3.25⭐️

My experience reading What Fury Brings was a lot like the Kombucha Girl meme: at first I found it strange and even disturbing at times, but by the end I didn’t completely hate it? While I can’t say this book was for me, I think readers who enjoy dark romance with a touch of fantasy might find it more appealing.

My biggest struggle is that such a heavy subject doesn’t translate well in the Romantasy genre. The book isn’t long enough to be able to wrap up the ending nicely without doing a disservice to the nuances that this topic deserves. The central romance was also hard to believe considering that the MMC was kidnapped, humiliated, and facing huge cultural barriers. It’s difficult to accept that he was able to overcame those obstacles in a few short weeks.

To a lesser extent, I personally like a Romantasy that is heavier on the fantasy, and this book barely qualified as fantasy.

Despite this, I did fly through it and found it entertaining overall. The dual POV worked well, and I especially found that Sanos’s chapters made me laugh, because while he was thinking “what is happening right now?!” so was I. The banter and bond between Sanos and his brothers were both hilarious and heartwarming, and I appreciated the moment when Sanos recognized that while he was horrified by the treatment of the Amarran men, he had long overlooked the similar treatment of women in his own country.

I strongly recommend checking the trigger warnings before diving in. Thank you to Feiwel for the opportunity to read this eARC via NetGalley!

This is a romantasy that tells men to sit down, shut up, and look pretty. 👑✨

Tricia Levenseller’s adult debut is a feral, feminist triumph—a romantasy that flips power and desire on their heads. In the kingdom of Amarra, women don’t wait to be chosen—they take. Olerra, a warrior princess with her eye on the throne, kidnaps not just any husband, but a prince raised to believe women should kneel before men. The collision is electric. The chemistry? Explosive.

Wickedly clever in the way it dismantles patriarchy, this story chains men to the very roles women have been forced to endure for centuries. But it’s more than role reversal—it’s a razor-sharp tale of survival, agency, and yearning. Olerra is the kind of heroine made of scars and softness, while Sanos is a crown prince forced to question everything he’s ever been taught about power and surrender.

🔥 Inside you’ll find:

A matriarchal world as brutal as it is intoxicating

A kidnapped prince who refuses to be tamed (until he wants to)

A warrior heroine who is unapologetically ambitious, curvy, and impossible not to root for

Political intrigue laced with sexual tension

A slow-burn enemies-to-lovers that ignites into unputdownable heat

Levenseller doesn’t just write a romance; she writes a battle cry. What Fury Brings is feminist romantasy at its fiercest—feral, funny, and unforgettable.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you to Tricia Levenseller, Macmillan, and FEIWEL for the eARC!

Thank you for the chance to read this one; it wasn't quite working for me at the moment. But I'll be visiting it again in the future.

I tried really hard to like this book but it was just not to my taste. Thank you so much for giving me access to it.

