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Empirium #2
Kingsbane
In this sequel to the instant New York Times bestseller Furyborn, two queens, separated by a thousand years, connected by secrets and lies, must continue their fight amid deadly plots and unthinkable betrayals that will test their strength—and their hearts.
Rielle Dardenne has been anointed Sun Queen, but her trials are far from over. The Gate keeping the angels at bay is falling. To repair it, Rielle must collect the seven hidden castings of the saints. Meanwhile, to help her prince and love Audric protect Celdaria, Rielle must spy on the angel Corien—but his promises of freedom and power may prove too tempting to resist.
Centuries later, Eliana Ferracora grapples with her new reality: She is the Sun Queen, humanity's long-awaited savior. But fear of corruption—fear of becoming another Rielle—keeps Eliana's power dangerous and unpredictable. Hunted by all, racing against time to save her dying friend Navi, Eliana must decide how to wear a crown she never wanted—by embracing her mother's power, or rejecting it forever.
Rielle Dardenne has been anointed Sun Queen, but her trials are far from over. The Gate keeping the angels at bay is falling. To repair it, Rielle must collect the seven hidden castings of the saints. Meanwhile, to help her prince and love Audric protect Celdaria, Rielle must spy on the angel Corien—but his promises of freedom and power may prove too tempting to resist.
Centuries later, Eliana Ferracora grapples with her new reality: She is the Sun Queen, humanity's long-awaited savior. But fear of corruption—fear of becoming another Rielle—keeps Eliana's power dangerous and unpredictable. Hunted by all, racing against time to save her dying friend Navi, Eliana must decide how to wear a crown she never wanted—by embracing her mother's power, or rejecting it forever.
608 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 21, 2019
About the author
Claire Legrand
28 books4,450 followersClaire Legrand used to be a musician until she realized she couldn’t stop thinking about the stories in her head. Now she is a New York Times bestselling author of darkly magical books.
Her first novel is THE CAVENDISH HOME FOR BOYS AND GIRLS, one of the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2012. She is also the author of THE YEAR OF SHADOWS, a ghost story for middle grade readers; and WINTERSPELL, a young adult re-telling of The Nutcracker. SOME KIND OF HAPPINESS, her middle grade novel about mental illness, family secrets, and the power of storytelling, is a 2017 Edgar Award Nominee. Claire’s latest middle grade novel, FOXHEART, is a classic fantasy-adventure and a 2016 Junior Library Guild selection. The companion novel, THORNLIGHT, was a Kids' Indie Next Pick in 2021. She is one of the four authors behind THE CABINET OF CURIOSITIES, an anthology of dark middle grade short fiction that was a Junior Library Guild selection, a Bank Street Best Book, and among the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2014.
Her bestselling Empirium Trilogy consists of epic fantasy novels FURYBORN, KINGSBANE, and LIGHTBRINGER.
Her young adult horror novel SAWKILL GIRLS received five starred reviews. It was also a 2018 Bram Stoker Award finalist and a 2019 Lambda Literary Award finalist. Her latest novel, EXTASIA, is a young adult horror novel described as "The Handmaid's Tale meets The Craft" and was a Kids' Indie Next Pick.
Her adult debut, book 1 of THE MIDDLEMIST TRILOGY, releases in spring 2023.
Her first novel is THE CAVENDISH HOME FOR BOYS AND GIRLS, one of the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2012. She is also the author of THE YEAR OF SHADOWS, a ghost story for middle grade readers; and WINTERSPELL, a young adult re-telling of The Nutcracker. SOME KIND OF HAPPINESS, her middle grade novel about mental illness, family secrets, and the power of storytelling, is a 2017 Edgar Award Nominee. Claire’s latest middle grade novel, FOXHEART, is a classic fantasy-adventure and a 2016 Junior Library Guild selection. The companion novel, THORNLIGHT, was a Kids' Indie Next Pick in 2021. She is one of the four authors behind THE CABINET OF CURIOSITIES, an anthology of dark middle grade short fiction that was a Junior Library Guild selection, a Bank Street Best Book, and among the New York Public Library’s 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing in 2014.
Her bestselling Empirium Trilogy consists of epic fantasy novels FURYBORN, KINGSBANE, and LIGHTBRINGER.
Her young adult horror novel SAWKILL GIRLS received five starred reviews. It was also a 2018 Bram Stoker Award finalist and a 2019 Lambda Literary Award finalist. Her latest novel, EXTASIA, is a young adult horror novel described as "The Handmaid's Tale meets The Craft" and was a Kids' Indie Next Pick.
Her adult debut, book 1 of THE MIDDLEMIST TRILOGY, releases in spring 2023.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 2,481 reviews
April 11, 2020
this book somehow deserves the electric chair and 5 stars at the same time
August 4, 2020
im starting a petition to make it mandatory to release an entire series all at once. its cruel and unusual punishment to make a reader wait for the next installment, especially when its the final book to such an epic and addicting story!
i seriously cant get enough of this series. ‘furyborn’ was dark and moody and ‘kingsbane’ followed with its own secrets and seduction. this is everything the first book was and more. the characters are even more compelling, the world-building is even more intricate, the writing is even more immersive, and the story is even more impressive. this sequel does such an effective job at giving the reader what they want, but leaving them desperate for more.
i would sell my soul to all of the angels in the deep if it meant getting my hands on an ARC copy of the final book. october cant come quick enough.
↠ 4.5 stars
i seriously cant get enough of this series. ‘furyborn’ was dark and moody and ‘kingsbane’ followed with its own secrets and seduction. this is everything the first book was and more. the characters are even more compelling, the world-building is even more intricate, the writing is even more immersive, and the story is even more impressive. this sequel does such an effective job at giving the reader what they want, but leaving them desperate for more.
i would sell my soul to all of the angels in the deep if it meant getting my hands on an ARC copy of the final book. october cant come quick enough.
↠ 4.5 stars
June 26, 2019
Just don’t even talk to me about this book right now!
Mel 🖤🐶🐺🐾
May 11, 2020
4.5 stars
I did not expect a cliffhanger ending, so be warned!
This sequel took on a much darker tone than book 1, and the women are being challenging continuously. Although the story itself tells you what’s supposed to happen in the future, it still manages to allow you to hold onto hope that maybe it won’t get that bad, even as things are going to shit around the characters. The villain origins this story has is unlike any other. I also adore that the main characters are both angry women, and unlikable at times.
