This book started off rather slow and with way too much unnecessary info. But things picked up later on and I actually started enjoying the book. I really liked the characters and was blown away by the twist at the end!

Forged in Fire and Stars is the start of a new YA fantasy series. While I definitely liked this book, it was your typical YA fantasy, nothing was really unique about it. I knew going in that this wouldn't have as much action because this is the first in a series, so this is more worldbuilding and character development. I really did love the world building, but the characters were lacking in depth. While to me this is a short fantasy book compared to a lot of others, it felt somehow like it dragged more than it should of. I thought the plot twists were very predictable and honestly didn't care much for anything that happened in this book. I was really expecting more out of this book than what I got.

3.5 Stars. This book has a really awesome concept and premise. A woman destined to be a mythological blacksmith who encounters a thief to take her on a magical journey to her destiny. I was actually really excited to start this one. I really enjoyed the folklore and the world building, although at times the many mentions of the “rebellion” had me going back to Star Wars roots.

The downfall for me was, I had a really hard time connecting to the characters. If there was any I enjoyed, it would have had to be Teth. He’s definitely got the best written dialogue and one liners. Feels kind of like a Flynn Ryder type character to me, fun and sarcastic.

The rest of the lot fell a bit flat and weren’t developed enough. I wanted to see more conversations and connections and dive down beneath the surface level we got as a reader. This was all a set up for a series so I’m hoping we get to see more of who these characters for who they actually are. Most of this book is traveling so it might have been a little low on the action and romance to keep me entertained as well. I’m conflicted about going on to the next books but I think I just might.

Thank you to Penguin Teen for the digital copy and for letting me give an honest review!

3.5 stars!

Thank you to PenguinTeen and Netgalley for the review copy!

Ara is the daughter of the Loresmith, the legendary blacksmith blessed by the gods to protect the kingdom. It's Ara's fate to inherit the title, but her father died before he was able to teach her the skills. Now she's living a quiet life in her small village. But everything changes when the lost Princess Nimhea and Prince Eamon steal Ara away to help on their mission to reclaim the throne. Along the way, they meet a thief and his fox, and they all set out to help Ara take her place as Loresmith and reclaim the kingdom.

The premise of this book is so good. It really intrigued me and made me want to read it. And I think the beginning of the story was so interesting and compelling. But it kinda slows down and drags a bit towards the middle and end. I think we could have used more action and interest. The writing is really unique and I love the style. But plot and characters fell a little flat. It felt a bit predictable and the characters can be somewhat bland. I did appreciate the diversity we got with our little gang. I wish we got a more developed character arc for our MC, but maybe that will come in the next book. I do want to continue the series, but I hope things speed up in book two! I think this can happen sometimes with first books in a series because so much needs to be set up with the world and the characters; I think the potential for a great series is there though.

I think it's definitely still worth the read, and still held my interest enough to want to finish it and want to continue the series. If you're intrigued by the premise, and keep in mind that there will be more books, I would recommend it. It's got lots of good epic fantasy components and feels like a fresher take on the whole knights/bards/blacksmith type of book and characters. The mythology and lore of the world is really cool, and I liked that aspect a lot. Overall, this book shines the most in world building and premise, and I hope character development and more action take the front seat in book two!

Magical blacksmith, Gods and warring kingdoms, sign me up! And with this cover that’s like a perfect pairing.
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Facing trials and tests along the way, when Ara faces Ofrit her true test begins. Will she be deemed worthy of being the last remaining Loresmith? ⁣⁣⁣
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I cannot wait for the next book so I can see how much more they all grow!⁣⁣⁣

This was not my jam. I tried to keep reading and get invested, but I ended up skimming the rest of the book. I will be interested in how the series turns out but I think I was not in the right head space to enjoy this one.

Ara has always known the legend of the Loresmith: the blacksmith who served alongside the kings and queens of Saetlund, forging legendary weapons to arm warriors and protect the kingdom. She's been told it's her fate to inherit the title and become the next Loresmith. But since the monarchy's downfall in a vicious conquest years before, Ara has never truly believed she would be able to take up her duty.

But when the lost Princess Nimhea and Prince Eamon steal Ara from her quiet life with a mission to retake the throne and return Ara to her place as the Loresmith--Ara's whole world turns upside down.


This book captured my attention by drawing comparisons to Game of thrones. I’m sad to say it didn’t deliver to that extent. I believe it’s definitely a good foundation for a promising series, but with such strong comparisons to other fantasy novels, I had such high expectations that weren’t met. The pacing of the novel was also a little slow for me and we don’t really see much of the magic system.

Besides that, it was a very vivid novel with a cast of characters that you come to root for on their quest. I LOVE the fact that our main character is a FEMALE BLACKSMITH!

Will I continue the series? Yes. I feel like it will develop more in depth in the second novel, with a lot of new information we received towards the end of the novel and we will learn more about the magic system.

