These Feathered Flames (These Feathered Flames #1)

**As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases. 

These Feathered Flames (These Feathered Flames #1)

Alexandra Overy

A queer retelling of “The Firebird,” a Russian folktale

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.

-Excerpt taken from Goodreads.

Check Goodreads to see the book’s ratings.

My Opinion

(4.5 / 5) I loved this! I have to admit, almost 500 pages did not fit into my ARC reading schedule. I was seriously worried! But I started reading and just devoured this one! 

It’s a masterfully crafted world that hooked me from the start. Magic and balance. Royalty and politics. The writing is done well with descriptions that create people and landscapes but also leave so much to my imagination.

I loved the characters. Two sisters, wanting to trust the other and wanting the closeness of their childhood but responsibility gets in the way. We see politics, manipulation and the scheming! It’s court life at its best. You don’t know who to trust or who to root for and it is fabulous.

Content Summary: Look at that; almost 500 pages and NO LANGUAGE. What did I just read? I didn’t even miss it or notice and I’m loving it. This claims to be a queer relationship but honestly, it was so mild with one kissing scene and not much else. You could tell there were feelings developing but it was a very small focus. The violence was less than most books but it was definitely there, people get burned and tortured and more. Honestly, this didn’t feel like teens but it fell well within YA standards on all aspects. I’m very impressed. 

Thank you to Inkyard Press for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review. I’ve found a new fav series and I can’t wait for more!

The book releases April 20, 2021.

Detailed Content Review

Language 

F***-

H***- 

S***-

A**-

B****-

D***-

Bas****-

Religious Cursing

J****-

Chr***-

G**- 1

L***-

Derogatory terms etc-

Svedye (a curse)

Diye (a curse) 

Alcohol, Drugs, Smoking

A young woman drinks a cup of alcohol and realizes it’s poisoned. She collapses and slowly loses consciousness. 

Intimacy, Sex, Immodesty

*Very minimal LGBTQ+ aspects included* 

Two young women kiss. 

Violence, Weapons, Crime, Blood

A man hits a young woman in the head with a chair, a woman burns his side. The young woman grabs him and holds a knife to his throat. A young girl is punished for a wrong committed; a woman uses magic and fire to take her arm. Her young brother screams and her father cries.

A young woman finds a woman dead, propped up against a tree, with ritual/magic evidence in front of her. There was blood and the body was at an awkward angle, verifying the woman’s death. Later, two people are found dead nearby. 

A group of people with swords surround and attack a weaponless young woman. She dodges and is hit by a fist then cut with a sword. One holds a dagger to her throat. She fights them off with fire. 

A falcon grabs and scratches a young woman, sending blood dripping down her arms. It then attacks another, sinking its talons in their neck, spraying blood. The person falls off their bear, dead. 

An arrow grazes a young woman’s side. Many archers attack two young women from a distance. An arrow is shot through one if their chests. 

**SPOILER** Using magic, a man plunges a knife into a woman’s chest. 

A young woman uses her own blood for a spell.

A banewolf bites a woman’s arm, sending blood spraying. It grabs a man with its jaws and throws him aside. It bats aside a woman with its paw. It battles with a young woman using magic and fire. She is clawed, it is burned. 

A woman tells of a woman using magic to take her fathers heart and how she was burned in the process. 

A young woman is hit on the head and taken captive. She is shackled and a rope is around her throat. A cloth goes over her mouth as she breathes in a sedative. 

A young woman hits a woman’s head and loops a chain around her neck. 

A man holds a knife to a woman’s throat. A young woman holds a weapon to a man’s throat. 

A young woman is chained and hung where her toes barely touch the ground. Two people stab her legs with knives and twist as she screams. They leave the knives in and do it again and again. 

A woman has been beaten. She has blood dripping down her neck and a bruise on her face. Someone punches her again. A man cuts off her finger as she screams. 

A man throws a young woman against the wall, her head snapping against the wall. 

A man is burned to ash. Many people nearby are burned. 

Potentially Intense Themes

A fever quickly takes the life of a woman. 

Many birds are found dead with their eyes burned out. 

A beast (banewolf) is twice as tall as a human abd four times that in length. It has pointed ears and huge jaws and silvery fur. It’s fangs were longer than swords. 

Magic takes a young woman’s heart, killing her. 

**Any quotes from the book are taken from the advanced copy and therefore may not be fully accurate or correctly compare to the final copy of the book.

**As an Amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.