Some other things that didn’t really affect my rating but were interesting to see: actual periods as part of the plot and female sexuality. The women in this story have menstrual cycles and it affects their lives! Also, this was present in book one but the sex is ramped up. The sex scenes read like an adult romance. I was honestly stunned at how graphic they were for a YA story. Additionally, there’s also a hookup in here and then the characters don’t catch feelings?? Groundbreaking.
What keeps this from being a full 5 stars for me is my lack of investment in the romances. I don’t hate them - they just don’t grip me the way they would for a 5 star read. I will elaborate on this more in my video review, as I’m still trying to form my thoughts around why these don’t quite stick the landing for me.
Overall, one of my favorite series and I cannot wait for the finale.
I did not expect a cliffhanger ending, so be warned!
This sequel took on a much darker tone than book 1, and the women are being challenging continuously. Although the story itself tells you what’s supposed to happen in the future, it still manages to allow you to hold onto hope that maybe it won’t get that bad, even as things are going to shit around the characters. The villain origins this story has is unlike any other. I also adore that the main characters are both angry women, and unlikable at times.
Some other things that didn’t really affect my rating but were interesting to see: actual periods as part of the plot and female sexuality. The women in this story have menstrual cycles and it affects their lives! Also, this was present in book one but the sex is ramped up. The sex scenes read like an adult romance. I was honestly stunned at how graphic they were for a YA story. Additionally, there’s also a hookup in here and then the characters don’t catch feelings?? Groundbreaking.
What keeps this from being a full 5 stars for me is my lack of investment in the romances. I don’t hate them - they just don’t grip me the way they would for a 5 star read. I will elaborate on this more in my video review, as I’m still trying to form my thoughts around why these don’t quite stick the landing for me.
Overall, one of my favorite series and I cannot wait for the finale.
March 29, 2019
Again, I am so sad to be giving another book in this series only 3 stars, but I just had so many issues with it and it was extremely hard for me to get through. I kept losing interest and didn't want to finish. Which is sad because I love the core idea of this trilogy. There's just so much going on that it really disrupts the flow of the book. Also, there will probably be spoilers of the first book.
In Furyborn we were introduced to Rielle and Eliana- two "Queens" who were somehow connected to each other but separated by time. We come to learn that Eliana is Rielle's daughter who was sent away to save her life. Both women hold immeasurable power and are held to a fate neither want - one will save the world and one will burn it basically.
So let's start with what I liked:
-The plot. The plot is still amazing. And the prologue of Furyborn still sticks with me and I just want to know how Rielle gets to that point. We definitely see her start to change here and it makes me excited to see how everything will play out.
-The setting. Legrand does an amazing job of setting up these worlds. Both are clearly defined and that makes it easy to jump into them with the chapter switches.
-The duality of the Queens. The fact that for most of the books you are still asking who is the Blood Queen and who is the Sun Queen speaks volumes for how closely aligned the two are. Yes, it can be pretty obvious who is who but I like how Legrand plays on them both with each girl. Leading me to believe, the story is not so black and white as it could appear.
-The angels.I always love seeing how people play on angel lore. And it's no different here.
-Watching power corrupt. I love watching how heroes sink under the promise of power
Ok, so what didn't I like?
-The pacing. The million POVs. The length. All three are listed together because they all kind of go together. Parts of this book were just boring. We don't need to hear each characters plan or what they're doing in the background. Surprises are good. I would think as an author, you want your readers to gasp and go WTF how did that happen?? Less is definitely more in certain situations, especially in betrayals. And also, 100 pages probably could have been cut from this and it would have helped the pacing immensely.
-The girls. This shocked me. I mean, I wasn't a huge fan of Eliana in the first one so I didn't really expect to like her here. And while I can see how she grew, I still just didn't like her. She's too impulsive and refuses to listen to anyone about anything. This actually makes her weak not strong. Accept the help and learn from people around you! But the not liking Rielle made me sad. I really liked her in the first book and it was her journey that I looked the most forward to but all of that just fell apart here. She was completely different from the person she was in the first book and I'm not talking natural growth, just a whole new character for a new book. And she was just plain stupid. Every choice she made she knew was wrong and would hurt the people she claimed to love and was just like eh, whatever. And while I get her intrigue of Corien, I really don't understand the pull he has over her. Like she just turns to mush when he's around. Ugh
-Simon. The lack of explanation here was ridiculous but I'm assuming she's saving that convo for the last book.
I know people love this series and this is just my view. Even though I was disappointed in it, I'm still excited to see how it all ends. I have my theories and now I wait.
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for granting my wish and providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
In Furyborn we were introduced to Rielle and Eliana- two "Queens" who were somehow connected to each other but separated by time. We come to learn that Eliana is Rielle's daughter who was sent away to save her life. Both women hold immeasurable power and are held to a fate neither want - one will save the world and one will burn it basically.
So let's start with what I liked:
-The plot. The plot is still amazing. And the prologue of Furyborn still sticks with me and I just want to know how Rielle gets to that point. We definitely see her start to change here and it makes me excited to see how everything will play out.
-The setting. Legrand does an amazing job of setting up these worlds. Both are clearly defined and that makes it easy to jump into them with the chapter switches.
-The duality of the Queens. The fact that for most of the books you are still asking who is the Blood Queen and who is the Sun Queen speaks volumes for how closely aligned the two are. Yes, it can be pretty obvious who is who but I like how Legrand plays on them both with each girl. Leading me to believe, the story is not so black and white as it could appear.
-The angels.I always love seeing how people play on angel lore. And it's no different here.
-Watching power corrupt. I love watching how heroes sink under the promise of power
Ok, so what didn't I like?
-The pacing. The million POVs. The length. All three are listed together because they all kind of go together. Parts of this book were just boring. We don't need to hear each characters plan or what they're doing in the background. Surprises are good. I would think as an author, you want your readers to gasp and go WTF how did that happen?? Less is definitely more in certain situations, especially in betrayals. And also, 100 pages probably could have been cut from this and it would have helped the pacing immensely.
