Kingdom of Shadows and Wings

Dragons of Tirene #1

by Nina Frost

Dragons of Tirene is now a complete five-book series!
A world of magic, desire, and intrigue awaits at Flighthaven, where a young woman defies the odds to find her true calling.

Nineteen-year-old Lark Axton has lived her entire life sequestered behind the castle's walls, overshadowed by her overprotective mother. Now, the king has ordered Lark to assume her missing sister’s role as a warrior in training at Aclaris’s flight academy, where the kingdom's sons and daughters train to battle their winged enemies and control dragons.

There’s just one problem. Lark is terrified of flying.

Forced to the deadly training grounds of Flighthaven, Lark must survive the danger that stalks the academy if she wants to uncover the truth behind her sister’s disappearance and survive the upcoming treacherous trial. Unfortunately, her sinfully irresistible, arrogant and downright irritating flight instructor is determined to make her life hell.

But enemies lurk within the academy, and no one is who they seem, including Lark herself. As the trial begins, the same explosive secrets that tore Lark's sister away from Flighthaven now threaten Lark.

With her life hanging in the balance, Lark's ability to unlock the secret magic within her will either save...or kill her.

Kingdom of Shadows and Wings weaves the thrill of dragons, elemental magic, and forbidden romance into an exhilarating fantasy adventure that’s perfect for fans of Fourth Wing and Zodiac Academy.

Genres: Fantasy, Romantasy, Dragons, Fantasy Romance, Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Magic

368 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 6, 2024

Reviews

[ZJ · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm sorry but I truly don't understand how this book is rated so highly. There was so much I didn't like about it, I don't know where to begin.

First, the characters. They’re supposed to be in their 20's? but they act like they just graduated from recess. The FMC is one of the most unbearable protagonists I’ve ever encountered. One hookup with the love interest and she’s already dropping the L-word? I get that she’s sheltered, but ma’am, that’s not love—that’s bad judgment.

Speaking of the MMC, how many more derivative tall, dark, handsome, amber-eyed men am I supposed to care about?

And the enemies to lovers trope? Where? Blink and you’ll miss the “enemies” part, which is apparently just one slightly tense conversation before they’re making heart eyes at each other. There’s no tension, no stakes, no payoff. Enemies to lovers should be sizzling with conflict and mutual hatred before the inevitable breakdown into yearning. Instead, we got “mild workplace disagreement to lovers.”

And please for the love of all the gods, the old and new, PLEASE stop putting modern slang into a fantasy/historical setting. I have never seen the phrase "un-alived" in the written word before, and it made me want to vomit. YOU ARE ALLOWED TO SAY THE WORD "KILLED." Really, it's ok. But this? This is how the genre dies.

Honestly, this book felt like it was trying so hard to ride the coattails of Fourth Wing but failed at every turn.

[Laura Greenhalgh · Rating 3 out of 5]

thank you so much Nina for sending me your book!! here is my honest review -

3 ⭐️ for the vibes. the writing style and use of modern language definitely threw me HOWEVER despite its flaws i couldn’t stop turning the pages? the story was pretty addictive making this a binge-able read but it did feel rushed in parts and left me wondering how we got here.

i didn’t love but also didn’t hate the FMC & MMC - and also felt like the L word was dropped so randomly i had to double take to make sure i read it right 😅🤣. BUT GUYS this definitely has potential, and i know if you’re looking for a fun easy read and you enjoy books like fourth wing and zodiac academy you will more than likely love this. i will carry on with the series because i did have a fun time and i would like to know what happens!

[Lori · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn’t decide if the dialog felt like it was written by a young teen trying to sound grown up or by an older adult writing how they thought cool young adults would talk. It felt so cringe!

Also, why did no one except Lark seem very concerned about her sister’s disappearance? A student goes missing and everyone is like “Huh. No big deal! Her sister must come take her place. And she must be expected to pick up exactly where her sister left off despite not having ANY of the training. 50 push ups. Now! Defensive flight maneuvers you’ve never learned on your alicorn. Now! Go practice your element/magic-wielding skills and do your weapons training with little-to-no teacher instruction. Now! La Dee dah de dah.” “Oh, you can’t keep up with the others who have been training for months because you just started? Well, I guess we’re going to punish the whole class because of you. Oh, what? The other students hate you because of that?? Huh.” The teachers know that hazing is going on and see first-hand evidence of it, but are just like “ Just let us know if the others aren’t treating you well.” “That person tried to kill you? Well, hmm, what to do?? Oh, well.” Like…what?! What kind of one star, Temu battle college is this?

