All right, time to admit it: I've finally reached that point where I'm heartily sick and tired of Fantasy Catholicism.

It was fine, and even funny and entertaining (for those of us who know it from the inside and can laugh at it), in the beginning, especially when done by Catholic authors such as George R. R. Martin or Margaret Rogerson or even Rosamund Hodge, amongst others. But since it became an overused trope in recent years, it's no longer funny and entertaining. It's become irritating, bothersome due to the stereotypes, and even contributes to reinforce historical myths that should've died long ago.

True, it's Fantasy, so the distortions are permissible as it's not meant to reflect reality. But I have to ask: why the Hell do you always pick up Catholicism? It's not the only religion in the bloody world! Where's my Fantasy Jews? My Fantasy Muslims? My Fantasy Buddhists? My Fantasy Hindus? My Fantasy Mormons? My Fantasy Amish? My Fantasy Pastafarians?

Time to go all diversity and equality on Fantasy religions, and spread the bigotry and the myths and stereotypes around equally, I say.

Rant over, now let's get down to the book itself: it was completely forgettable. It tries to be The Three Musketeers in a fictional country meant to be pretend-France but that feels more the usual idea Anglophones have of France and its history and culture, which is: select bits and morsels of words and names and some cultural hallmarks as salad dressing. There's too much Englishness for this to feel France, and giving some characters Frenchy names doesn't make a difference. I'd even say it's more of an Anglophone's idea of Dumas' France than anything. Which was disappointing to me, I expected a richer world and more credible, not a collage of French classics with a dash of religious tripe.

As for the characters . . . where have I seen this pair of walking tropes called Charlotte and Luc before? In many, many books. YA books in special. They're the usual grump/tormented soldier tasked by the king/ruler to go after a woman/someone that has something/a power that the king/ruler considers a threat. Dutiful soldier boy goes to fulfill his orders, but on meeting the lady his brain between his legs makes a different decision and angsty "I can't love her!" hand-wringing and erection-hiding ensues. Am I supposed to feel compelled by this riveting plotline? Well, I am not. But at least there wasn't erection-hiding to drive me up the wall, thank Fantasy Jesus.

The only thing that was nice in this, for me, was the magic system based on scarecrows that have the power to ward off the dangerous wraiths that threaten to take over Niveaux. It feels a bit a darker Wizard of Oz at times, so not a wholly original concept but an interesting and refreshing one that I was roped in by this alone into reading the book. If the Guardian and the Captain weren't such a risible trope of a protagonist duo, I'd have been happy with the world. To an extent, because as Charlotte and Luc's story takes precedence, the world isn't very developed (remember what I said about pseudo-Frenchiness) in order to prioritise their story, and as is common in these YA débuts, so much is left up in the air that I suspect there might be (or was) an intention to write another book. The ending doesn't make this feel as standalone as I was led to believe, and whilst I can't swear that there will be another book, the loose threads sure do make me think this is either a first book in a series or a not very tight and compact standalone due to the plotholes and hanging threads.

Well, I guess I'm left without a pretend-France to love. What a pity!

I received an ARC through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.fantasy have-reviewed140 s72 comments Erica RodgersAuthor 1 book28 Read

A note from the book's author!

This book is my Three Musketeers inspired fantasy. Swords, banter, a bit of necromancy, and a hefty dose of unrequited energy. If that strikes a chord with you, please add!

Charlotte and Luc's story is one of revenge and mercy, of old legends come to life and an army of the dead amassing. When her family's legacy comes under attack, Charlotte's defiance and skill to calm restless dead put a target on her back. Tasked with shutting down Charlotte's rebellion, Luc struggles as his feelings for her and his opposing commitment to his gods threaten to tear him apart.

This book has truly been a labor of love. Charlotte, Luc, and the immortal Guardian, Worth, have been with me for nine years. Actually, in Worth's case, it's closer to eleven. The process of writing (revising, rewriting, revising again, editing, and SELLING) a book is a long one, but I am SO excited to finally share this story with readers.

Step into a world of wraiths and immortal warriors, of bone magic and herbal lore, swords and daggers. I hope you love it.

