Monsters Born & Made is a YA Dystopian Fantasy novel that is reminiscent of all my favorite fantasy novels. I wanted to love this book so much! I read a six chapter excerpt earlier in the year, and I was hooked by the fantastic writing and the dystopian world. The excerpt left me eager to read more!
I read the e-arc and listened to an alc, but unfortunately it got to a point where I was frustrated with the book because story never really took off.

I felt an overwhelming sense of frustration with myself for not getting hooked on this dystopian. The novel contains so many elements that make for exciting fantasy adventures. Perhaps, the utilization of so many elements at once inadvertently overwhelmed my imagination. There’s so much going on in the story that it’s easy to get lost if you aren’t paying attention.

To be fair, I expected to soar through Monsters Born and felt myself tripping over the storyline to keep up with the fast-paced adventure. The book isn’t slow moving. It feels like the first 25 or 30% needs to be condensed a bit more. It’s a a little redundant.

Overall, this is a nice debut. The writing is good in this book. Actually, it’s quite impressive. I can’t wait to see what the author creates next.

Koral hasn’t had the easiest life, and she knows that her failure at this year’s hunt means her family will starve for the next year. The maristags her family hunts and sells only come to shore annually, and the season’s passed. Koral made a split-second decision to save her brother’s life and let the maristag go, and that choice weighs on her. With an injured brother, a younger sister who’s ill, and aging parents, Koral feels responsible to solve their problems. She conspires with her best friend to enter the Glory Race to win the money her family needs to survive, but other forces are rising, and nobody wants a poor Renter in the race, even if they are a Hunter, and are willing to kill to keep Koral from winning.

Title: Monsters Born and Made | Publisher: Sourcebooks | Pub Date: 2022-09-06 | Pages: 352 | ISBN13/ASIN: 978-1728247625 | Genre: Young Adult Fantasy/Monster Fiction| Language: English | Source: NetGalley | Unstarred Review


Monsters Born and Made Review
One thing Monsters Born and Made conveys clearly is a societal hierarchy. It’s apparently modeled on the caste system in Asia, but anyone who isn’t part of the rich elite will recognize the split in this world. The poor are exposed, vulnerable to the elements and the monsters. They aren’t given essential information that could prevent illnesses and enable them to thrive. This part of the world building was on point and there was never any doubt in my mind about the gulf between the haves and have-nots in this world.

Monsters Born and Made moves at a fast pace, which at times works for it and against it. This really depends on how much description you need to establish the world and the characters. While there are some long descriptions within, it was hard to visualize this world, and that was complicated by what seemed like conflicting information. At times, everything on the island seemed close together, but then we’re told the island has five capricorns defending it, and each capricorn has a tailfin that’s a hundred meters wide.

That’s 328 feet each. Times five. And the capricorns are spread out, performing the task of keeping the ocean’s monsters where they belong.

And yet early on, Koral has a near miss when a capricorn goes running down the thoroughfare. Now, there’s a sense as she runs to the pharmacy for meds that her home isn’t exactly close by, but a thoroughfare is a path between places. And other descriptions of the island have her seeing her home from shops and buildings. There are also descriptions of winding alleys and narrow passages between homes and other buildings. But then there’s the giant structure where races occur, and it’s clear it’s massive. I mean, it fits a capricorn with ease and has space for 10 competitors to race with chariots pulled by monsters over courses that seem to be several miles long.

It’s fair to say the geography was confusing at times. The Landers, the rich people in this world, live underground, and that was a curious thought. It certainly seemed like there were massive underground installations, but at times the island’s surface seemed small (and easy to run across) and at other times it seemed massive (when referring to a capricorn running down the thoroughfare).

Set the geography aside and just go with the story. The tale of a teenage girl fighting to provide for her family should be an easy one to get behind. However, Koral isn’t always the most likable character. A character doesn’t have to be likable to be interesting, but she wouldn’t listen to anyone. And her arrogance makes her hard to relate to at times. It also complicates relationships with others who have their own agendas. I do wish some of those agendas had been fleshed out more. Her brother felt like he showed up just to provide desired dialogue and give her some grief, but I never really understood his perspective or motives for his actions or inactions. Crane is a bit of a mess as well, floundering from one objective to another. Initially she helps Koral enter the race, but later withdraws support and tells her to pull out. Everyone seems to be keeping secrets but they don’t fully flesh out in a way that gives them a compelling arc.

On that note, it also seemed that the Akayans had some agenda against the Landmaster, but that never really paid off, leaving me wondering about snippets overheard throughout.

