Emily R. King is a wonderful author and Before the Broken Star is as wonderfully twisty as her Hundredth Queen series.

I love reading a book with unexpected events and this one hits you in the face with a massive example halfway through, Emily has set up what will probably be one of my favourite series and I’m so excited for the next instalment, I NEED to know what happens next and I miss the main character already.

My full review is going up on my site at 12pm on June 20th - link will be included in links section!

He strides to me and daisies sprouting at his feet. With a willowy finger, he taps my ticker.
“Please don’t collect on the time I owe,” I say.

What a concept, time. The law that everyone abides by and yet it’s the law that everyone deems to break. Everley is a character with both too much and too little time. Her heart, a clock that counts by her life in seconds, minutes and tense silences is a reminder that she is living off too much borrowed time.

Before the Broken Star is a book that balances on the edge of a sword. Each character drives the story of dear Everley down paths she wasn’t expecting and as a reader, I wasn’t expecting either. Having the book start with such an emotional moment put together every ounce of motivation that Everley was using to drive her to the edge of her own sword. The delicacy of the clock shop, the nurturing uncle, the plot for revenge and the fear that this young girl was holding so tightly.

The characters drove this book. Emily R. King wrote magic when she wove together a band of misfits with only mutiny, gold and the bonds of a gang that fends for its own. Harlow, the fox, the cat and Vevina. Each one a side of the same coin. A gang leader, a terrifying duo and a ringmaster with plans A through the rest of the alphabet and dear little Quinn. The charm and clever wit of each character fused the atmosphere in the world of Her Majesties Colony.

Under the charming dialogue, however, like with the fox and the car, each character holds secrets and fears that come through from time to time. Since a home is so far away and for some not that much better then months stuck on a boat.

The world building that is told through stories of great whales and lost loves, adds a touch of magic to a story about a girl with a clock for a heart. Emily R. King is a wonderful storyteller and I can’t wait to read the next book in the Evermore Chronicles just to see what kind of gold one can find at the belly of a whale and the edge of a sword.

*I received an e-arc from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

I loved this book! It’s such a great fantasy. The storyline is wonderful and it’s well written. I was entranced in this story from the very first page!

I voluntarily read and reviewed a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own

It took a little while to get into this book but once I did, I was hooked. First person narrative is sometimes difficult to get in board with but I loved reading this book from Everly’s perspective. She’s a strong young lady who had a difficult start. Gifted or burdened, she was saved by her clockmaking uncle who gave her a clock for a heart, she’s set on vengeance for the death of her family, targeting Killian Markham, the man responsible for her family’s death. Though nothing is quite as it seems.

Loved the strong female characters, I would be interested to read more on Fox and Cat, they seem like a tenacious pair!

Emily R. King has created a beautiful world, filled with adventure, secrets, romance (albeit slow burning) myth, mystery and action.

I’m looking forward to the future books in the Evermore chronicles.

I thought of this novel as Pinocchio meets Pirates on a quest for revenge. What a beautiful tale of a young fierce woman with a clock for a heart. Greed, loss, love and revenge are some of my favorite aspects in a novel. There was a lot of emotions I felt during this tale as well as not being bored with the long periods of travel.
I look forward to the next book to continue this adventure.

After reading the synopsis I had high hopes for this. Alas it just wasn't for me. The book is well written but I couldn't get into it. I'd hoped for more of a draw into the world that Ms. King was creating but nothing grabbed me. I lost interest not long after the first few chapters. Maybe later on I will come back and try again but for now this is a no go for me.

I was lucky to be able to get an ARC copy of ‘Before The Broken Star’. The fantasy novel is written by Emily R. King, and is the first in a series. I was given the ARC from #netgalley in exchange for my review. The story is about a young woman called Everley, who is hiding a big secret. She may look like every other woman, but looks can be deceiving.

Everley has suffered great sorrow in her childhood, with the loss of her whole family, at the hands of a man that she has not seen since the night that he destroyed her family, and burned her home to the ground. A man that she has not seen, until he steps into the shop where she now works. Everley vows to avenge her family at all costs. She plans to find the monster that changed her life, alone, but doing things alone might not be possible.

