Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read this arc in exchange for an honest review.

wowowowow I loved this book! I could gush about it forever! I love a flawed MC and Talia embraced those flaws and came out stronger. The story was soo gripping with a blend of action, and romantasy in the best ways. The worldbuilding and the characters were captivating. I cannot wait to see what else this author comes up with!

The vibes this book gives off are immaculate! The tournament, the Divhs, the Houses, and the world as a whole were just *mwah* chef's kiss! Now, although the world building was beautifully done, I found the plot itself to be lacking. I found myself getting whiplash from how the plot would go from fast-paced to slower than a turtle. The feminist in me hated how patriarchal the society was. What do mean Talia was supposed to be killed just because she was the first-born girl?!? I wasn't a big fan of the romance in this either. Talia and Fortiss's love story seemed a bit shallow and rushed to me.
I would like to give a shoutout to Gent and Caleb; those two have my heart <3
This book did bore me a bit, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't intrigued by the ending. Now we wait for book 2.

Just wait.

It gets good after the first few chapters. The Magic and the world building is different than fantasy books I have read before but that doesn't make things bad, its world building! I like how it has a little bit of everything, an FMC that can show she can save herself, romance and characters with mystery to them that you don't trust. I enjoyed this book and can't wait for book 2 to come.

I never enjoy giving low review ratings, and here I’m only doing that because after multiple attempts to get into this book (over the course of a week only making it 10 chapters in), I had to DNF. I think it is very well written and there are many who would likely love it, it just isn’t for me. I am giving 3 stars because I refuse to give less and impact the overall rating negatively when I didn’t finish the book. If you like fantasy and battle and tournaments, you’ll likely enjoy this book.

Court Of Talons follows the story of Talia of the Tenth House as she struggles with the death of her brother, secretly bonding to a Divh (a monster that women are not allowed to bond with), and taking on her brother’s identity to fight in the Tournament of Gold. Along the way, she meets the dangerously handsome and powerful Fortiss of the First House, who might be the killer of her brother but also someone she is undeniably drawn to. Talia must keep her identity a secret while she uncovers who killed her brother and bring honor to her house. However, she discovers an even bigger secret along the way that could destroy the entire realm. Will she be able to survive and save everyone else?

This book was such a wonderful read. I actually really enjoyed the fact the book wasn’t mostly focused on Talia with a love interest (though we do get one) and we were able to see a main character who isn’t perfect but tries to learn skills that can help not only her but others as well. That being said, I did love her interactions with Fortiss and would love more interactions between the two.

I was captivated by the women in the story, who had to live in a realm that treated them as less than. Especially Talia who as a first-born daughter should have been killed, but stayed in the shadows so her younger brother could pretend to be the older of the two. Even with all the trauma she had suffered growing up, she still wanted to bring honor to her house even if it met her death. I loved how strong of a character she is and would be so interested in hearing about the other woman we meet throughout the story as well.

Other than the women, I loved the diversity of the characters. Caleb, Nazer, and even her Divh, Gent, all had such interesting personalities that made the story fun to read. I would love to hear more about Nazer’s background and what made him the priest of the Light that he is in the story.

I recommend this book for those who like secret identity, mystery, and tournaments but are not looking for a lot of spice. Thank you, Jennifer Chance and NetGalley, for providing me with this ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

This book was quite enjoyable. It was a little bit repetitive in some areas though. The romance was really sweet and I would highly recommend the book!

The books unique magic and world was a nice change, wonderfully unpredictable. I absolutely adore Nazar, Caleb and Gent! I’m all about the fact that this story is more about a woman who can save themselves, we need more of those. Nice reminders women are powerful and can do whatever they set their hearts too. 💕🫶

I will say it took about 12 chapters to really get into it, the plot would pick up and have me on my toes but then it would lose me again, Also the chemistry between the FMC and love interest felt like it was missing something, possibly because the world building was big and the romance kind of felt like it was fit into it but not one of the important details, I feel like the relationships with her friends grew beautifully, but the love interest left something to be desired. I also wanted to point out there are some moments where Talia repeated the same information a lot, but other than that I really did enjoy the book.

The villains have me wanting more info immediately, they seem new and unpredictable! I can’t wait to learn more about it all but especially The Court of Talons. The Talons have my heart and I’m sad I’ll have to wait to learn more about them but I’m happy to wait till book 2 🫶

I would like to thank Jennifer Chance and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this advance copy of Court of Talons. To the rest of you, Happy Reading 🥰

This is one of those books that doesn’t hook you until chapter 3. However once it gets going, there’s great world building and character development. I can’t wait for book 2 to be released! 

Thank you Oliver Herber Books for providing me an ARC!