I understand why some people don't like this book, to begin with, the plot is slow and doesn't have a good course or development, it gets stuck and doesn't go forward. However, I really liked the atmosphere and the characters since none were frustrating or annoying. In addition, there're mythical beings that intrigued me a lot and I would like to know a little more of them in the next book. I won't do a longer review because I don't have much to say 😅

I was excited to continue this series as I enjoyed the first book but this just did not live up to my expectations.

The first thing that stood out to me was that we were given a new character, Ara, and told she is important. That's fine but we were not given any time to get to know her. How can I care about a character I know nothing about? Show me, don't tell me. She quickly became a character I would consider a 'throw-away" character as she was utterly forgettable simply based on the way she was introduced.

Nothing of note happened in this story. It suffered "second book syndrome" in the worse possible way. The pacing was brutally slow, too much detail was given on people/places/things that had no impact on the overall story. There was just so much potential with this book but it felt wasted. I nearly DNFd the book, and I probably should have. This was a struggle from start to finish.

One of my favorite reads so far this year!

This book is your classic epic YA fantasy! It has cool mythology, great world building, this novel is compared to An Ember in the Ashes, and while I don’t whole heartedly agree with that comparison as a whole, it doesn’t have similar political elements and epic-ness.

The Loresmith is tasked with creating magical weapons and protecting the people but are not allowed to lift a weapon unless defending the people. The Loresmith sacrifices himself to save his secret daughter and heir when an evil empire overruns the kingdom. Years later, fate find Ara and she begins her journey to defeat the evil empire and reclaim her heritage. I definitely think my favorite part of this book was the world building and mythology.

This book read like a classic high fantasy novel, if a little slow paced for YA.

I’ll admit that I was excited about this book. I didn’t care for Robertson's previous series, the Nightshade series to be specific. In fact I rated the book quite low and pushed it out of my mind. But when I saw this book’s cover I was immediately drawn in. And it’s YA fantasy which I love! But did I love this book? No. Do I like it? Eh. All in all I thought it was just...okay.

It was a solid beginning to a new fantasy series. I think it’s a mix of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Game of Thrones (except not as good as those lmao). I thought the premise was quite interesting, the characters I loved, though I’d have loved more background info.

At times I felt like the book played a little too much into the tropes of the genre, especially in regards to character relationships.. I just felt like I've read it before countless times. The writing was fine. Nothing extraordinary, nothing to make me yearn for more. The world building was decent, but sometimes I still felt lost.

Overall, I’m not wholly mad I read this book but if I didn’t have an ARC, I probably would have waited for more reviews to get a better sense of the book and made my decision from there.

DNF at approximately 10% in - I was unfortunately unable to finish this title, and therefore will not be reviewing it.

**Disclaimer: I was given a free e-ARC in exchange for an honest review from NetGalley.**

Title Forged in Fire and Stars

Author Andrea Robertson

Release Date May 5, 2020

Description from Amazon

Ara has always known the legend of the Loresmith: the blacksmith who served alongside the kings and queens of Saetlund, forging legendary weapons to arm warriors and protect the kingdom. She’s been told it’s her fate to inherit the title and become the next Loresmith. But since the monarchy’s downfall in a vicious conquest years before, Ara has never truly believed she would be able to take up her duty.

But when the lost Princess Nimhea and Prince Eamon steal Ara from her quiet life with a mission to retake the throne and return Ara to her place as the Loresmith–Ara’s whole world turns upside down.

Suddenly, Ara must leave her small mountain village and embark on a dangerous adventure where she will uncover new truths about her family’s legacy, and even face the gods themselves. With a mysterious thief as an unexpected companion, and dark forces following their every move, Ara must use all her skills to forge the right path forward–for herself, her kingdom, and her heart.

Initial Thoughts

I was super excited when Penguin Teen offered me the chance to review this book early. It has been on my TBR for a while now and the premise sounded really interesting.

Some Things I Liked

Lore and mythology. This book felt like it was inspired by Norse mythology and I loved the way lore and gods were woven into the history of the world.
Unexpected turns. I’ve read a ton of YA books and I sometimes find that the plots can be a bit formulaic or predictable. I can honestly say this book kept me guessing. Not in a bad way, mind you. I felt like the plot twists were well executed and there were subtle hints to them earlier on.
That ending. Wow. That’s all I’ll say on the matter.

One Thing I Wasn’t Crazy About

The age of the main character was my one issue with this book. Ara was 15 which just felt a little young for the responsibility and expectations the adult characters had for her. I know this is YA but typically YA is characterized with adults who are not present or totally evil. Ara had her grandmother and I found it odd that she was so quick to let her leave for her quest with basically some random kids she met. It’s a small critique, but I’d have preferred if Ara was a smidge older. It would have made the story feel more realistic.
Series Value

I would definitely keep reading this series. I have many unanswered questions and I’m eager to know more about these characters.

Furthermore, I think that this series has high re-read value. There are so many details in this book and I’d definitely want them fresh in my mind as I read the next installment.

