Name: Hannah Wall's review of These Feathered Flames by Alexandra Overy
Item: These Feathered Flames
Rating: 1
Author: Hannah Wall

Alexandra Overy

“These Feathered Flames is a stunning debut as dark, lush, and captivating as the best fairy tales.”—Nina Varela, author of the Crier's War duology When twin heirs are born in Tourin, their fates are decided at a young age. While Izaveta remained at court to learn the skills she’d need as the future queen, Asya was taken away to train with her aunt, the mysterious Firebird, who ensured magic remained balanced in the realm. But before Asya’s training is completed, the ancient power blooms inside her, which can mean only one thing: the queen is dead, and a new ruler must be crowned. As the princesses come to understand everything their roles entail, they’ll discover who they can trust, who they can love—and who killed their mother. Books in the These Feathered Flames duology: These Feathered Flames This Cursed Crown

These Feathered Flames

Tiitu

Three Dark Crowns meets Wicked Saints in this queer #ownvoices retelling of "The Firebird," a Russian folktale, by debut author Alexandra Overy. When twin heirs are born in Tourin, their fates are decided at a young age. While Izaveta remained at court to learn the skills she'd need as the future queen, Asya was taken away to train with her aunt, the mysterious Firebird, who ensured magic remained balanced in the realm. But before Asya's training is completed, the ancient power blooms inside her, which can mean only one thing: the queen is dead, and a new ruler must be crowned. As the princesses come to understand everything their roles entail, they'll discover who they can trust, who they can love--and who killed their mother.

Hannah Wall

The book was descriptive, but it was so slow and uninteresting. I didn’t feel like I was the character and the history and world building was confusing to me. I had to stop reading in chapter 13 because I was pushing myself so hard to read, it wasn’t enjoyable anymore. The characters were too closed off and the beginning wasn’t captivating. I hate giving bad reviews, but I didn’t like it at all.

Rania Singla

4.5 stars


  Thank you Netgalley, along with the author and publisher for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!


These Feathered Flames traces the undying love between two sisters, who were separated at a very young age, due to their family’s traditions, and for the safety of their kingdom. Izaveta, spent her years at the royal palace, studying the politics of court and preparing to become the next queen, after her mother. Asya, on the other hand was sent away to train with her aunt, the Firebird, so that one day, she could stand in her aunt’s stead.

I went into this book completely oblivious to the rollercoaster of emotions it would put me through. Izaveta and Asya hadn’t seen each other for seven years, and inevitably, tension ensued. It was enchanting to see their relationship develop throughout the story and how they ended up rekindling their sisterly bond. Along with this, they’re also going through a state of grief regarding the loss of their mother, the queen of Tourin.

Izaveta has to keep up with the pressure of the royal court, that throws challenges at her from all angles. She closes herself off from those who care about her, and finds it hard to share her feelings. Asya struggles with finding her true identity, as well as trying to control her newfound powers.

The character development for both of them was spectacular to read about. As I finished the book, I couldn’t help but think about how far all the characters had come from when I first read about them and if I’m being honest, it made me emotional. I was able to connect with these characters, and became attached to them through the course of this book.

I loved the queer representation in this book, and the enemies-to-lovers romance was to die for. It was the epitome of the perfect trope and I adored it with every inch of my heart.

The worldbuilding of These Feathered Flames made me wish I could be there with the characters. It taught me a lot about Russian folklore and how it plays a part in the real world. Of course, like all other fantasy novels, it was a little hard to get used to but I promise you, it’s worth it in the end.

The plot was fast-paced and there was something or the other happening in every scene. This made me want to know more and kept me rooted to my seat. The names of the different characters were quite confusing as the members of Izaveta’s court had similar ones and sometimes I couldn’t place them in their respective scenes.

And that ending. I still can’t get over that ending. There are so many questions left flitting across my mind and I’m hoping they get answered in the next book. Do you ever feel broken inside but don’t shed a single tear? Because that’s what this book did to me.

If you’re looking for an enthralling fantasy novel with an outstanding enemies-to-lovers romance, that will probably touch your heart, then you, my friend, are in the right place.

Jennifer

I'm pretty sure I've waited for more than 6 months for Alexandra Overy's These Feathered Flames to be released. Seeing that the premise states that this is a queer retelling of The Firebird (a Russian folklore), I was intrigued. As I listen to Classical Music I know that there are numerous pieces inspired by folklores and fairytales, so by the similar token I'm also enthralled to discover books that are inspired by these timeless tales.

Let me just say that These Feathered Flames is an emotionally touching and atmospheric story about sisterhood, sacrifice, and self-discovery. Set in a Russian-inspired fictional world, Overy painted a wintry and lush landscape throughout the novel. It's an enchanting world to escape to: mythical creatures, elements of Slavic-inspired mythology, and also plenty of magic! 


