Song of blood and stone is the first book in a fantasy series. When I requested this from NetGalley back in 2019 I must have been in the mood for a fantasy epic. Now, in 2023, I was not. Cool concept and works buildings was way too long. Not sure I’ll finish the trilogy.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley fir the e-arc I received in exchange fir my honest review.

I read this one on my holiday last week but didn't finish it unfortunately. While i appreciated the number of issues the author is trying to tackle in one book, I felt it tried to be too complex and include too much to give each issue the time it deserved.
I enjoyed the romance elements i encountered before I stopped reading and the overall setting and world building was great!

What a great read. Song of Blood & Stone is very well done with an easy to follow the storyline and well-crafted characters.

You will truly enjoy reading this book. Highly recommend.

As a long-time reader of fantasy books that incorporate elements of magic, royalty, and fierce young women, I’ve longed for a book to thoroughly probe and expound on each of these story components while also making the main character explicitly a woman of color with whom I could strongly identify. Well, Song of Blood and Stone delivers all of this in a such a satisfying way that I am still processing the fact that I may have found a series that is as intriguing and affirming as N.K. Jemisin’s Inheritance trilogy. In fact, my sense of disbelief is so profound that I’m already looking forward to my second reading of this novel just to make sure that the story exists – I breezed through the story in the matter of a day!

During my second reading, I’ll look forward to meeting each of the main characters once again. Jasminda is a young woman of mixed Elsiran (white, red-haired, non-magically-inclined people) and Lagrimari (Black, magically-inclined people) heritage who presents as a Black woman and has to deal with the aggression of her Elsiran neighbors alone after the death of her mother and disappearance of her father and twin brothers. Because her family is very unconventional in Elsiran society, they live in a secluded homestead near the Lagrimari border to avoid the racism of their countrymen. Jasminda is content enough with this arrangement…until she meets Jack. Jack is an Elsiran spy whom she saves from near death and has secrets of his own. As the story proceeds, we see how valuable these characters become to each other and just how important their roles are for the good of their region.

The plot thickens when we see just how much this fantasy world is tied to the issues we face in reality. Though the book isn’t very descriptive about the timing of this story, there are telephones, radios, and cars with no description of high or low tech these countries are, you can’t read this story without it feeling very present. For instance, one of the main conflicts within this book stems from the strong xenophobia with which the Elsirans regard the Lagrimari refugees. The Lagrimari are ruled by a strict tyrant and near deity called “True Father.” The True Father forces his constituents, regardless of age, to yield their inborn magical abilities to him then spend the rest of their lives as miners, other forms of manual labor, or in his harem. Even with knowledge of the harsh circumstances that the Lagrimari refugees flee when they migrate to Elsira, most Elsirans are willing to scapegoat the Lagrimari for the scarcity in natural resources and austerity measures they’ve had to take on due to economic strife. This is exacerbated by the false news articles and caricaturization of the prince as someone who is more concerned with providing meals for foreigners than for his own people. Sound familiar?

Matters take a turn for the worse when a soldier shoots a young, Black, Lagrimari boy who dares to walk towards food rationed for his people after the soldiers have decided they will not distribute food to foreigners ‘when it comes from their tax money.’ This scene puts an eerie, almost Luke Cage spin on the imagination exercise of Black people having superpowers and the treatment they could expect. Without powers, Black people are regarded as preternaturally dangerous, but with powers, the Lagrimari are known to mend themselves, and in this case, because the boy is surrounded by his community, they are able to heal him in time. While this moment is a clear parallel to issues faced in reality, it also sets up the true conflict between the Elsirans and Lagrimari: they each have what the other needs to survive. The irony is that while the Lagrimari actually have powers, the Elsiran lead freer lives. One hopes that the Elsiran will get over their racism and magic envy as the series goes on, but given the author’s penchant to reflect societal realities in this narrative, it’s more likely that the Lagrimari will find what works for themselves.

The thing I found most rewarding about reading Song of Blood and Stone was the fact that the author provides us with a true resolution at the end, while also leaving storylines open for what looks to be two more installments of a very interesting story. I very much look forward to reading those and the rumored dragon-related project up the author’s sleeve.

Have I ignited your curiosity? You’re in luck, there’s a 5 chapter sneak peek here. Happy plotting!