-The girls. This shocked me. I mean, I wasn't a huge fan of Eliana in the first one so I didn't really expect to like her here. And while I can see how she grew, I still just didn't like her. She's too impulsive and refuses to listen to anyone about anything. This actually makes her weak not strong. Accept the help and learn from people around you! But the not liking Rielle made me sad. I really liked her in the first book and it was her journey that I looked the most forward to but all of that just fell apart here. She was completely different from the person she was in the first book and I'm not talking natural growth, just a whole new character for a new book. And she was just plain stupid. Every choice she made she knew was wrong and would hurt the people she claimed to love and was just like eh, whatever. And while I get her intrigue of Corien, I really don't understand the pull he has over her. Like she just turns to mush when he's around. Ugh
-Simon. The lack of explanation here was ridiculous but I'm assuming she's saving that convo for the last book.
I know people love this series and this is just my view. Even though I was disappointed in it, I'm still excited to see how it all ends. I have my theories and now I wait.
Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for granting my wish and providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Want to read
April 24, 2019
September 20, 2022
It is starting to dawn on Eliana that she cannot escape her destiny; however, she is still a firm believer in survival, especially with her friends by her side. So, she embarked on a journey to enemy territory to save her friend Navi.
In an attempt to embrace her destiny, she worked hard at bridging the time divide between her and her mother, Rielle, but, Corien’s deception and manipulation were so complete with Rielle that when that redemptive opportunity came, she couldn’t tell good from evil.
I didn’t wish for a suspenseful ending, but I am curious to see how it will all come together in the next book.
In an attempt to embrace her destiny, she worked hard at bridging the time divide between her and her mother, Rielle, but, Corien’s deception and manipulation were so complete with Rielle that when that redemptive opportunity came, she couldn’t tell good from evil.
I didn’t wish for a suspenseful ending, but I am curious to see how it will all come together in the next book.
Read
September 18, 2019Thoughts to come!
January 31, 2019
HOLY F*ING SHIT?!?!? IS THAT HOW LEGRAND IS GOING TO LEAVE ME HANGING FOR THE NEXT 1-2 YEARS?!?!!? IS SHE SERIOUS?!?!?!
I literally threw this book across the room when I ended it and then I proceeded to text my friend along the lines of "WHAT DID I JUST READ?! DID THAT REALLY HAPPEN?!?! HOW CAN I WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT BOOK?!?!"
I won't say anything else about this book cause spoiling things for others is the absolute worse...but you need to get this book AS SOON AS IT HITS THE SHELVES....I want everyone to be in as much misery as I am.
Sidenote: I am pretty sick and tired of Rielle by the end of this book...I don't know why, she just really pissed me off :)
Thanks to Sourcebooks for the ARC!
I literally threw this book across the room when I ended it and then I proceeded to text my friend along the lines of "WHAT DID I JUST READ?! DID THAT REALLY HAPPEN?!?! HOW CAN I WAIT UNTIL THE NEXT BOOK?!?!"
I won't say anything else about this book cause spoiling things for others is the absolute worse...but you need to get this book AS SOON AS IT HITS THE SHELVES....I want everyone to be in as much misery as I am.
Sidenote: I am pretty sick and tired of Rielle by the end of this book...I don't know why, she just really pissed me off :)
Thanks to Sourcebooks for the ARC!
October 12, 2020
“We are more than what’s been done to us. We are more then our anger.”
Never in my life have I been so thoroughly betrayed by an author. This review is brought to you halfway from the grave because that’s how much this book hurt and there’s a good chance once Lightbringer comes out I will fully be six feet under after I finish it. If you haven’t read Claire Legrand’s Empirium Trilogy…what are you waiting for? But also, prepare yourself because this is truly one hell of ride.
What I Liked
👨👩👧👦 Multiple POV’s. I honestly can’t remember if Furyborn included more than just the dual timeline with POV’s from Eliana and Rielle, but every now and then some of the characters in Kingsbane would get a chapter or two to themselves and it was such a nice change up. I think it was a smart move on the authors part because it added that much more depth to the story.
💖 Sex positive. I absolutely loved how sex and sexuality were handled in this book and I hope that more YA authors will continue to include content like this in their books. Also, that fact that the author includes multiple instances of Rielle and Eliana having their periods in this story was another plus, I’d love to see this normalized in more YA books as well.
😈 Villains you love to hate. I’ll be the first to admit that I love Corien as a villain. I love, love, love to hate that man. Claire Legrand is able to create such compelling characters that villain or not it’s just easy to love and hate everyone at the same time. It’s pure magic.
📈Pacing. Coming in at a little over 600 pages Kingsbane is quite the intimidating read but at no part in this was I bored. The author does a fantastic job of making the action packed parts impossible to put down and the parts where most books would fall into a little bit of a lull it fills readers in on the backstories we’ve been dying to know about since book one. It was a perfect balance of action and unraveling all the little hidden details within the plot.
What I Didn’t Like
💔 My heart got stomped on. I had an inkling about one of the betrayals in this book but just because I had a feeling didn’t mean it softened the blow any less. Plus, there were still plot twists that I never in a million years would have seen coming. So I don’t know whats worse – having a pit in your stomach knowing you shouldn’t love and trust some of the characters or being so utterly blindsided by a plot twist that a literal knife to your heart would have been less painful.
⏳The wait for the next book. I’d like to think I planned this out nicely that I have to wait only week one for Lightbringer to come out (even less by the time this review goes up) but it is still one week too long after that ending. For those of you who waited over a year for the conclusion my heart goes out to you, I probably would have lost my mind. And yes, I am utterly terrified to see how this trilogy will end. Thoughts and prayers are welcome at this time.
Blog | Twitter
Never in my life have I been so thoroughly betrayed by an author. This review is brought to you halfway from the grave because that’s how much this book hurt and there’s a good chance once Lightbringer comes out I will fully be six feet under after I finish it. If you haven’t read Claire Legrand’s Empirium Trilogy…what are you waiting for? But also, prepare yourself because this is truly one hell of ride.
What I Liked
👨👩👧👦 Multiple POV’s. I honestly can’t remember if Furyborn included more than just the dual timeline with POV’s from Eliana and Rielle, but every now and then some of the characters in Kingsbane would get a chapter or two to themselves and it was such a nice change up. I think it was a smart move on the authors part because it added that much more depth to the story.
💖 Sex positive. I absolutely loved how sex and sexuality were handled in this book and I hope that more YA authors will continue to include content like this in their books. Also, that fact that the author includes multiple instances of Rielle and Eliana having their periods in this story was another plus, I’d love to see this normalized in more YA books as well.
😈 Villains you love to hate. I’ll be the first to admit that I love Corien as a villain. I love, love, love to hate that man. Claire Legrand is able to create such compelling characters that villain or not it’s just easy to love and hate everyone at the same time. It’s pure magic.
