Rating: 4 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
*Thank you to Netgallery and M. T Fontaine for this ARC in exchange for an honest review*
I loved this book the more I read it. It follows 3 characters Kaianne, Andreiyes and Rau. A big chunk of the book is set when Kaianne and Andreiyes are quite young (like 13/14). For every person, to be marked means to be protected and loyal but to be a Carved is a sign of a traitor. Kaianne is borned marked but when her family are murdered for having a Flawed brother she is left orphaned. She turns to the Carved to help find revenge for the family shes lost.
I think my favourite thing about the book was Kaianne. I loved how sassy and independent she is (especially in the later part of the book). I was a bit worried as the first half of the book was set when she was 13 and I didn’t instantly connect with her as a female lead character but there was a time jump of 5 years (or 5 stretches in the book) and this is when I really started to fall in love with Kaianne. She came across as clever, cunning, confident (all the things that make a women a bad-ass) but also loving and vulnerable. She was written really well!
What I think is most amazing is this is a debut book for M.T Fontaine! It was written better than some books I’ve read that were their 10th book. It was really well written. I thought the story was very captivating and I loved the idea around being marked, flawed and carved. It was something I had never seen!
The one thing I wasn’t too keen on was the information overload at the beginning. I felt a bit confused at first because there was just so much. But as the book went on you knew what everything meant and became clear. At first I wasn’t fond that so much of the book was set when the characters were much younger. However, now that I have read it I think it was important as it let you understand why Kaianne did things and it also helped you feel sympathy for her! But I do think it could have been shorter.
Overall I think this was a very strong debut novel and series! I wait eagerly for the next one book in the series to find out what happens next. I recommend it for people to read it!

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

carved amidst the shadow is an incredible epic fantasy and I was completely invested in it.

the whole book was very well written and full of amazing world building and interesting characters. the plot was intriguing and it kept my attention from start to finish. it was impossible not to feel sad for kaianne after everything she went through and the tragedy that struck her whole family, turning her into an orphan.

i loved how she transformed from a spoiled noble girl to a fighter focused on taking revenge for her family. i completely adore her as a character.

this book really does contain the perfect slow burn between kaianne and andreiyes. i just wanted to skip through chapters and read only about them but i remained patient and it was so worth it.

i didn’t enjoy reading some other parts as much. especially those focused on rau because i found them boring but i’m aware that they are significant to the storyline. the counting of time was also super confusing because it wasn’t explained much throughout the book.

such a powerful debut that i really really liked and can't wait for the sequel!

I never been so confused by a book in a long time. And not even the glossary helped clear things up. The use of time was not helpful at all. I understand that as an author you want to be creative and try something but at least a hint of the glossary would have been nice or more indication of the time span. Most of the time I was guessing.
Also I found it a bit unnecessary to stay with Kaianna for more then half the book when she was 12. And she was not written as the most sympathetic 12 years old. I was happy when I got a different point of view

The world building was definitely not the best because only more then 70% in the book it finally clicked in my mind. I felt like it really tried to be some other more popular books but it didn’t work. I understand that are more parts to this book but I didn’t find I am looking forward to read more of this series

The concept of the book is good but I think the author got so stuck in the storyline and new where they wanted to go that they forgot to explain some parts.

But still I could not put it down and read it in less then a week so yeah

dnf at 15%

it’s not the book it’s me. anyone who reads fantasy books regularly i can see they’re going to love this book. but me who just time to time picks up this genre i couldn’t ge to to this book. right in the beginning it was so information heavy that i didn’t understand what i was reading. and the pov was always changing and i didn’t know who am i reading about.
but i can tell that the author brought a complex world into word, have a great world building and plot in the head.
maybe if i have a psychical copy in my hand i can focus on the words more. but for now i won’t finish this book. planning to read it in the future.

thanks for netgalley for approving my request!

𝚁𝚎𝚟𝚒𝚎𝚠:

I don’t know what to say about it. It wasn’t my type of book. No, it could possibly be a book for me but I feel like I wasn’t in the head space to read such a detailed book and ended up forcing myself to finish it. There was a lot of information being given along with the world building. I did like the POVs though.
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As for the author’s diction of the FMC, Yenas internal and external dialogue shows she has the mindset of a modern day 20 something year old even though she’s 12 (at the beginning). She doesn’t stay 12 for much of the story though and it evens out. Character development is there and done well.
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Overall, the author world building, use of characters and their different povs stood out but it was a little heavy for. I may come back and really get through it

Enjoyable. World building was a bit much at times for me but overall good. Cute banter between fmc and the mmc.

Definitely check the trigger warnings.

