Nicki Pau PretoCritiques

One wouldn’t think a book about the walking dead, ghosts, and bones would be fun, but I certainly think Nicki Pau Preto’s BONESMITH is exactly that. Wren is a fabulous character, and I enjoyed nothing more than her bluffing and strutting her way through every situation. Everyone should have that level of confidence! And yet, Ms. Presto allows us to see the soft, gooey heart at her core, the one that craves love and acceptance and who has been damaged by her father’s and grandmother’s distance. While BONESMITH did not hold many surprises, I enjoyed every reveal as it happened. I love a good magic mystery and a character discovering unknown powers, and BONESMITH delivers that and more.½

I actually was super invested in all the POV of this novel. I really also liked the world building and loved how this book used different formats like letters and poems to tell the story. This book focused a lot on female realtionships and i really liked how that was handled this was not a story the focused on only the postive side of female realtionships. I think his story even thought it had three different fronts, was so well crated. I think there was some prediciable moments throughout the novel but the ending was a nice surprise and I am def checking out book 2 in the future.

I actually was super invested in all the POV of this novel. I really also liked the world building and loved how this book used different formats like letters and poems to tell the story. This book focused a lot on female realtionships and i really liked how that was handled this was not a story the focused on only the postive side of female realtionships. I think his story even thought it had three different fronts, was so well crated. I think there was some prediciable moments throughout the novel but the ending was a nice surprise and I am def checking out book 2 in the future.

The beginning was incredibly slow and info-dumpy, I only pushed through because I own a fancy edition. At 80 pages in it finally started to become entertaining.
The magic system is interesting albeit a bit convoluted. There were some predictable betrayals and reveals in the end and although it was ok overall I won’t be continuing the series.½

This has all the elements I crave in YA dark fantasy, deception, magic, creepy entities, romance, intriguing characters, and a well created world. Mix them in with plenty of action and you have a most satisfying tale. I'm extremely eager to see what happens in the sequel.

I loved the characters; they have so much depth and there's so much history surrounding them, the magic system is so fun, unique, and well thought-out, and don't even get me started on the world-building, it's absolutely breathtaking!

Full review soon~!

Series Info/Source: This is the first book in the House of the Dead duology. I got an eGalley of this book to review through NetGalley

Thoughts: I stopped reading this about 25% of the way in. I enjoyed the first chapter, but things got very slow and hard to follow after that. The author is constantly stopping the story to explain random world elements in detail and it really stops the flow of the story and makes it hard to stay engaged. I also thought this was going to be more of an action-packed fantasy based on the description but things get incredibly slow after the first chapter.

This book follows Wren, a bonesmith who fails her qualifying trial to become a valkyr and gets sent to the Border Wall to serve in disgrace instead. While the first chapter is fun, the story quickly devolves into long explanations of smithing and politics of a huge world that we don't really care about yet. Then we get to watch Wren wander listlessly about the Border Wall complex and get excited about a visit from the House of Gold prince...here is where I stopped reading.

I really struggled with the way this was written. It was hard for me to read and follow and I kept having to go back and re-read portions of the book because I realized that none of what I had read had really been processed. This is partly because mid story the authors sinks into these detailed descriptions of magics, things, and politics that haven't been introduced into the story in any way that matters. So, I would start reading and be like, why do I care about this right now? And then the story would restart and I still wouldn't know why that diversion had been made.

I also did not like the characters or plot at all. None of these characters are likable; they are cruel and one-dimensional. I pretty much despised them all. I enjoyed the action in the first chapter but was also perplexed about why the plot played out the way it did. Wren is top in her class and when she is sabotaged in the trial the judge doesn't listen at all and is just like "You're out of here". Ummm...I mean okay. Seems kind of crazy to me and more like just a convenient way to get Wren to the Border Wall than any sort of actual plausible story.

My Summary (3/5): Overall I did not like this. The writing was hard to read and there was so much exposition about weird world details that jarred you out of the story. I found the characters intensely irritating and the plot implausible. I stopped reading at 25% in and gave this 3 stars because when I DNF a book that early I give it the benefit of the doubt that it must get better. This book is getting a lot of high reviews and I guess I just disagree; this was not for me...at all.

This was everything I could have asked for in a book. This is the best debut book I’ve read ever. I can't even right now.

Full Review on my blog! - Full review contains spoilers~

Omg. I LOVE this book. The world building, vivid descriptions, the compelling and complex characters, the bond between the phoenixes and their riders, romance and history of the Phoenix Riders, and backstory, was on point. There are a few different POV's but they're easy to follow, also, at the end of each chapter we get an insight to what Avalkyra Ashfire is thinking, which I'm just realizing now after re-reading the ones I highlighted.

It was just perfect, it was everything. It's going to take me a while to get over this one. This is easily the best debut book I’ve read this year. I cant wait to read more from this author!

