This was one of my most anticipated reads of the season and so I knew I was going to like it, just not THIS much. This book reminds me of a crossover between Game of Thrones and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. I especially loved the first half of Furyborn because there was so much development and action that you just could not possibly stop flipping the pages.

For a while, I had no idea how Rielle and Eliana’s lives were going to intersect, especially given that they lived centuries apart. This book kept me on my feet at all times, kept me guessing what would happen next, and got me so emotionally involved.

Many of you know that I’m not usually one for action or fighting, but the trials that Rielle had to go through reminded me so much of Harry Potter, I just could not help but fall in love with those scenes.

The characters were so well developed in this book, mainly because they made me have such hatred and such love for several characters. The author's writing is so good that she gets you so emotionally invested in the story and the character’s lives that it just leaves you wanting more.

The ending was quite anticlimactic for both main characters since nothing really substantial happened. There wasn’t a super gripping cliffhanger that made you desperately beg for the next book in the series or curl up in the fetal position, crying. That being said though, the ending was still good, it just could’ve been better by adding some more shock value to it.

Overall, this was a great book and a really strong start to the series. I’m excited to see what the next two books add to the story of Rielle and Eliana!

Wow, this book absolutely BLEW me away. I loved both points of view a thousand years apart, and how flawed both characters were. I loved the villains, the heroes, the high stakes, I just immediately need the next book!

I am definitely doing a review on my blog which will be posted on release date @ http://conjuringbooks.org and on my instagram http://instagram.com/conjuringbooks

Fantastic! Furyborn is an amazing novel that zigged and zagged in ways I never imagined. Legrand is a virtuoso writer whose worldbuilding and descriptive prose drew me in and made it nearly impossible to put the novel down. A must-read.

An intriguing idea for a fantasy. It took a while to get used to the switches back and forth in time, but once I got into it I liked it. It was interesting to read, trying to guess at what turned Rielle into what we saw at the start, and how the two storylines would intersect. Enjoyable fantasy.

Receiving an ARC did not affect my review in any way.

Rather enjoyable, the characters and world building were well done. I would continue this series as long as I got more character development. I enjoy learning about secondary characters.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Our story alternates chapters between these two ladies set a century apart.

Rielle is an elemental magic user that can use all of the elements-- a rare ability that the prophecy claims that will only be available to the Blood Queen and the Sun Queen. Rielle must compete in trials to prove that she is the Sun Queen, the queen that will bring light and salvation upon the land, rather than the death and destruction the Blood Queen will bring.

Eliana is a bounty hunter who lives 1000 years after Rielle, so Rielle seems like nothing more than a legend to Eliana. Eliana loves her family and her mother ends up missing, so she teams up with rebels to find her mother, along with other missing women.

This book has one of the best prologues I’ve ever read in a novel. It features Rielle involved in a lot of action and then follows up with our first chapter set two years earlier. It leaves us wanting to know the journey that the character in the prologue take to get to that point. Jumping 1000 years later, it also leaves us wondering how a character so vastly set in the future is important to the story.

However, in some regards, I think the prologue ended up giving too much away. Rielle’s story mostly focused on her trials, which we know she will win anyway, and it doesn’t take too much to figure out why in the end we are following Eliana. It was disappointing that this alternating era storyline wasn’t better incorporated. I would have loved to see a stronger connection of what Rielle ends up doing and how that affects Eliana, or something more along those lines. Additionally, other than mentioning that guns exist, there wasn’t anything to distinguish Eliana’s world from Rielle’s. It’s 1000 years later, what and where is all the progression? How did the world change?

I did think both characters relationships with various side characters were well-developed. Rielle in particular has a cute romance, even if it isn’t the most original idea. Eliana is dedicated to looking for her mother, but she also has a little brother to look out for. The rebels she has teamed up with are questionable characters and leaves Eliana to stay on her toes with them.

Overall, I think this book had a great start, but I lost some interest along the way after I saw where it was going and that it wasn’t really going to expand on it the way I anticipated.

4 stars

Plot: Furyborn caught my eye because of dual perspectives over the span of a thousand years. Furyborn was a book that demanded your attention from the prologue because Legrand revealed the ending first, and it was up to the reader to piece together what happened. Even though Furyborn is marketed as a Young Adult title, I think it's better for the New Adult audience. Furyborn had some mature situations and the characters themselves were all over the age of 18.