  

  "Those starbirds flickered in her mind. Another peaceful creature had been corrupted by the imbalance of magic."
  



The central themes of These Feathered Flames is amongst one of the big factors that got me to add this into my reading list. I think the way Overy described the fantasy elements and their consequences illustrates the notion of sacrifice very well: that using magic comes with a cost and misusing magic leads to corruption. For readers, this suggests that while it's tempting to use the power that you have it's also very important to know your limits. And Overy explored both the magic concept and the repurcussions of the imbalanced magic thoroughly through both Asya and Iza's perspectives.


  

  "The hollowness in that one word resonated in Asya's stomach. A piercing reminder of their shared loss. Both grief and the absence of grief, tangled together with the memory of a mother who'd never truly been a mother."
  



I think Overy's prose enhances both the imageries and the character headspace in the novel. Written in dual perspectives between the sisters, Overy explored both Asya's and Iza's complicated emotions as they process grief and confront inevitable sacrifice. I'm going to give Asya's characterisation a special shoutout. She's passionate, has a good heart, and stands up for herself - and this does show in the chapters narrated from her perspective (I find them more emotionally engaging).


  

  "A blinding moment where everything felt right. A distant symphony made clear as the two of them drew together."
  



Another thing that fascinated me with Asya's chapters is the slowburn f/f romance. While there is a romantic component in These Feathered Flames, I didn't feel like this relationship overshadowed the overarching messaging of the novel. I think it actually enhances Asya's headspace: being able to understand how Asya comes across to someone who cares for her.

Overall, this is a pretty solid debut novel. If there's a noticeable drawback, I would say that the pacing of the book was slightly uneven (primarily in the Iza chapters). So I personally wasn't as invested with the things that Iza had gone through in the novel and felt that part of the sisterhood subplot was a bit disjointed. 

Again I just want to give a quick disclaimer: I read These Feathered Flames while I'm suffering a book hangover from another fantasy book (that is also atmospheric and has a sisterhood subplot). So I think this slightly affected my reading experience because I was still reeling over the stuff I've read earlier in the week.

Book hangover and slight missteps aside, Overy's These Feathered Flames is a magical and beautifully written debut novel about sacrifice, sisters, and queer love - while I wasn't in the right mood reading it I would still want to find out what happens next between the sisters. If you're a fan of something wintry, set in the forest, and looking for a decent retelling of folklores this book is worth checking out!

N.B. Content warnings for this book are stated in author's website

(3.5 stars out of 5)

laura

I was captured from the first page in this read. I also loved the focus on twins and twin sisters. I also really did like the mystery that was at the heart of this read. I also really liked how this book focused on the unique world and the sisterhood elements in this read really reminded me of the three dark crowns series. I will def be picking up book 2! This book had some pacing issues but overall i loved the romances but also the plot twists!!

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this ebook from the author. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Book: These Feathered Flames

Author: Alexandra Overy

Book Series: These Feathered Flames book 1

Diversity: dead character and sign used, f/f romance

Rating: 4/5

Recommended For...: mystery lovers, fantasy readers, ya readers, lgbt+ readers

Genre: YA Fantasy

Publication Date: April 20, 2021

Publisher: Inkyard Press

Pages: 496

Recommended Age: 16+ (Gore, Violence, Attempted assault possibly sexual)

Synopsis: When twin heirs are born in Tourin, their fates are decided at a young age. While Izaveta remained at court to learn the skills she’d need as the future queen, Asya was taken away to train with her aunt, the mysterious Firebird, who ensured magic remained balanced in the realm.

But before Asya’s training is completed, the ancient power blooms inside her, which can mean only one thing: the queen is dead, and a new ruler must be crowned.

As the princesses come to understand everything their roles entail, they’ll discover who they can trust, who they can love—and who killed their mother.

Review: Overall I liked the book. It was highly imaginative and I loved that it was based on Russian mythology. The book had well developed characters and the world building was well done.

However, the book had a lot of issues. The plot was slow and so was the pacing. The magical elements weren't well explained. And, until 80% into the book, the book was just a struggle to get through. I definitely loved Azya's storyline more than Izaveta's, as hers was an awful experience to read through. I am also not a fan of how the relationship between Azya and her love interest turned out. I felt like it was a bit cliche to older queer tropes.

Verdict: It was good, just needed a bit more on Izaveta's side.

Samantha Bass

Shyla Tobiassen

Trigger Warnings: Death, fantasy violence, abuse, and torture.

