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Bonded to Beasts #1
A Fate Forged in Fire
Born to rule. Blessed by fire. Broken by desire.
Gifted with fire magic from the Goddess Brigid, Aemyra has always known she is destined for more than the life she leads as a blacksmith's daughter.
Once a territory built on matriarchal rule and values, Tìr Teine has been without a female heir for a century. Recent kings have abandoned the matriarchy and allowed an oppressive and corrupt religion to infect the land.
Raised among the people, Aemyra has felt their struggles and witnessed the decline of the dragons. She has waited in anticipation for the king to die, biding her time until she can use her power to bond to his dragon - one of the last in existence - and save her territory.
However, Aemyra is thrust into a game of vicious politics and plots, one she finds herself woefully unprepared for. Her biggest adversary is Prince Fiorean, a dragon-rider. Cold, arrogant and without remorse, he is everything Aemyra despises.
When he commits an unthinkable act against her, she seeks her vengeance. Under the heavy gaze of the royal court, Aemyra begins to understand the true weight of the crown and she must decide what she is willing to sacrifice to claim her throne.
Gifted with fire magic from the Goddess Brigid, Aemyra has always known she is destined for more than the life she leads as a blacksmith's daughter.
Once a territory built on matriarchal rule and values, Tìr Teine has been without a female heir for a century. Recent kings have abandoned the matriarchy and allowed an oppressive and corrupt religion to infect the land.
Raised among the people, Aemyra has felt their struggles and witnessed the decline of the dragons. She has waited in anticipation for the king to die, biding her time until she can use her power to bond to his dragon - one of the last in existence - and save her territory.
However, Aemyra is thrust into a game of vicious politics and plots, one she finds herself woefully unprepared for. Her biggest adversary is Prince Fiorean, a dragon-rider. Cold, arrogant and without remorse, he is everything Aemyra despises.
When he commits an unthinkable act against her, she seeks her vengeance. Under the heavy gaze of the royal court, Aemyra begins to understand the true weight of the crown and she must decide what she is willing to sacrifice to claim her throne.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published May 27, 2025
628 people are currently reading
91157 people want to read
About the author
Hazel McBride
11 books686 followersHazel McBride is a Scottish author currently living in The Netherlands.
Book one in her upcoming adult fantasy romance duology, A FATE FORGED IN FIRE is being published in early 2025 by Renegade books UK and Dell US with pre-empt deals with Aufbau in German and NeoN Libri in Italian
After gaining her BSc in Psychology at the University of Glasgow, she moved to the Dominican Republic. Switching the laid-back Caribbean for the sun-drenched Canary Islands a year later, she then moved to the South of France and is now fluent in three languages. As a bisexual author, having queer characters feature prominently in her novels, alongside her Scottish heritage is hugely important to her.
Book one in her upcoming adult fantasy romance duology, A FATE FORGED IN FIRE is being published in early 2025 by Renegade books UK and Dell US with pre-empt deals with Aufbau in German and NeoN Libri in Italian
After gaining her BSc in Psychology at the University of Glasgow, she moved to the Dominican Republic. Switching the laid-back Caribbean for the sun-drenched Canary Islands a year later, she then moved to the South of France and is now fluent in three languages. As a bisexual author, having queer characters feature prominently in her novels, alongside her Scottish heritage is hugely important to her.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,162 reviews
March 3, 2025
Meh. Little hard to get into. Dragged a bunch. Cliché af in other areas. Full Review in a bit.
Thank you Random House for brining this one to my attention! Can't wait to jump in! 😍
╰⪼ 💜Fantasy Romance
╰⪼ 🖤Hidden Heir
╰⪼ 💜Slow Burn
╰⪼ 🖤Banter
╰⪼ 🐉Dragons
╰⪼ 💜Sassy/Feisty FMC
╰⪼ 🖤Political/Religious Intrigue
Anticipated Release Date - 05/27/25
✨ Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Delacorte Press for gifting me an advanced digital copy via NetGalley - all thoughts are my own. ✨
⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ Connect with me on Instagram ˗ˏˋ★‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹
Thank you Random House for brining this one to my attention! Can't wait to jump in! 😍
╰⪼ 💜Fantasy Romance
╰⪼ 🖤Hidden Heir
╰⪼ 💜Slow Burn
╰⪼ 🖤Banter
╰⪼ 🐉Dragons
╰⪼ 💜Sassy/Feisty FMC
╰⪼ 🖤Political/Religious Intrigue
Anticipated Release Date - 05/27/25
✨ Many thanks to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Delacorte Press for gifting me an advanced digital copy via NetGalley - all thoughts are my own. ✨
⋆✴︎˚｡⋆ Connect with me on Instagram ˗ˏˋ★‿︵‧ ˚ ₊⊹
July 1, 2025
Oh yess, it’s giving house of the dragon but make it romantasy 🐉
First book in a duology. If Hazel wants to write multiple books done in sets of duologies following the different houses and their elements… I will be sat ready and waiting to read.
The potential to expand with this series is so promising and extremely exciting!!
First book in a duology. If Hazel wants to write multiple books done in sets of duologies following the different houses and their elements… I will be sat ready and waiting to read.
The potential to expand with this series is so promising and extremely exciting!!
July 4, 2025
Only writing a review for this because I have to. I really love books with dragons and books with pretty covers but this one was so bad like I tried to like it. I really did. Even when it was not hitting I blamed my slump and put it down for a while and not once did I feel like picking it up but later on I finally picked it up, out of obligation not because I wanted too. I want to say that It's been too long since I read this book to remember anything but truth be told the hour after I finished it, I forgot everything. I just remember it being horrible.
__
I started this a while ago but I dont know how to feel about it so far and im 60% through. It's just not grabbing my attention. Hoping it gets better!!
*Thank you to Netgalley and Random house- Ballnatine for an E-arc.*
__
I started this a while ago but I dont know how to feel about it so far and im 60% through. It's just not grabbing my attention. Hoping it gets better!!
*Thank you to Netgalley and Random house- Ballnatine for an E-arc.*
May 27, 2025
A bratty blacksmith is secretly heir to a throne but has to wait for a dude to die before she can rule. Aemyra may not have the skills or demeanor to be queen, but she doesn’t let that get in the way of being super, super haughty and full of herself. She does have a hot brother, so there’s also that. Things go south and she ends up in a tricky situation with her sworn enemy, who she promises to kill several times and then just doesn’t (she’s busy, I guess). (He’s also hot.) (And scarred.) (Both emotionally and physically.) This book was influenced by House of the Dragon but contains minimal uncles marrying their nieces so it’s immediately 250% better than the show. Fights! Flights! Smirking galore! Will Aemyra finally sit on her rightful throne Will Fiorean start trusting the right people? Will the dragons incinerate everyone and rule themselves? IS THERE A HOT, MORALLY GREY DAD? Maybe.
November 26, 2024
2 stars
Let me be completely honest. I’m struggling with how to rate this. For 90% of the book, I was gritting my teeth, trying to power through. Why? Because Aemyra. I couldn’t stand her. She was everything I dislike in a character: childish, arrogant, and so full of herself. She acted like she was better than everyone else, constantly belittling everyone around her, acting almighty and edgy while making the dumbest decisions. How do you even root for a character like that? Her entire personality felt forced, and instead of coming across as powerful or compelling, she was just insufferable.
That’s how she views other women while she, too, was in their position. Really? Absolute bitch energy. Absolute queen of the pick-me brigade. Sorry, but if you’re going to write a fiery, rage-fueled FMC, at least make her empowering. Women supporting women is a thing, and I can’t root for a character who thinks like this. Girl power above all, biss!
And Fiorean? He had no personality at all. Zero depth. The chemistry between them? Off. Just off.
On top of that, Aemyra’s character was so inconsistent. She’s all rage and edge at the start, but when she “finds out” What does she do? Nothing. She doesn’t rebel, doesn’t fight back with everything she’s got. She just sits there, bitching about how much she hates all of them and talking about killing them if her magic comes back. With all her fiery attitude, I thought she’d at least try to gouge his eyes out or something. But nope. What happened to all the rage and fiery energy from the beginning? It just didn’t add up.
This book was so hard to get through. The fast pacing and constant name-dropping with no backstory made it impossible to follow or care about what was happening. I love complex fantasy and detailed world-building, but this wasn’t it. Instead of immersing me in the story, it left me feeling lost and frustrated. My brain wouldn’t even let me process the story because of the wreck that was Aemyra’s character. Her chaotic personality overshadowed everything, making it impossible to care about the plot or the world around her.
Oh, and the spice? Nope. No chemistry, nothing special. Just awkward.
To top it off, the dialogue had me cringing:
I shuddered with disgust.
I didn’t give this 1 star because the dragon fights and the ending were "okay". I kind of guessed the ending but not entirely, so it was slightly redeeming. I initially thought about giving this 3 stars, but nah. After enduring 90% of this book, I can’t justify it.
I know some people will probably love this book, but it’s just not for me.
Note : Thank you to the author and publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
Let me be completely honest. I’m struggling with how to rate this. For 90% of the book, I was gritting my teeth, trying to power through. Why? Because Aemyra. I couldn’t stand her. She was everything I dislike in a character: childish, arrogant, and so full of herself. She acted like she was better than everyone else, constantly belittling everyone around her, acting almighty and edgy while making the dumbest decisions. How do you even root for a character like that? Her entire personality felt forced, and instead of coming across as powerful or compelling, she was just insufferable.
"Pitiful. These women have no strength."
That’s how she views other women while she, too, was in their position. Really? Absolute bitch energy. Absolute queen of the pick-me brigade. Sorry, but if you’re going to write a fiery, rage-fueled FMC, at least make her empowering. Women supporting women is a thing, and I can’t root for a character who thinks like this. Girl power above all, biss!