Across treacherous seas to an island of myths; can Everley find the answers she seeks? Or will she be left confused and with more questions? Are the fairy tales Everley was read by her mother as a child really fairy tails, or was her mother, without knowing it, telling stories that could help her avenge her sorrow?

‘Before The Broken Star’ has danger, love, romance, fighting, myths and kick-arse women. I enjoyed reading it, although I felt some parts in the middle dragged a little bit. I am, however, looking forward to reading the next book in the series, and finding out what happens to Eversley next.

I rate this book 4 Zebras out of 5

🦓🦓🦓🦓

If you made it this far thank you for reading.
Love, Zebra.

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📚 review 📚 Before the Broken Star by Emily R. King.
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After witnessing the murder of her family Everly O’Shae (Donovan) is saved by her uncle a clock shop worker, and has been training her whole life to take revenge. She is caught in a raid of an illegal fight and gets sent to an island full of convicts. This gets her closer to her mark. While on her way to the island she is married to the lieutenant. A young man with a hard past of his own. As she gets closer to her goal her world is shaken by magic and tales she believed weren’t true. One of these tales can bring about the end of her world. Can she save her friends and her world or will time run out on her?
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This book was very entertaining, it took me a while to get used to Everly. She was very selfish and proud and headstrong. Revenge really played a strong part of her story, so much she risked her life for it. The premise that this world doesn’t necessarily posses magic but she lives when she shouldn’t is very interesting. Crossing worlds was also refreshing. Finding that old children stories are real was enjoyable. the sceneries are vivid, the villains are charming as treacherous, and the heroes lovable, strong and loyal. I really recommend this book if you like fantasy, plot twists, and chaos.
⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ #Netgalley #beforethebrokenstar #emilyrking @emily_r_king

I adored this gender-bender take on Pinocchio! I love how flawed the main character was and the constant strong female presence was, as always, one of my favorite parts of a read. This one did not disappoint. The rag-tag characters kept me entertained and the adventure was absolutely awesome. But my favorite part of this story in particular was the world building. I was captivated with every page.

Thank you to Skyscape Publishing and NetGalley for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review. Wow, oh wow this book was a real treasure! I saw this on NetGalley and thought it sounded intriguing so I decided to request it and it was SUCH and amazing read! The characters all have something likable about them and even the villain has his own charm. I absolutely loved the originality the author brings to this book. The world building is absolutely gorgeous and I found myself completely enchanted by it's fairy tale setting. I also loved the idea behind all the mythology in this book! The fast paced adventure never failed to keep me enthralled and I managed to devour this beauty in one setting. This book was an absolutely wonderful surprise and I hope others will pick it up and enjoy it as much as I did!

This book is a gender swap retelling of Pinocchio. The premise right there is intriguing enough to pick up the book. And the story is pretty interesting, but I felt like the execution of it didn’t quite measure up. At least for me.

Synopsis: Everly is the only survivor after a murderer takes the life of her parents and siblings. She barely survives herself, and is forced to live with a clock heart to keep her alive. She will do anything to avenge her family, even if it means traveling to an island full of prisoners where she will be married off and forced to help build the new colony.

The marriage aspect of this book threw me off. It was not what I expected, and I didn’t like the way it played out. I feel like it got in the way of any potential romance.

Though I didn’t quite connect with the book, it was still an intriguing read. I haven’t read a Pinocchio retelling before, so I appreciated that. Also, the part where the whale shows up was actually quite satisfying. 😉

Thank you to Netgalley and Skyscape for a copy to review.

"In the beginning, there was no time, and no man or beast walked the world. Where the ocean met the land, an ivory mare was born, her mane crafted from sea-foam and her body from barnacles. She was the Creator, goddess of all conception and supreme ruler of seven worlds"

Wonderful world-building, clockwork heart, pixie, wooden soldiers, fantastical journey....this book hits all the right marks. I am looking forward to Everley's continuing adventures, and more of the Fox and Cat please!