I really enjoyed the first book in this exciting new fantasy series! Carved Amidst the Shadows might start off seemingly intimidating with complex character names and places, but once you get a few chapters in.. it’s easy to discern the different POVs. The three main characters are all very different but I enjoyed each POV! Kaianne was a great character who I loved dearly! She starts out at 12, but the second half of the book takes place when she is an adult. I loved her character growth and how she became who she was truly meant to be. Andreiyes was also a character I really grew to love as the book when on! He starts out as kind of an arrogant teen prince, but he grows to be a good hearted and likable man! I thought the world building was fantastic in this book and I really enjoyed the storyline overall! I can’t wait to read the next book and see what is to come for these characters!

( Also there was a glossary and pronunciation guide the author provided which was great and it really helpful!)

Thank you NetGalley for this e-arc.

This book could have been something spectacular, but unfortunately fell short. I love a fantasy with great world building, but I feel it was a bi5 too much in this book. Almost seemed like they were fillers more than plot. Definitely check trigger warnings because there’s a few parts that are rough to get through. Did I like this book? Overall yes, although sometimes it was hard to push through. Do I hope for improvement in the future? Definitely.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me an ARC of Carved Amidst the Shadows in exchange for my honest review.

It was difficult at first to read all the intricate names, but I really appreciate a pronunciation guide at the front of the book!

Right from the start I was hooked with the arranged marriage storyline, especially since she is only 12 years old. This made me already root for her to break out of the life she was about to be forced in and made me excited to see what was next.

The world created is so fantastical and dark. Early on in the book a horrible tragedy has already happened. I really like how M.T. was not afraid to write such intense scenes from the beginning. I was worried with all the world building and characters being introduced that I would lose interest, but the first 25% of the book had so many good scenes and character interactions.

I wish each chapter said whose POV it was. I was very confused the first time it switched which character we were following.

*Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this novel* I want to say that I struggled to get through this book. There was just so much information to process in the first few chapters that I never got the chance to experience the foundation of the world-building. The writing was great and I can definitely tell how interesting the premise of this book is but I felt myself rushing to finish it so I could start something new and because I dislike not finishing books. Overall not my favorite book, but definitely worth the read if you can handle a load of information right at the beginning and stick with the story.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for this eARC. I am leaving this honest review voluntarily.

I originally picked up this book because of two things: 1. That cover art though. 2. The description of the book had me hooked.

This book has many characters but a good chunk focuses on Kaianne, who believes this world to be back and front understood and expected. However, when her brother is born without a mark her world changes in a flash. The book follows her path to find what’s right and to protect the family she has and lost.

I’ve read a lot of spicy books lately and it was nice to get caught up in a world building fantasy book instead. I like that the book begins with not only the world that’s being built in map form, but also the spellings and pronunciation of the characters names. I’m here for it when I can right off the bat know what my brain is reading and how.

The downfalls is that the book is wordy. Lots and lots of background information, big words, story building, all of the above. It is really rough to push through that but it’s a pretty decent story if you can handle it.

**I received a copy of this book from Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op in exchange for a voluntary and honest review. My opinions are my own and not solicited in any way. **

An epic fantasy, with coming of age, slow burn romance and well developed plot.

Pros:
World Building 9/10
Protagonists 9/10
Romance 9/10
Plot 8/10
Side Characters 9/10
There are also some triggers that are mentioned in the beginning of the book, and is one in a series of three. The Author gives us as much information as possible, with the Map and Pronunciation Guide. Thank you to the author !!

Cons:
The major fault, that annoyed me, was the age of the main character, in the beginning of the book (view spoiler)
The initial quarter of this book has the narrative of three people. After reading the whole book, I realized that it was necessary and required, but initially, the problem was, before I could connect with Kaianne, the narrative changed. But, on reading more the storyline came into focus and I enjoyed it more, as I understood the actions of the others.

I enjoyed this book, and I would be looking for the sequels.

I really tried for several days to get into this book but I found that I couldn’t. I can tell that the world building and characters are there but everything felt too sudden and kind of information heavy in the first few chapters that I really could not get into it. It’s unfortunate because this story seemed really interesting!

***Thank you to the publishers and Netgalley for providing me with an ARC of this novel***

Unfortunately I DNF. I did not care for this book at all. I thought the premise sounded interesting and unique but the writing was dull and the characters fell flat. The first few chapters I couldn’t tell who was who and couldn’t follow the plot at all. There was also an almost immature/ridiculous hatred towards women/female characters in this book that I literally couldn’t get past to see if the plot got better. The male characters were verbally berating women or making lewd comments towards them and it seemed so unnecessary I just couldn’t keep reading. Also check TW because there is also a scene early on with the murder of an infant immediately after birth.