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Odriel's Heirs #1
Odriel's Heirs
The brave, burning with fire, harnessed the Dragon's Rage....
As the Dragon Heir, seventeen-year-old Kaia inherited the power of flame to protect her homeland from a godlike necromancer’s undead army. But after centuries of peace, the necromancer has faded to myth, and the Dragon Heir is feared by the people. Persecuted and cast out, Kaia struggles to embrace and control her seemingly useless gift while confined to her family’s farm.
But when the necromancer’s undead terrorize the land once again, Kaia runs away to join the battle.
With the help of her childhood rival, the handsome Shadow Heir, and a snarky, cursed cat, Kaia must figure out how to control both her fire and her confidence in time to save Okarria. If she fails, she will sacrifice her family, her new friends, and the enchanting world she has only just begun to see.
And time is running out.
As the Dragon Heir, seventeen-year-old Kaia inherited the power of flame to protect her homeland from a godlike necromancer’s undead army. But after centuries of peace, the necromancer has faded to myth, and the Dragon Heir is feared by the people. Persecuted and cast out, Kaia struggles to embrace and control her seemingly useless gift while confined to her family’s farm.
But when the necromancer’s undead terrorize the land once again, Kaia runs away to join the battle.
With the help of her childhood rival, the handsome Shadow Heir, and a snarky, cursed cat, Kaia must figure out how to control both her fire and her confidence in time to save Okarria. If she fails, she will sacrifice her family, her new friends, and the enchanting world she has only just begun to see.
And time is running out.
Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 2020
157 people are currently reading
945 people want to read
About the author
Hayley Reese Chow
14 books138 followersHayley Reese Chow is the author of the Odriel's Heirs series (a dark YA epic fantasy) and the Into the Churn series (a romantic YA sci-fi adventure from Whimsical Publishing) with more YA adventures on the way. She’s also the winner of both the 2024 YA IndieReader Discovery Awards and the 2020 YA Florida Author Project.
When not writing, her hat collection includes mother, wife, engineer, USAF veteran, reservist, four-time All-American fencer, ex-ultramarathoner, avid traveler, book inhaler, and super nerd. Hayley currently lives in Florida with two small book dragons, her long-suffering husband, and her miniature ragehound.
To see what she's working on next, you can find her at hayleyreesechow.com or on Instagram, Threads, or TikTok @HayleyReeseChow. She's represented by Kristen Terrette of Martin Literary.
When not writing, her hat collection includes mother, wife, engineer, USAF veteran, reservist, four-time All-American fencer, ex-ultramarathoner, avid traveler, book inhaler, and super nerd. Hayley currently lives in Florida with two small book dragons, her long-suffering husband, and her miniature ragehound.
To see what she's working on next, you can find her at hayleyreesechow.com or on Instagram, Threads, or TikTok @HayleyReeseChow. She's represented by Kristen Terrette of Martin Literary.
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April 21, 2025
Rating: 4/4.5 fantastic stars to Odriel's Heirs!
“Have you courage, girl?” the cat asked.
Kaia swallowed. “I am the Dragon Heir. Of course I have courage,” she whispered.’
Kaia Dashul is the ascending, purposeful champion in this stellar, action packed, high-stakes, high-octane, high risk YA fantasy adventure. Opening with the wishes of a young mountain girl, a bedeviled castaway, both doubtful and bold, Hayley Reese Chow brings forth a story charged with trying times of bravery and responsibility that companion young Kaia and the burden of her leadership. Eddying with the waves of indecision, grief, faith and worth, spurred by all that questions the ambivalent merit of this bringer of fabled fire.
’A cyclone of flame whipped around the Dragon Heir’s body, and her rage grew with exponential speed, as did the pressure of the howling heat within her.
And Kaia exploded.’
It’s Kaia Dashul’s birthright as the Dragon Heir, alongside her two counterparts, to defend the people of Okarria. When the real threat of history’s notorious necromancer grows warmer as the past repeats itself in a game of demise and devastation, 17-year-old Kaia lunges at her opening to prove herself and her path as the adept heir of legend. Without a second glance at Arimoke, her home of snubbing ostracism, Kaia leaves for a time of new experience, novel exploit and chance to practice what her roots have cultivated within her.
‘Courage, she thought to herself, remembering her father’s words. The first battle is in your head.’
“A desperate girl who entreated Odriel for help—alone, barefoot, and heart bared.”
With her steadfast hound, Gus, courting her lead, the offensive and strapping, perspicacious Shadow Heir, Klaus Thane at her side, and their feline guide Shad, this travelling foursome face both the beauty and bane Okarria sets at their feet in the form of helpful allies, beastly dangers and impish bothers, with the omnipresent threat of a dark demon pursuing every shadow and shade of light with the vibrations of dark promise, the weight of his danger blossoming a pitch-black omen through every onyx night as the waning sun bristles with its counterpart to survive the arctic dusk.
‘There would be no drinking or dancing this night, just the sharpening of blades and the oiling of armor.’
More than anything, Kaia wants to live up to a namesake that she’s yet to fit into, but refined by fire, spirit, despair and rage, her shortcomings of the untried forge a wall of corroding uncertainty, and it’s with bitter despondency that she carries the stave of the mighty and feared Dragon Heir, swallowed by the contempt of Okarria’s people. Doing right always seems to call for a cost, and as the barrier between defense and menace grows feeble so to does the simmering glow underneath Kaia’s skin. Amid the din of sweeping emotions, doubt is as much a killing blow against any bringer of light.
“I’m scared,” she whispered. The confession burned her throat.
“I’m glad to see you have some sense, after all.”
Belief is a life force, gifted from others and born from within, to nourish and infuse zeal, and with Kaia’s heart crawling with the riotous feelings of remorse, trepidation and dread, the heft of an infernal glow coupled with armies of death stalking to swallow the land’s vitality, a questioned sense of worth means there will always be something to prove. And with the Shadow Heir’s unexpected belief and slow-burning trust, Kaia has no choice but to source her strength, a position of power and pain, and a willingness to believe in the inheritance she was meant to walk with - the immense gift of Dragon’s rage.
"It’s like they say, ‘The Dragon Heir walks through fire alone.’"
"Except when you walk with me," Klaus countered’
Wow! When the seconds dried up after i polished the last sentence of this book I took a drawn-out contented sigh, not one of exasperation, but the kind you take after a full meal and an ever fuller belly. Comfortable, copious and sated without the need for more - that’s exactly how I felt after reading ‘Odriel’s Heirs’ . Hayley Reese Chow writes a story that climbs with intensity and speedily passes by with abundant action that barely lets you breathe. I could feel Kaia’s throttling urgency to do well and I wanted her to win - a sure sign of my own belief in her and the story. The first half of the story eagerly builds itself, but the second half? Wow, does it bolster through with power.
“Now that you’ve seen the bad, you’re about to witness the miraculous.”
If there is anything In the fantasy genre that fills me with honeyed satisfaction, it’s a well-placed and well-executed battle scene, and we get two very well described and written battle scenes in Odriel’s Heirs! Overflowing with anticipation, thrill and mortal fear, they were, for me, the best scenes to read. Though Kaia was committed and devoted, she was realistically plagued by very real human fears with trial and self-assurance - vulnerability always looks nice next to strength. I loved Klaus too! He gradually morphs from the barbed and sharp-hewn to warm and affectionate, and yes I saw it coming and was just waiting for this bond to flower sweet petals. Klaus, as a character forms a beautiful balance to Kaia and I backed the reshuffling of their relationship dynamic the whole way.
"When you grieve, the sun does not shine, and when your heart is light, the whole world smiles with you."
"Except for the stoic, Guardian Thane,"
As with any story of darkness, we need a radiant flagstone to source the way, and the light in this story comes from Kaia’s spirit, her drive to do right, her love for her friends and family and the warm, trusty relationship that commences between her and Klaus. An expansive knell of doom casts Okarria in a hellish infernal glow, and as brash, doubtful Kaia travels the paths of it, subject to both it’s frightening and bewitching, it comes close to heart that nobody is immune to the threat of a dark lord and his pungent army of the dead. Facing kinship, savagery and exploitation, Kaia is graced with the gift of Odriel’s telling, and with fire cupped in her palms and flames low in her belly, it is with the weight of Okarria’s survival that sits on rusted hinges, as it then falls to the Odriel’s heirs.
‘Now, sitting atop his majestic stag, with his grave countenance and freshly healed wounds, he looked every bit Odriel’s Assassin, the dangerous Shadow Heir of legend.’
An atmosphere choked with foreboding and the sky raining pelts of raging promise from a demon lord’s keening blanket of black death poised to snuff out Okarria’s life-force with a voracious maw of infallible death, the mysterious forces, beastly and beautiful coalesce across the land, bound by the all-seeing Odriel. With every budding hero comes the luggage of dicey doubt and delicate dignity, and Kaia is here to show us the value of courage against both.
“When he steps foot upon the land, the sky will not grow light again.”
‘She smiled to herself. Time to burn bright.’
From a sheltered mountainside home to fighting a vicious darkness shadowing Okarria, here arrives a condemned Kaia on an expansive adventure, treading fear and unease as she fills the sizable shoes made to fit the heir of dragon fire; a story that twines the larger troubles of war with the internal conflict of Kaia’s mortal vigour. Kaia is a protector, a vision of fear and carrier of grave uncertainty in this hard hitting, crawl-to-keep-up, keep you on your toes, acute, shapely story of hearty ambition labouring against the forbidding throes of a darker time. Well written and keenly crafted is a transformative coming of age fantasy that hails this genre as one that continues to make magic.
Thank you Hayley Reese Chow for reminding me of why the YA fantasy genre is never one to be overlooked. A brilliant mouthful of duty, misgiving, love and foreboding, with a harbringer’s flaming scythe that barricades an army of death from the promise that always comes with light.
“Light the darkness, Dragon,”
A big thank you to Hayley Reese Chow for sending me a copy of Odriel's Heir in exchange for a review!
______________________________
Trigger Warning: I’d definitely place this in upper YA - although no scenes of torture of gory death are explained in any extreme detail, there is still mention of characters being tortured, body mutilation etc. Very minimal swearing (a few curses here and there).
______________________________
S O M E T H O U G H T S/ C O N C E R N S...
1) Some parts of the story could use a bit more explaining - the circumstances around why the heirs fled the royal family, why the magi went into hiding and more about Kaia’s past would have been a tad more helpful. It takes firm concentration of the mind to keep up with the running story - a reader can get a little lost trying to appoint names to faces and remember character histories. If you don’t keep up with the story, you might fall behind at times.
2) A lot is condensed into a 300+ page novel - while there is more than enough to feed on as a reader, the story does speed on by with some time lapses (mostly when the characters are travelling).
_____________________________
Twitter I Instagram
Visit my blog for more reviews: V.L. Book Reviews
“Have you courage, girl?” the cat asked.
Kaia swallowed. “I am the Dragon Heir. Of course I have courage,” she whispered.’
Kaia Dashul is the ascending, purposeful champion in this stellar, action packed, high-stakes, high-octane, high risk YA fantasy adventure. Opening with the wishes of a young mountain girl, a bedeviled castaway, both doubtful and bold, Hayley Reese Chow brings forth a story charged with trying times of bravery and responsibility that companion young Kaia and the burden of her leadership. Eddying with the waves of indecision, grief, faith and worth, spurred by all that questions the ambivalent merit of this bringer of fabled fire.
’A cyclone of flame whipped around the Dragon Heir’s body, and her rage grew with exponential speed, as did the pressure of the howling heat within her.
And Kaia exploded.’
It’s Kaia Dashul’s birthright as the Dragon Heir, alongside her two counterparts, to defend the people of Okarria. When the real threat of history’s notorious necromancer grows warmer as the past repeats itself in a game of demise and devastation, 17-year-old Kaia lunges at her opening to prove herself and her path as the adept heir of legend. Without a second glance at Arimoke, her home of snubbing ostracism, Kaia leaves for a time of new experience, novel exploit and chance to practice what her roots have cultivated within her.
‘Courage, she thought to herself, remembering her father’s words. The first battle is in your head.’
“A desperate girl who entreated Odriel for help—alone, barefoot, and heart bared.”
With her steadfast hound, Gus, courting her lead, the offensive and strapping, perspicacious Shadow Heir, Klaus Thane at her side, and their feline guide Shad, this travelling foursome face both the beauty and bane Okarria sets at their feet in the form of helpful allies, beastly dangers and impish bothers, with the omnipresent threat of a dark demon pursuing every shadow and shade of light with the vibrations of dark promise, the weight of his danger blossoming a pitch-black omen through every onyx night as the waning sun bristles with its counterpart to survive the arctic dusk.
‘There would be no drinking or dancing this night, just the sharpening of blades and the oiling of armor.’
More than anything, Kaia wants to live up to a namesake that she’s yet to fit into, but refined by fire, spirit, despair and rage, her shortcomings of the untried forge a wall of corroding uncertainty, and it’s with bitter despondency that she carries the stave of the mighty and feared Dragon Heir, swallowed by the contempt of Okarria’s people. Doing right always seems to call for a cost, and as the barrier between defense and menace grows feeble so to does the simmering glow underneath Kaia’s skin. Amid the din of sweeping emotions, doubt is as much a killing blow against any bringer of light.
