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Divine Warriors #1
Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts
A clumsy school girl with the magic of a goddess. Mechanical beasts attacking her friends. Can she become a divine warrior and save the floating city?
Fifteen-year-old Riwenne is bad at school, chronically late, and lost in a daydream, but she has help from her best friend, Nexita—until the two of them get separated. During the mysterious test on Choosing Day, they both wanted to become priestesses, an important job in the sky city. But only Riwenne became a novice, and Nexita was chosen by the engineers. Now she’s on her own for the first time in her life.
When a talking bird tells her that her best friend is under attack, Riwenne faces her worst fear. She must become a divine warrior and save her best friend from mechanical beasts!
As she juggles warrior training and priestess duties, Riwenne can’t let herself get distracted. She must recruit other warriors and lead the quest to find out the mystery behind the mechanical beasts, but most of all, she must follow her heart.
If she trusts the wrong person, she’ll face the gods’ judgment.
Fifteen-year-old Riwenne is bad at school, chronically late, and lost in a daydream, but she has help from her best friend, Nexita—until the two of them get separated. During the mysterious test on Choosing Day, they both wanted to become priestesses, an important job in the sky city. But only Riwenne became a novice, and Nexita was chosen by the engineers. Now she’s on her own for the first time in her life.
When a talking bird tells her that her best friend is under attack, Riwenne faces her worst fear. She must become a divine warrior and save her best friend from mechanical beasts!
As she juggles warrior training and priestess duties, Riwenne can’t let herself get distracted. She must recruit other warriors and lead the quest to find out the mystery behind the mechanical beasts, but most of all, she must follow her heart.
If she trusts the wrong person, she’ll face the gods’ judgment.
276 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 24, 2018
95 people are currently reading
205 people want to read
About the author
Kristen S. Walker
50 books125 followersKristen S. Walker is a fantasy writer, blogger, and geek from California.
She grew up in small towns in Northern California, running around barefoot in the woods and climbing trees with a notebook to write down stories. She lives with her family, including one rescued cat, in a house full of books.
She writes and self-publishes fantasy novels for teens and adults.
She grew up in small towns in Northern California, running around barefoot in the woods and climbing trees with a notebook to write down stories. She lives with her family, including one rescued cat, in a house full of books.
She writes and self-publishes fantasy novels for teens and adults.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews
September 9, 2019
DNF @ 30%
I always get so excited about steampunk books and I'm always (seemingly) disappointed these days. You'd think I would learn. Is it because so many steampunk books are YA? Or because they are often written by new/debut authors? What is it about steampunk that the big three publishers are so afraid of?
In a nutshell it seems to me that there are three major problems that steampunk books have (and Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts was no exception):
1) Believability. I'm not sure why it's so hard to make a steampunk book feel realistic. Airships work out fine but as soon as a "monster" is mechanical it seems to lose something or become awkward.
2) Intelligence. Truly smart characters seem to be a huge problem in steampunk books. It's like we need a creative author to pair up with a real engineer so that they can together write a great steampunk book. A lack of research about how things function is always lacking (and YA or not I would like machines that could in theory work please). Plus poor descriptions of mechanics makes for a very unsatisfying experience. Just like I would expect law, medicine and space to exist within our worldly parameters; I also expect machinery and engineering to be realistic and plausible at least.
3) World building. Just because you have chosen a stereotypical genre (steampunk) to set your book in doesn't mean I don't want just as much intelligent (and shown) world building as I do from fantasy. This also again goes for YA or not I expect the world building to be concise, shown (not told) and intricate but decipherable.
Edit, edit, edit
If you've ever heard the phrase "measure twice, cut once" then you may understand what I mean when I say that a book needs to be edited AT MINIMUM two major times. Once by the author themselves and once by a third party who is not worried about the author's feelings being hurt. Unfortunately Kristen S. Walker's story feels like it wasn't even edited the first time. In the opening chapter alone I couldn't numerous issues from undefined words (what is 'ordinary' in a fantasy world?), contradictory phrases ('burned with heat', say what now?), poor descriptions and explanations.
A few stand-out examples include:
"Most of the priestesses turned and glided out again. The elite in the front rows out, except for the few leaders who stayed behind."
-Yet one page before this quote we are told there are only 8 elite priestesses? So what exactly is a few and how many front rows were there? Nevermind that sentence fragment.
"When I stepped inside, lights flickered on in the ceiling. Sunstones gave off a warm glow almost as bright as natural sunlight."
- So are the sunstones the light, or is there another source of light? Would a stone flicker on? And how exactly? This entire two sentences makes my head hurt. Unfortunately the following paragraph that attempts to explain the sunstones fails miserably.
