This book hit the bullseye when it found its way to me!

There is just something about a princess, a little spice, and a great setting that turns my brain into a pleased pile of goop. This book had everything that I craved for something to turn my brain of an just enjoy.

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Received for review: I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Thanks to Netgalley and the author.

My Overall Thoughts/Impressions: The author has set up a fascinating story, an intriguing world, and compelling characters. I'm very interested in seeing what happens next and flew through this one. Ended on a minor cliff.

I went into this one without any expectations. I chose to read it because of the genre and the cover. You never know what you'll get when you go in with zero expectations, but I really enjoyed this one. It gripped my attention pretty quickly. The character isn't always lovable and made some stupid decisions, but I enjoyed seeing her journey/watching it progress, and I loved Gideon.

If you like romantasy, give this one a go. It's an interesting start and debut from an author I'll be keeping tabs on from now on.

Content: Strong language throughout, tamer new adult over 18 sexual content, underage drinking, violence.

Love,

Danica Page

Found on netgalley was drawn to it by the blurb
Looked instering so I requested it and so happy i was approved to read it. I do recommend this book and already told a few that they need to read this book. 5 star book. Kept me pulled into it. Couldn't put it dowm at all. Might reread it later on in the year.

The story, characters, and world building was amazing! There was one death I wasn't sure needed to really happen, but the story was still great! The way the main characters powers were fully unlocked at the end were sad but it made sense that losing someone like that would help unlock someone's full potential.

I will definitely recommend this book to others and I plan to purchase a physical copy! I hope a 2nd one is coming and can't wait to read it too!

DNF

unfortunately this book simply did not catch my attention :(
It felt too tropey and not original enough to keep me wanting to read. Nothing about it was bad, it just wasn’t much different from so many other NA fantasy stories out there.

Author is right that it does feel similar to ACOTAR. I did enjoy the main character and the world building was interesting. The mated trope was complicated with a third character that was both interesting but also felt under-developed. I was shocked when I had only 10% left and felt like it would end in a cliffhanger and it did not - though it did feel rushed to tie out a lot of loose ends. I was expecting a bit of a twist with some characters though perhaps that comes with the next book in what I presume is a series. Invested enough that I will read the next one too, it was a diverting read. I received a complimentary copy of this book, thank you NetGalley.

🌿Tropes & Themes 🌿
•Soulmates
•Love triangle
•Morally gray love interest
•Found family
•Enemies to lovers -ish
•Who did this to you?

Spice level: 🌶️🌶️

I would like to thank Sword & Shield Books and NetGalley for the eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this read! I was definitely hooked and curious about what would happen next. Usually I can predict certain aspects but this book took a lot of unexpected turns! The world building is done well and has some interesting elements. The author paints wonderful images of the different realms and weaves in some history of them as well.

It starts slow and true to the story, Val was raised in the mortal realm, living a normal mortal life other than when she was training to kill demons and be the princess of another realm called Empyrean. I always love a lost or exiled princess lead to believe her kingdom is a utopia only to find out the shocking truth not everything is as it seems. I loved that she admits to wanting revenge and power and isn’t afraid to go after what she wants!

The relationship between Val and her love interests could have been fleshed out a bit more. There are some scenes which I adored but wish there was more of that! Gideon didn’t really feel like much of an enemy to lover. The god of the forsaken and their relationship definitely feels like it had more potential for an enemy to lover trope.

“Because when I kiss you, your body will beg for more. Your knees will quake, your heart will pound, and desire will consume you until your left with an aching that only I can satisfy”

Would definitely recommend! It reminded me in some aspects of ACOTAR, From Blood and Ash, and a little bit of a hades x Persephone retelling.

The story was amazing and I really want to know how it continues. The world building is good. Not too complicated and logical.
English is not my mother tongue and as far I can tell, the writing style was good. I liked it and was easy to follow.
The only downside was the connection between the two protagonists. I didn't quite feel it. Each of their own were awesome characters and I liked them. But the connection between them... I don't know. Something was missing for me.
Overall it was a solid read and I want to know how the story continues!

Whew, this one was...kinda wild. In a good way, I think.

It's another entry in the New Adult Romantasy genre juggernaut that's so popular at the moment. It features Fae, Demons, a broken kingdom, betrayals, secrets, romance, a dash of spice and a somewhat insane amount of plot twists.

As I was reading A Realm of Ash and Shadow I occasionally felt like it was all a bit much. The author literally threw everything but the kitchen sink into this book's storyline and it did feel a bit messy at times. But as more time goes by since I read it, I actually think I'm appreciating it more in retrospect and I'm definitely still thinking about it and looking forward to any future books to see what the author does next with everything she has begun here.

I also had a few issues with main character Valeria's actions and reactions here and there - she's a tad impulsive - and some of the dialogue made me cringe once or twice, but I can't deny I had fun reading this book nonetheless!