“I’m scared,” she whispered. The confession burned her throat.
“I’m glad to see you have some sense, after all.”
Belief is a life force, gifted from others and born from within, to nourish and infuse zeal, and with Kaia’s heart crawling with the riotous feelings of remorse, trepidation and dread, the heft of an infernal glow coupled with armies of death stalking to swallow the land’s vitality, a questioned sense of worth means there will always be something to prove. And with the Shadow Heir’s unexpected belief and slow-burning trust, Kaia has no choice but to source her strength, a position of power and pain, and a willingness to believe in the inheritance she was meant to walk with - the immense gift of Dragon’s rage.
"It’s like they say, ‘The Dragon Heir walks through fire alone.’"
"Except when you walk with me," Klaus countered’
Wow! When the seconds dried up after i polished the last sentence of this book I took a drawn-out contented sigh, not one of exasperation, but the kind you take after a full meal and an ever fuller belly. Comfortable, copious and sated without the need for more - that’s exactly how I felt after reading ‘Odriel’s Heirs’ . Hayley Reese Chow writes a story that climbs with intensity and speedily passes by with abundant action that barely lets you breathe. I could feel Kaia’s throttling urgency to do well and I wanted her to win - a sure sign of my own belief in her and the story. The first half of the story eagerly builds itself, but the second half? Wow, does it bolster through with power.
“Now that you’ve seen the bad, you’re about to witness the miraculous.”
If there is anything In the fantasy genre that fills me with honeyed satisfaction, it’s a well-placed and well-executed battle scene, and we get two very well described and written battle scenes in Odriel’s Heirs! Overflowing with anticipation, thrill and mortal fear, they were, for me, the best scenes to read. Though Kaia was committed and devoted, she was realistically plagued by very real human fears with trial and self-assurance - vulnerability always looks nice next to strength. I loved Klaus too! He gradually morphs from the barbed and sharp-hewn to warm and affectionate, and yes I saw it coming and was just waiting for this bond to flower sweet petals. Klaus, as a character forms a beautiful balance to Kaia and I backed the reshuffling of their relationship dynamic the whole way.
"When you grieve, the sun does not shine, and when your heart is light, the whole world smiles with you."
"Except for the stoic, Guardian Thane,"
As with any story of darkness, we need a radiant flagstone to source the way, and the light in this story comes from Kaia’s spirit, her drive to do right, her love for her friends and family and the warm, trusty relationship that commences between her and Klaus. An expansive knell of doom casts Okarria in a hellish infernal glow, and as brash, doubtful Kaia travels the paths of it, subject to both it’s frightening and bewitching, it comes close to heart that nobody is immune to the threat of a dark lord and his pungent army of the dead. Facing kinship, savagery and exploitation, Kaia is graced with the gift of Odriel’s telling, and with fire cupped in her palms and flames low in her belly, it is with the weight of Okarria’s survival that sits on rusted hinges, as it then falls to the Odriel’s heirs.
‘Now, sitting atop his majestic stag, with his grave countenance and freshly healed wounds, he looked every bit Odriel’s Assassin, the dangerous Shadow Heir of legend.’
An atmosphere choked with foreboding and the sky raining pelts of raging promise from a demon lord’s keening blanket of black death poised to snuff out Okarria’s life-force with a voracious maw of infallible death, the mysterious forces, beastly and beautiful coalesce across the land, bound by the all-seeing Odriel. With every budding hero comes the luggage of dicey doubt and delicate dignity, and Kaia is here to show us the value of courage against both.
“When he steps foot upon the land, the sky will not grow light again.”
‘She smiled to herself. Time to burn bright.’
From a sheltered mountainside home to fighting a vicious darkness shadowing Okarria, here arrives a condemned Kaia on an expansive adventure, treading fear and unease as she fills the sizable shoes made to fit the heir of dragon fire; a story that twines the larger troubles of war with the internal conflict of Kaia’s mortal vigour. Kaia is a protector, a vision of fear and carrier of grave uncertainty in this hard hitting, crawl-to-keep-up, keep you on your toes, acute, shapely story of hearty ambition labouring against the forbidding throes of a darker time. Well written and keenly crafted is a transformative coming of age fantasy that hails this genre as one that continues to make magic.
Thank you Hayley Reese Chow for reminding me of why the YA fantasy genre is never one to be overlooked. A brilliant mouthful of duty, misgiving, love and foreboding, with a harbringer’s flaming scythe that barricades an army of death from the promise that always comes with light.
“Light the darkness, Dragon,”
A big thank you to Hayley Reese Chow for sending me a copy of Odriel's Heir in exchange for a review!
______________________________
Trigger Warning: I’d definitely place this in upper YA - although no scenes of torture of gory death are explained in any extreme detail, there is still mention of characters being tortured, body mutilation etc. Very minimal swearing (a few curses here and there).
______________________________
S O M E T H O U G H T S/ C O N C E R N S...
1) Some parts of the story could use a bit more explaining - the circumstances around why the heirs fled the royal family, why the magi went into hiding and more about Kaia’s past would have been a tad more helpful. It takes firm concentration of the mind to keep up with the running story - a reader can get a little lost trying to appoint names to faces and remember character histories. If you don’t keep up with the story, you might fall behind at times.
2) A lot is condensed into a 300+ page novel - while there is more than enough to feed on as a reader, the story does speed on by with some time lapses (mostly when the characters are travelling).
_____________________________
Twitter I Instagram
Visit my blog for more reviews: V.L. Book Reviews
January 11, 2023
Big thank you to Hayley Reese Chow for reaching out to me and providing me with a copy of this book! The opinions expressed below are voluntary and my own.
What I liked about the book:
1. It has a map! I love when books include maps, because you know some crazy stuff is going to go down and the worldbuilding is going to be insane!
97% of the time a book has a map, I’m guaranteed to fall in love! This was no exception!
2. I love mythology, real and created for the sake of literature, so the fact that this book was driven entirely by legend was very much my jam!
Original Legend: “three ordinary men stepped forward to confront Nifras, the demon necromancer, and his army of the Lost” (basically an army of the undead lead by a super bad guy). “The high spirit, Odriel, blessed them with great gifts to pass down to their Heirs. To the bravest, he gave the power of the Dragon – or fire. He cloaked the cunning in shadow – to walk unseen. And to the kind, he gave his healing touch.”
Add to this a missing (maybe even dead?) heir, a mini-boss that basically looks like Voldemort, an emotional support dog sidekick, a talking cat, and stories of previous heirs doing pretty crazy stuff to summon Odriel’s assistance, and I was a total happy camper!
3. Characters
Kaia – our FMC with the perfect amount of spark and flaws!
I cannot tell you how much I loved that Kaia was such an outcast in her community! She was literally stoned and yelled at for her abilities, but then still had to save everyone when the time came. Isn’t that the mark of a real hero???
Also, the author did a great job showing that she was no Mary Sue. The background and learning that went into her abilities was described as a lifelong experience instead of something she could just magically do, and she still didn’t come out on top in most instances. I loved the background that she was not the strongest in the events the heirs competed in and that she frequently lost in sparring matches with the Shadow Heir her whole life. This did a lot to humanize her character and made her truly relatable. It also made it that much more believable and exciting when she did something incredible! I absolutely loved her as the FMC!
Klaus – our MMC who you just know has one of those delicious bad boy smirks and eyes only for the FMC. I loved his nature of playfulness mixed with strong-will, and how he had her back at every turn. I also liked the bit of jealousy we got to see come out and play 😉
From what we know, he has the possibility for a really daunting and incredible backstory, and I really hope we get to know more of it in the first novella!
Lastly, he’s a YA hunk for sure. For God’s sake, he calls her Firefly! I mean, OH.MY.GOD. just look at these lines:
And y’all wonder why we like fictional men…
Awwwwww
Shadmundar – snarky, talking cat…Ummmm yeah, I need more backstory here! I have a feeling Shadmundar is going to be a continuing character throughout the series, so hopefully we get to know more, but I’m already sold!
Gus – probably my favorite character! Gus is Kaia’s emotional support hound who is able to tell when her rage is overtaking her and could lead to fiery situations. I loved the telepathic conversations him and Kaia had, with all his praising and reassurance. Sweetest doggo ever!
Tekoa – Ummmm, why did I feel that Kaia should have ended up with Tekoa at some points??? Was I the only one that thought a love triangle would have worked beautifully here? Such a good guy and such a good boost of confidence for her, just not the guy.
Fiola/Mackie – salt of the earth, downright good people. I loved Mackie’s flora and fauna gifts and abilities, as well as his willingness to do whatever it took. I loved that Fiola was basically the mother figure Kaia needed while at war. She was humorous and humble, which made me love her so much!
Everard – I loved this idea that he was a stubborn magi but a secret romantic. I NEED more of his and a certain lady’s backstory!
4. SO MANY GOOD LINES!
My father also told this to me as a child. I felt so connected to Kaia at this point!
CHILLS!
Brilliant
DAAAAAAMMMMMN
5. Ok, adorable alert! Hayley has the first chapter available on her website. BUT she also narrated the first chapter of the book and has that available on her site for those who would prefer to dive in with an auditory experience.
6. Last, but not least, I love that cover! It’s totally gorgeous and screams at me to read it!
What could have been better:
1. I’m greedy and I wanted this to be so much longer! The author definitely has the chops given the action scenes written and the world created, so I desperately needed this to be three times as long!
There wasn’t anything missing plot wise, but I definitely felt that with more details, fluff, and character development it could have had that extra something! I would have killed for more lead up in the romance department, more exploring into the world, creatures, and groups, and more background into the original heirs.
Final Thoughts: If you are looking for a fun new YA Fantasy series, this is a great choice!
Final Rating: 4.25 stars
What I liked about the book:
1. It has a map! I love when books include maps, because you know some crazy stuff is going to go down and the worldbuilding is going to be insane!
97% of the time a book has a map, I’m guaranteed to fall in love! This was no exception!
2. I love mythology, real and created for the sake of literature, so the fact that this book was driven entirely by legend was very much my jam!
Original Legend: “three ordinary men stepped forward to confront Nifras, the demon necromancer, and his army of the Lost” (basically an army of the undead lead by a super bad guy). “The high spirit, Odriel, blessed them with great gifts to pass down to their Heirs. To the bravest, he gave the power of the Dragon – or fire. He cloaked the cunning in shadow – to walk unseen. And to the kind, he gave his healing touch.”
Add to this a missing (maybe even dead?) heir, a mini-boss that basically looks like Voldemort, an emotional support dog sidekick, a talking cat, and stories of previous heirs doing pretty crazy stuff to summon Odriel’s assistance, and I was a total happy camper!
3. Characters
Kaia – our FMC with the perfect amount of spark and flaws!
I cannot tell you how much I loved that Kaia was such an outcast in her community! She was literally stoned and yelled at for her abilities, but then still had to save everyone when the time came. Isn’t that the mark of a real hero???
Also, the author did a great job showing that she was no Mary Sue. The background and learning that went into her abilities was described as a lifelong experience instead of something she could just magically do, and she still didn’t come out on top in most instances. I loved the background that she was not the strongest in the events the heirs competed in and that she frequently lost in sparring matches with the Shadow Heir her whole life. This did a lot to humanize her character and made her truly relatable. It also made it that much more believable and exciting when she did something incredible! I absolutely loved her as the FMC!
Klaus – our MMC who you just know has one of those delicious bad boy smirks and eyes only for the FMC. I loved his nature of playfulness mixed with strong-will, and how he had her back at every turn. I also liked the bit of jealousy we got to see come out and play 😉
From what we know, he has the possibility for a really daunting and incredible backstory, and I really hope we get to know more of it in the first novella!
Lastly, he’s a YA hunk for sure. For God’s sake, he calls her Firefly! I mean, OH.MY.GOD. just look at these lines:
I would rather fight beside you in the darkness than live without you in the sun.
And y’all wonder why we like fictional men…
Kaia: I’m not a master of my emotions, as you are.
Klaus: To be honest, I hope you never learn. When you grieve, the sun does not shine, and when your heart is light, the whole world smiles with you.
Awwwwww
Shadmundar – snarky, talking cat…Ummmm yeah, I need more backstory here! I have a feeling Shadmundar is going to be a continuing character throughout the series, so hopefully we get to know more, but I’m already sold!
Gus – probably my favorite character! Gus is Kaia’s emotional support hound who is able to tell when her rage is overtaking her and could lead to fiery situations. I loved the telepathic conversations him and Kaia had, with all his praising and reassurance. Sweetest doggo ever!
Tekoa – Ummmm, why did I feel that Kaia should have ended up with Tekoa at some points??? Was I the only one that thought a love triangle would have worked beautifully here? Such a good guy and such a good boost of confidence for her, just not the guy.