I couldn't tear myself away from Furyborn because the chapters were so jammed pack with action and mini-cliffhangers. The dual perspectives between the thousand years also made this book easy to fly through and had me desperately wanting to know what led Riselle to her ending.

Characters: When I first dived into Furyborn, I was drawn to Riselle. She was a complicated girl and I enjoyed seeing her explore her powers and decide how far she was willing to go to get what she wanted. However, the more I read, the more I was attracted to Eliana. Eliana's story took place a thousand years after Riselle's arc and I was hooked by Eliana's blood-stained past. Legrand did an exceptional job of crafting complicated characters who made their own desires a priority. I can't say that I genuinely liked any characters, but I enjoyed watching their arcs unfold.

Worldbuilding: Claire Legrand's world and timeline of Furyborn was nothing short of amazing. With Furyborn, Legrand was tasked with crafting two separate worlds, one where magic and royalty reigned and the other deprived of magic and under the control of a cruel dictator. The two worlds were so different that it was hard to believe that they were once the same place and I loved how freely Legrand allowed her characters to move.

Short N Sweet: Furyborn is the start of an addictive series, it's sure to wow fans of complex characters.

This was a book that got a lot better as it went along. The beginning felt a little unpolished and jarring, but by the end I was very immersed in the world and interested in the plot. I’m giving it a 3 overall, but I’d say the second half was a solid 4 and I’m looking forward to the next book.

This was an excellent beginning to this trilogy. I love the world Claire Legrand has created. It was a little confusing in the beginning trying to figure out what time we were in and who everyone was but by the end I couldn’t put it down.

From the publisher:
Two queens will rise.
One with the power to save the world.
One with the power to destroy it.

That’s all I needed to hear to know I had to read this book!
The story is told in two points of view, that of Rielle Dardenne and Eliana Ferracora, two fierce women living more than a thousand years apart.
Rielle is with her best friend, the crowned prince of Celdaria when he is ambushed by assassins. She has no choice but to used her long hidden power to save his life and damn herself. Now the kingdom will put her through life risking trials to find out if she is their Sun Queen, or someone that must be executed.
Eliana is an assassin. Killing people that may or may not deserve it, all so that her family can live comfortably. But when her mother is kidnapped, she must join forces with her nemesis and rebel, the Wolf.
And so begins this epic trilogy.
I loved that the book wastes no time getting to the action. Right away you’re pulled into the lives of these two girls. And the magic! It’s bold and colorful, it is so perfect for fantasy lovers. Though it takes a while to find out how these two people are connected since they lived so many years apart, but once you do...wow, it will have you on the edge of your seat. Definitely an epic start to an enchanting trilogy. I can’t wait to see what happens next for Rielle and Eliana!
Review will be featured on www.cavalierhousebooks.com on release date. Review was also submitted to SIBA and Publisher.

One sentence review: The adventure story that leaves the reader anticipating the continuation of the story. 

As one of the most anticipated series of the season, I expected to be blown away by Furyborn, which is an unfair way to start reading a book. However, it is how I began Legrand's newest novel. The opening of the book was exciting and made me want to devour the book. However, that initial momentum quickly faded and I slowly felt this book may not live up to its cover or hype. I finished the book feeling like I just ran a marathon; miserable, tired, and glad it is behind me. I prefer books that feel like a 5k; energizing, exciting, and difficult to believe it is finished. 

I do not think this is a bad book. I think a lot of people will love it. I think a lot of people will hate it. But, I think a segment equal to the other two will find this very average. I fall into the last category. This book is a mediocre novel; a potentially wonderful story that does not deliver. Perhaps if you connect with the characters, you will be swept away and adore this story.

Despite a love for morally grey, strong female characters, I did not feel a connection with the main characters. I struggle with characters who do not doubt -themselves at times. I appreciate self-confidence and think young women need confident icons, but they should also understand self-doubt and how to deal with and learn from it.

I also wonder if the interrupting, parallel storylines separated the readers from building a bond with the characters. If we had a little more time visiting each person at a time, maybe the connection could better be forged. Maybe these just aren't the gals for me?

Sometimes you should listen to your instincts. When this book first started showing up on my NetGalley dashboard, I was like, meh, I’ll pass. Not that I didn’t find the premise interesting, just not interesting enough, and I already had lots of books on my TBR for May. But then I started seeing the book everywhere, and so many people were writing about how much they loved it or it was one of their most anticipated reads of the summer, so I decided to give it a second look. I’m auto-approved with Sourcebooks, and I am usually not disappointed with the books I get from them, but I’m sorry I just never connected with this one.

