This Cursed Crown (These Feathered Flames, #2) (2024)

I need it I need it I need it I need it I'm literally gonna scream I need to know if my girls are okay PLEASE let them be okay please

this release date is a personal attack

May 2022 Udate!
I've read it again! I wept again. I loved it again. This book delivers everything. A perfect duology and such wonderful, lyrical, prose. 14/10 I can't wait until the rest of you join me in being emotionally wrecked by this book

UPDATED for 2022!!!
I have read the revised version and OMG. The ending was magnificent and satisfying and as usual, Ally's writing was lyrical and poignant and delivered all the feels. Definitely put this on your TBR and pre-order. One of the best duologies I've read. More bears, MORE BETRAYAL, more kisses, more everything.

2020:I have the privilege of leaving the first review for this HIGHLY anticipated sequel and I just finished reading it (early draft) and damn.
[redacted] made me scream. And then there was [redacted] that made me gasp in delight. Not to mention the [redacted] that made me swoon.
This sequel is so well crafted y'all. You're not ready for this emotional roller coaster of a sequel!!!

"Perhaps this was just how it started. With all these good intentions, then one small step and you couldn’t stop yourself from falling."

This was a really hard book to write for so many reasons, but I'm happy that everyone will get to read the end to Asya and Iza's story - even if I'll really miss writing them <3

Content Warnings: (please let me know if I've missed anything!)
- on page death
- fantasy violence
- torture
- references to physical and emotional abuse
- moments of suicidal ideation

DNF 15%

I am not feeling a court diplomacy YA. There were some tropes introduced that I was not a fan of and I did not want to force it.

I will say that the writing and some of the limitations from These Feathered Flames did improve. If you are a fan of YA fantasy and do not mind some common YA fantasy tropes then this might be for you.

It was decent, though I stand by with my complaint about short chapters. More of a 3.5~3.7. 4 for now.

review coming soon

Young Adult Fairy Tales & Folklore, Young Adult Family, LGBTQ+, Young Adult Fantasy
Miniseries
These Feathered Flames (Book #

i’ve gotta say, despite the 3 star rating, this was a solid ending to the duology, and i liked quite a lot of it. the inclusion of characters from russian mythology, the relationships existing but not being the main focus, and the overall story were great.

my only issues that lowered my rating come from just how many times the characters were severely hurt and how often the characters were stopped in their tracks right before winning a fight or something similar. i really would’ve loved to see the ritual to give koschei his heart back and the deception that came with it work, rather than asya suddenly releasing the firebird from herself and *poof*, he’s gone.

TL;DR: Folklore fantasy duology concludes solidly, with care for Asya and Iza's personal growth but a little less attention to their relationships
(eARC provided by Edelweiss)

This Cursed Crown feels like a very natural followup to book one, taking the characters and ideas further down the roads set up. Asya's and Izaveta's character arcs feel emotionally appropriate, and we also get some expansion of the world's mythology without feeling too extreme. It's just that these very logical narrative steps come with some prices: first and foremost, it requires our characters be separated (either geographically or in other ways) for so much of the book, which means the relationships that really shone in These Feathered Flames are a little sidelined in favour of individual journeys. And the climactic nature of this book also leads to a slightly repetitive series of setback after setback, which the short chapters actually make worse; I really just needed a slower, more personal bit injected in between betrayals and magical threats. This is still an enjoyable book, even if it didn't capture my love the way I wanted it to, and I think it comes together as a perfectly conceived and structured YA fantasy duology.

Rating breakdown
4.5 stars rounded down to 4

this wasn't quite as good as the first one but it had a interesting plot line I felt like some of the parts were really drawn out and then I only had a handful of pages left and it seem to wrap up the plot line extremely quickly. I felt like it could've been better balanced for sure. I didn't get the solid ending so I was hoping for with some characters which was a little bit disappointing but it did leave a little bit of expositions for a another book if need be.

loved loved!!
it took me more than 10 days to finish but finally got here! lol

it was an incredible 2nd book and last one for this world, i am satisfied!

ps: i just had a bit of a problem with the pacing but other than that, it was good

I really really liked the first book, but this one just felt way too long. And yet somehow also didn’t really fully explain all the lore and backstory that I was hoping for? I liked it, but just liked the first one a lot more.