Fiola/Mackie – salt of the earth, downright good people. I loved Mackie’s flora and fauna gifts and abilities, as well as his willingness to do whatever it took. I loved that Fiola was basically the mother figure Kaia needed while at war. She was humorous and humble, which made me love her so much!
Everard – I loved this idea that he was a stubborn magi but a secret romantic. I NEED more of his and a certain lady’s backstory!
4. SO MANY GOOD LINES!
The first battle is in your head.
My father also told this to me as a child. I felt so connected to Kaia at this point!
If ever you need a light, just remember the one that burns within you never goes out.
CHILLS!
Wherever there is light, there is also shadow.
Brilliant
Kill the puppeteer, and the marionettes will fall.
DAAAAAAMMMMMN
5. Ok, adorable alert! Hayley has the first chapter available on her website. BUT she also narrated the first chapter of the book and has that available on her site for those who would prefer to dive in with an auditory experience.
6. Last, but not least, I love that cover! It’s totally gorgeous and screams at me to read it!
What could have been better:
1. I’m greedy and I wanted this to be so much longer! The author definitely has the chops given the action scenes written and the world created, so I desperately needed this to be three times as long!
There wasn’t anything missing plot wise, but I definitely felt that with more details, fluff, and character development it could have had that extra something! I would have killed for more lead up in the romance department, more exploring into the world, creatures, and groups, and more background into the original heirs.
Final Thoughts: If you are looking for a fun new YA Fantasy series, this is a great choice!
Final Rating: 4.25 stars
September 24, 2020
Thank you Book Sirens for the eArc copy of this book.
Seventeen year old Kaia is the Dragon Heir. She inherited the power of the flame to help protect her homeland from a godlike necromancer, as her ancestors once did. But after centuries have passed and no-one has seen him, he has faded to myth. Because of this, the Dragon Heir is now feared by the people she is sworn to protect. After being shunned by her people Kaia struggles to control her gift while being confined to her family's farm house.
When Kaia learns of the necromancer's army of the undead that has returned to terrorize her land, she runs away to join the fight. Along the way she meets Klaus the Shadow Heir and a cursed cat, who join her on her journey to figure out how to control her fire before time runs out for her world.
What I liked about this book
The setting - The world was well described. I found that whilst reading, I could picture the scene as though I was there.
The creatures - I liked that I hadn't heard of most of the creature's but could still picture what they looked like.
There were a few flashbacks which helped develop a deeper understanding of the relationships between Kaia and Klaus
Their relationship developed naturally and didn't feel rushed or drawn out.
My favourite character is Klaus because even though he rarely shows his emotions you can still tell that he cares for Kaia.
I like how the magic of the Magus is described and how they don't have an unlimited source of power even though they are immortal.
When ever a new character is introduced there is a bit of their back story told either through flashbacks or through them speaking to Kaia. This really helped to gain a good understanding of their part in the story.
This book captivated my interest from the get go. Every part of the book moves the story along and keeps you interested. I would recommend this to anyone who likes fantasy book's or book's about magic.
Find this review and others on my blog
5 stars
✮✮✮✮✮
Seventeen year old Kaia is the Dragon Heir. She inherited the power of the flame to help protect her homeland from a godlike necromancer, as her ancestors once did. But after centuries have passed and no-one has seen him, he has faded to myth. Because of this, the Dragon Heir is now feared by the people she is sworn to protect. After being shunned by her people Kaia struggles to control her gift while being confined to her family's farm house.
When Kaia learns of the necromancer's army of the undead that has returned to terrorize her land, she runs away to join the fight. Along the way she meets Klaus the Shadow Heir and a cursed cat, who join her on her journey to figure out how to control her fire before time runs out for her world.
What I liked about this book
The setting - The world was well described. I found that whilst reading, I could picture the scene as though I was there.
The creatures - I liked that I hadn't heard of most of the creature's but could still picture what they looked like.
There were a few flashbacks which helped develop a deeper understanding of the relationships between Kaia and Klaus
Their relationship developed naturally and didn't feel rushed or drawn out.
My favourite character is Klaus because even though he rarely shows his emotions you can still tell that he cares for Kaia.
I like how the magic of the Magus is described and how they don't have an unlimited source of power even though they are immortal.
When ever a new character is introduced there is a bit of their back story told either through flashbacks or through them speaking to Kaia. This really helped to gain a good understanding of their part in the story.
This book captivated my interest from the get go. Every part of the book moves the story along and keeps you interested. I would recommend this to anyone who likes fantasy book's or book's about magic.
Find this review and others on my blog
5 stars
✮✮✮✮✮
July 28, 2022
Odriel’s Heirs is a story that has a bit of something for everyone, adventure, magic, danger, and romance.
We follow Kaia, the Dragon Heir, as she attempts to find her father who has been gone for far too long. She journeys with Klaus, the Shadow Heir, hoping they’ll find the third heir along the way.
Chow does an amazing job of describing both the world and the characters without info dumping too much at once. We are slowly introduced to the heirs, their powers, and their relationships.
I adored Kaia as a main character. She had a lot of insecurities and flaws which made her easy to relate to. My heart went out to her as she struggled to come into her powers and protect the people she loves.
This was a great start to the series and I can’t wait to read more by Chow.
We follow Kaia, the Dragon Heir, as she attempts to find her father who has been gone for far too long. She journeys with Klaus, the Shadow Heir, hoping they’ll find the third heir along the way.
Chow does an amazing job of describing both the world and the characters without info dumping too much at once. We are slowly introduced to the heirs, their powers, and their relationships.
I adored Kaia as a main character. She had a lot of insecurities and flaws which made her easy to relate to. My heart went out to her as she struggled to come into her powers and protect the people she loves.
This was a great start to the series and I can’t wait to read more by Chow.
December 27, 2025
𝕊𝕡𝕠𝕚𝕝𝕖𝕣 𝔽𝕣𝕖𝕖
⋆⁺₊ 𖤓 ⁺₊⋆
✧˖°"𝐇𝐞𝐲 𝐒𝐢𝐫𝐢 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐧 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐲"⋆˚࿔
✴︎⋆°.⋆ ⚔ ⋆.°⋆✴︎
"𝐼 𝓈𝒶𝓌 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒾𝓃 𝒶 𝓅𝒽𝑜𝓉𝑜𝑔𝓇𝒶𝓅𝒽 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓈𝑜𝓂𝑒, 𝒷𝓇𝓊𝓃𝑒𝓉𝓉𝑒 𝑔𝒾𝓇𝓁 𝒾𝓃 𝒶 𝒽𝑒𝒶𝒹-𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓀 𝓁𝒶𝓊𝑔𝒽"
✶⋆.˚14+
🗡Romance 2/10 {2 kissing scenes, crushes}
🗡Cussing 0/10 {Nothing}
🗡Violence 6/10 {Gore, sword fighting, burning, decapitation, death}
🗡Tw’s {Greif, loss of a loved one}
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──
⊹ ࣪୭˚. ᵎᵎ 𝓞𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓪𝓵𝓵
This book was def interesting… I got this for free on Kindle though so my expectations were not high in the first place. I was very impressed at some parts though because it was a very well laid and thought out world. This book was SO short so that was amazing for my reading challenge lmao. I just randomly picked one of the free books I got and this one was it. The romance did make me SO mad because I was expecting one dude the WHOLE time and then her bestie/rival is kissing her like huh? This book was really hard for me to follow though because this author made up EVERYTHING istg.
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──
"𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝐼 𝒶𝓁𝓂𝑜𝓈𝓉 𝒽𝓊𝓇𝓁𝑒𝒹 𝓌𝒽𝑒𝓃 𝐼 𝓈𝒶𝓌 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒽𝒶𝓃𝒹, 𝒹𝑜𝓌𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝓂𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝒻 𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓀"
⊹ ࣪୭˚. ᵎᵎ 𝓟𝓵𝓸𝓽
Ok so the plot was good but it was TOO fast and it didn’t give us enough time to REALLY get to know what was happening and soak up all the information. I am a firm believer that fantasy books should be 350 pages or MORE. But the things that made up the plot were really interesting! The weird dead creatures were so creepy though 😫🙏 it was all like “their peeling skin and black eyes sockets…” like no thank you. 😀🔫 This book felt a lot like These Hollow Vows with the way that they were camping out and trying to fight a dark army or wtv. But yeah, I really liked the plot but I think we just needed more time to adjust to everything.
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──
"𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝓌𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝓃𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝑜𝓊𝓉𝓈𝒾𝒹𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓂𝑒, 𝓈𝓅𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝓂𝓎 𝓈𝓊𝓂𝓂𝑒𝓇 𝓂𝑜𝓃𝓉𝒽𝓈 𝒾𝓃 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓊𝓃𝓌𝒶𝓈𝒽𝑒𝒹 𝓈𝒽𝑒𝑒𝓉𝓈"
⊹ ࣪୭˚. ᵎᵎ 𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓪𝓬𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓼
── .✦𝓜𝓪𝓲𝓪
Ok so she was ok? Idk she felt like a hard candy with no flavor. She was just kind of there and at some parts she could be SO WHINY. I HATE whiny fmcs sm and so this was an automatic turn off. She did get better during the 85% mark though 💀 you just gotta power through. I didn’t hate her though and that was good! I just think she needed more character development and more of a personality.
── .✦𝓚𝓵𝓪𝓾𝓼
Ok so I really liked him SOMETIMES. He had his moments 🙂↕️ but can we PLEASE talk about his name 😀🙏 idk why but I could ONLY picture him as some weird Santa Claus lmao. But he was really sweet when he needed to be but he could also be a little bit of a jerk. In the last 85% though 💀 maybe yall should just read 85% and beyond lol. He was such a sweety once they finally let him do stuff lol at first it was all Maia Maia Maia. But the way he called her Firefly was SOOOOOO cuteeeee.
── .✦𝓜𝓪𝓬𝓴𝓲𝓮
All the stars in the world for you my love. He was literally the SWEETEST to say that he got the WORST treatment and ending would be an understatement. Like AHHHHHH let me take him somewhere far away so I can save his precious soul. I literally loved him.
── .✦𝓢𝓱𝓪𝓭
Lol he is RLY funny. He was a talking cat let's bsfr. I cackled when it said he was a cat. He was funny though but he was also not around a whole ton lol. We mostly get Maia the whole time.
── .✦𝓖𝓾𝓼
I thought it was very unclear as to why he was able to telepathically communicate with her 🤨 He literally could kind of talk but also not. He was a sweety but also um… weird for a dog. 💀
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──
"𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝐼 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝒾𝓉'𝓈 𝒹𝓊𝓂𝒷 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝐼'𝒹 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝓀, 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝐼'𝒹 𝓂𝑒𝑒𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓂𝑜𝓂 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒹𝒶𝒹"
⊹ ࣪୭˚. ᵎᵎ 𝓦𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓰
Ok so it was SO confusing and half the time I didn’t know what they were saying because she made up her own names for things and NOTHING was familiar to me which made it SO hard to read. It also was not very descriptive and I only know the color of the fmc’s eyes I know nothing else LOL. So definitely in need of improvement but that's ok!
⋆⁺₊ 𖤓 ⁺₊⋆
2.5★
⋆⁺₊ 𖤓 ⁺₊⋆
✧˖°"𝐇𝐞𝐲 𝐒𝐢𝐫𝐢 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐲 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐧 𝐆𝐫𝐚𝐲"⋆˚࿔
✴︎⋆°.⋆ ⚔ ⋆.°⋆✴︎
"𝐼 𝓈𝒶𝓌 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒾𝓃 𝒶 𝓅𝒽𝑜𝓉𝑜𝑔𝓇𝒶𝓅𝒽 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓈𝑜𝓂𝑒, 𝒷𝓇𝓊𝓃𝑒𝓉𝓉𝑒 𝑔𝒾𝓇𝓁 𝒾𝓃 𝒶 𝒽𝑒𝒶𝒹-𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓀 𝓁𝒶𝓊𝑔𝒽"
✶⋆.˚14+
🗡Romance 2/10 {2 kissing scenes, crushes}
🗡Cussing 0/10 {Nothing}
🗡Violence 6/10 {Gore, sword fighting, burning, decapitation, death}
🗡Tw’s {Greif, loss of a loved one}
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──
⊹ ࣪୭˚. ᵎᵎ 𝓞𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓪𝓵𝓵
This book was def interesting… I got this for free on Kindle though so my expectations were not high in the first place. I was very impressed at some parts though because it was a very well laid and thought out world. This book was SO short so that was amazing for my reading challenge lmao. I just randomly picked one of the free books I got and this one was it. The romance did make me SO mad because I was expecting one dude the WHOLE time and then her bestie/rival is kissing her like huh? This book was really hard for me to follow though because this author made up EVERYTHING istg.