This story may start out feeling very reminiscent of so many other similar Fantasy Romance books you've probably already read, but it quickly deviates and becomes something more unique. I didn't want to rehash any of the plot in my review, but I'll just say that any time you think you know what's going on in A Realm of Ash and Shadow, you don't.

If you're looking for a fun read within this genre we all can't get enough of and have some good neck exercises to help you with the inevitable whiplash you'll experience from the crazy plot, I'd say definitely give this one a go.

4 stars ★★★★

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy of a realm of ash and shadow. This was such a cute fantasy romance, right up my alley and the over was beautiful.

With purely magnetic worldbuilding that draws you in with every page, and captivating and badass characters that seem to leap off the page, A Realm of Ash and Shadow is a reader's dream! I couldn't put it down. It was fantastical and mesmerizing ina all the best ways and I immediately knew I had to own a copy for my permanent library.

Not 100% sure how I feel about this book.

Things felt both rushed and slowed. It felt like there were plot holes that were not explained and character changes that didn’t make sense.

At other times the story line was good. The characters interesting as well as their abilities. However I don’t think that out weights the parts that didn’t feel like part of the book. The parts that felt weird or confusing.

I would not recommend

Lots of action that kept me turning the pages throughout. Loved the feistiness and strength of Valeria. Gideon and Malachi also have a special place in my heart. But I’m definitely rooting for Vemdour, rightly or wrongly!

I feel like my thoughts on this one might be disjointed but honestly, that'd match how I felt reading this book.

The plotline had pacing issues, it had too much going on and yet not enough explained for me to care about where it was going. Also, when people say they want something "like ACOTAR" or like another hit book they generally mean the vibes of that book, not stuff jerked directly from the pages.

My biggest issue with this book was the constant reconfirmation of our FMC's age (freshly 18!) and general immaturity while also hammering home the overt sexualization. I love an open-door scene as much as the next person but the focus on the character's age and high school-level activities (prom) and then jumping directly into multiple sexual interests just felt icky. I'd have preferred the characters all aged up clearly and the book just be planted in the NA category.

Thank you to Sword and Silk books and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

⭐
🌶️

3 STARS

I enjoyed the world building a lot. The idea of different realms, that function in different ways, and have different rules is something I liked a lot. I am a bit confused as to what really is the difference between the Realm of Mortals and Empyrean. It feels like the only difference is the time period they are set in, and the knowledge of other Realms...

Plot and writing are a bit chaotic. It felt like trying too hard, as there were moments where the story didn't flow as well. This is one of the books where the "less is more" would work perfectly. That being said, it is a fun and interesting read. The political situation of Empyrean, and all the revelations that we got, were great. There were plot twists that were very predictable, but there were also a few that caught me off guard!

The characters are a big hit or miss for me, and the relationships are a bit all over the place. They do feel forced, but they kind of got explained, so they are just...okay I guess. Both the love triangle and the hate to love trope didn't really work for me. As it always is with me, I loved the side characters!


CONCLUSION

This is an okay, fun read...that is a bit chaotic.
It's a good first book in the series, as it makes me curious what will happen next and where will the characters go from here.
If you are looking for an entertaining read where you don't have to think a lot, and that is a fast read (I finished this in a day and a half) this is a book for you.




Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A Realm of Ash and Shadow is a must-read for any YA fantasy romance lovers. This book is a masterful example of addictive fantasy that will keep you captivated until the very last page. The book has it all, from magic, romance, enemies-to-lovers, godly realms, and just the right amount of spice.

The story follows Valeria Breault, an 18-year-old princess who was exiled from Empyrean because her father didn't want the hassle of raising her. After a horde of demons crashes her prom, Valeria is forced to fight for her life and barely escapes being captured by the Realm of the Forsaken. She is then dragged back to Empyrean, only to find herself in a hellish nightmare where the poor are dying, the rich are thriving, and her claim to the throne is in jeopardy.

Buckheit has created a richly layered world system, and the pacing of the book is fantastic. The book has constant action, but it doesn't feel too fast, and there's still character development. The four-world system going on here is fascinating, and the world-building was done in a very organic way, with no info-dumping or leaving the reader confused for pages on end.

Although Valeria is not the most likeable character in the beginning, the character development is impressive, and she grows on you as the story progresses. I adored Gideon and Malachi's friendship, and the love triangle trope was done very well. The story was captivating, with great twists, an unravelling of lies, good tension, and witty banter.

The title, and synopsis didn’t really catch my attention right away, but after a few chapters it evolved into a compelling plot, and became my evening escapism. The world building was tactically done; it paints a picture but doesn’t confuse the reader with an exuberant use of detail.

