For some reason I could not get into this book. I thought the concept was intriguing but my brain couldn't getting my head into the game. This is 100% a me thing and not the book. What I did read was good, but sadly I DNF'd.

Thank you so much to Tor Publishing Group for my ARC!

I was able to read this immersively as I was also gifted the audiobook, and honestly, this was the best way to consume it!

This has a unique twist on Roman history complete with magic and dragon shifters. Julian, is everything you want in a broody, dragon shifter, and I could not get enough of him and his "touch her and die" vibes. I loved the tension and build-up between him and Malina, too.

The storyline was fast-paced and exciting the whole way through. I definitely recommend this for all my fantasy lovers! Also, the narrators were great, and I really enjoyed the audiobook

There is SO much I loved about this book!
This is a super fast paced Romantasy set in Roman times with Dragon Shifters, brutality and Magic.

Our FMC, Malina, is a witch with Empath powers (loved this) and I would absolutely LOVE to see more of this as the series progresses with a powerful FMC moment 🤭
She is fabulous!

I love our MMC, Julian, a powerful Roman dragon shifter.
He falls fast and hard!!
I feel like you could feel his emotions and how he couldn’t hold it in lol

I love the Roman setting!!
I’m a history lover and that just hits for me.
That being said there is master/slave in this book and I know that won’t be for everyone so I do recommend a warning before you read.

I would’ve loved a little more world building, but I also get that the romance here is the plot.

Expect a slow burn, touch her and 💀, forbidden love, dragon shifters and magic ✨
I’m very excited to see what’s to come!!

Definitely not for me, I did not expect the master/slave dynamic to be such a big part of the story, and the insta love in chapter 1 made me want to DNF immediately but I held out hoping it would maybe get better. Overall finishing this book, I can say that it was fine, but that’s about it. I understand it’s a the Roman Empire in a fantasy world with dragons, but at this point it just feels like this was a dragon book for the sake of being put on a list of books with dragons in it. This could have easily just been a fantasy with magic, but honestly the dragons felt so out of place and I just didn’t care about that aspect of the world building.

Read this if you like:
•dark romantasy
•master/slave romance
•history & politics of ancient times

I truly wasn’t expecting the master/slave part of the book and that was a huge storyline. The power imbalance was icky. If you can get past that, you’ll read about a strong MFC. I was hoping for more witchiness vs her just having power. There is spice but I since I didn’t like the power imbalance I didn’t love this. Overall, proceed with caution. Thank you Bramble for eARC!

3.5 Stars Rounded

This was presented as House of Dragons meets From Blood and Ash and honestly, I don’t see it. I’d say Gladiator meets WebToon’s SubZero (dragon shifters).

Malina is a dancer who’s separated from her family. Julianus is a Roman general and conquers anything within his path. When their paths meet again, plans Julianus had been making for a long time quickly need to be put into motion.

Ok. I have some pros and cons about this book.

Pros:
- Excellent detailed writing. I did feel immersed in the story and I loved the spin on the Romulus & Remus story, instead of being nursed by a wolf, they were nursed by a dragon.
- Dragon shifters. I enjoyed the dragon shifters and their political hierarchy.
- Interesting magic.

Cons:
- I felt like there was little progression.
- Insta-love/mate…literally chapter 1, right out the gate.
- Master / slave dynamic and not in a kinky way. Like, he literally owns her. There were moments where she says he “commanded” or “demanded” something from her and while it seems clear she consents it still felt iffy to me.
- I felt the spice was just there for the sake of spice. It was ok spice just, oddly placed.
- I think the end sort of ends abruptly. Not really a cliffhanger but also nothing to really draw me back to book 2.

Overall, I think it’s a good start to a series. I’d be more interested in the magical development of Malina’s powers. This book really was a building block for a series so, there is definitely potential.

With inspiration from the brutal and bloody Roman Empire and the cautious tales of their gods, Firebird is a new fantasy read rooted in action and romance.

