Amazing story to what I can see being an incredible series! Can’t wait for the rest & to recommend this

I freely admit that I was quite captivated with the cover when I first saw it and the interesting description sealed the deal. How could I not say yes to this blog tour? I also freely admit that I was a bit worried that the romance part would take over the story, but thankfully it was not the dominant part of the book. Although I had some issues with it. But, more about that later.

A Promise of Fire is the first book in the series about Catalia "Cat" Fisa (Btw Fisa in Swedish means farting and I was a bit amused by that) who the last eight years have been running away from her past and her terrible mother. Now a warlord has found her and decided that she is what his family's newly conquered realm needs since she is the Kingmaker. She doesn't go with him willingly instead he kidnaps her with threats of hurting her friends. What he doesn't know that she is protected by the Gods themselves...

I must admit that I came to like Cat quite a lot while reading this book. She had a terrible childhood and have many scares (physically and psychically) from that. And, all she wants is to stay away from her mother. Enter Griffin, a man so infuriating that she can't help starting to like him and his team of men that would fight and die for him. I do love the banter throughout the book, the book was much more amusing than I thought it would be. Also, it was way darker than I had expected. But, what really made me enjoy this book was the Greek mythology that was incorporated into the story, for instance, is Cat's friend Selene the mistress of Hades och Cat herself is protected by Poseidon. As the story progress, you realize that Cat has a purpose and that the Gods seem to have a plan for her.

Now, as I mentioned in the beginning of the review was I worried about the romance part and yes there is a lot of sexual tension between Cat and Griffin all through the book, but I can't say that it bothered me that much. It was a bit refreshing to have Cat not giving in early on in the book to Griffin. However, I found Griffin to be a bit stereotypical when it came to being a male hero. With his attitude and his jealousy. And, that's fine if that's what you are looking for, but for me is this just the kind of male that bores me a bit when I read books. While Cat felt multilayered with all her problems did Griffin tend to play the typical strong male lead. And, that was just too bad. Also, there is a very explicit sex scene in the end of the book, and frankly it went on just a bit too long because, in the end, I grew bored with it and just wanted it to be over so that the story could continue to progress.

All and all did I like this book and I would definitely recommend this book to people that like to read fantasy romance and I definitely want to read the next book!

Cat lives in a divided, magical world where parents kill their own children and siblings turn on each other for power.
Working in a circus as a soothsayer, Cat tries to keep a low profile and not attract any unwanted attention.
Then she meets Griffin, a Southern warlord who can tell that there is more to Cat than meets the eye. He takes Cat from the circus against her will, intending to use Cat's skills to help his family.
Can Cat escape from Griffin?
Will Cat's past catch up to her?

The premise for A Promise of Fire intrigued me - I love anything with mythology - but it wasn't what I expected.
Any plot was overpowered by the romance - the first half or so of the book seemed to be focussed on building tension between Cat and Griffin. While I did ship them together, I was disappointed that everything else was pushed to the background.
I enjoyed the scenes with magic, Gods and where the world was explored and elaborated on.
I liked Cat but at times she was too stubborn for her own good.
I didn't mind the writing style but I did lose interest a couple of times (mainly because of the romance).

Overall this was a disappointing read that was ruined by the romance.

This a fantastic start to what promises to be a wonderful trilogy. Full of magic and myths and a very likeable, snarky main character. Recommended.

If you enjoyed P.C Cast’s Goddess Series, then you will love this book! A Promise of Fire is a funny, light hearted read that is really enjoyable... so long as you don't take it too seriously. While the underlying plot was really interesting, most of the story is centred around lust and building up a budding - yet possessive - romance. Good fun if you’re looking for a fantasy with a steamier side.

The story follows Cat, a soothsayer in hiding. Spending her days hidden among the performers of a magical circus, she thinks herself safe - until a warlord realises the truth. That Cat is the Kingmaker - and he wants her for himself. Now taken prisoner by the Warlord and his band, Cat will do anything to get away. But as her powers emerge, her enemies grow, and it seems the handsome — but insufferable — Warlord is the only one who can protect her...

