Her Soul for a Crown is told in third-person POV.
This is my first introduction to Alysha Rameera, and I ate it up!

The vibes for this are immaculate: enemies to lovers, feminine rage, forced proximity, he falls first, one bed, revenge plots, and a slow burn.

HSfaC is inspired by Sri Lankan mythology and it was such a beautiful new world for me to experience. I loved the world building and the magic infused into these pages. Anula was an orphan, but she never was going to let that stop her and the dreams she had for her position in her life. Reeri has kept an eye, waiting. So when Anula offers her soul in exchange for the crown, he is all too happy to accept the deal. They will achieve success, or they will die.

This kept my heart racing and was such an amazing book!

"You are my echo. The one with whom my soul communes." **melting**

Overall I really enjoyed this book. The story was interesting and had good tension between the FMC and the MMC. The way the author describes the world and what is happening in the story is very good. I love how at the end of the book, the author says she was inspired by a real people from history. Anula was real but of course the author took some liberties with her story to make it her own. Now on the downside, I would say that sometimes I got bored reading. Some things would get confusing and then I feel like some big things were kind of just skipped over. I still liked this book very much.

I’m such a sucker for a good slowburn romantasy! I really enjoyed this book. I had some issues with the pacing at times. I think I would’ve enjoyed this way more if I listened to it rather than read it on my kindle.

I love fantasy with a touch of romance, therefore I tried to love this too but it didn’t meet my expectation. The premise is good. It just probably lacked in execution. It has a huge potential so I was rooting for it.