A riveting tale that illustrates a strong female main character in historical Korea, this fantasy novel had such promise for me. However, I found the plot to unravel rather poorly near the end of the book and had a very hard time willing myself to finish it. I lost compassion for the characters, even Mirae, due to things gone awry to the plot.

And Break the Pretty Kings is an action packed book based on Korean Mythology. Mirae's mother, the queen, is ill and due to this Mirae must enter the Trial of the Gods to take her place and protect the queendom. Her brother is taken and she goes on a quest to get him. This is a good story with unique twists, but the time jumps can be confusing.

I forgot to leave a review for this, but I really enjoyed it! It's been out for ages, so I won't say much more than I need to for my star rating. <3

I think this is a special book because I haven't read anything like it but I don't think it's for 5th graders. Middle school to high school. It may also be confusing if they don't know Korean. Korean words are often used without explanation and little context. I don't think the author was wrong to write the story this way, I just think it will be confusing to younger kids who will just skip over the words instead of looking for the meaning of them. It's also violent at times (throats are slit). But there are themes in the story that I liked: classism, traditions, gender roles, etc. It would make for some interesting conversations. I look forward to the next book in the series.

I loved it! The writing is so well done and kept me totally engaged. The characters are unique and well rounded. I can't wait to get my hands on a physical copy.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

This is the story of the Daughters of the Sacred Bone. Based on a magic system pulling from Korean mythology, “And Break the Pretty Kings” tells the story of Mirae, who is the next in line to become the queen of Seolla.

As a queen of Seolla, Mirae must master multiple branches of magic: Jade Witchery, which manipulates the four elements, Ma-eum magic, which encompasses illusions and tricking the senses, and Horomancy, which allows one to see the future, but requires the gods’ blessing. There is also Sacred Bone magic that is unique to the royal family. However, during the trials to ascend to the throne, the madness that runs in the royal family strikes, and as a result Mirae learns more about her family’s history with the ancient evil that she is prophesied to defeat. Mirae must go on a quest to break the madness, find the way to defeat the evil, and deal with her newfound powers that she still can’t control.

Mirae is someone who tries her best to do the right thing, despite being given truths and half-lies from the people around her. With the support of her family and friends, she tries to save the world.

The history that was explored throughout the novel really helped fill out the world, and made it seem very rich and colorful. However, the time traveling, while an interesting concept, was confusing to read, and would have been better if it had been formatted so it was easier to tell when they were happening. The cliffhanger was frustrating from a reader perspective,so I definitely can’t wait for the next book!

The concept and world of this book are intriguing and unique. However, I had a hard time staying in the world while reading. The main character is not my favorite, and I had a hard time connecting to most of the other characters. I was interested in where the world was going, but personally I vibe better with character-driven stories, so this one just wasn't for me.

Thanks to NetGalley for ARC access!

I really wanted to love this book since is a Korean inspired fantasy but to be honest I don't think this was the book for me. Since the very begging I found the story hard to be interested in although the premise was really good. I found a lot of the dialogues/and or scenes really cheesy to my taste and some others really descriptive. One that I will be having nightmares about is the one where certain thing happens that our mc slices her body and does some terrifying things with her own spine I was like WTH was that? I tried to describe it the best I could without spoiling much sorry. I find Mirae to be very spoiled lol like in my opinion she kind of was a brat and I think that's part of why I didn't not feel connected nor did I care for most of the story. I did like that Mirae can jump to the future I think that was the coolest thing about the story to be honest but having to wait for those scenes was a bit painful in my opinion. I don't think the side characters had any depth to be honest and what supposed to be the plot twist were very obvious to me so I was not shocked a all.

Thank you Netgalley for an arc of this book in exchange for a free copy. I wanted to like this book. The concept was so cool with all of the Korean folklore and everything was so cool. But the writing got incredibly cheesy as time went on which was unfortunate and I found myself not caring about the main character. It had potential but I won’t be continuing the series. The twists just weren’t that convincing and it was hard to read. I did the audiobook and I probably wouldn’t have finished it if it weren’t for that but I wanted to give it a good chance. This book may be for you but it wasn’t for me. The author is lovely though!