I enjoyed this piece of literature and despite the repetitive information that Talia kept us reminding of over and over again, it didn't deter my enjoyment by that much (I mean, how many times are we going to be reminded that the FMC is there to buy soldiers among other things?)

This book for me is like a mix of Mulan and Pokemon; it's weird and I love it! Talia is a good protagonist to hang around and I really rooted for her and her actions as well the way she handled conflicts. Women in this book are treated poorly due to... well, something happened in the past because of pettiness and jealousy.

What kept me from giving this book a 5-star read is not only because of the repetitive information that our FMC will keep reminding us, but there are writing/creative decisions that I just wasn't really convinced with. For one, Talia's chemistry with Fortiss. With the way women were treated in this book, I was kind of skeptical if it will ever work out for her and Fortiss; I'm yet to be truly convinced of their budding relationship.

Another issue I had is about a certain tribe in the story where they were introduced, given a major backstory, and then they appear again during the last few chapters of the book. I felt like they were lacking and needed a bit more fleshing out despite their relevance in the story.

And finally, there was this councilor in the book that sounded like they were important, but their role kind of felt flat, I think? Almost like they didn't live up to the hype of their introduction. Like, for real I thought they were going to reveal something major about Talia but it turned out that they were just as surprised about a certain reveal and I was like ????

I like the other characters too like Caleb and Nazar, but nothing will ever top my love for our sweet baby boi cutie pie Gent! Despite being a behemoth, Gent has such a fun and unexpected playful personality to him! If anything happens to him I will kill myself and then society!!

Thanks to Netgalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

4⭐️2.75🌶️

NA Post Apocalyptic Fantasy
Coming of age
Patriarchal society
Twelfth night reimagining
Warrior FMC
Magical beasts/familiars
Secret identity
House government system
Tournaments

I just wish there had been a world map in my eARC.

This was an amazingly unique magic system. I immediately was drawn into the world where men ruled with iron fist. I haven’t read many twelfth night/mulan reimagining, so I was pleasantly surprised by this fierce FMC. Talia witnessing her little brother being killed, takes up his identity to find the murderer and bring honor and vengeance to her house was a great background story for the FMC.

I enjoyed the Divh and look forward to the back story and further worldbuilding when it comes to understanding them better. The side characters were well conceived and brought so much heart to the story. I find it still unclear the structure of the world outside of the tournament, but I’m sure that the next book will widen the lense of the book to give us a fuller picture.

Modern language and phrases at times, but the writing style was easy to read and get drawn into.

The love story was a little too insta for me. Claiming an intense connection with very little interactions or knowledge of each other.

I’m excited to see where this story goes.

Thank you NetGalley and Oliver Herber Books for an eARC of this book. All opinions are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a copy of this ARC!

The concept of Court of Talons is unique. The world building is done well. It's thorough but easy to understand, so I was able to get oriented in the book pretty quickly. Upon the death of her brother, Merritt, Talia assumes his identity and enters a competition to win soldiers and glory for her house (the Tenth House). The society is heavily male-dominated and Talia's success depends on her being able to masquerade as Merritt, who is the heir to the Tenth House. This is especially important with Fortiss, who met Talia right before Merritt died.

Talia takes on Merritt's Divh: Divhs are giant and powerful creatures that their owners can summon to wield using a mind-link. So yes, the premise is undoubtedly fascinating. It had similar vibes to Fourth Wing and especially Heavenbreaker in the way Talia interacts with and controls her Divh. In all three books, you see the main character navigating a newfound mind connection with a creature and bonding, training and fighting. There is also a shared theme of corruption among those in power and looming rebellions. Unfortunately, this book didn't deliver in the way that other, similar books did for me.

The plot was fast-paced and captivating in some parts but dragged on in other parts, such as during some of the trial games. The book might have benefitted if the stakes were a bit higher for the tournament and the consequences more dire.

The writing felt juvenile and clunky at times-- lots of exclamation points and dialogue that felt like it should've been an inner monologue instead. (Side note: the amount of times that the phrase "For all that [insert rest of sentence]" is written is kind of out of control; basically every other page. But this is just me being nit picky).

The romantic subplot was also lacking. I didn't see a deep chemistry between Talia and Fortiss and when things started to heat up it came out of left field. I was left wondering where in the world the things Fortiss was saying even came from because their interactions had been so limited.

I did really enjoy the side characters -- especially Caleb! He stole the show in every scene he was in and I loved how he treated Talia. Fortiss' character needed much more depth and I didn't feel much towards him. But Talia was a strong female character driven by revenge and rage, which I always love. Overall, it was an interesting premise but I didn't fully connect with the book.

