Amanda Bouchet

A Kirkus Reviews Best Book of 2016! An NPR Best Book of 2016! "I can say, without a doubt, that A Promise of Fire is going on my keeper shelf...I cannot remember the last time I wanted to both savor and devour a book." — Smart Bitches, Trashy Books KINGDOMS WILL RISE AND FALL FOR HER... BUT NOT IF SHE CAN HELP IT Catalia "Cat" Fisa lives disguised as a soothsayer in a traveling circus. She is perfectly content avoiding the danger and destiny the Gods-and her homicidal mother-have saddled her with. That is, until Griffin, an ambitious warlord from the magic-deprived south, fixes her with his steely gaze and upsets her illusion of safety forever. Griffin knows Cat is the Kingmaker, the woman who divines the truth through lies. He wants her as a powerful weapon for his newly conquered realm-until he realizes he wants her for much more than her magic. Cat fights him at every turn, but Griffin's fairness, loyalty, and smoldering advances make him increasingly hard to resist and leave her wondering if life really does have to be short, and lived alone. The Kingmaker Chronicles: A Promise of Fire (Book 1) Breath of Fire (Book 2, coming January 2017) Heart on Fire (Book 3, coming Fall 2017) Praise for The Kingmaker Chronicles "Breath of Fire is a heart-pounding and joyous romantic adventure that swept me away. Amanda Bouchet's talent is striking."—NALINI SINGH, New York Times bestselling author on Breath of Fire More Praise for A Promise of Fire: "I cannot remember the last time I wanted to both savor and devour a book." —Smart Bitches, Trashy Books "An exquisite high-fantasy romance with masterful worldbuilding." —Kirkus STARRED Review "Fantasy romance at its finest! You will fall in love with these delicious characters." —Darynda Jones, New York Times bestselling author of the Charley Davidson series "Bouchet skillfully melds the genres while crafting a sexy, emotional romance."—Sarah MacLean, The Washington Post "A Promise of Fire made me laugh out loud more than once."—Thea Harrison, New York Times bestselling author of the Elder Races series

A Promise of Fire

Sexy and addictive, this white-hot fantasy broke all the rules: with a fierce woman cursed with powerful hidden magic, abducted by a dangerous warlord determined to save his country, igniting a forbidden attraction that will make them burn. KINGDOMS WILL RISE AND FALL FOR HER... Cat Fisa isn't who she pretends to be. She's perfectly content living disguised as a soothsayer in a traveling circus, avoiding the destiny the Gods--and her dangerous family--have saddled her with. As far as she's concerned, the magic humming within her blood can live and die with her. She won't be a pawn in anyone's game. But then she locks eyes with an ambitious warlord from the magic-deprived south and her illusion of safety is shattered forever. Griffin knows Cat is the Kingmaker--the woman who divines truth through lies--and he wants her to be a powerful weapon for his newly conquered realm. Kidnapping her off the street is simple enough, but keeping her by his side is infuriatingly tough. Cat fights him at every turn, showing a ferocity of spirit that burns hot...and leaves him desperate for more. But can he ever hope to prove to his once-captive that he wants her there by his side as his equal, his companion...and maybe someday, his Queen? Fans of Jennifer Armentrout and Sarah J. Maas will burn for A Promise of Fire.

What is with women and romanticizing abusive, possessive, and aggressive men? The protagonists have no chemistry whatsoever. Blurred lines of consent throughout the entire book where the main protagonist, Cat, has an internal monologue of wanting the interest, Griffin, but every single outward display is rejecting him. He chooses for her, manipulates her and is freakishly possessive of her. Nothing cute or romantic about this book. Yuck yuck yuck.

With that said, the world and the other characters I do enjoy, so I’m gonna give the second book a chance and hope I can just personally retcon the entire first book in my head.