Steeped in Korean legend and lore, And We Break the Pretty Kings is the story of Mirae and her journey to save her kingdom and, in turn, discover deep truths about herself.

As her mother, the current queen, loses herself to insanity, Mirae is set to take her (magical) trials to succeed to the throne. Things go entirely sideways, the queendom's biggest enemy is released and Mirae's brother is kidnapped. She will do anything to save him and so she heads off with an unlikely band of compatriots to find him and save her land and people in the process.

I love an Asian inspired fantasy - they might be my some of my favorites - so I was thrilled to receive the net galley for this one. I wanted to love this one but it just felt long and I slogged through it.

I DID love the world building. The way that Lena Jeong incorporates magic and Korean lore is fantastic and she doesn't shy away from the more gruesome pieces of the cultural legends (think flying head dragging an exposed spine and innards). I know that's gory and that's not the entirety of the story but it shows how true to the world and the stories she stayed.

I liked the overall themes of what justice is and what makes good leadership. The ending prodded into the idea that love and compassion matter, even in politics and war. It didn't feel preachy but more a part of Mirae's self discovery. I thought that was well done.

The time shift sections were good but I think could have been used more to keep the flow of the story a bit better.

There was a dragon - sign me up!!

BUT. I struggled to connect with the characters and the pacing was just off enough that it felt LONG. There was a lot of repetition and a few scenes I might have cut entirely to make it flow a little bit better and make it a bit more bingeable.

Overall for a debut, some of the really big rocks were there and I think there will be fantasy lovers out there who devour it and salivate over the second instalment.

3/5 stars, the culture piece was my favorite part of this book for sure

Thank you to Harper Collins Children's Books & HarperTeen for the arc through netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

This book had such a cool concept even from just the synopsis, so I'm really disappointed that it wasn't a five-star read for me! There were just some things I didn't feel myself connecting within the story that I wish I had, but I truly think the concept was there for this book. This book is almost like a retelling surrounding Korean mythology and history, and it's about a princess who on the day she is supposed to be crowned, something terrible happens resulting in the death and blood of many people around her. A new power awakens inside her, and alongside her allies, she sets off to find her kidnapped brother and end this mysterious darkness in her home.

Once again, this sounds like something I would absolutely enjoy and in some aspects I really did! My favorite thing would have to be the magic system, as it was really unique and I loved learning about every aspect of it. This included how time-travel was used to add spice to the plotlines and help develop the magic system too. I think this was a unique aspect as I feel in fantasy books time travel is something that is not usually used.

However, there were things too that did not work for me. In terms of plot and general writing style, this felt pretty pretty generic to me, and that did make it difficult to read and continue on. There was an expansive magic system but lots of other aspects really did not stick out to me. The writing style was also repetitive, with the main character having lots of what I would call attempts at growth without anything actually changing. It would have been more impactful if there were subtle changes in things she was doing or her behavior.

[TW: mental health depictions, attempted murder, burning and burn scars, death of family members, kidnapping]

Thank you Netgalley and Harper Teen for allowing me to read and review this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Sadly, I had to DNF this one.

The cover is absolutely stunning and I adore anything that is non-western stories but the execution left me wanting more and less at the same time. I couldn't connect well with the characters, the story's pacing dragged, and this was my second time trying the book out. I had originally started reading it a while back, before its release, and I decided to give And Break the Pretty Kings another shot after my first attempt. I was able to get further but that's because I was pushing myself to finish. When I put my kindle down again, it was game over.

I wanted to love this one like the many other AAPI stories I adore but And Break the Pretty Kings was not for me.

