The Fall of Jericho

The Deragon Duology #1

by Sydney Applegate

Jericho Morgan has been on a killing spree since his parents died and he assumed their throne. Blessed by the Saints with prophetic visions that reveal what his next course of action should be as King, Jericho can glimpse into lives of people he’s never met, convict them of their sins, and then eliminate them for good. Needless to say, the last thing he expects to see in one of his visions is a girl from the marshes beckoning him to come find her.

Venus Deragon has been struggling to keep her and her sisters afloat since one of the king’s dreams sentenced their father to death. So when the King’s Guard—and Jericho himself—comes to take her away, Venus figures she’s doomed. She’s surprised, however, to soon be welcomed into Broadcove Castle by kind people and offered steady work on the king’s land. Once she’s confident in her survival, Venus knows exactly what to spend her time plotting revenge.

While she’s no assassin, Venus prepares to go to whatever lengths necessary to kill Jericho, including forming an unlikely alliance with him to gain his trust. But the more time they spend together despite their mutual hatred, the more Venus and Jericho begin to realize that they may be divinely connected. Because Venus is beginning to inherit Jericho’s dreams—and Jericho is slowly starting to wonder if Venus is meant to be his dream come true.

Genres: Fantasy, Romantasy, Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Dark Romance, Fantasy Romance, Slow Burn

663 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 13, 2024

Reviews

[Leonie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow. What a cluster fuck.
This was March‘s book club pick and I’m glad that it’s over.
Absolutely nothing made sense in this book. And it had a lot of chances making any sense considering that it is over 650 pages long!

Where do I begin?
It’s unclear what kind of world this book is set in. From the way the main characters are talking and from the fact that there are monarchy, carriages and castles mentioned, one might think that it must be set in a fictional medieval world. But suddenly, there are landlines, zippers, ceiling fans and photographs mentioned? And the characters also apparently turn into Gen Z teenagers when they think but only in their thoughts because when they talk to each other they use words like „Alas“.

Speaking of characters, besides the fmc and the mmc, all of them are flat stereotypes and lack any sense of individuality. Also, the author appears to be a younger child herself since she clearly despises eldest daughters? Calliope is depicted as eternally happy, oblivious to anything happening around her, willing to let her younger siblings suffer for her, loving but narrow minded and kind of stupid? Hello? (I’m an eldest daughter lol).
Geneva is just the perfect youngest child that everybody loves that can’t do anything wrong and Venus? Well, after 650 pages I don’t know who she is.
She’s fierce and sexually liberated (she has more intercourse with side characters than with her soulmate?), isn’t afraid to speak her mind yet enters a marriage with a man that is literally the epitome of an incel and lets him abuse her? Hello? All while being the acting monarch of a country? You wanted that power, now use it???
Also she’s apparently blessed by unknown godly beings but only with powers that make her the perfect partner for Jericho…aw. Did I mention that despite her confusing personality and her unwavering ability to lie to herself regarding needing to kill Jericho (she forgave him 100 pages in lol), she does all the work AND has to sacrifice herself for Jericho in the end? And yes, she’s only dead for 5 seconds but what does he do to save his people / his reputation/ his beloved throughout 650 pages despite being described as an almighty, ruthless and vicious king? Yes, NOTHING. He hides, he wines, he admirers Venus‘ strength in his thoughts, he wines some more but he certainly doesn’t contribute to anything. Even when his love is abused by her first husband of 30 seconds (lol) he waits until after he socked her in the face to intervene.
I mean, he’s king? She’s a poor peasant and somehow it’s about his salvation?

Also, all the intimate scenes are fade to black. I don’t have a problem with fantasy (or whatever nightmare this was) without spicy scenes or being age appropriate for younger readers but for all the times s*x and selling yourself for favors are mentioned in this, I expected a little more?

I only give this two stars because I was entertained. Like someone is entertained watching a train wreck. Also, some of the lines were hilarious.