I'll be honest, some parts were a little confusing, but you HAVE to read til the end, everything will make sense, because the freaking EPILOGUE literally ties the book together, it's so cleaver and perfect.... did I mention PERFECT? It's going to really hard for me not to spoil anything... argghhh

When Veronyka's 'sister' Val comes home with two phoenovo (Phoenix eggs) only one makes it, and it bonds with Veronyka instead, and not Val, who was the one raising it during incubation. Val isn't happy when that happens, she completely changes, she feels angry and cheated, because she wanted the phoenix to be hers... and we get to see why, later in the book.

But, certain events occur, that make Veronyka not want to be around Val, so she leaves her sister in search of more eggs, and other animages (animal magic; people who can control animals with magic), but she isn’t allowed to join them to train to be a rider.

Why?

Because she’s a girl, and at the time there were hardly any eggs left so they only let the boys train, so Veronyka disguises herself as a boy, and calls herself Nyk.

Mhmm that's all I'm going to say... and judging from the epilogue, there's going to be a book two, and it's going to be epic. YOU NEED TO GET THIS. I highly recommend it!

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I had a sister, once…

In a world ruled by fierce warrior queens, a grand empire was built upon the backs of Phoenix Riders—legendary heroes who soared through the sky on wings of fire—until a war between two sisters ripped it all apart.

I promised her the throne would not come between us.

Sixteen years later, Veronyka is a war orphan who dreams of becoming a Phoenix Rider from the stories of old. After a shocking betrayal from her controlling sister, Veronyka strikes out alone to find the Riders—even if that means disguising herself as a boy to join their ranks.

But it is a fact of life that one must kill or be killed. Rule or be ruled.

Just as Veronyka finally feels like she belongs, her sister turns up and reveals a tangled web of lies between them that will change everything. And meanwhile, the new empire has learned of the Riders’ return and intends to destroy them once and for all.

Sometimes the title of queen is given. Sometimes it must be taken.

It wasn't until the very end what I realized what kind of book this was. All along the way, the hero's journey kept me guessing. We see the story unfold from several characters POV, each with backstories, motivations, trials, and contributions to the main conflict and resolution. Yet it's not until the end when we see the front of the woven tapestry for what it is. I very much enjoyed the rich mythology, world building and created history as well as the different characters we meet along the way. Losing some of the characters was hard, but they all seemed to further the plot without being gratuitous.

I'm very much looking for the saga to continue as there are so many open questions and potentials to explore!

This series has kept dropping enough shattering secrets that am continually surprised thinking there couldn't be more! I love the characters, the rich world history and mythology. And now I have to wait for the next book? And will there only be one more or is this a long series? Cuz there's so many threads that are still unraveled at the end of the second book.

DNF

The third and final book in the series. The first two books grabbed my attention more. This book was more like a loose grip. There were just too many inner monologues.

Man, I wish I had a phoenix.

This the second book in trilogy following the Ashfire family. The second book is even larger than the first because it was filled with so much inner monologue. While reading this book, I kept thinking that they should make it a trilogy because the second book was so long. I think the book could have been edited down some.

I liked the idea of Elliot's story but it didn't go very far. He was a traitor forced to live with his decisions. Sev's story was pretty dark for a young adult book. Being a spy sounds fun, until you have to actually do something wrong to achieve your end goal.

The enthralling parts of the book far outweighed boring parts. I am pretty fuzzy on the family trees, so a lot of the big reveals at the end didn't have much weight to me.

Looking forward to the final book in the trilogy.

After reading about Kyoshi from the Last Air Bender fantasy world ..... how would a young adult fantasy novel about phoenixes do?

There were a lot of familiar tropes to this young adult novel. The story is told by Veronyka, Tristan, and Sev . Veronyka is the star of the story. She's the only one mentioned in the inside flap of the story. She and her sister have been on the run ... and looking for Phoenix eggs to return to the glory age of Phoenixes. Tristan is a Phoenix rider who is ... afraid of fire. I actually enjoyed Sev's story the most, even though there were no Phoenixes in them.

"Wings of Shadow" was a wonderful end to a fabulous series. It was full of emotional highs and lows, and over the past two years I have grown to love all the characters, both human and phoenix. They were so real, messy and emotional, and even Val had an interesting story.

The final confrontation between Val and Veronyka was action-packed and brought a tear to my eye. "Wings of Shadow" finished the story very satisfactorily and I must congratulate Nicki for her story-telling abilities. I look forward to reading what she produces in the future.

have become very reluctant to read sequels of late because I have been disappointed so many times by the second book. However, I definitely couldn't say the same about "Heart of Flames". This was equally as good, if not better than, "Crown of Feathers".

While I still adored Veronyka and found her to be a strong, inspiring protagonist, it was Val's story I found the most intriguing and I liked that she was given a voice in Heart of Flames. I can't wait to see where the author takes her in the next book. I also loved that the phoenixes, Rex and Xephyra, played a bigger role in this instalment. The bond between Veronyka and Tristan was just as strong and sweet as it was in the first book but, thankfully, it wasn't the main storyline.

"Heart of Flames" ended with a dark sense of foreboding and now I have to wait until July for the finale. Sigh!