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──
"𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝐼 𝒶𝓁𝓂𝑜𝓈𝓉 𝒽𝓊𝓇𝓁𝑒𝒹 𝓌𝒽𝑒𝓃 𝐼 𝓈𝒶𝓌 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒽𝒶𝓃𝒹, 𝒹𝑜𝓌𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝓂𝒶𝓁𝓁 𝑜𝒻 𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝒷𝒶𝒸𝓀"
⊹ ࣪୭˚. ᵎᵎ 𝓟𝓵𝓸𝓽
Ok so the plot was good but it was TOO fast and it didn’t give us enough time to REALLY get to know what was happening and soak up all the information. I am a firm believer that fantasy books should be 350 pages or MORE. But the things that made up the plot were really interesting! The weird dead creatures were so creepy though 😫🙏 it was all like “their peeling skin and black eyes sockets…” like no thank you. 😀🔫 This book felt a lot like These Hollow Vows with the way that they were camping out and trying to fight a dark army or wtv. But yeah, I really liked the plot but I think we just needed more time to adjust to everything.
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──
"𝒴𝑜𝓊 𝓌𝑒𝓇𝑒 𝓃𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝑜𝓊𝓉𝓈𝒾𝒹𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓂𝑒, 𝓈𝓅𝑒𝓃𝓉 𝓂𝓎 𝓈𝓊𝓂𝓂𝑒𝓇 𝓂𝑜𝓃𝓉𝒽𝓈 𝒾𝓃 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓊𝓃𝓌𝒶𝓈𝒽𝑒𝒹 𝓈𝒽𝑒𝑒𝓉𝓈"
⊹ ࣪୭˚. ᵎᵎ 𝓒𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓪𝓬𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓼
── .✦𝓜𝓪𝓲𝓪
Ok so she was ok? Idk she felt like a hard candy with no flavor. She was just kind of there and at some parts she could be SO WHINY. I HATE whiny fmcs sm and so this was an automatic turn off. She did get better during the 85% mark though 💀 you just gotta power through. I didn’t hate her though and that was good! I just think she needed more character development and more of a personality.
── .✦𝓚𝓵𝓪𝓾𝓼
Ok so I really liked him SOMETIMES. He had his moments 🙂↕️ but can we PLEASE talk about his name 😀🙏 idk why but I could ONLY picture him as some weird Santa Claus lmao. But he was really sweet when he needed to be but he could also be a little bit of a jerk. In the last 85% though 💀 maybe yall should just read 85% and beyond lol. He was such a sweety once they finally let him do stuff lol at first it was all Maia Maia Maia. But the way he called her Firefly was SOOOOOO cuteeeee.
── .✦𝓜𝓪𝓬𝓴𝓲𝓮
All the stars in the world for you my love. He was literally the SWEETEST to say that he got the WORST treatment and ending would be an understatement. Like AHHHHHH let me take him somewhere far away so I can save his precious soul. I literally loved him.
── .✦𝓢𝓱𝓪𝓭
Lol he is RLY funny. He was a talking cat let's bsfr. I cackled when it said he was a cat. He was funny though but he was also not around a whole ton lol. We mostly get Maia the whole time.
── .✦𝓖𝓾𝓼
I thought it was very unclear as to why he was able to telepathically communicate with her 🤨 He literally could kind of talk but also not. He was a sweety but also um… weird for a dog. 💀
─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──
"𝒜𝓃𝒹 𝐼 𝓀𝓃𝑜𝓌 𝒾𝓉'𝓈 𝒹𝓊𝓂𝒷 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝐼'𝒹 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝓀, 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝐼'𝒹 𝓂𝑒𝑒𝓉 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝓂𝑜𝓂 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝒹𝒶𝒹"
⊹ ࣪୭˚. ᵎᵎ 𝓦𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓲𝓷𝓰
Ok so it was SO confusing and half the time I didn’t know what they were saying because she made up her own names for things and NOTHING was familiar to me which made it SO hard to read. It also was not very descriptive and I only know the color of the fmc’s eyes I know nothing else LOL. So definitely in need of improvement but that's ok!
⋆⁺₊ 𖤓 ⁺₊⋆
2.5★
March 31, 2023
This review is also featured on Behind the Pages: Odriel's Heirs
Thank you to Book Sirens for providing me with a copy of this book! I voluntarily leave this review!
As a dragon heir, Kaia has inherited the power of Dragon Fire. It is her duty to protect her homeland from the necromancer should he rise again. But peace has settled over the land for so long people have turned his threat into nothing but rumors. Instead, they choose to scorn Kaia and her abilities. Chasing her out of the village and belittling her whenever she dares to make an appearance. Yet despite it all when the necromancer dares to rise again, she embraces her responsibilities and charges headlong into the battle against him.
Odriel’s Heirs is a quest based fantasy where Kaia and her fellow heir travel from one destination to the next racing against time to prevent the necromancer from rising again. Readers are swept along as they move from one goal to the next. As soon as they would finish one quest they would immediately need to journey to the next, the clock steadily ticking down as the sun continued to be consumed by the rising necromancer's power. I enjoyed the ever present reminder the heirs were running out of time. And the variety of challenges raised against them allowed readers to see the bigger picture of who and what would be affected by the necromancer.
Hayley Reese Chow isn’t afraid to present the reader and her characters with hard hitting scenes right away. The wave of emotions Kaia experiences as she deals with the trauma of loss and insecurity really hits home. Raised to be a protector of people, she is shunned by many humans. Anger is her close companion as she endures their ridicule and contempt. And when she does what she can to protect them, oftentimes she receives no thanks and must endure scathing words. Not to mention the personal losses she must suffer in order to move one step closer to the necromancer.
I would have loved to see a bit more backstory built into the characters. Hayley Reese Chow is great at capturing them in the moment and showing the reader immediate concerns and feelings. While there are a few flashbacks woven in, the time heir in particular readers could have benefited from learning about more. Backstories are a good way of forming connections between readers and characters. And once the connections are solidified, when anything threatens the characters it will hook the readers into needing to know what happens next.
But even so, Odriel’s Heirs was a fast-paced and exciting adventure. Readers will be immersed in a world of magic, dragons, and high stakes. Along with a young heroine doing all she can for the good of her homeland and trying her best to keep those she loves safe.
Thank you to Book Sirens for providing me with a copy of this book! I voluntarily leave this review!
As a dragon heir, Kaia has inherited the power of Dragon Fire. It is her duty to protect her homeland from the necromancer should he rise again. But peace has settled over the land for so long people have turned his threat into nothing but rumors. Instead, they choose to scorn Kaia and her abilities. Chasing her out of the village and belittling her whenever she dares to make an appearance. Yet despite it all when the necromancer dares to rise again, she embraces her responsibilities and charges headlong into the battle against him.
Odriel’s Heirs is a quest based fantasy where Kaia and her fellow heir travel from one destination to the next racing against time to prevent the necromancer from rising again. Readers are swept along as they move from one goal to the next. As soon as they would finish one quest they would immediately need to journey to the next, the clock steadily ticking down as the sun continued to be consumed by the rising necromancer's power. I enjoyed the ever present reminder the heirs were running out of time. And the variety of challenges raised against them allowed readers to see the bigger picture of who and what would be affected by the necromancer.
Hayley Reese Chow isn’t afraid to present the reader and her characters with hard hitting scenes right away. The wave of emotions Kaia experiences as she deals with the trauma of loss and insecurity really hits home. Raised to be a protector of people, she is shunned by many humans. Anger is her close companion as she endures their ridicule and contempt. And when she does what she can to protect them, oftentimes she receives no thanks and must endure scathing words. Not to mention the personal losses she must suffer in order to move one step closer to the necromancer.
I would have loved to see a bit more backstory built into the characters. Hayley Reese Chow is great at capturing them in the moment and showing the reader immediate concerns and feelings. While there are a few flashbacks woven in, the time heir in particular readers could have benefited from learning about more. Backstories are a good way of forming connections between readers and characters. And once the connections are solidified, when anything threatens the characters it will hook the readers into needing to know what happens next.
But even so, Odriel’s Heirs was a fast-paced and exciting adventure. Readers will be immersed in a world of magic, dragons, and high stakes. Along with a young heroine doing all she can for the good of her homeland and trying her best to keep those she loves safe.
March 7, 2023
I’ve had the privilege of reading Chow’s most recent books, I love them btw, so it was really interesting to read one of her first novels and catch a glimpse of where she started. She’s grown a lot as a writer, but that does not mean this earlier story is bad, not at all! I quite enjoyed this tale, I felt like I was reading episodes from an epic fantasy TV series and I looked forward to each one. Biggest highlight in this book though, was the main couple’s first kiss, it was so well written!!! ❤️Definitely excited to read the next books in this series. 👍🏻
June 24, 2022
Odriel’s Heirs is upper-YA fantasy with fantastic worldbuilding, edge-of-your-seat adventure, and delicious romance.
This tale takes place on a fantasy world with fascinating creatures (such as Dalteeks, deer-type animals who can gallop tirelessly while carrying humans). The world is richly built—not just the land and its creatures, but also the magical system, which is really well thought out.
There���s one particular “villain reveal” that I found very satisfying. And several of the characters captured my heart, including Gus, a lovable ragehound.
Kaia and
This tale takes place on a fantasy world with fascinating creatures (such as Dalteeks, deer-type animals who can gallop tirelessly while carrying humans). The world is richly built—not just the land and its creatures, but also the magical system, which is really well thought out.
There���s one particular “villain reveal” that I found very satisfying. And several of the characters captured my heart, including Gus, a lovable ragehound.
Kaia and
March 1, 2020
Disclaimer: I received this book from the author. Thanks! All opinions are my own.
Book: Odriels Heir
Author: Hayley Reese Chow
Book Series: Odriels Heirs Book 1
Rating: 3/5
Publication Date: February 23, 2020
Publisher: Indie Published
Pages: 197
Recommended Age: 15+ (violence, some mature scenes)
Synopsis: The brave, burning with fire, harnessed the Dragon's Rage....
As the Dragon Heir, seventeen-year-old Kaia inherited the power of flame to protect her homeland from a godlike necromancer’s undead army. But after centuries of peace, the necromancer has faded to myth, and the Dragon Heir is feared by the people. Persecuted and cast out, Kaia struggles to embrace and control her seemingly useless gift while confined to her family’s farm.
But when the necromancer’s undead terrorize the land once again, Kaia runs away to join the battle.
With the help of her childhood rival, the handsome Shadow Heir, and a snarky, cursed cat, Kaia must figure out how to control both her fire and her confidence in time to save Okarria. If she fails, she will sacrifice her family, her new friends, and the enchanting world she has only just begun to see.
And time is running out.
Review: For the most part this is a great fantasy. The story is intriguing, the world building is fantastic, and the writing was well done.
However, the character development lacked a bit for me. The main character wasn't very likable and while that can be done amazingly in some book I felt it lacked in this one.
Verdict: An excellent fantasy read!
Book: Odriels Heir
Author: Hayley Reese Chow
Book Series: Odriels Heirs Book 1
Rating: 3/5
Publication Date: February 23, 2020
Publisher: Indie Published
Pages: 197
Recommended Age: 15+ (violence, some mature scenes)
Synopsis: The brave, burning with fire, harnessed the Dragon's Rage....
As the Dragon Heir, seventeen-year-old Kaia inherited the power of flame to protect her homeland from a godlike necromancer’s undead army. But after centuries of peace, the necromancer has faded to myth, and the Dragon Heir is feared by the people. Persecuted and cast out, Kaia struggles to embrace and control her seemingly useless gift while confined to her family’s farm.
But when the necromancer’s undead terrorize the land once again, Kaia runs away to join the battle.
With the help of her childhood rival, the handsome Shadow Heir, and a snarky, cursed cat, Kaia must figure out how to control both her fire and her confidence in time to save Okarria. If she fails, she will sacrifice her family, her new friends, and the enchanting world she has only just begun to see.
And time is running out.
Review: For the most part this is a great fantasy. The story is intriguing, the world building is fantastic, and the writing was well done.
However, the character development lacked a bit for me. The main character wasn't very likable and while that can be done amazingly in some book I felt it lacked in this one.
Verdict: An excellent fantasy read!
January 29, 2020
I very kindly received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This is a very solid, lovely fantasy book read. You can certainly see elements of influence from other fantasy stories, but it can stand on its own two legs VERY well and remains distinct from the others. The premise is fairly simple: a "dark lord" was vanquished, or at the very least banished, but he is now rising again, and the descendants who possess the powers to stop him must do so before he actually succeeds. In their quest, they are aided by different people and characters such as powerful mages and talking cats (among other things).
Of course it should be noted that we only really deal with two of the three Heirs throughout the book, the Shadow and Fire heir, the Time heir being conspicuously absent throughout, the reason for which becomes clear at the end of the book.
Our main protagonist, Kaia, was a bit of a back-and-forth for me, although I think that may be because of her age, because if I think about it, she's pretty much a very good example of what a seventeen year old should be like (and maybe an even better one, considering the burden on her shoulders). I suppose the thing that baffled me the most was why she was so hell-bent on not listening to anybody close to her. Whenever one of them gave her a piece of advice (and by one of them I mean the people who she'd known all or most of her life and were part of her inner circle) she went in the very opposite direction, but when the exact same thing was repeated by a figure that didn't really have such a strong connection to her, she was all for listening to them (the most glaring example of this would be when the Shadow heir pin-points what's wrong and what she has to do, which makes her angry, but when she's told the same a little later, not by him, she's more than happy to accept it).