[Farrah | Hello, Darkness Darling]

I won’t be rating/reviewing this one as I’m coordinating the author’s influencer ARC tour, but I will say that I’m very impressed by Sydney’s debut and cannot wait to read more of her work! 🖤✨

[Julieta Ernesto · Rating 4 out of 5]

muuuuy bueno.

the cruel prince + mitología griega = este libro

[erin | sinfulshelves · Rating 4 out of 5]

a super entertaining enemies to lovers story 🖤 3.5/5 stars - review below 👇

“𝐁𝐮𝐭 𝐢𝐟 𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐚𝐲 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐞, 𝐥𝐞𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐬𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐲, 𝐈 𝐝𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐲𝐞𝐝 𝐦𝐲𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟. 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐉𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐡𝐨 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐈'𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐥𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐞."

🌱🩸|| 𝙱𝙾𝙾𝙺 𝚁𝙴𝚅𝙸𝙴𝚆
⚠︎ check TWs | 18+ content ⚠︎

📖 The Fall of Jericho by Sydney Applegate
Star Rating: 4/5 ★★★★
Spice Rating: 2/5 🌶️🌶️
Spice Frequency: 1.5/5 🔥.5
POV: Dual/1st
Couple: Venus Deragon x Jericho Morgan

• enemies to lovers
• touch her & ☠️
• sleeping beauty retelling
• politics & revenge plots
• slow burn romance
• he’s soft only for her
• tension & angst
• super intelligent & clever FMC
• CRAWL TO ME 🥵

Oh my gosh, what an impressive debut novel! This thrilling and intriguing story truly swept me off of my feet. When enemies become lovers, when foes turn to close friends and when intellect outweighs brute strength, you know the book is going to be stellar and omg, this one did not disappoint. I truly enjoyed The Fall of Jericho SO much and I loved the FMC, Venus, with a fiery passion. She was so intelligent, clever, stubborn, and willing to lay down her life for those she loves. The MMC, Jericho, also won my heart by starting off as a dark and brooding type and transforming into a soft-only-for-her character. His visions made him such an interesting character for me as well and I loved learning more about those visions and about the Saints/Gods that gave him that power.

The plot kept my attention and I actually did love all of the politics. It was fun to see the mind games that were played and to experience all of the twists and turns. Overall, this was such a good book and I would recommend it to those that love a good love story paired with political intrigue. 🖤

[Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a lovely debut from author Sydney Applegate. I was honored to receive an ARC copy and enjoyed the read. If you love enemies to lovers, political intrigue, and morally grey characters - you should absolutely give it a go. I thought the plot was fun and interesting and the ending had me looking forward to what comes next!

[Kendall · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hooked at first and then 500 pages went by and it did not maintain my interest but at that point I was too far in to quit. It just lacked depth which is ironic considering the length of the entire book. And this was only the first book????

I am usually not a super harsh critic, I generally like everything I read but I was bored.

[eli☆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really thought this book was going to be 5⭐️ but unfortunately it was just not a well executed book.

The biggest problem with this book was the lack of reasoning behind the character's actions, I found myself screaming "WHY????" so many tines throughout the book. It just felt like action after action was happening with no reasoning.

The main conflict of the political part of the book didn't even have an explanation as to why there was a conflict in the first place. It was just a messy book that didn't really have a good flow. You can tell its a debut novel.

[Madeline Hughes · Rating 2 out of 5]

Booktok did me dirty on this one. Truthfully I want to rate it 2.5 but it doesn’t deserve 3 stars so 2 it is. The first 30% I was HOOKED but by the middle I grew bored and honestly over the storyline. The characters weren’t super likable and all the plots that propelled the story seemed so dumb and far fetched. Also the random Ancient Greek gods thrown in was odd. I wanted to quit about 70% of the way through but made myself finish this. Don’t waste your time

[Mrs.Autery · Rating 4 out of 5]

First...Thank you Sydney for including me in your ARC team! You have got a real talent for writing!
Now, I really ended up enjoying this book! I'm kinda scared to say too much because I feel like it's best to go in without much information.