And Fiorean? He had no personality at all. Zero depth. The chemistry between them? Off. Just off.
On top of that, Aemyra’s character was so inconsistent. She’s all rage and edge at the start, but when she “finds out” What does she do? Nothing. She doesn’t rebel, doesn’t fight back with everything she’s got. She just sits there, bitching about how much she hates all of them and talking about killing them if her magic comes back. With all her fiery attitude, I thought she’d at least try to gouge his eyes out or something. But nope. What happened to all the rage and fiery energy from the beginning? It just didn’t add up.
This book was so hard to get through. The fast pacing and constant name-dropping with no backstory made it impossible to follow or care about what was happening. I love complex fantasy and detailed world-building, but this wasn’t it. Instead of immersing me in the story, it left me feeling lost and frustrated. My brain wouldn’t even let me process the story because of the wreck that was Aemyra’s character. Her chaotic personality overshadowed everything, making it impossible to care about the plot or the world around her.
Oh, and the spice? Nope. No chemistry, nothing special. Just awkward.
To top it off, the dialogue had me cringing:
"So how can I be fire? If the only thing that makes me burn... is you."
I shuddered with disgust.
I didn’t give this 1 star because the dragon fights and the ending were "okay". I kind of guessed the ending but not entirely, so it was slightly redeeming. I initially thought about giving this 3 stars, but nah. After enduring 90% of this book, I can’t justify it.
I know some people will probably love this book, but it’s just not for me.
Note : Thank you to the author and publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
February 12, 2025
𓍢⊹ 🔥 𖧧 ࣪ 🗡️
“Aemyra had been forged in fire, but a queen would rise from the ashes.”
— thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the arc! please check tws before reading!!
🔥 enemies to lovers
🗡️ many dagger to throat moments
🔥 feminine rage
🗡️ marriage of (in)convenience
🔥 lots of “my wife”
i don’t really know what to say about this book! i liked it at times and then i didn’t and just have mixed feelings overall! the beginning was filled with so much world building that i feel like could’ve been explained better, i found it so confusing!! after reading more it started making more sense but it still wasn’t quite enjoyable at the start!
i don’t know what to think of the fmc; i feel like the book made her out to be this strong and powerful fmc which at times she was but i feel like she barely accomplished anything if that makes sense? all her plans kept going to shit and i was just asking myself when something would change! i kept rooting for her to succeed and sadly it never happened :(
i wish we got more or fiorean, his character was okay and a bit bland but there was literally nothing more…
now my favorite thing about this book would definitely be the enemies to lovers! i think it was done well and i enjoyed the tension/hate between them!
i also wish there was more dragons!! i absolutely loved the authors take on bonds and would’ve loved to see more of it.
the ending i saw coming because sadly i saw a review with a slight spoiler hinting at it and i honestly would’ve been completely oblivious had i not seen that! THAT BEING SAID… (i think) i will be continuing this series!
“Aemyra had been forged in fire, but a queen would rise from the ashes.”
— thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the arc! please check tws before reading!!
🔥 enemies to lovers
🗡️ many dagger to throat moments
🔥 feminine rage
🗡️ marriage of (in)convenience
🔥 lots of “my wife”
i don’t really know what to say about this book! i liked it at times and then i didn’t and just have mixed feelings overall! the beginning was filled with so much world building that i feel like could’ve been explained better, i found it so confusing!! after reading more it started making more sense but it still wasn’t quite enjoyable at the start!
i don’t know what to think of the fmc; i feel like the book made her out to be this strong and powerful fmc which at times she was but i feel like she barely accomplished anything if that makes sense? all her plans kept going to shit and i was just asking myself when something would change! i kept rooting for her to succeed and sadly it never happened :(
i wish we got more or fiorean, his character was okay and a bit bland but there was literally nothing more…
now my favorite thing about this book would definitely be the enemies to lovers! i think it was done well and i enjoyed the tension/hate between them!
i also wish there was more dragons!! i absolutely loved the authors take on bonds and would’ve loved to see more of it.
the ending i saw coming because sadly i saw a review with a slight spoiler hinting at it and i honestly would’ve been completely oblivious had i not seen that! THAT BEING SAID… (i think) i will be continuing this series!
March 13, 2025
This was such a disappointing read. I tried rlly hard to like it as well. The fantasy aspect was very flimsy and the chemistry between the main characters was nonexistent.
There was one point in the book where it caught my attention (I think it was about at the halfway mark) and I thought okay we’re finally getting somewhere but then it lost me even faster lol 😭
The fmc irritated me and the mmc was blander than plain bread. There was nothing new or exciting about them.
The cast of characters were so 1 dimensional I could not find it me to give a single care about any of them and the plot was sleep inducing (no actually I fell asleep for a good 7 hrs)
Overall, it had a lot of potential but fell rlly flat.
ೃ⁀➷ Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
***
Omg whattt I got the arc for this!!! It sounds so good I CANT WAIT TO READ ITTTT 🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️
There was one point in the book where it caught my attention (I think it was about at the halfway mark) and I thought okay we’re finally getting somewhere but then it lost me even faster lol 😭
The fmc irritated me and the mmc was blander than plain bread. There was nothing new or exciting about them.
The cast of characters were so 1 dimensional I could not find it me to give a single care about any of them and the plot was sleep inducing (no actually I fell asleep for a good 7 hrs)
Overall, it had a lot of potential but fell rlly flat.
ೃ⁀➷ Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
***
Omg whattt I got the arc for this!!! It sounds so good I CANT WAIT TO READ ITTTT 🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️🤸🏻♀️
May 27, 2025
“𝑺𝒐 𝒉𝒐𝒘 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝑰 𝒃𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒆? 𝑰𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒏𝒍𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒆 𝒃𝒖𝒓𝒏 … 𝒊𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖.”
Oh lordy I did not expect this enemies to lovers to enemies trope OKAY!!!! 😭🔥 For me, it always throws me off when fantasy books take inspiration or direct translations from Scottish Gaelic, so I think that's why it slightly affected my rating overall. BUT DON'T LET THIS DISCOURAGE YOU OKAY?! 😅 Because the plot and the vibes were GIVINGGGGG 😮💨🔥
I was in the mood to have me screaming at the pages, and I got exactly that. Some people would say that experience makes it a low-rating book, but honestly, when I get frustrated with how the characters act in their surroundings (cause duh we all know is on purposes) that’s what I call a good time 😂 (should I.. fix that? eh, let's not think about that right now lmao)
I totally got frustrated with Aemyra 😵💫 because like... SHE WAS BORN TO RULE, but was raised as a low commoner and forger of her town, so she was "taught" to make royal decisions... but MAN SHE DUMB DUMB LMAOOOO 🤣 I was literally screaming at her throughout the book. 😂
Another aspect I LOVED about this book was the society/world-building being centered around a matriarchy. LIKE YESSSSS 👏 WHO RUNS THE WORLD??? WOMEN. PERIOD. 💅👑
Anyway, I GOT HOOKED around 40% which is why my rating is technically 3.5⭐ rounding up because even though it took me a while and me side eyeing Aemyra's choices, I definitely wanted to keep going. AND as soon as Prince Fiorean came into the picture, OHHH LORDDD 😮💨🔥 it was delicious. The chemistry??? THE ANGST???? 🤌 SPOT ON.
As a reader and it being 3rd person POV, you definitely get a higher understanding of what’s happening before the characters do, so it gave me major Game of Thrones vibes 👀 ANDDDD it has dragons 🐉 sooooo you already know it’s giving. Like Aemyra’s over here like “I’m meant to rule” and the kingdom basically said “yea you thought.” 💀😂
⚠️ Warning this book has a CLIFFHANGER that will HURT YOUR SOUL 💔 but thankfully it's just a duology (for now LOL we can never be sure) so hopefully the wait isn't too long. Manifesting fast releases 🙏
ALSO, I STILL DON'T EVEN KNOW WHO TO TRUST IN THIS BOOK!!!! 😭 LIKE WHO IS THE ENEMY WHO IS THE FRIEND I'M STRESSED.
⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.
➳ 𝗽𝗿𝗲-𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱｡ꪆৎ ˚⋅ Matriachy energy to celebrate International Women's Day
𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘋𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘈𝘙𝘊 💕 𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘦 𝘧𝘮𝘤 𝘴𝘰 🙂↕️
Oh lordy I did not expect this enemies to lovers to enemies trope OKAY!!!! 😭🔥 For me, it always throws me off when fantasy books take inspiration or direct translations from Scottish Gaelic, so I think that's why it slightly affected my rating overall. BUT DON'T LET THIS DISCOURAGE YOU OKAY?! 😅 Because the plot and the vibes were GIVINGGGGG 😮💨🔥
I was in the mood to have me screaming at the pages, and I got exactly that. Some people would say that experience makes it a low-rating book, but honestly, when I get frustrated with how the characters act in their surroundings (cause duh we all know is on purposes) that’s what I call a good time 😂 (should I.. fix that? eh, let's not think about that right now lmao)
I totally got frustrated with Aemyra 😵💫 because like... SHE WAS BORN TO RULE, but was raised as a low commoner and forger of her town, so she was "taught" to make royal decisions... but MAN SHE DUMB DUMB LMAOOOO 🤣 I was literally screaming at her throughout the book. 😂
Another aspect I LOVED about this book was the society/world-building being centered around a matriarchy. LIKE YESSSSS 👏 WHO RUNS THE WORLD??? WOMEN. PERIOD. 💅👑
Anyway, I GOT HOOKED around 40% which is why my rating is technically 3.5⭐ rounding up because even though it took me a while and me side eyeing Aemyra's choices, I definitely wanted to keep going. AND as soon as Prince Fiorean came into the picture, OHHH LORDDD 😮💨🔥 it was delicious. The chemistry??? THE ANGST???? 🤌 SPOT ON.
