"Castle in their bones" by Lauren Sebastian is the first book to an ongoing series that tells the tale of three princesses who were raised to learn the art of deception, seduction, and violence all for one goal-- to bring down the monarchies so their mother can rule the entire continent. Each princess has a duty to marry a prince, preform their individual responsibilities and ; all this so that their mother reign over the land. This book is about princesses who do more than wear a crown, unexpected romances, and the ultimate question of where our true loyalties lie.

First of all, can we talk about how stunning the cover is? I am usually not the biggest fan of realistic looking people on the front cover, but there's something about how whimsical and regal the cover appears that I don't mind it. This book is told in three POV's, one for each princess, and each chapter is relatively short as it follows each of the princesses' try to complete their individual missions to overthrow the monarchies that they've been married into. Each chapter is just as exciting as the previous one, with the story moving quite quickly throughout the book. I managed to finish this book in one sitting because I just had to find out what happens at the end.

There is quite a big cast of characters to keep track of in this book as the sisters encounter lots of new faces (some good, some not so good!). I loved how all the characters were all key elements of the narrative, and they weren't just introduced out of the blue only for us to never hear of them again. It is worth keeping track of every character because they do contribute to the overall plot of this book-- so make sure to pay attention to all the characters, even the unexpected ones. I also really loved how the sister's real missions weren't revealed until the later part of the book, and I loved the fact that we got to find out about things alongside the characters, it really raised the tension and anticipation for what's to come. There is some LGBTQ+ representation in this book, with one of the characters admitting to being gay. Unfortunately it's not a major storyline so I do hope we get to see more of this character in the next book because I am curious to see how their story evolves.

Now, don't even get me started on the last couple of chapters and the ENDING. After reading the last line of the book, I literally sat there and had to rethink everything I had just read-- it was that impactful.

If anyone needs me, I'll be here desperately waiting for the next book

Thanks to the publisher for granting access.

This one surprised me. I'm not usually one for fantasy involving royalty, but I found the three strand sister narrative to be pretty compelling, with good twists along the way. I've read it's been pitched as adult, but I'd consider it more YA/crossover. Will await the next in the series!

DNF at 50%

I don't know how a story on daughters raised for war could be this boring but let's talk about lost potential. Sebastian's prose, while strong, lyrical and accessible at once, is not enough to tide over a novel whose leaky plot and threadbare characters are insistent on sinking it .

- Writing a fantasy reliant on politics means it should be rooted heavily in economics, geography, history and prejudices. I only got hazy outlines of the world and how it operates after reading 50% of the novel.
The choices do not make sense and there's no emergency or character struggke to propel forward the work

- The characters are painfully dull. Each of the three girls' respective husbands seem to be constructs instead of characters, the antagonists lack complexity that makes them appealing and the romance is chemistry free.

- The reason why haunts me throughout the novel. Conquest of the rival kingdoms should give Bessemia some advantage but none is referred to in the text because allegedly, the other states are close to ruin. So why take on the burden when you are doing well? The economics and history student in me doesn't understand. Conquest for the sake of conquest? But the queen is touted as wise?

- Missed Opportunities- You cannot get more tragic, epic and complex than a mother raising her daughters for war but the mother barely is even present and is relegated into a angry villainess.

I could keep going but this book neither thrilled me nor enraged me. It was a long, winding meh. So why waste the energy?

Thank you Netgalley and publisher for the earc in exchange for an honest review

Thank you to the publisher, netgalley and the author for allowing me to read this eARC, I feel so blessed to be able to have critical conversations about great books and recommend books to my book club.

This is a teen YA fantasy novel, for a young adult novel I really liked the pacing it wasn't slow and kept me engaged in the story, the plot was exciting and for my first laura Sebastian novel I thought it was amazing. I will be reading more in future.

This book has a really good preface, i liked the use of triplet sisters who were all different from each other and the use of star magic. However, i was a little disappointed. I felt like nothing really happened until the last 20%, i had a really hard time trying to get through it as i was bored. The parts where there was something happening it was predictable. I did like how it ended with getting the mothers point of view, however most of what we were told to keep the intrigue during that part, I had already guess so it didn’t have the best effect. Daphne was my favourite character, i really enjoyed her romance and reading the chapters with her in it. I’m interested in reading more of this series when its out to see if i enjoy the rest anymore. Overall i rated this 3 stars.