“You’ve spent your whole life protecting others. Now let me protect you.”
~~~~
I won’t say much since this book doesn’t come out till 9/23. But…HOLY FING AIRBALLS! This! This is so flipping good! Anytime I put this book down, I couldn’t wait to pick it back up!
The setting, the characters, the politics/reasonings, the thrills, and the fighting! GO PREORDER THIS BOOK NOW! Yall won’t be disappointed!

Thank you @tricialevenseller @netgalley @macmillanusa for letting me have a eARC of this book!

I am a huge fan of Levensellers work and was really looking forward to an adult novel by her. I absolutely love the idea of “what if roles were reversed” kind of kingdom. Unfortunately it missed the mark for me. I read a lot of dark romance and don’t mind darker themes. In the case of What Fury Brings it came across as glorifying and sexualizing the bad behaviors that are often done by villianist men and trying to normalize it when women do it. The things that were done in the women kingdom wouldn’t have bothered me if these were the actions of a few individuals but it was the norm in their whole kingdom.

This made me feel… a lot of emotions. Not all of them good, but not all of them bad either. I loved the first 70 pages of the book, but there was something lacking for me in the remainder of the book. The romance didn’t feel like an actual connection and love, and I think that’s where it got me in a negative aspect.

“… 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞, 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐨𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐧. 𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐟𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐠𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐨𝐦𝐞. 𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞 𝐈’𝐦 𝐝𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮?”

𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐧𝐞𝐱𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐢𝐦, 𝐠𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐚 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐚𝐥.

“𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨.”

𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌: What Fury Brings
𝑨𝒖𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒓: Tricia Levenseller
𝑽𝒊𝒃𝒆𝒔: 💜✨💪🏼🧎🏼‍♂️‍➡️🗡️👑

I didn’t want this book to end and I already miss Olerra and Sanos so much!! I was up at all hours of the night inhaling every single second of What Fury Brings (just like Sanos starts inhaling every single second with Olerra;))!

This was my first Tricia Levenseller book, but it most definitely will not be my last!! The writing pulled me in and I felt like I was there with the characters for every battle, steamy moment, and all the little parts in between.

This story was such a unique take and I think Levenseller did it beautifully. She crafted something so full of beautiful feminine rage!! As she should!! The progression and the lore of her society of women was fascinating and I wanted to keep learning more. A freaking masterpiece of reflection and story-telling. I hope we get more of Olerra, Sanos, and all the other characters in this universe because I need it so so badly!!

What Fury Brings is a story and a comment that I won’t soon forget. 5/5 stars, pick this up to experience it as soon as you can!!

Yes!! I freaking loved this!!
The trigger warnings at the beginning made me laugh, and I couldn't wait to see what this story was about!!
Both the FMC and MMC were phenomenal characters. I love the world that the author created, it was so unique for me from anything I've read lately. I laughed, I cringed, I loved some characters and hated others. And the spice was spicin' 🔥 damn!!! This checked all my boxes and I am highly, highly recommending.
This is a must read!!

This is a book that was so easy to consume, difficult to put down, but also difficult to read. The level of violence made it uncomfortable at times. I do think that was the intention though. Overall I enjoyed it.

What Fury Brings by Tricia Levenseller
ARC, Netgalley
Downloaded 7/9/2025, Read 8/4/25-8/22/25
Review Title: An Edgy Gender-Reversed DARK Tragedy
Rating: 2.7

My sincere thanks to Tricia Levenseller, Macmillan/Feiwel and Netgalley for the Advanced Digital Copy to read and share my honest review.

Olerra is a General of a large army, but who desires to become the next Queen of her people. To do so however, she must prove her dominance, worth and value to those in her Matriarchal kingdom. With her cousin winning over the hearts and minds of those who will determine who wins the crown, Olerra decides that she must steal a husband from a neighboring kingdom. Not just any man will be worthy for husband to a future queen, so Olerra must capture a royal prince from the kingdom that they’ve been at war with for centuries.

The plot highlighted several injustices and male-centric hypocrisies and twisted them into women being at the “top of the food chain” and men forced into more domestic roles, yet it read more like human sex trafficking of "the inferior species." While I was entertained for the first ten chapters or so, as I continued, the underlying tension and inherent implications of topic irked me just as much as real-life scenarios in the gross Patriarchal society we live in today. Add in a dash of “romance” to the mix and it felt more like a story about Stockholm Syndrome, not an Enemies to Lovers trope.

This book is NOT a Feminist book, as stated clearly by the author in her . Even knowing this going in, I was shocked at my visceral reactions to several situations between the pages and FemRage might be the best way to describe it. I had so many conflicting emotions while reading this. Thinking back on it all gives me a bit of a sour feeling. The writing was honestly very good. I really loved the descriptions of characters, the battles scenes were well written, and the premise of the story held potential for a fun, snarky read. Unfortunately, the more serious tone and underlying abuse themes were a bit too bold for my tastes. Throughout my reading, I wanted to hope and cheer for Olerra and Sanos to overcome their cultural differences, instead I found his entire situation heartbreaking, enraging and tragic.

