Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ALC.

Please note, this rating is based on the content of the book and not the performance of the ALC.

This books is not for me. This book features a MMC who enslaves a woman…. Who is a minority. At one point he is attracted to her when she is a minor as well. I could not get past these two facts and it made the rest of the book rough. Any relationship between a “master” and a “slave” would not be positive as the “slave” could not consent. Just a not.

Firebird
By Juliette Cross
Narrated by Blair Dade; Kale Williams
3.5 ⭐️

*This book has a prominent slavery dynamic that will not be for many readers regardless of how morally noble the MMC reveals himself to be. I didn’t find slavery to be romanticized. It made me wholly uncomfortable as it should.

So, the Holy Roman Empire is most definitely not my Holy Roman Empire. Nor is a slavery trope. I don’t gravitate to most of the themes in this story, and yet, I still liked it overall. I really liked Malina, the dragon shifter concept/execution, and the mythology of different cultures within the Roman Empire. Julian/Julianus doesn’t do much for me beyond being a dragon shifter at this point. The fact that he excused his compliance with the status quo is a huge negative for me. His character may develop into something more I suppose. His BFF that concocts a revolution with him has more charisma to me than he does. I was also lukewarm on the plot overall. It didn’t lean far enough away from “terrible leader and his terrible minions, must over throw them” for me. I wanted a bit more from Cross in that department. I enjoyed the audiobook. I like the dual narrators (thank you!) and think they helped me stay present in the story. I’ll likely stick with the series at this point and reevaluate after book 2.

Thank you NetGalley, Juliette Cross, and Macmillan audio for an audiobook ARC. (Also purchased with my own money 💸)

DARK Romantasy with spice. Roman mythology.
For the dark romance girlies who like fantasy, it’s Master/salve so if you’re sensitive to that this book isn’t for you. I enjoyed the story and underlying plot. The spice was good. The ending definitely set it up for a the next book but it doesn’t end on a crazy cliffhanger.

wow! this was such a pleasant delight. i went in blind and honestly binged it in less than 24 hours! the audio was extremely well done. the narrators brought this book to life. such a unique book that felt very fresh and entertaining. there were some moments where i felt the romance was a bit rushed… i was hoping for a bit more yearning or pining. it felt like we jumped right into them becoming mates. i wish it was a bit of a slower build up to that. over all had a great time!

I unfortunately did not connect with this book. I was excited that there were magic and dragons but the whole body slave thing made me feel icky.
I am still grateful to have had an opportunity to read this early.

This book has an interesting take on fantasy romance. It is set during the Roman Empire yet in an alternate universe where dragon shifters exist. It starts with a dancer, Malina, who captures the attention of the nephew of the emperor, Julianus. Years later, he comes across her in a battlefield, her life in danger; Julian shifts into his dragon form to save her. Julian and his dragon form find that Malina is their bond. She becomes his slave, who only takes care of maid-like duties, meanwhile finding each other as fated mates during time of war.

I’m not going to lie, I loved the idea of this story but it was just not for me. I had a hard time letting go of the actual history, and seeing them as dragon shifters. The political intrigue was so intricately rooted into the Roman Empire and it was fascinating to read. Another thing I had difficulty with was the slave aspect. It may be part of history, but I did not like how she was his slave and it really felt like she had no choice as I did not see their relationship blossom as naturally. I did not find that had any chemistry making it harder for me to believe she made this choice for herself. I’ve seen other ARC reviews that absolutely loved this book, and I can see why, but again, I am not the target audience for this book.

Firebird is the first book I've read/ listened to by Juliet Cross, and I have to say that I enjoyed it quite a bit! As far as the narration goes... Absolutely amazing! Blair Dade and Kale Williams are both masters of their craft. I heard the emotion in every word and felt like they connected with the charters and the story.
As far as the story itself goes, there are a couple of things I think could have been fleshed out a little more. The first is the world building. It's just not "quite there." I also struggled a little bit with the ease at which the MFC acquiesced to the " tether " with the MFC, even though he's supposed to be her master. She was smart and seemed to examine how she was feeling and what her reactions were before acting on them, so I struggled a bit with that. But I did enjoy her personality. Also, I am a huge sucker for dragon shifters, so I was absolutely hooked finding out the MFC and many of the main characters were shifters! Who doesn't love a dragon shifter who is uncontrollably in love?
I would rate the spice rounded up to 3 out of 5.
I appreciate the advanced listener copy from MacMillan Audio

Maybe this is on me but I had no idea that this was a slave x slaver.

