With a sibling rivalry that leads only to death, a dark and intricate magic system, rich North African-inspired world-building and history, a page-turning plot, and a palpable romance, A River of Royal Blood by Amanda Joy certainly has all the elements for a great story. Reading this book was enjoyable and definitely enthralling! At the end of the book, I was left wanting more.

“Even if I had to become the wicked girl of my nightmares, a maelstrom of marrow and blood, I would do whatever it took to stay alive.”

A River of Royal Blood follows Princess Eva who is born with the magick of marrow and blood. Though she hates this magick, she must learn how to use it if she wants to live and ascend to the throne, because Queens of Myre are chosen only through the Rival Heir tradition, a tradition where sisters fight to death. The thing is, before the tradition can even start, someone tries to kill Eva. Believing that it was her sister behind the attack, she decides to try and learn her magick if she truly wants to survive. Looking for a decent mentor is hard though, since her magick is rare and hasn’t been seen since the first ever Queen of Myre who had the same magick as hers. Fortunately, she finds Baccha, a powerful fey who also uses the magick of marrow and blood. And so, Eva’s journey to learning about her power and their history, and preparing for the Rival Heir tradition starts. The journey is not an easy one, though. Along the way, she encounters more assassination attempts, deaths, secrets, revelations, and a grand scheme that seems much bigger than Eva first thought of.

The characters were interesting, and it was enjoyable reading the story through Eva’s perspective. However, I do find myself wanting more of some of the characters, particularly, Eva’s sister, Isa. They didn’t talk much in the book, and although Eva’s flashbacks mostly consisted of memories with Isa, it would have been nice to see them interact in the present. I really wanted to feel and witness that sibling rivalry and how twisted and complicated their current relationship is because of the tradition. The same goes for other minor characters: Falun, Mirabel, Captain Anali, Aketo, and more.

The romance had just the right amount of tension and intrigue, and although I like Aketo and his chemistry with Eva, I can’t help but feel wary of his character. There might be more to his background and his intentions and let’s hope we learn more of that in the sequel.

My absolute favourite thing about this book is the world-building. The Queendom of Myre, and the entire world of Akhimar, has such a rich culture and history that had me so invested. As readers go along the story, they find bits and pieces of the world through the places, the paintings in the palace, the different races and tribes (human, bloodkin, fey, and khimaer). I also love how the readers learn the history of their world along with Eva. As she goes through her lessons with Baccha, Baccha shares with her stories of how their world came to be, how their country was established, how the queens and the deadly tradition started, and even the start of their magic system.

Embracing oneself is a big part of the overall theme of this book, especially in Eva’s character arc. Eva detests here magick because she had witnessed just how dangerous it can be, even with her loved ones. All throughout the book, it’s been mentioned and discussed how she needs to embrace her magick of marrow and blood because it’s a part of her, not just a tool to wield or control.

The plot was definitely a page-turner. I wanted to know more about Eva and her magick, and just how she’ll survive the tradition. There were a few plot twists that I had already seen coming, and perhaps it’s because I quickly spotted several foreshadowings, so those definitely took away the shock value for me. The ending also left many questions and new mysteries, and I’m both frustrated and excited because of it. I can’t help but feel like the story could have been longer, but at the same time I’m now excited to get my hands on the sequel and continue Eva’s journey.

(This review was first published on The Nerd Daily).