I was so excited for this from the day it was announced and even more when I saw the stunning cover. It delivered exactly as I wanted it to, on all fields.

However, even if I got everything I wanted out of this book, the author certainly took her time. I don't want to say that the pacing was slow, but there was a lot of slow buildup to that final plot twist. But I feel this has to do with the fact that it took thrice as many time for us to get to know the characters, because we follow three POVs. Considering this is only the first book in a planned trilogy, I think the next two books will go much more smoothly and the plot will probably progress faster.

I loved following the sisters on their individual journeys and how their missions connected to a bigger plot. I enjoyed the political and court intrigue each of them had to deal with and after couple chapters it was easier to diferentiate between their experiences. I don't have a favorite, because each sister is unique and has her own story. The only issue for me was that the empress' motives were hard to understand, because we only saw her briefly at the beginning and everything we knew about her came through the sisters.

I expected a different plot twist at the end, but this one is so much better because I didn't even see it coming. It didn't have many clues laid through the story so hopefully this will be explored in the sequel.

The magic system was really interesting, as it is based on stars. Again, hopefully we get to see it more in the sequel and explore the connection the sisters have with it.

Laura Sebastian is definitely an autobuy author for me.

I loved that she writes such readable ‘courtly intrigue’-style fantasy, but always does something new, interesting and impressive with it. Her last book, HALF SICK OF SHADOWS, made clever use of writing tense and interwoven timelines. With CASTLES IN THEIR BONES, it’s the scale of it, and the richness of the three protagonists.

We only briefly see the three princesses — Sophronia, Daphne, and Beatriz — together in their homeland, before each is shipped off, alone, to a foreign nation and an arranged marriage. As the story shifts between the girls, this means we have three unique protagonists, three distinct cultures, and three sets of royal courts (each with allies, enemies and politics) to explore.

It’s a credit to Sebastian’s writing skill how delightful this was to read.

The three stories interweave, while still each having their own solid plotline, and each princess has a distinct and rounded personality. Even without the chapter headings, I was always well aware of which sister I was with and what their particular troubles were. Often, with multi (or dual) POV books, I find myself less keen on one or the other, and power through those sections to get back to my favourite character or the most compelling story. This didn’t happen with CASTLES IN THEIR BONES. I was always completely invested in each story and excited to get back into Sophronia, Daphne, or Beatriz’s problems.

The world-building and politicking never felt dull or dragging, as these court fantasy novels can do.

The first half of the book is perhaps a little slower, setting up all the sisters’ positions and inner conflicts, letting them explore their new environments and test the waters of various relationships and alliances. The second half is fact-paced and fully of action. Each of the three storylines comes together to deliver a finale I wasn’t expecting. After reading this as an eARC, I immediately ordered myself a physical copy, because I know I absolutely want a copy to hold on to, and I’ll definitely be rereading CASTLES IN THEIR BONES as soon as there’s word of the sequel’s release.

A must-read, five-star book and a firm favourite!

*4.5 stars. Laura Sebstian smashes it out for me again. I have read every book by her now and everything has recieved a 4 stars or higher.
This one was so much fun following the three sisters and I was not expecting the ending! Right up until the end, I was thinking no way...something will stop this and nope. Loved it!

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for giving me a copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.

We follow three triplets who from the moment they were born were raised to be political weapons. They are sent off to marry kings or princes.
The magic system was really interesting and the way the sisters creatde new relationships and acomodated to their new surroundings were wll thought and interesting.
However, i struggled following the three POV's and what was happening. It is a me problem since i dont usually enjoy different povs
Overall, while it was interesting it didnt awe and i didnt feel conected to the story

Laura Sebastian did it again…

Castles in their Bones is about 3 sisters leaving their home and their mother to be married to 3 princes from 3 different countries. Quick it becomes clear their mother trained the girls to divide and conquer in her stead. We follow each of the girls while they discover the lands and the people they were raised to wrap around their fingers and eventually betray. But as they get to know the people and their husbands, they realise maybe their mother didn’t give them ALL the information. Each of them is navigating the courts and trying to reach the goals their mother gave them. But will they go through with the original plan?