Overall
I really, really wanted to like this book. After all it does have a sassy girl (love that purple hair!) on the cover who appears to have intelligent and spunk. The blurb sounds very interesting, the world building is similar to many we've seen before but seemed like it might have its own twists later on. And yet I could barely get past the opening chapters. Yes I could have powered through a couple hundred pages of awful grammar and writing; but why?
Honestly I would love to see Walker go back to the editing room with this one. In fact at one point before I gave up I wanted to start editing and commenting at length on Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts myself (and then realized that I do not have spare time for this unless it was a paid gig). This story has a potential future; but a lot more work needs to be done to edit, rework and reorganize it before I'd say Riwenne and her story is publication ready.
Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via BookSirens. This is an honest and unbiased review.
I always get so excited about steampunk books and I'm always (seemingly) disappointed these days. You'd think I would learn. Is it because so many steampunk books are YA? Or because they are often written by new/debut authors? What is it about steampunk that the big three publishers are so afraid of?
In a nutshell it seems to me that there are three major problems that steampunk books have (and Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts was no exception):
1) Believability. I'm not sure why it's so hard to make a steampunk book feel realistic. Airships work out fine but as soon as a "monster" is mechanical it seems to lose something or become awkward.
2) Intelligence. Truly smart characters seem to be a huge problem in steampunk books. It's like we need a creative author to pair up with a real engineer so that they can together write a great steampunk book. A lack of research about how things function is always lacking (and YA or not I would like machines that could in theory work please). Plus poor descriptions of mechanics makes for a very unsatisfying experience. Just like I would expect law, medicine and space to exist within our worldly parameters; I also expect machinery and engineering to be realistic and plausible at least.
3) World building. Just because you have chosen a stereotypical genre (steampunk) to set your book in doesn't mean I don't want just as much intelligent (and shown) world building as I do from fantasy. This also again goes for YA or not I expect the world building to be concise, shown (not told) and intricate but decipherable.
Edit, edit, edit
If you've ever heard the phrase "measure twice, cut once" then you may understand what I mean when I say that a book needs to be edited AT MINIMUM two major times. Once by the author themselves and once by a third party who is not worried about the author's feelings being hurt. Unfortunately Kristen S. Walker's story feels like it wasn't even edited the first time. In the opening chapter alone I couldn't numerous issues from undefined words (what is 'ordinary' in a fantasy world?), contradictory phrases ('burned with heat', say what now?), poor descriptions and explanations.
A few stand-out examples include:
"Most of the priestesses turned and glided out again. The elite in the front rows out, except for the few leaders who stayed behind."
-Yet one page before this quote we are told there are only 8 elite priestesses? So what exactly is a few and how many front rows were there? Nevermind that sentence fragment.
"When I stepped inside, lights flickered on in the ceiling. Sunstones gave off a warm glow almost as bright as natural sunlight."
- So are the sunstones the light, or is there another source of light? Would a stone flicker on? And how exactly? This entire two sentences makes my head hurt. Unfortunately the following paragraph that attempts to explain the sunstones fails miserably.
Overall
I really, really wanted to like this book. After all it does have a sassy girl (love that purple hair!) on the cover who appears to have intelligent and spunk. The blurb sounds very interesting, the world building is similar to many we've seen before but seemed like it might have its own twists later on. And yet I could barely get past the opening chapters. Yes I could have powered through a couple hundred pages of awful grammar and writing; but why?
Honestly I would love to see Walker go back to the editing room with this one. In fact at one point before I gave up I wanted to start editing and commenting at length on Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts myself (and then realized that I do not have spare time for this unless it was a paid gig). This story has a potential future; but a lot more work needs to be done to edit, rework and reorganize it before I'd say Riwenne and her story is publication ready.
Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via BookSirens. This is an honest and unbiased review.
October 19, 2019
* I read this as a judge for the #SPFBO*
This book was a super easy read but it also felt as though it was aimed quite young. Personally I felt as though this story didn't surprise or grip me, I was just told the events as they happened.
We follow a young girl called Riwenne and one of her best friends, Nex. They're about to go through the ceremony where they get sorted into their new careers, and it's a fun concept from the start.
I actually think the idea of the mechanical beasts being the enemy was very steampunk and I have read some great steampunk stories and graphic novels, but the execution of this just didn't work as well as I wanted here.
I found Riwenne to be a pretty basic character and fairly dull at times. She really didn't make me want to root for her as she was so incredibly surface level and I never felt a true connection to her or her mission.
I also found the whole concept of the story to be a really basic one with very little backstory or set up.
Honestly, the ideas were good here but the execution felt too young and simple to me and I guessed pretty much everything about the plot. I'd have to give this a 2*s. It was okay but I think there's room for improvement on the story as a whole.
