Trial of the Sun Queen (Artefacts of Ouranos)

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Lor is a prisoner in the Aurora Kingdom where she lived for years. Lor is very, very determined and strong headed. She will fight anyone ( literally, the amount of hair pulling and punches thrown by her🫢) who disrespect her, BUT she will also fight tooth and nail to protect her loved ones. i hoped lor would become suspicious of everyone after mag’s cryptic words and the dialogue she heard between atlas and gabriel. My thoughts and views: Just. Wow. This has to be one of my favourite books this year. Read in one sitting. I could not get enough. I loved the FMC, she was just the epitome of a strong and tenacious woman. Little details getting leaked just at the right times throughout the story to keep me guessing throughout. I can't wait to read the next in the series! Our fmc LOR is kidnapped and thrown into the deadly Sun Queen trial where she competes with other tributes to become the queen.

Lor is an amazing fmc. She’s intelligent, resilient, and a totally bad ass human in a game full of fae. While she was a little naive, I loved watching her grow and get stronger and stronger throughout this book.

This is the first book in a NA fantasy romance where we follow Lor, a young woman who has lived for most of her life in the murky depths of the notorious Nostraza prison. Everyday is a fight for survival in the prisons harsh life conditions, but at least she has her siblings with her. When she is once again sent to the solitary hole for punishment, where starvation and death by lurking creatures is a very likely possibility, the unexpected happens. First, I'll start off by saying something that actually worked in this book's favor because it needs the brownie points for what I'm gonna say after. But Lor doesn't belong in the Sun Queen Trials. She doesn't understand why she was freed, and she isn't a citizen of the Sun King's court. The other Tributes resent her presence and will stop at nothing to ensure Lor is wiped off the gameboard, permanently. I can see the author tried to put the “surprise” aspect at the end with the “twist”🙄 but no it’s so predictable and I’m just so glad I finally finished it😭 The singular thing I think worked very well in this book's favor is that it is a good example of consistently raising stakes and consequences throughout. I see so many books that are honestly a let down because the stakes fail to raise or there fails to be believable consequences for actions or things that happen to the characters. But I can honestly say that there were some pretty decent twists and stakes elevation going on in this book. Which I was super happy about while I was reading it.

this review contains all the spoilers bc i’m the mastermind and i guessed all twists. bc again i’ve read this before but in different font. I'm not even joking, it feels wrong to even say that there was romance in this book, because it was a joke 😭. I really enjoyed the beginning of the book, and truly had high hopes for this, but the more that I read, the more underwhelmed I became.The plot was so intriguing that I couldn't stop reading! I had to find out what was the truth behind the Trials and Atlas. Everything is very mysterious and the author drops little clues then and there... Atlas gives me King Midas's vibes, golden and yet hiding many secrets. The real love interest is not clear, but I have a suspicion... 😏 Thank you, Lor. One thing I’ve always hoped for in a bonded partner is someone who can make me become a better version of the Fae I am.” Point blank -- if you're going to set up a plot point in which a character is regularly subjected to physical and sexual abuse and coercion by all the men in her life and is bullied and manipulated into caring about people or giving them favors because they "love" her and she's "special," you CANNOT leave it hanging and not do anything with it.

Writing: The writing was so immersive! The world building was just perfect, the descriptions of their surroundings and the character profiles were amazing. The writing really captures your attention and sinks you into the story. When reading about Lor enduring the trials, I was on the edge of my seat, eyes wide, feeling the panic and the fear with her. A really easy and fast-paced read, short chapters. Just everything you would want from an adult fantasy.I'm...I'm so sad and it makes me feel defeated both as an author and a reader that THIS is the type of story that people are excited about. These are the kind of books that I'm ashamed to say exist and I'm still trying to scrub the horror out of my own head.