As a reader and it being 3rd person POV, you definitely get a higher understanding of what’s happening before the characters do, so it gave me major Game of Thrones vibes 👀 ANDDDD it has dragons 🐉 sooooo you already know it’s giving. Like Aemyra’s over here like “I’m meant to rule” and the kingdom basically said “yea you thought.” 💀😂
⚠️ Warning this book has a CLIFFHANGER that will HURT YOUR SOUL 💔 but thankfully it's just a duology (for now LOL we can never be sure) so hopefully the wait isn't too long. Manifesting fast releases 🙏
ALSO, I STILL DON'T EVEN KNOW WHO TO TRUST IN THIS BOOK!!!! 😭 LIKE WHO IS THE ENEMY WHO IS THE FRIEND I'M STRESSED.
⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.⋆. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁. ݁₊ ⊹ . ݁˖ . ݁⋆.
➳ 𝗽𝗿𝗲-𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱｡ꪆৎ ˚⋅ Matriachy energy to celebrate International Women's Day
𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘋𝘦𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘦𝘈𝘙𝘊 💕 𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘢𝘥𝘥𝘪𝘦 𝘧𝘮𝘤 𝘴𝘰 🙂↕️
November 16, 2024
stabby, angry, vengeful, bisexual fmc + broody, self loathing (super hot) mmc + dragons + a betrayal I will lie awake thinking about = a STUNNING fantasy romance 🔥
full review and thoughts will be on youtube ⭐️ thank you to Penguin Random House and NetGalley for this ARC
full review and thoughts will be on youtube ⭐️ thank you to Penguin Random House and NetGalley for this ARC
November 14, 2025
TIME OF DEATH: 13:43 SUN OCT 5 2025
I am, as a rule, against filing the serial numbers off fan fiction, not only because it tends to produce subpar work (I love fanfiction, and I write fanfiction, but fanfiction and published books are a different medium, and therefore one does not translate well to the other) but also because I do not believe that fandom spaces, which are the closest we, the collective "we", can currently come to anti-hierarchical classless (read: anarchist) communities, should be monetised, but also because I believe putting formerly free things behind a paywall to be ethically suboptimal. This does not mean I will never read anything that was once a fanfic, or that I can't enjoy anything that was once a fanfic, because a) I am only human and b) what a pointless insular rebellion that would be. There is no ethical consumption under capitalism and my stance has no power to remove these books from the public sphere, and at the end of the day, these works of art will continue to exist and are not illegitimate or automatically lacking in worth or quality because I believe them to be dodgy. This is not a case of what work "deserves" to exist; nothing and no one "deserves" to exist. Arguments to the contrary always circle back to fascism and censorship. Existence is neutral and need not be earned, i.e. "deserved". That said, what does annoy me is when obvious née fanfiction is presented as an original work "inspired by" its source material; lying is a much worse offence. And the obvious glaring omission that this book was once a fanfiction is indeed obvious and glaring. This book is House of the Dragon in a different font. It is so blatantly that, and what irks me is seeing other people who are bold enough to acknowledge that fact being shot down and branded misogynists, when this book's "feminism" is so, pardon the pun, toothless and simplistic, utterly devoid of nuance or class consciousness, utterly disinterested in anything other than the protagonist's pointless and individualistic grab for power. I would not be saying this, and would have had ZERO issues with this, and would have treated it as fluff and moved on with my life, if the book had not been touted as "feminist fantasy", i.e. making a political comment. Feminism is not when some women gain the social and economic capital to start oppressing other women. It is not equal opportunity supremacy, and matriarchy is not patriarchy flipped. That is not what it is. It cannot be, considering that patriarchy's roots are in the control of the means of production of humans, i.e. the control over human reproduction. If you hand control of reproduction to women, the society that emerges will look completely different. This is also why I hate these modern fantasies that try to patch the holes in an obviously patriarchal system and then claim that their book's politics are "gender neutral" or that there is "gender equality" in their world. There is no such thing as "gender equality". Gender is a caste system designed to subjugate women, trans people, gay people, and children, for the purposes of producing capital. The whole purpose of its existence is to create inequality. You can apply a new coat of paint but if your character is fighting to reclaim a throne or gain capital, your book is not feminist.
But this leads into a larger issue with this book in that, as an obvious former fanfic, it is wish fulfilment and nothing else. There is no meaningful plot to speak of. The first 50 pages are kind of interesting, and as soon as the failed rebellion happens and it's revealed that Aemyra is the heir to the throne, wanting to install a matriarchy (uggghhhhhhhhhhhh), it falls apart. The first moment that Aemyra bonds with her dragon is clearly the lynchpin of the whole story; I might be wrong, but my guess is that the author had this scene in her head and wrote the story around it, just to try to get to this point, because flying on a dragon is cool. There is nothing being said here. Nothing is being said about power and privilege, war and class, in a story where the main characters fly around on weapons of mass destruction and fight over the seat of power in an absolute monarchy. A bizarre state of affairs especially for a story whose worldbuilding leans heavily into a Scottish aesthetic, considering that the UK is a nuclear armed state, built the biggest empire the world has ever seen, was at ground zero and a massive instigator in the world's most destructive and deadly conflicts, and considering the controversy around the presence of nuclear warheads in the River Clyde.
But this isn't the only problem I have with the way the Scottish aesthetic is used, and please bear in mind that I am using the word aesthetic purposefully. This book makes heavy use of grammatically incorrect Scottish Gaelic, a choice I am bamboozled by, and am always bamboozled by, whenever I see it used in books that have this same aesthetic. I am, and always will be, a massive supporter of the revival of Scottish Gaelic, because preserving endangered languages is a crucial part of decolonisation and anti-imperialism, as well as protecting our shared cultural history and character, but the use of Gaelic here does force me to ask who exactly this book is for; is it for Scottish Gaelic speakers? Considering that the Gaelic is grammatically incorrect, I doubt that very much. What I am getting at is that this book's use of Gaelic feels performative and detached, perfunctory and incurious, because a much more prevalent minority language in Scotland that equally needs to be protected, and has also been historically persecuted, is Scots. What is fantasy authors' allergy to Scots? 1.5 million people out of Scotland's 5.4 million people speak Scots. If the language of the fantasy world here had been Scots, which has recently been designated by the Scottish government as a distinct language, this book would have made cultural sense to me. I would have felt, in any small way, that as a Scottish woman, this book was intended to be enjoyed by me. Again, I highly doubt that the author speaks Gaelic, or else I'm sure the Gaelic would not have been incorrect; I am sure that she knows at least some Scots words. So what is the point in the use of Gaelic here, then? Is it because it looks like a fantasy language, as is apparently the case to some American authors, who batter and contort it to within an inch of its life? I'm not trying to level an accusation here and I am certain that the author had zero ill intent. What I am baffled by, confounded by, is the cultural vacuum this book exists in; it floats, grey, untethered, useless in its feminism and shrugging at me, blank-eyed, when I ask it for any insight into the culture it so heavily borrows from. Gaelic has very little bearing on the average Scottish person's daily life, but Scots is prevalent. It bleeds heavily into our everyday lexicon, so why is it absent here? This book is drawing on elements of our culture that most modern Scots will never come into contact with, all the while ignoring the ones we do, and for what? To make it seem more mystical? Is our culture not rich enough? Do you fear that, when Scots hits their ear, the Tories and turncoats who told us to stop speaking it when we were children because it sounded poor, uneducated, dirty, and incorrect, will knock on your door and deride you further? Is it not yet time for us to heal? Indeed, this is a fantasy world, so it does not need to be historically accurate to anything... except when it does this, and builds itself entirely around a very specific cultural wellspring. If it had a bit of Scottish flavour, some details here and there, nods and homages, but was otherwise the author's own imagination, I would not be saying this because that is another matter entirely. There is an enormous difference between drawing on your own cultural experience to furnish your world and building your entire fantasy world, scaffold and all, around a distinct culture. If you were to include an event in your book that very, very closely resembled a real historical event, readers would not be remiss in likening said event in your book to that historical event. If your book very, very, very closely resembles a real culture, you are making a comment whether you like it or not. The comparison is there and I cannot pretend it isn't.
I haven't touched on the characters because they are not worth touching on. Aemyra is fine but extremely stupid. Her father is even stupider. They deserve each other. That they mount this risky rebellion against the crown and only once it has failed start talking about who outside of the kingdom "might" ally with them, you know you are in for a clown show without any wigs. This is room temperature IQ territory we are entering here. You expect me to think this woman is taking her bid for the crown seriously when, instead of getting on the fucking boat to safety when a whole army is chasing her, she stops to do a flirty sword fight with the prince? When presented with an easy opportunity to kill him, clearing her path to the throne, she decides "That is not the kind of queen I will be" and runs off? Does she think she will never be required to kill anyone as queen? How does she think autocrats hold onto their power, exactly? Her father has apparently not forged a single alliance outside of their kingdom to aid in this rebellion and I am yet expected to believe that he is an ambitious schemer? No intelligence was gathered prior to this attempted rebellion; we arrive at the castle only to be surprised that the current royal family has been gathering troops to defend the seat of their power, which is something we would have known if we had sent a spy in, or had even just watched from the gates to see how much food and steel was going in and out of the castle. But that would make too much sense. As it stands the strategising here is on par with Victoria Aveyard's Red Queen, where Canada, whose current energy source is 60% hydroelectric, and who is the world's second largest producer of uranium behind only Kazakhstan, is at war with the US because they need their water wheels to produce electricity. Water wheels.