I enjoyed this book, despite its predictability - and the very obvious “secret” Cat is keeping from everyone. True there were about a million cliches and the main characters whining and violent outbursts became a little tiresome at times, but the underlying plot and world building I loved!

Set in a fantasy world ripe with magic and watched over by Greek Gods, power came in all shapes and sizes. Fire-breathers, invisibility, healers, mind control… although it seemed a little unfair that our heroine got a bit of everything. She was a bit too cool for my liking, and I would have liked to have seen her struggle more.

Also admittedly it took me awhile to catch on as to which Royal. Instead of Kings and Queens, everyone in the family had a title. Alpha, Alpha Beta… it’s a bit confusing at first but you soon catch the hang of it - and I liked that the author is trying to be different.

The backstory though - particularly Cat's - was pretty awesome. I’m looking forward to the second book where I hope we see Cat’s past catch up with her present. I also loved the secondary characters, including the Warlords vast family, his hunky team of fighters, and all the people at the circus who were deliciously unique.

As for the romance though, it was fun but mostly built on sexual tension that was drawn out for nearly 80% of the book. However the warlord was pretty possessive and dominating - a very primal sort of man - and opposite him Cat was the typical virgin with rampaging hormones and lots of curiosity. Since the story is from Cat’s POV, we get a lot of her inner thoughts which where funny, but she came across quite juvenile at times. I also felt her thoughts clashed with the sexual scenes which are graphic, but definitely well written.

All in all, this was a steamy read with the right amount of pops and sizzles. Despite its flaws, I still really enjoyed it and will definitely be picking up the sequel. Steamy, fantastical and hard to put down, I give A Promise of Fire 3 stars!

A view weeks ago I received an invitation about the blog tour for ‘A Promise of Fire’ by Amanda Bouchet. This is the first book in the new Fantasy series called the Kingmaker Chronicles. This book sounded really good, but I was a little reluctant because I haven’t been liking Fantasy as much as I used to. But without thinking too much about it, I decided to sign up for the tour.

It has been a while this happened to me, but from the moment I started reading ‘A Promise of Fire’ I was completely hooked. The characters, the story, the scenery, the writing.. There wasn’t anything about this book that I didn’t love from the very beginning. And I literally devoured every single page of this book. Yes! It is that good.

‘A Promise of Fire’ is the story of Cat. Cat has been hiding almost all her life. For the last view years Cat has been a part of a traveling circus, as a soothsayer. For the first time Cat has been feeling at home. That is until a handsome warlord called Griffin finds his way into her circus. Griffin sees more than Cat is comfortable with. And before she knows it Griffin has captured her and is taking her to his home. But soon Cat and Griffin find themselves in danger and they are forced to work together. But Griffin doesn’t begin to understand the extinct of Cat’s powers and her troubling past.

From the moment I started reading about Cat, I loved her character. Cat was such a strong and funny character. Cat has been through a lot and she is really careful about trusting people. But from the moment she meets Griffin everything changes. The moments between Cat and Griffin are really good. There is a lot of chemistry and they really push each other to the limits. The romance was just soo good and really gave me butterflies just reading about it.

Griffin was this hardworking, tough guy that totally fell for the beautiful mystery woman Cat. I loved how grumpy and jealous he could be. But most of all I loved how protective he was of Cat from the very beginning. Sigh.. It’s probably too early to say.. But Cat and Griffin may be my favorite book couple of 2017!
Next to Cat and Griffin there were some other fun characters I enjoyed. The man of Griffin’s team Carver, Kato and Flynn. The people from the circus. Griffin’s family.. I just loved all the different characters.

‘A Promise of Fire’ was a very very good read. I really can’t wait to get my hands on the next book. Amanda Bouchet did a great job with this fantasy story, but most of all with the romance. I loved Cat and Griffin and can’t wait to read about what happens next for them.

Before I start, I’ve seen people online asking if A Promise of Fire is YA – it’s not. There is considerable adult content. Now that’s been addressed, let’s talk about the book.