This book was a super easy read but it also felt as though it was aimed quite young. Personally I felt as though this story didn't surprise or grip me, I was just told the events as they happened.
We follow a young girl called Riwenne and one of her best friends, Nex. They're about to go through the ceremony where they get sorted into their new careers, and it's a fun concept from the start.
I actually think the idea of the mechanical beasts being the enemy was very steampunk and I have read some great steampunk stories and graphic novels, but the execution of this just didn't work as well as I wanted here.
I found Riwenne to be a pretty basic character and fairly dull at times. She really didn't make me want to root for her as she was so incredibly surface level and I never felt a true connection to her or her mission.
I also found the whole concept of the story to be a really basic one with very little backstory or set up.
Honestly, the ideas were good here but the execution felt too young and simple to me and I guessed pretty much everything about the plot. I'd have to give this a 2*s. It was okay but I think there's room for improvement on the story as a whole.
October 12, 2019
Totally new and intriguing series. It made me fall in love with the characters and the world of the book. A very thrilling and awesome book with many twists and surprising turns.
I received a free review copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
I received a free review copy of this book and I am voluntarily leaving a review.
May 20, 2022
*Source* Amazon
*Genre* Young Adult / Steampunk
*Rating* 3
*Thoughts*
Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts is the first installment in author Kristen S. Walker's Divine Warriors series. In the floating city of Lyndamon are essentially raised by the state and don't know their parents. 15-year-old Riwenne is bad at school, chronically late, and lost in a daydream, but she has help from her best friend, Nexita—until the two of them get separated. During the mysterious test on Choosing Day, they both wanted to become priestesses, an important job in the sky city.
*Full Review @ Gizmos Reviews*
https://gizmosreviews.blogspot.com/20...
*Genre* Young Adult / Steampunk
*Rating* 3
*Thoughts*
Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts is the first installment in author Kristen S. Walker's Divine Warriors series. In the floating city of Lyndamon are essentially raised by the state and don't know their parents. 15-year-old Riwenne is bad at school, chronically late, and lost in a daydream, but she has help from her best friend, Nexita—until the two of them get separated. During the mysterious test on Choosing Day, they both wanted to become priestesses, an important job in the sky city.
*Full Review @ Gizmos Reviews*
https://gizmosreviews.blogspot.com/20...
October 21, 2019
This is a great steampunk fantasy series, a well written story filled with adventure, magical girls and monstrous machines and is based in a fantastic world built by this author! A fun quick coming of age read that I really enjoyed and would recommend!
November 29, 2019
Interesting mix of fantasy. Steampunk mixed with others creating a well written story line. Enjoyed the characters of Riwenne and Nexita. Recommended read.
September 17, 2019
This story was adventurous and fun. I enjoyed the mythology entwined with science fiction. I didn't connect with the characters as much as I'd like, but I did enjoy the world aspects.
June 9, 2019
I've followed Kristen's writing for years, and her books never fail to delight. "Riwenne and the Mechanical Beasts" is a fun, quick read with fantastic worldbuilding and compelling characters. I was hooked from the beginning on the intriguing idea that all children in the floating city of Lyndamon are essentially raised by the state and don't know their parents, and the world only got more intriguing from there. I was especially drawn to the pantheon of gods who feature heavily in the story, making the world's belief system feel believable (no pun intended) and adding twists and turns to the narrative. It's a mix of steampunk, high fantasy, and dystopian; I might not have thought that combination would work, but it's highly entertaining. The book plays to the strength of the Magical Girl anime genre as the main character gathers her team of powerful girls with their customized outfits and powers, which added to my enjoyment.
Riwenne, the main character, is a kind and compassionate girl, if sometimes naive and easily misled, which isn't that strange for a fifteen-year-old. Throughout the novel, she fights to find her strength and fulfill her purpose. Her journey felt compelling and had realistic pitfalls and setbacks. I loved the romance, which began with a classic butting-heads setup that made the eventual closeness that much sweeter and more exciting. The novel is light on the romance, though, and focuses more on Riwenne's friendship with each of the girls on her team. Each girl is unique and memorable, as is Riwenne's relationship with them. I had hoped for a little more nuance from the villain and thought a twist that comes near the end with one of the main characters could have been built up a little more, but it didn't detract too much from my enjoyment of the novel.