I’m holding on to cautious optimism that the next book in the series may bring some redemption both to our Amarran Slavers, the Domineering Brutes, and point these broken peoples into a direction of true equality and healing that they clearly all need more of.

I respectfully recommend that the publisher/author market this book differently. While I don't have a lot of triggers, and I DID read the triggers listed for this book (on Amazon/Goodreads/NetGalley/Tricia's Own Website) I would NOT label this as "A Spicy Romantasy," but instead it should be listed as a Dark Fantasy Romance. The *very heavy, yet thought provoking themes* should come with a much clearer warning label. Perhaps then, I would not have experienced such a drastic emotional double-take.

Wishing for more morally grey FMCs? This is the book for you!

This was a delicious look at having the tables turned on the “traditional” captive princess falling for her morally grey captor story tropes. So often we find romantasy books where the FMC has been kidnapped or sold into marriage, but this time instead it is the MMC. What Fury Brings is exactly as advertised, reversing tropes and playing with having a MMC in a traditional FMC role.

Feminine rage is at the heart of this book, but it is not a feminist book. The women in this book are often just as bad as the traditional male counterparts, they have taken their power and abused it as well. We do not see some ideal utopian society ruled by women, instead we have an equally flawed society where now men are the lesser gender with limited rights and restricted opportunities. As readers we know that in the end this society will have to make its own changes, something our heroine, Olerra does recognize. But she is still limited by the world she has grown up in.

While I really enjoyed this book I kept feeling like there was something missing, something more I needed. Overthinking about it as I tend to do with books I enjoyed, I think I needed the MMC to have some kind of protective and supportive moment. Usually in these sorts of tropes the FMC finds her strength by the end of the book and in some way or another protects or defends the MMC. It may not be that she has physical strength but that she has other skills like magic or intelligence that allow her to take on a protective role. I never felt like I got that moment from Sanos. Early on we have a saving her moment and we have him supporting her, but in the actual ending of the book he has very little to do besides look pretty. Since this book is all about trope reversals, it just feels like if this had been the reverse, we would have seen the FMC doing something. But on the other hand, trusting that Olerra knows what to do is a big character moment as well. So none of this is a complaint exactly, it's my brain loving this book too much and over thinking things.

My other wish was that we got more after the end. It's not a spoiler to assume they will eventually be in a position to change both kingdoms. But we still struggle in our modern world with trying to change societal sexism, trying to use laws to change morality. I want to see how the MCs and other characters actually move forward and change their society and the obstacles they face. I was watching an interview with the author where she mentioned she is contracted to write two books in this world, so I’m really excited to see what might come next. Personally I find the most interesting stories come after the society has been broken and is trying to put itself back together.

Overall I really enjoyed this book. And even the complaints I have are ones that I want to talk about with others and have a discussion about. I’m rating it 4.5 stars at out of 5, rounding up to 5.

If you’re looking for more good books featuring morally grey FMCs I would recommend Pawn of the Cruel Princess by Rebecca F. Kenney and Wooing the Witch Queen by Stephanie Burgis.

What would the world look like if gendered oppression was reversed? And on this world two dominants fall in love. That's what this shows in this novel about Olerra who is from a matriarchal society who kidnaps a husband from a neighboring patriarchal kingdom, one of the prince's of the brute king. At first I wanted to read this because the flip intrigued me, but the me I read it the more interesting the concept became and I was rooting for the change that Olerra wanted and Sanos was beginning to have. There are some difficult parts, but all in all I enjoyed my read and look forward to seeing what comes next.

Tricia Levenseller crafts a potent mix of two heirs from kingdoms with a inverted gender structure. When Princess Olerra requires a husband, she sets her sights on the younger prince, whose sweet, docile temperament would meet her needs and support her bid to be Crown Princess of Amarra.
In Brutus, crown prince Sanos, despairs of being able to protect his brothers, his mother and his sister from the evil machinations of his truly repellent King and father. In a drunken blur, Olerra kidnaps Sanos and makes her way to the kingdom. But Sanos is a warrior and unwilling to submit to her ministrations, rewarding or punishing, alike.
With secrets that each are keen to protect, vested interests and a slew of political maneuvering, the tale progresses in introducing the matriarchal society of Amarra, where women rule the roost. There is a slow burn romance with some kink and a lot of soul searching as the protagonists face their trials and overcome their consequences. I enjoyed the parallels drawn between the two societies and the slow building of trust between the MCs. This was a quick read for me and I was able to complete it in a day. A must read for fans of Daughter of the Pirate King!
Thank yous to FEIWEL and Netgalley for the arc!

This story takes place in the kingdom of Amarra, a matriarchal society where women hold the power and men take on more subservient roles. Olerra, the Queen’s formidable general, is ready to compete for her chance as the Queen’s heir but, first, she must prove herself to the rest of the nobility by securing a husband. Enter Prince Sanos, heir to a rival kingdom…and the man Olerra kidnaps to take back to Amarra.

Having loved Tricia Levensellar’s previous YA novels, I was excited to dive into her adult debut. She brings much of the same energy and strong female leads, but this time with darker, more mature themes. I appreciated how she began the book with content warnings - an important heads-up, as some of the subject matter could be overwhelming. Definitely don’t skip that section.