I had the best time reading this book and it completely took me by surprise. Talia is such a strong and relatable character, in a male dominated society it was easy to root for her. Seeing Talia have to disguise herself as a man in her younger brother’s place reminded me of Mulan in the best way and the tournament plot was so entertaining. I loved how fleshed out the characters were and the found family aspect was well done too, i loved Caleb so much. The magical beasts called Divh’s bond themselves to the first born sons but Talia ends up connecting to her brother’s divh whose name is Gent. the romance was minimal but i liked Talia and Fortiss together. the end was so epic and I can’t wait to read the sequel!

This book is very plot driven, with a lot of world building filled with high-stakes action, deception, and intrigue. Talia of the Tenth House, is forced to masquerade as her murdered brother in a Twelfth Night scenario to win the Tournament of Gold, seeking answers and vengeance. Talia is given her brother warband, a power that connects her to a mystical Divh. I found this magic system to be the most interesting part of the book, the idea that they speak in each other's mind and fight that way. I hope to see the Divh get even more personality in book two. As she navigates battles and political conspiracies the tension was high as to whether or not she'd be discovered. Although I enjoyed the book and overall plot, I found the Talia a little underdeveloped and the romance between her and Fortiss felt very forced to me. I actually didn't like Fortiss very much throughout this book, but perhaps that was done purposely since you never know who to trust. I could have seen a more believable and fun relationship sparking between Talia and Caleb if he was older and written in a different way. I think that would have added some interesting comic relief too since he knows her secrets. I was also a bit confused that in the synopsis it reads:

"For twenty-one years, Talia of the Tenth House has been her house’s deepest shame. Now, she’s their last hope."

Yet Talia is only 17 in the book, so I went in thinking she'd be a bit older. I will definitely read book two to see what happens to our characters, but there were elements I wish had been better developed.

I struggled to get into this one. I really tried, because I love romantasy, but there was far too much world building. It detracted from the actual story and made it hard to connect with the characters

I love fantasy but I struggle when there is overly descriptive world building. This is one of those stories that was too detailed at times. I also felt like there was a little insta-love between the two MCs. That being said, I really liked Talia. I think she's a great FMC for a fantasy series and I would definitely be willing and excited to continue the series to see where her story is headed.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ You Should Read “Court of Talons” by Jennifer Chance

If you like…
* Badass females
* Lovestruck lords
* Mistaken identity
* Bonds with monsters
* Fierce battles
* Murder and mystery

HER:🩷
Told her whole life being a female makes her a disgrace, unworthy, and not enough, Talia disguises herself as a boy to prove everyone wrong.

HIM:💙
Heir to the kingdom, he may be a loyal and honorable Prince Charming, or he may be a cold-blooded killer. Either way, Fortiss is making it hard for Talia to keep her secret, and her heart.

THEIR STORY:📖
When her brother is murdered on the way to the Tournament of Gold, Talia unexpectedly bonds with his monster, which is a death sentence for a woman. Desperate to bring honor to her house and to avenge her brother, Talia disguises herself as a boy and competes in the tournament. Hiding her identity is harder than expected with Fortiss, the heir to the kingdom, getting closer to both her identities. He could be the one who stole her brother’s life. If he discovers her deception, he could steal her life as well. If he doesn’t steal her heart first.

Pre-order now (out 10/3/24):

https://amzn.to/3zoVK7W

Thank you to Jennifer Chance and #NetGalley for letting me enjoy an advanced copy of Court of Talons.

If you like who-done-its with save yourself females and impossible love mixed in, you want to read this book.

This was a fun read! I liked Talia and Fortiss together. I felt the pacing could be a bit off with certain things I would have liked to be explored further.

What a good book to get me into fantasy fall! Talia is my hero and i’m so proud of her 🥹 Gent is the biggest sweat heart and the coolest Divh she could have gotten!! what an amazing world to be emersed in!

The writing was good and there was a lot of world building. The author set the mystery around Talia’s brothers death and what was going on at the tournament and with the First House. Nazar and Caleb were interesting supporting characters but otherwise I felt mostly underwhelmed. This book was slow in parts, a little repetitive and at times kind of boring. The romance was completely lacklustre. I could not connect enough to Talia as the lead and not enough time was spent establishing Fortiss as a stand-alone character which meant I just did not care about them as a duo. That side of the plot was not developed well at all and things went from zero to full on in like a blink which was just not believable. Overall for me this was okay but others might enjoy it much more. 2,5 🌟

What a delightful read!
I love romantasy so I had high hopes for this new series and I was not disappointed.
Talia, our FMC, is a strong and fierce woman who is growing into a warrior as she seeks to avenge her brother's murder. However, there might be even greater dangers awaiting her than participating the deadly Tournament of Gold...
The characters and the world building are really intriguing and I cannot wait for book 2.