I’m a sucker for a soulmate trope and found family. This book also has some morally grey characters, love triangles, and an “enemies to lovers” tale. Filled with great twists, an unraveling of lies, good tension and witty banter; the story was captivating. This book ends with a great cliffhanger though, so I can’t wait for the next book!

Thank you to NetGalley, Lara Buckheit and Sword and Silk books for this ARC in exchange for an honest review

Unfortunately I couldn't get into this one at all and ended up as a dnf

I think it was the high school setting that I wasn't vibing with - the main character felt a bit too whiney for me

Valeria, or Val, is the princess of a magical realm called Empyrean, and she has been hiding on Earth for most of her life, where she has been raised and trained by Mistress Marjorie, and where she also tries to live a “normal” human life, until her 18th birthday when she will have to go back to Empyrean.

That’s about all there is to it for the first 46%. Not much politics or real plot, just Val dealing with jealous teenage girl drama, insta-lust, and a lot of whining, even though she insists on saying that she is a tough cookie, and she is NOT like all the other girls.

I hesitated before requesting an ARC of this one because the main character is a high school student, and I am VERY picky when it comes to school/academy settings. Sadly, this one was not for me, partly because of the immature main character, but also because of the plot. While the ideas were interesting, and the world-building was not bad overall, the plot just felt a little messy. Some things didn’t add up, and the first half of the book focuses more on teenage romance drama than the actual political plot I was led to believe this was about.

Val was a rather bland main character, and very annoying too. She has been trained her whole life for her return to her realm, to take up her role as a princess, but despite all those years of training, she seems to have no manners or grasp of politics at all. She is also portrayed as a badass that can fight, but she spends half of her time whining, and her inner monologues didn’t give us any insight, it only felt like she was narrating her daily life, which made it very easy to feel detached from her.

Val made many annoying/stupid decisions, and it made her seem selfish and bratty at times. As an example, her life is in danger, she got attacked, and she still insists on going to prom because she HAS to live this human experience, and she does not want to let the threat of demons prevent her from this special evening. I understand wanting to have a “normal” human life, but now she is putting her life, and her classmates’ lives in danger too and it made her appear selfish. The more self-centered reasoning makes sense if you take into consideration the fact that Val is 18 and still in high school, but it didn’t resonate with me at all. I am looking for more mature main characters in the books I read.

She also insists that she is a simple girl, she even says to one of her maids (once she arrives at the palace) to choose whatever she wants for Val to wear because she’s not picky at all, but 2 minutes later, she is stating that she will not be wearing what the maid picked because it’s something a grandmother would wear… So is she picky or not? Does she care about superficial things such as clothes or not? Because we get two different messages here.

Mason was not much better as a secondary character, to be honest. He was fine at first, but then he showed signs of a special ability, so they HAD to tell him everything of course, and he just took everything in stride. He asked a few questions but was basically willing to uproot his whole life for Val after hearing their info-dump about her true identity and where she comes from.

The romance… I feel that the author forced herself to add romance to the story, even if it was not really necessary. First, there is Val and Mason, and even though Val makes it clear that she is not in love with him and that it’s only a friends-with-benefits situation, she gets jealous when another girl flirts with him. She also gets excited at the idea that Mason might want her more than he did before he learned who she truly was, but then she just forgets about him once she arrives in her new realm. It’s as if Mason never existed, because she’s suddenly surrounded by better-looking and sexier men.

Then there is Gideon. I think his relationship with Val is supposed to be a hate-to-love because Val decides that she hates him for a not-so-good reason (in my humble opinion), but then there is this undeniable physical attraction between them, that didn’t spark anything in me by the way, it just felt bland and boring. Val then tries to make Gideon jealous? To get revenge on him for something that she didn’t really let him explain? I am not sure what the goal was here, but it felt as if the author just crammed a bunch of unnecessary events together just so she could add some drama, jealousy, and a few popular tropes while she was at it, but none of it felt relevant to the plot (that was still unclear at the 46% mark).

Valeria is ready to go to prom with her decidedly not-boyfriend, Mason, and graduate from high school before her dad drags her back home to fulfill her duties. Sent to live among mortals until she turns 18, Valeria is the princess of Empyrean, hiding from the demons who killed her mother and tried to kill her too until she comes of age. Everything changes when Mason reveals that not only can he see demons, but they’re surrounding Valeria in her daily life. On prom night, Valeria decides she doesn’t care that demons are out to get her and she’s determined to enjoy her last week in the realm of the mortals when the demons actually do attack and she’s swept back to empyrean by a ridiculously attractive man, but it’s not the same land she’s been told about all her life.

This book is a toss up for me. I think Val was immature and obnoxious, and the whole multiple love interests thing made her seem a little shallow and callous. She just hops around to different men with no regard for their feelings because *she* doesn’t want to catch feelings. The magic system needed more explanation, as did the state of the kingdom and *how* it got that way. The rebellion aspect and everyone needing vengeance was fun though.