There isn’t one big thing that I can point to as the reason why this book and I didn’t get along. I just think there were lots of little things that irked me along the way, that just made it hard for me to like this book. And I so wanted to love it like so many others do. The author’s writing style was perhaps one of the things I din’t connect with. I did struggle at first with the dual narration and their stories being 1,020 years apart. I don’t think there was enough world building in either time period at the start of the story to help me understand why there was such a huge leap in time. Also, there were times when the dialog was just too modern. It always irks me when we have this elaborate fantasy world built and then all of a sudden the f-word is used. It just jerks me out of the fantasy aspect. But that is on me for sure.

While I liked the characters on their own, I didn’t like any of them together. The ‘love triangle’ (is it a love triangle when one of them is like, you two go ahead and be in love, it’s ok with me) really annoyed me. When Rielle and Audric are together, I found them rather sappy and weak. They are definitely stronger on their own. I couldn’t understand Ludivine’s motivations, until her big reveal at the end.

Then there is Eliana, I really had a hard time with her. Her one redeeming quality was her relationship with her brother, Remy. I loved that kid, he was the one character that I just wanted to give hugs to all day. Simon, was probably my second favorite, and I am dying to know what happened to him while Eliana was growing up.

The overall plot ended up being interesting and kept me reading, despite my other issues. I also like the elemental magic aspect of Rielle’s part of the story. The trials she had to go through were interesting and at times harrowing. There are a couple of rather explicit sex scenes as well, so be aware of that. Also, a few scenes that are pretty violent. I would put this book in the upper YA to New Adult category because of the violence and sex.

I am pretty much in the middle range with this one. I didn’t hate it, but I didn’t love it. Not sure if I liked it enough to read the next two books. I will just have to leave that up to my instincts, which I should have listened to in the first place.

Furyborn is one of this year's most talked about fantasies so I was eager to read it. I really liked the novel and I am eager for the continuation, but I was not as enthused as I thought I would be.

Furyborn is the first in a new trilogy about two queens, decades apart, who are related. One is fated to The Blood Queen, the other, The Sun Queen. Rielle Dardenne exposes her powers to save her friend, the crown prince. As she can control all the elements, those around her expect her to be one of the queens from the prophecy. A thousand years later, Eliana Ferracoca has heard about the legend of Queen Rielle. As both women fight their own battles, it is revealed that maybe their lives are connected in ways that they didn't expect.

While I liked Furyborn, I didn't love it. I usually am able to read a book on its own but I had to keep one of my playlists running in the background so I wouldn't get bored while reading. I think this is because the first 100 pages of the novel is spoiled by the synopsis and it took me a while to get really invested in the story. Even at that point, I was not as invested in the story as I usually am. Because readers are fully aware of Rielle's fate through Eilana's POV (and the description), it seemed almost extra to have her point of view. 

I felt that the romance in this novel was a large selling point (according to the blurbs) but I was not as invested in it as I could've been. The romances felt almost predictable. In addition, one of my pet peeves is that in a fantasy world where elemental magic and literal angels exist, I found it very jarring to see that guns were also present. I guess it fits into the narrative that is more apparent at the end of the novel, as Eliana's world is one that has science (talk of genetics appears then) but still... for a skilled assassin who uses knives and blades to be stopped with a gun was so boring. 

Overall, I liked Furyborn but there are few elements in it that I wasn't a huge fan of. Despite that, I think I would still read the sequel to see how it all plays out.

I LOVED this book. The characters were rich and deep, and both likable and worthy of scorn. The story is unique and fast-paced. I was disappointed when the book ended - I can't wait for the sequel!

For the first hundred or so pages of Furyborn, I was optimistic. The book contains two strong female characters, warriors, time travel, sibling relationships: all things I love. After a while, my mind started to wander. Why should I care about these characters? Neither one have done anything to impress me. Sure Eliana is called the Dread of Orline, but what does that mean? Rielle's perspective was my obvious favorite near the beginning, and this too bothered me. Shouldn't I cheer for both of the main characters? As the story moved on, even my affection for Rielle wavered. She became whiny and naive; not the strong warrior queen I was expecting. Then I began to question the world. None of the magic system was explained. The magic tied in to religion somehow, but I was unsure if the magic depended on the saints or if it was just strengthened by belief in them. I was expecting more from this book and will not be continuing with the series.

