Amazing!

I knew going into this that Goddess Crown was going to be fantastic but I was actually pleasantly surprised how fantastic it truly was. The world-building was beautiful and so immersive. I really found myself getting lost in the writing that I would read multiple chapters without realising that I was slowly reaching the end.

This book also touches on the challenges that women face in male-dominated spaces and how often, they need to work ten times harder to be respected or seen as even close to equals, which was both frustrating to read, but also necessary. The romance subplot also took me by surprise but I loved it and can't wait to read more by this author!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the arc!

Goddess Crown is a fast-paced, romantic and feminist YA fantasy full of danger and courtly intrigue. Kalothia is a strong independent badass young woman! She finds herself having to travel to the King's Court after having been raised outside it for her whole life. She has learnt to fund for herself and knows little of the world outside where she was raised. She is the type of female main character that you are afraid of because she doesn't let anyone stop her or get in her way. I loved this story and the world this author has created! You will like this if you like badass female characters and newly created fantasy worlds!

The download date was unfortunately missed, I would be happy to re-review if it became available again. I have awarded stars for the book cover and description as they both appeal to me. I would be more than happy to re-read and review if a download becomes available. If you would like me to re-review please feel free to contact me at thesecretbookreview@gmail.com or via social media The_secret_bookreview (Instagram) or Secret_bookblog (Twitter). Thank you.

Thank you so much to the publisher and Netgalley for approving me of an ARC of this!

First of all, I wanted to give a little appreciation to the cover because it truly captivated me and what urged me to request this book in the first place. This book was fast paced, but gave enough time for the readers to be familiar with the world in the beginning which I appreciate. Although I think I've outgrown the YA genre now, I think a lot of people would appreciate and enjoy this one.

I'm going to round up to 3 because this is a first novel and it's not bad but there are some....things.

Let's just take this bit from the blurb: A fast-paced, romantic and feminist YA fantasy full of danger and courtly intrigue.

Fast-paced is not wrong. The whole thing seems to happen in the course of about three weeks I think? The pacing just felt off. This girl was raised for 16-years in a forest but is ousted dramatically by assassins, who kill everyone that has looked after her, and means she has to flee to the capital. (That's not a spoiler, it's literally in the blurb.) My issue is, for an extremely sheltered young woman, she recovers from this pretty fast. Sure, she cracks a few times but once she's in the royal court, she's so focused on finding the killers that it feels just unrealistic in terms of pacing and character development. Obviously I don't expect pages and pages of grieving but it just sort of became like a footnote in her motivations in the court.

I'll add to that, this sudden "I have to do this to make things better for every woman in Galla." Admirable but again just not well presented. We're beaten over the head with the whole 'women are inferior' thing, which is wild since they worship a goddess but at least that's kind of addressed to a point, so it's like you can't forget that 'Oh btw, women don't have it good in this world but our 16-year-old MC has it covered. Don't worry.'

And she's just good at everything. Suddenly scaling palace walls? Well she climbed trees in the forest. I'm not an architect or engineer but those don't seem to be indistinguishable structures.

The big reveal wasn't particularly dramatic but that's fine. Not everything has to be jaw dropping revelations. But it was fairly telegraphed. There was definitely a minute in everything where I said to myself, "I don't entirely know why but he did it." And sure enough there we were. My big complaint with it was it happened quickly with the confrontation and resolution. This goes back to the pacing issue.

It's not a bad book by any means, it is just very simplistic. I'd argue it's more suited to younger readers in the MG area if we're using traditional publishing labels for this, or even really, really early YA readers.

Goddess Crown is a sumptuously written, imaginative and rich YA fantasy.

Lapite’s writing was just delectable. It was so immersive and pulled you straight into this detailed world full of magic and power plays. I loved how heavy on the court intrigue the plot was, especially the murder mystery threads that continue throughout the book. It shows the darkness and danger within humans, as well as an intriguing look at divine intervention, fate and the limitations of both of these. The theme of legacy is also well-explored and I particularly enjoyed how the ending set up what might be to come for Galla and its people. It reads brilliantly as a standalone but I also know more books in this world are coming and I’d be interested to pick them up!

Kalothia was an excellent protagonist - driven, loyal and just trying to find her feet in a world that was always shifting beneath her. Combine that with a hefty legacy stained with blood and the constant attempts to belittle, undermine and even murder her and you have someone facing every challenge thrown at them. However, I really liked how Lapite kept her grief at the forefront. Her vulnerability and emotional moments do not mean a lack of strength and forthrightness, both of which really endeared me to her. She was incredibly smart and had the drive to survive, whether that be smiles that hide villainy or outright daggers coming towards her. I also enjoyed her character dynamics with the supporting cast, including one friendship that dazzled and enlightened her and one that might become a bit more than friends. Both had believable dialogue and interesting dynamics.

Goddess Crown is a YA fantasy full of ornate and character driven writing that compels the reader and introduces them to the treacherous world of Galla.