Even if the sisters are triplets, we soon realise that each of them sees the situation they are in differently and not all of them has the same trust in their mother and her plans.
Who to trust, what to risk and who to turn on are the question each of them will have to answer, and realise it might not all go as planned…

I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait for #2 to see where is goes.

Wow, I was not expecting so much from the first book in a series but Laura Sebastian has blown it out of the water with this one! I loved the twists, and the princesses are really interesting. Can't wait to read the next book!

Thank you so much Netgalley for sending me an ARC of Castles in their Bones in exchange for an honest review.

Oh. My. God! I loved this book so, so much. I would highly recommend this book to fans of The Bridge Kingdom series as Castles in their Bones follows three sisters who have been groomed since birth to marry, seduce and take down kings of neighbouring kingdoms for their mother.

The first book is multi-POV with the triplets telling their struggles with finding their footings in their new kingdoms and family.

I loved Daphne's story, as her husband and family-in-law certainly seemed to have Irish heritage. As an Irish person, I love seeing my culture being depicted in a respectful way.

The book ended with such a suckerpunch I was left wishing I didn't discover it until the series was finished. BRING ON BOOK TWO NOW!

I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher. This in no way impacted on my view.

The Empress of Bessemia may have a country under her control, but she's nothing if not ambitious, and why else enlist a empryea to fall pregnant with triplets, if not to use them to gain dominance over the continent? The princesses Daphne, Beatriz, and Sophronia, now about to turn 16, know that soon they will be leaving home, marrying foreign princes, and setting in motion a plan years in the making, all for their mother's own gain. But as they meet their 'new' countries, and soon learn that their mother's goals may not align with their own, can they achieve their goals, or will they fall into danger, with no way out?

I've been waiting for this book for so long! I love Laura's Ash Princess trilogy, and when I learnt about this story, and the synopsis, I immediately sent in my review requests. As soon as I started my copy, I knew I needed to savour it, because it was just so good! Told in the pov's of the princesses, we soon learn that though they are privileged, their lives haven't been one of love or even affection, really. They were being raised as lambs to the slaughter - some more than others - and were only pawns in their mother's game. I'm going to admit, I warmed to Sophronia the most, with Daphne being the most aloof, and difficult to like. But by the end, I adored all three sisters, and the last 20% or so, I just devoured because I needed to know how they manage all the plans which are taking place simultaneously. The ending killed me, and I honestly don't know how I'll wait until book 2 is released! Such a fantastic story, with epic world-building, and amazing characters - a hit from Laura, yet again!

I was really looking forward to this book and I wasn’t disappointed at all, although I found the beginning a little slow to start, it definitely picked up about a quarter of the way in. . I loved the multiple POV of the sisters, I thought they were really well done and flowed very smoothly.
The court intrigues, political machinations and the worldbuilding are so well written and enthralling, my head didn’t know where to turn with all the twists and turns. It’s a little light on the romance, but it’s the first book so I won’t hold that against it, I’m sure plenty more of that to come especially with the magic too. The book ended on a cliffhanger , which I despise (but only because I am so impatient) but I can’t wait for the next book. I thoroughly recommend this.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a free copy for an honest opinion

TL;DR
Royalty. Power. Corruption oozing out of every bit of land. A solid story for those looking for a rollercoaster whiplash plotline and a wee bit of magic.

THE JUICE
Holy shit this a ride. And one I nearly didn’t jump on because of the cover but being the Hodder & Stoughton fangirl I seem to be morphing into, I put my pretty-cover-magpie tendencies to one side and stopped being a massive dick. Here’s what you’re in for:

✨ Princess triplets and their conniving mother
✨ Betrothals to three Princes of varying likeability
✨ M A G I C
✨ Enough twists and turns to cause whiplash

So. What’s the deal with this book. Let’s start with the main gang.

Daphne

The more hands-on daughter when it comes to her mother’s schemes and eager to please. If you don’t find her shooting arrows into targets, you’ll find her nose deep in an alchemy book figuring out how to poison the shit out of you. Things princesses should absolutely know if you ask me. The entire world seems sus as hell.

Beatriz

The rule-breaker and the deemed as the beautiful one who’s spent her entire life learning how to woo poor bastards by a small army of courtesans. If your knees haven’t buckled once she’s finished with you, you probably don’t have a soul.

