Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Furyborn

Furyborn follows Rielle and Eliana, two powerful women living 1,000 years apart as they find themselves facing the same enemy and facing the same prophecy.

The prophecy foretold the fall of the Gate, behind which Rielle and Eliana’s ancestors locked away the Angels.

“You will know this time by the rise of two human Queens-one of blood, and one of light. One with the power to save the world. One with the power to destroy it.“

Right off the bat, Furyborn’s prologue is a work of art. Just those few pages filled me with enough intrigue that I would’ve suffered if need be, through the next 400 pages just to find the answers to my many, many questions.

Luckily, Furyborn is not a book that needs to be suffered through.

The intricacies of both the worldbuilding and the intertwining plots, along with the cast of lovable–and some hateable– characters, kept my face buried in this book until the end.

–

Rielle - While I really enjoy Rielle’s character and the growth she undergoes throughout the novel, I feel as if the majority of her story is yet to be told still.

Eliana - Eliana is an incredibly frustrating character, and I spent most of the book wanting to scream for her to forgo her trust issues. Despite this, however, I love Eliana. She is spunky, badass, and not afraid of a fight.

Audric - While Audric is very likable, I don’t find him any more unique than most male love interests. He is very capable, strong, and kind, but also a tad too cookie-cutter for me.

Ludivine - I’m not sure there’s been a more kind-hearted, genuine being to ever live. Ludivine made me smile every time she appeared on the page and her loyalty to both Rielle and Audric just melts my heart.

Remy - Remy is Eliana’s moral compass. Whether she listens to him or not, he stands his ground and is usually right.

Simon - I honestly don’t know what to think of Simon. I loved him more and more throughout the story but wasn’t able to get a good read on him beyond him being good and lovable.

Navi - The MVP in my humble opinion. Navi encompasses the idea of Found Family (more on that later) and is there for Eliana exactly when she needs it. Similar to Ludivine, I couldn’t get enough of her on the page.

Honorable Mentions

Zahra - A late addition to this cast of characters, but mentionable nonetheless. I’m hoping we learn more of Zahra’s story in the coming books.

Evyline - She isn’t a main character, but I love the friendship she and Rielle are beginning to develop.

–

Found Family

This book is 10/10 when it comes to Found Family. Rielle's actual family is just her father, but she's built her life with Ludivine and Audric at the center of it and is slowly adding Evyline.

Eliana has her mother, Remy, and Harkan, and is now slowly letting Navi and Simon in.

Seeing this type of trusting and loyal relationship warms my heart every time I see it on a page. Found Family is one of my favorite things (is this a trope?) to see in books, and Legrand did not disappoint in Furyborn.

Inclusivity

Legrand does an amazing job of being inclusive in a natural way. Nothing seems forced or like it was added in an effort to be labeled diverse.

Patrik and Hob were mentioned to be married but were then developed as individual characters instead of as an LGBTQ couple.

Eliana is either bisexual or pansexual, which was sprinkled in here and there throughout the story so far. She and Harkan also seem to have an open relationship instead of a monogamous one, which is something I haven't seen often (or at all now that I think about it).

I feel as if inclusion like this is either the main topic of a book, or an author throws it in very obviously as an attempt to be inclusive without actually knowing how to write the characters/relationship.

It was very refreshing to see these relationships mentioned, but not forced (as it should be).

Sex positivity

I’ve seen people go both ways on this topic in the case of Furyborn, so this may be a little controversial, but I still think it is important to mention.

In my opinion, Furyborn is incredibly sex-positive both generally and in the way Legrand addresses women's sexuality.

When Rielle and Audric were caught together, there was no mention of her "virtue" or blame placed for any reason other than Audric's betrothal to Ludivine.

Rielle is immediately provided contraceptive tonic by Ludivine, again without any recourse beyond the possible rumors about the affair.

Eliana would sleep with contacts to get jobs and information, and Navi entered the Maidensfold as a spy to smuggle information back to her home country.

Sex is not viewed as something holy or sacred like it often is both in stories and in real life, but merely as a means to an end or a source of pleasure. The lack of focus on it is refreshing.

Worldbuilding

My favorite aspect of reading a book is the worldbuilding, and Claire Legrand did not disappoint in Furyborn.

Most books have a lot of worldbuilding up front, and then it tapers off throughout the book as we become more familiar with the world.

In Furyborn, however, I felt as if the worldbuilding mounted as the story went on. I believe that this was in part because Rielle herself was a part of the world that was being built in Eliana’s story.

Not too much about Rielle could be revealed at once, as there were things that readers still needed to find out about her themselves, instead of through the history known during Eliana’s time.

–

Overall, Furyborn was a rollercoaster of emotions that I would be more than happy to ride again. Everything from the characters to the world-building to the ever-racing plot was exquisite.

Content Warnings

maralaene's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

My favorite thing about this first book is the way that the chapters are split between the stories of one woman’s descent into the villain and one’s path to the hero. But at the same time, there was so much information in each and every chapter that I did find myself getting somewhat lost until about 60% of the way through the book. And the first ~1/3 was quite slow as well, which made it hard to keep invested and probably harder for me to follow. However, the last 1/3 was definitely more exciting and had some crazy reveals that I wasn’t expecting, for sure! And for a YA fantasy, this is definitely on the spicier side…

On the audiobook side, I did really enjoy the narrator, but I find that books that flip flop POVs frequently are harder to follow if the narrator is too similar between chapters (as is somewhat the case here). But nonetheless, I definitely enjoyed the reading and the writing in this book. I will definitely keep reading the series, as I have quite a few questions I need some answers to.

