𝙎𝙩𝙖𝙧 𝙍𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜: ⭐⭐⭐💫 (3.5 rounded to 4)
𝙎𝙥𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙍𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜: 🌶

This was a good YA urban fantasy, which reminded of the books I loved reading as an 18-24 year old.

The unique magic system drew me in, and I found the messaging particularly powerful — some scenes were quite confronting (especially where a young male overpowered and forced a young female into a situation she didn't want), but I found those situations were handled really well.

I struggled to get fully hooked into the first half of the book, and there were a few times I was left wondering if I had missed something, because I got a little lost. But, I really enjoyed the second half of the book, and found it very interesting.

I loved the inclusion of LGBT+ characters, including queer and non-binary characters.

And that ending! It was fabulous, and I'm looking forward to book 2.

💢 𝙏𝙒𝙨: bullying, sexual assualt (non-consensual kissing), violence

☆I received a ARC of this book from the author, NetGalley, & Hidden Grove Books. All thoughts are my own honest opinions.☆

Right from the first chapter, I was seriously hooked. The writing is just wonderful, and even when I put the book down, my head was still in that enchanting world. I absolutely loved it!

At the beginning, the world was a bit of a mystery, but I'm guessing it'll get fleshed out more as the series rolls on. I got the basics of everyone's powers, but some things felt a little too convenient. I was hoping for a big, nail-biting threat that would leave me desperate for the next book, but it got sorted out quite quickly. The last cliffhanger is intriguing, although it had been hinted at earlier, so the suspense wasn't off the charts.

As for the characters, there are quite a bunch, and some of their relationships felt like they hit the gas pedal too fast. I feel like the teacher's perspective kinda came out of nowhere, even though I get why it was there. I think it could've been explained just as well from Aris's point of view, maybe making me care a smidge more about him.

But, despite all that, I've got a major soft spot for the main characters and how they relate to each other. They're all so unique, and their friendships were a breath of fresh air. Their relationship was what reeled me in at the start, only to leave me emotionally wrecked by the end.

To sum it up, I'd totally recommend this book. Can't wait to see where the story heads next! [Even though I've got to face the reality that I'll be not so patiently waiting for book 2 and to continue this story :) ]

From the moment I read the blurb I knew this would be right up my alley, and it really was, but it took it a hot minute to get there. That's really the only issue I have with this book.

It started off very vague, and I wasn't sure what exactly was going on for the first 20ish %. It was also kind of slow at the start, but eventually it picked up and the whole build up was worth it.

I am a hugeeeeee fan of stories that include dreams in such a way where two characters who haven't met, dream about each other and then eventually find one another in the real world. I will eat it up every single time, I'm telling you.

But here we have a little twist regarding that which I won't spoil. It wasn't explained how that twist "un-twisted" so I'm hoping we'll get some more on that in the sequel.

I loved Lochlen from the start, BUT I loved Alek from the blurb!! I am so sorryyy, he stole my heart first, but Lochlen is right behind him. His history with Aris is painful and makes for a perfect love triangle (another thing I'm a super-fan of).

I can't tell who she'll end up with, but I'll be happy either way, because both of them are wonderful.

Aris, as a main character, is fun to read about. Much like Alek, I too would follow her anywhere in less than a heartbeat. I can't wait to see her grow into her power.

Relating to that, the book happens in the span of around three weeks, so I'm glad that Aris didn't suddenly master her powers in such a short time frame. She still can't do much, and it feels realistic.

The plot was probably my favourite part, and the lore, and the characters...I MEAN EVERYTHING WAS MY FAVOURITE PART OK? No but, the plot was well-crafted, there were some mystery elements too, the lore had its own mythology and tied into existing ones as well, and the characters were of course a found family I'd love to be a part of. So it's hard to pick just one favourite thing.

We also got lgbt rep, Aris's adoptive dads, a non binary character (Jada, using they/them pronouns), and I believe Mirai might be sapphic, just based on the clues. There might be more I missed.

I had a really good time with this book, and I can't wait for the second. Ellie Evaris did such a good job with getting me invested and attached, I immediately went and signed up for newsletter updates because I WILL NOT BE MISSING WHATEVER COMES NEXT!!! I WILL BE SEATED.

As a side note, if you happen to like the Starcrossed series by Josephine Angelini, then you'll love this too. Similar vibes.

*Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review*

Please read this book! I followed along with the ebook while listening to the audiobook since I was approved for both ARCs.

I really enjoyed the book! I recently got into fantasy genre, and this was a great book for that.

I can’t wait to continue to read about this series!