I get so excited when an author I love and respect releases a first in a brand new series! And King did not disappoint with this one! The world building is vast and vibrant, the characters are fleshed out and fully realized, and the taste of mythology, fantasy, and a little smattering of steampunk had me hooked from the first chapter. The exotic setting pokes your curiosity and lures you to continue reading. I love how real King's characters feel to me, they're real and flawed and unapologetic. Waiting for their reactions to the situations they encounter is like watching amazing tv in your head. It was hard to set this book down and choose to be a responsible adult! If you enjoy upbeat, faster paced fantasy like Pirates of the Caribbean, Daughter of a Pirate King, and Immortal Plunder... this is the perfect read for you!

Thank you to NetGalley for my advanced review copy. All opinions and thoughts are my own. I loved this book so much I had to have the hardcover!

~Spoiler-free review~
Before getting into the real book review, I just want to clarify what my standards for books are, cause, yeah, you need to know. Kk? Ok.

It’s pretty simple. I want to honor Him with everything I read. In simpler words, I strive not to read anything that I would not be proud to tell Jesus to face to face off. I don’t do books with explicit or graphic sex scenes, dark magic, cussing, horror/terror, LGBT characters, etc. In essence, I try to guide my reading standards to what I’ve been taught in my church and from my personal relationship with God and His word. This doesn’t mean I don’t read non- Christian books! I believe there are many CLEAN books out there to be discovered and as many of you know, that’s why I created The Official Indie Readalong. Ok now that we have that clear let’s get back to the review.

This book had soooo much potential! I have to be honest and say I didn’t finish it because… you’ll see. Anyways, the first chapter of the book is SO good! That was what made me even say I was in love with the book before I even finished reading 10% of it. The prologue of the book starts with a description of how the world was created by a goddess and the ”creator”, mythical gods the people worshiped…ok, I guess I can view it as a greek mythology book, keep reading…But then a scene was the main character, Everley, has a flashback to some things an evil guy does, implying that he abused her sister. Then there are gore references and scenes of prostitute women and their line of work. The author want’s to make it seem as something ”that was done back in those days” but it was utterly unnecessary. Men are cruel and insensitive, and they try to take advantage of women. That’s the negative stuff — quite a bit. But the good is that the plot was AMAZING. I really wished I could keep on reading and see where this adventure would take Everleyl, but my brain just couldn’t handle any more of those things.

Emily R. King’s new novel Before the Broken Star is a fantastic read for YA fantasy fans. It’s main character Everley is a fierce adventurer who has her mind set on her goal, which is to take revenge for her families brutal murders. I loved her determination and how far she goes for what she wants. This story takes you on an amazing journey across the sea to a faraway land, that most people doesn’t even believe exists! The characters have an array of different personalities, which is realistic to real life situations. Emily is a wonderful writer and I would recommend this book to anyone who loves YA fantasy.

The story grew boring the more I kept reading. There was too much description and not enough showing. I couldn’t picture the characters at all, while the world building did nothing to move the plot along. I didn’t care enough about the main character to feel anything towards her or why she even needed to seek vengeance. I felt that the author could work on trying to show more in her writing than describing every single detail.

The main character, Everley, witnessed atrocious sights as a child and spends years plotting to put the past to rest. In a world that often seemed like a human world, with the exception of a few mythical/magical elements, Everley and her supporting cast have hidden, ulterior motives that are gradually revealed in a well-paced plot. The overall character development was often predictable or lacking, but there were some great moments of dialogue. I didn’t love the book, but I really enjoyed it, and I would read the next instalment in the series.

