I think this book was very fascinating and interesting debut fantasy novel. GR Macallister did a good job with characters and story line. I admit it took me a little bit to get into it, but it ended up being a good novel. I think this was a great start to an excellent series that I look forward to reading more of. I hope more people get the chance to experience this novel because it is so much better than you think. I can't wait for more from this author. I definitely recommend this book to fantasy lovers.

Thank you Net Galley ARC, Saga Press and GR Macallister

(2.75 🌟)

I wanted to enjoy this book a lot more than I did but there were a few things that hindered my reading experience.

1. there was like a plot but not really. it was more about the characters but i did not connect with any of the characters. It felt game of thrones esq where anyone would die and like there were a lot of disjointed stories, but i did not enjoy any of the characters.

2. there were too many characters. every chapter it seemed like we were following new characters and new storylines and their voices all sounded the same so it was hard to differentiate.

3. a lot of the plot was just filler because nothing would happen.

I wasn't initially sure how I was going to like this one, but in the end, I really enjoyed it! This was a solid debut fantasy, and I'm honestly surprised that more people aren't talking about this one (as much as I love discovering a hidden gem!)

This definitely read like the first book in an epic series. It wasn't very fast-paced or action-packed, but rather, you could tell that the author was taking her time to introduce you to this world and its players and their politics. And even then, we really only got to know one, sort of two, of the five queendoms. But I love that because when it comes to fantasy, I love a good story that is so epic in scope that the telling takes several books.

I loved how brutal this book was (definitely for fans of grimdark fantasy), and I'm genuinely so intrigued by everything going on that I can't wait to keep reading this series.

I think fans of Game of Thrones, The Poppy War, and The Bone Season would love this!

Thank you to Saga Press for the free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions presented here are my own.

The female protagonists throughout the story were strong and fierce women that brought a lot of character and heart into the story. It felt like we were thrust into Game of Thrones but with a matriarchy across the lands. There was a lot of political intrigue within and between nations.

I really loved the structure of society in this world and the separate queendoms, but I would have loved to see more building of the actual world. I felt like I could not visualize parts of it very well. And maybe parts of that were cut for the very ambitious storytelling and plot, which were phenomenal.

Thank you to @sagapress for my physical copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.