The novel seems to be targeted at a slightly younger audience than the books I usually read, which took some getting used to, but I think it will be highly enjoyable to readers of younger Young Adult and middle-grade literature.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Riwenne, the main character, is a kind and compassionate girl, if sometimes naive and easily misled, which isn't that strange for a fifteen-year-old. Throughout the novel, she fights to find her strength and fulfill her purpose. Her journey felt compelling and had realistic pitfalls and setbacks. I loved the romance, which began with a classic butting-heads setup that made the eventual closeness that much sweeter and more exciting. The novel is light on the romance, though, and focuses more on Riwenne's friendship with each of the girls on her team. Each girl is unique and memorable, as is Riwenne's relationship with them. I had hoped for a little more nuance from the villain and thought a twist that comes near the end with one of the main characters could have been built up a little more, but it didn't detract too much from my enjoyment of the novel.
The novel seems to be targeted at a slightly younger audience than the books I usually read, which took some getting used to, but I think it will be highly enjoyable to readers of younger Young Adult and middle-grade literature.
Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
August 11, 2019
Riwenne and the Mechanical Beasts is book one in Kristen S. Walker’s Divine Warrior series. Riwenne and her best friend Nexita are preparing for the biggest day of their lives…Choosing Day. This is the day when they will be chosen by the gods into their apprenticeships and that is where they will serve. Both girls hope that they will be priestesses, but it seems that Fate has other plans. Riwenne is special though. She has a connection to one of the goddesses. She wishes to understand more, but in due time the pieces will begin to come together and it all begins with a little sandpiper and a mechanical beast that attacks her best friend. From there, Riwenne begins to learn so much and more about the world around her and what she has been taught.
Are you a fan of anime? Do you enjoy a good steampunk novel? Then this is the book for you. The author blends steampunk with my favorite anime – Sailor Moon. Once I realized this in the way the author develops the story this book truly became hard to put down. I had to read more and see what was going to happen next. I see the wonderful blending of favorite characters brought to life in new ones. This story is full of fun surprises and some predictable moments, but I can’t complain, because it’s honestly how I wanted it to go. Now! I will say this…there is a HUGE twist the author throws into this book. My jaw dropped and my heart broke.
There honestly isn’t anything that I can really complain about concerning this story. The author has done a pretty good job telling this unique blending of a story. The characters are well-done and make this an enjoyable story.
I am rating this book 5 out of 5 stars. You get so much with this book. You get romance, drama, steampunk, danger, thrills, surprises, and heartbreak. I can’t wait to read the next book in this series and learn what happens next and really hope for the best! If you’re a fan of Sailor Moon and looking for a fun new twist on it then this book is a good choice! Just make sure you check out the pronunciation guide in the back first so that you can get their names right. LOL!
Are you a fan of anime? Do you enjoy a good steampunk novel? Then this is the book for you. The author blends steampunk with my favorite anime – Sailor Moon. Once I realized this in the way the author develops the story this book truly became hard to put down. I had to read more and see what was going to happen next. I see the wonderful blending of favorite characters brought to life in new ones. This story is full of fun surprises and some predictable moments, but I can’t complain, because it’s honestly how I wanted it to go. Now! I will say this…there is a HUGE twist the author throws into this book. My jaw dropped and my heart broke.
There honestly isn’t anything that I can really complain about concerning this story. The author has done a pretty good job telling this unique blending of a story. The characters are well-done and make this an enjoyable story.
I am rating this book 5 out of 5 stars. You get so much with this book. You get romance, drama, steampunk, danger, thrills, surprises, and heartbreak. I can’t wait to read the next book in this series and learn what happens next and really hope for the best! If you’re a fan of Sailor Moon and looking for a fun new twist on it then this book is a good choice! Just make sure you check out the pronunciation guide in the back first so that you can get their names right. LOL!
January 15, 2024
Her name is Riwenne, and she is a state-mandated orphan. Meaning she was taken from her biological parents at a young age, like all children were, and raised by the state. She is now fifteen years old and has already discovered her sexual preference. She is a lesbian, and she was not the only person to not fit in the normal societal role. There was a trans girl among the other children. Being it was their fifteenth year, it was their time of choosing, what all fifteen-year-olds had to go through. This would tell them where they best fit into society, whether it be a priestess, research and development, and so on. Riwenne went through the maze and ended up in R&D, but the head priestess came and collected her. Having to say goodbye to Nexita, her best friend of the last four years, she wondered if there had been a mistake. Then she remembered her dream last night. She dreamt of a goddess, of a female god, and this night, she would be awakened by its messenger.
It’s a very interesting steampunk world, with all the metal and stonework. Then, the properties of the sunstones and the floating city that they are in, which is the capital of their country. The main character! Fifteen years old, lesbian, and a warrior. This combination makes for a very good story, or at least I saw it that way. The physical world-building gives you enough information, but don’t think too long. It might hurt your head. The ethereal world-building is done well. The character’s interaction is believable. The character’s history is part of the story.