3.5

I received an ARC from Harper360ya in exchange for an honest review.

Story 3/5
For quite some time I didn’t fully understand what was happening in the story. It slowly came together and I did not care for the fact that the sisters were separated. The concept was interesting but the buildup of the story was slow for me. It was multi POV, and I really liked that.

Characters 3/5
The characters were well built and written down good, it made it easier to get into the story.

Writing 3/5
It's slow and because of that it was not that easy to read for me, the writing style is fine, but it just wasn't for me.

I don't know what went wrong for me - loved the first book but just could not get into this one.

5/5 stars
Recommended for people who like: fairytales, courtly intrigue, dual POVs, magic, fantasy, The Bear and the Nightingale, sister stories, Russian folklore, morally gray characters

Big thanks to Netgalley, Inkyard Press, and the author for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

The book starts off focused on Asya as she navigates the political waters of court, searches for answers regarding Iza, and tries to find Yuliana. I definitely felt for Asya in the first book, but I really feel for her in this one. She hates the intricacies and machinations of the court, but desperately wants to find answers about her sister and ensure that the throne is still there for her when she (if she) returns. It was interesting to see Asya grow during the course of this novel. She carries so much guilt from what happened at the end of These Feathered Flames and is still resistant to cutting her human ties, as Tarya is still urging her to do, but at the same time she also grows to understand her sister and the Firebird a bit better. There aren't really any easy choices for her in this one, and a lot of her actions involve balancing what she believes with what she wants.

Iza is in an interesting boat, we don't get her POV until several chapters in and, as mentioned in the synopsis, she's trapped in a tower in some unidentified location. There's a part of her that struggles in realizing that she's still alive, that the end she thought was coming, thought was going to cleanse her conscious, did not in fact come. Iza grapples a lot with the choices she made in the last book, both on page and off, and a lot of her arc is trying to figure out who she wants to be, outside of what her mother expected and trained her to be. Iza is still manipulative, but she's also more willing to let people into her plans and trust other people (mainly Asya, but a couple others) to see their goals through, either Iza's way or a different way.

The sisterly bond is still very strong in this book, with both Iza and Asya wanting to ensure the other is well and protected. Asya's decisions in this book mirror Iza's in the first one: Her desperate search for answers and her own questionable decisions in this book can be tied directly into her hope that Iza is still alive somewhere, much like how Iza's questionable actions in the first book were directly related to wanting to protect Asya from the anti-Firebird people at court. There is still some tension between the two of them, but I liked how it played out and I think Overy did a good job showing that kind of ride-or-die relationships siblings can have. Regardless of how they felt about how the other's actions, Iza and Asya were always willing to step up to defend one another.

Nikov is a recurring character here. It'd been a while since I read the first book, so I remembered there was something going on with him, but couldn't remember if we knew what it was (and if we did, what it was). He acts as a good friend to Asya and serves as someone she can share her hopes with. At the same time, Nikov has a lot going on himself and has some of his own machinations to account for.

Yuliana is also back in this one and as someone who's much more clearly on Asya's side. Yuliana regrets a lot of what occurred at the end of the last book, and kind of struggles to understand how Asya could have already forgiven her for all of that. Yuliana actually ends up playing an integral role in the book at multiple different points, and, more minorly, we get some more romance with her and Asya.