Actual rating: 2.5/5 stars

So this was the first time I was chosen for a Netgalley ARC I was actually really excited to read and it was so....... disappointing.

I picked up this book because it was really unique, which is something hard to come by in a genre oversaturated with Throne of Glass-esque high fantasy novels. And to be fair, the book did retain these unique qualities; I'm actually a fan of the 1,000 year perspective difference between the two main characters. I thought it was actually refreshing to know how protagonist A's life was going to end up 1000 years later versus what she thought her life was going to be. The book also did a good job of making me want to know why Rielle ended up the way she did by Eliana's time.

But that is where the good stuff ends. There is a plethora of awful that far overshadowed the good in this book.

To begin with Rielle, her entire storyline was so sloppy and all over the place that it was really difficult to be invested because it was just so unbelievable. (view spoiler)

What's more, Rielle herself was honestly so unlikable. She's a quintessential Mary Sue whose the most beautiful and powerful cupcake in the universe that no one can resist her, including her best friend's fiancé. Yawn. I would have been far more interested in an ugly, scarred nobody who has to earn her place in society rather than this beautiful fairyland girl who has everything handed to her. Even her "trauma" was so vanilla I didn't feel bad for her when it was clear we were supposed to feel sorry.

And god. That sex scene. I have read a lot of great sex scenes written by extremely talented authors, and this was PAIN. FUL. to read. Like, seriously, I cringed the whole time and I had to speed-read through it because it read like a really crappy $2.99 erotica novel sex scene rather than a well-written, literary example of good love-making. I think at one point I actually said "God ew" out loud, and it takes something truly awful to make me say something out loud to myself in my empty apartment at 11:30pm on a work night.

Moving on to Eliana, it's clear what she was supposed to be: the outwardly cold villain harboring a heart of gold, the most self-sacrificing individual who gets no thanks for whoring herself out to the Empire to keep her family safe while using crass humor to hide the fact that she's really scared and vulnerable. But she really just came across as a dumb bitch, for lack of a better label. For all her capabilities and powers and reputation as the Dread of Orline, she fucks up pretty spectacularly several times throughout the novel, and her ignorance gets a LOT of people killed. And yet, everyone......keeps forgiving her? And giving her a second chance?? Mmkay. Cool.

In the spirit of being completely transparent, I had to force myself to finish this book by speed-reading the last half because by the time I hit 250 pages in, I was ready for the book to be over. This was ENTIRELY too long, and there was far too much fluff with not enough plot development. I never really felt like the story was GOING anywhere, and it seemed to take several chapters to resolve many conflicts due to the alternative chapters perspective. It was such a slog to finish honestly.

The romance for both characters was also super throw-away. I didn't believe Rielle's threesome situation at all, (though it was SOMEWHAT resolved at the end but still. Meh.) and Eliana's romance at the end came out of NOWHERE. Seriously. There was 0 chemistry the entire time and then suddenly at the end it exploded into this white hot blazing star for no reason. If there's anything I hate more than bad writing it's a bad love story, and this featured two bad love stories so those are two really huge strikes against this series.

Since this is an ARC, I'm assuming the author changed some things around, but in my opinion, this book needed a very hefty re-writing to address what I consider seriously critical issues. I doubt I'll be coming back for book 2 if her writing continues in this manner because I really don't have the time to dedicate to another 500 page book that isn't interesting, features bland characters and even blander love scenes. A shame, really, because I maintain that this plot was really unique and I was so looking forward to it.

This was such an epic fantasy! The writing was really detailed and visual, so it was easy to portray everything and that made the story really atmospheric. And the way the story was set up was just so intricate, I really loved it! I was left with some burning questions at the end, so I'm hoping the second installment won't take too long!