📈Pacing. Coming in at a little over 600 pages Kingsbane is quite the intimidating read but at no part in this was I bored. The author does a fantastic job of making the action packed parts impossible to put down and the parts where most books would fall into a little bit of a lull it fills readers in on the backstories we’ve been dying to know about since book one. It was a perfect balance of action and unraveling all the little hidden details within the plot.
What I Didn’t Like
💔 My heart got stomped on. I had an inkling about one of the betrayals in this book but just because I had a feeling didn’t mean it softened the blow any less. Plus, there were still plot twists that I never in a million years would have seen coming. So I don’t know whats worse – having a pit in your stomach knowing you shouldn’t love and trust some of the characters or being so utterly blindsided by a plot twist that a literal knife to your heart would have been less painful.
⏳The wait for the next book. I’d like to think I planned this out nicely that I have to wait only week one for Lightbringer to come out (even less by the time this review goes up) but it is still one week too long after that ending. For those of you who waited over a year for the conclusion my heart goes out to you, I probably would have lost my mind. And yes, I am utterly terrified to see how this trilogy will end. Thoughts and prayers are welcome at this time.
Blog | Twitter
May 30, 2019
😱😱😱😱😱😱 I can't believe this!!!!
And now we're supposed to wait for a year?!??!?
And now we're supposed to wait for a year?!??!?
April 19, 2021
I am so upset right now
May 20, 2019
I THINK I DIED??
Update: read this 2 days ago but i can't stop thinking about it so i'm going to give it 5 stars
Update: read this 2 days ago but i can't stop thinking about it so i'm going to give it 5 stars
April 19, 2020
Wow! I hate when I’m affected by cliffhanger endings like this. I need the next book NOW!!
Simon? Really Simon? There must be more to it. I refuse to believe he’s betrayed Eliana in this way.
Harkan, oh poor Harkan. I’m furious that the author brought him back from the “dead” (or when we thought he was dead anyway) just to kill kill again. I cried and I’m sad and angry. He deserved better.
I hated Rielle in this book. I felt like she used Audric and I felt like she could’ve tried a little harder to not succumb to Corien.
I also hated Ludivine and honestly I don’t trust her.
Audric. I would kill to find myself a Audric and he deserves the world. I’d pay for him to forget about Rielle and find someone deserving of him to love!
This book was amazing and didn’t disappoint. I love when the second books are better than the first. I’m ready for book 3!
4.5/5 🌟’s
Simon? Really Simon? There must be more to it. I refuse to believe he’s betrayed Eliana in this way.
Harkan, oh poor Harkan. I’m furious that the author brought him back from the “dead” (or when we thought he was dead anyway) just to kill kill again. I cried and I’m sad and angry. He deserved better.
I hated Rielle in this book. I felt like she used Audric and I felt like she could’ve tried a little harder to not succumb to Corien.
I also hated Ludivine and honestly I don’t trust her.
Audric. I would kill to find myself a Audric and he deserves the world. I’d pay for him to forget about Rielle and find someone deserving of him to love!
This book was amazing and didn’t disappoint. I love when the second books are better than the first. I’m ready for book 3!
4.5/5 🌟’s
May 30, 2019
Review also found at: https://danaandthebooks.com/2019/05/1...
Thanks so much Midas PR for a copy of both Furyborn and Kingsbane!
In a way I'm glad I missed reading Furyborn when it initially came out. It just means I got to read it and Kingsbane back to back. Unfortunately, now it means I have to wait an agonizingly long time for the third book.
So, what can I say about this wonderful book? Claire Legrand has a beautiful way with words. Every page is gorgeous. Every chapter meaningful. I loved it.
It was impossible to read Kingsbane slowly. The story picks up from book one seamlessly, and keeps the same high quality characters and tight intense story telling.
I've mentioned it before, but I prefer books written in third person rather than first person. Recently a lot of the fantasy novels I've read have been in first person so getting such a wonderful book from my favourite POV was just what I needed.
We not only get the standard Rielle and Eliana chapters from Furyborn, but we also got a handful of chapters from the perspective of the other characters. Most notably Simon and Corien.
The character development? Perfect. We see Rielle slowly becoming more and more unhinged and Eliana accepting her fate as we delve deeper into this story. Since we technically know how Rielle's story ends, this is more about the journey getting there than finding out what happens at the end. But who knows? There's still one more book so anything can happen!
And that Simon guy? Yes.
Kingsbane is out in just a couple days so make sure to pick up your copy!
Book Links: Book Depository | Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon CA
Thanks so much Midas PR for a copy of both Furyborn and Kingsbane!
In a way I'm glad I missed reading Furyborn when it initially came out. It just means I got to read it and Kingsbane back to back. Unfortunately, now it means I have to wait an agonizingly long time for the third book.
So, what can I say about this wonderful book? Claire Legrand has a beautiful way with words. Every page is gorgeous. Every chapter meaningful. I loved it.
It was impossible to read Kingsbane slowly. The story picks up from book one seamlessly, and keeps the same high quality characters and tight intense story telling.
I've mentioned it before, but I prefer books written in third person rather than first person. Recently a lot of the fantasy novels I've read have been in first person so getting such a wonderful book from my favourite POV was just what I needed.
We not only get the standard Rielle and Eliana chapters from Furyborn, but we also got a handful of chapters from the perspective of the other characters. Most notably Simon and Corien.
The character development? Perfect. We see Rielle slowly becoming more and more unhinged and Eliana accepting her fate as we delve deeper into this story. Since we technically know how Rielle's story ends, this is more about the journey getting there than finding out what happens at the end. But who knows? There's still one more book so anything can happen!
And that Simon guy? Yes.
Kingsbane is out in just a couple days so make sure to pick up your copy!
Book Links: Book Depository | Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon CA
April 10, 2019
First of all I am grateful to Sourcebooks Fire for giving me the opportunity to read this much awaited sequel!
I absolutely adored Furyborn and I could not wait to read Kingsbane!
When Kingsbane landed on my Kindle I think I screamed so loud that I awoke my neighbors.
Sadly I struggled with that story. As it gets many good reviews, I guess it’s a case of “it’s not you, it’s me” . I hope to help you decide if the book still could be your jam and will go with my likes and dislikes
Let’s begin with the positive:
The world building is still excellent. You have fantastic beasts, angels, magic etc. Claire Legrand knows how to write to make you see this fictional world.