Feedback
Take everything you think this book is going to be an immediately get rid of it. I thought this book was going to be one thing but got completely the opposite, and loved every bit of it. First, I am obsessed with King’s writing. The voices bled through the pages and each one is so unique. There is so much feeling in each word that is provided truly giving a whole picture of how this world is. The other thing I really enjoyed was how she blended in their beliefs. The stories told throughout the book were perfectly placed. Each one gave a little better feel for how their world was created but not in a long overdrawn way. Then there were the twists that I really did not see coming! One of the best things about this is King didn’t make you wonder. One minute the story is going one way and then out of nowhere a bombshell is dropped without any warning. This truly makes the story fly and makes me genuinely interested on what’s going to happen next. While there was a certain event I didn’t like in the ending I’m sure it will be remedied in the next book because it was already almost done.
The characters fit perfectly within this story. Everley is the main character that is followed throughout the whole story who had lost her whole family. Luckily, her uncle found her and installed a clock heart in order for her to live. While this is such an important part of the story, I like how it’s really never a huge focus but just always subtly there in the background. There were so many other factors that Everley needed to concentrate on but it was always there. After encounting Markham, revenge is the only thing on Everley’s mind. Everley’s revenge story was done fantastically. The main thing I like about this is that it’s based off of her childhood memory. I like this because it makes Everley’s revenge long and awaiting but also makes her question her memories. As children, we imagine things differently and does Everley remember everything the right way? Even though she knows deep down that she must extract her revenge she is still smart enough to think of other consequences as well. I think a lot of people are going to mistake Everley’s character as this nonsensical character who’s only thought is revenge but she really isn’t. I think that’s what makes her character truly unique. Sure, she does some actions that aren’t the best because she is so set in her revenge way but at the same time she let’s people in. This shows that she really isn’t a monster, even if she thinks she is. I’m excited to continue her journey.

Final Thoughts
Overall, Before the Broken Star by Emily R. King is a fantastic adventure. The story was so much more than I was expecting. All of the twists and revelations were so fantastic without being alluded to at all. Along with a grealy paced story, Everley’s character perfectly fit this world. I really enjoyed digging deep into her personality and seeing beyond what is actually written. These characters really give such a depth that is often missed or misinterpreted but truly shows the talent that is written behind them. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for a badass heroine who will stop at nothing to achieve her goals.

I haven't read any of this author's books, but I've been meaning to. I actually chose this as my Amazon First Reads, and then I ended up receiving an ARC for this as well.

So, here we are.

Honestly, I didn't particularly like this one as much as I thought. The summary sounded good, but to be honest the summary didn't catch my eye much either. I went into this with pretty much a neutral expectation. I wasn't expecting anything amazing or expecting to hate it. In the end, my thoughts are pretty much the same. I thought it was alright, but it just didn't fully reach my and get me interested in the story.

I thought the flow of the story was pretty simple and clean. It wasn't anything out of the ordinary or something so cliche. It was just...average. Characters developed pretty well, but there's definitely a lot more room for improvement, which I assume will happen in the next books. I didn't get attached to any of the characters though, not even Everyley.

Honestly, if you love the summary, go ahead and give it a shot. If you hate the summary, just give this one a pass. If you aren't exactly sure how you feel about the summary, maybe waiting for a library hold or a kindle sale may work out better. or even go to the bookstore and read a couple chapters. I think the blurb will really tell on how you may enjoy this book.

ARC provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I was in the mood for fantasy and this author had been recommended by a friend . Telling the story of Everley is like taking the reader on a journey as we are introduced to a young woman who clearly has issues and limitations. For starters she’s living a lie and hiding who she really is then there’s the fact that Everley nearly died as a child and now depends on a clockwork heart to keep her breathing ! Now you would think that’s enough to contend with but no Everley wants revenge on the cruel man who slaughtered her entire family and finally finds a way to catch up to him. As with all good stories though the task requires sacrifice and for Everley that means willingly becoming a convict and then being transported to a cursed island.
I loved the beginning of this book and found myself immediately having sympathy for Everley. She knows that Killian is on the island but has no idea exactly what else she will encounter there and for the reader it was always going to be a magical tale and the author does not disappoint. Yet the sea journey was perhaps my favourite part of this story as the female convicts find themselves being married off and naturally Everley has not one suiter but two ! Her husband and any possible romance sadly seemed neglected and if I’m blunt just didn’t really go anywhere. However the reunion with Killian was designed to confuse the reader and it was done in such a way to elicit sympathy but you just know in this topsy turvy scenario that time will yet again throw more revelations into the mix. That right there is a feature of this story as Time ( yes here it deserves a capital) is a theme running throughout and even if you have serious questions about Everleys heart you cannot fail to be impressed by everything else the author throws in. Magic, mythical creatures and just ordinary greedy humans feature here with a story that is set to continue and luckily there not too long to wait.
This voluntary take is of a copy I requested from Netgalley and my thoughts and comments are honest and I believe fair