I never rate books that I DNF but this made me so so uncomfortable. I feel like the marketing needs to be MUCH MUCH clearer. I only made it about 15% before I had to stop.

I think this was a good fantastical retelling of Ancient Rome. That being said, be warned that slavery is a major part of this story, and rape is heavily implied.

Malina was a decent FMC to follow. She had a relatively well-founded backstory, and I think what we're missing from it will come up in the next book(s). As far as romantasy FMCs go, Malina strays a bit from the norm. She's not a stabby FMC if that's your thing. It isn't mine, so I found her to be refreshing. By no means is she meek and submissive, though... she just takes her time to plot before striking.

Julian, however, is your typical romantasy MMC. Tall, dark, and morally grey. Honestly, I don't really have much to say about him. Not super memorable in terms of book boyfriends.

The plot contains a lot more political intrigue than battles. If you're like me and love court politics, you'll probably enjoy this. If you're more of a blood and gore type person, you will get your fix, but you may be left wanting.

Will I continue the series? Unclear. But the book did its job and entertained me in the moment.

This will be the next big dragon book!! This story had me hooked since the prologue and it was incredible. I was originally nervous about the slave master/slave dynamic but it really wasn't an issue because Julianus never acted as a slave master.

I am glad that Malina was portrayed as feisty but she didn't act reckless. She was smart and calculating. I wish the plot had moved further in regards to the political maneuvering, but I understand this is just the beginning of the series.

Roman Empire for the Ladies? Maybe, yeah. Set in ancient Rome, but with a magic/dragon twist. Malina is a Dacian dancer who catches the eye of a Roman general, Julianus Dakkia. He bestows upon her a special talisman before they part ways and he returns to war. Fast forward four years and Julianus once again finds himself crossing paths with Malina, of all places, on a Roman battlefield and her life is in peril. Instinctually, Julianus shifts into his dragon form to save her. Now she is his. Malina is taken as a slave to serve Julianus in his home as his Body Slave. Soon though, they find that there is much more to their relationship than Master and Slave. Excitement ensues. With evil emperors, plotting generals, forbidden dragon riding, and "steamy" sexy time, this story captures quite a few of the more commonly seen fantasy tropes. I have to say, it's a bit predictable but the storyline is interesting enough to continue reading.

What did I like?
The ancient Rome setting.
The shape shifting humans to dragons concept, as opposed to the more commonly used "separate entity dragon that bonds with a human". In this story, the human IS the dragon.
The scattering of humans bestowed with magical gifts from the gods.

What didn't I like?
It was predictable. But hey, sometimes that's a good thing.
The last hour or so (I listened to the audiobook) was painful and rushed at times. I felt like the submission deadline was looming and so it was finished in a hurry.
The sexy time scenes were over dramatized and less believeable. If I didn't know any better, I'd think an "alpha" male from the 80's wrote them. It was like I was reading an "It happened to Me" letter to the editor that mags like Penthouse used to have. <insert eyeroll here> What I'm saying is, that I didn't get drawn into the scene like I have with some other stories. I found myself rolling my eyes and wanting them to get it over with so the storyline would continue.

Overall, I was engaged enough to continue. But then, I don't like to DNR either. Would I read the next book? Maybe. As I previously mentioned, I really liked that it was set in ancient Rome. But am I clamouring for the next book in the series? Not really, no.

A bit about the audiobook narration:
The female narrator was enjoyable although a bit over-dramatized at times for my taste. I did NOT however, enjoy the male narrator. He sounded forced much of the time and his emphasise on some words, especially during intamate moments, became inappropriately laughable at times. I mean really, how many times can you say c#&K in one sentence before it starts to sound ridiculous and funny?

I loved this thrilling fantasy from Juliette Cross. While I’m a fan of her Stay a Spell series, they never quite reach the level of a favorite for me. I hoped for more from her in Firebird, as it is being packaged and pushed very differently, as a major fantasy release rather than a minor serial. I loved fantasy worldbuilding set in historical Rome. The incorporation of gods and dragons and witches is fascinating and well done. The tension had me worked up enough to need to put the book down several times. (or as Joey Tribiani would say, I had to put it in the freezer) I hate when books in a fantasy series really only give the reader half a book. While this is the obvious beginning of a series with a story that will continue, it does NOT end with a badly done cliffhanger. It has a satisfying enough ending for it to feel like the author gave us a fair story, yet still make me eager for the next installment. The narration by Blair Dade and Kale Williams was excellent.