The plot is strong with twists you won't see coming. There is action, you move nearly all the time, meet new people, have threats to avoid and quests to fulfill be it get ancient artifacts from the Saints or find a cure or ….
We get to read about the back story of the characters and about what happened to the angels. Believe me, the humans were not flawless here and they did trick the angels!
I never saw that ending coming! As this is a trilogy it ends on a cliffhanger so you’ve been warned.
BUT
Here come my dislikes
I really disliked the characters.
Of course in book one we know that Rielle was the bad guy. But I rooted for her and really loved her as kickass girl! I wanted her to have excuses.
Here...
Here she changed so much and I could not stand her. In that Claire Legrand did really a fantastic job depicting a villain. Power was so tempting. But I had problems with the grasp Corien had on Rielle. Why was she attracted to him like that? She just seemed kind of selfish in her search for power. I would say she became power drunk and accumulated bad decisions.
On a side note, if I did not like Eliana at all in book one I warmed up to her character in this sequel. She is trying her best but she is also a very conflicted charactersand not easy to like either. She is stubborn and decided to do things her way. That led to mistakes…
As I love above all else character's driven stories it was really difficult to feel concerned with their ordeals.
What bothered me deeply too were the numerous sex scenes. I am a romance reader so I am used to hot scenes but not in YA books. This CAN'T qualify as a YA!
The way these scenes happened and how Rielle wanted it made me feel uneasy. I did not like how she seemed to use Audric and ... well you got it for as much as I loved her before I disliked her here.
I think if this book would have been labelled as adult I would have been prepared and probably not bothered by these scenes.
I like my relationships to be focused and exclusive but that was not the case. I loved Audric and each time Corien happened felt like a deep betrayal. The relationship between Ludvine, Rielle and Audric was also …peculiar and probably not fitting for a YA story again.
Would I recommend this book?
If you have read and loved Furyborn I would say read it and make your own opinion.
I know that I will read other books by Claire Legrand as I loved not only Furyborn but also Sawkill Girls (unique story).
I guess you can't love all books from an author...
Have you read Furyborn? Did you love it? Do you want to read Kingsbane?
Thanks for reading
Sophie
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June 30, 2021
“In my kingdom, in my world,” he murmured, his breath hot against her lips, “you would serve no one.”
I didnt even realise this book was around 600 pages until i finished it. well okay then.
when i tell you that rielle is absolutely unhinged in this book, i mean it. it was very entertaining to see her lose her mind and basically toe the line of insanity. i found this book more exciting than book one, in terms of plot. obviously the plot twists didn’t ‘blow me away’ but that’s more on the fact that im extremely difficult to please - plot wise. plus i predicted them all anyway so they weren’t totally surprising.
i have a lot of theories on how book 3 is going to play out but based on what i’ve heard from the people who have read it - it’s a make or break. let’s hope that even if im extremely mad about how it ends, i won’t want to fling the book across the world 😙✌️
also this is really not a review i’ll put up a better one later
I didnt even realise this book was around 600 pages until i finished it. well okay then.
when i tell you that rielle is absolutely unhinged in this book, i mean it. it was very entertaining to see her lose her mind and basically toe the line of insanity. i found this book more exciting than book one, in terms of plot. obviously the plot twists didn’t ‘blow me away’ but that’s more on the fact that im extremely difficult to please - plot wise. plus i predicted them all anyway so they weren’t totally surprising.
i have a lot of theories on how book 3 is going to play out but based on what i’ve heard from the people who have read it - it’s a make or break. let’s hope that even if im extremely mad about how it ends, i won’t want to fling the book across the world 😙✌️
also this is really not a review i’ll put up a better one later
November 15, 2019
No spoilers in this rapid review of Kingsbane. I liked most of the book and LOVED the ending, so I decided on 4.5 stars. I put this book down and picked it back up several times before I finished it. The crazy thing is, I was never bored. That wasn’t the problem, yet Legrand had to work hard to earn each star from me. If I had to sum Kingsbane up in one word, I would propose “overwhelming.” More about that in a bit.
Kingsbane continues the saga of Rielle and Eliana, a mother and daughter separated shortly Eliana’s after birth. They’re believed to be the prophesied queens: The Blood Queen and The Sun Queen. One of them is predicted to be full of darkness evil, and the other will be full of light and goodness. Both are able to work powerful magic, and it seems apparent at first which queen is which as their stories unfold in alternating chapters.
Furyborn, book 1, showed us the moment the pair was separated, in which Rielle sent Eliana with Simon, a trusted young boy possessing the gift of time travel. But Simon and Eliana were separated as magic hurtled them 1,000 years into the future. After many years of searching, Simon eventually found Eliana. In Kingsbane, he begins to teach her how to harness and properly wield her magic as he’s struggling to regain his time travel powers.
When we skip back in time to Rielle’s chapters in book 2, we see madness settling into her mind. She’s fighting to repair the damaged gate that once kept the angels at bay. And she’s torn between two men: Corien, the angel who speaks in her mind and promises he’s the only one who will accept the true her, and Audric, the boy she’s loved all her life who will be the next king. Audric continues to defend Rielle fiercely, despite her outbursts of power and temper and their repercussions.
Simon hopes he can eventually send a fully trained Eliana back in time to prevent the future in which they’re living. Basically, the two of them hope to change the course of history by using Simon’s time travel threads to send a powerful Eliana back to prove to Rielle that things have to change.
What’s not to love? Legrand gives us political woes and foes, angels, magic manifesting in a variety of ways, time travel, family issues, and love triangles. Oh yes, and then there are those twists at the end: two to be exact, one in each timeframe. Both broke my heart, and one of the two is absolutely crazy. The rug was pulled out from under me as I read it. (What other clichés can I use to reiterate how surprised I was?) I had to be told a couple of times in two different chapters before I accepted it.
When I glanced back through certain scenes leading up to the shock, there were some definite signs I mistook for something else. Yes, I fell for what Legrand was selling hook, line, and sinker. (Oh yay, another cliché!) 😉 And that, my friends, is how to orchestrate a fully earned, truly shocking turn of events.
My stomach plummeted during the final chapter featuring the characters affected. I honestly felt nauseous. Is there still hope this storyline can be redeemed? I’m almost positive there is. And I’m not just saying this because my favorite character is involved. During my search for justification, I found some rather compelling signs. We’ll see if I’m reading them properly and if my fav character can be redeemed in book 3. A girl can hope! 😉 (NOTE: Please don’t read my Furyborn review if you don’t want to be spoiled because I reveal my favorite character in that post.)