One of the big challenges with the book is that Koral’s 16, but we’re supposed to believe she had this intense relationship four years earlier with a Lander who she’s now competing against in the Glory Race. It’s hard to believe two 12 year olds were that hot and heavy, even using very special pet names for each other.

This is a society that has no justice or order. The only people who get punished are poor people, while rich people that outright murder others walk away without consequences. There’s no due process, and it’s hard to believe anyone who’d grown up oppressed could truly believe in justice.

I wish we’d gotten more from the monsters and a real sense of how they impacted the Renters’ lives day to day. That’s part of the worldbuilding I felt could have been stronger.

I also took issue with the use of offensive language in this book. Crane utters an ableist slur early on, and it was completely unnecessary. It didn’t seem to be true to her character or relevant to the situation. She was mad at someone, but there were plenty of other words that could have been chosen. If it had been a consistent characterization for Crane throughout, I would have viewed it as a facet of her character, however unlikable. Since it was only used once and none of her other conduct or words suggest she judges people that way, it was a poor, unnecessary choice that almost prompted me to put the book down then.

By the time I got to the end, I wished I had.

Before I expand on that behind a spoiler tag, I want to note that this was a book that had a lot of potential. It was set up to be an exciting, action-packed story with monsters. The unnecessary inclusion of an ableist slur knocked it down half a star immediately. The ending, for me, brought it down further. I’m giving it 3 stars, and cautiously recommend it to readers who love anything with monsters and action. Lots of potential here, curious to see what the author delivers next.

This is a spoiler that gives away information about the ending:

Ultimately this isn’t a story about a girl overthrowing an unjust system where the poor are oppressed and the rich get richer. It’s a story about a girl who’s pride destroys her. The only character arc involves Koral realizing she was screwed from the start and could never win, even if she won. She destroys her family and there’s nothing in the ending that I found positive. I don’t need a happy ending. Some books work best with ambiguity, and that can be compelling. In this case, the ending took a book that was bordering on 4 stars and dropped my rating down because I didn’t feel it fit the tone of the book or provided satisfactory resolution to the story as presented. You may disagree, and that’s fine, but readers who want a satisfying ending may be very disappointed here.

Monsters Born and Made (Book, 2022) – DoesTheDogDie.com

I really loved Koral. She's a fierce female lead and inspires people to be the best. Dorian is also an intriguing character. Their interaction has us rooting for them both. This is a good example of a worldbuilding novel. If you liked Hunger Games and The Maze, you will likely enjoy this book!

The story had great world building in the beginning and the characters were will fleshed out. There was no character growth throughout the story, which I find important. The book didn't divulge more into explanations of the world, caste and cultures. The story is supposed to be South-Asian inspired but it didn't feel like it came through that much.

The story was predictable but still enjoyable.

On a island where humanity is barely scarping by with monsters in the sea and in their land via the Landers.
3 stars
Themes and feelings :

Caste system
Friends to lovers to enemies to ???
Dysfunctional family
Monster friendship?
Hunger games
Classism
Rebels
Conspiracy theories
Now back to the story...Desperate times call for desperate acts. Koral seems to be the only one with a personality in her family, we even only get a half hearted abusive dad to be the early antagonist then it turns to her childhood romance turned competitor. Honestly their relationship felt really flat as a romantic side piece, they were better as mutual enemies. The only scenes I liked best was when she and him were fighting out airborne monsters, that scene writing was so fascinating (of course it can't end properly but with Koral passing out). Then the final battle was so stale...like she just keeps turning corners and all of a sudden a character out of left field blames her for a family death and will do anything to attack her really threw my interest away.

I really didn't feel much connection with Koral except when she was with her monster, the description is so condoluted I couldn't tell what the anatomy was which is sad.

Really had a good potential for a stand alone but alas it's not.

3.5 upward-leaning stars for this one.
It's fast-paced and action-packed to the point that it feels like things are happening way too fast. I felt instantly connected to what was happening and cared about the race and the maristag, but Koral just feels like the vehicle taking us to different points in the plot. Although maybe that's simplifying things because I do feel like Koral's story is an important element in the story. It's her passion and determination to do everything she can for her family that made me care about what happened during the different challenges, it's just that a lot of non-action scenes felt straight out of every single YA fantasy to come out after or around the time of Hunger Games. I love a good underdog story, but I'd also like to see it presented in a new way.
Overall, I'm really torn on this one because the writing pulled me in and is great when there's action and tension, but left me feeling cold in moments when it was about characters interacting. Unfortunately, I never felt any connection to Koral. It's more of an interest in the tension of the world Berwah created than the main character.