The Shadow heir himself goes from annoyingly obnoxious to endearingly in love, and I have to admit I saw what was happening midway through the book when he was told he was being an idiot, for all his intelligence. His gesture of finding the lost ragehound was also incredibly sweet, though that does beg the question of whether the dog could have simply followed his nose and gotten back.
The mage, Everard, was a crochety old goat whom I immediately loved because he didn't sugar coat things and he was straight with everyone around him. Also, because his description of white hair, dark eyes, dark cloak, made me think this.
Admit it - once you see it, you can't unsee.
I'd have loved to see more of Shadmundar, the grumpy cat who accompanies our heroes throughout most of the book. Also, I feel like he could have been even grumpier, all things considered, but I suppose you can't have it all, no matter how much you may want to!
No way of unseeing THAT, either! Muahahahaha.
Ahem.
I will say, for anyone who wants to pick up this book, that there's a lot condensed into it, which you'd think might have been split up, so just remember when you're reading it to take a break every now and then to process what's happened. After all, we go from rescue mission, to reconnaissance mission, to minor war mission, to find-magic-object mission, to personal self-discovery mission, to war-that-could-end-all mission, that sort of thing. It can be a lot to take in, but it IS absolutely worth the read.
I'm curious how come nobody asked themselves where one of the guys from the minor war mission was, as he pops up at the end. Also, the one thing I REALLY want to know is why Kaia was held back all her life. It's indicated that both the Shadow and the Time heirs have been going on missions with their fathers since they were somewhere mid-teens. Why was Kaia kept at home? Surely not because she was a woman, considering there are other female Fire Heirs before her. This is never actually explained, because most of why I feel she's so unbelievably paradoxical is because she's been so closeted all her life, and the reasons for that are never quite explained.
Still, there IS a sequel in the works, so I'm looking forward to that!
Overall, this was a fun, action-packed read with compelling leads, entertaining side-characters, dangerous villains who haven't taken their last bow yet, and a magical realm with some more rules to learn about. I'm SUPER thankful to the author for reaching out to me with this ARC, because I really enjoyed it, and I can't wait to read book two!
This is a very solid, lovely fantasy book read. You can certainly see elements of influence from other fantasy stories, but it can stand on its own two legs VERY well and remains distinct from the others. The premise is fairly simple: a "dark lord" was vanquished, or at the very least banished, but he is now rising again, and the descendants who possess the powers to stop him must do so before he actually succeeds. In their quest, they are aided by different people and characters such as powerful mages and talking cats (among other things).
Of course it should be noted that we only really deal with two of the three Heirs throughout the book, the Shadow and Fire heir, the Time heir being conspicuously absent throughout, the reason for which becomes clear at the end of the book.
Our main protagonist, Kaia, was a bit of a back-and-forth for me, although I think that may be because of her age, because if I think about it, she's pretty much a very good example of what a seventeen year old should be like (and maybe an even better one, considering the burden on her shoulders). I suppose the thing that baffled me the most was why she was so hell-bent on not listening to anybody close to her. Whenever one of them gave her a piece of advice (and by one of them I mean the people who she'd known all or most of her life and were part of her inner circle) she went in the very opposite direction, but when the exact same thing was repeated by a figure that didn't really have such a strong connection to her, she was all for listening to them (the most glaring example of this would be when the Shadow heir pin-points what's wrong and what she has to do, which makes her angry, but when she's told the same a little later, not by him, she's more than happy to accept it).
The Shadow heir himself goes from annoyingly obnoxious to endearingly in love, and I have to admit I saw what was happening midway through the book when he was told he was being an idiot, for all his intelligence. His gesture of finding the lost ragehound was also incredibly sweet, though that does beg the question of whether the dog could have simply followed his nose and gotten back.
The mage, Everard, was a crochety old goat whom I immediately loved because he didn't sugar coat things and he was straight with everyone around him. Also, because his description of white hair, dark eyes, dark cloak, made me think this.
Admit it - once you see it, you can't unsee.
I'd have loved to see more of Shadmundar, the grumpy cat who accompanies our heroes throughout most of the book. Also, I feel like he could have been even grumpier, all things considered, but I suppose you can't have it all, no matter how much you may want to!
No way of unseeing THAT, either! Muahahahaha.
Ahem.
I will say, for anyone who wants to pick up this book, that there's a lot condensed into it, which you'd think might have been split up, so just remember when you're reading it to take a break every now and then to process what's happened. After all, we go from rescue mission, to reconnaissance mission, to minor war mission, to find-magic-object mission, to personal self-discovery mission, to war-that-could-end-all mission, that sort of thing. It can be a lot to take in, but it IS absolutely worth the read.
I'm curious how come nobody asked themselves where one of the guys from the minor war mission was, as he pops up at the end. Also, the one thing I REALLY want to know is why Kaia was held back all her life. It's indicated that both the Shadow and the Time heirs have been going on missions with their fathers since they were somewhere mid-teens. Why was Kaia kept at home? Surely not because she was a woman, considering there are other female Fire Heirs before her. This is never actually explained, because most of why I feel she's so unbelievably paradoxical is because she's been so closeted all her life, and the reasons for that are never quite explained.
Still, there IS a sequel in the works, so I'm looking forward to that!
Overall, this was a fun, action-packed read with compelling leads, entertaining side-characters, dangerous villains who haven't taken their last bow yet, and a magical realm with some more rules to learn about. I'm SUPER thankful to the author for reaching out to me with this ARC, because I really enjoyed it, and I can't wait to read book two!
January 10, 2021
Wow. I feel like this story was written entirely with my own preferences in mind. It was such a perfect fit. The heroine was strong, loyal, and extremely likeable. I loved her connection to family and her ragehound, Gus. Her journey to self-discovery was well executed and enjoyable to read. In fact, I spent the entire day finishing this book, as I couldn't seem to keep from picking it up at any spare moment. Her counterpart, the Shadow Heir, was the perfect amount of light to her dark, and his moody mutters and frequent teasing had me smirking throughout the story. Oh, Klaus. You truly are an idiot sometimes, aren't you?
Needless to say, I LOVED this book and look forward to reading lots more by Hayley Reese Chow!
Needless to say, I LOVED this book and look forward to reading lots more by Hayley Reese Chow!
Read
July 3, 2022Quick note: While this book does stand alone, if you're reading the whole series, the recommended order is:
Odriel's Heirs
Burning Shadows
Idriel's Children
Night of Ash (Sep 2022 release)
Time's Orphan (Feb 2023 release)
You can find the first chapter teaser here:
https://hayleyreesechow.com/odriels-h...
Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy! 🔥🧟🔥
-Hayley
Odriel's Heirs
Burning Shadows
Idriel's Children
Night of Ash (Sep 2022 release)
Time's Orphan (Feb 2023 release)
You can find the first chapter teaser here:
https://hayleyreesechow.com/odriels-h...
Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy! 🔥🧟🔥
-Hayley
June 17, 2020
✨ ENGLISH ✨
Thanks to the author for give this e-ARC for an honest review
Odriel's Heirs is a book about three people with powers, that was given for a god called Odriel. And the descendants of those people are now called their heirs.
Kaia -our principal character- is the heir of one of those powers, and she has the power of dragon fire. For that reason, she is the only one, who defeated the Lost -an undead army- in her village, but the Lost are attacking others village, because a Necromancer called Nifras is raising again.
So Kaia needs to go to the battle, but she needs to find her dad and Klaus -the Shadow Heir.
Kaia is carrying a great responsibility, so she and a cat and her dog start their guest.
The book is fast pacing, so this is a good thing. The world building is weak for being a fantasy genre story, because I think that the story is very fast pacing, but I like the story and world building shows itself, not telling.
I really want to read a sequel of this story 💕
✨ESPAÑOL ✨
Muchísimas gracias a la autora por darme el ebook para dar una reseña honesta.
Odriel's Heirs es una libro que trata sobre un lugar en donde a tres personas que les dieron poderes por parte de un dios llamado Odriel. Y los descendientes de estos tres primeros ahora son llamados herederos. Kaia, nuestra personaje principal, es una heredera y tiene el poder de fuego de dragón.
Por esa razón, ella es la única que logra derrocar el ejercito de los Perdidos, que es un ejercito de no muertos, cuando ataca a su pequeña villa. Pero a la vez, este ejercito ha empezado a atacar a otras villas porque el Nigromante Nifras está surgiendo de nuevo.
Kaia debe unirse al ejercito para derrocarlo, pero necesita buscar a su padre y a Klaus - el heredero del poder de la Sombra- así que ahora ella cargará con una gran responsabilidad y junto a un gato parlante y su perro ella comenzará su misión.
El libro en forma resumida es muy rápido de leer, lo cual es algo bueno, sin embargo, el mundo construido siento que está algo flojo para ser un libro del género fantasía, no obstante, me ha gustado que la historia se mostrara así misma y no trate de contarme todo.
Me encantaría poder leer la segunda parte de este libro 💕
Thanks to the author for give this e-ARC for an honest review
Odriel's Heirs is a book about three people with powers, that was given for a god called Odriel. And the descendants of those people are now called their heirs.
Kaia -our principal character- is the heir of one of those powers, and she has the power of dragon fire. For that reason, she is the only one, who defeated the Lost -an undead army- in her village, but the Lost are attacking others village, because a Necromancer called Nifras is raising again.
So Kaia needs to go to the battle, but she needs to find her dad and Klaus -the Shadow Heir.
Kaia is carrying a great responsibility, so she and a cat and her dog start their guest.
The book is fast pacing, so this is a good thing. The world building is weak for being a fantasy genre story, because I think that the story is very fast pacing, but I like the story and world building shows itself, not telling.
I really want to read a sequel of this story 💕
✨ESPAÑOL ✨
Muchísimas gracias a la autora por darme el ebook para dar una reseña honesta.
Odriel's Heirs es una libro que trata sobre un lugar en donde a tres personas que les dieron poderes por parte de un dios llamado Odriel. Y los descendientes de estos tres primeros ahora son llamados herederos. Kaia, nuestra personaje principal, es una heredera y tiene el poder de fuego de dragón.
Por esa razón, ella es la única que logra derrocar el ejercito de los Perdidos, que es un ejercito de no muertos, cuando ataca a su pequeña villa. Pero a la vez, este ejercito ha empezado a atacar a otras villas porque el Nigromante Nifras está surgiendo de nuevo.
Kaia debe unirse al ejercito para derrocarlo, pero necesita buscar a su padre y a Klaus - el heredero del poder de la Sombra- así que ahora ella cargará con una gran responsabilidad y junto a un gato parlante y su perro ella comenzará su misión.
El libro en forma resumida es muy rápido de leer, lo cual es algo bueno, sin embargo, el mundo construido siento que está algo flojo para ser un libro del género fantasía, no obstante, me ha gustado que la historia se mostrara así misma y no trate de contarme todo.
Me encantaría poder leer la segunda parte de este libro 💕
February 14, 2021
I grew up reading exclusively fantasy, and this was a fantastic (😉) throwback in that it reminded me of everything I always loved about the genre. This book has got everything you could ask for in a fantasy novel:
–plucky, relatable protagonists and HORRIFIC villains
–an immersive and impeccably crafted world that truly captures the imagination
–high-stakes twists and turns culminating in a HUGELY climactic final battle
–MAGIC! (and so many enthralling species 😲)
I'm just one of many globetrotters stuck at home during this pandemic, and this was exactly what I needed to burn some of the long hours in my increasingly boring locked-down daily life 😂
I devoured this book and you will too. Let Hayley introduce you to a few fascinating new friends who will take you on a heart-stopping stomach-churning adventure (and take your mind entirely off Covid for a while!) 😘
–plucky, relatable protagonists and HORRIFIC villains
–an immersive and impeccably crafted world that truly captures the imagination
–high-stakes twists and turns culminating in a HUGELY climactic final battle
–MAGIC! (and so many enthralling species 😲)
I'm just one of many globetrotters stuck at home during this pandemic, and this was exactly what I needed to burn some of the long hours in my increasingly boring locked-down daily life 😂
I devoured this book and you will too. Let Hayley introduce you to a few fascinating new friends who will take you on a heart-stopping stomach-churning adventure (and take your mind entirely off Covid for a while!) 😘
June 25, 2020
Kaia is the next Dragon Heir. Her job is to keep The Lost, a hoard of the undead, away from the innocent people of Okarria. But when they try to invade in her home town, Kaia is determined to act. She begins a journey to meet her father and the Shadow Heir, Klaus. What she doesn't expect is to become a leader of an army, battling against the ultimate evil. With her friends in her side, and the spirit of the Dragon Heir guiding her, Kaia must find a way to defeat Nifras, or die trying...
A powerful and captivating story exploring personal growth and the hardships of trying to meet other people's expectations. I fell in love with this world and its characters. It's been a really long time since I liked an MC so much! Our girl is fierce and caring and through it all, she manages to find her fire.
The romance is been kept on the low, making me ask for more interactions and intimate scenes. It's connected to the main storyline in such a beautiful way and it's even imperative for the climax of the book.