How did I ever manage to put this book down multiple times before finishing it? It’s a book I’m recapping, and in a book this complex, I have to stop and take notes about what I’ve read at the end of every chapter. And that’s not always fun! But I do it because it’s what our readers want. It’s not easy to stop in the middle of the action to record what I just read; it's truly a labor of love.
Recapping isn’t the only reason for my slow progress, though. Between the two different points of view so far apart in time, the story unfolds quite slowly, gradually weaving the plot on each side. Just when we reach an important point, we skip backward or forward to the other half of the tale. I guess what I’m saying is reading this series requires a little bit of work. It takes dedication, but I assure you it’s worth it!
I recommend this series to high fantasy lovers who don’t mind a complicated story, with one caveat: Even though this is marketed as young adult, this is NOT a book intended for young audiences. It should be shelved in the adult section instead. But let me rave one more time about the fact that Legrand pulled off my favorite plot twist in recent memory. The last handful chapters of this book were jaw-dropping in the best way possible. I cycled through confusion, fury, shock, and heartbreak. And that’s what we want as readers, right? We want to FEEL. Well done, Legrand. Well done.
Read all of our reviews here.
Check out our full book recaps here.
Kingsbane continues the saga of Rielle and Eliana, a mother and daughter separated shortly Eliana’s after birth. They’re believed to be the prophesied queens: The Blood Queen and The Sun Queen. One of them is predicted to be full of darkness evil, and the other will be full of light and goodness. Both are able to work powerful magic, and it seems apparent at first which queen is which as their stories unfold in alternating chapters.
Furyborn, book 1, showed us the moment the pair was separated, in which Rielle sent Eliana with Simon, a trusted young boy possessing the gift of time travel. But Simon and Eliana were separated as magic hurtled them 1,000 years into the future. After many years of searching, Simon eventually found Eliana. In Kingsbane, he begins to teach her how to harness and properly wield her magic as he’s struggling to regain his time travel powers.
When we skip back in time to Rielle’s chapters in book 2, we see madness settling into her mind. She’s fighting to repair the damaged gate that once kept the angels at bay. And she’s torn between two men: Corien, the angel who speaks in her mind and promises he’s the only one who will accept the true her, and Audric, the boy she’s loved all her life who will be the next king. Audric continues to defend Rielle fiercely, despite her outbursts of power and temper and their repercussions.
Simon hopes he can eventually send a fully trained Eliana back in time to prevent the future in which they’re living. Basically, the two of them hope to change the course of history by using Simon’s time travel threads to send a powerful Eliana back to prove to Rielle that things have to change.
What’s not to love? Legrand gives us political woes and foes, angels, magic manifesting in a variety of ways, time travel, family issues, and love triangles. Oh yes, and then there are those twists at the end: two to be exact, one in each timeframe. Both broke my heart, and one of the two is absolutely crazy. The rug was pulled out from under me as I read it. (What other clichés can I use to reiterate how surprised I was?) I had to be told a couple of times in two different chapters before I accepted it.
When I glanced back through certain scenes leading up to the shock, there were some definite signs I mistook for something else. Yes, I fell for what Legrand was selling hook, line, and sinker. (Oh yay, another cliché!) 😉 And that, my friends, is how to orchestrate a fully earned, truly shocking turn of events.
My stomach plummeted during the final chapter featuring the characters affected. I honestly felt nauseous. Is there still hope this storyline can be redeemed? I’m almost positive there is. And I’m not just saying this because my favorite character is involved. During my search for justification, I found some rather compelling signs. We’ll see if I’m reading them properly and if my fav character can be redeemed in book 3. A girl can hope! 😉 (NOTE: Please don’t read my Furyborn review if you don’t want to be spoiled because I reveal my favorite character in that post.)
How did I ever manage to put this book down multiple times before finishing it? It’s a book I’m recapping, and in a book this complex, I have to stop and take notes about what I’ve read at the end of every chapter. And that’s not always fun! But I do it because it’s what our readers want. It’s not easy to stop in the middle of the action to record what I just read; it's truly a labor of love.
Recapping isn’t the only reason for my slow progress, though. Between the two different points of view so far apart in time, the story unfolds quite slowly, gradually weaving the plot on each side. Just when we reach an important point, we skip backward or forward to the other half of the tale. I guess what I’m saying is reading this series requires a little bit of work. It takes dedication, but I assure you it’s worth it!
I recommend this series to high fantasy lovers who don’t mind a complicated story, with one caveat: Even though this is marketed as young adult, this is NOT a book intended for young audiences. It should be shelved in the adult section instead. But let me rave one more time about the fact that Legrand pulled off my favorite plot twist in recent memory. The last handful chapters of this book were jaw-dropping in the best way possible. I cycled through confusion, fury, shock, and heartbreak. And that’s what we want as readers, right? We want to FEEL. Well done, Legrand. Well done.
Read all of our reviews here.
Check out our full book recaps here.
June 21, 2019
ARC received thanks to a trade on Instagram.
“That she was . . . the foretold Sun Queen, the daughter of the Kingsbane and the Lightbringer. The Furyborn Child. She had many names, it seemed, and she had chosen none of them for herself.”
This has been a wild ride. I wasn’t sure what to expect about Kingsbane, but I can tell you that what I wasn’t expecting was that my feelings towards the characters would completely change. Although I liked both main characters in Furyborn, I had a clear preference for Rielle and her personal journey. So imagine my surprise when I found myself hating her while loving Eliana’s storyline and character development in this second instalment.
This book picks up a few weeks after the ending of Furyborn. The two queens of this story, Rielle and Eliana, keep fighting for their destinies thousand years apart. The Blood Queen and the Sun Queen, both prophesied by angel Aryava during the First Age. We follow one of them embracing the darkness in her way to become an antagonist, while the other one starts to embrace her destiny as the saviour of the world. And although Rielle and Eliana remain the main characters of the story, we have a few chapters told through the POV of some secondary characters like Ludivine, Corien, Simon or Audric, among others.
As I said at the beginning of this review, I hated Rielle in this book. I like a good antagonist, but Rielle’s journey through Kingsbane feels more like a tantrum of a spoiled little girl. She was a really interesting character in the first book, but I couldn’t understand her selfish decisions in this one. I also firmly believe that Audric and Ludivine deserve better than her. I really enjoyed the romance between Rielle and Audric in Furyborn, but now I can’t stand her innumerable lies to him and how she returns to Corien’s arms again and again.