Canada. Needs water wheels.
FIN
I am, as a rule, against filing the serial numbers off fan fiction, not only because it tends to produce subpar work (I love fanfiction, and I write fanfiction, but fanfiction and published books are a different medium, and therefore one does not translate well to the other) but also because I do not believe that fandom spaces, which are the closest we, the collective "we", can currently come to anti-hierarchical classless (read: anarchist) communities, should be monetised, but also because I believe putting formerly free things behind a paywall to be ethically suboptimal. This does not mean I will never read anything that was once a fanfic, or that I can't enjoy anything that was once a fanfic, because a) I am only human and b) what a pointless insular rebellion that would be. There is no ethical consumption under capitalism and my stance has no power to remove these books from the public sphere, and at the end of the day, these works of art will continue to exist and are not illegitimate or automatically lacking in worth or quality because I believe them to be dodgy. This is not a case of what work "deserves" to exist; nothing and no one "deserves" to exist. Arguments to the contrary always circle back to fascism and censorship. Existence is neutral and need not be earned, i.e. "deserved". That said, what does annoy me is when obvious née fanfiction is presented as an original work "inspired by" its source material; lying is a much worse offence. And the obvious glaring omission that this book was once a fanfiction is indeed obvious and glaring. This book is House of the Dragon in a different font. It is so blatantly that, and what irks me is seeing other people who are bold enough to acknowledge that fact being shot down and branded misogynists, when this book's "feminism" is so, pardon the pun, toothless and simplistic, utterly devoid of nuance or class consciousness, utterly disinterested in anything other than the protagonist's pointless and individualistic grab for power. I would not be saying this, and would have had ZERO issues with this, and would have treated it as fluff and moved on with my life, if the book had not been touted as "feminist fantasy", i.e. making a political comment. Feminism is not when some women gain the social and economic capital to start oppressing other women. It is not equal opportunity supremacy, and matriarchy is not patriarchy flipped. That is not what it is. It cannot be, considering that patriarchy's roots are in the control of the means of production of humans, i.e. the control over human reproduction. If you hand control of reproduction to women, the society that emerges will look completely different. This is also why I hate these modern fantasies that try to patch the holes in an obviously patriarchal system and then claim that their book's politics are "gender neutral" or that there is "gender equality" in their world. There is no such thing as "gender equality". Gender is a caste system designed to subjugate women, trans people, gay people, and children, for the purposes of producing capital. The whole purpose of its existence is to create inequality. You can apply a new coat of paint but if your character is fighting to reclaim a throne or gain capital, your book is not feminist.
But this leads into a larger issue with this book in that, as an obvious former fanfic, it is wish fulfilment and nothing else. There is no meaningful plot to speak of. The first 50 pages are kind of interesting, and as soon as the failed rebellion happens and it's revealed that Aemyra is the heir to the throne, wanting to install a matriarchy (uggghhhhhhhhhhhh), it falls apart. The first moment that Aemyra bonds with her dragon is clearly the lynchpin of the whole story; I might be wrong, but my guess is that the author had this scene in her head and wrote the story around it, just to try to get to this point, because flying on a dragon is cool. There is nothing being said here. Nothing is being said about power and privilege, war and class, in a story where the main characters fly around on weapons of mass destruction and fight over the seat of power in an absolute monarchy. A bizarre state of affairs especially for a story whose worldbuilding leans heavily into a Scottish aesthetic, considering that the UK is a nuclear armed state, built the biggest empire the world has ever seen, was at ground zero and a massive instigator in the world's most destructive and deadly conflicts, and considering the controversy around the presence of nuclear warheads in the River Clyde.
But this isn't the only problem I have with the way the Scottish aesthetic is used, and please bear in mind that I am using the word aesthetic purposefully. This book makes heavy use of grammatically incorrect Scottish Gaelic, a choice I am bamboozled by, and am always bamboozled by, whenever I see it used in books that have this same aesthetic. I am, and always will be, a massive supporter of the revival of Scottish Gaelic, because preserving endangered languages is a crucial part of decolonisation and anti-imperialism, as well as protecting our shared cultural history and character, but the use of Gaelic here does force me to ask who exactly this book is for; is it for Scottish Gaelic speakers? Considering that the Gaelic is grammatically incorrect, I doubt that very much. What I am getting at is that this book's use of Gaelic feels performative and detached, perfunctory and incurious, because a much more prevalent minority language in Scotland that equally needs to be protected, and has also been historically persecuted, is Scots. What is fantasy authors' allergy to Scots? 1.5 million people out of Scotland's 5.4 million people speak Scots. If the language of the fantasy world here had been Scots, which has recently been designated by the Scottish government as a distinct language, this book would have made cultural sense to me. I would have felt, in any small way, that as a Scottish woman, this book was intended to be enjoyed by me. Again, I highly doubt that the author speaks Gaelic, or else I'm sure the Gaelic would not have been incorrect; I am sure that she knows at least some Scots words. So what is the point in the use of Gaelic here, then? Is it because it looks like a fantasy language, as is apparently the case to some American authors, who batter and contort it to within an inch of its life? I'm not trying to level an accusation here and I am certain that the author had zero ill intent. What I am baffled by, confounded by, is the cultural vacuum this book exists in; it floats, grey, untethered, useless in its feminism and shrugging at me, blank-eyed, when I ask it for any insight into the culture it so heavily borrows from. Gaelic has very little bearing on the average Scottish person's daily life, but Scots is prevalent. It bleeds heavily into our everyday lexicon, so why is it absent here? This book is drawing on elements of our culture that most modern Scots will never come into contact with, all the while ignoring the ones we do, and for what? To make it seem more mystical? Is our culture not rich enough? Do you fear that, when Scots hits their ear, the Tories and turncoats who told us to stop speaking it when we were children because it sounded poor, uneducated, dirty, and incorrect, will knock on your door and deride you further? Is it not yet time for us to heal? Indeed, this is a fantasy world, so it does not need to be historically accurate to anything... except when it does this, and builds itself entirely around a very specific cultural wellspring. If it had a bit of Scottish flavour, some details here and there, nods and homages, but was otherwise the author's own imagination, I would not be saying this because that is another matter entirely. There is an enormous difference between drawing on your own cultural experience to furnish your world and building your entire fantasy world, scaffold and all, around a distinct culture. If you were to include an event in your book that very, very closely resembled a real historical event, readers would not be remiss in likening said event in your book to that historical event. If your book very, very, very closely resembles a real culture, you are making a comment whether you like it or not. The comparison is there and I cannot pretend it isn't.
I haven't touched on the characters because they are not worth touching on. Aemyra is fine but extremely stupid. Her father is even stupider. They deserve each other. That they mount this risky rebellion against the crown and only once it has failed start talking about who outside of the kingdom "might" ally with them, you know you are in for a clown show without any wigs. This is room temperature IQ territory we are entering here. You expect me to think this woman is taking her bid for the crown seriously when, instead of getting on the fucking boat to safety when a whole army is chasing her, she stops to do a flirty sword fight with the prince? When presented with an easy opportunity to kill him, clearing her path to the throne, she decides "That is not the kind of queen I will be" and runs off? Does she think she will never be required to kill anyone as queen? How does she think autocrats hold onto their power, exactly? Her father has apparently not forged a single alliance outside of their kingdom to aid in this rebellion and I am yet expected to believe that he is an ambitious schemer? No intelligence was gathered prior to this attempted rebellion; we arrive at the castle only to be surprised that the current royal family has been gathering troops to defend the seat of their power, which is something we would have known if we had sent a spy in, or had even just watched from the gates to see how much food and steel was going in and out of the castle. But that would make too much sense. As it stands the strategising here is on par with Victoria Aveyard's Red Queen, where Canada, whose current energy source is 60% hydroelectric, and who is the world's second largest producer of uranium behind only Kazakhstan, is at war with the US because they need their water wheels to produce electricity. Water wheels.
Canada. Needs water wheels.
FIN
May 20, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️ A promising spark that hasn’t yet become a flame
Going into this book, I was buzzing with anticipation. The premise promised a searing blend of magic, power, rebellion, and irresistible tension between enemies. A fire-wielding blacksmith vying for the throne of a fractured realm? Sign me up. And while there were flickers of brilliance that kept me turning the pages, the execution didn’t fully match the epic feel I was hoping for.
The setting is undeniably intriguing—rich with Celtic influence and ancient legacy, complete with a kingdom weighed down by religious tyranny and unraveling traditions. There's an undercurrent of something bold and fierce here, especially in the dynamic between a decaying patriarchy and a heroine set on reclaiming the power of women and magic. Still, the delivery felt uneven at times. I often found myself wishing for clearer foundations. Certain elements of the world—especially the spiritual bonds and magic hierarchy—seemed to leap ahead before I had a chance to settle into them.
Aemyra, our heroine, is all fire and fury, and though her passion is undeniable, her choices often left me more puzzled than inspired. Her determination is admirable, but I struggled to see her as a future queen—at least not yet. Meanwhile, Fiorean plays the perfect foil with just enough mystery and sharp edges to make things interesting, though I didn’t feel like I fully understood his inner world or convictions by the end.
Now, about the romance... it definitely simmers, but never quite reaches the boil. The attraction is there, but the emotional arc felt undercooked. I love tension and forced alliances as much as anyone, but the transition from animosity to affection didn’t fully land for me—it felt more like flipping a switch than a slow burn.
That said, dragons always earn bonus points. The lore surrounding them, and their connection to the throne, adds an exciting layer, and I hope future installments dive even deeper into that mystical bond and the other magical creatures hinted at in passing.
