Nostra

by Julie L. Kramer

Seeing the future is dangerous...especially when I see things that people don’t want me to know.

I am THE Nostra, a title, but the name has been so lost to history that I am just called Nostra. I see the future, but only bits and pieces, so when I am asked to help the Queen decide who her son should marry, my head feels very much in danger.

As accusations of witchcraft, betrayals, and love fill the court and cloud my visions, I uncover more about my powers and my past, but will it be in time to save the boy I love?

Genres: Fantasy, Ebooks

230 pages, Paperback

First published January 28, 2022

Reviews

[Johanna · Rating 1 out of 5]

In the beginning I thought the story was interesting but the jumping into different scenes without explanation was too much for me. Also, basically all of the main characters were the same as in the show “Reign”. Anyone that has seen the show a few times would realize that. I mean, come on, the king has a bunch of mistresses and doesn’t really care about his wife and ruling. The queen that secretly rules from the shadows. The two sons of the king. One of them is a bastard with his favorite mistress and the king doesn’t want him out of the court. Also, said son has brown hair and striking eyes. And the other son, the heir to the throne, the absolute darling of the queen. Also, he has blonde hair and even though they are only half brothers he gets along really well with his half brother. And then there is Nostra. The girl that the brothers grew up with and who was supposed to go into a convent. Who is apparently really pretty and has “coincidentally” brown hair. And of course she falls for her childhood crush, the heir to the throne. I mean yeah that’s already A LOT of similarities but then there is also Eliza. I mean, really, the girl that has been hiding in the castle shadows for years because she was disfigured. Those are just too many similarities to be a coincidence. I also pretty much just jumped over the second half of the book, because it was so predictable.

[Hanny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Whoever the editor was for this book needs to be fired no offence. The storyline was good and had so much potential but the way it was written was so convoluted. Scenes would randomly jump to new events without explanation. Unimportant moments were over explained and repeated constantly while important action scenes were glazed over. Positive is I did finish this book quickly and was excited to read when I came home from work every day which was excellent.

[Katrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrilling start to the series 😍😍

Nostra is a kind strong heroine, a seer who cares. Held captive in a foreign country by a cruel queen she dare not step out of line. Shes a pawn in a dangerous situation. I couldn't wait for Nostra to turn the table and it seems she has the chance... impatiently waiting for the next book.
The story has a suspenseful air, and lots of intrigue, friendship and a budding romance.
Beautiful writing and such great imagination. A perfect fantasy read and a good start to the series. ❤🤍❤

[Missy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.25, It started out strong I was really eating it up but it’s confusing how she just switches where she is without telling us that she went there or how she got there it’s just all of a sudden she’s somewhere else and time has passed but it was quick and interesting for sure.

Also after a tad bit of rethinking, the love was also very rushed and some things were repeated a few times and the story was quite predictable, definitely need a new editor.

[Courtney Perry · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was more of an outline of a story than an actual story. Instead of introducing or developing characters or plot lines, each paragraph just switches to a new scene. I’m in the forest. Now someone is stabbed. Now I’m in the tunnels of the castle. Now I’m back in the woods with cannibals. The person who got stabbed was ok BTW :) Just very strange writing.

I had two favorite quotes. One was when the book made absolutely zero sense, so a character was randomly introduced and said “AHA! So many events, none of them making sense, and they will be spinning like a dog chasing their tail.” This was the best author cop out I’ve ever read hahahaa like no the whole not making sense was intentional!!!!

Second favorite quote: “I do as I am told…. That means that someone told him to do this.” - a profound inference

Pros: The book was completely unedited so I got to practice reporting content errors on my kindle.

[Rhi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Muddled

The start was strong but it went all strange and disjointed and muddled toward the end. I didn’t really have a clue what was going on. Why any of the characters behaved the way they did. It degenerated into a word vomit of concepts and ideas that a 12 year old might cobble together.

[V · Rating 1 out of 5]

Um, I’m left so confused. I like the potential this book has but there is so much of the story that’s missing. We jump scenes a lot with no explanation and the ending didn’t make sense. If there’s a 2nd book, I just want someone to summarize it for me cause I’m not gonna read it. If there’s no 2nd book nor a plan for one, that’s confusing.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading the Future

How would you like to see the future? Nostra does, but it’s not the gift she wishes for. An enchanting tale of a queen using Nostra to search the future to protect her son. Delightful story with interesting characters. Grab a copy you won’t be disappointed.

[Daphne Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nostra starts fast paced and keeps the tension high throughout. Political intrigue and action scenes abound, with well-rounded characters everywhere you look. The Queen Tetra and princes Ranier and Tomas are compelling, and Nostra herself is complex. Well worth reading!

[Shelley Jeffers · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. I didn’t love or hate this book. It kept my attention, but there were times that the writing just seemed a bit confusing. There were several scenes that seemed like more detail was needed and there were times that characters would pop up in a scene and it just didn’t make much sense.

[Megan Hopper · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had high hopes for this book but it fell really short for me. It didn’t seem like Nostra saw much the future and the story was too fast paced yet dragged. Not for me.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m not sure how a book with so many scene jumps could have so little plot.

[Debbie · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's a good story, but I felt like the ending was missing pieces.

[Annalise Wood · Rating 2 out of 5]

cool concept, poorly executed, dnf

[Erika Dawn · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF. Nothing about this storyline makes sense. The jumping around in scenes is absolutely awful. Certainly not a book for me.

[Ximena Martinez · Rating 1 out of 5]

What the actual F was that? My gosh!! This book was sooo bad! I couldn't keep up with the story, the characters were subpar at best, the editing was awful. The wanna be seer was terrible, the random characters that were thrown around. The storyline (if you could call it that) was horrible. If my review helps just ONE person stay away from this book I'll be happy. Seriously, do yourself a favor and skip this one.

[KittyKix · Rating 1 out of 5]

Cool idea, but terrible execution. Book jumps around a lot. At one point, while reading, I thought I might have somehow skipped a page or something due to it just abruptly changing. Definitely feels like a B rated book. It was an ok book to pass the time with until the book I want is released. Also, I don’t think there’s a 2nd book. I’ve tried researching it. The story does just abruptly end. And idk if it’s just me, but I feel like the story may have been loosely taken from the CW show Reign? Loads of similarities that I was noticing.

[Tracey Mele · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had so much potential and I really wanted to like it but I just found it lacking. It kept my attention for the most part and I kept reading hoping that things would get better but it just doesn't. Scenes and facts with little importance were repeated but major important details were rushed, skipped, and just jumped all over the place. The characters had good potential and I wanted to root for them, however there was no real depth to their stories and it was hard to build a connection when so much was missing. Action scenes were rushed and made little sense and characters would pop in and out of scenes with no reason whatsoever.

The author has great potential and hopefully she finds someone to help her in structuring and world building for her next book.