First I would like to thank Delacorte Press at Random House Children’s for giving me the amazing opportunity to read Shielded by KayLynn Flanders in advance of its release. Honestly, all I can say is wow! Shielded follows Princess Jennesara on a daring quest to save her kingdom from ancient, evil magic. Along the way, she faces unimaginable hardships, discovers things about herself she didn’t know were possible, and maybe even finds love?
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This book knocked my socks off! I stayed up until the wee hours of the morning just to finish it, with its fast-moving plot, rich magic system, and well-rounded characters it’s hard to believe that it’s KayLynn Flanders debut novel. It’s only a matter of time before she becomes a household name in the realm of fantasy book lovers!

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A delightful and simple read about a princess, Jennesara, who is off to marry her betrothed in order to gain soldiers for her kingdom. But on her journey there, her caravan is ambushed and Jenna discovers that things are not what they seem. It is up to her to uncover these secret plots—before it’s too late.

Overall, it was enjoyable. The beginning for me was a bit slow and I had trouble reading it for more than a few minutes at a time. About 45% of the way in is when things finally start picking up when she finally meets her betrothed, Enzo.

The magic system was fun to read about and while the world building was simplistic I enjoyed the little bit we got to learn on the history of magic and mages. The plot was slightly predictable and a bit like speeding your way down the road between speed bumps. It would pick up, be quite exciting and heavy in action, then have a heavy lag afterwards and have scenes I felt could have been omitted that didn't contribute to the story, this would of helped the pacing for me. With that said, I very much enjoyed how the author wrote her fight scenes, they seemed very will thought out.

I enjoyed Enzo/Jenna’s tension in their developing relationship. Chiara, Mari, and Jenna’s friendship was also very sweet.

A fun easy read that earned 3/5 stars from me.

I fell hard for this cover so I definitely had a nice little sigh of relief that I really enjoyed this book. It was a great escape from everything going on. The writing was good and I enjoyed the characters. It's very fast paced so if you're looking for a quick, exciting escape, pick this one up. It stood out from some other YA fantasy that I've read lately so I would recommend it.

Firstly the cover is positively wonderful. It has just the right hint of intrigue and shyness that draws you in and captures your attention. And like a moth to a flame I was pulled in.

The world building was nice and it had a few flares of uniqueness that I appreciated because its getting awfully tiring reading about European inspired fantasy, as if that is the sole source of available mythos that we can draw from.

I wanted to fall in love with this book I truly did, but it was just the same thing I've read time and time again. A kick ass powerful young woman submits to the whims of men, gets pushed around and shoved into things she doesn't want to do, and then falls in love with the brute she's supposed to marry.

For once I want to read one of this YA heroine novels where the girl doesn't fall in love with her male counterpart. I want a novel where she doesn't even want to be his friend. Yes this is fantasy and its not supposed to mirror real life but geez there are those of us of the female persuasion who had no interest in love or finding our soulmates in our teen years. Its possible to have the female main character have no interest whatsoever in love or a relationship and it still be a great story.

The pacing of this story was off. The first couple of chapters are just a massive info dump without any real action or honestly anything to pull you in other than Jenn fiddling with her hair over and over again, we get a brief explanation of why that is, but not nearly enough info on that fact as we do the inside of a broom closet. Incidents that should only take one or two paragraphs is given page after page of fluff that could have been used to move the story forward with action and not exposition.

I think the quote that good readers make good writers might be biting us in the butt. We are starting to get the very same story with the same characters in the same worlds over and over again, and unfortunately the gatekeepers to publishing keep the funnel of 'sameness' flowing.

The kingdom of Hálendi is loosing the war at its borders. There are rumors that magic is being used in the fight. To bring more troops into the fray, the King plans to marry Princess Jennesara to another ruler. On Jenna’s journey to her new kingdom, the caravan is attacked and only she escapes. Now what can Jenna do to save the kingdom and people she loves?

This was a light read that transported me to a new world. It was very fast paced and well written. I found the plot interesting and I couldn’t put it down. The first half of this book was a bit of a struggle for me though. Some aspects felt very repetitive. The second half moved at a blistering pace that I really enjoyed. I also found the magic system interesting.