All in all, while this one didn’t quite soar, it did light a spark. There’s something here—something that could really shine in book two with more refinement. I’m definitely intrigued enough to keep reading, especially to see how Aemyra’s growth unfolds and how this magical, volatile world evolves.
If you're into fantasy with rebellious women, slow-building power plays, and a touch of heat (romantic and elemental), this is worth a try—just manage your expectations and enjoy the ride for what it is: the beginning of a journey, not yet the destination.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine | Delacorte Press for sharing this digital copy of one of the most anticipated fantasies of the year in exchange for my honest thoughts—I truly appreciated it!
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Going into this book, I was buzzing with anticipation. The premise promised a searing blend of magic, power, rebellion, and irresistible tension between enemies. A fire-wielding blacksmith vying for the throne of a fractured realm? Sign me up. And while there were flickers of brilliance that kept me turning the pages, the execution didn’t fully match the epic feel I was hoping for.
The setting is undeniably intriguing—rich with Celtic influence and ancient legacy, complete with a kingdom weighed down by religious tyranny and unraveling traditions. There's an undercurrent of something bold and fierce here, especially in the dynamic between a decaying patriarchy and a heroine set on reclaiming the power of women and magic. Still, the delivery felt uneven at times. I often found myself wishing for clearer foundations. Certain elements of the world—especially the spiritual bonds and magic hierarchy—seemed to leap ahead before I had a chance to settle into them.
Aemyra, our heroine, is all fire and fury, and though her passion is undeniable, her choices often left me more puzzled than inspired. Her determination is admirable, but I struggled to see her as a future queen—at least not yet. Meanwhile, Fiorean plays the perfect foil with just enough mystery and sharp edges to make things interesting, though I didn’t feel like I fully understood his inner world or convictions by the end.
Now, about the romance... it definitely simmers, but never quite reaches the boil. The attraction is there, but the emotional arc felt undercooked. I love tension and forced alliances as much as anyone, but the transition from animosity to affection didn’t fully land for me—it felt more like flipping a switch than a slow burn.
That said, dragons always earn bonus points. The lore surrounding them, and their connection to the throne, adds an exciting layer, and I hope future installments dive even deeper into that mystical bond and the other magical creatures hinted at in passing.
All in all, while this one didn’t quite soar, it did light a spark. There’s something here—something that could really shine in book two with more refinement. I’m definitely intrigued enough to keep reading, especially to see how Aemyra’s growth unfolds and how this magical, volatile world evolves.
If you're into fantasy with rebellious women, slow-building power plays, and a touch of heat (romantic and elemental), this is worth a try—just manage your expectations and enjoy the ride for what it is: the beginning of a journey, not yet the destination.
Huge thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine | Delacorte Press for sharing this digital copy of one of the most anticipated fantasies of the year in exchange for my honest thoughts—I truly appreciated it!
medium blog
May 25, 2025
2.5 ☆
”Until I met you, my life was free from torment. Free from your hateful face across a table, free from the anguish of hearing your voice in my halls. Warring against my better judgment every time my blood was set alight by a simple brush of your skin.”
i wanted to like this more than i did, but the writing really wasn’t working for me. there’s a big emphasis on Scottish Gaelic and it made everything in the book so confusing to follow. it has a lot of things that i like: a strong and powerful fmc, TRUE enemies to lovers, dragons, etc and i did like those elements in here but it still wasn’t enough. Aemyra was angry and willing to fight tooth and nail for her crown and her people, while Fiorean does everything in his power to stop her.
“But from the very first moment in the forge, when you blazed through my glacial pretenses, I knew I never wanted to be free of it. Of you. Because the intensity in which you burned simmered through my soul and left me forever changed. For weeks, thoughts of you have suffocated me, like the cloying smoke of an inferno I will never escape.”
i actually loved the romance, there’s an incredible push and pull between Aemyra and Fiorean. they skirt the line between love and hate in the best way tbh. if this focused mainly on the romance, I probably would’ve enjoyed it more. the world building was all over the place, there was so much happening but in a way that felt chaotic. it also gets very dark towards the end, the women aren’t treated well and Aemyra herself goes through something very traumatic. i love dragons, so all those scenes along with the romance were my favorite. despite all my issues, the end left on a cliffhanger that i wasn’t expecting and now my curiosity is piqued again.
➱ many thanks to NetGalley, the author and Random House for the arc, all opinions are my own.
”Until I met you, my life was free from torment. Free from your hateful face across a table, free from the anguish of hearing your voice in my halls. Warring against my better judgment every time my blood was set alight by a simple brush of your skin.”
i wanted to like this more than i did, but the writing really wasn’t working for me. there’s a big emphasis on Scottish Gaelic and it made everything in the book so confusing to follow. it has a lot of things that i like: a strong and powerful fmc, TRUE enemies to lovers, dragons, etc and i did like those elements in here but it still wasn’t enough. Aemyra was angry and willing to fight tooth and nail for her crown and her people, while Fiorean does everything in his power to stop her.
“But from the very first moment in the forge, when you blazed through my glacial pretenses, I knew I never wanted to be free of it. Of you. Because the intensity in which you burned simmered through my soul and left me forever changed. For weeks, thoughts of you have suffocated me, like the cloying smoke of an inferno I will never escape.”
i actually loved the romance, there’s an incredible push and pull between Aemyra and Fiorean. they skirt the line between love and hate in the best way tbh. if this focused mainly on the romance, I probably would’ve enjoyed it more. the world building was all over the place, there was so much happening but in a way that felt chaotic. it also gets very dark towards the end, the women aren’t treated well and Aemyra herself goes through something very traumatic. i love dragons, so all those scenes along with the romance were my favorite. despite all my issues, the end left on a cliffhanger that i wasn’t expecting and now my curiosity is piqued again.
➱ many thanks to NetGalley, the author and Random House for the arc, all opinions are my own.
May 27, 2025
I am 100% sure this will become a phenomenon as soon as it is officially published, booktok will eat this up instantly.
This book was SO GOOD. It is high fantasy, which I love, and has a very rich world building that is not so complicated as to be a bother, you might have some problems in the beginning due to the amount of different words but just go with it and you will understand everything eventually. Some of it was a little overboard in my opinion, like the use of words like caisteal and breithday instead of the normal English words, but since it is done in moderation it was fine.
One of the things I would like to point out is how much I enjoyed the family dynamics, I feel like they are sometimes overlooked in romantasy because the focus is the romantic relationships, but I loved her family with all their little quirks, and don't even get me started in the twins. I want the next book asap just to see more of Aemyra and Adarian's relationship, I love them so much.
But it is a romantasy, and it deserves the name, the way the enemies to lovers is developed and you can feel the little changes in their perspectives are delicious to read. There are some dialogues between them that were absolutely fantastic, I wish I could post many lines here because they are that good.
I also like the conflict. It's so common to have enemy nations or civil war that I find it really cool to have also a religious plot going on, even if it drove me mad and I just wish Aemyra could burn them all to the ground. While in this topic, I recommend checking trigger warning, the book starts with a list(very wise decision), because there is a scene towards the ending that is quite heavy.
I saw it compared to Fourth Wing and Sarah J. Maas and while I agree in some aspects I also think you might like it even if you don't enjoy those books.
Thank you Penguin and Netgalley for the ARC!
This book was SO GOOD. It is high fantasy, which I love, and has a very rich world building that is not so complicated as to be a bother, you might have some problems in the beginning due to the amount of different words but just go with it and you will understand everything eventually. Some of it was a little overboard in my opinion, like the use of words like caisteal and breithday instead of the normal English words, but since it is done in moderation it was fine.
One of the things I would like to point out is how much I enjoyed the family dynamics, I feel like they are sometimes overlooked in romantasy because the focus is the romantic relationships, but I loved her family with all their little quirks, and don't even get me started in the twins. I want the next book asap just to see more of Aemyra and Adarian's relationship, I love them so much.
But it is a romantasy, and it deserves the name, the way the enemies to lovers is developed and you can feel the little changes in their perspectives are delicious to read. There are some dialogues between them that were absolutely fantastic, I wish I could post many lines here because they are that good.
I also like the conflict. It's so common to have enemy nations or civil war that I find it really cool to have also a religious plot going on, even if it drove me mad and I just wish Aemyra could burn them all to the ground. While in this topic, I recommend checking trigger warning, the book starts with a list(very wise decision), because there is a scene towards the ending that is quite heavy.
I saw it compared to Fourth Wing and Sarah J. Maas and while I agree in some aspects I also think you might like it even if you don't enjoy those books.
Thank you Penguin and Netgalley for the ARC!
June 23, 2025
MADRE MÍA, yo esto no me lo esperaba así...¿un romantasy con vibes a Juego de tronos? Ya entraba con mis dudas, pero me ha dado en toda la cara.
La primera mitad del libro es muy política, entra de lleno con un golpe de estado por la verdadera heredera escondida, intentado devolverle al pueblo el matriarcado seguro que tenía antes de la catástrofe y la imposición de la religión. Las tácticas, la exploración del mundo, la compleja terminología y el repaso histórico se hizo algo denso, pero interesante.
Ya en la segunda mitad hay un potente cambio, y aunque seguimos con el conflicto por el trono, el ambiente cambia y hay mayor hincapié en los personajes... Y EN LOS DRAGONES.
Estaba volviéndome LO-CA. De repente sirvió todo: política, debate, feminismo (las mujeres están muy reprimidas y la protagonista no para de lanzar mensajes reivindicadores), dagas, spice, dramas contesanos, la prota siendo una bi icon!! Me costó un día leer 3o páginas del inicio para el siguiente ventilarme 500 del tirón.
