A promising romantic fantasy that’s strengthened by skillful character work.
In Contreras’ fantasy series-starter, an unlikely pair are bound by a goddess to break a historical curse.
The city of Lunaris is isolated from the pain of the past. Indeed, that’s the price its residents pay for asylum there: Their personal histories are erased from their memories, which allows them to live free from trauma. However, this apparent blessing may hide its own curse; as protagonist Ada Temperance Acevedo learns, “safety is an illusion.” When she and her brother, Jordi, arrived in Lunaris as orphaned children 20 years ago, they were given no choice but to abandon their memories and live within Lunaris’ boundaries. Jordi became obsessed with this crime against their agency, convinced that a larger conspiracy was at play. His tendency to stick his nose where it isn’t welcome displeases Ada, who wants nothing more than to keep him safe. A disturbance in the dark magical Shroud surrounding Lunaris—the result of a long-ago curse—results in Jordi being fatally wounded, and Ada bargains with the goddess Mortiana to save him. Later, Mortiana sends her warrior Malachi to collect the debt Ada owes, which involves a magical bond; as a result, Ada learns new things about Lunaris, and about herself. Although the complex worldbuilding and large cast in Contreras’ novel can be overwhelming, the story is grounded by the strength of its protagonist, her relationships, and her determination to uncover the truth. Despite the romantic focus, the emotional weight of the narrative isn’t carried solely by the love story between Ada and Malachi. Ada’s relationship with her sibling is the plot’s driving force, which results in nuanced and well-rounded characterization. Still, Contreras also skillfully develops the slow-burn connection between Ada and Malachi during their forced proximity; their bickering gradually transforms into an intense loyalty that’s sure to satisfy romance fans. A high-octane, cliffhanger ending will hook readers in for the second installment.
A promising romantic fantasy that’s strengthened by skillful character work.Pub Date: April 8, 2026
ISBN: 9798990455191
Page Count: 390
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: April 13, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2026
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.
On the orders of her mother, a woman goes to dragon-riding school.
Even though her mother is a general in Navarre’s army, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail was raised by her father to follow his path as a scribe. After his death, though, Violet's mother shocks her by forcing her to enter the elite and deadly dragon rider academy at Basgiath War College. Most students die at the War College: during training sessions, at the hands of their classmates, or by the very dragons they hope to one day be paired with. From Day One, Violet is targeted by her classmates, some because they hate her mother, others because they think she’s too physically frail to succeed. She must survive a daily gauntlet of physical challenges and the deadly attacks of classmates, which she does with the help of secret knowledge handed down by her two older siblings, who'd been students there before her. Violet is at the mercy of the plot rather than being in charge of it, hurtling through one obstacle after another. As a result, the story is action-packed and fast-paced, but Violet is a strange mix of pure competence and total passivity, always managing to come out on the winning side. The book is categorized as romantasy, with Violet pulled between the comforting love she feels from her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, and the incendiary attraction she feels for family enemy Xaden Riorson. However, the way Dain constantly undermines Violet's abilities and his lack of character development make this an unconvincing storyline. The plots and subplots aren’t well-integrated, with the first half purely focused on Violet’s training, followed by a brief detour for romance, and then a final focus on outside threats.
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374042
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2024
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
Although the melodrama sometimes is a bit much, the superb worldbuilding and intricate plotline make this a must-read.
Using mystery and romance elements in a nonlinear narrative, SenLinYu’s debut is a doorstopper of a fantasy that follows a woman with missing memories as she navigates through a war-torn realm in search of herself.
Helena Marino is a talented young healer living in Paladia—the “Shining City”—who has been thrust into a brutal war against an all-powerful necromancer and his army of Undying, loyal henchmen with immortal bodies, and necrothralls, reanimated automatons. When Helena is awakened from stasis, a prisoner of the necromancer’s forces, she has no idea how long she has been incarcerated—or the status of the war. She soon finds herself a personal prisoner of Kaine Ferron, the High Necromancer’s “monster” psychopath who has sadistically killed hundreds for his master. Ordered to recover Helena’s buried memories by any means necessary, the two polar opposites—Helena and Kaine, healer and killer—end up discovering much more as they begin to understand each other through shared trauma. While necromancy is an oft-trod subject in fantasy novels, the author gives it a fresh feel—in large part because of their superb worldbuilding coupled with unforgettable imagery throughout: “[The necromancer] lay reclined upon a throne of bodies. Necrothralls, contorted and twisted together, their limbs transmuted and fused into a chair, moving in synchrony, rising and falling as they breathed in tandem, squeezing and releasing around him…[He] extended his decrepit right hand, overlarge with fingers jointed like spider legs.” Another noteworthy element is the complex dynamic between Helena and Kaine. To say that these two characters shared the gamut of intense emotions would be a vast understatement. Readers will come for the fantasy and stay for the romance.
Although the melodrama sometimes is a bit much, the superb worldbuilding and intricate plotline make this a must-read.Pub Date: Sept. 23, 2025
ISBN: 9780593972700
Page Count: 1040
Publisher: Del Rey
Review Posted Online: July 17, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2025
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