The world building and the little nuggets of information you get throughout is honestly amazing. The way this story is set up is so detailed and honestly I don't know how the heck the author kept it all straight in her head.

I'll be honest, there were a couple of moments where I thought "Does there have to be this much random information?" And the answer is 100% YES. Because the way it all comes together in the end, is incredible.
Every single word is carefully crafted to build up to an insane ending. That last 10% had me staying up until 2 am to finish. My mind was absolutely blown by the genius of it all.

PLEASE read if you enjoy:
✨Badass and smart FMC
✨Enemies to lovers
✨ Betrayals and plot twists
✨Morally Gray MMC
✨Politics and revenge
✨Touch her & 💀

Fav quote:

"But if history must say one thing about me, let it be that I loved so fiercely, I destroyed myself. That I took the fall for Jericho when fate believed that l'd be the one to blame for his demise."

I really anticipate that this book will be a Bookstagram/ Booktok favorite soon! Congrats on a stellar debut!

[Macy Brown · Rating 4 out of 5]

♥︎𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠: 𝟒.𝟓★

I want to extend my gratitude to Sydney for inviting me to be part of her ARC team. Her talent for storytelling shines through in this book. A wonderful debut.

I found myself thoroughly immersed in the story and hesitate to divulge too much, as I believe it’s best experienced with minimal prior knowledge.

The world-building and the subtle details scattered throughout the narrative are truly impressive. Sydney’s meticulous attention to detail is evident, and I marvel at how she managed to keep everything coherent.

Every word in this book is purposefully chosen, leading up to a jaw-dropping finale. The last 10% of the book had me staying up until the early hours, utterly captivated by the brilliance of it all.

♥︎𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐒♥︎

♥︎𝐄𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬
♥︎𝐓𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐡𝐞𝐫 & ☠️
♥︎𝐛𝐚𝐝𝐚𝐬𝐬 𝐅𝐌𝐂
♥︎𝐌𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐲 𝐌𝐌𝐂
♥︎𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐞
♥︎𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐲𝐚𝐥𝐬
♥︎𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭 𝐭𝐰𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐬
♥︎😉
♥︎𝐞𝐭𝐜..

[Tori Padgett · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 stars

[Claire O'Tool · Rating 4 out of 5]

AMAZING plot twists and funny characters

[Laural | The Book Dragon · Rating 5 out of 5]

“𝘔𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦?“ “𝙑𝙚𝙣𝙪𝙨.“
“𝘓𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘴?“ “𝙇𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙛𝙡𝙮𝙩𝙧����𝙥.“

| 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝗝𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗼 |
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Reading this book took me longer (stick with me) than I would like to, but that was only due to personal/life issues getting in the way. I waited to finish it, so that I could give it the proper attention it deserved…
𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙨𝙤 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙝 𝙞𝙩!
•
Venus was a force to be reckoned with from the start. Her drive, determination, and defiance made me love her so much more! She was so cunning and caring as well. A new st@bby and sassy FMC for me to love.
•
“𝘑𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘩𝘰?“ “𝙔𝙚𝙨, 𝙑𝙚𝙣𝙤𝙢?“
🫠🫠🫠
•
Jericho, dark and damaged, hadn’t met his match until Venus came along. Watching his character develop through the book was so satisfying. I enjoyed his interactions with Venus’ sisters, cause it showed how kind he could truly be.
•
“𝙄𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙬𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙚𝙚? 𝘼 𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙣 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙠𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙖 𝙜𝙞𝙧𝙡 𝙛𝙧𝙤𝙢 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙨𝙝𝙚𝙨?“
🥵🥵🥵
•
This book had great world building, political conflict, mysterious plans, and spicy tension! The last 1/4 of the book had me gasping and flying through the pages. I’m at peace with the ending, but also so eager for the next book! 😱👀

[laur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing Debut (4/5 Stars)

Rating: 4/5 stars

Disclaimer: I know the author personally, but my review is entirely honest and reflects my genuine thoughts.

