This was definitely a good domestic thriller (maybe better defined as mystery)? There were so many plot twists in the book, with some I excepted and some I didn’t. 

Overall, it was a page turner and I finished it pretty quickly. I really liked Skye’s character and the representation of someone with OCD and how it actually affects people. Obviously, Burke and Heather are harder to like, but they both develop throughout the story. 

I absolutely detested Heather honestly. The fact that she wants an upper class life without putting in any work just really annoyed me. And then she blamed it all on Burke, which just bothered me so much. 

The book ran longer than I thought it would. After some of the main reveals, I felt there was unnecessary filler at the end. 

With 2 million dollars being stolen, there’s no way the FBI would stop looking into this. With white collar crime in this amount, they would easily have perpetrated Heather. They don’t need to find the exact way they got the money to persecute them and she would have been found out easily with surveillance. The ending of hers just seemed very unrealistic and I didn’t quite like it. Additionally, I’m not sure I like that Skye and Burke are still romantically involved. </spoilers>

I really enjoyed this book, it had a really unique world, a great magic system, and mostly well developed characters, but the plot and pacing really threw me off. 

To start off, I love the way the world is created and the author did a great job explaining the caste system it is based off. Additionally, the Magic system is truly unique with the way it is based off of teeth. Also the lore built of that is so interesting. 

I loved Fie’s character, she was so strong and admirable as an MC. I really think she truly developed from start to end. I honestly had a hard time distinguishing between the prince and the bodyguard for the first third of the book as they acted so similarly. I hope we get more development from the prince, because he was quite an annoying character. I also hope the romance is more developed in the sequel.  

Overall, I really enjoyed the book but about halfway through, they are just on the run. They are bad guys, hide in trees, and keep running. It is super slow and it took me so long to get through that. Hopefully with everything set up I this book, the sequel will pick up quickly and the pacing will be better. 

I really, really enjoyed this book. I was pleasantly surprised by how much, considering it is a debut novel. 

The world building is pretty good, and I like the uniqueness of the Magic system and what the Firebird does. It is a retelling of the Russian folklore tale the Firebird, so there is a ton of Russian names and references. It took me awhile to get used to it, but I love how much it is immersed with that culture and language of the tale. This book has a ton of the political intrigue and court politics, so if you enjoy that in fantasy books, you’ll definitely like this!

I wish we got more of the romance between Asya and her guard! I loved her character and the internal conflict she had throughout the book. You really see both her and Izaveta’s growth from beginning to end. Not to mention, Izaveta is a little bit morally grey, which is fun to read about. 

The two huge twists at the end I never saw coming surprisingly and I definitely should have been able to predict. But those last 50 pages were so page-turning and I can’t wait for the sequel! 

I really wanted to like this book and I really did at first after finishing, but after thinking about it for some time and looking at reviews, I realized there was quite a bit of stuff I didn’t quite like. 

Here is what I did like. The plot progressed well and chapters were short. I flew through this and I didn’t ever feel bored or felt a stagnant plot. I loved all of these Greek Mythology references, especially when I know so much about Greek mythology and it delved into lesser known mythology as well. However, why is Mariana praying to them... like does she believe in that? Cause later on she thinks it’s crazy when she calls to the Greek gods but does it automatically earlier in the story. Overall, it is a thriller/murder mystery and sets out what it intends to do and shocks you in the end. 

Here’s all the parts I didn’t necessarily like: I hated how incapable the police were, with the trope where the female MC has to do it herself and yet no one believes her. Additionally, why were all the male characters so aggressive and rude at times, I felt it was an assumption on the author for everyone to be like that, especially when rejected. Mariana thinks the sociopath is only capable of becoming one due to their childhood in a specific way, which is quite an assumption. Another thing is the actual Maidens and cult like group, we learn very little about the group and the actual “cult.”

The twist at the end was definitely something I did not expect. Like wow, that went in the completely opposite direction of my thoughts. I was trying to guess the murderer, but it definitely wasn’t that. To be honest, I find it very hard to be believable. I wish the author added more parts that hinted towards that throughout the book. 

I like having all of the Witcher’s backstories here in this book, and I am glad I picked it up before the actual series. I was really glad we got to see how he and Ciri got together and how this all happened. From what I understand, the series jumps into the future. 

Some of these stories didn’t quite interest me all too much, especially with the merchant in Novigrad. I think I liked the way the Last Wish progressed more than this book. I feel like we do get some more depth into his relationship with Dandelion and I loved that. 

