Okay, where to start with this book...

A Fate Forged in Fire is an Adult Romantasy novel, following our main character, Aemyra, a female heir to the throne.
Here is what I like about the book:
- The matriarchal society. Once a strong MAtriarchy, the fantasy world in which the story is set is slowly crumbling with the influx of non-magic wielders and wielders alike who are slowly changing faith to the 'true religion' which is more patriarchal and diminished the roles that the women have held. The religion started to rear its head in ti Tiene, where the story is set, which hadn't had a female royal until out dear Aemyra came along.
- I liked the worldbuilding in the story. While it initially confused me, the more I read, the better I understood. There are separate territories for each specific element wielder, and any wielder who had bonded to an animal could not travel these borders. I would love to see some more of the other territories in late books too.
- Aemyra. She is 26 and has trained her whole life to take her rightful place on the throne. the plan falls through and she lands herself in a series of obstacles and betrayals throughout the book. I loved that her character was well-rounded and well-developed - she seemed human, and this was shown through her interactions with characters (she did piss me off at some points of the story, however.

Things that could be improved:
- The romance. I did like Aemyra and Prince Fiorean eventually, but i feel the transition between hate to lovers was far too abrupt. There was some insta-lust after their first few encounters, which seemed out of place when they had done nothing to garner such interest. I did like how it ended up though, with the relationship developing somewhat naturally.
- The royalty system. It is my belief that the royals (who are all apart of the same clan and hence related?) share similar physical traits, the most notable being the fiery red hair). This may be to my own interpretation, but does that insinuate that Prince Fiorean and Aemyra are related??
- The magic. I loved the explanation of the magic system, but i feel as if some more information on how it manifests, how its controlled etc would add more to the story
- The true religion. The followers of the true religion seemed to thawrt Aemyra at every step, form their inces, to ingested powders and more. I think some more depth into there cure all magic repellent would be useful, and make it appear to be more than a convenient plot point

In summary, I really enjoyed this book. My critques are on minor aspects of the storyline, which i think would further improve the story. I like the plot, an the twist at the end. I will definitely be anticipating the next instalment, and all the more to come from HAzel McBride.

3.5/5 stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House publishing for the opportunity to read and review this arc

I'm going to be brutally honest and say that this book just didn't do it for me. I'm so sorry. I would have DNF'd at the midpoint if this wasn't an ARC and I felt obligated to finish.

I really, really liked the premise-- a hidden queen with fire magic and a dragon, rising up to reclaim her throne?! SOLD. Unfortunately, the MC drove me crazy. She continued to make selfish, reckless mistakes time and time again, landing herself in situations that could have been easily avoided. And what's worse is that she never seemed to learn from her mistakes; she did the same thing over and over again. I also didn't buy the romance. It came on way too fast and hinged on an all-too-convenient miscommunication trope where the guy is portrayed as being a bad guy at first but then it turns out it's all just a quickly forgivable misunderstanding.

There was so much potential for this book to be centered around a strong, savvy queen who was the one maneuvering others, rather than being the one being continuously outmaneuvered due to her own thoughtlessness. The worldbuilding is interesting, and there's a ton there for the author to dig into in future books. But while I'm sure there is absolutely an audience for it, but that audience just isn't me.

Perhaps one reason for this is because my impression of the book when I requested was that it was adult fantasy. It reads as YA to me. If I'd known that, I either wouldn't have requested, or I would've adjusted my expectations accordingly. In adult fantasy I expect characters not to thoughtlessly rush into situations time and time again, and that when they do make mistakes, that they learn from them. I didn't see that here in any form and ultimately that was the reason I would have DNFed.

2 stars for an intriguing world and premise, but I knocked off 3 stars because of an MC I couldn't root for and a romance that felt way too convenient and rushed.

This was a strong start to the duology, the world worked well overall and enjoyed the overall feel of this and how it worked in this universe. The concept was everything that I was looking for and had that fantastical element that I was expecting. The characters worked well in this universe and was enjoying the romance element. I’m excited to read more in this world.