Estoy enamoradísima, de verdad. No puedo más que pensar en que el último fallo que tiene es que LA CONTINUACIÓN NO ESTÁ AÚN PUBLICADA. Y ese final... tremendo.
La primera mitad del libro es muy política, entra de lleno con un golpe de estado por la verdadera heredera escondida, intentado devolverle al pueblo el matriarcado seguro que tenía antes de la catástrofe y la imposición de la religión. Las tácticas, la exploración del mundo, la compleja terminología y el repaso histórico se hizo algo denso, pero interesante.
Ya en la segunda mitad hay un potente cambio, y aunque seguimos con el conflicto por el trono, el ambiente cambia y hay mayor hincapié en los personajes... Y EN LOS DRAGONES.
Estaba volviéndome LO-CA. De repente sirvió todo: política, debate, feminismo (las mujeres están muy reprimidas y la protagonista no para de lanzar mensajes reivindicadores), dagas, spice, dramas contesanos, la prota siendo una bi icon!! Me costó un día leer 3o páginas del inicio para el siguiente ventilarme 500 del tirón.
Estoy enamoradísima, de verdad. No puedo más que pensar en que el último fallo que tiene es que LA CONTINUACIÓN NO ESTÁ AÚN PUBLICADA. Y ese final... tremendo.
June 9, 2025
No thoughts!! Stunning!!
December 9, 2024
Thank you so much to Dell Romance and Hazel McBride for sending me an advanced copy!
I absolutely devoured this book...Hazel McBride transports us into a world of dragons and scheming rivals from within a ruling clan. I was pulled in immediately by the lush world building rooted in Celtic mythology--it felt really fresh and different from what I've read lately.
But when the marriage of convenience got going, oh boy...*fans self*. The plot was twisty and completely action-packed, making it impossible to predict and very difficult to put down.
I absolutely loved it, and eagerly await the follow up!
I absolutely devoured this book...Hazel McBride transports us into a world of dragons and scheming rivals from within a ruling clan. I was pulled in immediately by the lush world building rooted in Celtic mythology--it felt really fresh and different from what I've read lately.
But when the marriage of convenience got going, oh boy...*fans self*. The plot was twisty and completely action-packed, making it impossible to predict and very difficult to put down.
I absolutely loved it, and eagerly await the follow up!
September 4, 2025
“i have to save my people. i have to sleep with this guy in a storage closet.”
June 9, 2025
Ive settled on a 3⭐️ rating.
As a fantasy book this was amazing, the matriarchal world slowly being overturned by a new patriarchal religion, the dragons, the magic system, all of it was intriguing and gripping.
This story follows Aemyra who is a princess in hiding, when the king dies she rises up to take her rightful place as Queen since this world believes in the Goddesses and being ruled by a woman.
However the previous king only had sons and was married to a woman who believed in the new patriarchal religion so of course Aemyra faces hardship trying to claim the throne.
Parts of this story really reminded me of the politics of Game of Thrones, as if Sansa was the rightful heir but had to fight Joffrey for it.
I loved the court politics and elemental magic and out FMC Aemyra was easy to root for because she was fierce and wanted to do right by her people.
Unfortunately for me the romance let this story down, I hate Fieorian whatever his name is, everytime he was on page I was rolling my eyes, he was pathetic and had no backbone, I understand he has a lot of growth to go through but surely the idea is to at least make me like him. It was borderline a bully romance.
The first 200 pages solidified him as a villain to me so when the romance started to happen I couldn’t root for it, in my eyes he is irredeemable.
Slight spoilers:
He kicked Aemyra to her knees to bow to his brother, he allowed his brother to damn near strip her naked, he then proceeded to allow his brother to walk in and see her naked.
They mmc & fmc are also distantly related, with the same red hair that runs in the royal bloodline.
He gave me the ick and I wasn’t able to shake it, so when the ending happened I wasn’t even shocked because I expected nothing else.
Unfortunately I won’t be continuing the series because I don’t want them together, lowkey wish it was a love triangle so I could root for the other guy.
But 5 stars for the dragons as always!
As a fantasy book this was amazing, the matriarchal world slowly being overturned by a new patriarchal religion, the dragons, the magic system, all of it was intriguing and gripping.
This story follows Aemyra who is a princess in hiding, when the king dies she rises up to take her rightful place as Queen since this world believes in the Goddesses and being ruled by a woman.
However the previous king only had sons and was married to a woman who believed in the new patriarchal religion so of course Aemyra faces hardship trying to claim the throne.
Parts of this story really reminded me of the politics of Game of Thrones, as if Sansa was the rightful heir but had to fight Joffrey for it.
I loved the court politics and elemental magic and out FMC Aemyra was easy to root for because she was fierce and wanted to do right by her people.
Unfortunately for me the romance let this story down, I hate Fieorian whatever his name is, everytime he was on page I was rolling my eyes, he was pathetic and had no backbone, I understand he has a lot of growth to go through but surely the idea is to at least make me like him. It was borderline a bully romance.
The first 200 pages solidified him as a villain to me so when the romance started to happen I couldn’t root for it, in my eyes he is irredeemable.
Slight spoilers:
He kicked Aemyra to her knees to bow to his brother, he allowed his brother to damn near strip her naked, he then proceeded to allow his brother to walk in and see her naked.
They mmc & fmc are also distantly related, with the same red hair that runs in the royal bloodline.
He gave me the ick and I wasn’t able to shake it, so when the ending happened I wasn’t even shocked because I expected nothing else.
Unfortunately I won’t be continuing the series because I don’t want them together, lowkey wish it was a love triangle so I could root for the other guy.
But 5 stars for the dragons as always!
February 13, 2025
A WORK OF ART.
A new all time fave. It’s giving game of thrones/house of dragon and it SERVED.
Hazel has created a beautiful masterpiece from her detailed world building, to the tension filled romance with the highest of high stakes and a female character that’s an absolute power house. This book has it ALL.
I felt so invested in the characters and the plot and hoping beyond hope that the good guys won, while screaming at certain characters at the same time.
I’ve never wanted to luxuriously take my time and indulge in a book more while equally wanting to binge it in one sitting too.
Wow, wow, wow.
A new all time fave. It’s giving game of thrones/house of dragon and it SERVED.
Hazel has created a beautiful masterpiece from her detailed world building, to the tension filled romance with the highest of high stakes and a female character that’s an absolute power house. This book has it ALL.
I felt so invested in the characters and the plot and hoping beyond hope that the good guys won, while screaming at certain characters at the same time.
I’ve never wanted to luxuriously take my time and indulge in a book more while equally wanting to binge it in one sitting too.
Wow, wow, wow.
November 27, 2024
Thank you to Hazel McBride and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC! I am leaving this review voluntarily.
Actual rating: 6 ⭐️
What to expect:
- True enemies to loves
- Well-written fantasy world
- Dragon riders
- Betrayals
- Elemental magic (fire, earth, water, air)
- Quick fast-paced read
- Spice 2/5 🌶️
- Bisexual fmc
- ⚠️CLIFFHANGER⚠️
I don’t even know where to start. Maybe with the fantastic world-building, the sizzling relationship, or perhaps the badass female main character? Seriously, everything about this book was amazing.
Let me begin with the relationship. This book is a rare gem in the enemies-to-lovers genre because it actually features true enemies. I’m talking about holding a knife to each other's throats and promising to kill one another. The progression from enemies to lovers was phenomenal; it felt natural and wasn’t abrupt. There was no insta-lust or insta-love, which was incredibly refreshing.
The female main character, Aemyra, is the definition of a badass. She’s aware she is the rightful queen and makes sure everyone knows it—#Goals! I loved her quick-witted comebacks… they had me laughing out loud. On the flip side, her vulnerability also stood out. Aemyra was raw in a way that I wish more main characters could be.
And then there’s the male main character, Fiorean. Wow. I went through all the emotional stages while reading about him. I hated him, then I liked him, then I hated him again, only to sort of love him (after that ending, I can’t be too sure). I swear, this book gave me whiplash! He was amazing, and I loved how he treated Aemyra. He wasn’t overly possessive; instead, he genuinely cared for her and wanted her to be herself. He embodies the idea “I wouldn’t burn the world down for you; I’d hand you the matches.”
That cliffhanger was brutal… I refuse to accept that I have to wait 1-2 years before I get to read the next book.
My favorite scenes:
- Aemyra helping Fiorean with his bond
- Fiorean calming Aemyra after Sir Nairn
- Any scene with Terrea and Adarian
- Ameyra masturbating at the thought of Fiorean 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Actual rating: 6 ⭐️
What to expect:
- True enemies to loves
- Well-written fantasy world
- Dragon riders
- Betrayals
- Elemental magic (fire, earth, water, air)
- Quick fast-paced read
- Spice 2/5 🌶️
- Bisexual fmc
- ⚠️CLIFFHANGER⚠️
I don’t even know where to start. Maybe with the fantastic world-building, the sizzling relationship, or perhaps the badass female main character? Seriously, everything about this book was amazing.
Let me begin with the relationship. This book is a rare gem in the enemies-to-lovers genre because it actually features true enemies. I’m talking about holding a knife to each other's throats and promising to kill one another. The progression from enemies to lovers was phenomenal; it felt natural and wasn’t abrupt. There was no insta-lust or insta-love, which was incredibly refreshing.
The female main character, Aemyra, is the definition of a badass. She’s aware she is the rightful queen and makes sure everyone knows it—#Goals! I loved her quick-witted comebacks… they had me laughing out loud. On the flip side, her vulnerability also stood out. Aemyra was raw in a way that I wish more main characters could be.
