This book was great! I loved the three different perspectives, i loved that they were all different with all different challenges. I have read books like this in the past where basically each of the three POVs go through basically the same thing, but this one has plenty of variety.

I love the world and things in it. I like the politicking of everything, it's v interesting. We basically get dropped in the middle of this elaborate plan and it's pretty awesome.

Anyway, I MUST HAVE THE NEXT ONE

This is a story about starlight.

I enjoyed this! It wasn’t as fast paced as I like my YA fantasy to be, but it was a lovely story and I enjoyed the varied kingdoms/world building a lot. I’m looking forward to book 2, because some of the characters were left in fairly precarious positions!

Thank you so much @netgalley & @delacortepress for the eArc & thank you @prhaudio for the audio- the narration was top notch!

I was given this book by the publisher in return for honest review.

Not going to lie this is one of my favorite reads this year. Triplets are used as weapons to destroy other countries and put them under their mother's regime. How can you go wrong?

The writer pulls you in right away, has you hooked and falling in love with our sisters. Only to leave you feeling heartbroken and starving for more. I'm devastated the next book doesn't come out until February. The triplets develop and become their own person away from each other and their mother. You route for them and are entertained by each story.

Apparently though in this story a mother's love has bounds. She is willing to stop at nothing to become Empress no matter the cost but will she succeed and will the triplets make it!

I loved this story, I highly recommend you read it!

Thank you NetGally and the publisher for allowing me to read this ARC in return for my honest review.

I do not usually read Political Fantasy books, but there was something about the summary and the title that pulled me in. I am surprised to say that I enjoyed it. The story follows a set of triplets who were raised to be betrothed to the surrounding countries princes, with the end goal of infiltrating the court and taking over. Each sister has their own hurdles to overcome.

I like that each sister had their own very different personality. That led me to feel more connected to one than another, but I feel like anyone who reads it will see themselves represented. Even though I enjoyed the story, I thought that the plot was a little slow, and kind of drawn out. It almost lost my attention at times.

All in all, I enjoyed the story and the characters, and I am looking forward to seeing how it plays out in the next one.

Laura has written such a beautiful book! The world that she created is amazing, I loved the character arcs, beautiful writing and the world that Laura was able to transport the readers into

Alright! This one almost got me.

I was concerned by the uncanny valley, doll-like cover art and the fact that the synopsis reminded me of "Three Dark Crowns". However, a while back I read "Ash Princess" by Laura Sebastian and though it was worthwhile, so I took a risk on this.

At the beginning, it was merely okay.

Our MCs are three triplet sisters, raised from birth to marry princes of neighboring countries so that their (conniving, power-hungry, sociopathic) queen mother can destroy and conquer those countries. There is a bit of a tell/show gap at the beginning. The narrative insists about all the sisters that "she's fluent in [x] languages, an expert seductress, experienced in all manner of lies and political intrigue, etc." when the sisters insist on acting just like every teenager.

This is always a little annoying, but as the sisters split up into their various roles and start taking action, the gap narrows and we get to see them as the prose intends us to.

Each sister has a love interest, and encounters challenges in her respective country. There are politics and betrayal, but the twists are pretty pedestrian and expected, right up until about the 80% mark. Then I started going... wait... oh shoot.

And then at the 95% mark... wait. Oh SHOOT.

Like I said, it almost got me. I was truly hooked at 80%, which is nice but is way too long to wait for the investment to really hit. I'm very interested in the ending and where everything is going from here, but I'm not sure I trust the next book to keep the momentum going.

God, this was a 400 page book where almost nothing happened until the very end. The characters were all selfish but somehow just questioned their decisions so much that it was annoying.

I adore Laura Sebastian and started with her Ash Princess series. This book is a beautiful new fantasy that I loved!

Babies born beneath the Thorned Rose are known to be beautiful.
Those born beneath the Hungry Hawk are ambitious.
Lonely Heart children are known to sacrifice more than others.
The Crown of Flames offers its offspring power.
And the Sisters Three bestow balance and harmony.

Laura weaves an excellent fantasy tale, a great first book in a new series that you shouldn't miss! I can't wait to see Laure at YALC this summer!!

I'd like to thank the publisher Random House Children's, Delacorte Press and Netgalley for providing me with a review copy in exchange for an honest review.

I had to DNR this at about 20%. It did not feel like it was delivering on the book blurb, and felt younger than I had anticipated. Just couldn’t get hooked.

I received a copy of this book for a fair and honest review. I have to say that I enjoyed the triples in this book and the way they grew from what they begin as. Each of them was very different from the others and that made them special. The description of the world was good. I did not like that their mother was said to be the driving force behind them but is really only appears at the beginning of the book and as well as in their heads as a voice. I am curious to see how the rest of the series plays out.

I enjoyed this book at first. It was cool to follow the three girls as they went off to be married or engaged and then work to undermine the neighboring kingdoms for their mother. The girls were tough and smart and well trained for the job. Then they learned all was not as it seemed and I liked how Sophronia and Daphne started thinking for themselves. It got really dark at the end though, which I was not expecting and I was left with quite the cliffhanger.