Content warnings: these kinds of things can make stories sound more worrisome than they are, but I firmly believe that readers (especially younger readers and their parents) should know what they might encounter when discovering a new book or author! Feel free to ask questions!

Violence (duels, swordplay, small battles, recollection of attack), occasional cursing, attraction and budding romance (no sex), addiction seen and discussed (alcohol and intravenous drugs), religious manipulation, corporal punishment.adventure fantasy found-family ...more12 s Andi1,390

I'd to thank the publisher and NetGalley for giving me a chance at reading this before release.

In High School Alexandre Dumas' The Three Musketeers was my jam. I loved the book, I loved the 60's film. So, reading this was a real treat since it was inspired by the book.

Set in a fantasy world where guardians (in the form of scarecrows) bind themselves to a child within the family (or in on case, someone who is worthy), these scarecrows help their bound one vanquish wraiths. The wraiths are unset ghosts of those who passed on who feed off the vibes of anger and hatred from others. 10 years ago, our FL (Charlotte) had a father who was part of an elite guard of those who worked with their guardians. Then, one day, someone killed the King and Queen, leaving our FL's father the blame. He was killed, and in result the guardians were shut away for ten years as punishment.

In this new world regime 10 years later, the prince is now grown and is being plagued by nightmares and visitations of wraiths. The cardinal who serves the crown wishes to put an end to the guardians because of religious views that the wraiths are actually being controlled by the guardians and not put to rest. Charlotte becomes a guardian when her brother (who was next to take the role her father once had) is slain.
And so begins the story.

I d the characters, the guardians were interesting and had good camaraderie with one another. You had one that was big and strong, another who was fast and flighty. And you had Charlotte's who is a father figure. Each of them assist Charlotte while they are on a mission to protect the order / guardians and the throne from a person or persons who are up to no good.

You have the romance interest, a boy who had grown up once trained under her father, who then fell into the clutches of the cardinal who had grown up through the ranks and has become the second in command to the crown's army (and under the control of the cardinal). He has doubts regarding the faith (the gods who gave the powers to the guardians), his own faith, and the past / present history he has with his mentor's daughter. I enjoyed their moments together - lots 0f sexual tension and debate within himself.

Now why did I rank it a three star read? I wanted more world building, I wanted to know about the gods and the angst our ML (Luc) was having with himself. Why did he feel so dependent on the cardinal? Why did he believe that here was where he would put his life and oath? We really didn't really get that. Which is wrapped up in the whole story of the gods and their powers they entrusted on the guardians. The guardians have been around for hundreds of years. But yet, we never really understood the gods and their purposes. Which in turn, makes me not quite understand Luc's dedication to the cardinal.

I felt that while I enjoyed the group (the guardians), their roles felt kind of there as propping up the FML instead of having goals, dreams of their own. We didn't really get a strong backstory on them either besides what they tell you throughout the book. I just want to know more about them and for a book that requires such a backstory - especially one where the crown is in danger - of scarecrows coming to life and protecting the crown? Yeah. I want to care about the crown instead of feeling ready to off it because someone is telling me the cardinal's control is bad.

There is a villain that killed the FML brother which spurs the story into motion. I d him and it was sad that his role was only at the beginning and end of the book.

Overall, there is promise in the book and in the tale if it moves forward. While I did enjoy myself, and I am curious for book two, I want more than what I got. I don't know if the author is withholding or certain things are not to be told at all in the story, it does hurt when you have to fill in the blanks and or craft rules to a story that requires them.arc on-kindle10 s3 comments Books_the_Magical_Fruit (Kerry)730 47

I love the worldbuilding in this. You can tell that a LOT of thought went into it. I appreciated how some seemingly innocuous events came full circle in the end. You can smell the oranges in the grove on the Sand Estate and feel the neverending grief of some of the characters. The idea of using someone’s bones to wield a wraith that wreaks havoc on your enemies—that’s horrifying. However, a force rises up to take on this threat, which you will learn about in the first few pages.

It did lag a bit in the middle, but I was hooked once the true action got going, and then I was metaphorically flipping pages a madwoman (it’s an ebook
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