Since I have not read a lot of steampunk, the genre was mentioned, but it was not central to the story, at least in my unknowledgeable opinion. But I did enjoy this story. I give it five stars out of five stars.
It’s a very interesting steampunk world, with all the metal and stonework. Then, the properties of the sunstones and the floating city that they are in, which is the capital of their country. The main character! Fifteen years old, lesbian, and a warrior. This combination makes for a very good story, or at least I saw it that way. The physical world-building gives you enough information, but don’t think too long. It might hurt your head. The ethereal world-building is done well. The character’s interaction is believable. The character’s history is part of the story.
Since I have not read a lot of steampunk, the genre was mentioned, but it was not central to the story, at least in my unknowledgeable opinion. But I did enjoy this story. I give it five stars out of five stars.
November 18, 2019
I received this book as an ARC and am giving it my honest review.
I liked how this book started out: a new world to be built with interesting characters. A new pantheon to explore. A new adventure. After Riwenne encountered her second 'companion', the story started to become redundant and predictable. I almost put the book down at that point. I was bored. I decided I had made a commitment to writing a review so I pushed myself through to the end.
The last few chapters the pace definitely picked up. The story gained a few twists that added interest to the tale. Other than that, the action was already feeling beyond jaded. Yes, yes, Riwenne would figure it out and she and her merry band would move on leaving some casualties in their wake but with the promise to return and set it all straight.
The world building was good. I could picture the city in the clouds and the temple well enough. The characters were fleshed out about as well as they needed to be and held the promise of growth. This would be a great read for middle school age. The story, however, just did not distinguish itself in any way. If I had put my mind to it, I might have even figured out the twists. At that point, I just didn't care. I won't be reading any subsequent novels
I liked how this book started out: a new world to be built with interesting characters. A new pantheon to explore. A new adventure. After Riwenne encountered her second 'companion', the story started to become redundant and predictable. I almost put the book down at that point. I was bored. I decided I had made a commitment to writing a review so I pushed myself through to the end.
The last few chapters the pace definitely picked up. The story gained a few twists that added interest to the tale. Other than that, the action was already feeling beyond jaded. Yes, yes, Riwenne would figure it out and she and her merry band would move on leaving some casualties in their wake but with the promise to return and set it all straight.
The world building was good. I could picture the city in the clouds and the temple well enough. The characters were fleshed out about as well as they needed to be and held the promise of growth. This would be a great read for middle school age. The story, however, just did not distinguish itself in any way. If I had put my mind to it, I might have even figured out the twists. At that point, I just didn't care. I won't be reading any subsequent novels
March 21, 2020
A clumsy school girl with the magic of a goddess. Mechanical beasts attacking her friends. Can she become a divine warrior and save the floating city?
Fifteen-year-old Riwenne is bad at school, chronically late, and lost in a daydream, but she has help from her best friend, Nexita—until the two of them get separated. During the mysterious test on Choosing Day, they both wanted to become priestesses, an important job in the sky city. But only Riwenne became a novice, and Nexita was chosen by the engineers. Now she’s on her own for the first time in her life.
When a talking bird tells her that her best friend is under attack, Riwenne faces her worst fear. She must become a divine warrior and save her best friend from mechanical beasts!
As she juggles warrior training and priestess duties, Riwenne can’t let herself get distracted. She must recruit other warriors and lead the quest to find out the mystery behind the mechanical beasts, but most of all, she must follow her heart.
If she trusts the wrong person, she’ll face the gods’ judgment.
This is a brilliant read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believeable.
Great suspense and action with wonderful world building that adds so much to the story.
Can't wait to read more of these.
Recommend reading.
I read a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest review.
Fifteen-year-old Riwenne is bad at school, chronically late, and lost in a daydream, but she has help from her best friend, Nexita—until the two of them get separated. During the mysterious test on Choosing Day, they both wanted to become priestesses, an important job in the sky city. But only Riwenne became a novice, and Nexita was chosen by the engineers. Now she’s on her own for the first time in her life.
When a talking bird tells her that her best friend is under attack, Riwenne faces her worst fear. She must become a divine warrior and save her best friend from mechanical beasts!
As she juggles warrior training and priestess duties, Riwenne can’t let herself get distracted. She must recruit other warriors and lead the quest to find out the mystery behind the mechanical beasts, but most of all, she must follow her heart.
If she trusts the wrong person, she’ll face the gods’ judgment.
This is a brilliant read.
Wonderful well written plot and story line that had me engaged from the start.
Love the well fleshed out characters and found them believeable.
Great suspense and action with wonderful world building that adds so much to the story.
Can't wait to read more of these.
Recommend reading.