And then there’s the male main character, Fiorean. Wow. I went through all the emotional stages while reading about him. I hated him, then I liked him, then I hated him again, only to sort of love him (after that ending, I can’t be too sure). I swear, this book gave me whiplash! He was amazing, and I loved how he treated Aemyra. He wasn’t overly possessive; instead, he genuinely cared for her and wanted her to be herself. He embodies the idea “I wouldn’t burn the world down for you; I’d hand you the matches.”
That cliffhanger was brutal… I refuse to accept that I have to wait 1-2 years before I get to read the next book.
My favorite scenes:
- Aemyra helping Fiorean with his bond
- Fiorean calming Aemyra after Sir Nairn
- Any scene with Terrea and Adarian
- Ameyra masturbating at the thought of Fiorean 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
March 25, 2025
For lovers of Game of Thrones and House of the Dragon— and for those who hold a special place in their heart for Aelin Galathynius— this one’s for you.
I knew from the moment I read the dedication this was going to be a 5 star read for me. I was correct.
Once I got through the initial world building, I was absolutely captivated. The themes at play in conjunction with the magic, politics, familial structures and social hierarchies had me in a constant emotional state. Just absolutely raging against the patriarchy. Burn it to the f*cking ground.
The battle between the sexes here in conjunction with the sexual tension between Aemyra and Fiorean was all too real. (Being attracted to men is truly so tragic.) I could feel Aemyra’s internal struggles and see how they manifested into the story. The push and pull between wanting to be both assertive and benevolent. As a bisexual woman myself, I relate heavily. I loved watching Aemyras character arch and am eager to see where it goes.
I also just absolutely loved the way that magic and dragons played into the narrative itself. The end had me in an absolute chokehold— I can’t wait to see where the story goes in the sequel in terms of both the plot and the themes. One of the best books I’ve read this year.
TW: Sexual assault. This did take me longer to read than anticipated due to depictions of SA. Be mindful if that’s also an area of struggle for you.
I knew from the moment I read the dedication this was going to be a 5 star read for me. I was correct.
Once I got through the initial world building, I was absolutely captivated. The themes at play in conjunction with the magic, politics, familial structures and social hierarchies had me in a constant emotional state. Just absolutely raging against the patriarchy. Burn it to the f*cking ground.
The battle between the sexes here in conjunction with the sexual tension between Aemyra and Fiorean was all too real. (Being attracted to men is truly so tragic.) I could feel Aemyra’s internal struggles and see how they manifested into the story. The push and pull between wanting to be both assertive and benevolent. As a bisexual woman myself, I relate heavily. I loved watching Aemyras character arch and am eager to see where it goes.
I also just absolutely loved the way that magic and dragons played into the narrative itself. The end had me in an absolute chokehold— I can’t wait to see where the story goes in the sequel in terms of both the plot and the themes. One of the best books I’ve read this year.
TW: Sexual assault. This did take me longer to read than anticipated due to depictions of SA. Be mindful if that’s also an area of struggle for you.
February 11, 2025
✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✧
(4.5 rounded down)
✧₊⁺ thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
✧₊⁺ overview ⁺₊ ✧
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
This book. i was honestly sooo close to rating this one 5 stars, and that might change, but for now… 4.5 stars.
✧₊⁺ relationships ~ AHHHHHHHH < that’s me screaming. They were so perfect I can’t- because like she had this barbed exterior and he was basically all ego, and UUUGH. I could not believe the ending though. Like, I refuse to believe that and book 2 better be coming out soon. Also the betrayal I CANNOT. I’m just… speechless, which seems to be pretty common lmao
✧₊⁺ plot ~ okay. The political plot in this book is honestly ingenious. I’ve read a TON of books (especially romantasy) where there’s a girl who finds out she’s the heir to a kingdom, and blah blah blah. THIS is about a girl who knows she’s the heir and, let me tell you, it changes everything. Good or bad, that’s up to you to decide. **I’ll go more in depth into the plot near the end, but that will have spoilers**
OH- and just an FYI, one of my only issues with this book was the names. I’m willing to admit that I’m bad with names, but this was just confusing and there was a name for the most random stuff. But anyway, I learned from the pronunciation guide, which is very helpfully placed at the back of the book (smh), that it is actually a variation from Scottish Gaelic. you’re welcome in advance.
♬⋆.˚ now playing - right where you left me ~ tswift
❝ you left me, no ☆ you left me no choice but to stay here forever ❞
^ me after reading this book
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
✧₊⁺ features ~
❥ enemies to lovers
𖤓 arranged marriage
❥ forbidden romance
𖤓 dragons
❥ lost heir
𖤓 touch her and die (or lose a hand)
❥ betrayal
𖤓 family trauma
❥ knife foreplay (check tws)
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
⚠︎ we have come to the part of my review that most definitely includes spoilers. read at your own risk ⚠︎
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
**my rant will come once the book is released, THANKS YALL!!
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
oh my god, the things that come out of this man's mouth- im deceased.
screaming because i've wanted to read this one for soo long 😩😩
hoping it lives up to expectations 🤞
#inmydragonera 🐉✨
(4.5 rounded down)
✧₊⁺ thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an arc
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
✧₊⁺ overview ⁺₊ ✧
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
This book. i was honestly sooo close to rating this one 5 stars, and that might change, but for now… 4.5 stars.
✧₊⁺ relationships ~ AHHHHHHHH < that’s me screaming. They were so perfect I can’t- because like she had this barbed exterior and he was basically all ego, and UUUGH. I could not believe the ending though. Like, I refuse to believe that and book 2 better be coming out soon. Also the betrayal I CANNOT. I’m just… speechless, which seems to be pretty common lmao
✧₊⁺ plot ~ okay. The political plot in this book is honestly ingenious. I’ve read a TON of books (especially romantasy) where there’s a girl who finds out she’s the heir to a kingdom, and blah blah blah. THIS is about a girl who knows she’s the heir and, let me tell you, it changes everything. Good or bad, that’s up to you to decide. **I’ll go more in depth into the plot near the end, but that will have spoilers**
OH- and just an FYI, one of my only issues with this book was the names. I’m willing to admit that I’m bad with names, but this was just confusing and there was a name for the most random stuff. But anyway, I learned from the pronunciation guide, which is very helpfully placed at the back of the book (smh), that it is actually a variation from Scottish Gaelic. you’re welcome in advance.
♬⋆.˚ now playing - right where you left me ~ tswift
❝ you left me, no ☆ you left me no choice but to stay here forever ❞
^ me after reading this book
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
✧₊⁺ features ~
❥ enemies to lovers
𖤓 arranged marriage
❥ forbidden romance
𖤓 dragons
❥ lost heir
𖤓 touch her and die (or lose a hand)
❥ betrayal
𖤓 family trauma
❥ knife foreplay (check tws)
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
⚠︎ we have come to the part of my review that most definitely includes spoilers. read at your own risk ⚠︎
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
**my rant will come once the book is released, THANKS YALL!!
──────── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ────────
oh my god, the things that come out of this man's mouth- im deceased.
screaming because i've wanted to read this one for soo long 😩😩
hoping it lives up to expectations 🤞
#inmydragonera 🐉✨
May 21, 2025
Aemyra felt like a traitor to her own cause when she felt no hatred for him.
girl bc you are!!!!!
enemies to lovers is my fav fantasy trope (followed closely by bodyguard and reluctant allies to lovers!!!) and this was so poorly executed imo. Aemrya is also painfully naive and impulsive, leading me to fully not believe she’s ready to be queen even if it is her birthright.
the fast burn enemies to oops you forced me to marry you let’s bone gave me whiplash. I needed more buildup and tension. I needed to be convinced!!!! and I fully was not.
This book is clearly well researched. The world building and pacing were well done. I loved the matriarchal society being oppressed by a theocratic misogynistic regime. The feminine rage and burn it all down vibes were immaculate.
However, I just could not get down with Aemrya.
Thank you PRH audio and Delacourte Press for the advance copies.
actual rating 2.5
enemies to lovers is my fav fantasy trope (followed closely by bodyguard and reluctant allies to lovers!!!) and this was so poorly executed imo. Aemrya is also painfully naive and impulsive, leading me to fully not believe she’s ready to be queen even if it is her birthright.
the fast burn enemies to oops you forced me to marry you let’s bone gave me whiplash. I needed more buildup and tension. I needed to be convinced!!!! and I fully was not.
This book is clearly well researched. The world building and pacing were well done. I loved the matriarchal society being oppressed by a theocratic misogynistic regime. The feminine rage and burn it all down vibes were immaculate.
However, I just could not get down with Aemrya.
Thank you PRH audio and Delacourte Press for the advance copies.
actual rating 2.5
Want to read
August 1, 2024heard the love interest was inspired by aemond targaryen so now i gotta read for my mans
June 18, 2025
⭐️:4.75/5
🌶️: 2.75/5
I expected a romance-heavy book with some dragon lore, but I got SO much more. This book exceeded every expectation I had.
I was impressed by the political structure and court intrigue of this book. There was a moment where I had to check and make sure this was a fantasy romance, because there is so much political intrigue in the first half that I didn't even notice the slowly blooming romance. And I mean that in the best way.
My interest in this book was almost entirely driven by the plot. The romance was a secondary (but delightful) element. I felt that the transition from enemies to lovers happened a little quickly despite the romance being a rather slow burn, but by the end I understood why things happened the way they did.
The dragon magic and lore was really interesting and I loved that the bond was slightly different from other dragon-bond books. I do hope to get more in the next book!
If you like court politics, feminism, progressive religious views, true smiles to lovers, dragon bonds, and knife play - you will eat this up!