After the conclusion of the last book, I wasn't entirely sure what the main conflict would be. Iza being gone was clearly going to be an issue considering no one liked the Firebird still and the queen-to-be was gone. However, I wasn't anticipating the conflict/villain that showed up and was pleasantly surprised at how well it plays into the original firebird myth (as well as Russian folklore in general). I don't want to be spoilery, but I absolutely loved the villain, and not in a 'oh they're sexy' kind of way, but more in a 'this is a quality villain' way. There's underlying manipulations, there's betrayals, and there's lies, but then there's also outright aggression and fights and magic, and it all ties nicely into everything.

You can definitely feel the stakes of this book and I definitely had moments were I thought everything was going well and then saw how much of the book I had left and knew things were going to hit the fan. There were also multiple points where I wasn't sure if people were going to make it through, and honestly sometimes they didn't.

I will say that the ending was...a lot. There was a lot happening, a lot of hope and then hope getting ripped away, and then more conflict, etc. I think I would've liked an ending that was a little further from the edge of ruin, perhaps one that ended just a handful of pages before where it did. At the same time though, the way that it ended did right things, so the conflict probably resolved in the right place.

See my full review here: https://www.yabookscentral.com/this-c...

THIS CURSED CROWN is an intriguing and ultimately satisfying conclusion to the THESE FEATHERED FLAMES duology. Picking up where the first book ended, we first follow Asya who is still reeling from the loss of her sister at her hands. With the Firebird, her wants/thoughts are sometimes in conflict with the role she must play, a fact that becomes clear as she performs the jobs she must to keep the balance. Meanwhile, she is also wondering about what happened to Izaveta and whether there is any chance of rescue.

Later in the story, as stated in the synopsis, we begin to also follow Izaveta, who did not expect to survive the balancing of the Firebird. She is trapped in a tower at the hands of someone she would never have suspected. However, things are even more complicated than they seem and Iza is racing against the clock and untold power to find her way back to the throne and Asya.

What I loved: While there are several themes, sisterhood remains a strong current of the story. Asya and Iza are two sides of the same coin. While they were raised for different roles, their connection and love for each other is a driving factor for both. Other themes of the story are around politics, complicated morality, power and socioeconomic disparity, betrayal, mind games, and the weight of emotions and love.

The Firebird is a tool of balance with rules that seem simple in terms of making sure everyone pays the price for the magic they cast. However, this is complicated by situations in which wealthy people force their servants (under threats of the jobs they cannot afford to lose) to finish casting their spells, so that the servants will pay the price. Asya is a tool of the system, and while she wishes that she had more of a role to play in changing things, she is powerless to evaluate the morality and fairness of these situations.

While the story is told from both Iza and Asya's perspectives, Asya really dominates the story. She has been understanding her role and relationship with the Firebird more. While this was particularly complicated in the first story, she is beginning to find her own way to embrace who she has become. At the same time, she is evaluating the connections she has to Yuliana and Iza, as these are potential weaknesses, but they are also drivers for her behavior. This conflict between love and duty is one that continues throughout this series.

This story expands a bit more on the mythology of this world and the magic. This is a particularly interesting element of the story with implications for religion and the way that fables are born from fact. History has its own twist from the people who tell it. Their religion is also not so smooth and clear-cut, with the ability to influence rituals and decisions. The plots around this world-building and related themes are strong throughout the duology.

What left me wanting more: This book felt like it meandered a lot, particularly in the early parts, which felt rather slow. The path was a bit windy, and it was tough to remember details from earlier needed later. This did get smoother later in the story as it really found its stride.

Final verdict: THIS CURSED CROWN is a satisfying and compelling conclusion to a YA fantasy duology about sisters, magic, and destiny.

Please note that I received an ARC. All opinions are my own.

Thank you Inkyard Press and NetGalley for the eARC to read in exchange for an honest review!

How do you fix something that has been broken for a long time? How do you atone for the sins of the past? What price are you willing to pay to do what’s right? And who will you choose to be at the end of the day in the face of losing everything, even yourself?