3.5 ⭐️

🐉Dragon shifters x Ancient Rome
🏛️Politics
🔥Rebellion
⚔️War
❤️Fated mates
💪🏽Possessive and protective MMC
🐦‍🔥Strong and powerful FMC

I was drawn in by the cover and after reading the description I was even more intrigued.

I would definitely consider this a dark
romance 🖤

The master/slave dynamic was rather off putting. I do wish that it came with trigger warnings because I had no idea that was going to be a theme in this book. While it is done well, I can see how some would rather not read a book with this aspect.

If you’re going to read this book, I do think that the audiobook is the way to go. The dual narration and the way the narrators brought the characters to life and exemplified emotion made it an easy listen.

Thank you to NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Juliette Cross for the chance to listen to this AudioARC in exchange for a review 🖤

This audio was AMAZING!! I loved both the female and male voices, they really made the story come to life! I have a special connection to Medusa so I loved this idea that Medusa and her sisters were given powers, that then passed to other women, to punish evil men. I can’t wait for this book to release simply so I can read it again!

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan audio for this ARC.

Firebird by Juliette Cross is soooooo good. Comes out 4/8. If you haven’t preordered it, you should. It’s got dragon shifters, set in Roman times, different kind of magic system, slow burn romance, and 🌶️.

Would definitely recommend.

Set in the world of ancient Rome, Firebird offers a fantasy filled alternate framing of centurions by imagining them as dragon shifters. At the heart of the story is Julianus, general and nephew to Caesar, and Malina, the Dacian dancer and witch who has enthralled him since the moment he first saw her. Years later, after being captured on the battlefield, she's a salve in his house. But he treats her like anything but.

Read if you like:
-Dragon Shifters
-Ancient Rome
-Witches & Magic
-Enemies to Lovers
-Fated Mates
-Plotting and Scheming

I'm obsessed with Firebird! It's epic. Familiar yet new. Romantic and suspenseful. Be prepared to have this book be your new Roman Empire. Literally and figuratively. Malina was my favorite character. I loved her spirit and strength. And who wouldn't want a possessive dragon shifter like Julianus as a book boyfriend? While they were the focus of the book, Juliette also had a vibrant cast of supporting characters and left the overarching plot unfinished, setting the stage for more in this series. And this is definitely one you are going to want on your TBR.

This was a great book! I greatly enjoyed the unique storyline, the characters, and the overall themes and concepts for this novel. It was well thought out and well-written. I would be happy to pick up another book by this author. I also thought that the narrator did a strong job with this story, as well.

It was a good book but it didn't leave me wanting to finish the series. I might try something different from this author.

This was such a tension filled, edge of your seat, start to a series! I loved the fantastical take on the ancient times and the incorporation of dragons here. Fated mates is one of my favorite things and these two had the burning tension I needed to feel. I will definitely be reading more about them and I'm interested to see where this goes!
Thanks to Macmillian, Netgalley and Juliette Cross for an ALC.

I want to start off by saying I LOVED this story. This has a perfect blend of politics, alternate history, and slow burn romance, all blended together seamlessly. Juliette Cross does a wonderful job of recreating ancient Rome, but with dragons, and making it all work effortlessly in a way that doesn't bog down the story or overwhelm the reader.

In listening to the audiobook version, the readers selected for each of the characters do a spectacular job in their roles. Along with the story, I found myself easily sucked in and wanting more (it also made a 4 hour venture to the emergency vet go by very quickly, so I'm grateful for that as well).

I think the only reason I did not give this a full five stars, is because there is a scene that borders on sexual assault (not between the main characters), and there were no reader warnings at the beginning in regards to this. Yes, Roman history (even alternative) was brutal and I have read other graphic books, but even I was a little uncomfortable with this scene. For anyone who may have dealt with sexual assault in the past, this scene could be triggering, so I feel just even an upfront reader warning would be appropriate.

Thank you NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this audiobook.