Going into this book, I was excited about a Roman-influenced romantasy with magic, mysticism, mythology, and dragons, but the story itself is one that shows the hardships and cruelty of this time period. The slave and master trope is not one I generally read, and it was a surprise to me that it was in this book. Even though, as it goes on, the romance becomes more about their fated connection, I had a difficult time getting past the circumstances that led to them reuniting, the instant love, and the brutality of the world, especially towards women.

2.25/5

*Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an eARC in exchange for an honest review.*

This book suffered from the choice to start the story off with a particularly long myth and an even longer prologue with a very distant writing style. By the time I got into the actual plot I was just disinterested.

Thanks to the author and publisher for the eARC and Macmillan Audio for the ALC. This audiobook had me captivated immediately and I listened to it all in one day! I had to switch to the eARC toward the end because my heart was pounding and I had to consume it with my eyeballs 😂. Fans of fantasy romance and enemies to lovers will eat this up. Dragon shifters in Rome? Yes please.

I especially want to mention the care with which the author handled the main couple’s relationship. Because his soldiers destroyed her village and then her adoptive family. He saves her from a fate he doomed her to. She has to become his slave to survive in his world. These topics are all addressed and discussed by them before their relationship advances and obviously there’s a reason for his actions (mad dragon king, anyone?).

But it’s rightfully a slow burn and Malina is shown actively working through these issues. I loved her resilience and fierceness in standing up for herself and others. And Julian is such a cinnamon roll with a heart of gold I adored him. The way he treated his household and saved them 🥹. His dragon being all possessive 🔥. The touch her and be unalived moment was so perfectly unhinged and violent 🤣.

The premise of dragons in Rome was unique and refreshing. The Roman gods were mentioned as an important part of society but played a minor role in the plot which I was more than okay with, that the focus remained on our main characters.

PSA this does not end on a cliffhanger with Malina and Julian getting an adorable ending. The main overarching plot will continue in the next book and I am so excited with that hint at the end!

Thank you to NetGalley and Bramble for supplying me with a copy of this title to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
Let me start by saying I have been a Juliette Cross fan for a very long time. Before anyone really knew who she was. I love her writing and her stories. This one had such promise with it's setting in the Roman empire to the fact that dragons were included as the new history. I was excited to see how the world was built and how Cross would bring the dragons into that time period.
Unfortunately, this one was just not for me despite the excitement I had to read it.
What I did like:
The prologue and what it could potentially mean.
The idea of the book and it's setting. This time period is very intriguing to me as I haven't studied as much as others. I was looking forward to learning more.
Dual point of view is always something that I adore. It helps me to understand the characters so much more when I get to be in their heads.
Men who become dragons. Yes, please! I love the idea of this transformation. And in the setting of war it's that much more fascinating.
What I was not fond of:
I'm totally and completely surprised there were no trigger warnings at the beginning of this book. I do not have any TW myself, but the contents of this book and quite a few of it's themes will definitely trigger some people. I know this is an ARC but at this point in the publishing phase, when they know exactly what the book contains, TW should be offered.
The world building just was not there. I didn't understand how the dragons were part of the world. Seeing as in history there were no dragons during this time period, I needed to truly see how things fit. The prologue did give us some understanding of it but the world building stopped there. Then the book became a journey of the romance. Don't get me wrong, I love romance and especially romantasy, but there has to be a story line to go with it. At over halfway through the book, I was still struggling to figure out just exactly what that storyline was. And when we were given any snippets of what the war was about, the information was told to us rather than shown. I was also confused by the magic in the book. I have no idea what it is about or how the system works.
I needed more character development. Same as with the world building, the characters were never shown to us but rather we are told about them over and over again from the FMC or MMC's point of view. While the dual point of view usually works for me, the characters didn't seem all that different when they were narrating, Their voices were practically the same.
The romance was also just not there for me. I needed chemistry between these two characters and by the time we had our first spicy romantic scene, I still didn't feel it. The FMC kept saying she was attracted to him, but it was never shown. Same with the MMC.
Finally, the pacing was just slow. I felt like nothing was happening. I found myself skimming paragraphs of narrative so I could get to the dialogue in the hopes of getting some information.
Overall I just felt like this book needed so much more tightening and fleshing out. I'm sad I didn't like it but I do see it's gotten many good reviews and I'm sure others will enjoy the story.
DNF at 60% but wanted to give my feed back here. I will not be featuring this one my socials or my blog.