I think this book is uncertain what it wants to be. Having recently read Alanna, I felt very much from the beginning of this book that it was much closer to a Middle grade level than YA. The plot is insanely fast (and rather obvious) with a lot of time skips and the writing feels minimal. The problem is the last third of the book the themes do not match a middle grade book. The FMC spends a great deal of time being degraded by the sexist society of the world and is submitted to sexual harassment, largely enduring it speechless or shocked. If I had young people to offer book suggestions to I would be hesitant because I don’t think there is strong enough vocalization of the negative problems with patriarchy and misogyny. No one around her supports her or confirms her perceptions. Additionally, the plot is very very messy and the romance feels forced. When time was given to world-building, I really liked the author’s descriptions of the setting, but there definitely needed to be me.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Review: I want to begin by saying that I received this ebook for free via Netgalley, but all thoughts are my own. This book is a YA Fantasy book focusing around Kalothia, a young girl who has grown up in a forest, in hiding due to her parents being enemies of the King. But one day her home is attacked by assassins and she must flee back to the royal court. I thought the premise of this book was interesting, a girl in hiding finding out her new fate and working with it, and in a place where women aren't known to do much, this has showings of feminism. However, I wasn't too keen on this. I thought the idea was great, but the world building and character building didn't really match that. The bits that were there were great and I loved the culture created in this novel, but there just wasn't enough of it, characters didn't have much description either so I honestly couldn't picture any of them in my head. There's certain parts of this story that felt unfinished or underdeveloped and so much could have been done with it. I just wish there was more to this whole book than there was.

Kalothia has been raised in secret in the forest to keep her safe from those who would use her to punish her traitorous parents. But when Galla's king dies and assassins reach her home, she must leave her sanctuary and face the destiny that awaits.

This book is fast paced and the world building is brilliant. It felt a little too neat though - issues were wrapped up very quickly and the plot immediately moved on. Despite that, I enjoyed it!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

4.5* rounded up.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for granting me an arc.

The first thing that drew me in to Goddess Crown was the cover because, hello, you are gorgeous.

The story follows Kalothia, a young girl living in the forest with her guardians, until they're all brutally murdered and Kalothia finds herself thrown into an entirely new world, navigating the sharks of a royal court.

I figured out the main villain pretty early on — it's always the person you don't expect and when I met this certain character I just had a feeling that something wasn't quite right. They seemed too good to be true. I loved the scene in which Kalothia puts the pieces together.

A very enjoyable read. Thank you Shade!

Goddess Crown has a strong rich cover, and the story lives up to all expectations. Kalothia, has been raised in a remote forest in the knowledge that her parents are the enemy of the King. When the assassins finally come for her she ignores all her training to check on the people who have cared for her. She manages to escape and finds herself at the centre of the royal court, surrounded by politics and plotting. Discovering secrets about her own family combined with a burgeoning romance makes this an intriguing read.

This book has such an interesting concept and begins early on with some serious action that sets up the rest of the book for a dangerous adventure. I was invested in Kalothia’s journey to discover the truth and to escape what follows her, and I definitely wanted to get behind her connection with her head guard, but I do think there were some plot holes and all the lies Kalothia was told made me mad on her behalf (especially because they seemed very unnecessary!). Overall, I enjoyed the book but wanted a little more from it.

I received a free copy of this book. All views are my own.

An extremely fast paced feminist story that really packs up a punch. Although the pace went overly fast at times, regardless this is still a captivating read.

I want to start to review by saying I did enjoy the book and it's got the bare bones of a good book but there are a few things holding it back.

The pacing is very fast. At first I put this down to it being YA and brushed it off but the middle of the book particularly felt very rushed. It would maybe work if advertised towards the lower age range of YA.

The pacing causes several knock on issues. For example the romantic interest is a key character but we only really see any interaction in the last third of the book. We're told that the main character wants to get back to the 'Old Nahri' but since we've not seen them interact much before this, it doesn't make much sense.

We're also told that it's difficult to get the main character to do something she doesn't want to but we've seen no evidence of this so far.

There is also a bit of a disconnect between the character at the start of the book, who ridicules the idea she might be attacked Vs the character in the middle saying she's 'used to looking out for danger'. This doesn't really make sense as someone who had grown up in an isolated forest who has been attacked a couple of times would not be used to looking out for danger.

All these smaller issues hold the book back from being truly awesome which is a shame.

Nit picky stuff:
Some of the names are a bit ridiculous.
The main character is raised by 'Teacher' and 'Aunty' but that's weird and it's never addressed why they don't have real names. It sounds like a placeholder.

There was an event 20 years ago called 'The Great Upset' which sounds more like something from a kids book than a teenagers book.

There's a typo on page 226. 'she wondered' should have a capital S.

I recieved this ARC for free from Netgalley, and I am so grateful.

Goddess Crown is a fast paced, action filled, feminist novel. The main female character is strong willed and assertive in what she wants. She does all she can for the people in the kingdom, and getting equal rights for the women of her land. It's easy to read, I finished it in 2 days, as I could not put it down. If there is a sequel coming out, I am eager to read it as well.

This book is released in Feburary, and I think it's fantastic. Plus there is an adorable monkey best friend, what more could you want?