Going into this book, all I knew was that it was a loose retelling of Sleeping Beauty with an enemies-to-lovers twist and both leads portrayed as villains. However, as soon as I began reading, Sydney Applegate’s debut novel far exceeded those expectations.

King Jericho, our Sleeping Beauty, is a ruthless and murderous monarch haunted by prophetic visions from the Saints of betrayal and treason. Misunderstood and isolated by those closest to him, he is seen as nothing short of an evil King bringing about the ruin of his kingdom. Enter Venus Deragon, our fearless female main character, who is determined to bring about the Fall of Jericho—in every sense of the term.

I’m a fan of lengthy reads, and this novel delivered not only on page count but also through its engaging political intrigue and satisfying enemies-to-lovers dynamic. Venus stands out as strong, intelligent, and intriguingly manipulative—refreshingly different from the typical heroine seen in some popular romantasy books. I am also a sucker for villains who’d burn the world for you and Sydney did it well.

Slight spoilers***
While it’s clear there is room to grow in her craft, what an impressive debut this is! Sydney’s descriptive prose is vivid and paints a detailed picture of the characters surroundings. I wanted a little bit more focus on the improvement to the poorer areas — especially knowing that’s where Venus, her sisters, Tolcher, and more came from. I was hoping she’d push Jericho (or do more herself), but I do note that Jericho’s time spent there opened his eyes to the living conditions of his people. I’d love to see her future works place even more emphasis on dialogue, pacing, and deeper character development—especially among the side characters, whose relationships could be explored further to heighten the emotional stakes.

I also appreciated the fresh take on the Sleeping Beauty retelling, with its dark and layered parallels. The early visions and dreams set an enthralling tone from the start, and I only wished for even more insight into those visions.

Overall, I enjoyed this read immensely and can’t wait to start the Rise of Deragon!

[emilyjo_reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely phenomenal story and debut novel for author Sydney Applegate!
This book is like Sleeping Beauty meets American Psycho (maybe a tad less deranged but I digress).

Written in a dual POV between our MMC King Jericho Morgan and FMC Venus Deragon, we get an ACTUAL enemies-to-lovers people! They literally haaaate each other.

I absolutely LOVED this book!!!

The characters are written wonderfully. Jericho is ruthless, crabby, and has a general sense of doom and gloom...his character development ending up being so drastic but also not drastic at all somehow?
Venus is quite literally the epitome of "I dont give a f#&k", she is strong, unbelievably smart and takes such pride in the work she does to provide for her and her two sisters. Jericho and Venus' relationship is so much more than complicated. The way Jericho can't help but be attracted to her and how it annoys him is so on brand for him. I really loved how the evolution of their relationship was written and I appreciated how they had to work so hard to get where they eventually got.
Even all the side characters were so much fun to get to know.

The plot and storyline is great. The author wrote in a way that makes you feel like you could touch and see and taste what was happening at any given time. The way I had absolutely no idea what twists and turns were going to happen at any given time was the best and so refreshing. I couldn't put it down!
There are so many thoughts/feelings/wow moments that I could have lengthy discussions about with anyone that wants to listen. It's one of those stories that you think about long after you finish.
I will without a doubt be recommending this to everyone and anyone that I can.
I can't wait to see what happens next in the story....that ending....I have some major concerns you guys 😅.

Thank you so much to the author Sydney Applegate for providing me a free ARC digital copy of this book in exchange for my 100% honest review. February 13th can't come soon enough!

[Lyss · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 STARS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

If you are looking for a book where from the first chapter you can feel yourself slipping into the world created, desperately intrigued by the characters being introduced, and already finding yourself NEEDING to read “just one more chapter” before taking a break to start your to-do list for the day…this is the book for you.

When the author says this book is villain narrated…she really means VILLAIN. One thing I really appreciated about this book was how it was marketed as enemies to lovers and dang she meant it. You will get to see TRUE enemies fall in this story….not just dislike…not “oh I don’t like him but that’ll change within the first 10% of the book,” NO this is real HATE and it is written beautifully.