KINGDOMS WILL RISE AND FALL FOR HER

Cat Fisa isn't who she pretends to be. She's perfectly content living disguised as a soothsayer in a traveling circus, avoiding the destiny the Gods—and her dangerous family—have saddled her with. As far as she's concerned, the magic humming within her blood can live and die with her. She won't be a pawn in anyone's game.

But then she locks eyes with an ambitious warlord from the magic-deprived south and her illusion of safety is shattered forever.

Griffin knows Cat is the Kingmaker—the woman who divines truth through lies—and he wants her to be a powerful weapon for his newly conquered realm. Kidnapping her off the street is simple enough, but keeping her by his side is infuriatingly tough. Cat fights him at every turn, showing a ferocity of spirit that burns hot...and leaves him desperate for more. But can he ever hope to prove to his once-captive that he wants her there by his side as his equal, his companion...and maybe someday, his Queen?

Discover exciting bonus material, including maps, illustrations, and an expanded look at the world of Thalyria. Fans of Jennifer Armentrout, Scarlett St. Clair and Sarah J. Maas will burn for this spicy romantic fantasy.

The Kingmaker Chronicles: Book 1

Vicky  Nuñez 

Popsugar Reading Challenge 2017 - A book involving a mythical creatures. Cerberus made an appearance. 3/52 

I usually have such a good radar to know whether I'll like a book based on its synopsis, but I got to admit I was wrong about this book. I wanted to stop reading halfway through, but I somehow managed to finish it.

I expected an awesome female character and I was so disappointed.

The story is about Cat, she is the legendary Kingmaker, she is hiding in a circus from those who want to do her wrong until Griffin, the warlord who just conquered a realm, stumbles upon her and realizes her power and kidnaps her. And thus begin their journey.

What went wrong?

I think it was an interesting premise, it just felt badly executed. It felt like a parody like the writer wanted to imitate a snarky character, but it just felt whiny sometimes even rude to me. And when she wasn't whining she was showing off her awesome powers because she got new ones every other page.
 And don't get me started on Griffin, who spent the whole book giving off lustful looks to Cat. One moment he was been abusive, and the next he's telling her how much he wants her.
To me, it didn't felt like a reading a published book, but more like I'm reading an online story/fanfic published on Wattpad.

In truth, if you want an awesome fantasy book with an awesome storyline just read Magic Bites .

anna near

If I never have to read an infantilized female character again, I will be a very happy woman. Seriously, I don't even remember how old the main female character, Cat, is supposed to be. She read like a thirteen year old girl. Which is disturbing to find in a romance when the love interest reads like a 30 year old man whom she has sex with. Repeatedly. Constantly.

The writing was fine. It is written in present tense, which I personally loathe, but that's definitely a personal thing. I did think the adoption of Greek mythology in an original fantasy world was weird and ruined the immersion for me- but again, that is probably just a personal kink of mine I can't get over.

My biggest issue was the internal-misogyny. I think that when used correctly, internal-misogyny can be a great character conflict (which jesus this girl needed. she conveniently could do literally anything the plot required) but in A Promise of Fire, it's just never addressed. 

Anyways, wasn't a book for me. Probably wouldn't recommend nor would I read the sequel- but I would watch a thirty minute video recapping the sequel.

Laura 

** spoiler alert **
           3,5 Stars

First read of 2021 yay!

Well, this was an enjoyable read, but personally not my cup of tea. 
The romance aspect just didn't do it for me, I like both characters but for some reason, their relationship feels very forced and one-sided? I feel like Griffin forces Cat into doing a lot of things she doesn't want and that just doesn't work for me.
Also, I'm not a fan of instalove, like super intense love declarations early on the story, and I wished the romance was a bit more slow burn, but then again maybe it's just not for me.

I did like the Mythological aspect of the story and the world seems interesting as well as the magic aspects, all though there's a form of "healing" from the hero to the heroine that is a bit... hm weird to me

Sadly I don't think I will be reading the rest of the series ( at least for now) since I'm not really interested in that.