Wow!!! I’m so glad I received this book as an arc!! It was a page turner for sure at the end!! I can’t wait for book two, especially with that cliffhanger! Lots of secrets still need to be uncovered, which I’m hoping will be discovered in the next book. I loved the characters, especially Lochlen!! I just need the next book already!!

Debut author Ellie Evaris has created an intriguing tale of magic and mystery.
What I enjoyed most about this book was the unique descriptive writing and carefully crafted characters. I got swept up in the story and couldn't put it down.
Really enjoyed the e-book. Will definitely be buying it in hardcover.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book started off without much explanation which made it very difficult to get into the book itself. I spent a lot of time confused while I was reading. I wanted to learn more about the system of magic and hope there will be a second book where it could be fleshed out more. I think the basic premise was good and would like to learn more about this world.

At the beginning, I wasn’t sure I was going to like this book. I struggled to connect to the story and to understand what was happening. It felt like I was entering a conversation without all of the previous details. By the end, I couldn’t put the story down and I was so sad to leave the characters.

This is an intriguing fantasy story. It’s great for readers that like a coming of age story. There are elements of mystery, magic, friendship, jealousy, love, and rejection. This is a clean story with a scattering of curse words.

Aris has been dreaming for years but doesn’t remember most of them. She has felt that something is about to happen, but it never does … until Alek appears in her life. Alek has his own gift for never being injured and after reading his tarot cards, he believes Aris is the missing link to finding Krysidia. But there is a catch. Aris must learn to control her gift to fulfill the prophecy. Does Aris have what it takes to survive this quest? Who can she trust and who should she be cautious about?

The Prophet’s Gambit is the first book in a fantasy series by the same title. There were chapters that were captivating and others that were lackluster, but since this was a debut novel, that can be forgiven. The characters were easy to relate to and the world-building was well executed. Evaris has created a story with a lot of potential and it will be exciting to see her writing develop in the next installment.

I LOVED this story! It was everything I needed. I really enjoyed the whimsical side to this story as well.

I found myself immersed in Aris' world, a young dreamer entangled in a web of mysteries. The story, while intriguing, left me bewildered due to disjointed storytelling and underdeveloped characters. Despite promising themes of magic and dream symbolism, crucial details were left unexplored, hindering my connection to the plot. The romance, particularly between Lochlen and Aris, lacked depth, and unanswered questions left me frustrated rather than intrigued. The audiobook narration attempted to enhance the experience, but the confusing narrative made it challenging to engage fully. While the story had potential, it ultimately fell short, leaving me longing for clarity and coherence in this enigmatic tale.

This read seems to be a (slightly) King Arthur retelling that is full of magic, action and mysterious characters. I really liked that there was a good bond between a lot of the characters and most are pretty likeable. There also is a love triangle which makes the story even more intriguing. The book ended on a pretty big cliffhanger which definitely has me very interested in the next book.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an arc of the book!

Rating: 3.5/5

While this book had an unique concept, I felt in some ways it felt flat. It was difficult to get into, and the main character especially didn't feel entirely fleshed out. The magic system is interesting though, as is the gorgeous cover.

To start off, as soon as I saw the book cover I wanted to read it ASAP! I read it in a day and not because I loved it but because I wanted to love it but I was interested in the plot to be able to continue if that makes sense.

Honestly… I really wanted to love this book! It wasn’t bad, it just could’ve been executed well and let me explain my opinion. To start off, I usually like slow pace books. Like Orbit Publishing, releases a lot of books that are slow burn but once they pick up… You’re intrigued! That’s how I wanted to feel with this book.

Now with the characters, I believe they were likable but that’s just it. I didn’t have an emotional connection with them as I would have liked. The friend/sibling concept was cute and played off well, I don’t know. I just feel like the characters had no depth if that makes sense?

Now I liked the plot, the magic system. The world building was a bit confusing and I’m hoping in the next book we get more explanations, but I loved the concept of them trying to find a place in their world per se.

Thank you to Net Galley and Hidden Grove Books for sending me this ARC for an honest review!

I really wanted to like this one, the blurb sounds interesting and the cover looks gorgeous as well which makes me want to pick this one up. Unfortunately, I have a difficult time getting hooked into the story.

The world building is actually pretty interesting with a bunch of teenagers trying to find a way to secret world but the I was confused most of the time. It felt like I was thrown in the middle of a series which I know nothing about.

The story is told in multiple POVs, the characters are all different so it’s easier to differentiate them however it took a while for me to realize which POV is it. It would have been better if there’s a name of the character on the chapter heading.

I keep pushing through in hope there’ll be an explanation soon after. The explanation and the reveal comes near the ending by that time I wasn’t really interested in this story again.
This book has the potential to be a great one with all the elements it has but sadly this one fell flat. Moreover, the pacing and the writing style is not to my liking.