Happy thanks to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the pulse-pounding read!

Unfortunately, this book ultimately did not connect for me. I was initially interested by the world building based on class differences, with renters and landers, but the book didn't really explore these ideas fully. If there is a set-up where some people seem to be good guys and others are the bad guys, I usually wait to learn more, to see more nuance, or to have complications. This was really simple, but not in the best way.

I also had a hard time connecting with the writing style here. If I'm being totally honest, large sections of this felt like they could have come out of another YA fantasy novel. Not a lot felt specific to these characters and this story. I feel bad saying that, but I just think the book could have used more voice.

Ultimately this book did not quite land for me, but if the idea of a competitive race and a class-based society really appeals to you, then this may be more up your alley.

First of all THAT COVER THO. it's absolutely gorgeous 😍

Monsters Born and Made was a fun, easy read that was a perfect escape to get lost in! I really enjoyed reading this one. Having loved The Hunger Games when I was younger, I did have some of those vibes while reading this one! I thought the characters in this book were great, and you can't help but love and root for Koral.

I definitely recommend this one if you like fantasy romance with dystopian vibes and magical creatures.

Thank you SourceBooks Fire 🔥

It begins very predictably and it wouldn’t be a stretch to say that it continues as such. Brother gets injured doing something dumb and the brash protagonist has to save him and the family by doing something incredibly foolish and brave. There are rebel's theoretically fighting on the same side, but who do basically everything in their power to interfere with the protagonist's goals. The wealthy elite are cruel and pretty good stand ins for the rich who control natural resources and leave the poor to fight it out and use products that damage their health to survive. But, one of their son's is hot and mistreated and has a complicated history with the protagonist- can you see where I'm going here? There are, of course, unpredictable twists- though these mostly come from when certain things were going to happen and how exactly the rich people and rebels would screw with the mc.

This book reminded me of Kinder Poison from the deadly races and a woman from a lower "caste" fighting against the system to win. However, this story is inspired by South Asian cultures and is set in an oceanic world rather than a desert, and the race is with chariots powered by deadly creatures called maristags. I'll be honest, I finished the book without really any clue as to what they are/look like except vague flashes of horns.

Overall, I did enjoy reading this book, despite it's predictability. The author painted a deep, rich fantasy world filled with monstrous sea creatures and a criticism of the modern caste system that divides the rich with their resources from the poor who fight for survival. I am still left with a lot of questions- she did a lot of worldbuilding that was sometimes briefly mentioned, but not elaborated on.

For example, we are left with the impression that the sun is dangerous as the rich hid underground and the poor where a sun screen, but we are never explicitly told what the sun would do to them. Like, I suppose we can assume that it would burn their skin badly, but they never fully elaborate.

I would recommend this book to people who liked the Hunger Games, marine biology enthusiasts, race car drivers.

Not at all what I expected unfortunately. Felt like a mixture of different books/stories that have already been done. Nothing new at all when I had had the opposite impression. I didn’t connect with any of the characters either or the story. I had to push myself a bit to get through this one. It wasn’t bad just not for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy of this book

Definitely an enjoyable read if you were a fan of the Hunger Games series. Set on an island surrounded by terrifying sea creatures Koral's family of hunters is tasked at capturing fearsome animals known as maristags. They are then given to the elite known as Landers. They live in an underground city safe from sea creature attacks and the harsh sun which makes living on the outside nearly unlivable. Those on the outside are known as Renters. They are subject to the whim of the Landers and are beginning to form rebel factions to fight for basic human rights.
When Koral's younger sister becomes sicker from a lifelong illness Koral does the one thing she can think of to save her sister and her family from crushing debt. Find a way to race in the Glory Races. A race that only the Landers compete in for a wealth of gold.
I really loved this book. The setting was unique as I felt it was set in the distant future on a planet colonized by ancient humans from Earth. The creatures where wonderfully fleshed out and like nothing I've ever read.
Highly recommend and definitely will be looking forward to the next book.
Thank you to NetGalley for giving me access to this fantastic book!

Unfortunately, I decided that this book wasn't for me. I will pick it up another time when I am more in the mood to read a fantasy YA novel.

I really tried with this one, multiple times, but could not get into it. The writing felt so clunky to me, I could not get into the flow of reading and understanding the characters and world. It’s just not for me, and this is going to be a DNF.