Sophronia

The one who just wants a normal life which is pretty hard as a princess full stop. Check any paperwork that comes your way, cause chances are she’s forged any signatures on it as well as half the contents. Being the only one that’s fallen head-over-heels for her betrothed via letter, dearest mother sees her as a bit of a flake when it comes to her grand plan.

The Plan

And what is this plan we keep hearing so much about?

The Empress of Bessemia (aka mother) is quite frankly bored of just being an empress. She has plans of being a Queen and to do that, she needs to cause an almighty ruckus across the neighbouring countries in the realm of Vesteria.

To do this, she betrothed each of her daughters the moment they were born to a prince of those lands and glass lit/brainwashed them to fuck to do her bidding. Not an ounce of love was shown to these girls – they were bred to carry out a task and on their 16th birthdays, they were shipped out to their princes.

The only issue is when you treat your kids like utter shite, it tends to come back at you.

THE TAKE

I judged this book by its cover and, in this case, that was a dumb ass move – I nearly missed out on a solid book because I was being a grade-a prat.

The characters are amazingly well crafted and the world is built out wonderfully even if it is oozing with corruption. You’ll find yourself muttering wtf every now and then whilst you’re on a vigorous rollercoaster of a story being thrown around every little twist and turn.

My only issue? There is SO much going on that it’s near impossible for my tiny noggin to remember what’s happening and to whom.

This is the start of what’s going to be a juicy trilogy and I’m dead excited to see where we end up.

Erm… who gave Laura Sebastian the right to light this book amazing?! I’m absolutely in love with this book and that ENDING?! WHAT?! I’m still in shock! Laura Sebastian really knows how to write a cliffhanger. The plot, the settings, the characters are all amazing! If you loved Ash Princess you will definetly love this book!

THAT WAS AWESOME, WOW, I'm going to die waiting for the next book.

The best book I read this year, ok since it's February, it's not fair, so the best fantasy book with women leaders, let me think, do I have read a book so fascinating with main three female roles, no this was BEST!

Emperor of Bessemia has suddenly fathered three daughters, at the age of seventy, when his last wife and his countless mistresses had never fallen pregnant. His Queen, Empress Margaraux had tasked the royal empyrea (witches called, people who had a gift of hearing or wish to stars, do magic), Nigellus, to use magic to ensure will have three daughters.

"The princesses’ eyes— not their mother’s brown or their father’s blue but the startouched silver that only graced those conceived with magic. Those with stardust running through their veins."

In Kingdom of Stars, Why three girls would be better than one boy? why would anyone have wished for three girls when a single boy would have been far more helpful?
Three brides for three kingdoms, to take the whole continent of Vesteria!

They have been preparing for their duties since they were born, to marry the princes they’ve been betrothed to and drive their countries to war against one another, allowing their mother to sweep in and pick up the shattered pieces and add them to her domain like new jewels for her crown.

For the first time, sisters won’t see each other for a year, they haven’t spent more than a few hours apart in their entire lives.

“We’re three stars of the same constellation. Distance won’t change that.”

Beatriz, the ruthless and pretty one, headstrong and lawbreaker, goes south to Cellaria to marry Prince Pasquale, a prince who didn't suppose to be a king.
In Cellaria, magic is outlawed, and MAD KING (King Cesare) will execute people even children for the least of magic.
"It’s quite possible for a person to smile at you one moment and stab you in the back the next."

Daphne, the cold and charming one (more like her mother), goes north to Friv to marry King Bartholomew’s son, Prince Cillian. He is sick, they only hope he could live long to the wedding night.
Friv is a harsh, joyless land, filled with harsh, joyless people. It is a land shaped by war and hungry for blood.
"The absence of war does not equal peace. .. war never dies, it only sleeps.”

Sophronia, the soft, sweet, kind, and brainy one, goes west to Temarin to marry King Leopold, but he is not really a king, his mother Queen Eugenia is one who role.
Queen Eugenia is from Cellaria forced to marry King Carlisle (Temarin king) and ended the war between the two countries. But she never forgot and forgave her harsh time in Temarin.

Nothing goes on the plan, at least, not the plan they are ready for. They face unplanned and unpredictable problems, should follow their mother's orders, but would that be right?
From the first, when they off to their new palace unexpected happened, many twists, betrayal, rebellion, the enemy in friend costume, threats and so many other terrible things.