The world itself is intriguing and unique, with myths and legends blurring the line between reality and fantasy. I particularly enjoyed the different species presented, the vivid descriptions helped me paint the characters with every detail in my head.
I so look forward to the next book!
A powerful and captivating story exploring personal growth and the hardships of trying to meet other people's expectations. I fell in love with this world and its characters. It's been a really long time since I liked an MC so much! Our girl is fierce and caring and through it all, she manages to find her fire.
The romance is been kept on the low, making me ask for more interactions and intimate scenes. It's connected to the main storyline in such a beautiful way and it's even imperative for the climax of the book.
The world itself is intriguing and unique, with myths and legends blurring the line between reality and fantasy. I particularly enjoyed the different species presented, the vivid descriptions helped me paint the characters with every detail in my head.
I so look forward to the next book!
March 19, 2021
There was so much about Odriel’s Heirs by Hayley Reese Chow that thrilled this fantasy nerd: undead armies, shamed powers, legacies, and, of course, a slow-burn romantic subplot that is brilliantly paced. In fact, I think that is one of the most remarkable things about this book is the pacing. There is so much detail, action, and movement in what is a relatively shorter story. The result is the words fly off the page and stick with you long after you’re done reading.
Overall, this was an enjoyable fantasy tale with memorable characters and rich world building. I’m looking forward to the sequel and any other works from this talented author.
Overall, this was an enjoyable fantasy tale with memorable characters and rich world building. I’m looking forward to the sequel and any other works from this talented author.
August 11, 2020
Intriguing tale.
A young girl and boy have to save a land in this adventure tale. It's a take that is as intriguing as it is unexpected. And with all the drama you never know what is going to happen next.
A young girl and boy have to save a land in this adventure tale. It's a take that is as intriguing as it is unexpected. And with all the drama you never know what is going to happen next.
August 7, 2020
Wow!! What an incredible read!!
First of all, I have to say that the stunning cover art is what first drew me to Odriel's Heirs. The cover is gorgeous and gave me high expectations for the actual story.
I'm pleased to say that Hayley Reese Chow did not disappoint. With an action-packed plot that kept me on the edge of my seat, incredible characters, and engaging writing style, she had me turning page after page. I could not put this book down and loved every single second of it!
My favorite character was probably Klaus. I loved seeing how the relationship between him and the protagonist, Kaia, progressed throughout the story. Kaia is also an inspirational character. Watching her grow as the book progressed was a wonderful journey to be a part of!
On top of making it hard to put this book down, the author also had me reaching for the tissues on multiple occasions. The amount of emotion this story and the characters provoked was amazing!
There are occasional minor typos, such as missing a period at the end of a couple sentences, but the few there are can easily be overlooked considering the strength of the plot and the writer's impeccable storytelling. I loved the author's voice and her writing style kept me actively engaged and immersed in the story. The details she gave helped painted a perfect picture in my mind of the characters and their surroundings.
Hayley Reese Chow has made her way to the top of my favorite author's list and I will without a doubt be purchasing all future books from this writer!! 100% recommend!!
First of all, I have to say that the stunning cover art is what first drew me to Odriel's Heirs. The cover is gorgeous and gave me high expectations for the actual story.
I'm pleased to say that Hayley Reese Chow did not disappoint. With an action-packed plot that kept me on the edge of my seat, incredible characters, and engaging writing style, she had me turning page after page. I could not put this book down and loved every single second of it!
My favorite character was probably Klaus. I loved seeing how the relationship between him and the protagonist, Kaia, progressed throughout the story. Kaia is also an inspirational character. Watching her grow as the book progressed was a wonderful journey to be a part of!
On top of making it hard to put this book down, the author also had me reaching for the tissues on multiple occasions. The amount of emotion this story and the characters provoked was amazing!
There are occasional minor typos, such as missing a period at the end of a couple sentences, but the few there are can easily be overlooked considering the strength of the plot and the writer's impeccable storytelling. I loved the author's voice and her writing style kept me actively engaged and immersed in the story. The details she gave helped painted a perfect picture in my mind of the characters and their surroundings.
Hayley Reese Chow has made her way to the top of my favorite author's list and I will without a doubt be purchasing all future books from this writer!! 100% recommend!!
February 8, 2021
*I received a free copy of this book, with thanks to the author. The decision to review and my opinions are my own.*
Odriel’s Heirs is a solid fantasy adventure, for young adults upwards, full of battles, magic and romance.
17-year-old Kaia is the underappreciated Dragon Heir, who must stand with the Time Heir (kind, gentle Jago) and the Shadow Heir (difficult, prickly Klaus) and use their combined powers to hold back the undead forces of the Lost (basically, zombies). Roles that were once lauded are now despised, and Kaia must try to learn how to handle her powers and fight her battles, while facing the distrust and dislike of the very people she has sworn to protect.
Combining a coming-of-age journey for the main heroine, with some romance and some action, and some very endearing animal companions (talking cat/spy Shad and rage-hound Gus), this is a well-written exploration of the juxtapositions between fire and shadows, death and life, good and evil, light and dark. Kaia and Klaus must conquer their inner demons of fear, doubt, guilt, anger and grief, and the external demons conjured by the evil necromancer.
I took a little time to warm to both Kaia and Klaus, as they are very authentic teenagers, with all the inherent difficulties in attitude, stubbornness and argumentativeness. However, they do grow and develop as the events of the story test them, and they both won me over before too long. Other characters had my heart from the beginning – twice I cried real tears over that dog!
This is an engaging and exciting fantasy read, with a bit of everything, well-written and nicely-paced. I’m looking forward to the next book to find out what happens next for the Heirs.
'An inhuman screech pierced through the air, followed by another, and another. As one, the family pivoted toward the cries. The sound froze Kaia’s already scattered thoughts and a spike of panicked adrenaline shot through her limbs. For a brief, tense moment, the clamor of the festival fell silent.
“It can’t be,” Kaia’s mother whispered. “Not this far north already.”
And in that moment, Kaia knew the Lost had arrived in Arimoke.'
– Hayley Reese Chow, Odriel’s Heirs
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpres...
Odriel’s Heirs is a solid fantasy adventure, for young adults upwards, full of battles, magic and romance.
17-year-old Kaia is the underappreciated Dragon Heir, who must stand with the Time Heir (kind, gentle Jago) and the Shadow Heir (difficult, prickly Klaus) and use their combined powers to hold back the undead forces of the Lost (basically, zombies). Roles that were once lauded are now despised, and Kaia must try to learn how to handle her powers and fight her battles, while facing the distrust and dislike of the very people she has sworn to protect.
Combining a coming-of-age journey for the main heroine, with some romance and some action, and some very endearing animal companions (talking cat/spy Shad and rage-hound Gus), this is a well-written exploration of the juxtapositions between fire and shadows, death and life, good and evil, light and dark. Kaia and Klaus must conquer their inner demons of fear, doubt, guilt, anger and grief, and the external demons conjured by the evil necromancer.
I took a little time to warm to both Kaia and Klaus, as they are very authentic teenagers, with all the inherent difficulties in attitude, stubbornness and argumentativeness. However, they do grow and develop as the events of the story test them, and they both won me over before too long. Other characters had my heart from the beginning – twice I cried real tears over that dog!
This is an engaging and exciting fantasy read, with a bit of everything, well-written and nicely-paced. I’m looking forward to the next book to find out what happens next for the Heirs.
'An inhuman screech pierced through the air, followed by another, and another. As one, the family pivoted toward the cries. The sound froze Kaia’s already scattered thoughts and a spike of panicked adrenaline shot through her limbs. For a brief, tense moment, the clamor of the festival fell silent.
“It can’t be,” Kaia’s mother whispered. “Not this far north already.”
And in that moment, Kaia knew the Lost had arrived in Arimoke.'
– Hayley Reese Chow, Odriel’s Heirs
Review by Steph Warren of Bookshine and Readbows blog
https://bookshineandreadbows.wordpres...
April 19, 2020
Apparently, this is a short book. But it has so much action and so much development I felt like a full 500 pages novel. The world is amazing and the magic is fantastic. I love the legends, the fights, the worries, the everything.
Kaia has longed for the time when she can have the approval of her people. Her powers are scary not only for the others, but also for her. She has trained to become the Dragon Heir and she has trained to fight for the innocent. As a new danger approaches and their world is about to be conquered by a necromancer, Kaia has to find allies in strange places and learn to herness her powers.
There is so much to learn about this world. There are many strange creatures and some complicated names and places. I read the book as an e-copy (kindly provided by the amazing author), but I strongly suggest you have a physical copy. I found myself going back to the map (yes, it has a map!) to visualize where the battles were held or where each territory was located. It was a great experience.
Kaia fights alongside the Shadow Heir Klaus Thane, the person who always provoked her in her childhood, the one who encouraged her rage, the one who always bested her. They complement each other beautifully and their interactions slowly reveal their true feelings. But it happens slowly, and everything develops for that particular point. Nothing is random.
An interesting aspect is how our main characters evolve. Kaia learns to harness her power and have control over her fears, while Klaus easily brings forward his emotions. A Dragon Heir learns to control the fire within, while the Shadow Heir learns not to keep his feeling in the shadows. Interesting, I would say!
Definitely is a series that must be continued. The ending leaves a lot of options open and I cannot wait to read more. It’s indeed a beautiful book, with lots of action and a lot of political facts. There are animal companions loyal to their human counterparts that play a role from time to time, there is fire, necromancers, an army of dead guys and magic! Cool!
Kaia has longed for the time when she can have the approval of her people. Her powers are scary not only for the others, but also for her. She has trained to become the Dragon Heir and she has trained to fight for the innocent. As a new danger approaches and their world is about to be conquered by a necromancer, Kaia has to find allies in strange places and learn to herness her powers.
There is so much to learn about this world. There are many strange creatures and some complicated names and places. I read the book as an e-copy (kindly provided by the amazing author), but I strongly suggest you have a physical copy. I found myself going back to the map (yes, it has a map!) to visualize where the battles were held or where each territory was located. It was a great experience.
Kaia fights alongside the Shadow Heir Klaus Thane, the person who always provoked her in her childhood, the one who encouraged her rage, the one who always bested her. They complement each other beautifully and their interactions slowly reveal their true feelings. But it happens slowly, and everything develops for that particular point. Nothing is random.
An interesting aspect is how our main characters evolve. Kaia learns to harness her power and have control over her fears, while Klaus easily brings forward his emotions. A Dragon Heir learns to control the fire within, while the Shadow Heir learns not to keep his feeling in the shadows. Interesting, I would say!
Definitely is a series that must be continued. The ending leaves a lot of options open and I cannot wait to read more. It’s indeed a beautiful book, with lots of action and a lot of political facts. There are animal companions loyal to their human counterparts that play a role from time to time, there is fire, necromancers, an army of dead guys and magic! Cool!
February 27, 2020
I received an ARC of this story in exchange for an honest review.
Odriel's Heirs is a great story. The plot is intriguing and I was hooked and intrigued throughout. The climax was very good and I was on the edge of my seat as I read it. I also love the ending. It was satisfying and heartwarming. What I also like about the story is that everything kept the story moving forward and I didn't see any irrelevant parts.
One minor issue is that I think there can be a bit more showing (and less telling). There were parts where it mentions what the main character noticed or felt- as well as a few instances of all capital letter words being used -and I think it would have worked better to show the emotions instead in these cases. With that said though, this was not a major issue (I was engaged and enjoying the story regardless) I think Chow did a great job in showing the story from the POV of Kaia.
The characters are great. From the beginning, I was emotionally invested in the main character, Kaia. She is courageous and kindhearted and her character development was great too. Her growth was well written. I also like her bond with Klaus and how it grew over the course of the story. There are many great side characters, but I really liked the animal side characters the most, especially Gus.
The worldbuilding was great overall too. I liked seeing the variety of creatures and was intrigued throughout about the story world. The map was helpful. There were a few instances where I had to refresh my memory as there is a lot going on in the story, but not too often. I was intrigued throughout.
I also like the imagery in the story and how vivid it is. I could definitely visualize the story as I read. The story is moving and wonderful.
Again, this story is awesome and I am glad I read it.
Odriel's Heirs is a great story. The plot is intriguing and I was hooked and intrigued throughout. The climax was very good and I was on the edge of my seat as I read it. I also love the ending. It was satisfying and heartwarming. What I also like about the story is that everything kept the story moving forward and I didn't see any irrelevant parts.
One minor issue is that I think there can be a bit more showing (and less telling). There were parts where it mentions what the main character noticed or felt- as well as a few instances of all capital letter words being used -and I think it would have worked better to show the emotions instead in these cases. With that said though, this was not a major issue (I was engaged and enjoying the story regardless) I think Chow did a great job in showing the story from the POV of Kaia.
The characters are great. From the beginning, I was emotionally invested in the main character, Kaia. She is courageous and kindhearted and her character development was great too. Her growth was well written. I also like her bond with Klaus and how it grew over the course of the story. There are many great side characters, but I really liked the animal side characters the most, especially Gus.