I felt the romance in the book happened too fast. Everyone was much to trusting with two kingdoms at war. I would have liked to see more relationship development. While I enjoyed the fast paced nature of this book, some characters and relationships could have been more developed.

Overall, this is an enjoyable book that I breezed through. Fans of Sorcery of Thorns will definitely enjoy this one.

In the beginning, I was a little skeptical due to the description having this work be compared to the likeness of other works like Furyborn and books by Sarah J. Maas. It can be daunting to compare to such great works, but this book is well thrown with those works. This book kind of surprised me in the way the plot unfolded.. The first half is all about Jenna, and it took half of the book to really establish the entire setting, premise and story line. That felt a little off fore me because I was just waiting for it to really pick up. I feel some parts of that first half weren't that necessary. When things really did pick up, it was fun reading and following Jenna's story. There were the chapters that would face the subplot/ or villainous plans of the antagonists and that at times were less useful for the plot and more of a throw off. The book had a lot of plots twists, some which were predictable, but it was a fun and easy read from beginning to end. As a book one, it was an interesting beginning to s a new story and it is something that I am excited to return to when book 2 is revealed and published.

I received this book as an ARC and I'm voluntarily leaving a review. Three words: short and sweet! I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book which somewhat caught me off guard. I had seen reviews of people saying that the pacing was too fast, but I would actually disagree. I think the pacing was just right for the book, even if we're thrown into some chaotic stuff at the beginning of the book. Jenna goes through a lot and we experience it all at the same time as her. Also, the cover of the book is beautiful! Jenna is such a lovable character; she's fiery, determined, and is actually super sweet. I often found myself going "Awww!!!" but I just as often was like "what? No!" The author caught me off guard so many times. Some parts were predictable, but other times I was surprised by a sudden change. The other characters were also lovable; I love the family dynamics in this book. By the end of this book, I found myself incredibly invested in making sure Jenna would survive. I was really satisfied with the ending of this book; it was sweet and I almost thought it was a stand alone novel. However, there are still some things that need to be taken care of so I'm happily going to get a copy of the sequel when it comes out. This book is clean and wholesome, great for YA readers but it also would be a good book for middle grade readers. This sweet, precious novel got me very attached to the characters and I can't wait for another book.

So it was a good book but had an extremely slow start for me. Im not sure if it was just my reading mood or what but thankfully after it finally caught my attention it was a rather fun read with a great cover.

I liked, but didn't love Shielded.

Jenna is a princess with power she shouldn't have, but it's also a power she didn't want. To save her family from impending war, her power must be set aside to go marry a neighboring prince in exchange for military support- something she grieves but ultimately accepts. This is half a story about her journey there, and half a story about who she becomes while she's there.

So heres my issue with this one. It took until about 45% of the book for anything to happen. I mean it. I kept expecting to see plot movement of any kind, but theres more walking in this book than a Lord of the Rings Joke. Over half of this book is the main character moving forwards her destination, talking out her anxieties- and just when you think the story is about to begin...wait...it doesn't. Our Heroine finally makes her way to her destination (the plot) , where readers can be treated to her standing around, making friends. talking about her anxieties, sort of finding her betrothed to be kind of cute. Standing around...

I struggled a lot with the characters as well, finding that they didn't stand out to my liking, but Jenna Is a genuine person and maybe a little more mature than other princess characters in YA series. Likewise, her love interest and friend characters are all equally good natured, and the system of which Hálendi is run is intriguing. I found myself wanting to learn more and more about the world, especially where conflict unfolds and what makes Jenna so dangerous.

I also found it interesting to see Jenna take to a duty she once rejected while still finding her own power in a way that makes sense for her.

Id be curious about the second installment in this series to see how the future unfolds.