This book blew me away with its rich world, complex characters, and captivating romance. The worldbuilding unfolds naturally, allowing us to absorb the political intrigue and magic without feeling overwhelmed. Aemyra’s relationships, especially with her twin Adarian, add warmth and depth that’s often missed in romantasy, and her dynamic with Fiorian is slow-burn perfection for “enemies to lovers” fans. The magic, especially the dragons bonded to their elemental users, feels both fresh and classic. I only wish there was more interaction with the dragons, but their presence still adds weight to the story.

4.5 stars
This was amazing. I really loved the Celtic inspired world that was so rich with history and folklore. There’s rival clans and elemental magic and an inevitable war where the main characters must choose between right and wrong. This is has a ton of world building and a lot of build up but it’s so worth it. Once it gets to the action and romance, you are already so invested that it’s impossible to put it down. This was a truly unique dragon book that stood out from other dragon fantasy books I’ve read. I loved the bonds between the dragons and riders. If you’re looking for a book with your favorite tropes done right, this is the book for you. True enemies to lovers, slow burn, arranged marriage, and lots of knife to throat scenes, the list goes on and on. This had the perfect balance of plot and romance and I will be highly anticipating the sequel.

Thank you so much Netgalley and Penguin random House!

This book is fantastic and so entertaining, so much so that I gave up all other responsibilities to finish this in a day!
This is the perfect blend of Scottish Avatar: the last air bender meets Game of Thrones!

Tension is present right at the start for Aemyra, and all of Tir Teine. A poison has slowly taken over the world in the form of the True Religion, a patriarchal religion that believes that magic is evil, and that women are mothers first and only. Tir Teine is one of the last kingdoms still following the goddesses and the turmoil this causes for the poor citizens suffering within the kingdom is felt from the start.
Aemyra is very arrogant and angry at the beginning of the book. She trained in secret her whole life to be queen and isn’t afraid to fight for what she believes in. Which makes for a lot of entertainment, when she meets equally arrogant Prince Fiorean. The tension between them is present from first interaction and pure perfection!
This book is fast-paced with no real lulls in action!

Between the romantic tension, hidden royalty, mythical beasts and religious cult, there really is something for everyone in this book!
I need the next one already because that ending was devastating!

Let's start this review off with the fact that I have never gotten a book I was soo hyped about regardless if I got an ARC to it or not. As I read it all as an ARC, my opinions are mine and I am soo grateful for the Netgalley and publishers Random House Publishing&Delacorte Press so I could sink my teeth into it already now AND I am definitely also buying it once it comes out as this read is bookcase trophy worthy and I'll reread it for sure before the next one comes out!
I have noting negative to say, and if you read some of my other reviews I can be pretty brutally honest if something bothers me even about books that I like a lot. But the biggest things I enjoyed here was the worldbuilding, magical systems, character and ofc the plot itself. As a person who loved House of the Dragon & Game of Thrones but never got into the books as it was bit too much for me, this hit just the spot with the story and the politics were comparable to what I loved in these shows. I think it gave a really good balance of all the aspects of the story and knowing what was poisoning the world and court from inside out when Aemyra reached it.
The worldbuilding and magic was complex, but it was so well woven into the story and I never felt like it was info dumped onto me, but I only just wanted to see more of this magical world in its entirety. I think focusing on one of the clans at a time was what made grasping the world easier and I also see it with the antagonist for the story how the other clans and elemental courts can become more relevant later on.
The characters, side characters especially, were so well introduced and explained to us readers even though we didn't spend much time with them on-pages, as a reader I got a really great sense of what they mean to Aemyra and also I felt super protective over her twin Adarian and was holding my breath several times during the story as i know from other fantasy books, close relatives are great targets.... When it came to Fiorian, I loved him and Hazel got the morally gray character who is cracking and becoming warm SO RIGHT and i felt like I was there just as Aemyra was leaning into the newness of their dynamics. I love that nothing was rushed between them and that she never lost herself in this and yeah, I dont think she is your normal hero either. She grew up as a weapon for her father who definitely is morally grey character, and I think her father and herself too have so much good in them, but also they are warriors in a war and probably that leads them to tough decisions also in the future. I would have loved if he'd kill the main priest whatnot though....he truly deserved it.