The start of "Crown of Feathers" was rather heavy with all the information the author was giving the reader and for a while I was wondering whether it was worth persisting, or not. However, I am glad I did because the book improved A LOT! Veronyka was a worthy protagonist - strong, compassionate and intelligent. I thought she was a great role model for girls. The other characters were varied and complex and the stories of Sev, Tristan and Val, that weaved through the novel, were interesting. However, Veronyka's story was definitely my favourite.

The world-building was rich and detailed and it was obvious that Nicki Pau Petro had put a huge amount of time and effort into creating her world. I was touched by the bond the animages had with their phoenixes and I loved the descriptions of these majestic birds. Before I had finished the novel I wanted one of my own.

Full of intrigue, adventure and magical creatures, and with an unexpected ending, "Crown of Feathers", despite its length was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I look forward to the next book in the series.

Crown of Feathers is a book I got from my Owlcrate subscription book box. I decided each month I should read one or two books that I got from the subscription so I can reduce my TBR books.
While I was reading, I was listening to the audiobook through my Audible app.
I can say about myself is that I am new to the fantasy genre, and I think "Crown of Feathers" os one of the exciting and intriguing worlds I've read until now.
Phoenixes are fantastical creatures that I like. For me, it is a very innovative story about those creatures.
The other thing I liked about this world is that most of the rulers are women. I also, like the excerpts of the history that explains the back story.
Each character has its secrets, and not everything is reviling, and there are more secrets to be vilified in the next books of the series. The twists and turns make this book a page-turner.
I have the sequel, and I will read it soon because I want to find out what will happen to the phoenix riders, Veronyca, Tristan, Sev & Val.

This particular read caught me by surprise. While the very beginning of the book was quick to catch you and pull you in, the beginning-mid to the actual mid slowed down for me, but it was building the world and the characters in an amazing manner. Once the middle hit everything started falling into place. Character connections and revels started coming to light that completely flew over my head in the initial part of building the world until just the right moment when they connected and it just made you sit back and go "WOW, how did I not catch that" And that very last page, that reveal was so head turning and just mind blowing, I didn't know how to react.

The story didn't fall into the YA instalove nonsense and I could not be happier about that. The story focused on the actual STORY and wasn't a YA romance novel being disguised as fantasy. So many YA books fall to this and its frustrating so for this not do that is amazing. The relationships that are "present" are building slowly and naturally and that flows so much better with the story, but its not the focus.

The characters are all so well written, every character is like-able in their own way, expect for Val she gets negative points because she mean and rotten as hell. The character I liked most was Tristan, he started out as a hot head but then slowly his real personilty shown through and he was just a big sweetheart.

*Spoiler*
The way Tristan was written for handling the reveal of who Nyk really was, was amazing. I was so thankful the author did not go the route of making him turn into some mean, angry, unforgiving brute. He listened to Veronyka and he understood her reasons and why she did what she did, he didn't dismiss her or her concerns and he didn't make her feel bad about them. The aftermath of the reveal and how it was handled was so amazing and it just made Tristan's character even better for me.

More than anything, Veronyka longs to be a phoenix rider. The only problem? The riders disappeared nearly two decades ago, and even in lands outside the oppressive empire, animages like Veronyka and her sister Val are treated with suspicion.

Even though life is tough, we don't start the story feeling too down for the sisters, cause guess what, they've found a pair of phoenix eggs! So, the eggs hatch, Veronyka bonds with her beautiful bird, and then it's off to the hidden enclave of phoenix riders to train....Or not.

Right in the beginning, there is a huge twist, which I was not expecting.

While this is first and foremost Veronyka's story, her journey is connected with those of Sev and Tristan. The POVs felt well-balanced, in both intrigue and importance to the story. And even though soldier Sev and phoenix rider Tristan know information which is secret to Veronyka, this information is rarely shared with the reader until Veronyka discovers it for herself. Honestly, this was one of my favorite things: getting to see different sides to the action, but still feeling invested in the big reveals.

Lots of Phoenixes, names with the letters K and X, and stubborn horses. Sadly, no epic training montage.

This has a really cool twist, I mean the idea enters the head, but with so much going on and how the main character's story collide together, you kind forget about it. Veronyka is one cool cucumber, Val is a bitch, Triston is wishy-washy, and Sev is closeted. Oh Yeah, Trixxy is the wise, crazy, secretive old lady. I loved this cast of characters and the side line narrative in each chapter.

AAR Top 10. Enjoyed the beginning of this fantasy written for kids. Good series beginning.½

I really really liked it.
My emotions hurt.
I don't want to wait until next year for book two.
*cry face*

I'm officially DNFing this one. The few pages I read were kinda interesting but I felt the writing to be too heavy for me, to much history and details, much telling and little showing, so even thou I was interested, every time I read a couple of pages I felt tired and didn't felt like picking it up again.
I thought I was in a slump, but I re read my favorite book without issue, so I'm DNFing this one for now, maybe I'll pick it up again in the future.

Thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy to review.