This book had so many cool and interesting ideas that I enjoy in my fantasy stories, but dare I say it had too many? There was so much new information packed in there that the story honestly would have benefited from some room for the readers to breathe and digest. Part 1? Incredible. I loved it. But as she traveled to locations and groups 3 and 4 all before the first half of the book, it got very overwhelming very quickly. And then the pacing stalled while at the military academy setting. I felt like every single fantasy trope was being thrown in there.

This had so much promise. I can see fans of The Poppy War and The Daevabad Trilogy living for this. However, it ultimately could not keep my attention.

I really hope this book finds its audience, just so publishers are reminded that there is still so much potential for epic fantasy.

Epic fantasy can be hit or miss for me, and when I started this book, I was worried it would be more on the “miss” side. I wasn’t a huge fan of Khamilla’s Luke Skywalker-esque childhood (to be clear, I believe marginalized authors should have the right to use tropes that white authors have done; I just don’t enjoy that particular trope). I also didn’t love the very formal dialogue in this book (I guess I’m an outlier, but I prefer more colloquial dialogue in fantasy, even epic fantasy). But once Khamilla reached the emperor’s court, the story hooked me. Despite its length, the novel’s pacing moves along at a steady clip and I was never bored. And there were some stunning action set pieces in the novel, like the Marka.

This book reminded me of what is just so special about epic fantasy done right: its ability to completely transport you to another world and sweep you up in a struggle across empires. I’m not very knowledgeable about the history and culture of central Asia, so I can’t speak to the representation. But as an outsider, I found the worldbuilding richly imagined, deep, and immersive. I also thought the magic system was fascinating. It’s been a long, long minute since I’ve read a fantasy novel that had fresh and well-thought-out worldbuilding, and I savored every minute of it in Dawn of the Firebird.

There were, though, a few aspects of the book that didn’t work so well for me. While the prose was lush and there were some gorgeous sentences, I also found that—and this is a complaint I have with formal, descriptive prose in general—it blunted the emotional impact of some scenes that were meant to be shocking. The climax reminded me a little too closely of The Poppy War (otherwise, I would have described this book as perfect for fans of TPW).

But that final sentence? What a cliffhanger twist. I’m definitely going to read the next book because of that. (Especially since we barely got to scratch the surface of Jezakiel's character in this book.)

And now, unfortunately, I have to get to my last complaint about the book. I know this is an ARC, and I dearly hope there’s at least one more round of copyediting for this book, because my god was the copyediting abysmal. For a while, I kept wondering if the frequent comma splices were there for stylistic reasons…but honestly, I can’t think of a single stylistic reason to have comma splices. There were also missing commas, typos, and grammatical errors in the form of dependent and independent clauses in the same sentence having different subjects. Finally, there were a few scenes that were difficult to follow because there were sentences missing to link the flow of actions (for example, a scene where Khamilla was fighting a karkadann and suddenly aimed an arrow at the monster even though it wasn’t even mentioned that she was carrying a bow). Again, I hope these errors are fixed before final publication, because they really do this novel a disservice.

3.5/5⭐ ARC Review. Thank You Net Galley and Harper Collins for the Opportunity!

This is a very slow build. Truthfully, I did consider DNFing after the prologue because I was not hooked at all. I am glad I hung in there the second half of the book was way better. This was advertised for fans of City of brass X The Poppy War, and while I think there are some overlapping themes and character motivations, the character and relationship building failed to meet the same depth as those books. I loved the FMCs cold detachment and almost clinical analysis of the world around her. I also enjoyed the descriptions of the stances and the heavenly bonds!

I received this story as an ARC from the author through the publisher. Ahead is my review, left voluntarily, of the story, and the story only.

Khamilla is a stone. Hardened by harsh realities that have only led her to torture, death, and destruction. At times, this made me hate her. So callous and uncaring. Other times, it made me admire her. Calculating and clever. She truly is a strong woman. Showing vulnerability only to the reader. Hiding her softness to be worthy within the world she was born.