The worldbuilding was great overall too. I liked seeing the variety of creatures and was intrigued throughout about the story world. The map was helpful. There were a few instances where I had to refresh my memory as there is a lot going on in the story, but not too often. I was intrigued throughout.
I also like the imagery in the story and how vivid it is. I could definitely visualize the story as I read. The story is moving and wonderful.
Again, this story is awesome and I am glad I read it.
February 24, 2020
Overall, I enjoyed this one. There were stretches toward the beginning where I wasn't very engaged with the story, even though I liked the idea of it--to be honest, it was really when the thread of romantic sub-plot showed up that I finally got super invested in the story. ;-)
Other than the slow bits (not really slow, just... not grabbing my interest?) and the bit where she gets life advice that ties everything together for her, that felt a bit cheesy to me, it was a really solid fantasy adventure with zombie raising bad guys and good guys with magical super powers, and a low-key (aka, sometimes you have to go save the world even when you're having emotions) but genuine feeling romance. (Because this is an ARC I didn't take the occasional proofreading errors into account in my rating--hopefully those will be long gone by the time most of you read this book.)
I would definitely like to read the sequel to this one!
Content is very reasonable for the intended age group, though I probably wouldn't recommend it for younger advanced readers for a few reasons: First, no one wants to explain the phrase 'orgiastic fury' to a small child. Second, there are some tense, gross and very sad bits including deaths (both on a broad scale and a very personal level), description of the injuries after torture, an emotional animal goodbye, and rotting flesh and such on zombies. There are also a couple of kisses, one of which briefly gets into descriptions of tongue and lips and all that.
Thanks to the author for providing a digital copy of the ARC in exchange for my honest review!
Other than the slow bits (not really slow, just... not grabbing my interest?) and the bit where she gets life advice that ties everything together for her, that felt a bit cheesy to me, it was a really solid fantasy adventure with zombie raising bad guys and good guys with magical super powers, and a low-key (aka, sometimes you have to go save the world even when you're having emotions) but genuine feeling romance. (Because this is an ARC I didn't take the occasional proofreading errors into account in my rating--hopefully those will be long gone by the time most of you read this book.)
I would definitely like to read the sequel to this one!
Content is very reasonable for the intended age group, though I probably wouldn't recommend it for younger advanced readers for a few reasons: First, no one wants to explain the phrase 'orgiastic fury' to a small child. Second, there are some tense, gross and very sad bits including deaths (both on a broad scale and a very personal level), description of the injuries after torture, an emotional animal goodbye, and rotting flesh and such on zombies. There are also a couple of kisses, one of which briefly gets into descriptions of tongue and lips and all that.
Thanks to the author for providing a digital copy of the ARC in exchange for my honest review!
May 31, 2020
Breathtaking. Intense. Finally a good book about Dragon's powers.
I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of this book, thanks to Stella aka Raven's book on instagram, and it was the best think that happened to me.
The book has an excellent plot. Correctly outlined and the writer is following her plan methodically.
Even if the main protagonist has Dragon powers -not a spoiler-, the writer gives her limitation and doubts instead of making her AP (All powerful), giving the rest characters time to shine too.
Mrs Chow creates characters that you can bond with, cry with , fall in love with and root for them. I was crying like a little girl in many parts.
Since English is not my mother tongue I cannot talk about grammatical mistakes or stuff but I can mention that it was a very easy read for someone whose English is his/hers second or third language.
Her fantasy world is well build, full of images and emotions and the tales of the old Heirs was my favorite part.
My favorite character is Klaus since the moment he appeared until the last word of the book.
I am trying really hard to avoid spoilers so I will stop here since I think I covered everything.
I am now a fangirl of Odriel's Heirs saga and I am looking forward to read the next one.
I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of this book, thanks to Stella aka Raven's book on instagram, and it was the best think that happened to me.
The book has an excellent plot. Correctly outlined and the writer is following her plan methodically.
Even if the main protagonist has Dragon powers -not a spoiler-, the writer gives her limitation and doubts instead of making her AP (All powerful), giving the rest characters time to shine too.
Mrs Chow creates characters that you can bond with, cry with , fall in love with and root for them. I was crying like a little girl in many parts.
Since English is not my mother tongue I cannot talk about grammatical mistakes or stuff but I can mention that it was a very easy read for someone whose English is his/hers second or third language.
Her fantasy world is well build, full of images and emotions and the tales of the old Heirs was my favorite part.
My favorite character is Klaus since the moment he appeared until the last word of the book.
I am trying really hard to avoid spoilers so I will stop here since I think I covered everything.
I am now a fangirl of Odriel's Heirs saga and I am looking forward to read the next one.
March 16, 2021
What a completely compelling world!
I was intrigued by the layout of this world from the get out and it only built as the story went on. The world building was done carefully and deliberately, using the characters as the means which is the best method to do so. We learned as they learned, making for a very interactive experience.
The characters were brilliant. I loved spending time with each one. I cared about their goals but I also longed to see how they would cope with their predicaments and wanted to see them discover their strengths. I became their personal cheerleader and critic.
If you want to spend time in a world that feels lived in, with characters that will both thrill and frustrate you and experience a completely engaging thrill ride, add this to your TBR. It won’t disappoint you.
I was intrigued by the layout of this world from the get out and it only built as the story went on. The world building was done carefully and deliberately, using the characters as the means which is the best method to do so. We learned as they learned, making for a very interactive experience.
The characters were brilliant. I loved spending time with each one. I cared about their goals but I also longed to see how they would cope with their predicaments and wanted to see them discover their strengths. I became their personal cheerleader and critic.
If you want to spend time in a world that feels lived in, with characters that will both thrill and frustrate you and experience a completely engaging thrill ride, add this to your TBR. It won’t disappoint you.
April 3, 2021
A book perfect for any fantasy lover. Spirit guides. Magic. Animal companions. A fantasy world setting. This book has it all. As the dragon heir, Kaia has always been the outcast, especially among the villagers who don't seem to have any magical abilities. At least she has her trusty ragehound companion and the other Heirs by her side, even though she may not always get along with the other Heirs. But, as an evil thought to be long dead rears its ugly head, one Heir is missing, and another necromancer is raising an undead army, Kaia learns how valuable allies can be and may even find some deeper bonds along the way.
June 1, 2020
My Rating : 4🌟
.
Kindle/ Netgalley/ BookSirens/ May2020
#mabookyardchallengeMay2020
.
Thank you so much Netgalley for the review copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and not influenced in any way.
.
This book follows our main character Kaia, who chose to throw herself into a battle with the dead and has to learn to control her Dragon fore before it consumes her. It talks about self-confidence, control of one's emotions, friendship and making difficult decisions for her land Okkaria.
.
First, I absolutely loved the concept of Necromancer raising the dead which just increases the stake by a huge level! It's not an unique concept per-se, but it was done in a really fun yet serious way. The weight of the situation the characters faced was done really good and it made me feel a lot of emotions when things went south! The pacing of the story was really good and it delivered the story emotions well.
.
Second, I absolutely loved our main characters Aaia and Klaus! Theirs was a romance that gave me all the slow-burn satisfaction and I absolutely loved how they interacted with each other, their protectiveness and the trust they had in each other. Now, how can I forget the talking cat and the ever loving wolfhound?? The animal sidekicks were the highlight of this story and I would fight you if you say otherwise.
.
Now coming to the parts where the characters made stupid decisions and suffered for it, I was so pissed at Kaia for being the cliched protagonist who put her trust in the wrong place. The consequences were dire and one got to see how she paid for it as well. My handsome baby Shadow Heir Klaus was just a patootie beanbag and supported Kaia no matter what. The banter between the two gave me the feels! With that being said, even though this book had all the guilty please feels element to it, it still lacked originality when it came to the ending and felt familiar. There were a lot of scenes where I felt like I had 'have seen it somewhere before' vibe and that didn't sit well with me. That ending was so corny it made me smile like an idiot! Epilogue was a punch in my gut where the stakes just got higher!
.
Overall, this book delivered all that it promised, an amazing story, well defined and developed characters (even though they make stupid and rash decisions), good writing style, adorable animal sidekicks, lot of discussion with self-confidence and self-love, witty comebacks and sassy banters, angsty slow burn romance and war scenes with very high stakes! After that epilogue I can't wait for the next book! If you are a fantasy lover, read this book and you won't be disappointed!
.
Kindle/ Netgalley/ BookSirens/ May2020
#mabookyardchallengeMay2020
.
Thank you so much Netgalley for the review copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own and not influenced in any way.
.
This book follows our main character Kaia, who chose to throw herself into a battle with the dead and has to learn to control her Dragon fore before it consumes her. It talks about self-confidence, control of one's emotions, friendship and making difficult decisions for her land Okkaria.
.
First, I absolutely loved the concept of Necromancer raising the dead which just increases the stake by a huge level! It's not an unique concept per-se, but it was done in a really fun yet serious way. The weight of the situation the characters faced was done really good and it made me feel a lot of emotions when things went south! The pacing of the story was really good and it delivered the story emotions well.
.
Second, I absolutely loved our main characters Aaia and Klaus! Theirs was a romance that gave me all the slow-burn satisfaction and I absolutely loved how they interacted with each other, their protectiveness and the trust they had in each other. Now, how can I forget the talking cat and the ever loving wolfhound?? The animal sidekicks were the highlight of this story and I would fight you if you say otherwise.
.
Now coming to the parts where the characters made stupid decisions and suffered for it, I was so pissed at Kaia for being the cliched protagonist who put her trust in the wrong place. The consequences were dire and one got to see how she paid for it as well. My handsome baby Shadow Heir Klaus was just a patootie beanbag and supported Kaia no matter what. The banter between the two gave me the feels! With that being said, even though this book had all the guilty please feels element to it, it still lacked originality when it came to the ending and felt familiar. There were a lot of scenes where I felt like I had 'have seen it somewhere before' vibe and that didn't sit well with me. That ending was so corny it made me smile like an idiot! Epilogue was a punch in my gut where the stakes just got higher!
.
Overall, this book delivered all that it promised, an amazing story, well defined and developed characters (even though they make stupid and rash decisions), good writing style, adorable animal sidekicks, lot of discussion with self-confidence and self-love, witty comebacks and sassy banters, angsty slow burn romance and war scenes with very high stakes! After that epilogue I can't wait for the next book! If you are a fantasy lover, read this book and you won't be disappointed!
November 29, 2023
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Wonderful personalities with just a touch of flaws to make them relatable. Great backstories. I am now reading the next in the saga. Maybe I should say devouring the next book.
February 2, 2023
So disappointed that I didn't know about this book before now. It was just wonderful. Full RTC.
*Review*
Chow’s writing is extraordinary. The world building amazed me. Things in the first book tied into the last. Easter eggs everywhere. Unexpected, shocking things and subtle details made my jaw drop. Reading the Odriel’s Heirs series gave me that reading high bookish folk talk about when they discover a new page turner that so immerses them in another world that they forget time even exists.
The last time I started a new (at least to me) fantasy series that impressed me so much was when I read Sabriel by Garth Nix. The world building, characters, and dialogue were entirely immersive and the people and story stuck with me, even to this day. I alternated between trying to fly through it quickly and not wanting to read it at all so it wouldn’t end. Now I have binged the entire series, including the shorts, and I wish I could forget them all and reread them again.
*This review is cross-posted for the whole series*
See the full review, available from 3 Feb 2023 on my blog!
Blog / Instagram / Literal / BookBub
*Review*
Chow’s writing is extraordinary. The world building amazed me. Things in the first book tied into the last. Easter eggs everywhere. Unexpected, shocking things and subtle details made my jaw drop. Reading the Odriel’s Heirs series gave me that reading high bookish folk talk about when they discover a new page turner that so immerses them in another world that they forget time even exists.
The last time I started a new (at least to me) fantasy series that impressed me so much was when I read Sabriel by Garth Nix. The world building, characters, and dialogue were entirely immersive and the people and story stuck with me, even to this day. I alternated between trying to fly through it quickly and not wanting to read it at all so it wouldn’t end. Now I have binged the entire series, including the shorts, and I wish I could forget them all and reread them again.
*This review is cross-posted for the whole series*
See the full review, available from 3 Feb 2023 on my blog!
Blog / Instagram / Literal / BookBub
November 5, 2025
“Light the darkness, Dragon.”
I read the third book in this series (Time’s Orphan) a couple years ago and liked it so much I planned to go back and read the earlier books. I probably should have read this one sooner than now because I already forgot most of book three… it ended up not spoiling anything I guess!
Odriel’s Heirs is a compelling young adult fantasy series full of magic and courage and sacrifice. It’s a classic story of good vs evil.
I loved the depth and distinctness of the characters. The danger was real and the enemies formidable, and the character development was great! The epilogue nicely sets up the next book and I think you’ll want to race through the whole series once you read one.
Plot Summary
Okarria is protected by the Dragon Heir, the Shadow Heir, and the Time Heir— the heirs of Odriel (the spirit guide, God-type figure).
“To the bravest, he gave the power of the Dragon— of fire… He cloaked the cunning in shadow— to walk unseen. And to the kind, he gave his healing touch.”