It was a good prequel to what the series will be and I’m excited to start those soon. 

This book is definitely going to be for some people, and not for others. For the first third of the book, I was trying to figure out exactly what was going on and getting used to the writing style. It jumps back and forth between Cee and Kasey, where one is in third person POV and the other first person. The writing style differed between each chapter that was written, so it was easy to understand the difference between the characters. A lot of the plot points don't make sense until there is a huge reveal about halfway and towards the end and more starts to make sense.

The entire plot is mysterious and I found myself asking questions the whole time that only start getting answered at the end. People might find that a little hard to get into, as it does have a really slow start. The world building was a little spotty, and I was a bit confused with the current dystopian world they live in. I think that led to even more unintentional confusion. However, I really loved the characters. The amount of depth we experienced from them and their struggles was amazing. Exploring the bond of siblings was a major point of this book. There is romance (kinda) but it doesn't have much to do with the actual plot. 

At the end, there were still questions I had unanswered. But after finishing, I couldn't stop thinking about this book. It is the most unique and different dystopian YA book I've read. If you aren't a big fan of ambiguity, I wouldn't say this is for you. However, I really enjoyed this read and how much it made me think.

I think this book shows what we are missing with retellings of greek mythology. A lot of people are interested nowadays in all of these retellings that are focused on the heroes, and it's so important to understand this from the side of the women. It was a bit heartbreaking to read about all of their challenges and consequences they often faced from mens' actions. 

It was hard to get into at first, it took me some time to get used to the writing style. All together, it is short stories of all of the women impacted by the Trojan War. It is non-linear and some stories are only a chapter long while others span the entire book. I liked how we had the goddess of poetry almost guiding us through these stories. 

I would recommend anybody interested in greek myths to read through this. It's such a powerful rendition of the war from a completely different perspective. 

This is a guilty pleasure of a book for sure. I'm so glad that Auren finally saw past King Midas and was able to start looking out for herself. The plot was a bit slow at first, but then it picked up and it just did not let up. This is probably my favorite one of the series, but the second book is close. Such a huge cliffhanger! From what I'm aware, the author will release the fourth and final later this year though. 

We see Auren's character develop so much as well as her romance to Slade. I really enjoyed reading this. To anybody planning to read this series, PLEASE check the TWs. I added a couple in this review as well. 

I think I enjoyed Warcross better than this sequel, but it wasn't overall bad. It started off a bit slow, but then the plot picked up. We get hit twist after plot twist, so that helps keep it engaging. However, it doesn't seem as action-packed and "fun" as the first book. The Phoenix riders barely show at all, at least to the extent of the first. Also, a lot of those twists introduce entirely new characters and plot lines that seemed a bit rushed and not developed. I wish we got some more hints in the first book because this took such a different direction.  

It seems like Lu was trying to go into the side characters more, but at the same time didn't. When we get little flashbacks to some of the riders' memories, but it doesn't really make any sense for me. I caught myself skimming sometimes which is entirely unlike me. 

When we learn that the Institute and Dana Taylor were responsible for so many of the character's hardships and behind the scenes, it was strange because we haven't really learned about them before. It seemed so rushed. Additionally, we learn Zero is the ultimate villain at the end, but we barely get any time to learn more about that before it is all resolved. It seems just a little sudden and then just as suddenly resolved.

I did really enjoy Emika's character though and her determination throughout. This may be a me thing, but I really enjoyed Emika's relationship with Hideo as the anti-hero. I'm also glad the romance didn't take over the plot and the ending was really satisfying. Altogether, there were small things I didn't like but I enjoyed the overall book and what happened. It was a good read that was different from my usual fantasy. 

This ending was so heartbreaking, I really hoped that we would get a happier ending for Ariadne but this was a Greek tragedy through and through. I really liked how this book addressed the misogyny of Greek myths and mythology and how women took punishment for the actions of men. 

Both Ariadne and Phaedra were women that were complex and strong in the face of trials. This retelling really addressed female empowerment and how they tried their best to carve their own lives when they didn’t have too many choices. I do wish we got a little bit more “real” in this story. Another reviewer mentioned it missing grit and I think that’s a perfect word for it. I just wish the author chose to make it even more exposed and no fade to black scenes. Obviously, it gets a lot of comparisons to Circe and I think thats something we are missing here that Circe had. 

Altogether, I really enjoyed this and how it addressed those themes that are often glossed over in Greek mythology.