📚Book Review📚
Shielded by KayLynn Flanders
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First thank you @netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read this jewel.
I would like to start by saying I had not heard anything about this book in most anticipated releases but I do not know how. I might be living under a rock to not have heard about it but this book was immaculate and astounding. The story line was amazing and I loved how the love did not by any means take over the story, that being said I did love Jennesaras and Enzos love. Another thing among many that I love is that Jennesara is a princess but she is a princess of warriors. She trains and discovers new depths of herself and her magic. Her country is at war and her father agrees to a betrothal to dig their country out of a hole. Along the way things go wrong and she must disguise herself as many try to kill her and few try to save her. I will say I wish this book would have been longer just so some of the parts could have had more to them but I feel like I’m bias. Over all I think the writing was well done. This book is definitely for fans of Sorcery of Thorns and I would even say An Ember in the Ashes. I say this because people in these books are either fighting for there country or somehow hiding parts of there selves. I just can not express how much I fell in love with this book and I’m saddened it’s not released yet because I was ready to hope on Pinterest and see some fan art.

Strong female MC, amazing places, and an interesting plot....yes!!! I couldn’t put the book down. I enjoyed the writing style. Great twists. Interesting inciting incident.

I liked this book, but not as much as I wish I had. The plot wasn’t entirely uniqie to me, though it had its moments. The characters weren’t that memorable, and I found I didn’t really care about their story much. The writing was alright, nothing special or memorable. So sadly I wanted more from this book.

An enjoyable fantasy read? Yes.

Great for both YA and Middle-Grade readers!

Main character-wise, I liked Jenna and found her pretty interesting. I wished there was a bit more in-depth with her though and more we could've seen to her.
The characters were fun and engaging, though I noticed that it was more the side characters in the last half of the novel that were the ones I liked a lot.

  It was an enjoyable read that had even more backstory and plot hinted at in the end, so I feel like it was just setting up for the next book in the series. Which also means there's more to discover which makes me pretty happy as I want to see more of some side characters and hopefully some depth to Jenna that I can love as well.

 The world-building and satisfying ending were probably my favorite parts of the book! Despite not loving somethings as much as I would've liked, there were parts that made up for it.

I received a free copy of this book from netgalley, all opinions are my own.

Actual rating 3.5

I'm gonna be honest, I really struggled to get into the story, I tried reading it several times and just couldn't connect, so I let it sit for a while and then gave it another go.
The first half of this book was kind of boring for me and I really didn't like the main character, I think she was annoying and too naive. But I pushed through and I'm glad I did, because the second half was great!
Main female character goes through so much and she evolves into an amazing heroine! I loved her character arc. Such a drastic change.
We also get a lot more world building in the second half and it was interesting and detailed and I liked it.
I LOVED the romance part which is rare for me, since I'm not a fan of romance in ya books (unless i specifically read for romance). But gosh, it was so good, i seriously got butterflies in my belly.
There were a lot of plot twists I didn't see coming which was nice. And overall I think it was a solid story with great character development. It dragged a bit in the beginning but I feel like the sequel will be better.

I love me a good fantasy read and this one exceeded my expectations! I would love to read more if this amazing author!

You know what, I didn’t know I needed this book until I read it. It was advertised as similar to a Sorcery of Thorns, but it isn’t really. This book is unique in and of itself. I think it does follow the mold of a fantasy book, and it does deal with libraries, but it isn’t the same, and you should not be thinking this is going to be another Sorcery of Thorns. It isn’t. However, I liked it just as much. (And I will admit, one part tore my heart out, and I’m not sure I can still believe it if its true…)

The Writing
The writing was lovely. I have no complaints in regards to the writing. I think there is something to be said for prose that flows well and isn’t inundated with description for a book like this. This book is very much action focused and it is go-go-go all the time. And yet it worked really well with Flanders writing style. I was impressed by it all. I couldn’t put the book down…I got obsessed and read it in one night. When I’m sleep deprived at work, I’m going to blame this addicting book.



The Pacing
Again, I loved the pacing of this book. I am sometimes in the mood for fast paced books, and sometimes in the mood for slow paced books. This one is a fast paced one. Something is always happening. Action everywhere! Do not expect there to be too many boring tea parties and balls in this book my good friends, but do expect lots of heroics, awesome sword waving girls and magic. In other words, yes, I liked the pacing.