I read a complimentary advance copy of the book; this is my voluntary and honest review.
October 21, 2019
First off, a caveat. I signed up for Kristen S. Walker’s author emails and took her up on the offer to review a copy of the third book in this series, Riwenne & The Airship Gambit (Divine Warriors Book 3). I liked the first chapter so much that I signed up to review the first two books and read them from start to finish over a weekend, then jumped back into book three. I highly recommend reading this steampunk series in order.
Okay, so here’s the deal…Riwenne (great name, by the way), our complicated heroine, is introduced to us in an unusual fashion...she needs to become a divine warrior in order to fulfill her immediate destiny/fate and there is more to come in the following books. She is full of bravado, hidden fears, and sassiness. Her world becomes more familiar over time, and just when she has a breather, there are perils and challenges around the corner. The relationships herein are complex and multilayered, just like Riwenne. These are fast-paced, fairly easy reads, with a few laughs and tears thrown in. Highly recommend. Please note that I received a free review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
Okay, so here’s the deal…Riwenne (great name, by the way), our complicated heroine, is introduced to us in an unusual fashion...she needs to become a divine warrior in order to fulfill her immediate destiny/fate and there is more to come in the following books. She is full of bravado, hidden fears, and sassiness. Her world becomes more familiar over time, and just when she has a breather, there are perils and challenges around the corner. The relationships herein are complex and multilayered, just like Riwenne. These are fast-paced, fairly easy reads, with a few laughs and tears thrown in. Highly recommend. Please note that I received a free review copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.
July 30, 2019
Our heroine must leave her childhood friend behind to follow the path selected for her, but that doesn't mean she has to like it.
This is a young adult, steampunk novel set in an alternate London. This is the first book in this setting, so we get a fair amount of world building, which is very helpful in setting the stage. This is a very detailed setting and we will need all the help we can get.
The characters are well developed, each with their own unique characteristics that provide a depth that helps bring the story to life. They are a bit younger and less mature than I usually prefer, with more of the teenage angst, but it doesn't detract overly from the main story.
The story itself develops at a good pace and has several twists and turns along the way that keep you guessing and engaged in the story. Overall, it was an excellent start to a series.
Recommended.
I received an ARC of this book through StoryOrigin for review purposes.
This is a young adult, steampunk novel set in an alternate London. This is the first book in this setting, so we get a fair amount of world building, which is very helpful in setting the stage. This is a very detailed setting and we will need all the help we can get.
The characters are well developed, each with their own unique characteristics that provide a depth that helps bring the story to life. They are a bit younger and less mature than I usually prefer, with more of the teenage angst, but it doesn't detract overly from the main story.
The story itself develops at a good pace and has several twists and turns along the way that keep you guessing and engaged in the story. Overall, it was an excellent start to a series.
Recommended.
I received an ARC of this book through StoryOrigin for review purposes.
September 8, 2019
I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
I wasn't really sure how I was going to feel about this book from the start. It almost seemed like a rushed Harry Potter house sorting at the beginning. We got a brief idea about what was happening then the main character was separated from her best friend. I feel like there could've been a little more introduction and development to ease us into the story.
After that, things moved quickly and, for me, the story just kept getting more interesting. I like that Riwenne keeps developing new skills and powers as time goes on but I also think maybe the other girls should, too.
The ending left enough open to slide into book two easily enough. I'm sure there are a lot of people who were really upset by the ending. Usually a betrayal like that would make me upset but it actually fit well with the plot and helps to carry into another book.
I look forward to seeing what happens next!
5 stars.
I wasn't really sure how I was going to feel about this book from the start. It almost seemed like a rushed Harry Potter house sorting at the beginning. We got a brief idea about what was happening then the main character was separated from her best friend. I feel like there could've been a little more introduction and development to ease us into the story.
After that, things moved quickly and, for me, the story just kept getting more interesting. I like that Riwenne keeps developing new skills and powers as time goes on but I also think maybe the other girls should, too.
The ending left enough open to slide into book two easily enough. I'm sure there are a lot of people who were really upset by the ending. Usually a betrayal like that would make me upset but it actually fit well with the plot and helps to carry into another book.
I look forward to seeing what happens next!
5 stars.
April 30, 2019
Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts
I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is a great, faced paced novel filled with interesting characters. As an added bonus, it is a Steampunk novel which I love. The story is really well written. I couldn't put it down because I wanted to know more about everything. I loved that Walker created a parallel between the characters and the god/goddesses she created. It was a nice detail to show how everything comes full circle. The world that these characters inhabit is really cool and I look forward to learning more about it and them. This is a complete book with lots of room to create a series. There are just enough unanswered questions at the end to draw you into another book. I can't wait to see what happens next. I highly recommend this book.
