An absolutely wonderful book based on Chinese mythology. The worldbuilding in this novel is delightful. In a story that spans over decades, the world is inhabited by Shifters -- those with powers who can transform, and Statics -- those who cannot, or have lost their powers. The villain of the story is acutely aware of this power struggle, and their motivations become apparent as you get further into the book.

The book is not linear; it jumps through periods of time giving us vignettes out of sequence with different sets of characters. I do feel as though the book struggles to connect the reader to the characters due to this, as I found it hard to remember who was who with the constantly changing points of view.

The antagonist characters were very well written, and again the worldbuilding is excellent. The author even delves into a bit of the politics of this fictional version of our world which added more depth to it as well.

A very enjoyable read and I'm looking forward to the next installment.

Thank you to Emily Renk Hawthorne, Hawk Ridge Press, and NetGalley for the e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

The premise of Of Mountains And Seas intrigued me and the book cover art is beautiful. Unfortunately, the writing style was too juvenile and underdeveloped. The jumps between POV and eras should have worked more seamlessly too. I had to dnf.

The book had a good storyline, but sometimes I had some trouble following all the different character POVs and timeline. I found myself having to try to remember who each person was and what they were doing before every chapter for about the first half of the book. Other than that, it's definitely a fun read.

"Of Mountains and Seas" is a captivating and richly imagined novel. The premise of magic theft immediately grabs the reader's attention, and the story unfolds with a compelling blend of adventure, mystery, and political intrigue. The multiple perspectives and interwoven timelines create a complex and satisfying narrative, while the characters of Davis, Iris, and Nivi are well-developed and relatable, despite their fantastical circumstances. The author masterfully crafts a world full of both wonder and danger, leaving the reader eagerly turning pages to uncover the dark truths hidden within. A truly exceptional read.

3. 5 stars rounded up.

Overall, I enjoyed this book. The non-linear narrative was well-done and engaging. The plot was interesting (if a little predictable)-- I read most of it in one sitting. The world building and magic system were super cool to read about and I loved the incorporation of Chinese mythology.

The only thing that missed the mark for me was the writing. It fell short in terms of description and didn't flow in the way I would have liked for an otherwise beautiful book. The dialogue also felt a little stilted and cliche at times. Nonetheless, the novel is pretty easy to read and highly enjoyable. I will definitely be reading the second book when it comes out.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this ARC.

Of Mountains and Seas is a story of complicated family relationships and politics with a dash of Chinese mythology. I would've liked to see more in the way of world building and expanding upon the gods referenced. The chapters jump around between timelines and points of view, to the point where I needed to pause or flip back to align the characters. Although it was a very slow paced book until the last 15%, it set up a lot of plot for a sequel. Hopefully future books will fill out what felt missing in this one.

Ａｕｄｉｏｂｏｏｋ & Ｅｂｏｏｋ Ｒｅｖｉｅｗ
2.5 ☆
For some, the only way to possess magic is to steal it from others. Born without magic, Davis is an outcast in his own shapeshifter family. Yearning for his father's approval, he sets down a path that intertwines with Iris, a girl whose own ambitions are hindered by a mysterious illness.

This cover art is gorgeous! The storyline was intriguing, but it was extremely slow-paced and confusing to me with the dual timeline and multiple characters the story switched between. I think if it were a dual timeline with maybe just two characters, I would have loved this story, but I DNF'd at 40%.

The audiobook is good; the narrator did a good job telling the story. It was easy to listen to and understand. I listened at 2x speed.

Thank you, Netgellay, Hawk Ridge for the audiobook and the ebook for my honest review.

I love it when a new to me author just blows me away, and that's exactly what happened here! Intriguing, captivating and absolute ride of a book - loved it!

Born Magicless in a family of magical shifters, Davis is desperate to be recognized by his father and to be accepted into the shifter's community. And what's the best way of doing that?

Stealing other people's power, exactly!

This story is divided into three time periods; 1935, 1955 and 2000 (the most current timeline) So we are following three character's stories in these three timelines. Since shifters do not age like humans, we read as all these timelines start to connect and each character is meeting with one another in someway. And the way all these timelines were connecting had my mind blown. It was honestly so interesting to read how well everything was thought out.

The magic system in this world was pretty fascinating and the plot as a whole was incredible. It might seem a little complex to follow the plot at first but keeping your mind open, it's not really hard to get into it. The writing is comparitively easier to understand.

I wish Davis had more depth to him as a character. I wanted to be able to feel sorry for him in a way which i couldn't but now im wondering if i was supposed to feel that way at all. Iris, on the other hand, just pissed me off but that makes alot of sense too since she was being manipulated ever since young. I actually found that aspect of her character pretty interesting as well.

Im so glad I got this arc from Netgalley and Hawk Ridge Press!

4.5 ⭐️

Thank you, Emily, for pulling me out of my reading slump! If you don't want to pick up this book from the cover alone then I don't know how else to convince you!

Of Mountains and Seas is a beautifully written shifter fantasy novel that blends Chinese mythology, a nonlinear timeline, and a cast of complex characters into an engaging and easy-to-read story.

The infusion of Chinese mythology was mesmerising and is seamlessly woven into the plot, creating a story that felt refreshingly unique.

What surprised me the most was the old-school murder mystery vibe running through the novel. It added an unexpected twist to the story, making it feel like a blend of genres in the best possible way.

Missed out on 5 stars as I do wish there had been a bit more world-building at the start; it took me a moment to fully immerse myself in the setting.

Excited to see what she writes next!

Story was intriguing and immersive and I was enjoying it but then for some significant reasons had to dnf it

I caved and did end up reading a part of it, and actually really enjoy it so far. Still pretty upset about the AI in the cover, but the book itself is really good.

4 Stars

Of Mountains And Seas was a very unique book. The weaving PoVs that happen during different times was interesting and I really liked how everything wove together throughout the book and came to this head at the end. The world building was fabulous. The author also did an amazing job of writing complex characters with complex relationships.

°˖✿˚⋆I received this arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review⋆˚✿˖°

I thought this was a little clunky at first with all the character POVs but I was drawn in by the story nonetheless. I very much enjoyed how each characters intertwined by the end though! I also really enjoyed the use of Chinese mythology and a different set of fantasy than the currently popular fae.

One book of a kind!!!!!!
Of Mountains and Seas by Emily Renk Hawthorne is such a good read! Loved every second of it. I rated it 5 stars but wanted to give it 6!