I enjoyed how this story is told, we go from the past to the present with a thousand years of distance between one chapter and another and that has been super entertaining for me to read. This book is a great adventure with very strong female characters and that’s great, but at the same time I think it’s unnecessarily long and can become heavy at times. I don’t madly in love with this book as other people are, but I do think that the idea is very good and creative

The story follows Rielle and Eliana two independent and strong young women, separated by centuries of distance, who have the power to save their world or destroy it.
Rielle sees his best friend in danger and doesn’t hesitate to help him, but in the process she exposes her ability to control the seven types of elemental magic. The only people who should be able to control such power are a pair of prophesied queens: a Queen of Light and a Queen of Blood. To prove that she’s the Sun Queen, Reille will have to test her magic through different types of tests and if she can’t control it, she’ll be executed.
A thousand years later the story of Rielle is a mere fairy tale for Eliana, when the Undying Empire conquered her kingdom, she decides to dedicate her life to violence to keep her family alive. Until one day her mother disappears along with other women in the city and to find her she joins a rebel captain on a dangerous mission and discovers that the evil in the heart of the empire is more terrible than she ever imagined …
The stories of both girls will cross and the incredible connections between them will determine the destiny of the world

The story sounds without doubt incredible, right?! I think that although it has many magic aspects that we see quite often in fantasy, it’s still a unique and original idea. I think that everything is very well thought out on by author from the magical aspect to the connections between one time and another. I’m not used to reading a format in which we read the story of the main characters a thousand years apart from each other, that was something really new for me, but even so it worked and ended up being one of my favorite aspects of the book. On the other hand I think that at the beginning it’s somewhat difficult to keep the rhythm between one chapter and another, remember everything that is happening and the names and all that stuffs, so it can be a bit overwhelming but once you continue it becomes easier to move forward in the story.

I’m a bit surprised by the sexual content of the book, I think that to be Young Adult it can be a bit excessive, even when the main characters are between 19 and 20 years old. So I want to warn you in case this is something problematic for you. Personally the sexual content is not a problem for me if it’s well managed, although I must admit that in this book I couldn’t help but feel how all the characters are quite sexualized, maybe too much

I’m not sure how I feel about the girls, there were times when I loved Eliana and then she did something that I didn’t like and then I loved Rielle but then something happened and my thoughts changed, I know it sounds very confusing but it’s real lol.
I think they’re very complex , intense and above all very dramatic characters. You can’t stop reading about them, but at the same time you feel that you don’t agree with their personal attitudes and decisions since most of the time they’re both very impulsive, you know?. I think both characters were built with the intention that been controversial and that although they can be unlikeable at times even then you can’t stop reading about them.
Now that I have finished the book I think that I definitely don’t have a favorite, although I enjoy a little more of Eliana’s point of view, I couldn’t fully commit myself to anyone

In summary, the most interesting about Rielle is her connection with magic and watching her learn and interact with her mentor was something that I enjoyed a lot. The most interesting of Eliana, on the other hand, is that undoubtedly is the protagonist of the best action scenes and her chapters have a mystery/intrigue aura that make it very addictive to read

The first pages of this book are pure fire and they hooked me completely with the plot, it’s an incredible way to start with a book, I think it was so successful that I can’t stop mentioning it

I want to talk a little about the bisexual rep in the book that everyone has been talking about.
Personally I feel that it wasn’t explored in a very deep way, which I would have loved to see, since It’s not common for a main character in fantasy to be bisexual. I think the subject is mentioned at some point but there is not much happening, so I want you to know that if you’re looking for a strong bi representation in this book I don’t think you really get one

I think it’s a pity that the author has made this book so long, I know we all love a hugh book if the story is extensive and needs a great development, but personally I don’t think this book needs 500 pages, I think it would have worked better if was shorter because the plot is undoubtedly catchy, but there are scenes that really are no more than filling and make the book heavy and boring and I really don’t think that a story so well thought out deserve that, you know?

Finally the end of the story is very good, I enjoyed the last chapters and the revelation was very ingenious, I didn’t expect it at all and I loved that.

After all this I still recommend the book if you like dual points of views, if you enjoy strong and independent female characters and especially if you like action and magic. I think that although I had some obvious problems with it, I think that most of them are very personal and maybe they don’t prevent you from enjoying it. I can’t stop mentioning that it’s a very long book so if you plan to read it you have to know that you have a long way to go and you’ll have to make time for it

I'm going to leave off a rating on Goodreads, because I didn't finish the book. I got about 60% on my eARC and I just . . . have no interest in continuing.

Though this review accurately sums up my feelings: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2242021127?book_show_action=false&from_review_page=1

The jumping back and forth in time and POVs made it very difficult for me to follow. I'd get lost after having stopped reading and trying to pick it back up again. Storyline seemed interesting with strong female protagonists, just wish I could've finished it.