“We are the light against the darkness, and we must continue to burn brightly, so others may find their way out.”
The interesting part about Rielle’s storyline is how she tries to find the seven hidden castings of the Sants in order to restore the Gate, although I think the execution of that subplot was too rushed. I also enjoyed the new capitals and kingdoms we discover through her POV: Styrdalleen (Borsvall’s capital), Iastra (the largest island of the Sunderlands), Genzhar (Kirvaya’s capital) and Quelbani (Mazabat’s capital).
The true jewel of this book for me is Eliana. I absolutely loved her character development, her struggles with her power and her dynamics with Remy, Zahra, Simon, Patrik, Navi and Jessamyn. We also get to see new places through her POV: Vintervok (Astavar’s capital) and some cities in Meridian (Karlaine and Festival). I also loved her relationship with Simon and I’ll be rooting for them until the very end.
And if something makes my sapphic heart infinitely happy about this trilogy is the fact that both main characters are unapologetically bisexual. We also get to see some queer relationships through the side characters, which I loved. Another aspect I utterly loved is how Kingsbane focuses a lot on consent and how healthy and toxic relationships are portrayed and compared.
Overall, I enjoyed this sequel. The plot was interesting and I loved Eliana’s storyline, but I couldn’t stand Rielle and the decisions she makes in this instalment. I need answers about certain character and I also need to confirm if my crazy theory about the Prophet’s identity is or not true. Besides, I’m looking forward to seeing how Claire Legrand keeps playing with the concept of time travel in the third and final book because that is one of my favourite elements of this trilogy.
“So frail, and so dear. Your lives blink in and out of this world like the lights of fireflies. And I will do what I can to see that you continue to.”
P.S.: I'm not English, so if you see any mistakes let me know so I can correct them, please.
Read
October 1, 2019Workin my way back, RTC!
June 16, 2023
I. AM. DEAD. HOW am I suppose to wait until next year for the conclusion after THAT?!
September 30, 2020
4.5 Stars
Claire Legrand has done it again, she has completely blown me out of the water. I feel destroyed and betrayed. Seriously, what a cliffhanger.
You know the kind of book that is both beautiful and heartbreaking? Yeah, that's how I would describe Kingsbane. It's been days since I have finished the book and I still can't get it out of my head. Claire Legrand is just ridiculously talented and cruel. I mean HOW ARE YOU GOING TO END THIS BOOK LIKE THAT!! With a cliffhanger that intense, I am 100% sure the wait for the third book is going to kill me.
For the full review
Kingsbane
Find me here:
Blog | Bookstagram
Claire Legrand has done it again, she has completely blown me out of the water. I feel destroyed and betrayed. Seriously, what a cliffhanger.
You know the kind of book that is both beautiful and heartbreaking? Yeah, that's how I would describe Kingsbane. It's been days since I have finished the book and I still can't get it out of my head. Claire Legrand is just ridiculously talented and cruel. I mean HOW ARE YOU GOING TO END THIS BOOK LIKE THAT!! With a cliffhanger that intense, I am 100% sure the wait for the third book is going to kill me.
For the full review
Kingsbane
Find me here:
Blog | Bookstagram
February 21, 2023
The mind is fragile, and time is pitiless.
the funniest thing about these books is that, up until a week ago I had no real intention of reading them, and yet here I am now, devouring the second book in a day and slowly getting consumed by the thought of my favorite characters not getting the happiness they deserve 🥴
(RTC. maybe lol)
me excitedly jumping into kingsbane pretending I didn't just read that particular big spoiler by accident
ACTUAL RATINGS 4,5/5
June 29, 2023
nobody talk to me. i am not okay
July 8, 2019
Excuse me?
What. Was. That. Ending.
SHDJDHDJDHSJ
3rd October, 2018:
How did I miss this cover reveal I'm screaming what am I doing.
Honestly, this red hurts my eyes and not in a good way? I have very mixed feelings on the cover (but am now starting to like it more and more) but I much prefer the first one? I have to admit, my expectations were ridiculously high after the beauty of Furyborn.
Also, there is an excerpt on EW. You're welcome.
July 20, 2018,
If this doesn't come out next year, I'm rioting
Also claiming this first review k PSA over
What. Was. That. Ending.
SHDJDHDJDHSJ
3rd October, 2018:
How did I miss this cover reveal I'm screaming what am I doing.
Honestly, this red hurts my eyes and not in a good way? I have very mixed feelings on the cover (but am now starting to like it more and more) but I much prefer the first one? I have to admit, my expectations were ridiculously high after the beauty of Furyborn.
Also, there is an excerpt on EW. You're welcome.
July 20, 2018,
If this doesn't come out next year, I'm rioting
Also claiming this first review k PSA over
December 10, 2020
Edit after 3rd read: Literally how did I survive reading this TWICE without having the sequel to read immediately after. This book is pure agony. I love this book desperately.
EDIT: Why did I reread this. Why did I decide to suffer again. These books are so good I CANNOT
Original Review:
HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO SURVIVE A YEAR UNTIL THE SEQUEL AFTER THAT ENDING???
I loved this with my entire soul, oh my god.
But folks, this ain't YA. There's so much sex in this book. This trilogy is new adult, for sure.
EDIT: Why did I reread this. Why did I decide to suffer again. These books are so good I CANNOT
Original Review:
HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO SURVIVE A YEAR UNTIL THE SEQUEL AFTER THAT ENDING???
I loved this with my entire soul, oh my god.
But folks, this ain't YA. There's so much sex in this book. This trilogy is new adult, for sure.
May 28, 2019
Review to come, but oh - my - god.
*
Review posted on my blog!
It’s going to be really hard to write a spoiler free review of a second book in a series, but I gladly accept the challenge because this book was everything and more.
I always wanted to read Furyborn but only did so last month. I knew it had great reviews but I never thought I would ever love it as much as I did. In a few words, let’s just say that this series is now my first real favourites of 2019. It has everything I love in fantasy and now I need the third book… It’s going to be a long wait.
Though I adored Furyborn and gave it 5/5 stars, I loved Kingsbane even more (if I could I would have gave it 10/5 stars). I couldn’t stop reading it and was totally invested in the story. I loved everything about it: the story line, the characters, the writing style. It honestly was brilliant (I wish I wasn’t hyping this book that much, but here we are).
