This was a thrilling read with so many twists and turns, it had me hooked until the very end. I found myself rooting for the romances, wanting the main characters to succeed in their quest and ultimately was a great debut novel all round.7 s Bethany47 29 Read

I’ll start by saying that some sections of the book, in particular the first few chapters, feel very expository as we are introduced to this world. Once the story kicks into gear there are many unexpected twists and revelations along the way that keep things interesting, but I do wish things had been revealed a bit more naturally to the reader.

The biggest draw is the romance and this novel will most appeal to fans of fantasy romance. Initially I did feel that the relationships developed a little fast. That being said I greatly enjoyed Azariah and Lysa’s banter, their mysterious connection, as well as their moments of tenderness, sweetness, and protectiveness. Their relationship was absolutely the highlight for me!

The numerous gorgeous dress descriptions and ballroom scenes were all really lovely and romantic. The decision not to include any physical descriptions for the female lead (and POV character) was also a unique and interesting touch.

Overall a solid and enjoyable debut!4 s Lucy 191 31

When I say this book is not “for” me, I don’t mean that this book didn’t suit my tastes, I mean that this book wasn’t designed to be read by a wider audience. The author enjoyed writing it, and wasn’t really concerned with the reader. It must have been fun to write, but it’s the experience of standing awkwardly to one side as the author looks tenderly in a mirror for nearly 500 pages.

I feel bad rating it low, but once you start charging money for something, you deserve to be measured up to size.

First of all, the prose is just so bogged down by endless exposition dumps. The first two chapters (30+ pages) take place over just one breakfast conversation because the author has two lines of dialogue separated by up to nineteen paragraphs of exposition (this isn’t an exaggeration).

Imagine if you were watching a movie and every minute someone paused it to explain, in detail, the history of the country the movie is set in, the eating habits of all the characters involved and their friendships and relationships. At best, it would leave the story disjointed – at worst, and in this case, you want to smack the narrator for acting a buzzing fly in your ear.

Not only were these dumps excessive, they were also vague, which meant the author had to put even more dumps in later.

A story is supposed to be enjoyed, not studied. Exposition dumps are homework. It’s your duty as an author to find fun and interesting ways to present information, preferably in ways where the reader is eager to learn it or doesn’t notice they’re picking things up. Interrupting everything to bluntly explain that “via” is short for “helvia” or that the main character works a shift at the market every week makes me wanna roll my eyes a bored teenager. Who cares?

The second major problem is this story is loose and tensionless. It’s about a secret princess avenging her family’s murder. But in practice it has the tension of a bowl of jello. It’s constantly undercut. Worried that the new family she’s adopted into might resent having another family to feed, Cinderella-style? No need, they loved her even better than their own children, because she’s so perfect. Worried that they might reject her for lying about her heritage? No need, they knew the whole time and don’t care. Worried about these mysterious demons you met in the woods? No need, they’re actually good demons and will do everything they can to help you, including falling madly in love with you, even though you are total strangers.

The whole book is that. Nobody ever tightens the screws on the story because Lysa can’t ever be in real danger, can’t ever lose, can’t ever make a real mistake or have to grow and adapt to anything.

Finally, the world building is just not there. Nothing hangs together logically. The third sector is supposed to be both the merchant sector and the poorest sector. Huh? You’ll remember that, in real life, merchants are middle or upper class by design, because to be a merchant you HAVE to have a significant overhead to absorb inevitable financial blows. It’s also possible to get very rich. Jeff bezos is a modern day merchant! The third sector is also the least accessible, tucked away behind sheer mountains and dense forests. What? Surely you would put the trading sector next to a waterway, or at least bordering both sectors, so that it could receive goods and customers far, far easier. It’s just thoughtless.

What bugged me most of all was that multiple characters openly call Lysa “Your highness/Princess” despite that the fact that she is a princess is supposed to be a big secret. It’s jarring for a reader, and it should be wayy more jarring for Lysa because if people find out, she could potentially be burned alive.

I said earlier, this book is simply not designed to be read by anyone except the author. No effort is put in to win the reader’s affections either to the main character or the love interest. There are lots of other little things that bothered me, but mostly I think this book was far from publishing level. Writing a good novel is very difficult. I hope the author continues writing and continues learning/growing, but this book should have been held to a higher standard before release.y-read-young-adult4 s Lexi1 review

There were so many parts of this book that I loved all the way from the great setting and character building to the cute moments and banter between the MC's. I loved that the author put in a ton of love and attention to the personalities of each character (quirks hand licking we relatable and fun). I also loved that I found myself second guessing whether or not I should trust some characters. Over all super enjoyable :)1 Nasiba1 review

For anyone who’s looking to read a fantasy + enemies to lovers type of trope this is the book to read! Has great plot and interesting characters to go along with it!!!1 Hayley Moss5

I don't usually read this sort of thing but I'm glad I did. Thoroughly enjoyed it. Top tier banter, spicy romance, suspenseful action. In love with the setting - you'll enjoy if you fantasy and period dramas. The best part has got to be the main character - written so the reader can picture themselves as Lysa, it's a really imaginative way of taking the reader on an adventure. I loved that I could be her, just y/n fanfiction but so much better. I felt I was in my own story. Really cool book. Maxine1 review

I have had so much fun reading this book!
The characters are absolutely amazing and I have found myself laughing so much along with them. I feel I can really relate to the main character and that always helps me to get into a book.
The descriptions in this book make me want to visit so badly the places the main characters go through!
If you want to escape a little bit, I could not recommend this book enough! Tsion Fitsum30

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