Thank you Netgalley and Lara for this opportunity.

I really did enjoy the first half of the book. It's giving me Shadowhunter vibes and I was so excited to devour it but as the story goes on, I lost my interest. It was getting slow and I don't know where the story will go.
The main character Valeria kind of pissed me off as the story goes on. I know w
she is trying to save her home but daaaaamn gurl make up your mind? Is it Mason, Gideon or The God of the Forsaken your lusting of?
Nevertheless, this story was beautifull written. It has so much potential but it didn't really stick to me.

I unexpectedly really enjoyed A Realm of Ash and Shadow!

The book had me hooked since the beginning with it's mix of three different realms: the Realm of the Mortals where our FMC Valeria was raised for eighteen years, the Empyrean realm where her throne and birthright is ruled by her ruthless father and the Realm of the Forsaken where Valeria will find herself in later on.

It had a gripping plot, with it's ups and downs but overall it had me interested throughout the book especially the last third or so when Valeria is on the Forsaken Realm, I absolutely devoured that part.

I enjoyed Valeria's sassiness. Gideon is a sweetheart that I never thought I be swooning for, although the spotlight goes to Vemdour, the God of the Forsaken. I'm rooting for him and Valeria even after seeing how things ended.

I liked all the side characters too, each one of them was special on its own specially Mason and Malachi.

Overall, it's a solid debut with a very interesting and entertaining story. I'm looking forward to the next book of the series.

What a fantastic book!

There may be the odd flaw, but for a debut book, I thoroughly enjoyed it and I thought it was very well done!

This book is perfect for any fantasy romance lovers- there is a bit of spice for those looking for that! I enjoyed the world-building and getting to know the MCs.

I agree that you can see which books/authors inspired this book, but it didn’t detract me from wanting to read on and it is most definitely its own story and premise separate from any other works.

Stars: ⭐⭐⭐⭐💫 4.5, rounded to 5
Spice: 🌶🌶

A Realm of Ash and Shadow starts out in the mordern world, in the Mortal Realm, where we find Valeria leading an almost typical teenage life...but we soon find out her life will be anything but simple and normal.

I loved the instant chemistry I felt between Val and Gideon, and how much they both fought the connection to each other. Their relationship was done beautifully the whole way through the book, and I'm always a sucker for enemies to lovers done well.

At one point I was wondering if this was going to turn into a reverse harem book. It didn't. But, I can almost imagine it, and I kinda like it 😉. I really enjoyed the attraction Val found in the Realm of the Foresaken, and loved that little plot twist about Vemdour's curse and his heart...And how Margie fits in everywhere!

The ending had a bit of a cliffhanger, but it didn't hook me as much as I wanted, and when writing this review I had to go back and check the book was actually a series, not a standalone.

Overall, I found this to be a well written book, with amazing world-building, delightful (and delightfully vile) characters, and a really unique plot with plenty of twists.

☆ I received an ARC of this book, which in no way sways my honest opinion, as stated in this review ☆

I loved the premise of this book. An 18-year-old princess who grew up on Earth, fighting demons and navigating that her world wasn't what she had expected, with lots of romance and drama throughout. I could see the authors aspirations for where this book could go, and I am excited about the future of the series. The inspirations of Cassandra Clare and Sarah J Maas are very evident throughout this series, so if you like The City of Bones Series or A Court of Thorns and Roses, you may like this book.

On the other hand, while I loved the world building and the plot, the history of the Realms and the connections of some of the characters was insanely confusing. Also, a lot of characters could go through plenty of character development in future books because there wasn't much in this one. The main character often seemed dumb and some descriptions of her thoughts felt like they came out of nowhere, breaking the flow of the story. I felt dragged through the plot rather than uncovering it and learning with the main character. Some plot twists seemed forced and thrown in at the last minute to explain away plot holes elsewhere.

Thank you to the author and publisher for letting me read the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review! I really enjoyed the read and loved the world building.

This book confuses me. I like parts of it, dislike others and, in general, there are a lot of mixed feelings about it.