Song of Blood & Stone is a fantasy with strong elements of romance, excellent writing, and exceptional world-building. The beautiful cover is eye-catching and my attention was captured from start to finish. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who wants to read an excellent fantasy/romance featuring captivating characters of color. Yay to diversity! I will definitely be reading more in this series. 5 stars!

After four chapters, I didn't feel compelled to keep reading. Rather than giving a negative review, I can say that I'm not the right reader for this book, and I'm sure others will enjoy it.

There were a lot of things I was liking about this book - a really interesting setup where two countries are separated by a magical barrier, deep worldbuilding in the form of folktales that head each chapter, and a neat idea of fusion between 1920s era technology and magic (I didn't feel this quite gelled but it <i>was</i> interesting).

So I've been trying to think of a way I can say this without sounding like I'm whining about romance getting in my fantasy but...

...the bottom line is, I don't want penis talk unless I'm reading erotica (and sometimes not even then because I read a lot more f/f erotica than m/f and i basically don't read m/m at all?)

But ymmv obviously. So if any of those themes sound appealing to you, definitely try this book out! It work for you.

I found this to be a very enjoyable, if not massively original book. It tells the story of Jasminda, a young mixed race girl struggling to get by in her town when she runs into Jack, a young soldier on a quest to awaken the Queen who Sleeps and save his people from the magic of the breach.

The Positives: There is a great magic system in play here and I liked the idea of connection to the elements as an Earthsinger. The mythology of the world is very interesting and the visions Jasminda experiences are well placed to reveal further information about the past, which I really appreciated. I also thought that the pacing was quite good and that the story kept my interest throughout. There was a lot of interesting discussion about refugees and belonging, which I thought was sensitively tackled in the narrative.

The negatives: I found the relationship between our protagonists a little bit rushed, which meant it didn't feel that authentic or believable. I also thought that there could have been a lot more exploration around the hostilities between the two lands. Some of the political intrigue was underdeveloped and fell a little flat. Finally, the story itself is just not that original and hits a lot of the same beats as many other fantasy tales.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

At its heart, this story is a social commentary. The focus is on the characters and the social conflicts between the countries of Elsira and Lagrimar. There is also a large dose of romance. I would recommend this book to fans of romance books set in a fantasy world.

From what I can glean, it seems that the revisions to this novel add in Benn and Ella's plotline. While they are likable characters and their plotline is compelling on its own, their story is not necessary for the main plot and, in fact, took away from Jasminda and Jack's story. I feel like their story would have better served as a novella that builds upon a beloved side character from this first book.

<b>A note on the synopsis:</b>
I would not classify this as an epic fantasy. The conflict is centered between two countries. As far as I can tell, the events of this novel does not place the fate of the world at stake. The story also feels more about the characters and the social commentary than on earth-shattering stakes.

<b>A note on the shelves I'm seeing:</b>
I can see fans of new adults reading this book since the characters are in their twenties. I would not classify this as a young adult, however. The characters are adults, and there are some explicit sex scenes.

Song of Blood & Stone caught my attention with a beautiful cover. The heroine looked fierce, the war imminent. I requested a review copy from NetGalley immediately.

What Did I Like?

✔ Compelling story, like the beginning of a good fairy tale: two kingdoms, eternally at war, separated by a magical barrier, the Mantle. When the Mantle starts to colapse it’s up to a young farm girl Ella and young soldier Jack to save the day.

✔ Likable characters. A farm girl, a soldier, a hairdresser, … At first glance an ordinary people similar to you and me.

✔ Covers some serious topics like fear of progress and racism. Through the story, L. Penelope made these topics easier to understand for young adults. If you start lecturing to your kids how they should not have a negative attitude toward someone just because they are different, they will probably just hear ‘Blah blah blah’. Now, you can give them Song of Blood & Stone instead.

"It must be hard living in a land with so much sameness that any deviation at all stands out."

What I Didn’t Like?

✘ Obvious plot twists and revelations. I thought that there was no way it would be so simple, but unfortunately, it was.

✘ Love story took over the second part of the book. When everything was getting more intense, I was annoyed that the main topic was the main characters’ feelings instead of the battle happening around them.

✘ The worldbuilding was muddled. Like in fairy tales, if you started to poke it, it would start to fall apart. Why all people from Elsira feared change and modern technology so much?