This book was intense from start to finish, and I loved every second of it!!

A Roman general with a deadly secret and a powerful witch with an unexpected destiny are drawn together in a world where dragons rule and war rages.

This story had everything I wanted. Fated mates, dragon shifters, and magic blended into a romantasy that kept me hooked!

The tension and high stakes made it impossible to put down. I binge read the whole thing and now I need the next book immediately!

If you enjoy fantasy romance filled with action, destiny, and dragons, this is a must-read.

Thank you NetGalley and Tor for the ARC!

Warning to everyone, though.. this is a DARK Romantasy. I feel like Brambl may not be doing the best at marketing this. Because I see a LOT of reviews that are dogging on it for the dynamic in here.

It's not supposed to be comfortable. It's not supposed to feel good. So I don't know what to tell you. But this trilogy as a whole is gonna be about liberation and change in Rome.... so maybe give it some time?

But again, if a Master/slave scenario in Ancient Rome, where they fall in love isn't gonna work for you... maybe... DON'T read it? And then completely dog on it for being exactly what it is... 😅😅

Anyway....

I had a fucking BLAST! This was sexy, intriguing, intense, and dark. I was here for every second of it. I just meant to read it for a little bit today, to get it started and I finished it all in one setting!

I love Juliette Cross’ Stay a Spell books, so with that cover and a new romantasy concept, Firebird became one of my most anticipated reads of the year. Roman general and nephew to the emperor Julianus, a dragon shifter, was enthralled by dancer Malina, and when he finds her years after meeting her, he knows she belongs to him and his dragon. Malina has lost so much, but now under Julian’s protection, she feels her magic surge, and as the political climate grows in hostility and violence, they will do anything for each other and for peace. This is a fated mates, dragon shifter, magic romantasy read. It is steamy and it’s sexy. It’s set in the Roman Empire and there’s a lot of political unrest and intrigue. Malina is owned by Julian, and I did feel really aware of their power imbalance, but I loved how Julian respected Malina and her powers. They trust each other and there’s a tenderness in how they love each other that’s really romantic. There is an insta love element in this that I usually don’t go for but the fated mates element is something I’m a sucker for. I thought Malina’s magic was really interesting, but I did get a little lost in how some of the dragon shifting worked. But Julian is such an alpha and he’d do anything for Malina, and I loved he treated her as his equal, that she was powerful too. I did want to really love this, but it fell a little flat for me. The mythology elements were super intriguing and I did enjoy it and I’ll definitely keep reading it, I just wanted a little more from the story as a whole.

Malina, a Dacian dancer, has a magical gift that has branded her a witch among the Roman armies that have heard of her: she can make entire legions turn and run home. She's an empath, and she can bind and manipulate emotions. But there's no need for her to manipulate Julianus Dakkia, legendary dragon general, who once watched her dance with her sisters, and bestowed her a precious gift. Years later, he captures her in battle, and his inner dragon recognizes her as his. But Julius is the nephew of the Emperor of Rome, and he's caught up in a complicated web of politics that makes protecting a powerful captured slave girl an almost impossible task.

This was one of the more compelling romantasy books I've picked up recently (and weirdly my 5th book with ties to the Roman Republic/Roman Empire in 2025, and it's only March). Firebird is a book that you can really just pick up and binge: the fantasy elements are interesting but uncomplicated, and the worldbuilding is well-constructed for an easy read. Juliette Cross is clear that she's taken liberties (beyond using dragon shifters and magic) in her borrowed historical setting, which helped establish my expectations.

