A massive thank you to M.J. Hastings and Stonefruit Studio for the opportunity to read an eARC of Firstborn. I am obsessed, emotionally devastated and I need more of this story asap 🙌🔥

Firstborn is an incredible NA fantasy in a dystopian world where birth order determines your path in life and defiance is deadly. In this book, we follow a stubborn, feisty and equally vulnerable FMC, Bryn Ruelle. She is an eldest sibling whose path as a Firstborn in Durst is to take up arms against the magic-wielding neighbour country, but soon discovers a plot to kidnap her youngest sibling and must work alongside a traitor-born enemy magic wielder.

Pitched as The Hunger Games x Fourth Wing, Firstborn lives up to the comparison and I would also consider it to have some Divergent vibes in there too. The world is complex, but M.J. Hastings makes it easy to understand through immersive worldbuilding and gripping prose. It is 400+ pages of fast-paced and high stakes adventure, tension and plot twists that will have your jaw to the floor! The last 15% of the book had me feeling whiplash from the constant twists, turns and emotional devastation. The cliffhanger though... I need book two like I need air!

You will love this book if you like:
- morally grey characters
- unique magic system
- who did this to you?''
- love triangle
- enemies to lovers
- forced proximity
- secret identities.

What. A. Joy. Thank you so much to the lovely M.J. Hastings and Stonefruit Studio for granting me an early e-ARC!

Firstborn is a fantasy set in the post-war land of Durst, where bastard-born Bryn Ruelle has spent her entire life fighting to prove her worth. She's favored to win the annual Long Night, a brutal competition that serves as the final trial standing between Firstborns and their lives as soldiers. Her fellow siblings have their paths - Asa the academic and Wren the Lastborn with an unknown future. But when nothing turns out to be what it seems, Bryn must choose between everything she's been trained to believe and everyone she's come to love.

The magic system is thoughtful and the world-building complex yet digestible, with just enough romance sprinkled in. Fans of Fourth Wing, ACOTAR, Divergent and The Serpent & the Wings of Night will immediately be hooked.

Hats off to the pacing! I devoured 400+ pages in a weekend. When is book two coming?! I am so excited for everyone to read this so I have someone to discuss my theories with.

What wouldn’t we do for our family? M.J. Hastings masterfully explores the answers to this question in Firstborn. The story is propulsive- the characters are on a quest that pushes them away from what they thought they knew but closer to their true selves. It is a book that will stick with you long after you’ve finished reading it.

4.5 star read.

This is an amazing debut!!! Wow!

Birth determines your place within the world.
Firstborn - a soldier
Midborn -the academic
Last born - are taken
A war is being fought against those who wield magic. Or is it?
In a kingdom so against magic, they do like to twist it so it’s not technically the magic they are so against.
The people have been told it’s magic that is the evil.
Bryn discovers the truth.
Bryn is a firstborn, her brother Asa is midborn, and her sister Wren is a last born.
The journey Bryn takes is one that’s personal and changes everything she’s ever known. Not only that, it changes her.


It’s full of vengeance, violence, and action from the very first page.
The world building is complex, yet it’s immersive and intricate. The five POVs give a full experience of every part of the world as the characters are in different areas. It makes it feel complete and helps understand the way the things are working together, which further enhances the fullness of the world building.
Some POVs aren’t as rich and full as others, but Bryn’s was great! I loved reading about her and her development.

The romance is a great touch and adds a softness to Bryn. The love triangle is subtle; it doesn’t overwhelm the story. I loved the fact that we got to experience the inner dialogue of each character; it brought more depth to the romance. This is definitely more of a plot first, romance second read. And I loved that! There is spice, but I don’t feel it was needed; it wasn’t bad though.

I need to say, Poe is an amazing character, I loved him!! He’s witty and my kind of petty. He was a great addition to the story. He is definitely a standout character!

The magic system is interesting, and I felt it had a feel of the Shadow Hunters as runes are a key component.
The book is gripping, and the second half is addictive; I struggled to put it down.

Divergent, Cassandra Clare, Hunger Games, and Fourth Wing fans, you’ll love this!

Okay I finished Firstborn by M.J. Hastings and I’m actually unwell about it???

The birth order system in this?? Yeah no I hated it immediately (in a good way). Imagine your entire life being decided the second you’re born… I was stressed the whole time.

Bryn was SUCH a good main character. She’s messy, conflicted, and every choice actually costs her something. And the stuff with her sister??? That’s what really got me.

And the tension??? HELLO??? Every scene with the traitor-born character had me 👀 it’s very much enemies-to-something and I ate that up.