My Rating: ★★★☆☆

Song of Blood & Stone had a lot of potential. While there could have been more world-building and less romance, I like the themes covered in this series, so I will give it a chance and read a sequel.

This was as delightful on reread as it was the first time, I also enjoyed seeing the subplot with the sisters, and am curious to see how that ties into future books.

After a chapter or two to really get into it, I began to enjoy this book. Jasminda was an interesting character who had to survive much hardship. When Jack almost fell into her lap, the book really picked up steam, and I enjoyed the journey the two of them had to go on, from war captives to magical caves, etc. Then, however, they made it back to "civilization" and Jack's military comrades. And at that point the book became just not as good, in my opinion. A lot of the "magic" was lost once they got to the big city, and the romance between Jack and Jasminda overwhelmed the story. To go back to my earlier analogy, the book lost steam at that point. I wasn't sure where the author was going and it seemed like some depth to the characters and story was missing. When the book reached the climax, the author's descriptions seemed almost matter-of-fact and therefore everything was a bit anti-climactic. While overall this was a good book, that was almost the problem with it--it was just "good" when it could have been great.

A sleeping Queen, A false God and a young couple caught up in the makings of another brutal war, this is Song of Blood & Bone. Jasminda and Jack, our main protagonists are from completely different worlds but manage to come together in a world that seems to be destined to keep them apart.

I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised reading this one and that’s only because it featured young/new adults. I’m not a major fan of this genre but if I continue to come across more stories that feature characters such as Jasminda, Jack and the rest of this cast of characters, then I can stick around for a minute of two.

I truly enjoyed how this author was able to mix the world of magic and also encompass such serious topics of race, social status, and divisive propaganda. I tell you to read a story that reflects our current time in this Country is just…something, you know?

L. Penelope was able to bring all of the things I mentioned above together very well. The world building took me some time to catch onto and I do wish the author had just given us a tad more information on the countries of Elsira and Lagrimar. The breakdown of the magic world and Earthsingers was outstanding though.

I look forward to falling in love more with the world of Earthsingers and can’t wait to try books two and three.

"Song of Blood & Stone" had a great premise and a beautiful cover, so I was looking forward to diving into the first book in Earthsinger Chronicles. Unfortunately, this book wasn't for me.

I enjoyed the first chapters, but I got more and more confused and honestly bored out of my mind as the story progressed. Don’t get me wrong, there were many intriguing elements in the worldbuilding and the characters were interesting (at least at the beginning), but there was just too much info dump for me and too many elements in this fantasy world. There was a certain magic system with spells and Songs (written with a capital letter, I don’t know why) and songs could be trapped or stolen and I have no idea how it all was supposed to make sense! The characters were childish and they all merged in my mind after a while.

There was an instant attraction between Jack and Jasminda, the main characters in the story. It is really disappointing when the characters just meet and there is the instant attraction between them. This time it was even more ridiculous than usual, because Jack was laying on the side of the road, badly hurt, his bullet wound was seriously infected (black with infection and oozing, to be exact) and he still had enough stamina to notice Jasminda's good looks. And Jasminda was an outsider and in general a misunderstood special snowflake with amazing superpowers.

I think that this novel was too long and there were too many characters and too much unnecessary information. It was like the author wanted to put everything she ever wanted to write about in one book. The style of writing also didn’t win me over. What’s more, the quotes from “collected folktales” at the beginning of each chapter seemed quite silly. They were written in a pretentious way, like there was some wisdom hidden in them, but it was just whimsical nonsense.

Anyway, maybe the book will appeal to other readers.

I received "Song of Blood & Stone" from the publisher via NetGalley. I would like to thank the author and the publisher for providing me with the advance reader copy of the book.

I think this is a reading first for me: the version of the first book in the Earthsinger Chronicles I read is billed as an "expanded edition", adding substantially more text (around 50,000 words) and a secondary storyline to a novel which has previously had both self-published and traditionally published incarnations. Having not read the previous editions, I was slightly apprehensive about what these additions would do to the story structure and how to handle them as a reviewer, but I was rewarded with a book whose dual stories work well together in terms of pacing and complementary worldbuilding, and despite the fairly limited interactions between them, I wouldn't have known this was an "expansion" without the note in the title.