Lover of Romance 

This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance
  

 
  
    Summary 
  
 
Catalina "Cat" Fisha, is a young woman with powerful abilities and is known as the "kingmaker" she is in hiding from anyone that would use her or kill her. While working in a circus of performers, a safe haven for her and has built a solid family and friends she would die for. She is steamrolled by a powerful conqueror, the infamous warrior who overtook a powerful enemy and his sister is the alpha and queen. He is a man with no magic, but was able to defeat powerful leaders with just his sword and army fighting for what is right. He kidnaps Cat when he realizes who she really is and that he needs her. Cat is a fighter and she doesn't take being kidnapped easily. But soon the explosive chemistry changes how she feels about this man that took her against her will and away from the only people she could ever call family. She develops a strong bond with his men and his family. Cat has forgotten what it is like to genuinely care about someone, but her past could destroy every good thing she has and the man who is honorable and good to the core...
 
  
    Plot And Story Line
  
 
 Whew, what a story this turned out to be. Thanks to Alyssa over at Eater of Books Blog. I truly admired everything about this book, and I love a solid fantasy themed romance and Amanda Brouchet definitely delivered where this book is concerned. Its written in first POV, which isn't my favorite to read but this definitely worked for me. This story mixes elements of a fantasy world and mytholgy involving the Greeks. I loved this twist and when I first heard about this book, I wasn't sure how you could mix these two elements successfully, but this author whammed her way through it and wrote a story to remember!! We have our heroine, which its in her POV. I liked seeing this character, her passion and what a fighter she is. Our hero is such a alpha male and I loved him. In fact, I think I liked him way more than all the other characters combined. He has a very strong personality, but he sticks with Cat even when she is quite mean to him at times. I understood the reasons behind it, but I did feel like she goes to far and a bit too violent against him for my taste. Once she meets his family, and their relationship takes a delightful turn, she does tone it down a bit but I still had issues with how she handled certain situations. Now the family of Griffin are all quite intriguing, but the one I loved the most was the youngest sister. She is still a teenager, but her excitment for life was so contagious. I did love the magical themes that we are introduced here. Cat is a woman of power, and I did love seeing how she uses her gifts. Griffin and Cat make a powerful couple (once they overcome certain hurdles in their relationship) and I truly felt an emotional connection to these two.

 
  
    The Cover 
  
 
WOW!!! That is all I can say to it to be honest!!! I just love it so much, the mix of bright colors and the fire like theme!!
 
  
    Overall View 
  
 
A Promise Of Fire is stimulating, powerful, and fully engaging from beginning to end!!! It will keep the reader on their toes!

Amanda

A fun read. Lost a little luster at the end. There was a lot of build up for certain situations and characters that never followed through. This book probably should have been a longer stand alone book and not a trilogy. That said, I will probably read the rest of the books. The fight scenes are great. The sex scenes are okay but unnecessary to the enjoyment of the book, which to me makes the misplaced.

Jessica L. Peryman

Such an amazing read!!!! 
This book was everything I wanted it to be, it has been such a long time since I have read a book about Greek mythology ❤

Alison James

I put off reading this book for too long. I got access to the ARC of book 4 on NetGalley and decided to finally read it. 

I love how Cat already knows who she is and the powers she contains. A lot of fantasy books start out slow with the main character having no clue of who they really are. It is refreshing to read a book about a strong female character who knows exactly who she is.

It is also refreshing to be able to see her learn to trust and love throughout this book. She starts off hiding in the Circus with no one knowing the truth about her. But after being "kidnapped" by Beta Team, she finds people who she can finally open up with. It helps that they already know she is the Kingmaker, so she didn't have to hide that part of herself from them.

I am pretty sure Cat is the lost princess of Fisa from all the hints throughout the book, and if that is the case I cannot wait for the reveal.

The romance in this book is amazing. Griffin knew before he even talked to Cat that she was the one for him. And slowly throughout the book he proves that to her and helps her open up more. There is still a long way for Cat and their relationship, and I am so excited for it to play out.