Overall I adored this book, and ofc I took notes during my read that are kinda fun to read once I've finished the book. I'll add to these after publishing as some things in the notes were definitely spoilery
24% We love a bi-fighter, weaponmaster (blacksmith) & hopefully a queen! Also seeing the House of the Dragon vibes, love it!
56% They are like two peas in a pod, but not seeing it themselves 😂 Anyhow i love how similar they are
68% I literally just highlighted most of one page 😂
84% I am as feral for them as they both are

A Fate Forged in Fire follows the story of Aemryn, the true heir to the throne, biding her time before she can unleash herself and take her rightful place as queen.

I thought the concept of the book was wonderfully done. I love that it was Celtic inspired, and that the author (to my knowledge and understanding) used it respectfully in her book. I also absolutely appreciated the pronunciation at the end of the book, and how careful the author was in explaining the difficulty in pronunciation.

Now, onto the book. Personally, I didn’t like the personality of the FMC. I don’t think her behavior was unprecedented, but I also think the arrogance she had was just too much. Because she knew she was the true queen, her ego was entirely too big. However, again, with what her upbringing, it isn’t surprising she’d be like that. It just got too annoying for me at times, like the way she directly put her and her family at risk by insulting the priests or the princes.

I don’t really have any good choice words for the MMC. I thought he was hot, but his sexism/misogyny put me off a lot. On the one hand, he took his duty seriously to protect the FMC, but on the other, he put her down constantly, demeaned her, and looked down on her simply for her gender. And that betrayal at the end? It’s not just the FMC he needs to grovel to, if I have anything to say about it.

Another thing I appreciated about the author were the trigger warnings, particularly for the sexism and misogyny. What happened to Aemryn broke my heart, but I also liked how it wasn’t the universal mindset. The author did a good blend of “this group thinks women should be subservient” and “this group thinks women are better, if not equal”. Aemryn’s feminist qualities were also very well done; she emphasized choice every time she talked about women and why matriarchy was better. I liked how she didn’t look down on women who bore children or were subservient if they wanted to be, but rather emphasized the choice in the matter.

Anyway, I didn’t exactly vibe with the romance. Even though it took its time, I thought its appearance was a bit too abrupt. Also, are we going to pretend this man hadn’t killed your family? Yes, he actually didn’t, but when she was thirsting over him, she didn’t know he truly hadn’t. And then he used that against her. Hmph.

All in all, I give this book a solid 4 stars, and demand I get book two instantly 😔

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review. This was one of my most anticipated reads of 2025 and when I tell you I almost screamed when I got approved for the arc!

This gets a strong 4.25 stars for me and is such a promising debut. If you love House of the Dragon, Aemond Targaryen specifically, and the show Reign, I recommend looking into this.

This is a romantasy, but it is a romantasy where the author really tried to build a plot and world too. The first 50% really tried to build the story and a believable enemies to lovers set up, and I appreciate that. I foresee some people struggling with the crumbs of the romance in that half, but I personally liked it as a reader who doesn’t want to romance shoved down my throat from the beginning like I’m stupid. I won’t call the pacing perfect, but for the most part I think she worked with it well.

This has a male lead I loved. Which is to be expected, as I picked it up promised Aemond Targaryen vibes. She delivered.

I can’t wait for my preorder to get here so I can have a beautiful physical copy!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
🌶🌶
🔥🔥🔥.5

Aemyra, our FMC, has been hiding her whole life, waiting for the day that she will fight to take back her throne. What she did not account for was Prince Fiorean, and his plan to to stop her from taking her place as the rightful queen, and freeing her people from the mad king.