If you like a badass FMC who keeps a dagger under her dress, takes no sh*t from anyone, and will kill to protect the people she loves, you will love Venus Deragon. From her first introduction, you’ll feel drawn to her and her story.

Reading The Fall of Jericho you will not only love the main characters, but will also become emotionally invested in the side characters as well. The way the author writes her characters makes you feel like you really know them.

Overall, The Fall of Jericho will pull you in, chew you up, spit you out, give you a warm blanket, slap you in the face, then give you a hug, and you will say thank you for all of it. A beautifully written book with an incredibly captivating story. I definitely will be recommending this book to anyone who will listen.

[absadoodley · Rating 4 out of 5]

"My heart cannot help but beat for you, my body cannot help but long for you, and since the very beginning, my dreams cannot help but seek you out."
-
This book was such a treat to read, and I was kicking my feet and giggling. The world-building was well done, and the political intrigue was very fun to read. Venus was such an amazing character. Jericho reminded me a lot of Zuko for some odd reason, and while he wasn't my favorite character, I did find his giftings to be unique.

I didn't like Jericho that much because he lacked depth. He was just this hot guy who killed people and was obsessed with Venus. I wanted so much more from him, I wanted so much more tension to his relationship with Venus, and I just felt that it was lacking.

Venus was an incredible character, however. I related to her so strongly and felt that I could see myself in her. I adored her, and her relationship with her sisters. It was such a relief to read a book about healthy relationships with one's sisters because so often I have read books where the relationship was horrid.

The plot itself was great, and I loved it. I do feel like some scenes didn't have to be added, or other situations could've been expanded upon, but this was already a very long book for me, so while I am somewhat discontent with that, I can't find myself caring much for it.

Overall, solid book. Really enjoyed it, and can't wait to read book 2!

[Anna Quarterman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Firstly, thank you so much Sydney for letting me be one of your lucky ARCs. It's truly an honor to get my hands on this book long before anyone else, and to see the steps your writing journey is going to take.

Where do I even begin???? Okay, firstly, the plot had me SALAVATING!!!! Maybe I'm sick in the head but I was with Jericho from the get go. Venus falls in love with him bc he's hot with wavy dark hair? Me too girl he could pick me too it's okay we can be sister wives.

For a first major novel, Sydney didn't hesitate to write something similar to the ACOTAR series, and I really commend her for that. The world building, romance, plot, characters, all of it were really impressive and totally makes me want to read her grocery lists if I can.

This book will fly off the shelves, albeit slowly at first until it starts to gain traction on social media, but then once it does, oh boy, you're gonna struggle to find a copy in the wild. Congrats Sydney on a fantastic book, and I hope you're getting ready to celebrate the release of your book and take some time to sleep and recover (but also you better start writing the second book bc I'm not playing it's criminal to have left it the way you did).

[Elaine DeLany · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good book and well thought out storyline. While I’m not mad at how the book ended, I was really hoping for the ending to be different. I feel like happily ever after is overplayed and there was a great opportunity to have solid closure but a different happily ever after than what we all expect in a romance.

The spice in the book is veeeeeery mild - a little too vanilla for my personal taste. If you’re in it solely for that, I’d skip.

I was not able to figure out when this book took place. It talks of candles for light and knives rather than guns, but then speaks of hair clippers being turned on and off - that was the only thing that really bothered me. Is there electricity or not? Is it in the future? Is it in the past? Is it a world parallel to ours or completely different? I don’t recall any mentions of mythical creatures other than the dragon images at the end of the book, so it didn’t feel like a true fantasy as I expect it, but I’m new to the genre so this may be common and I’m just used to intense world building thanks to authors like SJM.

Would I read it again? No.

Will I read the sequel? Yes. Excited to see what happens next.

Would I recommend to a friend? Depends on the friend, not a universal yes, but not a hard no either.