The Plot
Now, I love this magic plot. And the library portions. All of it really. And I LOVED the take on the princess and the betrothal and everything else. It just all seemed to work together. I never felt that any of it was coming out awkwardly, and I wasn’t cringing every ten minutes. Were there certain parts I was screaming “NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!” at as loud as I could yet.

Also, P.S. I got partway through the book and said “HAH I’M RIGHT” and then went “Uh-OH” and anyways, suffice to say I was pleasantly surprised all the way through with the plot. Yay good plots!



The Characters
JENNA. Let me tell you, she reminds me very much of Tamora Pierce’s heroines in some ways. She has the strength and likeability of them. She is flawed, but also good. I really loved her, and I think her journey in this story is great.

Enzo is as well. Ren too. Honestly, I only hate the villains as I was rightfully supposed to. But I like the characters. I feel for them. I wept tears and I rejoiced. I lived vicariously through Jenna and her amazing-ness. Yes, I liked the characters.

Let me just say, I think this book is great because the story doesn’t just revolve around romance.


The World building
One word: fabulous. I am really intrigued by this world. I do believe that what we’re give in terms of knowledge is more than enough to satisfy me. I never felt it was too much or too little. The lands are a part of the story yes, but so is the magic. And they’re woven together beautifully. I love it.


Overall
If you can’t tell, I loved this book. LOVED IT. I cannot wait to purchase it so I can get that gorgeous cover on my shelf…and now I’m thinking of the horrific wait for the next book because I WANT TO KNOW WHAT HAPPENS NEXT.

"His hope, his excitement, his worry, and, most of all, his love for me flowed in like warmth and pure light—a farewell stronger than any words would have been."⁣
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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5 I'm calling it right now. This series is going to catch like fire! You're all going to be talking about it.⁣
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I devoured Shielded (especially after the halfway mark) and the whole time I was thinking, "I don't want this to end." But end it did and quite to my liking. I wasn't left hanging but also had plenty to anticipate.⁣
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If you've got a soft spot for ya fantasy adventure, including but not limited to - a magic-wielding warrior princess, dark mages, a hidden library and living forest, intense battle scenes, and a love story you'll want to claim as your own, this is the book for you!⁣

This book was sooo good! The characters were amazing, the story awesome, and the overall plot was different. A cool twist on a ‘chosen one’ story!

What a truly unexpectedly wonderful book!

Okay, so I did not think I would like this book as much as I did! It is a great story.
The MC is a relatable female. She does not have this overly dramatic background nor is she skilled at anything in an unexplainable way. Jenn is what I think a princess would be like. She loves her country, but also has a mind of her own. Her fighting skills actually make sense, unlike other books in which a princess is apparently like a ninja for no reason. Jenn has logical emotional battles raging in her mind. Her development throughout the story is very interesting to watch.

The romance is not a slow burn, but it does have an interesting twist. If you have read any of my reviews then you know how much I love plot twists. Normally, I do not absolutely adore quick romances, but this one actually made sense. Readers were able to see moments of how the romance came to be.

As for the story line, it flowed wonderfully. There was never a time where I felt like something was missing or I did not understand what was happening. Things were well explained and well written. Family, lies, romance, magic, mystery and flat out betrayal is webbed throughout the plot. This book is a YA dream!!

The only reason why I did not give 5 full stars was because I felt like it was not long enough. Weird right?? A lot happens very “fast” and you don’t get a lot of time to wrap your mind around it before another event happens. I just wanted more!!
Also...can we just talk about how FREAKING BEAUTIFUL this cover it?!?! It is so different compared to all the books we are seeing come out and I just loved it.

Overall I would HIGHLY recommend this book to other readers.

Thank you Netgalley and KayLynn Flanders for an ARC of the story and I hope to read more!

-Stone

All I can say is WOW.
Loved the writing, the world building was amazing and the magic system so unique.
What more can I say? Highly recommend this book if you're a fantasy lover.