Olerra was such a compelling FMC. Her tough, unyielding exterior as a warrior contrasts beautifully with the glimpses of vulnerability we get to see as readers. That duality makes her feel layered and real. At the same time, she’s not just the hero - she’s part of what’s broken in Amarra’s system, which adds to her complexity. Sanos, too, is no innocent; while he's easily swayed, he's far from blameless. This constant tension and moral ambiguity between them was what I both loved and hated and that emotional whiplash is exactly what made them relatable.

While I'm still adjusting to Levensellar’s shift in tone and style, I loved the chance to explore a brand-new world with fresh characters & still echoes much of what I enjoyed in her YA work.

Thank you to NetGalley and FEIWEL for the digital advanced copy, all opinions are my own. Reivew published on Goodreads 9/2/25.

I wanted to love this book, I truly did, but it just didn't work for me. I totally see what the author was trying to do, but I'm not sure it worked. If we're just replacing men with women and vice versa, I don't necessarily see that as particularly subversive. I think the captor/captive romances that are successful are playing into kink, but that's not the vibe I got here. I truly think this will find an audience, though it's probably one that people will either love or hate.

I posted my review on Goodreads. I did enjoy reading the book, but found that a few times it did not keep my attention. I thought the growth of the relationship between Olerra and Sanos was beautiful. He witnessed the difference between the two cultures and saw the changes needed in both countries. If only that was something people experiences often.

I did notice a typo in chapter 5 loc 840 “He cold barely wiggle his fingers with how much rope they’d use on him.”

The very first thing I want to say is that you should definitely read the Author’s Note at the beginning of this book. Not only does it give you a comprehensive list of trigger warnings, it also gives you, I feel, much needed insight to the book. Levenseller lays out her mindset while writing the book and I think it’s really important to read.

That being said… this book was subversive AF and I loved it.

Levenseller created a society that was the mirror to ours. Only women rule, only women can own property, only women hold any power of any kind. It became this way because woman were constantly used and controlled by men, until their goddess gave them physical power over men.

And then Levenseller took this society and put it right next door to one like our own. Men ruled, men owned, men took and gave very little thought to women.

And while there were DEFINITELY still issues in the society ruled by women (Olerra had to kidnap Sanos and there was some dubious consent going on), it STILL was better than their neighboring kingdom.

One of my favorite lines is when Olerra and Sanos are talking about how and why their countries are ruled. Olerra says that women rule out of necessity, out of reaction to the way they were once treated and refuse to be again.

“‘What reason is there for the way the men of your country treat women?’
Because they could.
Because no one had the power to stop them.”

I really loved how gradual Sanos’ change was, how inevitable when all the issues in his kingdom that he’d never noticed were thrown into his face. Even though he knew his father was awful for the country, even though he suffered at the brutality, even though he loved his sister and mother, he STILL had so much internal misogyny. (Remember how I said the text was subversive?)

There is a romance, Sanos and Olerra end up falling for each other but even that is slow, gradual, natural because they both take the time to learn about the other. And it’s beautiful.

My only real critique of this book, it is slow in every way. It had a hard time keeping my attention in the beginning. And while I loved this book and it makes you confront a lot, I can see a lot of people giving up on it because it’s not gripping them immediately.

📚 ARC Review 📚
⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

This book wasn’t my favorite, but it was decent. Levenseller delivers her first adult romantasy; a matriarchal world built on divine vengeance. Women rule, and men are subjugated. What worked for this book was the premise; it was daring and flipped patriarchal norms, inviting readers to explore the power dynamics from a fresh angle. Olerra’s a compelling lead, with a strategic mind and warrior grit. The forced proximity adds tension as a trope with heat moments matching emotional stakes.

However, the romance arc felt rushed. With the abrupt ending it left emotion and underdeveloped plot threads.

Some Tropes:
Enemies to Lovers
Captive/Kidnapping Romance
Political Intrigue / Power Struggle
Matriarchal Society
Spicy Tension
Slowish Burn
Morally Gray Heroine

This is one of my favorite books of the year! I cannot stop thinking about it and I'm upset that I can't read it again for the first time.

There is something about this author's writing that just tickles my brain the exact right way. I don't know how else to describe it, but once I start I cannot get this story or these characters out of my head. I stayed up way way too late reading this book. I loved the idea of Amarra breaking the patriarchy and standing everything on it's head. It's not a perfect place, there is still brutality and abuse - but this is what happens when women are treated as less then human for all of history. It;s not feminist, it's fully of fury and revenge.
I love that Olerra can see both sides and she can envision a kingdom where women rule and the leaders without subjugating others. I love that she is so freaking strong and direct and courageous. I just love her SO MUCH.

And I love how Sanos was open to realizing things he took for granted and wanted to change more than just things for his family, but for the women in his kingdom too.

It was spiiiiicy and I loved it and them SO MUCH! I cannot get enough of their relationship and also the many drama and dangerous situations throughout the book.

I just really loved it and pretttty please a book with Ydra?!