What I liked:
- The idea of the book and the potential for a good plot. The overall concept of it is interesting (even if not super original).
- FMC is not just super nice because she is the hero, but there is some depth and sides to her.
- One of the MMC has a lot of different sides and I cannot wait to see more of him and what part in the story he will play

What I wish was better or didn't like:
- In general, the book has all the elements and tropes to make it a good story, but they are mixed with a confused storyline, and honestly "lazy" choices to make the plot work.
- Our FMC has everything to be a great morally grey hero, but the book doesn't explore it enough, and makes her just come up as a spoiled princess that makes bad choices, without really learning or developing in any way. Hopefully we will more development from her in the next book.
- The main love interest is boring, and there is just no depth to him whatsoever. Also, they spend barely any time together and he falls in love. I just cannot with insta-love
- The explanation of some parts of the story is just not clear and makes zero sense

Overall, this is an ok 3 stars book that can get better if parts of the plot are explored better and not everything is solved in an easy way. I still enjoy it enough and will probably read the next book.

Y'all, this book is just a lot of fun! Valeria, the main character, is freshly 18, and also a princess hiding out in the mortal realm until it's safe to come home. Valeria is incredibly relatable especially in the context of being 18 and a princess. She wants to graduate from high school, she's into hot guys, she doesn't want her friend to forget her when she leaves, all typical teen stuff while caring immensely about her kingdom and wanting what's best for them.
Reading this felt like reading about a friend, and I was rooting for her throughout (I have so many notes in my kindle). There's a ton of great tropes (including a personal favorite 'who did this to you' moment), multiple surprises throughout (a couple of which I did not predict, and I always try to predict the twists), a few Taylor Swift references (which I totally started tallying then got too into the story to remember), and even a smidge of spice (this one is new adult, so I'd only recommend to older teens and up). There's a little bit of a cliffhanger in this one, so even though this is newly released, I'm already looking ahead to the next one!
I definitely recommend this one to new adult romantasy lovers as it hits all the right notes!

If I were to describe this book in one word it would be: ‘chaotic’ 😂

Valeria is the princess of Empyrean but up until her 18th birthday she had been living in the Realm of Mortals in secret. When she is taken back to Empyrean before she is meant to, Valeria realises that it is no longer what it once was and perhaps she might be their only hope. Secrets are revealed, choices are made and love is either within reach or non-existent.

I enjoyed reading this book and felt like I could understand the world as soon as it was explained. The book moves super fast though, I felt like it was just one thing onto the next, onto the next etc. and at times I felt like I was getting whiplash with the amount of changes happening. Honestly, I didn’t connect to any of the characters - Valeria is very selfish, ignorant and pretty naive which I thought was interesting seeing as she was trained for 18 years by her keeper. She is constantly changing her mind, believing anyone who shows her kindness and is so hesitant about love. These traits are so human but did become a bit annoying as the book went on lol I loved Gideon and Malachi!! But the love triangle or square maybe I should say, felt a bit forced. I just thought that it was underdeveloped and so much more could have been done to show all the different relationships and break them down even further. I think this would’ve helped with the pacing and whiplash.

I’d recommend to anyone who is looking for a fast-paced fantasy with lots of drama and family issues haha

Rating: 3.5 stars.

Thank you to netgalley for the e-arc. All opinions and views are my own ✨

3 - ⭐⭐⭐

A fast-paced, new adult fantasy that remains entertaining despite lacking in world-building and character depth.

I was drawn into this book by the cover and ended up hooked by the synopsis. The idea of the main character finding out that the utopian society she's been told about her whole life is actually dystopian sounded interesting and unique. Ultimately, the book didn't focus on this aspect too much, which I was disappointed to find out.

What the book <i>did</i> do was, in my opinion, entirely too much. The comparison to ACOTAR was accurate, as this felt like reading the first two books in that series crammed into one book at half the page count. Events moved very quickly and conflicts were resolved before they had time to sink in. Being so fast, there wasn't enough time for us to get to know the characters or for the world-building to develop. At one point, there is a seven month timeskip and we are told what happened during that gap of time retroactively. These events could have been the bulk of the rest of the book and it would have been an overall more impactful experience. I think this book would have benefitted from being two books, so that readers could have a better understanding of and stronger connection to the world.