When I read the summary, I was really excited for this book, and when I was given the ARC, I jumped right in. This book holds all the classic tropes, with a strong plot of political and religious intrigue. The plot is the main part of this fantasy, and the romance does very much taken second place. You only get the POV (third person) from Aemyra, and I was really wishing we would get some random POV's from Fiorean, but it did not take away from the book with the lack of his POV. You really get to read about the battles and strategies Aemyra must take to not only save her life, but her people's as well. Her need to help her people outweighs any animosity she has towards her enemies and she will always put them first in any of her decisions.

The enemies-to-lovers trope is real in this book. When I think of enemies-to-lovers, this would be it! This is not an insta-love book, but very much a slowwwww burnnnn. I would even reach to say that they are enemies for a majority of the book, and I mean the majority. But, that just makes the flirty banter that much more 🔥.

There are still many parts we are missing in the story, and that cliff hanger...I am so happy that I was able to read this early, but now I am so upset I will have to wait so long for book 2! 😢

If you are into fantasy, independent strong FMC's, great banter and true enemies to lovers, this is definitely something to add to your TBR!

<u>Tropes:</u>
🐉 Dragons 🐉
✅ Marriage of Convenience
✅ Magic 🔥🌊🌬🍃
✅ Touch her and 💀
✅ Bi FMC
✅ ⚔️ Stabby/Badass FMC ⚔️
✅ Grumpy MMC
✅ Witty Banter
✅ Slow Burn 🔥🔥🔥🔥
✅ Knife to throat 😏
✅ Betrayal 🤯 😭😠🤬
✅ TRUE Enemies-to-lovers
✅ He falls first
✅ No OW/OM drama
✅ Cliffhanger *you have been warned*

*There are some dark moments in this book, so make sure to check the triggers*

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Thank you Random House Publishing and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I am 100% sure this will become a phenomenon as soon as it is officially published, booktok will eat this up instantly.
This book was SO GOOD. It is high fantasy, which I love, and has very rich world building that is not so complicated as to be a bother, you might have some problems in the beginning due to the amount of different words but just go with it and you will understand everything eventually. Some of it was a little overboard in my opinion, like the use of words like caisteal and breithday instead of the normal English words, but since it is done in moderation it was fine.
One of the things I would like to point out is how much I enjoyed the family dynamics, I feel like they are sometimes overlooked in romantasy because the focus is the romantic relationships, but I loved her family with all their little quirks, and don't even get me started in the twins. I want the next book asap just to see more of Aemyra and Adarian's relationship, I love them so much.
But it is a romantasy, and it deserves the name, the way the enemies to lovers is developed and you can feel the little changes in their perspectives is delicious to read. There are some dialogues between them that were absolutely fantastic, I wish I could post many lines here because they are that good.
I also like the conflict. It's so common to have enemy nations or civil war that I find it really cool to have also a religious plot going on, even if it drove me mad and I just wish Aemyra could burn them all to the ground. While in this topic, I recommend checking trigger warning, the book starts with a list(very wise decision), because there is a scene towards the ending that is quite heavy.
I saw it is compared to Fourth Wing and Sarah J. Maas and while I agree in some aspects I also think you might like it even if you don't enjoy those books.

Again, thank you Penguin and Netgalley for the ARC!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for providing me with an ARC in exchange for a honest review.

I wanted to start by emphasizing that you should take this review with a grain of salt. I've recently been disillusioned with the romantasy genre. I feel like I've read too many versions of the same story/characters, and 'A Fate Forged in Fire' doesn't bring anything fresh to the narrative. I know that there are people who love to read the same ‘enemies to lovers’ story with different characters, but unfortunately I am not.

All that said, I believe this book has a lot going for it. The world-building and politics were captivating, the plot was intriguing, and the writing was decent. I particularly liked the fact that the main character was bisexual (or, I assume, bisexual).

I know that this book will be very popular among the Romantasy readers and I do recommend it to anyone who is a fan of the genre, but for me personally, I felt like it didn’t offer anything new.