It is also refreshing for the Sintan royal family to be such a loving group. Usually in books like this, the main character only has a person or small group of people they can trust. I like that Cat has so many good people surrounding her. I am worried that one of them is going to turn out to be a traitor and I don't think I could handle that because I love them all!

I love the premise. I love the world building. I love the writing. But most of all I love the characters in this book. 

Brittany Ryers-Hindbaugh

Promise Of Fire

Becky

I'm giving this 4 stars because overall this is everything I like to read in a book... but I had some issues. One of them is the whole fixed her with sex thing. Are you kidding me? I mean, seriously? The next issue is that Griffin was persistent, which was fine, but Cat said no a lot and he did essentially kidnap her and whilst I loved the romance, it was frustrating that her no never seemed accepted because she was obviously denying herself. It was done well that his persistence paid off and was smart because she was just pushing him away, but God damn I hate when people assume you don't say what you mean. I had other issues with pacing and such and you would think that would mean I'd rate this book far lower than I have, but the thing is I enjoyed it.

I really did enjoy it and I feel like I'm picking faults just to have an issue with the book because I loved the characters and the banter and the drama and the storyline and the romance and all of it. This book is just one of those books, I was inevitably going to love it. That's just how it is. I will write a proper review soon, but the fact of the matter is this book is flawed but it is awesome and I want to read the next book already.

Tess

“I conquered a kingdom and found a treasure.” His voice turns gravelly, low. “I won’t let you go. Not now. Not ever.” 🔥✨

Cat was working for the circus as a soothsayer in hiding from her terrible past.  One day while doing readings she is confronted by a warlord, Griffin, who discovers her true power. He takes her captive tying an enchanted rope around each of their waists that can only be removed by him. This is a hot enemies to lovers story that is a slow burn 🔥🔥🔥 I loved every minute of it. The tension and chemistry between Cat + Griffin is on point 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Read this if you like ⤵️

🔥 Fantasy Romance 
🔥 Enemies To Lovers
🔥 Slow Burn
🔥 Forced Proximity
🔥 Greek Mythology
🔥 Magic ✨
🔥 Lots Of Action ⚔️ 

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/5
A Promise Of Fire by Amanda Bouchet 

mary

trigger warnings: abuse, parental abuse, death, death mention, fire, gore, violence, sexual content, manipulation, blackmailing, kidnapping, graphic violence

Kelly Casey

This book was amazing!!!!! I honestly didn't have high hopes for this one, but it massively surprised me. First off it reminds me of my other favorite books of the year From Blood and Ash and A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire except I might actually like this better. It was just so fantastic. The character interactions across the board were everything, especially the witty banter between Cat and the Beta team, not to mention the banter between her and Griffin. It was just so chef's kiss phenomenal. The atmosphere and the writing were also incredible. I loved the Greek mythology. I honestly loved the bad-ass action and magic scenes. I loved how bloodthirsty Cat is, and cynical but caring. It was just so perfect and now I absolutely have to read the next book. I would recommend that anyone who loves Greek mythology, fantasy, or romance should give this a try.

Nikki K

the more I think about this book the more I hate it

b.andherbooks

Intriguing start to a romance trilogy featuring a world built around Roman mythology. Cat, the heroine, is feisty and full of power that she is trying to hide from her enemies, but the hero is a bit of an Alpha bully and may be problematic for some readers. I wish a bit less time was spent constantly reviving various characters from mortal injuries and more time spent building the relationship between Cat and Griffin, but I liked everything well enough to put Book 2 on hold.

Ashley Nicole Compton 

A badass herione, a hunky war lord, mythology, adventure and romance you can't go wrong! I loved every minute of it honestly and have re-read it many times. Cannot recommend it enough!

Lacey

4-4.5 stars! I loved this fantasy romance and can't wait to continue the series!