[Ariel Bready · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book drew me in from the first page. I loved the character dynamics, their personalities and views of the world. It pulled me in and sat me right in the middle of delicious chaos. I felt anger, love, sadness, betrayal, grief, and so much more as I read this. Coming towards the end I have to say I had to get up a considerable amount of times to cool of from either my bitter resentment for certain characters, or just because I wanted to destroy whoever hurt Jericho. Also because I couldn't help but scream whenever there was delicious tension between Jericho and Venus. I love the character names as well. They're unusual and quite alluring. The whole plot was something I didn't expect, which says a lot. And although all the motives for each character wasn't plainly stated, I got hints as to why they would do it. After all, some people are just truly despicable. They can do things just for the sake of greed. Even something as fickle as pride.

With that, I come to the conclusion that this book shall be in my top ten. Thank you, Sydney Applegate for this treasure. May your career be blessed and fruitful.

[Brooke (brooke.ends) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Firstly, thank you Sydney for the privilege of reading your lovely debut as an ARC in exchange for my honest review 🥹

I had an absolute BLAST devouring The Fall of Jericho the last few days. “Kings bow to no one,” he huffs, and I feel the evil smile on his lips as he runs his mouth along the inside of my thigh. “But I’ll always kneel for you.”

Sydney writes a fast paced fantasy tale that keeps you entertained and laughing the entire way… the banter, the tension 🤌🏼 a delightful enemies to lovers slow burn (my favorite). And my gods is the payoff worth it. Some of the best spicy scenes I have read in a long time.. 🥵

But those moments also come with wonderful emotional payoff, “‘You love me?” “With no ulterior motives,” he answers, the words guttural and real.”’ Nothing better than two morally grey people falling for eachother.

I love how the story ended and cannot wait to see where the sequel takes us.

Run, do not walk, to check out this wonderful indie NA romantasy debut, out Feb 13! 💗

[Eruj Nadeem · Rating 5 out of 5]

I usually don’t write reviews for all the books I read except ones that really hit close to my heart (or ones that make me cry).

All I can say about this book is that it was pure perfection. If I could send a standing ovation to Ms.Sydney I’d come deliver it myself.

This book contained all the elements I love and most essentially a heroine with a brain. Venus Deragon is not conventionally pretty or feminine or someone with the best character. She’s simply the smartest person in the room and that’s her winning quality.

Jericho has his qualities, the main one being his ability to let Venus lead and do her thing. Love that in a hero tbh. It’s a breath of fresh air around here.

To the readers: Please do not miss out on this masterpiece. It’s one of the few well written books I’ve discovered.

To the author:
My words cannot express my love and gratitude for bringing this to life. All I can say is Thank You for sharing this beautiful story.

[AhsokaTanhoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I personally loved this book and was fascinated from start to finish. I greatly appreciate a complex, layered character and Applegate left me impressed. I’m so happy this book caught my eye- it’s one of my favorite reads this year.

People criticize certain “unreasonable” decisions the fmc makes, but to me they are clever and very impressive- not to mention absolutely crucial to how the story turns out. Not sure why people are bothered that Venus is crafty and dynamic either. We see her character grow and evolve with every turn of the page and by the end she will cement herself as one of your favorites if you love a strong and sharp lead. I LOVE her.

The romance and political drama push and pull really nicely in this book! I love the plot curveballs and betrayals that leave me wanting to strangle imaginary characters through the pages.

If you come across this review and haven’t read it yet, please give it a try. See you in book 2!

[Lisa l chaotic.couchreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC review
4.5/5

This dual POV follows King Jericho and Venus, a girl from the marsh. When fate forces their paths to cross, both have their own motivations to get to know the other person. Both have a violent streak and love playing games. They soon find that they have a lot in common and it changes everything.

What surprised me in the story was the secondary characters. Venus’s two sisters help demonstrate why Venus is the way that she is, while Jericho’s court reveals so much about the violent King. They are well rounded and add so much to the story.

I loved seeing where Jericho and Venus’s relationship went! Having two rageful love interests who may or may not be trying to kill each other is fun and always layered.