Despite the character development being a bit lacking, I did really enjoy the characters of Gideon, Malachi, and Margie. They were interesting and brought a sense of personality to the main cast that made me want to keep reading. Valeria, the main character, was tough for me to connect with and I found myself being a bit annoyed with all of the men fawning over her all the time because of how special she was. But we do see some maturity from her towards the end of the book, so that gives me hope that she will continue to grow as a character over the rest of the series.

Overall, this was a fine start to a new series. It was entertaining enough with its premise and characters, even with some issues with pacing and development. Would I recommend this book to others? Possibly! I think this would be a good read for someone looking for a lighter, quick fantasy read, perhaps as a sort of palate cleanser. If you liked ACOTAR and FBAA, you will probably enjoy this as well. But if you're hoping for a new, extremely unique tale with a lush and vivid world, then this book won't be a great fit. I'm not yet sure if I will be continuing this series, but depending on where the plot's going next, I may just pick up the next one.

<i>Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!</i>

The name of this game is TENSION and I am here for all of it! Family, lovers, political and friends are all in there. This book was hard to get into but once I got past the first chapter I was glad that I kept going. Not extremely spicy but I'm okay with it. The plot twists were great. It's fairly fast paced. There isn't much I have to say against this book.

CW
war
blood/gore
torture
death
death of parents
abandonment
betrothal
morally questionable lover

I would 100% recommend this to fantasy lovers who want a little romance with their action.

ARealm of Ash and Shadow is the first novel in a series of the same name. There are some vibes from From Blood and Ash by Jennifer Armentrout, ACOTAR by Sarah Maas, and Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco where smaller elements from each were weaved together with the author’s own vision. The cover and synopsis made me request this novel and I am glad that I gave it a chance. This story follows 18-year-old princess Valeria Breault who has been exiled from the Realm of Empyrea to the Realm of Mortals. After she avoids being captured by the Realm of the Forsaken, she returns to Empyrea and finds it is not how she left it.

The story begins with Valeria at her prom with her best friend Mason before expanding into Empyrea where she meets Gideon and later Vemdour. The romance in this story actually features her bouncing between multiple suitors, which isn’t always my cup of tea, but I hope everything comes together more in the sequel. The instalove between Gideon and Valeria was a bit much as there did not seem to be a lot of substance in the writing. Instead, it seemed physical attraction and nothing more. This story is full of easter eggs for the plot, so there could be more relating to the romance and how it will develop more in the future. With each romantic suitor, I felt each of them were a little incomplete as I feel more reasoning was needed for why the reader should connect with each.

The story moves through each realm and while I love the more fantasy-filled ones, I do with the beginning in the Mortal Realm was extended. It felt there was not a lot of time there just to establish everything before the story moves into the next place. The novel is plot driven where Valeria goes on a journey to find out more about herself and her past. Along the way there are multiple plot twists and foreshadowing for possibilities in the sequel. There are some parts that more rushed than others, but the writing as a lot of potential. As a character, Valeria was both likable and unlikable, but she was interesting at least. Overall, there is a lot of potential in the series and I look forward to seeing what the sequel holds.

**I give a special thank you to Netgalley and the publisher, Sword and Silk Books, for the opportunity to read this entertaining novel. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.**

For lovers of Sarah J. Maas and Julie Kagawa comes a new fantasy new adult series featuring a kick-ass heroine, swoon-worthy romance, and political intrigue!

Our main character, Valeria, has been exiled to the mortal realm for most of her life, but on the day of her 18th birthday, she will be sent back to live the rest of her days in Empyrean. Terrified of leaving her life behind for one unknown, she tries to make the most of her last few days in her small town as a normal high school senior. At her prom, however, she is attacked by hundreds of demons, throwing her into the realm of Empyrean with a strange young man named Gideon. As she learns more about who she is and her place in her new world, she dreams of having power and agency, finding people she can trust, and navigating the hidden histories of her past.

Buckheit succeeds in creating a world that kept me interested, with a lore that slowly unraveled as the story progressed, and promises to keep developing in future books in the series. Valeria, while whiny and a tad insufferable near the beginning, developed into a more nuanced and mature character as the book moved along, and I eventually came to appreciate her mild immaturity and sharp honesty. I'm hoping for some epic development further into this series for her. For romance readers, this book will certainly deliver if you like the leading love interest as romantic and knight-esque.