I was given a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This is a great, faced paced novel filled with interesting characters. As an added bonus, it is a Steampunk novel which I love. The story is really well written. I couldn't put it down because I wanted to know more about everything. I loved that Walker created a parallel between the characters and the god/goddesses she created. It was a nice detail to show how everything comes full circle. The world that these characters inhabit is really cool and I look forward to learning more about it and them. This is a complete book with lots of room to create a series. There are just enough unanswered questions at the end to draw you into another book. I can't wait to see what happens next. I highly recommend this book.
October 31, 2021
Riwenne & the Mechanical Beasts is the first book in a steampunk fantasy series for teens called the Divine Warriors. If you thrive on quality action, humor, and political intrigue, then you’ll love this Young Adult / New Adult series. If you like magical girls, monstrous machines, and high-flying adventures, then you’ll love Kristen S. Walker’s series of guns and gears. This is the first novel I have read by Walker and I am so happy I picked up this novel. Ms Warrior puts pen to paper and creates magic. She weaves a web with her words and draw the read in at page one and keeps you in her web until the very last page. You will experience quality action, humor, and political intrigue all wrapped up in her ingenious web. I highly recommend this novel. I gave this honest, voluntary review after being given a free copy of the novel
August 22, 2019
I received an advance review copy for free from BookSirens, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Overall, I enjoyed this steampunk fantasy novel! This coming of age novel is about a girl named Riwenne. Riwenne lives in a futuristic society where people are chosen to work in different fields. Riwenne is picked to train as a priestess. Her best friend Nexita was chosen to work as an engineer. Along the way, Riwenne is summoned by the sea goddess! The sea goddess sends a talking bird named Tika to summon Riwenne for a divine mission. Riwenne goes on an adventure of a lifetime and trains to becomes a divine warrior. She also meets some new friends along the way. I highly recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys adventure.
August 6, 2019
not yer typical coming of age, high school fantasy thing(that's what they all say?) like the steampunk angle. 1/7 of the way thru as I write this, n lovin' it, couldn't wait any longer to review, pretty much hooked-update, halfway thru n still lovin' it. she's too adorable. fer me, story reaches that level of beauty that evokes giggles, n clouds vision(yes literally). if you like the coming of age fantasy thing, i think i can use the words"must read"-update, so gandalf told me he's impressed, fullmetal told me he wants to recruit her(yes that fullmetal), luke said that's some heavy stuff(yes that luke), you'll see the correlation(that's too much info right there). upgrading from must read to "required reading"
August 23, 2019
I read this book through kindle unlimited after reading the novella about Amena.
I really loved this book. I love the world that this book is based in and I am so impressed at this author's imagination and creativity! This storyline was extremely compelling and you can't wait to find out what happens next in this storyline. The end was heart breaking but I can't wait to see where it goes!
The characters are amazing in this book and although Amena is in it, it isn't only about her and I loved finding out the new divine warriors... who they are and what their background is.
I highly recommend this book and am really excited to read the next book!
I really loved this book. I love the world that this book is based in and I am so impressed at this author's imagination and creativity! This storyline was extremely compelling and you can't wait to find out what happens next in this storyline. The end was heart breaking but I can't wait to see where it goes!
The characters are amazing in this book and although Amena is in it, it isn't only about her and I loved finding out the new divine warriors... who they are and what their background is.
I highly recommend this book and am really excited to read the next book!
September 21, 2019
What a great fantasy story with steampunk themes. Kristen Walker's book Riwenne and the Mechanical Beasts is a story of a young girl receiving her "choosing" (aka calling) for life. She gets the choice she hoped for, but her best friend does not. How will she survive without her best friend by her side? Will she be able to befriend her new roommate? Is she really hearing the gods call? This is a fast moving story with many unexplained twists. And the conclusion will you hanging and wanting to read book 2 as soon a possible. Great job!
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
December 16, 2019
I did not know Kristen Walker and this is the first book from her I read.
I have liked the rather original setting (a mix of steampunk and of various gods).
I have also had the feeling this book is giving a lot of exposition but without yet explaining a lot about the origins of the society it describes.
I regret slightly the turmoils felt by the heroine with some other protagonists and certain changes of heart to be a bit brutally set without too much background explaining this...but like I said this book is about exposition and it does give the urge to go to the next book...so mission completed!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
I have liked the rather original setting (a mix of steampunk and of various gods).
I have also had the feeling this book is giving a lot of exposition but without yet explaining a lot about the origins of the society it describes.
I regret slightly the turmoils felt by the heroine with some other protagonists and certain changes of heart to be a bit brutally set without too much background explaining this...but like I said this book is about exposition and it does give the urge to go to the next book...so mission completed!