Lark’s attempts at doing her investigations on the sly were laughable. I kept imagining a cop or journalist trying to go undercover and not fooling anyone. Imagine Drew Barrymore’s character early on in the has-not-aged-well movie, “Never Been Kissed” and you get the idea.

Lark’s romance with Sterling was ok, but nothing special. Hot teacher falls for beautiful girl who’s not like all the other girls and has a kind and determined heart. Noble girl falls for brooding, mysterious, sexy teacher. Both fight their attraction because they know it’s wrong, but succumb in the end. Teacher ends up having devastating secret in the end that could tear them apart.

I could go on with the characters, plot holes, and stupid plot contrivances, but you get the idea.

Overall, there was something very stilted and juvenile about the story-telling. I finished the book, but have no desire to finish the series.

[bridget hustek · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dollar store Fourth Wing

[Joanna Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wasn't sold on this one at first..the writing isn't the most polished and there are a lot of American-isms which I find really disjointing... Throws me right off.
But before long I was immersed in the story and damn it was good, ate this up in a day and if that isn't the absolute recipe for a five star review, I don't know what is. If you love dragons, you're going to love this.
Totally agree with what everyone else has said. If you love fourth wing and you love zodiac academy.... You're going to love this!

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Third wing

[Brooke · Rating 2 out of 5]

Confused with the high ratings of this… I finished just because I don’t like not finishing. It was like the temu version of fourth wing.

[Madeline · Rating 2 out of 5]

I tried so hard to like this one. I didn’t. I found myself looking at my phone every five or so pages because I couldn’t focus on this book.

I felt like the characters were in high school and not their 20s. This isn’t enemies to lovers. And the word “un-alived” is in this book.

[C · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25⭐️

[ize ‧₊˚ ☁️⋅👼 ‧₊˚ ♡ · Rating 4 out of 5]

academy setting + dragons + instructor x student + magic + trials + training. WHAT MORE COULD YOU WANT‼️🐉

[Katrin · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF ... bei Seite 60.

Ich hatte mich echt drauf gefreut, aber wow, ist das schlecht...

[Thais • tata.lifepages • · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have no doubt this will be the next big dragon Romantasy after Fourth Wing 😱😍

Lark is a young princess living under the overprotection of her mother. After the mysterious disappearance of her sister, she is sent to resume her training at Flighthaven Academy. Even though she’s terrified of flying, she goes anyway. Her fire magic is suppressed by medicine to keep her powers under control, which leaves her feeling both scared and isolated. To make matters worse, her flight trainer—Sterling—is not only gorgeous but also grumpy. In Lark’s own words, “He is as friendly as a hungry snow bear with a toothache.” Within the academy, there’s a hidden tension among some of the fledglings, dangerous even, which added a thrilling layer to the story!

The mystery surrounding her sister Leesa’s disappearance, combined with the whole flying-with-dragons aspect, had me instantly hooked. I found the bullying Lark endures at the start of her training frustrating, but it made me root for her even more as she fights to overcome every obstacle. As the plot unfolds, Lark begins to suspect that her sister’s disappearance is connected to the mysterious illness and imprisonment of the dragons, an exciting twist that gave me major Game of Thrones vibes and kept me reading late into the night to unravel the truth. On top of that, the constant banter and sizzling tension between Lark and Thorne, the irresistibly gorgeous instructor, made the story fly by even faster. Packed with magic, training, and deadly trials, this story wraps everything into one of the best Romantasy’s of 2025! It’s easily one of my favorite reads of the year so far, and I absolutely can’t wait for book two!

[Bri · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an ARC read for me and proved to be better than the others I’ve received thus far. Fourth Wing fans will enjoy this as it combines dragons and dark academia. I appreciate there being a driving force behind the FMC’s ambition other than the typical “just to prove them wrong” narrative as her mission was to find her missing sister. I found parts of this to be originally refreshing (as far as being different from my last several reads) and other parts too predictable. The pacing often felt rushed and I found myself rereading parts because I wasn’t sure how I got there. Also, by the end of the book, the MMC’s name choice itched my brain in a not good way. Ultimately I think this series has a lot of potential.

[Morgan Tapley · Rating 2 out of 5]

Bad plot, bad romance, boring characters, predictable. But still a good time. 2 stars.