These questions I believe sum up the circ*mstances of this sequel and the crux of the duology as a whole. With so many long-kept secrets being unearthed, devious plots to foil, identities tested, and lies to unravel, there’s hardly any time for Asya and Izaveta to breathe. Let alone save the queendom whilst making sense of their splintered relationship and destined roles. It’s a heart wrenching and difficult journey for the two as individuals and as sisters.

Asya has never fully embraced what it means to be the Firebird despite the fear and hatred towards it. The balance of magic has always been essential above all else. Asya continues to fight to hold on to her humanity and good nature, so court politics and deceptions are a challenge to maneuver through.

Izaveta was trained by her mother (and her mother before her, etc.) in subterfuge in order to maintain control and power. But now, trapped in a tower far from her sister, for the first time ever Izaveta is at a loss, unsure of how to proceed forward after making so many grave mistakes.

This Cursed Crown is a reckoning. The carefully conducted chaos and cruelty is daunting. You and the twins are often left to wonder if good can truly triumph over evil. Because at the end of the day, change is inevitable, actions have consequences, and magic demands sacrifice. But what I like about Izaveta and Asya is that they never stop trying to do the right thing. Thus the story becomes an entrancing, emotional roller coaster.

I think this duology has always gone in the right direction for all of the characters with appropriately made choices indicative to each. This helped spur the story along through ups and downs and extensive character development. It further entangled conflicts as things escalated towards a bit surprising but suitable conclusion for the main characters.

Overall, This Cursed Crown was an exhilarating, high-stakes story.

With a doozy of a cliffhanger at the end of the first book, I was anxious to see what was next for these twin sisters/princesses.

Asya believes her sister Izaveta is dead, and she’s floundering without her. Izaveta understands court politics and manipulates people like a master chess player, but Asya is entirely out of her depth. As the Firebird, she’s required to collect payment from magic casters to maintain balance in the realm – the rules are clear-cut and something she understands. But because of her actions at the end of the first book, she’s now being cast as a criminal, and the girl she loves is missing. With Izaveta presumed dead, the throne sits empty, and someone must be crowned. Among power struggles, betrayals, lies, imprisonments, and dark magic, it’s unclear who will succeed.

I honestly didn’t know how these two would find their way back to each other, reclaim the throne, or even survive, and their circ*mstances look grim for most of the story. Selfish decisions and mistakes are made, and every time they gain ground, the twins are outsmarted by a very clever villain. When long-kept secrets are revealed, their paths become very murky.

I’m a fan of morally gray characters, but I had a love/hate relationship with Iza and Asya on and off throughout the book. Each makes unpopular choices at certain points, but there’s also admirable character growth in both of them throughout the course of the story. When the chips are down, their sister/twin bond only grows stronger, and they’ll always choose each other over everyone else.

These books are based on the Russian folktale The Firebird, so fans of fairy tales or folklore may find the series appealing. This Cursed Crown is a satisfying conclusion to an exciting duology filled with magic, power quests, and deception.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

Not good, not bad, very in-between. I wanna like it, but during my reading of the book, I was very lukewarm about it.

Asya and Izaveta's character arcs felt appropriate, and the constant ping-ponging between love and hate between the two sisters was justified. It didn't feel out of place at all.

We got a fair amount of knowledge and background about the world's lore in this book. Compared to the first book, the lore in this one is much more expansive and detailed, but it still managed to be interesting and intriguing. It wasn't overwhelming at all.

I enjoyed the plot twists in this book. There were two major plot twists, and both of them were good, and delivered answers to questions that I didn't think much about.

The writing was fine, it isn't much to talk about.

The ending was solid, but the way Koschei died left me blank. There was no triumph, it was just very flat and forgettable.

I was not very immersed in this book. There were a few parts that definitely caught my attention and held onto it, but the moment those parts ended, I would go back to running my eyes over the words and sorta skimmed over the paragraphs. This book could have been much shorter, and it would not have changed anything plot-wise.

