Reviews

Forged by Blood by Ehigbor Okosun

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tea_and_naps's review against another edition

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Predictable YA published under an adult imprint

nicole562's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced

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

2.0

lenahe's review against another edition

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adventurous tense fast-paced

3.5

This is absolutely a fast paced book, to the point that I wish there were more slow moments were we could get our bearings around all that is going on.
The characters are very much YA, and unfortunately that made me not enjoy the MC much, because she was very naive. The romance didn't work for me either, mainly the idea of the love triangle felt like a cheap add to create tension, when later on we found out that there are fated mates.
The world building is engaging, and there's a lot of it.
I do intend to read the sequel, and considering that this is a debut, I can't wait to see what the author will come up in the future.

claireyeah's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring tense fast-paced

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

4.0

I was honestly very pleasantly surprised with this book. It was the Fairyloot Adult August book pick, and I wasn’t expecting much because sometimes I find the adult book picks can be on the YA side, and I’m not a huge YA fan, however – this one, although I would class it as YA, was fantastic and I’m very glad I picked it up!

I really enjoyed the writing style and how the world was created. I thought the author did an excellent job in bringing the world and characters to life and I can’t wait for the next book in the series so I can continue living in this story. The characters were also great, and I found myself wanting more of each one – especially Colin because he just seems incredibly intriguing to me.

I did think the love triangle was a little predictable, and from the very beginning you can absolutely tell who she is going to end up with, which was a bit disappointing, but it didn’t detract from the rest of the novel. I do wish however, that there was a little bit if moral ambiguity within the story/characters. It always just felt like the bad guys were inherently bad, and the good guys were absolutely good… there was no, in between or any instances where the good guys could have taken the morally grey route and sometimes that just leads to a little bit of a more interesting story.

I have to say I will definitely be going on to read the second book whenever it is released, however I hope it does edge it’s way into the more adult category that it has been published under, rather than the YA category that book 1 so comfortably fits (even though it has been published under an adult imprint)

sarrie's review against another edition

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adventurous fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.5

I hate to be that person but can we stop aging up YA books into the Adult age/marking group with little to no editing or adjusting? Forged by Blood was pitched and seemingly marketed as belonging to the Adult Fantasy fans. This most definitely was not the right call.

There is very little here that I would describe as an an adult or epic fantasy attribute. Instead we have a young girl who is hell-bent on revenge, to the point that it becomes her one personality trait. We have two young men who are accompanying her on her quest. Both of them are in love with her, one is a childhood friend and the other the brooding and forbidden prince. She, of course, has unique magic and attributes, and uses those wildly and with little control (again her personality is revenge, not well behaved).

There was little to enjoy in this one and I ended up sighing my way through it. I enjoyed the setting, the spirits and mythology (the inspiration is always one I enjoying seeing) but the characters, the quest, the ‘mates’. It was all very much not great. If you enjoy a YA or Middle grade style fantasy with this description this could be for you. But otherwise it’s a hard pass from me.

1.5 out of 5 bone blades