I enjoyed the fast paced action packed storyline of this book. I thought the character development besides Koral was not really in depth or interesting. And Koral though her motives were well explained was not easy to like. Overall it was interesting. Thank you #NetGalley for my copy.

A extremely interesting book, influenced by south asian culture and elements. The plot was very intriguing and I liked how the author included folk tales and other famous stories into the plot in a subtle manner. The book also gave a very good critique on caste! Overall, and amazing debut!

3.5🌟

"𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙞𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙘𝙚𝙖𝙣, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪’𝙧𝙚 𝙖 𝙃𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙧. 𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙨𝙬𝙞𝙢 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙢𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙨; 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙨𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙨𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪."

🏵 South Asian Inspired Fantasy
✒ Debut Author
🦌 Fascinating Monsters
☠ Deadly Competition
💔 Messy Relationships
🔱 Action-Packed
✊🏾 Fighting Oppression

🌊 MONSTERS BORN AND MADE by Tanvi Berwah is a wild action-packed adventure from start to finish. It follows Koral and her older brother Emrik who are forced to risk their lives each day to capture dangerous maristags that live in the seas around their island. Then breed them to sell to the elite for the Glory Race, a deadly chariot tournament. But when their finances are failing, Koral takes matters into her own hands.

It’s always great to have stories that challenge oppressive social and political systems, while at times I felt the narrative was a bit vague, there were some great moments. Plus I was intrigued by the unique creatures and strong, angsty characters who never quit fighting for their family's survival. After that ending, I'm hoping they'll be a sequel!


CW- Domestic abuse, violence, death

Monsters Born and Made was a bit of a slow start for me. I liked the last half of the book more than the first. For me, the world building was confusing. I found it hard to keep track of all the different tiers of people in the society and how the society came about.

I liked the two main characters and I think they have a lot of promise. I would like to see the author delve deeper into them and their personalities.

I do see a lot of parallels between their society and ours. The book would make a great discussion book for middle grade and YA students, to help them understand injustice.

There were surprising moments and sad moments and the book definitely left space for “what’s going to happen next” moments. I imagine it’s going to be a series of books, or at least we’ll see one more? I’m definitely interested in reading what happens next with the characters. Lots of room for the characters to grow, and I hope we get to see really strong character development.

Monsters Born and Made contains an intensity I haven't read in a while in my books. I often stick to those that are lighthearted or have bouts of humor to break up the seriousness. It was a different experience, and I mostly enjoyed the read.

Koral leads a difficult life in this dystopian fantasy reminiscent of The Hunger Games. With their dependence on capturing maristags to sell, her family's fate hangs in the balance every year. When she and her brother Emrick are unable to catch any, they know the consequences will be dire. With limited options left, Koral enters the Glory Race, determined to win and save her family. Her entrance into a race whose participants have only been upper class leads to dire consequences Koral is not fully prepared to face.

Koral is intense, extremely serious all the time except for when she is with her sister. Her home life is not ideal, especially with a father who angers easily. Her struggle for survival and her anger dominate the story, so it is unexpected when glimpses of a possible past forbidden romance appear. I did not see it as a necessary element, so thankfully it was not a major focus of the story. Koral is not exactly a likeable protagonist, but I admired her tenacity and her reasons for entering the Glory Race. I rooted for her throughout the book.

The story is a generally exciting one. It took me a while to adjust to the tone, but a few things prevented me from giving it 4 stars. The book revolves around maristags, but it was difficult for me to envision what a maristag looked like. It bothered me enough that I tried searching for images of something to work off of. There were also times when I was confused about what was happening in the tournament. Had these been clearer, I may have given it a higher rating. (3.5 stars rounded to 4 stars)

It was difficult for me to rate this book, because I loved the idea of it, and I liked the writing, but at the same time, something about this book just dragged for me and I got really bored- it was struggle to finish. I was also expecting more South Asian mythology, which is part of the reason why I wanted to read this book, but I felt like most of it was just classical mythology with the caste system thrown in. I feel like this book has potential, but it needs more work

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks FIRE for this eARC for review. All thoughts are my own.

Pausing this book at 28%.

I struggled to start and get through this book for some reason. It has a really exciting premise and start, and the potential is there. I'm not sure if there is a disconnect in the way the book is written/the voice/the tone that I just wasn't feeling or wasn't in the mood for (boo mood reading), but every time I would get excited for something that happened, it just felt like the writing was disjointed or disconnect and would jump around. I will probably come back to this book and try to finish it, because it truly is a cool concept and has a lot of promise, I just don't have the focus or the drive to really push through it right now.