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A review by bookish_blanche
A Quest of Blood and Stone by S. Usher Evans
4.0
An action-packed, YA fantasy story
-I would like to thank Hidden Gems Books for the eARC-
With her father murdered, Ayla is supposed to assume the throne. But she is missing a magical stone that was stolen by her stepmother, and it compromises her reign. Cade, wizard apprentice, is sent to retrieve the stone in the fae realm with a knight and a mysterious fae girl tagging along. The stranger tries to convince them that the quest they've been tasked with is a lie, and that secrets remain to be uncovered...
This book was a great YA epic fantasy story. It had good world-building that wasn't too hard to understand, cool characters who are relatable and a quest-based plot full of action and magic. I really enjoyed reading, and am eager to see what comes next. However, I did find that there were too many POVs, and the first person didn't help my brain change from character to character xD It's a personal opinion, of course, but it lost me at times and I had to go back to the beginning of the chapter to see who was speaking, and it sometimes kind of cut the action for me. Otherwise, the story in itself was really interesting and well-written, with plot-twists, doubts, action, magic... It was very easy to understand what was happening and the few surprise reveals were really nice as well. The romance was a bit cliché, with the sort of love triangle, but it is YA so it makes sense and didn't prevent me from enjoying the book in itself. I don't regret picking it up!
I recommend if you like epic, quest-based YA fantasy with magic and secrets.
"My honor was my most prized possession."
TW: blood, violence, gore, death
-I would like to thank Hidden Gems Books for the eARC-
With her father murdered, Ayla is supposed to assume the throne. But she is missing a magical stone that was stolen by her stepmother, and it compromises her reign. Cade, wizard apprentice, is sent to retrieve the stone in the fae realm with a knight and a mysterious fae girl tagging along. The stranger tries to convince them that the quest they've been tasked with is a lie, and that secrets remain to be uncovered...
This book was a great YA epic fantasy story. It had good world-building that wasn't too hard to understand, cool characters who are relatable and a quest-based plot full of action and magic. I really enjoyed reading, and am eager to see what comes next. However, I did find that there were too many POVs, and the first person didn't help my brain change from character to character xD It's a personal opinion, of course, but it lost me at times and I had to go back to the beginning of the chapter to see who was speaking, and it sometimes kind of cut the action for me. Otherwise, the story in itself was really interesting and well-written, with plot-twists, doubts, action, magic... It was very easy to understand what was happening and the few surprise reveals were really nice as well. The romance was a bit cliché, with the sort of love triangle, but it is YA so it makes sense and didn't prevent me from enjoying the book in itself. I don't regret picking it up!
I recommend if you like epic, quest-based YA fantasy with magic and secrets.
"My honor was my most prized possession."
TW: blood, violence, gore, death