Julius and Malina are enemies, of course, because of their relative positions in the Roman Empire. That said, I found that the charm of the book was less about their status as enemies. It's implied early, and confirmed later, that they are fated mates, and while there is caution to the relationship because of Malina's status as a slave that Julius owns, the conflict is almost entirely external to the relationship. Malina sees Julius's character early enough in the book to shift to his side against the true evil: the emperor and his second favorite general. Cross does an excellent job balancing the importance of the romantic arc alongside the plot arc, which I often find rare in romantasy. Julius is the right level of possessive alpha dragon shifter for me, because while he's domineering, Cross tones him down on the battlefield. Likewise, Malina is a strong character herself, whose unique power is neatly woven into her character rather than sitting on top of her like a mantle.

I found myself shifting between audiobook and text as I read, because I found I couldn't pull away from reading it. It's presented in dual narration, and I found that Blair Dade and Kale Williams fit their roles well.

3.5 rating.

Intertwining dragon shifters with the Roman Empire was a compelling choice, and I believe the author crafted a decent plot around it.

The Characters:
I liked Malina and Julian, but I felt that Julian's character was not fully developed. Malina wasn't as annoying as many female characters in romantasy can be. She was snarky, but given how her life was upended, I think I would have been cursing people out too. On the other hand, Julian came across as somewhat incomplete. As a top, calculating general, he seemed distant and unsure at times, which felt inconsistent.

The Romance:
The romance was just okay for me. I didn't sense a genuine connection between Malina and Julian. Their first encounter sparked some intrigue, but when they met again, it was in a situation where Julian held power over Malina (a master/slave dynamic), making their romance feel inauthentic. I wish the author had approached this power dynamic with more nuance. I understand the context of Romans and slaves, the brutatlity of that era but Julian was his uncle's nephew. Couldn't he have used his words to stand up for Malina? It felt underrepresented, especially with the larger plot involving the coup against his uncle.

The Magic Element:
Honestly, the magic aspect was lackluster. We didn't see enough of Malina's magic on page. She was supposed to be powerful, but she barely knew how to use her magic, and when she did, it didn't meet my expectations. Julian's ability to shift into a dragon was the most interesting magical element in the story. I appreciated the background on the different dragon houses and their colors, but I wish we had more context about how the Romans could become dragon shifters in the first place.

I wasn't a fan of the ending of Firebird, as it felt rushed and incomplete. We are left with an unresolved coup, so I would like to see how the author addresses that in the next book. I don’t think there was a good balance between the couple's romance and the overarching plot.

In the end, this was an okay read. For future books, I would like to see more development of the main couple's romance and their relationship in general, as well as better use of the witches' magic on page.

A stand out romantasy in a world of at times repetitive plots.

I loved this book. Juliette Cross never fails to deliver a unique and thoughtful story. I loved how attentive to historical details she was in this while still providing all the fun romance tropes and swoony bits we know and love. I loved rooting for not just Malina and Julian but the people around them and the world they're trying to build. Can't wait for book 2!

Unique, vivid, and sweet Firebird is a favorite of the year for sure.

I read this in 1 day and was on the edge of my search to find out what would happen next! Loved this story it was Fantasy but had many mythology retelling types of elements. Romans have taken over many people groups and countries but this this time they are dragon shifters 😅 They did not stick the landing unfortunately. This was shapping up to be a 5 star read and was fully prepared to give it that rating by 3/4 of the way through. But the ending made no sense and felt like a different writter almost. But It gets a 4 star because it was mostly incredible and who knows? Maybe book 2 will make up for the fumble!

Did not finish book. Stopped at 52%.
this book is pretty bad. writing style is very basic. mmc is a “good slave owner.” tension sucks. very boring. very straight.

Firebird is a romantic and dark Romanesque inspired dragon romantasy. Malina has unique magic that saved her from an untimely death throughout her past and the story. Julian, a dragon shifter, is Cesaer's highest general, making him and Malina true enemies. Their love feels a little insta-love but the world building is lush and captivating. I would've loved to have more depth to the story and their love story. Overall, I would recommend this book to my customers. I am excited for book 2!

Amazing! I was totally invested in this tale with its nods to Ancient Rome, DRAGONS, and a fierce heroine who loves deeply! I cannot wait to see what’s next!