In the kingdom of Everness, we meet Lara, a skilled thief whose reckless decision to steal from the ruthless royal family lands her in a dire situation. To avoid execution, she is compelled to work for the cruel prince regent, tasked with retrieving a stolen heirloom from an enemy crown prince while posing as his betrothed. As Lara navigates this treacherous mission, she encounters danger and a surprising connection with the charming prince that threatens everything she holds dear.

I found the premise of the story captivating and the overall plot engaging. However, the writing initially felt a bit clunky, with dialogue that didn't always flow smoothly. Fortunately, the second half of the book improved significantly in terms of pacing. I would have appreciated more development and tension between Lara and Cai to deepen their connection and heighten the stakes of their relationship.

The fast-paced narrative has a solid foundation, but it sometimes rushes through key moments, making it hard to fully connect with the characters. A bit more depth in both the main and side characters would have enriched the experience.

I'm definitely eager to continue the series. I genuinely enjoyed the story and am excited to see how the plot unfolds.
3.5

I received this book as an ARC.

I really enjoyed this book! It was fast-paced and lively from the very beginning. I found the FMC and MMC to both be interesting characters that I rooted for.

I had an inkling on the twist so it didn’t catch me off guard. But I did like the ending and the not overly-romanticness of it all.

I love fantasy and this is one of my favorites yet! Such a new and cunning story that will have you in a grip until the end.

This uses the fantasy element in a way that I enjoyed about the genre. The overall concept worked and I enjoyed getting to know this world and characters. Leané Giliomee has a great way of creating unique worlds with characters that belonged there. I hope there is more in this world and from Leané Giliomee.

I recently read the veiled kingdom and kiss of iron is one of my favorite books at the moment so I had to see what this was about. I was a little skeptical because once again those two books are my all-time saves, but this book did not disappoint. Our fmc Lara is such a strong fmc ( I mean being a thief isn’t an easy task lol) She was smart and witty too. Thief turned princess, tell me that doesn’t sound fun! And the mmc is just amazing! I don’t know why but anytime I read a book the mmc is some sort of solider I’ll swoon every time. I loved the setting of this story too. My only critic is that it was a little hard to get into in the beginning but once the action hits it hits good!