This was a decent YA fantasy. I was all in and then I got to the ending and it gave me the same feeling of the finale of Game of Thrones...I was left asking 'Is that it?"

A decent YA fantasy that has some things going for it and is a quick, fairly fun read, but isn't a standout.

YA loving me requested this thinking I'd get to it right away and since then, I rarely ever read YA. If I ever do pick this up in the future, I'll make sure to come back and edit my review.

I loved this book. From the very beginning I was drawn to the characters and couldn't wait to see the story play out. I can't wait for the next in the series!

I have been a huge fan of Morgan Rhodes since I came upon her Falling Kingdoms series. I find that she is excellent at setting the scene of a story. She doesn’t disappoint with this new book (series?) the story is excellent and keeps the reader interested. I like the change that the characters undergo from the beginning to the end so that you’re not really sure who the the enemy really is. It keeps the reader on their toes. It’s refreshing that the chemistry between the two lead characters is not the main focus of the book. This has been central to most of Rhodes’ books in the past and is appreciated. I will definitely recommend!

I tried, and failed, to get into this book. Maybe Rhodes books just aren't for me as I was stumbling over the writing and getting lost in the description of everything. I was not able to connect to anything within this story. That made it very difficult for me to get into this book or care what was going on.

I really enjoyed this urban fantasy story with magic and warlocks. At the very beginning, I found the snarky 17-year-old Josslyn to be very unlikable. However, I believe that is the authors intention. As the story went on, Josslyn grew on me and made her character development that much more interesting.

The thief Jericho and the interactions he has with Josslyn were my favourite and really carried the story. The banter, the argument, disagreements, and the slow burn romance kept me hooked and wanting to know more. I read the first half of this book in just a few hours, and I rarely do that.

Although there’s not a lot of answers and understanding of the world, and how magic works here, which I would’ve like to see more of, I was never left confused.

The ending I found was extremely predictable, which definitely tainted my enjoyment of the book at the end. It made the end, feel like a drag down a little too much, and I was ready for the book to be over. Although, I did thoroughly enjoy it and cannot wait to read the next one!

Thank you to Penguin Teen Canada for providing me an eARC in exchange, for an honest review.

I loved the story, the world building and meeting the different characters. I felt completely immersed in the story and couldn't stop reading it.

Thank you to Penguin Teen and Netgalley for sending me a copy of this book! All opinions are my own!

I love the way this book was so unique because it felt like high fantasy but it also had modern technology. That made it unlike anything I've read before, and I loved learning more about the world because of it! I really enjoyed the way that magic plays into this story and I can't wait to see how much more of it the second book gives.

I really loved the relationship between Joss and Jericho. With enemies to lovers it can often feel forced, but they really got to know each other and ended up actually coming together naturally. I loved the way that Joss has some really good character growth, and I can't wait to see how much more she grows. The way that they are on such opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to self-image at first was really intriguing and made it all the more enjoyable to watch both of them learn and grow into themselves. Joss definitely starts out as extremely annoying, but she really ended up growing on me!

I am excited to see where this story goes, and I would definitely recommend it to all my fantasy friends!

Actual Rating: 3.5

It got very interesting at the end which is what bumped the rating up but for the most part it was okay, the writing isn’t what I expected from my previous experience with this author’s books. I have an ARC second book so I’m curious to see how that one is.

This one was a lot of fun and I enjoyed the world. Characters were okay too but didn’t really stick out to me.

Overall it was okay.

I recommend it to fans of YA fantasy.

I feel so honored to have been gifted an ARC of this amazing book. I'm the BIGGEST fan of Falling Kingdoms and nearly died of happiness when I saw Morgan Rhodes was back at it again.

Echoes and Empires is book one in an upcoming duology. Told in first person POV, readers are immersed in the life and mind of Josslyn Drake, a snarky and privileged 17 year old girl. Josslyn was the daughter of the former queen's advisor, but unfortunately her father was shot and killed a year prior. Still trying to remain relevant, Joss attends the Queen's Gala where art pieces stolen by an infamous magical criminal have been recovered. In this empire, magic and people who preform magic, are viewed as evil and corrupt. The use of magic is forbidden and will lead to imprisonment or death.

However, things go drastically wrong when a thief attempts to steal a magical artifact, only for it to fall and open, releasing the golden magic straight into Josslyn. Knowing that she is now a target, Joss has to team up with the thief, the Blackheart, also known as Jericho, as they attempt to find someone to extract the magic from her so Jericho can continue on with his mission.

Unfortunately, nothing is as easy as it seems. The duo gets stopped and thrown into a Queen's prison, which is essentially land locked in time. There they have to work for the keep and figure out how to escape this unescapable prison. Not only that, they need to find out answers about the magic still in Josslyn. Time is running out and secrets are being uncovered. Josslyn's once posh life is turned upside down as she figures out that the life she once knew may all be a lie.

This book is intoxicating. Starting off with characters, Rhodes knows how to write a strong female lead who is slightly naive to the world around her, but quickly adapts to her new reality. As for her males, Jericho is probably the love of my life. A mysterious bad boy who is witty and slightly a jerk at times? Uhm sign me up!

Finished this one, took a little bit as a just had a hard time growing attached to the plot of the characters. But overall I'm glad I finished it.

