The characters in this are so well written. And the drama is tense! I feel like this book is setting up so much for the rest of the series and I can’t wait to see how it implodes. Also, the spice is soo hot. Tuheru is a cutie and so willing to please. I love the intertwining plot lines and seeing how things were before Thelyrah’s reign began. This feels a little like GOT but with winged women in charge (and no dragons). Unique and interesting worldbuilding too. If you’re looking for something different but still fun to read, this is something you should try. Read the content warnings tho.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ This was such a beautiful and captivating read! I loved the storytelling, the emotion, and the way the story pulled me in from the beginning. It’s the kind of book that stays with you after you finish it. Definitely a book I would recommend to anyone looking for something meaningful and memorable! ❤️📖

Just started reading this and I’m loving it! It’s so interesting and I love how the women are treated in this world. If only ours was more like that. Can’t wait to continue the series!

This story is about many things, and is presented in a unique way. I enjoyed intertwining timelines and perspectives. Each character offers a different viewpoint of the world. The women do what they do for reasons that are hard to argue with when presented in full, yet are still horrific. As a man, I found myself able to empathize with both “sides”. This world is abundant in food and intimacy, and both are well written. The plot and world building are thoughtful and intriguing. This isn’t normally something I’d pick up, but I’m glad I did!

There’s a great story here, no “chosen one” or perfect heroines. The characters we see most are real, flawed, complex people. And even though this is so close to our reality but matriarchal, even through the casually callous ways men are referred to, the women in Nuama are still far better than the men of our world. It’s not often I pick up an entire series before I’ve finished the first book, but this one deserves it. I’m normally not a fan of second-person POV, but here it really works. Third-person would severely diminish the impact of some scenes, especially Thelyrah’s Rite to become Empress. That scene hits *hard* in second-person, mores because of how it so easily could be told by Thelyrah remembering at some later time what happened as it could be her describing what is happening right now. There’s going to be people who read this and complain about how hard it is to read and how badly the men in Nuama are treated. You need to take a good hard look at why that bothers you but our world doesn’t. Consider that for everything done to men in Nuama, even removal of yezari or varapos, women in our world endure worse. Men in Nuama are in a better position than women in our world. August really drags the structural inequalities of our world out into the light, kicking and screaming the whole way, and makes the underlying problems as well as what needs to happen in both worlds to fix them. Without spoiling too much, keep an eye on Tuheru. He might come across as overly optimistic and naïve now, but he just might be the first (only?) man in the entire series to really understand. What he sees in later books and how he reacts, in book 4 he asks what might be the most powerful question in the whole series so far, one that every single man in this world needs to stop and truly contemplate.

This book was such a captivating fantasy that weaves a rich tapestry of magic, myth, and intricate world building. The plot was very engaging making it so easy to get lost in the story. Overall great book loved this!

Okay so i picked this up because i saw someone say it’s a more brutal version of acotar but make it matriarchal and yeah... that's accurate but it's sooo much more than that. first things first - second person POV in part one threw me for a LOOP. i had to reread the first few pages to settle into it. but once i did? oof. being inside Thelyrah's head during the Blackstone Rite was visceral in a way third person could never have pulled off. when she's holding the little girl in Ihatithre with arms she doesn't technically have, whispering "you will be safe someday"... i had to put my phone down and stare at my ceiling for a minute. that's the kind of scene that ruins you. But also it was healing in a sad sort of way. but can we PLEASE talk about Tuheru. i went in fully expecting to fall for some dark morally grey love interest and instead got absolutely undone by this gentle, devout, slightly anxious man who spent MONTHS polishing sunstones for an Empress he'd never met just because he thought she deserved something beautiful. the moment at Zaht'eve where he mentions her dead son and the whole performative ceremony just stops because he sees her grief? and reaches for her? and Etan'ash has to cough to break the spell??? i was kicking my feet. that's the kind of "see her, really SEE her" energy i live for in romantasy. also etan'ash is my new non-binary icon. the way they just calmly sliced their bonded's foot open mid-vision because they knew what to do?? unhinged devotion. obsessed. the worldbuilding is a lot. i'll be honest, i was a little overwhelmed in part one with all the terms (Sestras, Fa'loom, Ensheduana, Nauciti, Cloudweavers, fiera, Groveholds, duug, etc) and i did click the lexicon link more than once. but by part three i felt like i'd been speaking Nuami my whole life. it's worth the front-loading. things i need to know going into book 2: • what is amaz doing on ga'hueal because that man is unhinged and plotting • WHO IS TE'IRE'S MOTHER. hashep clearly knows. i need answers • what did etan'ash see through the rending??? • is minah going to take the rite. she has to right • the sareff situation feels like it goes deeper then we know content warning thing - this book earns the "dark fantasy" label. the ihatithre scenes are not for the faint of heart. but the author isn't gratuitous about it either, which i appreciated. the horror serves the story. my one tiny critique is that the POV switches in parts 3-7 felt a bit whiplashy after spending so much time with thelyrah and tuheru in parts 1-2. but honestly by the end i understood why - the author is setting up SO much. going straight into book two. tuheru you better still be alive in twenty annums i swear to the Goddess.

This book is a STRONG first book in a series. If you love Dark books, if you love Romantasy then there is a chance that you will enjoy this book. I loved how with each chapter you’re following a different character and how they fit into this world. I will say that this book does deal with difficult themes so please check those out before continuing on with the book and the series. This book has this fast pace energy where once you’re in the book you do have a hard time putting it down. Which is something I love when it comes to fantasy. I loved every minute of this book, even the dark moments that came through in this book. It is one of those books where it may be under 200 pages but it definitely lands a punch in the best way possible.