"Power is an illusion, and the more of it people think you have, the more determined they will be to tear you down. You should know that better than anyone, having been on the other side. How long do you think it will be before another you arrives with schemes and plots? You’ve climbed far, but that only means the fall will kill you."

I'm not going more of the story, it already is one of my longest reviews! I love the characters, especially the three sisters. The beautiful part is, they are not perfect, yes, kind, strong, and smart most of the time but not perfect, that made mistakes, still learning, but always listen to their heart.

Highly recommended! This was AMAZING, didn't want it to finish. The story is so engaging and shocking I almost couldn't stop myself in the last 100 pages. HEARTBREAKING, I almost brush into tears. Unbelievably surprising.

Many thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for giving me a chance to read this great book, Castles in their Bones (Castles in their Bones #1) by Laura Sebastian, I have given my honest review.

Wow. That’s all the words i can come up with to describe this wonderful book. I have a massive soft spot for anything with a royal concept and this definitely didn’t disappoint. I cannot wait to read the next book when it comes out as i am absolutely encapsulated in this plot and the story of these three sister princesses. Such an action packed fantasy, I love it!

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Castles in Their Bones was a promising start to the trilogy but it ultimately failed to bring anything fresh or exciting to the YA fantasy genre. As it was, it was a solid YA fantasy with all the tropes you know and love.

Daphne, Beatriz and Sophronia, princesses of Bessemia, have been trained since birth in the arts of seduction, deception and violence. Each betrothed to the heirs of different kingdoms, they are meant to bring the countries to the verge of ruin so their mother, Empress Margaraux, can seize the lands. Daphne, the brilliant one and the heir to the Empire, is send off to the icy lands of Friv to marry a prince on his deathbed. Sophronia, the naive and sweet one, is marrying a young, carefree royal she is already half in love with. Finally, brazen Beatriz is sent to the court of a mad king to marry his timid son. As they each navigate their courts' intrigues, they find out bringing a kingdom to its knees might not be as easy as they thought it would be.

The beginning of this was quite slow. We have a multi-POV alternating between Daphne, Beatriz and Sophronia which interrupted my reading flow a bit. At the beginning, I also had difficulties separating which sister is which and who is sent where. This wasn't helped by the fact that their narratives sound very similar in tone and they are pretty much typical YA heroines. Somewhere around the middle however, I got the hang of it.

The court intrigues were very well done and probably the highlight of the book for me. All the political machinations in each court were brimming with tension and some of the twists and turns had me gasping. The worldbuilding is also a lot more fleshed out and rich than what we usually see in YA. Contrary to what the synopsis might make you believe, the romance was actually minimal but there was good setup for the next books in the series.

Another thing I really liked about the book was the magic system. Here we had a soft magic system where sorceres ("empyreas") wish upon stars to power their magic. While we didn't see much of the magic in this book, I hope it will be more at the forefront in the sequel (which, judging by the last chapter, it probably will).

One of my main criticisms were, as I have already mentioned, the main characters. Their character development (in the case of Sophronia and Beatriz) was minimal and Daphne's case, there barely was any. In fact, some of the side characters underwent more character development than her. That was a missed opportunity since Daphne had the most potential for growth in my opinion. Sophronia and Beatriz' characters pretty much went exactly where you expected them to go since the beginning of the book. Moreover, the girls only seemed to remember their extensive training in manipulation, weaponry and poisoning when it was convenient for the plot. The writing was too on the nose at times where the reader could have easily sussed it out without being told. With that being said, I did like them as characters and thought their struggles were well-written.

The book ended on quite the cliffhanger on all three fronts but set up conflict for the next installments quite nicely. All in all, Castles in Their Bones was an easy, enjoyable read and I recommend it to fans of Shadow and Bone and Red Queen.

I really liked this overall and look forward to the follow-up books in this series. The three sisters were all very different and as the story unfolded, you could see why they were in the position they were in. I liked how this was the perfect balance of politics, intrigue, romance, and magic. The world was built up really well and I liked what it did with this as it was easy to imagine what it looked like through description. This book essentially set up the rest of the series and i think it did a good job with that as the 2nd book has a good base to build upon.