1.5 stars

DNF. The beginning lacking its grip. The writing style didn't suit me. Maybe I'll give it a try again in the future but it's not on my immediate TBR list

Ugh, I wanted to love this one. Ultimately, I got to maybe 50% before realizing it just wouldn't work for me. This is my periodic reminder that not every book is for every reader.

tl;dr this book is a mess. I actually put it aside at about 30% in like "maybe I'll like this better later, maybe it will come together later." I finished it at 100% today.

I REALLY wanted to like it! I like books rooted in Asian mythology or retellings so on the label this sounded so good! In practice it was... all over the place. The characters, except Hongbin (the gay comic relief brother), really had no distinct personalities or voices, and even though a lot of things happened and kept happening... no one seemed to grow from it in any meaningful way? This could have been a good 'journey to a destination, where we get to meet and fall in love with the characters and their personalities. It was very not that (and not something I expected, either, just a post-reading reflection), and a huge power creep where suddenly this girl just outside of her rushed coming of age trial is now like I AM THE DESTINED DAUGHTER LOOK AT ALL I CAN DO just to some time later have a half-second of reflection over how she has to be a destined person but more chill... and then shows even more power that came from (?? unsure). A lot just does not make sense.

I know there's too a conversation about, "multi-lingual authors do not owe you translations" but for the large amount of Korean in this book that was not always (or often) indicated in context, a lot was also really un-Googleable. A glossary would have helped with the lore, especially as this was published under a YA/Teen imprint -- encourage the youths to learn! Flipping back to the book to learn about all the ways the Korean language uses to denote your relationships to others older/younger than you, plus some antiquated terms, plus what certain terms mean to THIS fantasy world in particular would have been great! Love a good glossary especially when so many of the things I googled had either nothing or I wasn't sure about.

And finally, this book does suffer from "This is the first book in a series" syndrome, aka it leaves off in a place where nothing is finalized, some things just ~miraculously happen~, and even the final paragraph is sure something that should lead straight into book 2 because there is ZERO resolution. But in a way that did not make me want to read a book 2 immediately. Whatever happened to wrapping up a story in a series and then the next book in a series is... the next book and not part 2 of book 1?

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins Children's Books/HarperTeen for the ARC in exchange for this honest review but I'm sorry it turned out this way.

Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of And Break the Pretty Kings.
To be honest, I'm really in love with this book. It was an absolute delight while reading, I loved the storytelling and the worldbuilding. The story is rather fast-paced, and you can't wait to see what happens next. I'm also really hyped for the next book. I'm absolutely in love with this one.

This was ok story with some impressive plot twists and very cool time switching which keeps the interest going, but I didn’t find myself invested in the characters which left me not able to enjoy it completely.

For sure one thing I will always state before I say anything about the book is that I am lover of stunning covers. This cover is so powerful and speaks of strength. I absolutely adore books with covers that grab you by the eyeballs and your the rest of your body follows.
This book for sure such a captivating read. The characters are vivid and enrapturing. The main character Mirae and her journey to queendom is a gripping read. Her trials and challenges even dealing with her own mother loosing her mind while fighting this evil is shocking. And knowing she potentially might follow the same fate is a cloud that hangs over the story. Giving up that feel of having to continue reading to see what the future holds for our heroine.
One thing I would complain about was the transitioning between certain scenes was rocky but overall this book was an interesting read. I enjoyed it and found myself enthralled with this journey through generational trauma and self discovery. I’m sure interested to see where this story goes in a sequel.
I would give it 3.75 stars. I would recommend it.
Thank you the folks at NetGalley and HarperCollins Publishing for a copy of this book. My review is a honest reflection of my feelings towards this book.

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. The combination of info dumps that started on the first page, purple prose for every article of clothing and piece of food, and characters without much characterization caused me to lose interest in the story. I also didn't appreciate the way the main character treated people she supposedly cared about. I was intrigued by the title and excited to read about Korean myths, but this fell flat for me.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperCollins Children's Books for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.