This book was a refreshing surprise! I went in expecting another typical Romantasy centered around Fae, but instead found myself immersed in a uniquely magical world with rich seasonal magic, mythological undertones, and a touch of spice that I wasn’t mad about one bit. While the story gives off subtle ACOTAR vibes, it maintains its originality and offers a fresh take that felt both familiar and new.

At the heart of the story is Princess Mirage—a young woman navigating life under the rule of her cruel father, sold off to a world she was raised to despise. Her journey is one of self-discovery, uncovering painful truths about her past, and confronting everything she thought she knew. The magic system here is inspired by the season in which characters are born, and while the author doesn’t use traditional fantasy labels like “witch” or “warlock,” that’s the closest way I can describe the feel—it leans more mystical and elemental than the usual winged Fae.

Mirage was an interesting protagonist. While I appreciated her arc and the strength she shows throughout the story, I did find myself wishing she was a bit more assertive or bold. If the goal was to present a strong female lead, I think she was almost there but didn’t quite hit the mark in some places.

A few critiques: I read this on Kindle, and the formatting felt off at times. Page breaks appeared in the middle of conversations, disrupting the flow and sometimes making it difficult to follow the dialogue. Additionally, there were world-building elements that felt slightly underdeveloped early on but were revisited later in a way that would’ve been more impactful had they been introduced earlier. These weren’t major issues for me, but they were noticeable.

All in all, this was an engaging and imaginative debut(?) that kept me hooked. The pacing was solid, the story compelling, and the ending… brutal in the best way. That cliffhanger left me needing book two immediately. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye out for the next installment!

The story has a beautiful world and rich descriptions that show a lot of effort in world-building. The setting feels detailed with imaginative elements like magical seasons and unusual customs, which I appreciated. The writing style creates vivid pictures, especially in describing clothes, places, and scents.

However, despite the strong world-building, the plot didn’t grab me as much as I hoped, and some parts felt drawn out without much happening. The characters, including the main one, Mirage, weren’t as deep or relatable as I wanted them to be, which made it harder to connect emotionally with the story. Still, it has interesting ideas and a unique setting that some fantasy readers will enjoy.

Instantly hooked and loved every moment of it. This book does end of a cliffhanger, so do be prepared for that!

The characters are the best part of this story. They're all so different and I found myself crying over them a few times throughout the story. The author really did a great job of conveying their feelings and showcasing their personalities.

I also appreciate that all characters had unique names and none were too similar, so it was easy to keep track of each person and their magic abilities.

There are only a few things that I think could improve this book.
- Typos/editing: I read an ARC, so it's likely these were resolved before the book published. There wasn't much to be edited out, but I do think that some sections (chapter 15) for example, could have used some fine tuning to make them perfect. Luckily chapter 15 is clarified later in the book (towards the last 15%).
- Formatting: There are so many page breaks! Like, too many. The page breaks make it confusing/choppy to read. Most books I've read typically use them to convey when there is a change in time/location/scene, but they would appear throughout the story frequently and in the middle of the scene.
- The synopsis on the author's IG is SO much more interesting that the one on NetGalley, GoodReads, and Amazon. I hope they considering updating those sites too.

Overall, a solid read and I can't wait for book two!

Kingdom of the Sun is a creative and immersive fantasy with some really cool worldbuilding and a strong mythological vibe. H.P. Nero paints a vivid picture of a magical world full of ancient powers, political intrigue, and big questions about fate and identity.
The setting was definitely my favorite part—unique, detailed, and easy to get lost in. There were some beautifully written moments, and I liked the way the story tackled themes like rebellion and self-discovery.
That said, the pacing was a bit uneven for me, and I didn’t always feel fully connected to the characters or their journeys. Some parts felt rushed, while others dragged a little. Still, the overall story kept me interested, and I think fantasy fans who love detailed lore will enjoy this one.

Kingdom of the Sun was an alright book.
The plot was well thought out, and the pacing was good, however I couldn't read it past the 50% mark.
The MC Mirage was likeable and well thought out. The world building was thought out and easy to follow, and the magic system was well written.
However, the dialog was poorly written, and unbelievable and kept pulling me out of the book.
The first two chapters felt like info dumping instead of me being able to fully bond with the character.
I recomend you try this book, but it just wasn't for me.
I feel like it would be a wonderful book, if it wasn't for the dialog and the random moments of info dumping that pulled me out of the book.

I’m giving it 2 stars because I liked the premise of the story, however I DNF’d at 10% because i could not get past the jumpy writing. There was way too much description but not enough detail, and it was as if the author wanted us to know everything we could possibly know in the first 2 chapters without giving us time to find out for ourselves. There were also many moments when the paragraph was talking about one thing and then in suddenly switched to noticing a random unnecessary detail that’s not relevant to the rest of the paragraph.

I had high hopes for this because the premise was interesting, but unfortunately I would not recommend it to any of my friends and/or followers.