Broken into 3 parts, Khamilla's breaking, remaking, and realization. Set in a world where the magic system is based on faith. Meditation and prayer strengthen bonds to the divine, power and greed opening to the possibility of corruption by Jinn. Bird imagery is a strong representation between the different factions that have different ideas on how to properly channel to the divine. The story is told through a girl who is naive to the wider world. In her beginning the story is slow. It is written with an almost lyrical prose that took some getting used to. A build up. It was fitting, like a vivid storytelling becoming impactful in the right moments to tie it all together. The pace picks up as the lonely girl grows up. Learns more about her role and expectations. She learns cruelty and love. She is fostered, yet also misled. About her father's enemies and realizes there is war at hand, and that her enemies are not the same as his. She takes these lessons and then has to learn how to apply them to her own choices. Choices that have unexpected consequences no matter how calculating Khamilla is. She is not immune to life and death.

Her story, the writing mirroring real life. Young, everything seems to take forever, but as we grow and experience there is so much that it is a whirlwind to keep up with.

It was a journey to read. Khamilla had a lot to learn, and still does. The story is very character driven with plot to guide it. The points of action are pretty epic. Vividly described and of consequence. There is some gore. War is messy, and visceral and it comes through in the writing. I think it was well done. Guiding and descriptive, soft when needed, but bold and loud when it needed to be harsh. The story is beautiful. Although I struggled a little at the start to get into it, by the time Khamilla was on her own, it captured me and I couldn't put the book down.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 stars!


Dawn of the Firebird is an exciting start to a new fantasy series with a rich, Central Asian inspired world and a compelling heroine!!

Khamilla’s journey is intense and emotional, and the mix of magic, martial arts, and political intrigue really kept me hooked.

Some parts of the worldbuilding could use better explanations.. and I wanted more depth in Khamilla’s relationships.
Buuuut overall, this is a unique read. I’m excited to see what happens next!

A very promising start to the begging of an epic fantasy trilogy.
The world of Dawn of the Firebird is rich, compelling and original. Truly, the magic system, politics and central asian inspired settings made for a most refreshing read. The martial arts and magic system felt like it came straight out of one of my favorite animes. The characters are distinct and memorable. Our protagonist, Khamilla, goes through quite a lot through this first novel and I felt for her (sometimes great concern!!) in regards to her choices and inner turmoil. I can tell she has quite the character journey ahead of her!! I finished it in a few days as I was gripped and immersed by the story.

There's a few things stopping it from being a full 5 stars for me that I would like to give feedback on:

Character relationships - there are many characters Khamilla encounters, and some of them are cruelly ripped away from us (and her) making her pretty guarded and emotionally distant. That said, I would have loved to see more of Khamilla's relations with her trifecta and Overseer. I can see how DoTFB is a character driven narrative, so I would have loved to see more interactions - I understand that ultimately choices need to be made for the narration and publishing and I hope the next books will explore her relationships more (and will be longer...bring back huge books please).

The world building - having a dense world building is one thing, but some concepts were not clearly explained, especially in regards to the magic system and fights. Maybe a glossary would be very helpful so readers can refer back, as is quite common in long spanning epic fantasies. The rest of the world building in regards to the politics, different empires, and the cultural inspirations were refreshing, with additional insightful commentary on nationhood, statehood and identity which I find is missing a lot in epic fantasy.

I do look forward to the rest of the series which I will definitely keep following. Thank you to Netgalley for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I wanted to love this so much, but unfortunately it just wasn’t for me. The world building was dense and complex right off the bat, which is appreciated, but I was hoping for a stronger emotional foundation. It felt like there was an overwhelming amount of information to take in and it was hard for me to connect to the story or characters because of that. However, I really appreciate how vivid the storytelling was and I’m sure this will be an enjoyable read for many, especially for readers who love rich world building and political intrigue.

I want to preface this by saying that I don't think this was a bad book, it just wasn't for me. The plot had a lot of potential and at times I was interested in the story, but overall I just didn't end up connecting with it.

A young girl lives in a nomadic clan raised by her mother and on the path to being a storyteller. The lands she lives in are rife with enemies and after her village is destroyed in war, she takes to living with her father, the emperor. He is reluctant to take her in, only doing so for the rare magic she wields. As she grows in his court, she learns various tools to control her powers and thwart attacks from poison. However, this home, too, is stolen from her through war. After having lost so much, Khamilla must seek revenge.

This story was incredibly dense and a little chaotic for me. The prose made it difficult for me to see the complexities of the characters as it focused heavily on their courtly motivations. I think the part that made it hard for me to connect to this story, however, was the magic. It lacked a solid form or shape in my mind even after half of the book. As it was central to the story, this made it a challenge to envision the happenings of the plot. All in all, this could definitely be an enjoyable read for others but it sadly wasn't the right book for me.