Where this book fell a little flat for this reader is the pacing of the romance and the love triangle (rectangle?) that the author created. The development of the romance took up about the first half of the book and the second half was mostly focused on Valeria's inner conflict -- dealing with her innate desire for power at any cost. I found the latter half to be much more engaging with the romance intertwined than the first half. In the first half, the pacing felt off for me because the intimacy between Gideon and Valeria developed so quickly that it felt inauthentic to the experiences she had with Mason at the beginning of the novel. Their relationship develops so quickly that I don't even think I need to mark that as a spoiler! I do love their dynamic though, and will continue to read this series to see where these two end up.

You could tell this was the authors first book.........The plot was good but there was a lot of pacing problems. The characters didn't feel very fleshed out and the writing felt unedited. The main character was unlikable and it was turning into an eyeroll that every guy she met basically fell in love with her. I really wanted to like this book but I think the best part of it was the cover.

This book intrigued me from the start until I was swept away in the story. It had everything you'd want in a fantasy. Love, betrayel,magic,secrets,battles and a FMC who is struggling to find her identity through it all. Well written and realistic and relatable and I can't wait for the second one.

A Realm of Ash and Shadow was absolutely amazing; It surpassed my expectations and kept me on my toes. The beginning was a little slow, but after Valeria leaves the mortal world and returns home the story picks up pace. The world-building was fantastic and I felt like I was physically in the book with how easily I could picture everything happening in the story. This book shattered my heart and put it back together only to shatter it again, and I am here for every second of it. The cliffhanger it left off on was criminal and I will be eagerly awaiting the second book!
A million thanks to NetGalley, Lara Buckheit, and Sword and Silk Books for graciously sending me the ARC to review.

This was an interesting book. A princess exiled to the human world until she turned 18. Then she is thrust back into her world. I didn’t particular enjoy reading it. I felt the beginning was very slow and the drama definitely had teenage vibes. Honestly, demons are all around be we HAVE to go to graduation and go to prom (who cares??). And then they attack and she is like “wow who would have thought that would happen”. Ridiculous.

Thanks to netgalley and publisher for this arc!

Really enjoyed this book: the world building, the writing, & chemistry between all the characters was there! This was like shadow and bone meets hades and Persephone meets of blood and ash! Overall surprisingly good fun new fantasy series especially because this is a debut novel! Valeria annoyed me multiple times though because so dumb and annoying but luckily she had other good moments too. Gideon is just swoonnnnnn. I'm excited for the next book in series and hope it comes out soon!

I really enjoyed reading this Story.

It does start off a little on the slow side, and it’s apparent this is a debut. I think the author needs to have a little more confidence, not worry so much about hidden meanings and attempting to be the Next ACOTAR. There is definitely some flaws in character development and sometimes it’s a little fumbled in plot growth.

That being said, it is a warm feeling read, young love, mistakes, growth, connections and adventures. Great YA and I really look forward to reading the next instalment.

Thank you to Lara Buckeit, Via Netgalley, for the opportunity to read this.
As always I choose to leave honest reviews, my opinions are my own and are never swayed

Review in progress and to come.

I received a free copy of this book via NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving a review

This was a surprisingly quick read for me!

A Realm of Ash and Shadow tells the story of Valeria – sent to live in the mortal realm until her 18th birthday. However, upon her return to her home of Empyrean, nothing is as she remembered. With severe class divides, a monetary system, and a father her shows nothing but distaste for her, she wants to make change. However, she’s also grappling with the fact she’s bonded to a man she doesn’t know – when all she ever wanted was to keep feelings out of the equation.

This story is well-paced and the world-building is excellent. I could vividly imagine the realms in my mind’s eye. Valeria proves a stubborn and independent FMC, even when that leads her to trouble. Gideon is a protector and good-hearted, truly book boyfriend material. The side characters in this book are fantastic – and I hope they make more appearances as the series progresses!

This is a great series starter, and I look forward to reading the next installment in this series.

Special thanks to NetGalley and Sword and Silk Books for the ARC. All thoughts in this review are honest and my own.