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
April 16, 2023
At first, I thought this was adult fiction, but I found the writing style to be directed more toward YA. I enjoyed the unique concept of mechanical beasts and being sorted into careers, though I felt that there was still a lack of information or that it was missing the extra 'wow'. Though our main character, Riweene (lovely name btw), was relatable, I felt she also lacked more in-depth personality r potential character growth. Overall, this story has a lot of potentials to be really great. There's plenty of adventure and room to build on the general storyline and characters. The main concepts are interesting and unique enough to catch people's attention.
August 4, 2019
I enjoyed this book and would recommend it especially to young adult readers. I thought the characters were well thought out and were believable
In their interactions with each other.
There were a few surprises at the end which is the perfect lead in to the 2nd book in the series: Riwenne and the Bionic Witches. The story kept my attention and was a page turner as I had to see what was going to happen next.
I look forward to reading the second book and would like to invite you who see this to come along with me on this adventure!
In their interactions with each other.
There were a few surprises at the end which is the perfect lead in to the 2nd book in the series: Riwenne and the Bionic Witches. The story kept my attention and was a page turner as I had to see what was going to happen next.
I look forward to reading the second book and would like to invite you who see this to come along with me on this adventure!
April 11, 2020
I received an ebook from Story Origin and this is my voluntary and honest review. This is not my usual genre, I usually read mystery or suspense. Even though this it was not my usual I'm glad I picked it up. It was a new and exciting adventure. Ms. Walker has done a great job writing a novel that most people would probably walk on by but they would be missing a "trip on the downhill ski slope"; wind flying in your face and full of exhilaration. Give it a try, everyone should "try skiing at least once". Enjoy!📚📚
June 9, 2020
A good start to a series.
The introduction to characters made it easy to connect to each one, and each one had a unique voice that allows the reader to follow the narrative to make the reading easy.
This is obviously aimed at at a YA audience. However, it does not mire itself into some of the self absorbance that other books may indulge in, which pays credit to the author herself.
This is a good book that makes the reader not want to be far from it, and keep returning to find out how the tale unfolds.
The introduction to characters made it easy to connect to each one, and each one had a unique voice that allows the reader to follow the narrative to make the reading easy.
This is obviously aimed at at a YA audience. However, it does not mire itself into some of the self absorbance that other books may indulge in, which pays credit to the author herself.
This is a good book that makes the reader not want to be far from it, and keep returning to find out how the tale unfolds.
June 19, 2024
Really was a fun read. It had an interesting mix of steampunk and intervention by the gods. Actually it seemed that the steampunk portion only came out with the gods or when the gods were needed to counter the evil.
It is a coming of age story as young women discover that they too can control magic. For the heroines of the story the magic is certainly a gift from the gods (at least one of 500+). It is an interesting world that the author has painted for the reader. Let yourself just get pulled in and go along for the ride.
It is a coming of age story as young women discover that they too can control magic. For the heroines of the story the magic is certainly a gift from the gods (at least one of 500+). It is an interesting world that the author has painted for the reader. Let yourself just get pulled in and go along for the ride.
August 14, 2019
An excellent story. A new world that has very old Gods. It is a wonder, it feels so alive. You could walk into it today and know what is all going on. Very well written and the plot is good also. There is excitement and danger to add a flair. I will be looking forward to the next to see what will happen. I received a complimentary review copy of the book and I am voluntarily leaving a honest review.
March 23, 2020
Wow, just wow! This is my first time reading this genre and I am amazed by how much I enjoyed this book.
Fast paced, well written, lots of human character unfolding into an amazing story.
Loved it and am straight into the next book.
Can recommend it to any one who enjoys a good, fast paced story involving magic and machinery.
I was given this book free to read and am delighted to give my honest review.
Fast paced, well written, lots of human character unfolding into an amazing story.
Loved it and am straight into the next book.
Can recommend it to any one who enjoys a good, fast paced story involving magic and machinery.
I was given this book free to read and am delighted to give my honest review.
January 4, 2022
powerful reimagining of technology, the Divine and our relationship to them and each other
I live that each book has so many positive, strong female characters with amazing skills and talents- and that they are also imperfect beings, feeling their way along
lots of action and adventure- but the connections and disconnects between folks, and their intense dynamics, are what draw me most to this series
Cannot wait yo see what changes, growth and challenges coming next!
I live that each book has so many positive, strong female characters with amazing skills and talents- and that they are also imperfect beings, feeling their way along
lots of action and adventure- but the connections and disconnects between folks, and their intense dynamics, are what draw me most to this series
Cannot wait yo see what changes, growth and challenges coming next!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 49 reviews