A Fate Forged in Fire is Hazel McBride's debut fantasy romance book. Set in fantasy Scotland, the story follows Aemyra, a blacksmith who is fighting for her right to her throne in the background of a crumbling matriarchal society and the rise of a patriarchal religion. The world building is vast and intricate and while we're only focusing on one region, I can see the complexity of the wider world.

AFFF tackles many issues such as feminism and misogyny, however never to a depth that isn't superficial. We surely see the issues of a woman's right to their body and Aemyra does have that "feminine rage" aspect of her character, and there is a scene where do see Aemyra's right to her body being violated, but I would have liked the author to go a little deeper.

The enemies to lovers dynamic is done well. Aemyra and Fiorean really do hate each other and spend a good portion of the book trying to kill each other. But while Aemyra follows the stock character of "badass, angry, good with a sword, sarcastic" fantasy romance heroine that we see in a lot, Fiorean isn't as strong as an MMC or even as a villain. Their attraction to each other was immediate and on paper and I could see that the first book is going to follow the enemies to attraction/lust trope. I just think Fiorean needed a little more developing to be an intriguing MMC, and he might be one in the sequel. I liked that there was a significant portion spent developing Aemyra's background and her relationship with her father and her adoptive parents.

In terms of pacing, it follows the trajectory of a YA novel and there were times that I did think that this would fare better as one. If you take out the explicit sexual scenes, which I did not think added any value to the actual plot, and the crass language, I think the fast-paced, non-stop action does better for the younger adult audience. To have been suitable for an adult audience, it doesn't need to have explicit scenes, but rather an in-depth exploration of themes that I found a little missing here. Perhaps it's because this is a duology and so the author had to have that fast-paced nature to the book to cover as much ground as possible, but sitting at just 416 pages, the author could have spent 50 pages more (which is usually the standard for adult fantasy novels) really building Aemyra's arc and her relationship with Fiorean, as well as, its complex themes.

That being said, anyone looking for their next Romantasy book would love this. I will be reading the sequel.

Thank you Net Galley and the Publisher's for an arc!

This is an interesting book to review. The story is compelling and the characters are well written and complicated but wow this book is a gut punch and dark. I’ll say if you have any sort of religious trauma this book will be a tough read for you. I had to take a break or two myself while reading.

If you liked the Bridge Kingdom series and want more dragons, then this is a great book for you to pick up. We have a scramble for the throne, murky motivations, and a character chosen at birth to rule. The plot of this book was so well written. There were a few character choices that I didn’t understand at first but then as the story progressed and we learned more about everyone’s motivations things cleared up.

The magic system and dragons were presented in a new and refreshing way. I hope that in the next book we will see more of the other kinds of magic!

I expect that many people will rate this book higher than me. I rated four stars just because of how difficult some of the scenes were for me to read. This book is dark, and it did get to me at some points. It’s a testament to how well written is as it made me panic as it headed into some dark storylines.

A very compelling start to the series. I imagine that anyone looking for a complex world with lots of political intrigue will pick this up!

Oh my Goddess, that was a really good book! I am already itching to read the second one! It was fast paced and so enthralling. Had me hooked from the first chapter.

I do very much appreciate it the main character being a bisexual woman, whose sexuality is relevant through the book. I also appreciate it was written by a queer author.

I wish there was more diversity beyond that, there weren't any side characters who were noticably people of color. It felt like a very white book.

We also need to talk about how the MC and her love interest are distant cousins, to the point they have the same last name and near identical features. It's uncomfy.

The pacing of the second half of the book is a little too quick, choices are made that I wish had much more build up.

All of this said, as far as romantasy books go, it's an enjoyable read.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an early copy of this book! Below is my honest review.

Rating: 4 starts out of 5 stars

Summary of the plot:
Tir Teine used to be ruled by goddesses, queens, and their dragons until one generation decided to switch it up and put kings on the thrones. Ever since then, dragons have long disappeared except for three: two of which are bonded with the current royal family members and one is in the wild (called The Terror). Aemyra was born blessed by the goddess with the ability to control fire and bond with a dragon. For most of her life, she was kept hidden from the throne, training and waiting for her moment.