The ending had me SHOCKED and giddy with evil glee! I cannot wait for book two. I highly recommend this book!

[Emily I · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book!

The two main characters, Venus and Jericho, are legitimate enemies-lovers. They genuinely hate each other!

The story building throughout this book is fantastic, you get to meet so many characters and see their development as well, which I absolutely loved.

By 50% in, I couldn’t wait for Venus and Jericho to ditch the enemies relationship and start the lovers relationship and when they did - holy spice! Wow!

I was so invested in this entire story that I couldn’t put this down and I’m so excited to see what Sydney offers as the second book in this duology, especially after that cliffhanger!

Thank you so much to Sydney Applegate for choosing me to receive an eARC of this book. I thoroughly enjoyed it and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend to anyone who loves a romantasy book.

[Maria Cabrera · Rating 3 out of 5]

Heavy on the plot and with an unusual magic system, The Fall of Jericho surprised me with unexpected plot twist, lots of political intrigue, and with a story that pushes in directions you wuldn't anticipate, so rare in these times.
The main characters were not very likeable in the beginning, especially Jericho, an unhinged and cranky king, but you'll see his character developement. Venus is a strong and clever FMC that lived in a harsh world, and her relationship with her sisters was lovely to see, although their family dynamic is so sad.
Now, what bothered me was the lack of reasoning behind some situations, or the unresolved questions you have as the story progresses. I feel like this book could benefit of some editing, because sometimes it drags too much, and the word technicolor is randomly used too much. But, overall, a solid start to a series.

[afrosheeba · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m giving this a 2 strictly because I was intrigued enough to finish but this was horrible and deserves a one star. Besides a multitude of grammatical errors. I do not understand how and why we went from like a game of thrones style, no electricity, castle living story, to …. Electricity??? Do they have it or not? A dial line? She curled her hair? WITH WHAT BABE. The fan turned off???? HOWWWWW.

This inconsistency alone was enough but I’ll also speak to the insane amount of unnecessary descriptions of castles and scenery. I also HATE how the author cannot properly write a devastating scene.

Like you can’t switch from them being absolutely devastated and expressing REAL. FEELINGS. To then all of sudden they knew the whole time … yes I’m talking about her birthday party.

Whatever. I will not be reading the second book thanks

[Alison LeClair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full discloser: My good friend wrote this book, but my review reflects my honest thoughts. I'm not an avid reader, so the size of this book was intimidating at first. However I finished it surprisingly fast. This book is not my usual genre of choice, but is a great gateway into fantasy fiction. It took about 50 pages to fully immerse myself into the story and I really enjoyed the read. The characters were well developed, the politics kept me hooked, and the romance and sexual tension made me eager to keep reading. I would recommend this book for a more mature audience, particularly young adults seeking a captivating romance. It's a great story with a good ending, and I'm excited for what's next!

[Gracie · Rating 5 out of 5]

So so so good!!! This is one of the best fantasies I’ve read all year. From the very beginning, it has everything a good fantasy book needs: good character development, strong main characters (good and bad), a cool world with well thought-out politics and religion, friendship and family, and a good ole romance (that’s also closed door for any fantasy lovers looking for a love story without spice). Even though it’s over 600 pages, I flew through it because it was so interesting! I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a good fantasy that’s super character-driven (or trying to cure a post-Throne of Glass slump). 5/5 ⭐️

[Margaret Redner · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.75 stars
Ummm… this was a book I guess, which makes me sad cuz I was excited to support an indie author. It had no reason to be 651 pages. It could have been at least 200 pages shorter and I was so tempted to DNF. I ended up skimming a lot of it. There were multiple typos (character name spelled inconsistently, using “wretch” when it was obviously supposed to be “retch,” probably other stuff but I forget), the fmc and mmc had unstable chemistry and stuff that just wasn’t important to the story. The last 10-20% made up for a lot of the boring beginning tho. I can only hope that the second book is better :/