At the heart of the novel is the story of Jasminda, a mixed race woman living near the border between the lands of Elsira and Lagrimar, countries which have been in a magically-induced standoff for decades following open war. Looking Lagrimari and able to use "Earthsong", a kind of magic particular to that land, Jasminda is treated as an outside within her Elsiran community and following the death of her parents she's now struggling to maintain control of her family's land in the face of greedy distant relatives. When a group of Lagrimari soldiers show up, assuming by Jasminda's presence that they're in their own country and bringing a rather handsome and valuable prisoner with them, Jasminda is thrown into unfolding events between the two kingdoms, with epic results.

Song of Blood and Stone took a while to get going for me, and it wasn't until the second half, when Jasminda and Jack arrive at the capital of Elsira and some fairly significant plot shifts (and romance progressions) take place, that I started to wholeheartedly enjoy the reading experience. Once I got there, though, I found this to be a satisfying fantasy romance which leans into its tropes effectively, while still providing a novel worldbuilding backdrop for its protagonists to grapple with. Particularly neat were the opening sections to each chapter, which build an animal-based mythological pantheon for Elsira through snippets of different fables. Best of all, there's already a sequel available for those who enjoy this entry into the world of Elsira and Lagrimar.

Received this book from the netgalley in exchange for the honest review. Thank you to publisher for giving me this opportunity. Unfortunately I did not like it. I didn’t care about characters or the story itself. I dnf it at 40%.

Characters 9
Atmosphere 8
Writing style 8
Plot 6
Intrigue 6
Logic 7
Enjoyment 8

I really think this book is coming from our current situation. With everything that is happening with refugees in the EU, I've found myself angry and thinking about my country politics against saving peoples lives. I loved how much this book could start a discussion and how much I've seen of myself in all these characters. We need hope for our future and for a better world. But I need to talk about the book, not our World, right?
Even if I've found the message OUTSTANDING, I think the delivery was lacking. I've found myself wishing it was more suspense-driven and less world-building focused. For half of the book I wasn't connecting with what was going on, and really is a shame. I tried to listen to the audiobook but found so many differences with the arc, so I think the pacing was corrected in the final product.

Thanks so much to Netgalley for providing me a digital ARC of this.

I liked Jasminda and the concept of Earthsong but the romance element was a little eye roll-y at times. I would have enjoyed some additional world building as well. I wasn't left with a clear sense of what sort of world this is.

I would consider reading a sequel but I was not in love with this first one.

Song of Blood & Stone is the first book in a series by L. Penelope. Originally published in 2015, this reformatting and expanded edition published 16th July from Macmillan on their St. Martin's imprint, is 528 pages and available in special paperback format. Earlier editions are available in other formats.

The thing that first struck me about this book and this world was how rich and enthralling the world building and sense of place were. I was intrigued from the first page and read the entire book in two sittings. It's not often that I find a book which literally makes me lose track of time, but this one did. On the surface, it is a coming of age story with romance and magic set against a backdrop of epic fantasy. Underneath the surface, it's a story which deals with universal themes. The author deals competently and honestly with loss, racism, xenophobia, sexism, ignorance, violence, threat, and inequity. I was unfamiliar with the author previously, and am inspired to go immediately and read all of her back catalog which I can find.

I did not have the original version of this book to compare with the updated release, so I can't speak to the differences in the manuscripts. A comparison of the page counts in the earliest and latest editions shows an approximately 200 page difference. Even allowing for typesetting and formatting differences, that is significant. The cover states that the newest version includes bonus material including new scenes.

This is a beautifully written novel. The language is relatively clean (shite, whore, etc), however there is physical abuse, sexual threat and implied rape, blatant racism, sexism, etc. All of it is used in context and despite being potentially depressing (and horrifying), after having read it, I was left hopeful, with positive feelings and a strong desire to read the next books and find out what happens.

Although there is a strong romantic subplot, it never tipped over into the maudlin for me. Protagonist Jacinda is strong and sensible and very likable. I was really rooting for her throughout.

Five stars. Looking forward to more.

Love, love, love. I adore fantasy romance and this was just so good. This was an expanded edition and it dragged on a bit but I didn’t mind. Can’t wait to read the sequel.