I received an advanced review copy for free through Netgalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Huge thank you to the author and publisher!

3.75/5

If I'm being honest, I went into this book expecting to dislike it. To me, the cover and blurb felt very basic YA fantasy, something I am very sick of by now. For the first maybe 15% I found myself being perhaps unnecessarily mean (I am not a fan of the name Lochlen I'm sorry) and comparing it to The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater (there were a lot of similarities but not in a plagiarism way). However, once I actually got into the story I found that it wasn't bad, I actually liked it quite a lot.

The things I liked:
I honestly love the side characters and the friendships. Jada, Mirai, Yuki? I am a fan of all of them. Mirai and Yuki felt like real siblings and that is something that is surprisingly hard to write. Jada wasn't in the story as much, but they were still iconic just because.
Despite setting out to hate him because I don't like the spelling, I actually begrudgingly like Lochlen now. I expected him to be one dimensional and then he actually isn't, I wanted to be a hater to him specifically but alas I cannot. He reminded me a bit of Sel from Legendborn by Tracy Deonn, but far less angsty (which was appreciated).
I also really like the worldbuilding/magic system. Like the whole inherited powers and crystals thing was pretty cool. The whole Krysidia thing is an interesting concept too, and I am interested to see how it goes in the sequel.

Things I didn't like that much:
Alek, he's not a bad character really, but I just don't really like him (it could be my own bias), but compared to the other characters he just felt ...fine. I am interested to see his development though.
Aris, she is the main character, I suppose. She suffers from Basic YA Protagonist syndrome, it seems that the author wanted her very much to be an everyman type, for people to relate to, because I did relate to her a lot, but it was all very surface level. However, I was very thankful that she doesn't have any of the internalised misogyny a lot of these basic MC's usually have. And she also knows her worth, which I think is a good thing, especially for teenagers reading this.

Overall, the themes were interesting, but perhaps not explored as much as I would have liked. I'm expecting more from the sequel though (which I am keen for). This book pleasantly surprised me.
And while it is very obviously a debut and still has some proofreading errors (at least in the arc), I believe it has a lot of potential as a series, since it is a very solid start.

Thank you NetGalley for the arc.

I really wanted to love this book. The premise was intriguing and something that I usually really enjoy. However, this book was not it for me. Normally whenever a book starts off slow, I usually am easily captivated by the halfway mark. In this case the pacing just felt off for a majority of the book. The chapters swapped POVs between a couple of the characters, but at times was not easy to distinguish who it was. I wish there was a name at the top of the chapter to distinguish this as it was a bit frustrating at times. The world building was a bit lacking as well, along with Ellie's relationships with other characters. It was mentioned quite frequently how much she loved her sister, but their relationship was barely shown. The interactions with the group, however, were quite nice to read. Especially after a more traumatizing event she went through in the beginning of the book where they were teaching her how to defend herself. Again, I really wanted to like this book, but it was confusing at times and it felt like not a lot happened from beginning to end. The biggest event that happened was the cliffhanger at the end of the book, which sets up the next installment quite nicely.

Somethings I did enjoy were the magic system and the characters. The concept of a lost world and a group of friends trying to discover their ancestor's home was something I was really interested in! Evaris also broke down the heritage of their powers well, along with how they worked and different beaches of magic inherited. The characters were relatable in a sense of trying to find a place where they belong and fit in, as they weren't fully human. The dynamic between Alek, Lachlan and Ellie did not feel strained at all, even though it was somewhat of a love triangle. I can see them having a lot of development in future installments.

Thank you to NetGalley, the author, and the publisher for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review.

I mean for one look at this cover! Beautiful!

This book suprised me in all the good ways.
Are you in the mood for a good fantasy that will transport you to a different world look no further.

Seventeen-year-old Aris has always been obsessed with dreams, even if she can't remember most of them.
But everything changes when she meets alek.
After a rather fortunate tarot reading the fate of the two is combined.. could aris be the key to saving the realm of Krysidia?
And who is Lochlen and why does it feel like she knows him?


Thanks netgalley for a earc.

I liked this a lot, the characters and the plot was just amazing. The way everything happened had me hooked like aaaa
thank you netgalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review

• This book had so much potential, I loved the cover.. I loved the synopsis so naturally I was really excited to read the story. I did enjoy it on a certain level but the entire plot was vague & chaotic...even 40% into it... I was left wondering what and why everything is happening.

• As it's a part of a series maybe the books will lengthen the story out beautifully, but book 1 didn't catch my attention - the characters needed more depth, i started enjoyed the story towards the end and the first half of the story felt dragged.