One day, the king dies and she and her father see this as an opportunity to seize the throne. But things don't quite go as planned, so Aemyra and her people go into hiding. But then she's able to bond with the Terror (renamed to Terrea) and tries to storm the castle to avenge her fallen family members. She's captured and forced to marry the prince, Fiorean. And as she tries to escape, she ends up catching feelings and learning more about the royal family.

Thoughts on the book:

Overall, this was a decent read. The beginning was a little slow for me, so I almost DNFed it. But I ended up finishing it and it was enjoyable. I will say, certain scenes/conflicts were resolved a little quickly in my opinion (example: how can Aemyra teach Fiorean so easily how to bond with his dragon when she had all of two seconds being with her dragon?), but I think the plot flowed nicely overall. I also didn't like how Aemyra is described as a "blessed blacksmith", but she only have one scene where she's doing blacksmith work? I would say she's more of a healer based on the scenes that she's in. Also the romance was a bit surface level, but I'm sure that will be developed more in subsequent books.

Aemyra is probably the strongest thing about this book. You can see that she sticks to her morals and her dedication to become a good queen, not one who rules with fear and violence, unlike how her father would like her to rule. I also enjoyed reading about how religion and sexism play a rule in society. Before, people used to worship the goddesses, but now people have been forced to convert to another religion. Also interesting to see the correlation between queens on the throne and dragons that remain alive (which we don't have an explanation as to why this is).

I don't really like how people compare this to Throne of Glass or Fourth Wing or really any popular series now. I don't think this book is anything like that. Sure, there's a secret queen involved like Throne of Glass and dragons like in Fourth Wing, but this book is its own plot and story. Therefore, if you did NOT like Throne of Glass or Fourth Wing, don't worry--this book may still be enjoyable to you!

You had me at Dragons!! This story was brutal, yet beautiful.
Aemyra is such a strong, fierce, and snarky character. The amount of empowering oneself and others in this book is everything.
The relationship between Aemyra and Fiorean is so strong! Their love/hate relationship keeps you on your toes and has you rooting for them to finally admit their connection.
If you like Fantasy, with a hint of romance, this book is for you!
Not to mention the cover is gorgeous! Can't wait to add this to my bookshelf!

When I said this book had me screaming!!! I quite literally finished it within 48 hours. A political fantasy with (proper!) Celtic influence, a true enemies to lovers relationship happening, and a plot that isn’t just a laundry list of people going places and doing things…this is really rare for me to love a dragon romantasy book. So if you love dragon books and felt that most of those type of books rely way too much on tropes and not much plot wise, you will love this.
As someone who hates almost 90% of dragon romantasy books that are marketed as “enemies to lovers” because it never felt like true enemies to lovers, I was FED. The two main characters, Aemyra and Fiorean were constantly trying to kill each other before eventually fucking ugh it was so great!
World building wise, you can tell this had a lot of Celtic influences through the use of religion, with a matriarchal pagan religion under attack from a monotheistic outside religion intended on destroying a culture. I hope that we seen other parts of the country in the second book, especially with that insane cliffhanger of an ending.
I’m just very annoyed I read this so fast cause who knows when the second book comes out.

This book is beautiful and brutal and tragic. The main characters are so endearing, you can truly feel the love and devotion they have for their families, and for their people. Aemyra is snarky and unyielding in her beliefs. I loved that she was always looking to empower herself and other women. She also goes through some truly dark emotional and physical traumas (that are detailed in the book, so read trigger warnings first) and is so resilient and strong despite all she faces. And I have such a soft spot for Fiorean with his caveman possessiveness and protectiveness of Aemyra, even though they're supposed to be enemies. The tension and angst between the two of them was perfection. The magic system involves elemental magic, and those with magic can strengthen it by bonding with a creature - DRAGONS in the case of our main characters. I wish we got a little more personality from the dragons, but otherwise I loved this book so much. The ending had me gasping. I NEEEEEED book 2! Thanks Netgalley and Random House for the e-ARC!