[Hanife · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5/5

Bu kitap güzel kurgulanmış ama metne hakkı verilecek şekilde geçirelememiş. Kızımız salak bir karakter değil ama etrafındaki olaylar o kadar salakça ilerliyor ki, birinin akıllı olması şarttı. Son sahneler dışında bir aksiyon yok. Romance desen ılınmış kahve tadında. En azından bu kitapta MMC'yi sevemedim. Çok fazla kızdan faydalanıyormuş havası verdi bana. Yaş farkı var aralarında ama inan ya ben dikkat etmedim ya da yazarımız bu detaya ihtiyaç duymamış. Devamını merak pek fazla etmiyorum ama bitmiş seri diye bir göz atacağım.

[Kristin Dee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A huge thank you to Nina Frost for a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.


This book was amazing! The story moved along well, and the writing was very good. I was invested in the characters and where their stories were going from the very beginning. You have a forbidden teacher/student relationship (both are adults), a school where magic, battle classes, and alicorn and dragon riding are taught, missing family, and so many secrets. I suppose you could liken the school and dragon aspect to Fourth Wing, but this felt quite different. The cliffhanger ending had me screaming, “come on!!” as I turned the final page. I honestly cannot wait to be able to get my hands on book 2. I must know what happens.

4🌟
2🌶️

[Kristy Kourk · Rating 1 out of 5]

I DNFd this one. The writing style was so out of place for a fantasy book, and I just couldn't get used to it.

[Rivka · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was not good…
Imagine if you would buy a very popular book and receive Temu version 🤦🏻‍♀️

[Guava Chicago · Rating 2 out of 5]

This had so much potential but sadly the author decided to make it into a wannabe Fourth Wing novel with bullying (unnecessary) thrown in. I was getting deja-vu reading some scenes or dialogs because it reminded me so much of FW that i went back and re-read those sections and yes, they were exactly the same (the dialogue before kissing for eg?)

Anyway what was good but not focussed on:
* the concept of eyrils and the farming and the drug like properties
* ali(uni)corns
* mystery of missing sister
* enemy shifters

But instead it chose to include bullying because it worked in Zodiac Academy so it must work here too; making parts of it too similar to FW (the whole random killing of Olive when no one else died before because hey if Liam can die so can Olive amiright?)

There was a lot of potential but it just became a hot mess due to above reasons. If the bullying could have been removed and we could have been told more about the magic system/classes, the trials, mystery of her birth And Leesa's past, and the world building in general it would have been much nicer to read.

I dont think I'll continue the series but I hope the author focuses on her own plot strengths more than randomly including tropes which work in other series.

[Khadija Salman · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5⭐️ at best. I’m really really unsure of why this got such reviews when the plot was all over the place. There were literal scenes and dialogues “inspired” by fourth wing but also divergent? The FMC feeds into the whole “feeble, I’m so sheltered, weak” way longer than she has to. Girl, get a grip and grow some semblance of a spine. You had a helicopter mom not actual trauma. We as readers did not have to go through the woes of a sheltered daughter for the entire book. The storyline is unoriginal and choppy. Either it moves way too slow and we sit in the FMC’s head for way too long or it goes so fast without any build up or context. It was hard to be invested in anyone’s story when the characters were written so poorly. I’m missing the part where this is enemies to lovers because in the book they struggle to be either. I’m a sucker for dragons so that was the only cool part. Also, this plot twist at the end was the most obvious thing in the world - boring.

[Rachael · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was completely enthralled with this wonderfully imaginative fantasy story. I laughed, I cried, I screamed, I cheered. The ending left me breathless. I need a sequel ASAP!

Lark has lived her entire life sheltered in her family's castle. When her sister mysteriously disappears from Flighthaven, a flight academy for alicorn and dragon riders, Lark is ordered to attend the school in her place. Lark is terrified of flying, lacks impressive magical abilities, and is an easy target for cruel tricks for her peers, but she is determined to discover what happened to her sister. As Lark searches for clues and gets close to one of her professors, she discovers not everyone and everything is as it seems...

If you're a fan of tales like Fourth Wing, I would highly recommend giving this novel a try.

[Chi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Zodiac Academy meets Forth wing

This was an okay read . I liked the concept and the pacing was steady . I’m such a sucker for dragons but you don’t get a lot of interaction with them in this book. It seems to be setting that up for the second.

The plot twist got me . I definitely didn’t see it coming at all !

This book leaves you with so many unanswered questions and mysteries to be unraveled ( in a good way ) .

I did find myself skimming the pages a lot between 50-70% . I’m also super impatient , so that’s definitely a flaw on my part .

All in all an okay read

[K Chandwani · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s not that strong of a book, it rushes things so quickly and doesn’t build the characters a proper background. The main character is super immature. We don’t say I love you so quickly unless we’re like super young. The author should spend some more time fleshing out the next book. There’s potential for a good book but it just needs background, depth, and character growth. Dont tell me how my character feels or tell me their a good person, show it to me.