An impossible story of survival and magic, this is a tale of perseverance. Magical and creative, this works in a really fun system of magic and lore.

A sweeping epic fantasy that is far more visceral and dark than its cover suggests! I love a dense fantasy and really enjoyed the detail in the world building (you can tell how much research went into this!), and I found Khamilla’s struggle for validation and growth a compelling character arc. If you like the comp titles you’ll want to check out DotF, it fits very well alongside The Poppy War and other military fantasies.

I cannot in good conscience rate this book. The author has been bullying reviewers if they do give a 4 or 5 star review. This is not ok. Authors need to stay out of reviewers spaces.

Unfortunately it’s a DNF for me. From the very start this book just has to much packed in. It felt clunky and disorganized and by 20% I was bored and knew it wasn’t for me. I really didn’t read enough for a thorough plot review I just couldn’t get there. Comparing this book to Poppy Wars kinda feels like a crime. Not on the same level. I do think that there was some potential there but it just fell flat and didn’t really follow through.

Thank you to Harper Collin’s and Netgalley for the arc I’m sorry it just wasn’t for me and I believe in leaving honest reviews even when they aren’t always positive.

Quick very high level summary.
Disowned by her emperor father, Khamilla is raised within her mother's nomadic tribe. That is until a violent raid occurs and during this the heavenly magic of Nur awakens inside her. She is captured and hides her identity by joining the enemy's army academy. End goal, learn, grow stronger and claim her throne.

My Take.
There is a whole lot of information to take in and absorb in this story. From the beginning we are given so much information at times it can feel like we are reading a history book but since I love history I was on board but I can see where some may feel differently. This has epic fantasy feel with so much world building and character development which is a good thing in my opinion but in some instances the writing feels more text book and less immersive then I would have preferred at times but not enough to ruin the read for me. There are moments when the story can get very dark with descriptions of body gore that are all so vividly described and adding to the overall atmosphere of the story. Overall I found the story intriguing and I enjoyed the world created.

This book grabbed me right from the start. The opening was compelling, and I was genuinely intrigued about where everything was heading. I’d never read a Central Asian–inspired fantasy before, so I was eager to learn and grow alongside the characters. But about halfway through, it started to lose its direction.

This book was compared to the poppy war because they do have similar themes War, power, trauma, colonialism, the cost of vengeance and heavy on religion. Both FMCs have huge powers that come with a huge toll on them emotionally and physically. I thought the book was alright. Not included the FMC The other characters are rather one-dimensional. I was especially annoyed by Cemil. with the exception of her brother and the girl at the end. The write felt very flat at times especially in the beginning. The pacing in the middle started to lose me a bit and I had to take a break. There are a lot of deaths yet not enough, who I wanted to die didn’t die and who I wanted to live ended up dying :( I will admit the ending was unexpected so the book still has potential.

As a Muslim reader with Middle Eastern heritage, I was immediately drawn to the way Dawn of the Firebird incorporates Islamic and Middle Eastern mythology and culture. The story is steeped in a rich cultural backdrop, filled with folktales, matriarchal strength, and a deep connection to oral tradition. That representation felt meaningful and refreshing in the epic fantasy space.

The main character is born into political convenience and rejected by one side of her lineage. She is raised in the outer reaches of the kingdom among powerful women and a tribal community that sees her as a bad omen. Her journey is one of survival, shifting identity, and learning to navigate a world that constantly tries to define her.

While the premise and setting were compelling, the plot often mirrored other well known fantasy titles. The author references The Poppy War, She Who Became the Sun, and The Will of the Many as comparison points. However, the similarities at times felt too strong, especially when it came to character arcs and story structure. This made it harder for the novel to establish its own voice.

The protagonist’s desire for validation from those who wronged her felt at odds with the strong foundation she came from. As the narrative progressed into political intrigue and espionage, the pacing slowed down and the direction became unclear. Several twists aimed for impact but lacked clarity or emotional payoff.

Despite these critiques, there is something powerful in the story’s cultural heart. Readers looking for fantasy through a new lens will find much to appreciate. However, if future books in the series are to truly stand out, the author will need to focus on developing a more unique voice and narrative direction that does not rely so heavily on familiar tropes and comparisons. There is strong potential here, and with more originality in execution, this world could become something truly memorable.