It feels weird to write a review about this book because I only have so little to say: what do you do when you loved absolutely everything and you have nothing bad to point out? It’s a great feeling to love a book that much, but not so great to write about it afterwards. #bloggerlife
Let’s just say that I fell in love. Hard. Those books are dark, yet so entertaining and fun to read. They may be big but they are so easily to fly through. The characters are unique, flawed and don’t try to please everyone. I also ended up shipping some of them really hard and I was feeling everything. I still am not over it, and that’s what is magic about Claire Legrand’s writing style: she makes you feel as if you were there. I laughed reading it and almost cried – it definitely was a roller coaster.
I know opinions are really personal and though I loved those books so much you may not end up loving them like that. But if you love stories about magic, queens, darkness and angels, then you may have found your next read.
*
Review posted on my blog!
It’s going to be really hard to write a spoiler free review of a second book in a series, but I gladly accept the challenge because this book was everything and more.
I always wanted to read Furyborn but only did so last month. I knew it had great reviews but I never thought I would ever love it as much as I did. In a few words, let’s just say that this series is now my first real favourites of 2019. It has everything I love in fantasy and now I need the third book… It’s going to be a long wait.
Though I adored Furyborn and gave it 5/5 stars, I loved Kingsbane even more (if I could I would have gave it 10/5 stars). I couldn’t stop reading it and was totally invested in the story. I loved everything about it: the story line, the characters, the writing style. It honestly was brilliant (I wish I wasn’t hyping this book that much, but here we are).
It feels weird to write a review about this book because I only have so little to say: what do you do when you loved absolutely everything and you have nothing bad to point out? It’s a great feeling to love a book that much, but not so great to write about it afterwards. #bloggerlife
Let’s just say that I fell in love. Hard. Those books are dark, yet so entertaining and fun to read. They may be big but they are so easily to fly through. The characters are unique, flawed and don’t try to please everyone. I also ended up shipping some of them really hard and I was feeling everything. I still am not over it, and that’s what is magic about Claire Legrand’s writing style: she makes you feel as if you were there. I laughed reading it and almost cried – it definitely was a roller coaster.
I know opinions are really personal and though I loved those books so much you may not end up loving them like that. But if you love stories about magic, queens, darkness and angels, then you may have found your next read.
November 29, 2020
Kingsbane
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book was chefs kisses. No but honestly, I couldn’t put it down at the end! Okay okay, I might have prioritized finishing this book over doing my assignments... I knooooow but I couldn’t stop myself! Now I have tons of work to do, but it was worth it! Also, that ending... I don’t even know what to say🤭
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This book was chefs kisses. No but honestly, I couldn’t put it down at the end! Okay okay, I might have prioritized finishing this book over doing my assignments... I knooooow but I couldn’t stop myself! Now I have tons of work to do, but it was worth it! Also, that ending... I don’t even know what to say🤭
October 9, 2020
Can’t wait for Corielle to end Ludivine and Audric in the finale
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 8, 2019
4.5 stars
Kingsbane is the second book in the Epirium Trilogy - a fantasy world with a prophecy about the rising of two queens. A Sun Queen - a woman who will bring peace and prosperity, and a Blood Queen - a queen with terrible power and brings death and destruction. Rielle believes she is the Sun Queen but her powers are still growing and she doesn't yet know where they will lead her. And she has evil angel Corien whispering in her head - and he's the only one who appears to truly understand her. Centuries later Eliana is getting to grips with apparently being the prophesied Sun Queen, and understanding her connection to Rielle, the legendary Blood Queen while trying to help lead the revolution against the terrifying Emperor.
I loved this follow-up to Furyborn, and was surprised by how quickly i fell back into the world and with ease with all the characters. I continued my great love for Rielle in Kingsbane, but also grew closer to Eliana who was a little bit less self-righteous in this one, and seemed a bit more human at times. I love how morally complex Rielle is in this trilogy, and how her decisions affected the future of the world that Eliana now lives in. I found myself growing angry at times in Eliana's chapters by the way they would speak about Rielle, as there is so much more of a story about her actions that they could know, and I feel very protective over her.
This book had fantastic references to bisexuality (Rielle and Eliana are both bisexuality) and there's various times throughout the book when we meet other characters and families of all kinds of sexualities and races. There are some mentions of polyamory in this book which was interesting and I actually think the relationship between Audric, Rielle and Ludivine sometimes borders on polyamrous as it definitely seems like more than friendship. But beautiful all the same.
I loved everything that happened in this book but did find myself a bit surprised, and a tad confused, at some of the big reveals in the last parts of Eliana's story. I do think we are building up to a truly epic climax though and I cannot wait for the third and final book.
Kingsbane is the second book in the Epirium Trilogy - a fantasy world with a prophecy about the rising of two queens. A Sun Queen - a woman who will bring peace and prosperity, and a Blood Queen - a queen with terrible power and brings death and destruction. Rielle believes she is the Sun Queen but her powers are still growing and she doesn't yet know where they will lead her. And she has evil angel Corien whispering in her head - and he's the only one who appears to truly understand her. Centuries later Eliana is getting to grips with apparently being the prophesied Sun Queen, and understanding her connection to Rielle, the legendary Blood Queen while trying to help lead the revolution against the terrifying Emperor.
I loved this follow-up to Furyborn, and was surprised by how quickly i fell back into the world and with ease with all the characters. I continued my great love for Rielle in Kingsbane, but also grew closer to Eliana who was a little bit less self-righteous in this one, and seemed a bit more human at times. I love how morally complex Rielle is in this trilogy, and how her decisions affected the future of the world that Eliana now lives in. I found myself growing angry at times in Eliana's chapters by the way they would speak about Rielle, as there is so much more of a story about her actions that they could know, and I feel very protective over her.
This book had fantastic references to bisexuality (Rielle and Eliana are both bisexuality) and there's various times throughout the book when we meet other characters and families of all kinds of sexualities and races. There are some mentions of polyamory in this book which was interesting and I actually think the relationship between Audric, Rielle and Ludivine sometimes borders on polyamrous as it definitely seems like more than friendship. But beautiful all the same.
I loved everything that happened in this book but did find myself a bit surprised, and a tad confused, at some of the big reveals in the last parts of Eliana's story. I do think we are building up to a truly epic climax though and I cannot wait for the third and final book.
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