[Kaitlyn Monique ♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lark's sister, Lisa, has gone missing from Flighthaven Acadamy, so she has to take her place. She plans to find out what happened to her sister while she is there, and in the midst of it all, she falls in love with someone forbidden, the instructor who is trying to help her overcome her fear of the Alicorns. She finds out she is not who she thought she was. On top of that, a dragon just fell out of the sky, so they now moved up the trial, so she has very little time to prepare. Will she overcome her fear of flying and pass the trial? Where is Lisa? And who is Sterling?

There was one part of this book that broke my heart, and I wish that didn't happen, but this was a really good book overall. I went into this thinking it would just be a quick read, and maybe 3 stars, but I definitely was surprised and give it 4.5 stars! The ending had me immediately diving into the second, because I cannot take that cliffhanger.

[Rosie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kingdom of Shadows and Wings is book one of a completed five book series, Dragons of Tirene. A training academy setting filled with dragons and fierce unicorns, this was the perfect cure for my dragon book hangover. The FMC Lark, is thrust into this brutal world when her sister goes missing—an unwilling student who refuses to stay powerless. Watching her fight to catch up, push through fear, and discover who she really is was deeply satisfying. The academy training and trials had me anxious, angry, and fully emotionally invested, which is how you know the writing works. And the MMC Sterling is broody, mysterious, and never quite trustworthy. The final 25% delivers betrayal and trauma with high-stakes trials. It’s an easy read without sacrificing rich worldbuilding or magical wonder. If you love winged creatures, dangerous academies, and morally gray men who keep you guessing… this one will keep you wanting to read well into the night.

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

wow, loving this new series.

[Emily Ellig · Rating 5 out of 5]

So grateful that Nina sent me her book to read! Absolutely loved it!
Throughout the book, we kept getting these little pieces as to where Leesa might be and got to see Lark discover her power. So that kept me very interested. Do we love Sterling or hate him? 🤔 There were several times that I was very surprised and had a "didn't see that coming" moment! The gravestone? Olive? The entire last chapter?? Wtf. I need answers.

[Ashley S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't really care if people are calling it a rip-off of Fourth Wing - I'm just here to enjoy the ride 😋

My rating: 3.5☆ for enjoyment (not writing quality).

Great pacing, fun to read, but the convenience of everything is a bit lazy (I'll be vague to avoid spoilers: for example, how someone just happened to overhear someone at the perfect moment, or how someone just happened to be somewhere at rhe right time at random to be available to help out - more than once too!). Not a fan of the type of cliffhanger at the end either (it's also giving me flashbacks of another book that did this and I strongly dislike it in both cases).

This was clearly not written by a very seasoned author, especially with what I've mentioned above, and how Lark's investigations were quite surface-level; however I enjoyed both the FMC and MMC, and the story overall, so I'll definitely pick up the next one!

This is definitely more of a light romantasy that's fun but not so memorable (as opposed to a legitimate fantasy novel) so don't expect any mind-blowing world building and plotline, and just enjoy the journey - just like with Fourth Wing.

[carolina ✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

i really wanted to like this book. I’ve been having such a hard time getting into a book and this book was able to do just that, make me want to continue reading. that is the only reason why it doesn’t have 1 star.

the timeline made zero sense. all of this in 2 weeks-3 weeks? i feel the main characters needed more time to know each other for me to believe that she loved him and to create more of that enemies to lovers trope.

another thing that upset me is the main character’s ‘best friend’ dying at the end? it just felt like too much happened in such a short time it’s hard to believe these relationships and loyalties. the overall story had so much potential, but just feels so rushed it’s quite unbelievable at times

also, the dialogue was so cringe at time? it also not felt believable that real characters would have such conversations considering the ages.

i really wanted to like it but it was just so disappointing, especially during the second half.

[Bek*DevourerOfWords · Rating 2 out of 5]

Did an editor even glance through this before it got published??? Seriously? Quite a few errors.

It definitely reads like a diet, less satisfying attempt at Fourth Wing, but the MFC presents more as a 15 or 16 year old, very juvenile in thought and action. I find her a little frustrating and air-headed, but I'm interested enough in the overall story to continue to the 2nd book.

(Update: After finishing the 2nd book, I'm downgrading my original 3 stars I gave this novel to 2. The lack of editing and mountain of mistakes in both books spoiled any hope I had for this series. Such a shame, it seemed to have so much potential.)