Overall, I enjoyed the book, but it did feel like it needed another round of edits. A lot of the major plot points were explained away with handwaving and didn’t quite make sense. There was also several sections of info dumping that could’ve been incorporated into the novel in a better way. That being said, I am hoping to read the sequel!

Ot was an amazing read! I truly was engaged and enjoyed ery chapter of this. Good worñd
Building and characters

The Rite of Radnick

Wow. What an unexpected but amazing read! This fantasy has so many twists that I was clutching my kindle needing to know what happened next. Loved the world building and the characters!

This amazing story has:
- [ ] Forced proximity
- [ ] Twists and surprising villains
- [ ] Corrupt society
- [ ] Trials
- [ ] Underdog who becomes the hero

Synopsis
Braya is one of the “Choosen”, meaning she will be put to sleep because she has the ability to harness the power that keeps their world alight. The problem is Braya does not want to be the Choosen, she wants to flee and see all the world has to offer. When the opportunity to leave presents itself, will she take it?

I thoroughly enjoyed this.

I really enjoyed the worldbuilding, the intrigue, and the characters in this.

The magic system is pretty decent, although the references to Gaia and Nyx were a little off putting when everything else seemed to be fairly unique to the worldbuilding. It would have been easy enough to name them something else.

The FMC is pretty resilient, and whilst she has her flaws and loses her way a bit, she's able to figure out who she is and what she stands for. She's definitely not perfect and makes mistakes, but I like her all the more for it.

The two MMCs are interesting. Seyleth is a complex character and doesn't turn out the way I thought. I really like Heyden though. He seems genuine. You can tell a lot about a person by their friends and seeing who the two MMCs have chosen as friends and allies shows their true characters, I think.

I am really looking forward to reading the next one.

4.5 stars

Let me start off by saying that the first 50-75 pages of this book were a bit of a chore for me to get through but I persevered and I'm glad I did. I can see the author's reasoning for the book to begin the way it did but I wasn't quite sure how this opening would get us to the Rite. Luckily all is explained and it works in the end. This book definitely reminded me of The Hunger Games in parts as well as some other books with games/challenges in them such as the Nyaxia series. I was totally wrong as to who I thought the love interest was going to be so that was an interesting take and I cannot wait to see how this pans out. This book is on the shorter side, so I was able to read it quickly and thank goodness because I needed to find out what happened in the end.

This story will continue in the next book “The Act of Ascension” releasing on 1 July 2025 and I will definitely be checking it out.

Thank you NetGalley and the author for access to this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is my kind of book. Recommend for anyone who loves dystopian adventures! It’s dark with moments of humor. The romance and tension is *chef’s kiss*.