Cat is with the circus, hiding from her old life when Griffin, Beta Sinta, finds her and well, basically kidnaps her. Her magic is powerful and Griffin realises this and recognises her for what she is – Kingmaker.

There are three nations in this tale – Sinta, Fisa and Tarva. Each has its own royal families – Betas, Gammas and Deltas who all fight one another to become Alpha. Griffin has done things a bit differently and put his sister as Alpha. He hopes that Cat will help them seal their positions in Sinta. But as you can imagine, Cat isn’t overly happy about being kidnapped!

There is much to like in this book, not least the incorporation of Greek Mythology, the depth of the world and its politics, as well as the action. However, I did have some issues with this book – namely the romance.

Okay, so it’s a fantasy romance so I should have been expecting it, but where the first half of the book was packed with action, snarkiness and sexual tension – the second part lacked these qualities. It was more about romance and quite frankly there was too much of it for me.

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However, let’s put a pin in the romance element and any issues I may have with it. The rest of the book? I loved it! I enjoyed Cat’s snarkiness and her developing relationship with Griffin’s Beta Team. There’s magic, fighting, secrets and friendships.

Quite honestly, I didn’t feel the need for so much romance when the rest of the plot was so intriguing and well built. I’m not saying NO romance, I would’ve just liked it scaled back somewhat, with fewer, erm, graphic scenes.

As a result, I’ve found it difficult to rate this book. Scale back / tone down the ‘romance’ and associated elements and I’d give it 5 stars. However, the second half of the book lost pace for me and as such this is more a 3.5 or 4 star read.

I will, however, be reading book two, Breath of Fire. The fantasy and creative element to this story has me hooked – and I’m hoping book two will be more action, politics and warfare than intimate relations!

NOTE – if you’re a UK e-reader user, you can now download Breath of Fire. I believe fans of paperbacks will have to wait until later in the year.

I don't read high fantasy very often these days, but for some reason the blurb for this one on Netgalley appealed to me, so I gave it a go and I'm so glad I did. Bouchet's world is exciting, charming and addictive, her characters the same, and her magic is perfectly created. The scorching romance just adds another layer for me to love. And there's dragons! What more could a girl want? A Promise of Fire is an enticing romantic adventure that will have you entranced from the first page. I can't wait for the next book!

I've never read a fantasy/magical story where not only the world building, mythology, quest and magic is outstanding but the romance is soul punching too. The start of the Kingmaker Trilogy is all of this ... and it has blown me away. Totally.

From the beginning, with the menace from Griffin in the circus, the setting and characters come alive. I didn't need time to get to know Cat or even Griffin, I already knew them - such a skill when an author draws you in, even before the story has really started. Cat's circus 'family' are brilliant and I'm glad this isn't the only time we see them (although not the circumstances).

Cat reluctantly becomes part of the team (I loved Kato, Carver and Flynn too!) but she does fight against it by rebelling at every turn. She's also fighting against her feelings for Griffin but then she is safeguarding so much ... I felt what they felt which was very powerful, not just on an emotional/physical level. The magic is frightening (at least for others) and empowering for Cat. The banter between them is highly amusing.

As they journey to the Sintan court there is plenty of action as they fight perils. You'll find your pulse rate rising! I certainly did. The magical and physical fighting is fabulous (and so is the intimacy). There's humour too - so funny when Cat steals the Euphoria spell :) I love the way Greek mythology is woven through the story and how real it is.

The pace doesn't slow down once they reach the Sintan court. Griffin's family are interesting and I enjoyed the build up to the realm dinner. There's more conflict that comes from another direction in the court that has huge impact on the story.

There's so much intrigue surrounding both of them - why does magic bounce of Griffin? What/who exactly is Cat running from? What happens to Cat when they're together? There's more secrets too and I can't wait for them to be revealed.

One thing I would like to say is that the Kingmaker trilogy would make a fabulous game on any of the gaming platforms.

This debut trilogy has got off to such a promising start. I hope Breath of Fire meets my expectations.