(2.5 stars)

Overall, this was an average YA Fantasy novel. There was a lot of expected tropes and the writing was rough at points (especially regarding the descriptions of things). I rolled my eyes at some cheesy lines.

I’ve read some reviews stating that the author is currently doing re-writes to address some racist plot lines. Although, I personally don’t see how it currently differs from The Hunger Games (ie. Rue).

All of this being said, I did read this in one sitting and was engrossed the whole time. I think that younger readers first diving into the world of fantasy will find this story enjoyable.

I liked what I read of this one, I thought the world building and characters were interesting but as it's not going to be published, which is a shame because it had a lot of potential, I'm putting it aside for now as i have so many other things to read and review. I will come back to this on,e and finish it at another time.

2.5 stars. While I started reading the ARC, I did not finish it due to the novel being pulled from publication. As such, my review is on-hold. I look forward to reading this after the writing has been revised. Thank you to Netgalley for providing the ARC.

I want to say that I am so glad I was able to read this book though I am upset on the author's behalf that this book was heavily criticized to the point of harassment and put into archive and will not be published anytime soon.

This plot was amazing and the characters completely relatable! I don't know the last time when a book just flowed for me naturally to where I could see the book playing a movie in my head. The descriptions, the emotions of the characters, and the world building were fantastic!! The OTP were completely adorable and DO NOT CHANGE ANYTHING ABOUT THEM.

I hope to have this on my shelf one day as well as any other book that happens to come out after.

Shortly after downloading this ARC, controversy led to the the author pulling the book from publication. Due to these events, I did not end up reading this ARC, however, I respect how Amelie Wen Zhao handled the situation and look forward to her future work.

With this title being pushed back from publishing I decided to not read and review it, but will gladly do it if/once the book is revised.

I'm not going to comment on the scene that has already taken over Twitter and Goodreads, because everything has been said already and the book has been pulled.

However, that still leaves the writing and quality of this novel.

I felt like Blood Heir was a patchwork quilt of all other YA novels pulled together, the string of it being Amelie's own words. There were elements of SHADOW AND BONE from the Grishaverse with the Russian elements, RED QUEEN with the red blood elements, and having a power that people aren't familiar with, and even THE HUNGER GAMES, with the death scene of May. And of course, it has elements of the lost princess Anastasia, but less so than I expected.

The romance aspect was something that felt forced. I did not believe that Ramsom and Ana were a couple that could fall in love, it wasn't a believable plot for me. I felt like the romance bent against the character traits that they already had and, like I stated before, it felt very forced, almost like it had to check off the box that it had romance in it for the YA readers who love that element. I think, if this book had been published, the romance should have been stretched out over the course of a few books.

The ending was alright, but I found myself skimming it just so that I could finally get to the end. Overall, I would not have bought the second book in the series if it came down to it.

As this book's publication date has now been suspended (which I think was an admirable move on the part of the publisher and the author) I will not be reviewing this title at this time. What this has done is given me respect for both the publisher and Amelie Wen Zhao, and I will be sure to keep an eye out for books from her in the future, as I love to see an author who can learn and grow from a negative experience.

I thought that this was a great novel. It was entertaining and heartbreaking. It was a great fantasy story about a girl trying to get her kingdom back. Ana was a great main character who battled her own inner demons throughout the entire book. She worked so hard to make all of the right choices and she is such a great character because of it. She makes mistakes and she learns from it. Ramson was another great character. He was funny and the type of male character that I just love and can't get enough of. The plot was great. It was a typical YA girl wants her crown back type of story, but it was done well. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars.

Okay now it is time to rant. A few weeks ago the author released a letter on twitter stating that she will not be publishing this novel at this point in time. People who had read the novel already thanks to ARCs were offended by the affinite slavery aspects of this book. In Blood Heir the people who can do magic are called affinites and they are looked down on by society. They are sold and traded at auctions and are treated terribly. People were "hurt" by this aspect of the book because it reminded them of black slavery in America. The slavery aspect of this book was inspired slavery and human trafficking that happens in China, where the author is from. It is terrible that this author was bullied into not publishing her book all because she used what has been going on in her own home country as inspiration. People need to understand that stories that feature slavery and a society where they think some type of person is less than another type are the most important stories. These stories get people thinking and you're supposed to be uncomfortable with it. There are so many books out there that feature magical beings as "slaves" in a world where people are terrified of magic. There are so many books out there that feature a "lesser" type of person. One example that comes to mind is Red Rising. Red Rising is about an rebellion because people aren't treated fairly. You don't see people bullying Pierce Brown into not publishing his books in that universe. If you are one of the people out there that were offended by Blood Heir then okay. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but you should not crush a persons dream of having a published book. If you don't like parts of the book, then don't buy the book or read the book. You don't need to go on twitter and attack this author. It is a shame that this book is not being published because I thought it was great and I would've loved to read a sequel to it.

Given the circumstances surrounding this book and it being pulled from publication, I will be postponing my read for now but look forward to picking this up when the author makes whatever revisions she feels are necessary.

Because of the situation with this book, my review is on hold. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

10% into the ARC and I find out that a) there's discourse concerning allegedly racist contents of the book, which I haven't reached yet but also can't get behind by googling it, and b) the author has published an apology on her twitter and explains that the novel is not getting published for now, so... guess I'm stopping this read? (3/5 stars to keep the balance, as I can not give the novel in this form an actual rating)

I picked this book because I found the blurb intriguing but I don't feel comfortable reading and reviewing this book over the whole controversy surrounding it.

In order to honor the author's wishes when they pulled the book for publication, Sadly, I will be holding off my review till revisions are made which I hope are pretty quickly.

This title has been withdrawn from publication at this time. Should it have a new release date scheduled and the problematic content be addressed, I will look forward to reading and reviewing it.

Given the book has been pulled by the publisher, I'll refrain from giving feedback. I look forward to reading any revised version.

I love this book! The story just sucked me right into it, there was always something happening and everytime when I thought "oh, finally some peace" the next tragedy hit already! The changing POV of Ana and Ramson was my personal highlight.. The ending making me beg for a continuation.

Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio. Giving a review of 50/50 as it was withdrawn from the publisher. I do not want this to affect my feedback ratio.

This book has been pulled from publication as per the author's and publisher's choice. I had read part of it before publication was pulled and found the writing style to be good. If the author and publisher choose to put this book out again I will certainly give it a try.

* I am aware of the situation with this book and that this copy is not the final version because of the issues*

First off, shame on those people for pulling such a stink over this book because this novel is brilliant and yes, it deals with things that may be uncomfortable for some people. However, I cannot imagine that world in any other way. It adds to who Ana and Ramson are as people and why they are the way they are.

If people like the Hunger Games, Red Queen, and Anastasia then you will love this book.

I am curious to see what the author will change because I loved every word of it.

For my full review, please check out my blog at https://bookgirlreviewsbooks.blogspot.com

4.5 stars