Final Thoughts

I enjoyed this book. It has really good bones for the start of a series and I’d gladly keep reading.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Recommendations for Further Reading

Shadow of the Fox by Julie Kagawa – if you liked the concept of “found family” in Forged in Fire and Stars, check out this finished series by Julie Kagawa.
Seven Deadly Shadows by Courtney Alameda and Valynn E. Maetani – again, if you liked the idea of a “found family” or where the main character has to gather warriors to fight with her, try this standalone based on Japanese mythology.

As soon as I heard Andrea was writing another series, I couldn’t wait to dive in. I was obsessed with the Nightshade series, so I had really high hopes for the start of a new series from her. Thankfully, this book not disappoint!
From the very beginning, it starts with plenty of action. Lore and myth become reality as Ara, a fifteen year old blacksmith, is set on a quest to fulfill her destiny and prove her worth to the gods. She gains a few companions along the way, and I love how diverse their personalities are. I do wish there had been a bit more character development, but I’m sure that’s something we will see in upcoming books. There is also so much going on throughout the book. You rarely have a slow moment. When one does come along, they can seem to drag a bit, but I can understand it because it is mostly information for world building to help with the flow of the series.
Overall, I enjoyed this book and I’m excited to see where to story goes.

I really loved this story! Ara was such a great character that I just enjoyed reading about. The world building and the story telling was phenomenal! I.also really enjoyed reading about the mythology. Five stars to this book!

This was my first time reading Andrea's work, even under this pen name. Nightshade has been on my physical shelves for years but I've just never taken the plunge yet. I'm very happy that I finally completed and loved my first book by her! This was such a fun book! I truly thought the twins we meet very early on, were a lot younger. Once we really got to know them, I understood that they weren't that much younger than our heroine that is taking them to where they need to be. I REALLY enjoyed this book and cannot wait to see where this goes next!!

I loved this book!! From the prologue, I was so intrigued and wanted to keep learning more. It is such a exciting first book and I can’t wait for the next one. I am such a sucker for these types of fictional stories and this world was laid out so well that I love it already!

An uplifting fantasy adventure about destiny, fate, and the Gods that weave it.

"Ara has always known about the legend of the Loresmith: the blacksmith who served alongside the kings and queens of every generation to protect the kingdom. It was her fate to inherit the title–though she never truly believed it would come to pass since the monarchy’s downfall years before.

But when the lost Princess Nimhea and Prince Eamon steal Ara from her quiet life with a mission to retake the throne–and take her place as the Loresmith–her whole world turns upside down."

This fantasy was a lot of fun! I loved the traveling aspect of the story, and how we got to discover each new part of this magical land with every chapter. The mythology and lore of this world was so enticing, as well. I loved meeting the Gods, and only wanted to know more about them.

I mean...If you know me, you know I'm a sucker for a good first line. That quote gripped me! I loved how we dove right into the action. Oftentimes with other stories, it can be tedious waiting for the inciting incident, but this one starts off with a bang. Also, I really liked Teth. His witty banter was fantastic comic relief, especially in regards to Nimhea, who takes herself entirely too seriously...Lol.

Overall, I enjoyed this. If you're looking for an adventuring YA fantasy with complex mythology, this is the book for you!

A big thank you to Penguin Teen for sending me an advanced copy!

Magical blacksmith, Gods and warring kingdoms. The cover drew me in and while the pacing was a little slow at times, it was world building and I loved it!

Ara is the last Loresmith. A blacksmith who can create magical weapons from the Gods. Her father passed away before he could teach her how, so she must journey to the Bone Forest to speak with a God named Ofrit to see if she is worthy of the title.

Nimhea, the rightful queen to the River throne and her twin brother Eamon make the journey with her. They pick up a thief and a Summoner along the way. This merry band of misfits make their way across the lands in search of their Gods.

They face trials and tests along the way, but the true test comes when Ara faces Ofrit. Will she be deemed worthy of being the last remaining Loresmith?

I cannot wait to see how much they all grow in the next book!

What instantly drew me into this book was the idea of the Loresmith: a blacksmith blessed by the gods who defends kings and queens through the ages. The story starts out with high stakes: the kingdom's Loresmith killed during a battle to overthrow the regency, and everyone thinks that the Loresmith becomes extinct. But the Loresmith had a daughter no one knew about. In short, the story follows Ara as she becomes involved with the lost prince and princess to restore their kingdom.

The most unique thing about this book is the writing. It feels similar to J. R. R. Tolkien's writing; it has that similar fanciful feel like some old bard is telling the story over a campfire. Because of this, I struggled to see into the characters' hearts and minds and connect to them. I was constantly reminded that this is simply a story being told. I couldn't escape into the world like I normally do when I read fantasy.

Andrea Robertson sets up a nice series with this one, so a lot of the book is spent on world-building while the characters continually travel. The plot meanders a lot, and some things just don't make sense at first. But I still felt mildly interested in the plot and characters, so it wasn't hard to finish. In sum, this book simply wasn't remarkable enough for me to fully engage with it. But I may pick up the sequel.

Writing Aesthetic/Style: 3
Plot/Movement: 3
Character Development: 3
Overall: 3

Thank you Philomel Books and NetGalley for the review copy!