Their role is to work in tandem to fend off the necromancer (Nifras) who is the commander of a ‘dead’ army (think zombie-like) who has his sights set on conquering Okarria.
“‘Don’t underestimate the Lost. When a body is raised, the darkest part of that person’s soul is also raised to inhabit it.’”
Kaia is a seventeen-year-old training under her father to be the next Dragon Heir. The power is a gift inherited by the eldest child of each heir.
Though she has not mastered her power yet, her training is cut short when the yanaa (think energy) shield, the barrier keeping the necromancer out, is fading and the heirs have not returned from their quest. She and Klaus (the Shadow Heir) must go looking for her father (the Dragon Heir) and Jago (the Time Heir) to join forces and fend off the inevitable attack.
Their journey, chaperoned by a cursed, talking cat (Shad), takes them through all kinds of danger from cheeky, killer cave goblins to ambushes of rebirthed zombie armies to distracting griegals (all the irritating parts of “an imp, a pixie, and a fairy” mixed together) to a shape-shifting necromancer.
But they also build up their own army with allies from around their country including the bear-men (Maldibor), the half-reptilians (Dracour), a boy who can communicate with plants and animals, and the mage brothers (Everard & Dorinar)— the former who is a more crotchety version of Gandalf, the latter a lovesick, bookish hermit who wants nothing to do with humans.
“Tomorrow, in the heat of battle, the eyes of the army would be on Kaia— looking for hope and strength. If the Heirs won, it would be everyone’s victory, but if they lost, the failure would be theirs alone.”
Do they have what it takes to protect the ones they love?
Comments
Hayley Reese Chow does a great job of creating unique and distinct characters. We don’t get a lot of time with all of them, but you still get this sense of depth to them that makes you want to learn about all of their backstories.
While this is book one, you do feel like you’ve been dropped partway through the story. The Heirs are already off fighting the bad guy you’re not entirely sure where it came from. One of the heirs is already dead. And there is history with her parents’ past that seems significant but is not told. Regardless, you know enough to get started and HRC fills in some of the gaps as you go.
One thing I really like about HRC’s writing is that she is not afraid to kill off her characters— I mean in one battle scene they start with 600 fighters and end with 88! It’s bittersweet because you like the characters and you don’t want to see them go, but at the same time it makes you realize you can’t necessarily predict how things are going to end up. Anyone could die next. It keeps the high levels of tension and the danger.
Kaia, herself, encounters some tragic deaths that reminds you that this isn’t some happy little adventure but truly a quest against evil and all that it tries to corrupt.
I enjoyed Kaia’s personal journey with honing and harnessing her fire power gift. It reminded me a lot of Avatar: The Last Air Bender. When Aang enters the ‘avatar state’ because of his rage, he defeats the bad army, but he also hurts innocent people. He then struggles with using his powers against people.
Likewise, Kaia’s use of her fire power stems from anger and rage and when it’s triggered, she loses control. When her doubt and fears cause her to lose her ability to draw out her power altogether, she goes to find Odriel, hoping he will help her restore her powers. I won’t give all the details, but she comes to find out that her gift is more powerful when it is anchored in love rather than rage.
Great character development for Kaia. I also like how she has to come to terms with her identity as an Heir, into this gift she was given. Her twin brother, Bram, born just minutes after her, believes he should have been the one to get the gift, that he would have done a better job. Kaia has to wrestle with self-doubt and confidence and acceptance of her gift.
“She had been born the Dragon Heir, but she had yet to earn it.”
“She tried her best. But what did you do when you your best wasn’t good enough?”
Added to that is the persecution she experiences from many of the villages who fear her and blame her for hardship.
“If ever you need a light, just remember the one that burns within you never goes out.”
I don’t think this was intended to be a Christian book but I see a lot of parallels that I enjoyed.
HRC has created some formiddable villains in this book. One of them is Mogens whose appearance gives off witchy Voldemort vibes. He also seems to be the villain that just never dies. You keep thinking ‘no one could survive that’ and yet, here he is, back again. A villain you love to hate.
Of course another element to this layered story is a smidge bit of romance between Kaia and Klaus (the Shadow Heir). Classic trauma bonding, but when they’re risking their lives together, you don’t mind that they are simultaneously falling in love. They need each other! I’m cool with it.
“I would rather fight beside you in darkness than live without you in the sun.”
I do wonder though— if they eventually have a child together, does that child inherit the dragon powers or the shadow powers? Or is it one ultimate heir with double the powers?!
Pronunciation Guide:
(the author provided me a list of words and how to pronounce them so I included a few of the most used words here if you’re interested!)
Austerden: aw-ster-den
Carceroc: car-sir-rock
Dorinar: door-in-ar
Dracour: dray-core
Idriel: eye-dree-uhl
Jago: Jay-go
Kaia Dashul: Ky-ah Dash-ul
Klaus: Klows
Nifras: Niff-ras
Odriel: oh-dree-uhl
Okarria: oh-car-ree-ah
Yanaa: yah-nah
Recommendation
If you enjoy fantasy books or books with magic or books with courageous and dangerous quests to save humanity, then definitely give this series a try!
While it is marketed as young adult, I would say given some of the descriptions of the dead army and the villains and some of the more gruesome deaths, this may be more for the older side of young adults.
Looks like the series is not just about Kaia and Klaus but also the heirs that come after them. There are three primary books in the series with half books in between. Having read the third book first and then this one, I would recommend reading them in order for the most cohesive experience.
[Content Advisory: dark magic, some creepy creatures, some violence and gruesome deaths; no swearing or sexual content]
**Received a copy of this book via the author in exchange for an honest review**
Book Review Blog | Facebook | Pinterest | StoryGraph
I read the third book in this series (Time’s Orphan) a couple years ago and liked it so much I planned to go back and read the earlier books. I probably should have read this one sooner than now because I already forgot most of book three… it ended up not spoiling anything I guess!
Odriel’s Heirs is a compelling young adult fantasy series full of magic and courage and sacrifice. It’s a classic story of good vs evil.
I loved the depth and distinctness of the characters. The danger was real and the enemies formidable, and the character development was great! The epilogue nicely sets up the next book and I think you’ll want to race through the whole series once you read one.
Plot Summary
Okarria is protected by the Dragon Heir, the Shadow Heir, and the Time Heir— the heirs of Odriel (the spirit guide, God-type figure).
“To the bravest, he gave the power of the Dragon— of fire… He cloaked the cunning in shadow— to walk unseen. And to the kind, he gave his healing touch.”
Their role is to work in tandem to fend off the necromancer (Nifras) who is the commander of a ‘dead’ army (think zombie-like) who has his sights set on conquering Okarria.
“‘Don’t underestimate the Lost. When a body is raised, the darkest part of that person’s soul is also raised to inhabit it.’”
Kaia is a seventeen-year-old training under her father to be the next Dragon Heir. The power is a gift inherited by the eldest child of each heir.
Though she has not mastered her power yet, her training is cut short when the yanaa (think energy) shield, the barrier keeping the necromancer out, is fading and the heirs have not returned from their quest. She and Klaus (the Shadow Heir) must go looking for her father (the Dragon Heir) and Jago (the Time Heir) to join forces and fend off the inevitable attack.
Their journey, chaperoned by a cursed, talking cat (Shad), takes them through all kinds of danger from cheeky, killer cave goblins to ambushes of rebirthed zombie armies to distracting griegals (all the irritating parts of “an imp, a pixie, and a fairy” mixed together) to a shape-shifting necromancer.
But they also build up their own army with allies from around their country including the bear-men (Maldibor), the half-reptilians (Dracour), a boy who can communicate with plants and animals, and the mage brothers (Everard & Dorinar)— the former who is a more crotchety version of Gandalf, the latter a lovesick, bookish hermit who wants nothing to do with humans.
“Tomorrow, in the heat of battle, the eyes of the army would be on Kaia— looking for hope and strength. If the Heirs won, it would be everyone’s victory, but if they lost, the failure would be theirs alone.”
Do they have what it takes to protect the ones they love?
Comments
Hayley Reese Chow does a great job of creating unique and distinct characters. We don’t get a lot of time with all of them, but you still get this sense of depth to them that makes you want to learn about all of their backstories.
While this is book one, you do feel like you’ve been dropped partway through the story. The Heirs are already off fighting the bad guy you’re not entirely sure where it came from. One of the heirs is already dead. And there is history with her parents’ past that seems significant but is not told. Regardless, you know enough to get started and HRC fills in some of the gaps as you go.
One thing I really like about HRC’s writing is that she is not afraid to kill off her characters— I mean in one battle scene they start with 600 fighters and end with 88! It’s bittersweet because you like the characters and you don’t want to see them go, but at the same time it makes you realize you can’t necessarily predict how things are going to end up. Anyone could die next. It keeps the high levels of tension and the danger.
Kaia, herself, encounters some tragic deaths that reminds you that this isn’t some happy little adventure but truly a quest against evil and all that it tries to corrupt.
I enjoyed Kaia’s personal journey with honing and harnessing her fire power gift. It reminded me a lot of Avatar: The Last Air Bender. When Aang enters the ‘avatar state’ because of his rage, he defeats the bad army, but he also hurts innocent people. He then struggles with using his powers against people.
Likewise, Kaia’s use of her fire power stems from anger and rage and when it’s triggered, she loses control. When her doubt and fears cause her to lose her ability to draw out her power altogether, she goes to find Odriel, hoping he will help her restore her powers. I won’t give all the details, but she comes to find out that her gift is more powerful when it is anchored in love rather than rage.
Great character development for Kaia. I also like how she has to come to terms with her identity as an Heir, into this gift she was given. Her twin brother, Bram, born just minutes after her, believes he should have been the one to get the gift, that he would have done a better job. Kaia has to wrestle with self-doubt and confidence and acceptance of her gift.
“She had been born the Dragon Heir, but she had yet to earn it.”
“She tried her best. But what did you do when you your best wasn’t good enough?”
Added to that is the persecution she experiences from many of the villages who fear her and blame her for hardship.
“If ever you need a light, just remember the one that burns within you never goes out.”
I don’t think this was intended to be a Christian book but I see a lot of parallels that I enjoyed.
HRC has created some formiddable villains in this book. One of them is Mogens whose appearance gives off witchy Voldemort vibes. He also seems to be the villain that just never dies. You keep thinking ‘no one could survive that’ and yet, here he is, back again. A villain you love to hate.
Of course another element to this layered story is a smidge bit of romance between Kaia and Klaus (the Shadow Heir). Classic trauma bonding, but when they’re risking their lives together, you don’t mind that they are simultaneously falling in love. They need each other! I’m cool with it.
“I would rather fight beside you in darkness than live without you in the sun.”
I do wonder though— if they eventually have a child together, does that child inherit the dragon powers or the shadow powers? Or is it one ultimate heir with double the powers?!
Pronunciation Guide:
(the author provided me a list of words and how to pronounce them so I included a few of the most used words here if you’re interested!)
Austerden: aw-ster-den
Carceroc: car-sir-rock
Dorinar: door-in-ar
Dracour: dray-core
Idriel: eye-dree-uhl
Jago: Jay-go
Kaia Dashul: Ky-ah Dash-ul
Klaus: Klows
Nifras: Niff-ras
Odriel: oh-dree-uhl
Okarria: oh-car-ree-ah
Yanaa: yah-nah
Recommendation
If you enjoy fantasy books or books with magic or books with courageous and dangerous quests to save humanity, then definitely give this series a try!
While it is marketed as young adult, I would say given some of the descriptions of the dead army and the villains and some of the more gruesome deaths, this may be more for the older side of young adults.
Looks like the series is not just about Kaia and Klaus but also the heirs that come after them. There are three primary books in the series with half books in between. Having read the third book first and then this one, I would recommend reading them in order for the most cohesive experience.
[Content Advisory: dark magic, some creepy creatures, some violence and gruesome deaths; no swearing or sexual content]
**Received a copy of this book via the author in exchange for an honest review**
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March 1, 2020
Very entertaining, absorbing young adult fantasy with likable characters and animals!!! So many lovely animals that are a joy to read about and really made the book for me.
Kaia is the dragon heir, holding the fire that is powerful enough to destroy the Lost army of the undead, enslaved to dark magus, Nifras. If she’d been born seven minutes later, her fraternal twin, Bram would have inherited the title instead, and the responsibility that it entails. When the Lost attack the land again, Kaia is called upon to use her fire, which she’s been training her whole life to wield, but can she step up and claim her birthright when life demands it?
An imaginative, satisfying story that I really enjoyed. Reminds me why I love fantasy.
I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
Kaia is the dragon heir, holding the fire that is powerful enough to destroy the Lost army of the undead, enslaved to dark magus, Nifras. If she’d been born seven minutes later, her fraternal twin, Bram would have inherited the title instead, and the responsibility that it entails. When the Lost attack the land again, Kaia is called upon to use her fire, which she’s been training her whole life to wield, but can she step up and claim her birthright when life demands it?
An imaginative, satisfying story that I really enjoyed. Reminds me why I love fantasy.
I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
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