Thank you NetGalley and PRH Audio for the advanced copies - this review is entirely my own opinion!
🌶️: 2.75/5
I expected a romance-heavy book with some dragon lore, but I got SO much more. This book exceeded every expectation I had.
I was impressed by the political structure and court intrigue of this book. There was a moment where I had to check and make sure this was a fantasy romance, because there is so much political intrigue in the first half that I didn't even notice the slowly blooming romance. And I mean that in the best way.
My interest in this book was almost entirely driven by the plot. The romance was a secondary (but delightful) element. I felt that the transition from enemies to lovers happened a little quickly despite the romance being a rather slow burn, but by the end I understood why things happened the way they did.
The dragon magic and lore was really interesting and I loved that the bond was slightly different from other dragon-bond books. I do hope to get more in the next book!
If you like court politics, feminism, progressive religious views, true smiles to lovers, dragon bonds, and knife play - you will eat this up!
Thank you NetGalley and PRH Audio for the advanced copies - this review is entirely my own opinion!
Read
May 31, 2025dnf @62%
I hate dnf-ing arcs but I’m not enjoying this book at all. I found the fmc so annoying and bratty. I could not stand her at all. There’s nothing redeemable about her. Like she was so ready to be a queen but can’t fight when she has years of training. The mmc which we don’t get to him fully till 50% of the book, I still found him so bland.
Also since her father is related to someone in the royal family wouldn’t that make the fmc and mmc related. Probably some distant relation but I still can’t get pass it.
There was no point in this book that I found entertaining and attention capturing. I just found myself not caring about anything at all.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review.
ೀ preread ᡣ𐭩
Stoppp cause why did I completely forget about this arc, like i don’t remember requesting this
I hate dnf-ing arcs but I’m not enjoying this book at all. I found the fmc so annoying and bratty. I could not stand her at all. There’s nothing redeemable about her. Like she was so ready to be a queen but can’t fight when she has years of training. The mmc which we don’t get to him fully till 50% of the book, I still found him so bland.
Also since her father is related to someone in the royal family wouldn’t that make the fmc and mmc related. Probably some distant relation but I still can’t get pass it.
There was no point in this book that I found entertaining and attention capturing. I just found myself not caring about anything at all.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc in exchange for an honest review.
ೀ preread ᡣ𐭩
Stoppp cause why did I completely forget about this arc, like i don’t remember requesting this
April 12, 2025
2 ★’s
Disappointing and put me into a reading slump.
The beginning was rough, lots of info dumping and an excessive amount of Scottish Gaelic. Inconsistent pacing and unlikeable main character which made it hard for me to immerse myself in the story. I would say romance doesn’t start until after 50% and it was underwhelming and lacking development. I also found the plot predictable.
It has potential but needs better character work and execution. Unfortunately I won't be continuing the series but wish Hazel all the best as an author.
Disappointing and put me into a reading slump.
The beginning was rough, lots of info dumping and an excessive amount of Scottish Gaelic. Inconsistent pacing and unlikeable main character which made it hard for me to immerse myself in the story. I would say romance doesn’t start until after 50% and it was underwhelming and lacking development. I also found the plot predictable.
It has potential but needs better character work and execution. Unfortunately I won't be continuing the series but wish Hazel all the best as an author.
June 30, 2025
* 5⭐️3🌶️
* Celtic-inspired fantasy romance novel where Aemyra, a blacksmith blessed with fire magic, seeks to reclaim her kingdom's throne, currently ruled by a corrupt king. She must overcome political intrigue and forge an alliance with a dragon-riding adversary, Prince Fiorean, while battling her growing feelings for him. The story explores themes of duty, revenge, and the struggle between love and loyalty in a world where dragons and magic are fading.
* This book gave me house of dragon vibes. This book is one where I’ve read the most about dragons being involved. The author does not sugar coat it and make everything perfect. This book had a point in it that was just honestly so sad. I appreciated the author for adding that part in as a reader we then feel and see the fuel for her internal feminist rage ignite and it is so called for.
* Holy shit. Hoooooooooly shit this debut was AMAZING! Omg when is the second book coming out? That cliffhanger. WTF. WTF. WTF. Omg I feel personally betrayed by this book.
* Celtic-inspired fantasy romance novel where Aemyra, a blacksmith blessed with fire magic, seeks to reclaim her kingdom's throne, currently ruled by a corrupt king. She must overcome political intrigue and forge an alliance with a dragon-riding adversary, Prince Fiorean, while battling her growing feelings for him. The story explores themes of duty, revenge, and the struggle between love and loyalty in a world where dragons and magic are fading.
* This book gave me house of dragon vibes. This book is one where I’ve read the most about dragons being involved. The author does not sugar coat it and make everything perfect. This book had a point in it that was just honestly so sad. I appreciated the author for adding that part in as a reader we then feel and see the fuel for her internal feminist rage ignite and it is so called for.
* Holy shit. Hoooooooooly shit this debut was AMAZING! Omg when is the second book coming out? That cliffhanger. WTF. WTF. WTF. Omg I feel personally betrayed by this book.
August 23, 2025
This book was a slow start in the beginning but immediately picked up. I started to connect with the character more as I read FMC is very inspiring and also strong and loves equity and one of my favourite quotes of hers is “Part of my plan involves ensuring that every woman, migrant or magical or otherwise, has the right to choose what happens to her body. Has a say in who she marries.” 💜 she is forced into marriage with Prince Fiorean the relationship is not a strong one in the beginning but they eventually grow close with some steamy scenes 🔥 the dragons in this book are written very well and are also my favourites in this book. FMC bonds with a rare female dragon which makes others jealous but also makes her bond rare I adore their connection. There was a few characters I was sus on throughout this book and 1 of them I was right about at the end the other I did not expect at all but I’m also not that surprised either. This book ends in a cliffhangers with multiple betrayals I feel so sorry for both MMC & FMC but poor FMC copes it the most it makes me scared of what book 2 will bring it could be either be a catastrophe or could be a happy ending have to wait and see I guess
December 4, 2025
A Fate Forged in Fire
by Hazel McBride
Bonded to Beasts #1
Fantasy
NetGalley eARC
Pub Date: May 27, 2025
Random House
Ages: 18+
Aemyra is in hiding, at least until the king dies; then she will take back the throne as she, the first female born with the gift of flames, is the rightful heir. But not only will she have to fight against the king's male heirs, she must also defend her people against the priests of the True Religion, a group of men set out to destroy magic and oppress women.
The coup fails, and she escapes, but 'weeks' later she falls into a trap because she's rash, and is imprisoned within the castle she swore to reclaim, and forced to marry Prince Fiorean, the second in line.
While this started out slow, it did pick up here and there, and the action scenes were pretty violent. The characters were really good, though I feel that there needed to be more of a history about the dragons and how the magic between them and the humans started, plus the history about how the magic began to fail, and no females born without the magic. It was all hinted at, but more details would give readers a deeper understanding, thus feeling more a part of the world than just an observer. And anyone with any type of knowledge of 'real world' religions will have no problem guessing which one of them inspired the religious practice in this story.
As for the characters, the idea of Aemyra was good, but some of the things she did were just stupid. I did not like Fiorean or his brother, though that might have to do with their names being so weird. A lot of weird names, at least for me, take some of the enjoyment away from the story because I have to spend more time implanting the names in my brain, with who, what, why, etc., than it coming automatically as with simpler/common names. I'm not saying unique names are not cool, but too many of them cause the issue.
The story was good, though I was not surprised by the 'twist'. I figured as much, but hoping not because without it, this could have been a stand-alone... so now I have to wait for the next. And I had to take a star away because of the adult content; it was not needed, and I skipped it. So, because of that content, and not the violence, this book is not suitable for readers under eighteen. I also don't consider this a romance. Sure, it's there, but it is the cringey stuff, not romantic.
3 Stars
by Hazel McBride
Bonded to Beasts #1
Fantasy
NetGalley eARC
Pub Date: May 27, 2025
Random House
Ages: 18+
Aemyra is in hiding, at least until the king dies; then she will take back the throne as she, the first female born with the gift of flames, is the rightful heir. But not only will she have to fight against the king's male heirs, she must also defend her people against the priests of the True Religion, a group of men set out to destroy magic and oppress women.
The coup fails, and she escapes, but 'weeks' later she falls into a trap because she's rash, and is imprisoned within the castle she swore to reclaim, and forced to marry Prince Fiorean, the second in line.
While this started out slow, it did pick up here and there, and the action scenes were pretty violent. The characters were really good, though I feel that there needed to be more of a history about the dragons and how the magic between them and the humans started, plus the history about how the magic began to fail, and no females born without the magic. It was all hinted at, but more details would give readers a deeper understanding, thus feeling more a part of the world than just an observer. And anyone with any type of knowledge of 'real world' religions will have no problem guessing which one of them inspired the religious practice in this story.
As for the characters, the idea of Aemyra was good, but some of the things she did were just stupid. I did not like Fiorean or his brother, though that might have to do with their names being so weird. A lot of weird names, at least for me, take some of the enjoyment away from the story because I have to spend more time implanting the names in my brain, with who, what, why, etc., than it coming automatically as with simpler/common names. I'm not saying unique names are not cool, but too many of them cause the issue.
The story was good, though I was not surprised by the 'twist'. I figured as much, but hoping not because without it, this could have been a stand-alone... so now I have to wait for the next. And I had to take a star away because of the adult content; it was not needed, and I skipped it. So, because of that content, and not the violence, this book is not suitable for readers under eighteen. I also don't consider this a romance. Sure, it's there, but it is the cringey stuff, not romantic.
3 Stars
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