I had to DNF this book. The writing style pulled me out of the story multiple times, they have line breaks every 2 paragraphs it feels like and it’s not even changing scenes or POVs. Sadly I couldn’t get into it because of this, but if you can look past it I’m sure it’s a great book

DNF at 33% of the way through. The premise of this book has a lot of potential; the world itself and the magic system are interesting and unique. However, I struggled to follow the thread of the story regularly where the writing went in to too much depth in some areas and not enough in others. Some aspects of the worldbuilding felt out of place and laboured on a point too much, meaning the point of their introduction or inclusion was hard to track. The characters were interesting, but sometimes felt rushed in their introduction - where the general worldbuilding seemed a bit too in depth at times, the characters were sometimes introduced too quickly and without the same level of detail.

Very appreciative of the opportunity to review this ARC, and hope to see more from this author in the future!

This was an interesting read. And fun.

The world-building and magic system is quite interesting, fun to navigate, easy to follow.

The writing, however, annoyed me sometimes. Not the writing itself, but the dividing. Scenes are separated for no apparent reason other than style, which cuts the natural flow of the scene. We're in the middle of a scene and then suddenly a divider between two paragraphs. Why? I don't get it. [*edit to update:* it seems my Kobo version had some issues and these dividres are not supposed to be there. The author kindly reached out to me regarding this issue and it my be because of the file itself.]

*SPOILERS AHEAD*
The pace of the story is good, but I think the romance(s) happened too fast. There was no building, especially with Stygian. One day they meet, the next one they're engulfed in passion and Mira thinks she kinda loves him. With Hiver it's a bit more natural, but still lacks a bit of intimacy. You know, conversations and silence, the things where love blooms. The spicy parts are alright. I do think Mira and Hiver have a lot more sexual tension than Mira and Stygian, but I guess that's the point.

The protagonist is not a Mary Sue - instead, she has depth and dimensions. Yes, she's weak at first, but she works it out. Yes, she's the definition of a hero, but she's not a natural hero. She needs to work her power and learn how to control it. That's lovely. Makes her more human and real.

*END OF SPOILERS*

The beginning was slow, but I do understand why. It needed to give us the background to understand what was to come. The second half, however, was a complete whirlwind. I couldn't put it down.

If this was from a publishing house, I'd give it maybe a three, because it lacks some editing. However, since this is a work entirely independent, where the author had to work on it herself, I'll give it a four. Because, all things considered, it is a good book. Especially considering it's indie.

Review: Hoo boy. This is romantasy YA in big way. Blushing, crushing, smelling each other. Mostly the novel is deeply rooted in inner dialogue with some word building instances. The description did not cover much of the actual content, otherwise I would have avoided this.

I recieved this ARC for an honest review.

Having reviewed hundreds of debut novels over the years, I must admit I’m genuinely surprised by the volume of lukewarm two-star ratings this one has received. I dove into HP’s social media and discovered that our narrator is neurodivergent; a choice that lends the story remarkable authenticity. Normally I abandon anything that fails to engage me, so watching readers give up on this book is bewildering.

Mirage is a captivating heroine: unconventional, intelligent, and weighed down by challenges that resonate deeply. Her journey through the world of the Tessiah held me enthralled from the first page, and I’ve already braced myself for the reading slump sure to follow its conclusion. If I were still in the agenting business, I would have been all over this book.

NetGalley’s tepid response underscores a troubling trend against promising debut authors. I believe that once readers experience this vibrant world and its unforgettable protagonist, word of mouth will carry this novel to the acclaim it so richly deserves; and I can’t wait to see where the story goes next.

I really enjoyed this book. And the cliffhanger though, ahhhh I need book 2! This story was beautifully written and it just emurses you into the world and makes you feel like you're experiencing it right along with the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing Netgalley Co-op for the free ebook ARC in exchange for my honest opinion of the book.
Mirage is a royal girl with an abusive king dad and a brooding-but-kind twin brother. She is brutally forced to learn the truth about herself and her family when she's sold to a mythic kingdom full of magic.

The plot and pacing were great. I loved that each person's magic was given its own particular scent in this book-very creative. The scenery/imagery/powers were described beautifully (keeping it vague to avoid spoilers). However, there were multiple points that dialogue felt unnatural and that pulled me out of the book several times, as did the descriptors of it ("cooed", "purred", etc being used quite often). While it was an interesting idea and story, I'm not sure if I'll read the next in the series.

Mirage is sold to a magical kingdom. She goes through training and a scary magical awakening in her new place. She finds a family and friends and must risk herself to save them....

Love Mirage. A very likable heroine. The world is fun and unique. Really enjoy the story.

Thanks to the publisher for the arc.

Cannot wait for book 2, really intrigued to see what happens next, i also really loved the cover too.
Definitely felt long at some parts but by the end the pace picked up so was glad i kept reading.

This was a wonderfully engaging epic fantasy full of action and interesting characters. The world building was so vivid and the plot always had me wanting to continue on to each chapter. I especially liked the magical components of this book. Perfect for all fantasy lovers!

Thank you NetGalley for this e-arc.