Content Warnings

meredith_williams_'s review

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I’ve had this book on my TBR for awhile and finally decided to give it a try. The beginning was a bit slow and some of the world building was a bit confusing. However, the story eventually picks up and I ended up enjoying it. The dual timeline was especially intriguing. I feel it made the mystery aspect more engaging and allows the reader to sympathize with both main characters even as they becoming increasingly more morally gray.

Content Warnings

mxdegroot's review

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I have to be honest, I almost DNF'd this book multiple times purely because it started out as such a drag. It's a five-hundred-pages-long brick of a book and should have been about three hundred pages shorter, because that's how long it took for the plot to finally pick up properly. I do have to be honest and say that, once the plot did pick up, I was hooked until the end. But on to the actual book now.

I quite liked Eliana as a character. The writing of her perspective at the start of the book showed how indoctrinated into her society she is really well and it was fascinating to read how she justifies some of the things she does, as unacceptable as they may be. It was also a good writer's choice to not have her morality make a 180 when she is literally face to face with the consequences of her actions. However, that is about where the logical character development ended for me. Legrand set up some beautiful storylines and relationships - Navi and Remy's friendship, Eliana and The Wolf's eventual friendship - but those were either thrown away or rushed. Additionally, Eliana's deal with The Wolf felt weird and forced. For someone who was willing to go to horrific lengths and had such faith in her repuation and importance to her society, she was very quick to turn her back on that same society and make a deal with a man who she had absolutely zero reason to trust. To summerize, a lot of the character development in this book felt forced and weird, especially on Eliana's side.

cw/tw: talk of NSFW and non-consent
Every moment that the characters were engaged in sexual activities or anything adjacent to it was, in my opinion, either too graphic or completely unnecessary. I mostly don't have any problem with sex, but it was mostly unnecessary to the plot and a bit too graphic for a book that classifies as Young Adult (12 - 18). Legrand should have especially been more careful with the way she describes certain sections that were either explicitly or assumably non-consensual but were described as fine. Again, Furyborn classifies itself as Young Adult, which means it is aimed primarily at minors, most of which will be just starting to explore their sexuality and comfort/discomfort and so might think that certain sections in the book are okay while they are not. This is just plain dangerous.

Also, except for one, maybe two times, the sex didn't add anything to the plot or characters except to show that 90% percent of the characters are predators, so in YA book it would have been better to just leave those sections out.

Finally,

Rielle and Audric having a relationship in which Audric is so loyal to her and risking everything while he is betrothed to Ludivine, while Rielle is horny for Corien is really fucked up

. In conclusion, the sexual parts of this book generally made me quite uncomfortable.
end of content/trigger warning

Will I read the rest of the series? Yes, I will, because the worldbuilding and main plot is generally quite good, if fairly poorly executed, and Legrand have a pleasant and enjoyable writing style. I really hope the 1100 pages the next to books take up combined will be worth it.

Rep: gay characters (MLM).
February 7th, 2023 - March 9th, 2023.

"Have you always been this unspeakably irritating?"
"Has your face always looked so temptingly carvable?"

"Belief doesn't keep you alive."
"But, given time, it can win wars."

"I have heard rumors of what is done to them, these missing girls, and I hope my daughter is safely dead."

Content Warnings

merenguita's review

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adventurous dark mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The setup, magic system and the world building were really good and interesting, it's what pulled me in and what motivates me to read the second part.
Some of the characters I loved others I think weren't fully fleshed out (Simon espacially)

He switches personality a lot and his relationship with Eliana kinda just jumps to romance out of nowhere

The pace was slow and there's a while in the middle where not much happens just fights, that got a bit boring, but it didn't bother me that much.
Honestly the book has its flaws but I still enjoyed it throughout so I give it 4☆

Content Warnings

oliverreeds's review against another edition

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adventurous tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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saukittome's review against another edition

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adventurous dark

3.5

Content Warnings

eve_reads's review

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Overall Thoughts:
⁕ I usually don't enjoy dual point of views, but Legrand does it so well. The chapters are relatively short and almost every single one ends on a cliff hanger, so I was completely hooked from start to finish. I truly don't think there was one moment I was bored.

⁕ There is zero info dumping in this book, but it did take me almost 300 pages to get a firm grasp on the important historical and religious context of the world. I really hope the next 2 books in the series further grows upon this knowledge.

⁕ Legrand starts each chapter entry with a journal/text/letter excerpt that is dated with months from the Gregorian calendar. I really wish she had devised her own system for time/date keeping because this was a really small and easy detail that detracted from the world-building.

⁕ SPOILER: The magical kingdom(s) that this story take place in exists largely outside of heteronormative, patriarchal society. LGBTQ+ and women characters are in positions of power without being questioned or explained as "outside of the norm." WHY THEN does Legrand make a point to highlight that the "crawlers" (Frankenstein monsters born from the experiments of the Empire) are made of mutilated women and girls that were stolen?! Without any further exploration or discussion?! I'm still trying to find the words as to why this made me feel so icky but it did.

⁕ To whoever labeled this book as a YA on Goodreads and Storygraph: Why?!?! There are brutal beheadings of children, assault, body horror/experimentation, and at least one sex scene. I'm not complaining (especially since the author expertly used these moments to explore themes of morality, loyalty, and survival), but I think a lot of audiences looking for mature reads might accidentally pass this one over because of false advertising.

To read my full review, visit: https://evereads.online/
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