This had me in a constant “one more chapter” spiral. The trials, the stakes, the emotional damage… yeah.

If you like:
Hunger Games vibes
High-stakes trials
Morally gray choices
Tension-filled dynamics
Sibling relationships that hurt

You’ll probably love this.

Already mad I have to wait for book two.

I'm so incredibly thankful that I received an ARC for this story, but now I'm devastated. Honestly, what am I supposed to do with myself now? It's such a wonderfully written debut novel, and a perfect addition to the dystopian genre. Typically, the first page, or first couple chapters are the qualities of a book that steals a reader's attention. For me, it was the blurb, because what do you mean the third children are taken? I stayed up way too late last night reading just so I could finish. The ending was crazy too, to the point where I needed to sit up and gather my sanity. There's so much that goes on, but in the best way possible. I'm impatiently waiting for book 2!

This book was genuinely amazing! An incredible debut from M.J. Hastings with fast-paced chapters and a plot line that was unique and kept me hooked!

This book follows Bryn Ruelle, who is a Firstborn soldier, not to mention the highest-ranked soldier. Through an intense event called the Long Night, soldiers must prove themselves by taking a life. However, it does not go as planned for Bryn and soon enough, her life's flipped upside down.

From the beginning Bryn's character was clear. She had her motivations, a past and so much more. The world building wasn't all dumped on the first page and was spaced out incredibly well! Personally, this was such a great concept that should definitely be done more (ie. different children having different roles in society). Specifically, this plot line worked amazingly with the dystopian setting and romantasy elements. Overall, while I couldn't relate to any of the characters, I definitely connected to them through the occasional third person pov of a side character and Bryn's prominent point of view. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is craving that 2010's dystopian vibe mixed with the current trends of 2026. Additionally, I am definitely reading the next books, as this series will be complete as a trilogy!

Thank you to NetGalley and Stonefruit Studio for providing an advanced reader copy of Firstborn by M.J. Hastings in exchange for an honest review.

This book was SUCH an incredible read. From the very first chapter, you’re thrown straight into a dystopian war zone. The FMC is a formidable soldier-in-training, preparing to face the final trial, which if she completes, will elevate her status to a true elite Firstborn. But nothing is as it seems. Her county is locked in a brutal war with the Arcanists, a rival magic wielding nation. But everything she believed about her country begins to unravel. Her little sister, a Lastborn, is missing.. and not just her.. all the Lastborn are gone. Her brother, a Midborn scholar, may be unknowingly aiding the enemy.. but then again, who really IS the enemy?

Between the unique magic system, WILD enemies-to-lovers arc, shocking betrayals, and intense, visceral battle scenes, the story constantly keeps you on edge. At its core, it explores a powerful theme.. in this war, the lines between right and wrong, and friend and foe, are anything but clear.

The FMC’s character growth is one of true transformation.. from someone so emotionally closed off, a shell of a human, into someone who begins to truly want to live. Her journey is shaped by shifting ideas of love and hate, loyalty and truth.

The twists and turns were relentless. I genuinely couldn’t predict where the story was going at any point, which made it all the more gripping. And the ending? Absolutely insane. A jaw-dropping cliffhanger that leaves you wrecked.. I’m still not over it. I will need the next installment injected directly into my veins.

I had high hopes going into Firstborn, but it completely exceeded them.

I’ve always had a soft spot for dystopian stories—I grew up on The Hunger Games and Divergent, so this genre will probably always have a special place in my heart. And Firstborn gave me that same addictive feeling all over again, while still bringing something fresh and exciting to the table.

The concept alone instantly hooked me—a world where your entire fate is decided by your birth order? From the very beginning, there’s this constant tension, this pressure that never really lets up, and it made the story incredibly hard to put down.

Bryn was such a compelling character to follow. I loved how she balanced strength and stubbornness with vulnerability—you could really feel the weight she carried in every decision she made. Watching her struggle between duty, family, and her own sense of right and wrong made her journey feel deeply emotional and real.

The pacing was so well done—I found myself flying through the pages without even realizing it. Just when I thought I had things figured out, the story would take another turn, and I was completely pulled back in. The twists kept me on edge, and by the end I was fully invested.

And the romance added exactly the kind of tension I love—complicated, charged, and full of that irresistible push-and-pull that makes everything even more intense.

This was such an immersive and addictive read, and such an easy five stars for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review

What an impressive debut novel. Bravo M.J. Hastings. I am sitting here utterly shocked and appalled by the final 25% of the book which seemed to fly by, so much happened. This book was insane and political, making you question what you really know. Very hunger games-esque. I need the next book nowwww please and thank you.