Reign & Ruin

"This is the first time I didn't roll my eyes at characters, constantly admiring the MC because Naime deserved it tenfold. She was a born leader even willing to sacrifice her own happiness for her people and, surprisingly, witty for one so young. Naime maneuvered everything she had at her disposal, like chess pieces for political gain. Absolutely would follow this woman without question. The beginning was a bit overwhelming with all the politics, history, and characters. Also, I'm not too familiar with the culture, but I didn't let anything detour me. The writing style was lovely added to a sweet and heated slowburn with opposites attract. Naime and Makrame were genuinely good together. They soothed each other in an achingly sweet way, and the banter is easy and beautiful to read. The way she watches the smoke beneath Makrame skin. Memorizing. The unique magic system was interesting and balanced as it should be. It even influences it's weilders mood which fascinates me. To see Naime's true power made my jaw drop. With her calm demeanor in the face of such turmoil, I guess I forgot what she was. Ha, and so did everyone around her. Her humbling, an entire room full of men left me star struck. Reign and Ruin felt like an opening to a bigger world. More characters will emerge and I'm interested to see how Naime can convince Kingdoms to follow. Not that I doubt her in the least. "

"If you love romantasy and need a serious to bring your love for reading back to life. This is the series for you"

"I judged this book by its cover and it definitely paid off. I don’t know if I’m sad or relieved that the next book in the series doesn’t focus on M&N. I tend to lose interest when the characters get together but I loved these so much I could take a little more. Aside from the romance, I found the plot quite intriguing. I love the world building and that the author doesn’t information dump. As a reader, you learn as you go and develop your own understandings. This is such a breath of fresh air from other fantasy series I’ve read lately. Every page was worth reading and never did I feel the urge to skim paragraphs of mindless ramble. I don’t usually continue series that change main character perspectives but I’m excited to see if the next book and the rest of the series hold up to this one."

"I’ve never known a more fitting description for the term “soulmates”. These characters are fantastic, and Naime is my new role model. Her perseverance through adversity, sexism, ignorance, and grief is so inspiring. Makram, kind, strong, and loyal is such a perfect match for her. The political intrigue had me racing to finish each page. The world and magic system started off so confusing, but the information came along so naturally without it feeling dumped on you all at once. I can’t wait for the next one."

"CW: violence, some spice, some others<br/><br/>Listen, the next time one of my favorite authors raves so hard about a book, I’m going to have to take it more seriously because this was absolutely amazing.<br/><br/>With her father steadily losing his grip on his mental status, Naime is running out of time to convince the royal council of her ability to lead her nation. In a last-ditch effort to stall for time and save her kingdom, she sends word to a neighboring monarchy that her land wishes to negotiate a peace. Old wounds run deep, though, and the prince who answers her call could be the tipping point between magical salvation and militant destruction.<br/><br/>Oh. My. God. Who gave this author permission to write something that was going to absolutely consume my every waking thought until I was able to finish the book? This was an uncalled-for blow to my ability to focus on normal tasks, and I demand more immediately. (Fortunately for me, there’s at least 4 more that I can sink my teeth into)<br/><br/>Seriously, where do I even begin? Let’s go with the plot to kick things off. Normally, books that have a lot of politically moving parts give me a headache. I don’t always have the extra mental capacity at the end of the day to devote to deciphering a lot of subterfuge and motivations in the books I read. Fortunately, this book made it so, so easy to follow. I don’t know if that has more to do with how insanely interesting it was or if it’s just because of how well laid out everything was, but I found that I was able to keep pace with everything going on fairly easily. The bits that had less action and more exposition were never boring and were able to hold my attention, and the parts that had actual action and things going on were even more riveting. I loved every second of it and couldn’t put it down. There was humor, rage, sorrow, stress. You name it, I probably experienced it reading this book. <br/><br/>A natural progression from discussing the plot leads me to the world building. I’m going to have to find a way to be more concise than I was about the plot, because otherwise we’ll be here forever while I rave about how absolutely stunning this setting was. The magic system is absolutely breathtaking and incredibly unique, and the history and culture of the kingdoms feels massive and ancient. It radiates this sense of depth that you don’t always get in a book, and it makes everything leap off the page so much more. It’s gorgeous and amazing and there’s just so much to the book that you really get the chance to sink your teeth into and enjoy, both with the world and the plot. It’s immersive in the best way, and it makes those pages fly by.<br/><br/>Last but certainly not least, our characters. Where to start with our delightful MCs? The obvious choice to start with is Naime. Clever, thoughtful, and patient, she feels commanding and poised without coming across like an ice queen. This woman is everything I could never be simply because I do not have the patience to deal with people to this extent. It’s incredible, and yet she still comes across as distinctly human. She has moments of weakness, of doubt and fear and vulnerability, and it makes her that much more impressive. She can be funny and snappy, and it makes reading about her really enjoyable. Our MC, Makram, provides a wonderful balance in terms of character. Brash without stupidity, willing to use his sword without being a bully or overly foolish, he’s a satisfying counter to Naime’s ‘use your words’ approach. The two of them are an absolute joy to read about, and their dynamic is absolutely stellar. 10/10; no notes. I love them. (Also, the author came wholly out of pocket with some of the most ferally romantic lines I think I’ve ever read, and I’m going to be thinking about them forever.)<br/><br/>If I don’t cut myself off here, y’all are going to end up with a dissertation-length novel about why this book was perfect and amazing and how you need to go read it immediately. At that rate, I’d rather you go read the book for yourselves. If you like a fantasy with a slooowwwww burn romantic subplot, with a strong female lead who uses her head with incredibly satisfying efficiency, a male lead who holds his own while letting that FMC shine as brightly as she possibly can, and if you like those things to be set in a beautiful, richly portrayed world full of gorgeous, amazing magic, then this is the book for you. (Even if you don’t like those things, you need to go read it anyway. Like, right now. It’s just that good.)"