A solid YA fantasy that I cant wait for the next book in!
Despite a slightly slower start, the book really picked and I devoured it. Think Hunger games with winners privileges and the need for a 'sponsor", only think of it in a world where vampires and witches exist and humans are stuck in the middle of them for both food and magic source. Its always a funny concept to me that if resurrection was an option, people riddled in guilt always seems to choose that path despite the horrors that come with it. This is what happens to our main character Bly. Feeling guilt ridden for leading her sweet sister to her death only to want to buy herself a pretty dress , she decides to enter into the Revenant Games where the winner is granted either immortality from the vampires or a resurrection from the witches. Its an interesting dynamic between the three races as humans are seen as a tool and resource for either side.
There was a bit of a love triangle going on, but im glad it wasnt dragged out too much.
I had a great time reading this first book and loved some of the unexpected twists thrown in there.

Highly recommended.

Not bad, but also not very good.

Firstly, the pacing of this book was just.... off. Like a car ride with a Learner Driver who forgets which pedal is the clutch and which is the brake. Stop start, stop start. The world building is lacking and the overall plot is thin in places which makes it hard to follow. The plan for the games was so convoluted and yet underwhelming. I think the author got caught up in their own cleverness with this one and then didnt know how to get out of it.

Generally not a fan of a cliffhanger, but this one wasnt bad per se. Some characters were really under realised (Emerson) and so felt like they were weighing the book down. I would read book 2 but I would also DNF book 2 fairly quickly if the same pacing was in it.

2.5/5 ⭐️
0/5 🌶️

A YA fantasy that gives hunger games vibes.

I went in really excited for this book as I do love deadly games, and even moreso when it’s set in a fantasy world filled with humans, witches and vampires.

Bly is a young woman who sets out to enter the deadly games which happen once a year where participants must capture either a witch or a vampire to win a prize from the other. They also go to trials and can win a vampire or a witch sponsor. This book isn’t long so the lore for the world was pretty basic and easy to follow.

Overall the book fell flat for me based on how shallow everything was. I wasn’t invested in the characters as there was almost no character development, the romance was just there but for seemingly no reason. The twists were obvious and I spent most of the read waiting for them to happen. It also ends weirdly in my opinion. I wouldn’t call it a cliff hanger but it also kinda is but just in a way that doesn’t leave me wanting more.

This would likely appeal to a younger fantasy reader who doesn’t like an overly complicated world, and who wants very basic characters.

After Bly, a 17 year old human, follows her sister Elise into the woods, Bly finds her sister dead amongst the trees. The Revenant Games is a fantasy adventure for Bly to resurrect her sister and win glory for capturing a vampire. Emerson, who Bly is secretly in love with pairs up with him as he trades a deal to be death cursed in agreement for Elise to be brought back. Emerson and Bly team up hoping to capture the highest ranking witch for immortality (to save Emerson) and the highest ranking vampire (to resurrect Elise). Along the way they face obstacles that put a dent into their plans to succeed - only that the very reason why Bly had entered the games was not all that it seemed.

Margie’s cinematic design for the Revenant Games world was beautifully crafted. World building was easy to understand and had a gothic nature to it. The idea of cohabitation of vampires and witches was an interesting concept and found the rivalry to be quite unique.

The plot of the story was great, however I found the tension and action to be lacking in most areas. I struggled to find motivation to read this and get through it without feeling bored. I loved the pretending romance between Bly and Kerrigan (which I think the author could emphasise on more, this would make it more attractive to young adult readers).

Overall, a basic YA fantasy read and will be posting a review on my tiktok later this week.

I went into this one really hoping to love it, and whilst it missed the mark a little bit for me, there were still parts I quite enjoyed.

The story follow Bly, as she and her childhood friend (who she's secretly in love with), a vampire (who she's falling for), a witch (who we like least of all) and two humans (who don't get much page time) try to win the elusive prize of immortality and resurrection in 'The Revenant Games'.

The story felt a little bit back and fourth for me as the characters debated what it was that they were doing which made the plot a little wishy washy at times. The chatacters are fun but I would really have liked to have some more development of them. There were moments where things happened to chatacters that had been around most of the book that left me feeling nothing as I had been told very little about them.

The world building is there, with detailed descriptions of the vampire fortress and witch village. I assume this will be built upon further in the sequel which would be fun to see!

The romance is very PG13, I feel it's just the right level for the audience this book is aimed at.

All in all I still enjoyed this book and though I wouldn't necessarily recommended it to people my age, I do think it has the potential to be enjoyed by a younger crowd more willing to look over some plot holes and lack of character building in favour of story alone and romantic tension.

Rating: 3.5/5

Thank you to netgalley and Simon & Schuster Australia for the advance copy of this book!

I really enjoyed this book. I don’t usually read Dystopian, The blurb and title got me interested.

I was pleasantly surprised by the plot, the characters, the twists, the tension, the brutal games, kept me interested and not wanting to stop reading. The angst, tension and love interest will keep you engaged.

Can’t wait for the next book!

Blood is survival for a human who lives in a poverty-stricken human villages caught between enemy vampire and witch kingdoms. Most of the time, witches and vampires live in uneasy truce, buying human blood for their food and spells. For only two weeks of the year, the ceasefire dissolves, and they hold the Revenant Games.

Any human can pat in the games for either the witches or the vampires, alongside life-changing riches: the witches will raise one person from the dead for whoever captures the highest-ranking vampire while the vampires offer immortality to whoever the most powerful witch. A ticket out of poverty, a chance to get back her dead sister and save her dying friend. Bly will do anything to win the games. Even when the vampire they capture stirs a passion in Bly that she hasn’t felt in a long time, she will have to make a choice. Her beloved sister and the boy who’s shown her there’s more to life than just survival.

A novel that encompasses the bond of sisterhood, bounds of friendship and a passion for life that one may have forgotten how to live. An exquisite take on familial relationships, betrayals of love and an enemy that one may not truly expect. What would you be willing to give up for a better life? For a dreamer who was willing to risk everything she may just loose the one things worth living for in this book. An epic novel that I would recommend for anyone!

𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘵𝘰 𝘚𝘪𝘮𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘚𝘤𝘩𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘈𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘢 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘯 𝘢𝘥𝘷𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘷𝘪𝘢 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘎𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘎𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘺 𝘔𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘦 𝘍𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘯

4.5 stars

ARC Review

OK OK OK this took me back to my teenage years of brutal dystopian games and I loved EVERY minute of it!!

I don’t even know where to start. The plot, the characters, the twists, the tension, the brutal games, it was a magical dystopian dream!!

The FMC isn’t anything wild, she’s not strong or brilliant, but she has courage and thinks things through. The enemies are everywhere and came from every angle, bringing in a whole heap of tension, twist and turns.

The romance and love interest/s are just the perfect amount of angst and tension with NO smut, which I love to see in a YA book (keeping to old traditions of actually being YA). But they had me rooting for the characters in every way.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and I cannot believe how long I am going to have to wait to continue the story of Bly and the gang.