Echoes and Empires is a teen fantasy book focused on a character, Jossilyn Drake, who is accidentally infected with illegal magic. The only help she can get is through a thief, Jericho, who covets the forbidden magic. The usual tropes are here; enemies to lovers and a privileged character who is enlightened on their governments oppressive nature. My biggest hurdle with this book was my strong dislike for the spoiled main character Jossilyn. I understand that her personal growth is an essential part of the plot but I just couldn't get invested in her character. I do think the book will spark interest in teens who are interested in dystopian environments, magic, rogues, and even social media culture. This book calls out for a reader who is more patient than I with self-involved teenagers.

My thanks to Netgalley and Razorbill Publishing for providing me with a review copy.

Echoes And Empires by Morgan Rhodes is the first in a new duology. I had found myself looking forward to this book despite not loving Falling Kingdoms because it looked like it would have a tighter focus. Also, I just LOVE the cover. When the audiobook came up in Volumes, narrated by Cassandra Campbell,I knew I had to give it a listen. Echoes And Empires is about a girl named Josslyn Drake who leads a privileged life as daughter of the prime minister.

All that changes when her father is murdered and while she is out shopping she happens to get struck by some illegal magic. Now she has magic herself and is reliving the memories of an evil warlock. She has to keep the magic a secret and she turns reluctantly to criminal Jericho Nox for help. Along the way Josslyn uncovers many secrets about the kingdom she lives in and experiences quite the perspective shift.

I enjoyed Echoes And Empires by Morgan Rhodes. The audiobook narrated by Cassandra Campbell is especially good. I listened to it at 2x speed because you know the pressure is on -- but it was still understandable and I could process the plot easily enough. If I pick up the second book in the duology it will certainly be via audio. Which is good -- I like having new fantasy authors that I like to read.

This YA modern fantasy is fantastic! I went into this book with no expectations, and now it’s one of my favorite books of the year. The world building and story pacing are phenomenal. I love the characters and seeing their growth throughout the book. This also has a great enemies to lovers trope.

Echoes and Empires follows Josslyn Drake after she accidentally gets infected with memory magic. However, not just any memory magic, but that of the most dangerous and wanted warlock in the kingdom. Possessing magic of any kind is punishable by death. Now Josslyn has to team up with the boy that caused this mess in the first place to get this magic out of her. As the story progresses, Joss learns that not everything is right in the kingdom. Magic may not be as evil as she’s been lead to believe.

If you are a fan of modern or urban fantasy then you will love this book. It’s a fast read that will leave you wanting more.

2.5 Stars

Echoes and Empires is set in a world where magic is forbidden and dubbed evil. It is a fantasy book that takes place in the modern world– it’s an eclectic mix of castles, paparazzi, queens, propaganda, guns, and also royal guards. Josslyn Drake is a seventeen-year-old privileged girl who is lonely and misunderstood. She attends a large event to support her best friend, Celina, who has a hard time being in the spotlight. At this event, she learns that the guy she’s been crushing on has been dating her best friend and is now her fiancé. Upset about this revelation, she gets drunk and roams the halls of the castle where she accidentally runs into a “mysterious” guy – Jericho. Jericho turns out to be a criminal thief who was attempting to steal a magic memory box that was accidentally opened and transferred into Josslyn. Josslyn and Jericho embark on a mission to get the magic back into the box and out of Josslyn. She is now running from her own people who would kill her because she is “tainted” with magic.

This book was really disappointing to me. The dialogue was bad, the world-building was choppy, it was very predictable, and the writing was cringy at times. Everything just felt so obvious and overly spelled out: it’s clear the author wants us to see Josslyn as a misunderstood sorority girl. She’s not all bad! She goes to an event that is emotionally hard to support her best friend but also she went to try to get laid by her crush – Viktor. She has to handle unfortunate events like learning Viktor will be marrying her best friend. Even though she has spoken to him a total of three times and uses cheesy pick-up lines like– wanna go back to my place; she is sad and besotted by this engagement. It’s too shallow for the reader to feel empathy for Josslyn and I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to try and feel empathy or if the author wanted the reader to see her as spoiled.

Josslyn and Jericho had very little chemistry and instead of sexy banter, it felt like annoyed sarcasm. Josslyn, in my head, is Schitt’s Creek Season 1 Alexis Rose. She stays that way until the end but her growth is abrupt instead of a natural progression of understanding and maturing.

It honestly read younger than YA. I will say it does have some redeeming qualities. The premise is really interesting and I think it could’ve leaned more into its urban fantasy vibe. The characters all had a lot of potential and I could see them developing into characters that are well-loved. I would say skip this duology but would be interested in giving future Morgan Rhodes books a shot.

After trying to read this one a few times will mark as DNF for now and I might try again in the future.

Echoes and Empires is book one in Morgan Rhodes' newest fantasy duology series. The story is told from 17-year-old snarky Josslyn Drake's POV. Joss is the daughter of the former queen's advisor and is trying to stay relevant by attending the Queen's Gala. In a heist-gone-wrong, Joss is stuck working with a thief as she is full of magic in a world where magic is forbidden. Joss is a strong female lead and ofc we all love a bad boy pair up. This was a fast-paced exciting adventure. Cannot wait to read the conclusion to this series!

It's my first time reading anything by Morgan Rhodes. I've always heard so many good things about the Fallen Kingdom series. This one didnt disappoint. I was completely immersed in this world and the captivating plot. The characters were awesome along with their development.