In short, let's just say this is going to be my book that I recommend to all my fantasy loving friends who have been looking for folk story retelling that has a twist, from now, until the foreseeable future. I will admit, I have never read the folkale of The Firebird before, and now have a very strong urge to familiarize myself with other Slavic folktales. 

I want to talk about the expertly done sibling relationship between the twin sisters, these two gave me the type of representation of siblings I want to see more of in books. The time to build out and make their bond feel real is something that a lot of authors would have skipped over, and it's needed more and more in books. They move like chess pieces to one another, working for each other throughout the book and as a sister to a sibling I love very much, it felt true to how sibling bonds work. You work for each other, despite one another, and to whatever end you must.

Overy takes us on a journey that isn't something I have heard a million times over. If you've seen any of my reviews before, you are probably aware I have a penchant for fantasy stories, especially if they have an enemies to lovers storyline in them. It is most common for enemies to lovers to have a broody male character who wins over the "good" hero-female character, in this, not *only* do we get representation from the lgbt front, but we *also* get the enemies to loves plot line, and my oh my, let me tell you, this was the perfect book for me to read during Pride Month. As a member of the LGBT+ community myself, finding representation in my fantasy reads can be a bit challenging at times, but Overy did an amazing job of making sure to weave in the nuance of those relationships.

The mystery, high fantasy, and intrigue of this book kept me pining for more until the very end, and I was so glad to hear that the sequel was announced shortly after I started reading it. It's a beautiful story, with a world I feel is under visited in high fantasy, and has potential to bring about a whole era of fantasy that we've barely scratched the surface of. 

I give a huge "Congratulations!" to Alexandra Overy, for having a showstopper of a debut novel, and for bringing about a world that left me wanting more. I've read many fantasy stories over the years, but this one was exceptional.

Leah Butler

These Feathered Flames is an incredibly well written retelling of the Russian folktale ‘Firebird’. It is full of action, betrayal, strong female characters and intense world building. Theres also a f/f enemies to lovers thrown in there, and I’m all here for that (you all know my love for enemies to lovers) 😉

This story follows twin Princesses Asya and Izaveta after the tragic death of their mother, the Queen. Izaveta remained at court to be raised by a master manipulator and learn the ways of being Queen, while her sister Asya was taken away and raised by her aunt, the Firebird, who ensures that magic remains balanced in the realm.

I love the relationship between the two sisters. Their unquestionable love for each other is what drives them and is the main factor for certain decisions they make. The fact that despite being twin sisters, they are supposed to leave that aside and just focus on being a Firebird and a future Queen, but the bond there is so strong they put those things to one side.

This book ends on such an amazing cliffhanger and sets up the next book perfectly! I’m not the biggest fan of cliffhangers but WOW 😍 And the plot twists were *chefs kiss*. I need the next book pronto! How am I going to survive until next year?!

Cristina Cicivelli 

These Feathered Flames is a book I started casually, without barely any expectations about it… and I ended up being emotionally wounded but totally in love with this incredible masterpiece.

There is something so fascinating in the world-building, from the perfectly balanced concept of magic to the idea of two twins meant to be separated from such a young age (…I should have probably expected how much it would have hurt from there), one for the crown and one for the flames. It creates the perfect structure from an extremely interesting plot, with mysteries to solve and court intrigues to navigate carefully without drowning. 
The writing style is flawless, and helps to feel completely involved in the story of Asya and Izaveta from the start.

To be true, the reason why I became so obsessed with this book are the relationships, not only the romantic ones, but also the sisterly bond between Asya and Iza: I deeply loved how these two girls constantly tried to find their way back to each other after being away for so long, to make peace between the people they are now and the strong relationship they used to have… they are really ready to go to the moon and back for one another, and it made my heart ache in a way I can’t properly explain.

But, *oh*, the romances. I mean, Izaveta and her adorable scholar have so much potential as a couple, however I was here for the queer content and I was not disappointed: Asya and Yuliana are pure enemies to lovers excellence.
The knowledge that Yuliana deeply hates what Asya represents and is consequently unable to see the girl behind the monster hurts enough already, even if she does so for completely understandable reasons… but the fact this becomes the seeds that start their relationship, as Yuliana is the only person in the palace that has the courage to not step back before Asya, to fight with her, is magnificently heartbreaking. I really adored many things in this book, but nothing as much as the evolution of the bond between Asya and Yuliana.

The ending of These Feathered Flames completely destroyed me so we are not going to talk about it, but please, read this book: it’s as good as it’s painful.

[ Note: I listened to the audiobook – it would have definitely benefited from having two main narrators, one for each sister, but it was still not too bad and it helped me feel even more immersed in the story ]

Tiitu &
These Feathered Flames by Alexandra Overy

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