This is the perfect “classic” Fantasy book. The whole time I was reading, I was reminded of some of my favorite RPGs, and I frequently thought that the story could fit perfectly into a D&D or Pathfinder game. If I were to be any character in the book, I would be Fantasia, who has the personality of a grown up Arya Stark. Instead of a sword being her weapon of choice, though, she’s an archer, which happens to be my go to weapon in any RPG.

There is very little to criticize in this book. The only time it got a bit dull was during the chapter when Madame Asra comes into the story, and the only time I had difficulty suspending disbelief was when the siblings’ guardian, Orion, just happens to know all about the Buan. It seemed a little implausible, even by Fantasy standards, but I understand that Alexander, Aurelia, Fantasia, and Weylyn had to get the information about what they were becoming from somewhere, and having it come from the mouth of the one person they’re close to makes sense. I just didn’t see Orion as being the type of character to have a large amount of little known ancient knowledge.

Beyond those two tiny things, I loved this book. I don’t know if I’m going to add it to my all time favorites yet, since it is only the first book in a series, and I tend to only add a series to that list after I’ve finished it and love it as a whole. What I do know is that as soon as I read the last page, I looked up the second book, Company of Heroes, and added it to my wish list on Goodreads. I highly recommend reading this one if you’re just getting into Fantasy, or you love Fantasy (especially “classic” Fantasy), or you love RPGs (especially if you loved Baldur’s Gate, any of the Diablo games, D&D, or Pathfinder). ( )

This Book was really hard for me... I really try to give critical and constructive feedback, but after reading this book I only have two words to say: Fan Fic.
Now this story wasn't connected to any other story/TV show I could tell... but everything screamed Fan Fiction. It was Lacking depth, I could no connect to the characters, and it was over all childish...Not to be so hard on all the Fan Fiction out of there (because I’ve read some really great stories) but OMG I have been avoiding giving this a review for over 2 Year!! I sorry, it just wasn't my cup of tea... and I would not recommend it to anyone :/ ( )

I would actually give this 3 1/2 stars, but since there is no half, I rounded up.

What I liked:
The characters, each was unique and I like how they progressed through the story
The world, it was interesting and well setup
The Ending, I think it left off with enough unknowns that I am eager to move on to the next book.

What I didn't like:
Slow start, I found the first 60% to be kind of painful. I know this is the first book in the series and the author was setting everything up for the series, but it just progressed too slowly.
The stakes, along with how slow this started, we don't really have any idea what's at stake until we are 60-70% through this book. You need to grab me from the beginning and layout what is on the line in the beginning of the book.
The language, I really didn't care for the obscenities. Don't get me wrong, I am very foul mouthed most of the time, but I read a lot of fantasy and I don't think our curse words have any place in a made up world. I think the writing would be better off without these, or if the author changed them (even created them) to something that was more fitting with the tone and style of the rest of the world.

All in all, I enjoyed the world and characters, as well as the pacing of the last 1/3 of the book. I'm intrigued enough by the ending that I will more than likely move on to the next book in the series. But if the pacing isn't improved in the next book, I don't know that I will move on. ( )

I had a difficult time with this book. While I thought the ideas were interesting, the execution wasn't great. With that said, I think this author has potential. A more refined writing style, additional polishing, judicious editing will take the interesting ideas to a improved novel and will help the characters become more fully formed, along with less heavy-handed world building.
I did enjoy Fantasia, who was the most interesting of the four siblings. Possibly, this would be an improved story if if had been told only from her point of view. ( )

Although the book dragged at times and a little wordy in descriptions, it was still a good story. The characters are interesting and have a little mysterious back story. There are some twists and turns here and there. It was a good read. The writing isn't bad, it just needs some polish. If you like fantasy novels read it. It is an entertaining book for the most part. ( )