I will say only two things more. I do not like the triplet's mother and I though the whole wishing on a star, quite literally was cool. I am kinda afraid to finish the series though I am hooked to see what else might happen or go wrong.

As a mother, going to any lengths for your child seems a no brainer, we would do anything for them. However, training them to be assasins? I am not sure even I would go that far. Castle in their Bones is a phenomenal book filled with strong leads, female determination, family bonds, and the one thing we all strive for, power...er I mean, love. The writing was great, if a little clunky in parts. I came for the concept, but stayed for Daphne, Bea, and Soph.

**4.5-stars**

Castles in their Bones is the start of a YA Fantasy trilogy from beloved author Laura Sebastian. This story follows three princesses, Sophronia, Daphne, and Beatriz, who have been raised by their mother, the Empress Margaraux, with one goal in mind: to one day reign over the entire continent of Vesteria.

The triplets are now 16-years old and ready to marry. They've had husbands selected for them pretty much since birth, whoever would be most advantageous as far as alliances go. You know how it is to be royalty. What's love got to do with it?

Margaraux has trained her girls in the arts of deception, seduction and violence. For their part, the girls have soaked it in. They know what they are supposed to do. In spite of this, it's going to be difficult. They've never been away from one another. Surviving on their own is something completely foreign to them.

As their adult lives begin, the girls face new challenges and new tests on their loyalties. They discover things as well, about the greater world around them, things they've maybe never taken into consideration before. As you follow the ladies into these positions, you can actually feel their mother's chess pieces moving on the board. The tension builds until you're aren't sure who you can trust. It was cleverly plotted. Well done by Sebastian!

I was really impressed with this. I went in expecting a fairly standard YA Fantasy, but this was anything but. I loved how intricate the scheming and plotting was. Absolutely diabolical!

I really enjoyed all three of the girls. I loved getting to know them and watching each of their journeys as they moved to their future husband's courts. They ended up in vastly different circumstances and watching them navigate through the challenges they faced was so interesting. You could really see how the core of their personalities shaped the decisions they were making.

I found Daphne to be the character I personally connected with the most. I appreciated how she was able to keep her emotions at arms length from her tasks. She knew what she was there to do and she was really quite cunning about her interactions.

While this one started a little slowly, it definitely went out with a bang. I cannot believe how long I am going to have to wait for the continuation of this story. How you play me like that, Laura Sebastian!? The very final portion of this left me absolutely shook. It explained a lot and I am seriously at the edge of my seat with anticipation to get my hands on the next installment.

Thank you to the publisher, Delacorte Press, for providing me with a copy to read and review. Bring on the sequel!

Thank you NetGalley, Delacorte Press, and Laura Sebastian for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! I LOVED this book and it’s one of my favorite YA fantasy novels that I’ve read. It follows three sisters - Beatriz, Daphne, and Sophronia - as they’re married off to different kingdoms that they’re meant to destroy from the inside.

I really loved the world-building in this novel and it gave just enough that I was never confused. The three different kingdoms really fascinated me and I honestly liked all three POV’s the same, which is rare for me. My favorite sister was definitely Sophronia though and that ending was so shocking!

This book reminded me a bit of the TV show Reign, with the political intrigue and costumes and such, and I really liked that. I also enjoyed the magic that was involved the the different romances and friendships throughout. Overall, this is a really strong start to a new series with a fantastic ending. I can’t wait to read the next book!

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this book.

This was a good read, not too long and keeps you interested. It could have a little more depth to it, but overall the worldbuilding was pretty good and I enjoyed the main characters. I will definitely be waiting to see what comes next!

What I imagined from the description was a bit dark, sexy and clever. It is those, but more geared towards younger YA than I expected. It was still an entertaining read, but I think this will be the end of the trilogy for me.

I am on the fence about this one. It was fun and different but also the same in many ways and a bit recycled. I wouldn't suggest libraries purchase it unless requested as the author isn't very well known and the story isn't vry stand outish.

I wanted more from this book than it gave me. I was expecting it to skew older YA, but instead it seems to hover more on the Middle Grade/YA end of the spectrum. I was hoping for some Goblin Emperor level of political intrigue but instead I got... not that. I think I'd have liked it more if I'd gone into it expecting more The Two Princesses of Bamarre and less Game of Thrones.

A huge thank you to NetGalley, Random House Children's, and Laura Sebastian for providing me with an ARC of this book. I am voluntarily leaving a review, all opinions are my own.

I absolutely adore Laura Sebastian, so I knew as soon as I saw this book pop up, I knew I had to read it. It definitely didn't quite live up to my expectations, but that's okay- I think it was just meant for a slightly younger audience.

I did enjoy the multiple POV's, but I feel like the storyline wasn't quite there for me. I know this book will be right up a lot of peoples' alley though, so that's good.