This book was running around in circles a lot. So many things could have been resolved much more quickly, but the circ*mstances keep evading Asya and Izaveta's odds, so they end up having to run around Tourin, finding ways to fix the problem and defeat the bad guy.

Overall, a good ending to a duology, really isn't anything to rave about.

Thank you to NetGalley, Inkyard Press, and Alexandra Overy for the opportunity to read This Cursed Crown in exchange for an honest review.

This is the final book in the These Feathered Flames duology. Similar to what I reviewed with the first novel, this one felt too long for what it is and just felt like a drag to read through, though on the same token it is a well-written and enjoyable novel. It just didn't need to be 500+ pages necessarily.

This book takes place right where the first book left off, with Asya miserable about the loss of her sister. But the Firebird must have its price when a spell is cast.

What Asya doesn't know is that Izaveta is till alive. It was not her life that was taken to pay the price of magic, but something else...

Asya's storyline revolves around stopping the wrong people from trying to take the crown while Izaveta is presumed dead. Meanwhile, Izaveta is working on escaping from the place she is held prisoner. She believes her captor to be someone of mal intent, though the person turns out to be a malicious sorcerer set on revenge against the Firebird and the crown.

Together, Asya and Izaveta, with the return of Nikov and Yuliana, must try to quell this evil before it takes total control. There must be a way to end this cursed crown!

Despite the length of the novel, it is really a great ending to the duology. It does what it needs to do, and a duology is the perfect length for this series.

I loved the first book in this duology, The feathered flames. So I was very disappointed when I did not like this book at all. This authors writing is still lyrical and beautiful But lost it's addictive touch Because the story just didn't work. Keeping the twins separate for most of the book was a great mistake There relationship was the beating heart of the first book. And the majority of what they went through felt either repetitive or just plain annoying and unneeded. There are a few good revelations the twins had but it did not save the book. One of my favourite aspects of the first book was the wlw romantic relationship that was given hardly any time in this book, and when it was given time it was mostly a villan using Asya's love to keep the firbird in check. This book could have been the continuation of an amazing love story, However they hardly continued it at all.
The ending felt pointless and it just wasn't good it felt repetitive and too easy. But I still think the first book in this series is amazing, and the author's writing is amazing. I simply suggest only reading the first Book and not reading the second book. Even though it ends in a cliff hanger because it's just not worth it in my opinion.

4.5 stars

The descriptions in this book are fantastic. I read it during the first week of a very warm October and yet I could picture the icy landscape and feel the cold wind without any problems. The characters are well done as well, though I wish they spent more time together, like Asya and Izaveta or Asya and Yuliana. These two relationships were so intriguing and I wanted to see even more of them. I also loved seeing the two sisters step out of their comfort zones and seeing how much more capable they became because of it. Nikov's secret was quite the plot twist! I was very surprised, pleasantly so. The interesting thing about the plot was that it managed to be both pretty simple and quite filled with betrayals and treachery at the same time.

The reason that I'm giving this book four and not five stars is that there were a few times where I found it too easy to put the book down. Probably because there was too much tension and barely any calmer scenes to let the characters (and me) relax a little. It became a bit draining after a while.

A solid conclusion to a gorgeous, icy and treacherous duology.

3 out of 5 stars (3 / 5) I adored book one, These Feathered Flames. It was unique and fun and the writing grabbed me right away.

I struggled a bit with this one. I was excited for the continuation of the story (what a cliffhanger!) but it never quite grabbed me.

For quite some time I didn’t fully understand what was happening in the story. It slowly came together and I did not care for the fact that the sisters were separated. The strongest points in book 1 came from their relationship and I missed that aspect. While the political intrigue and more was high, my attention remained low.

Duologies are tough! If book 1 is fabulous, the expectation is just as high for book 2. Very few series can hold that and keep it from falling. This was a solid book 2 but I wish there was a book 3 to redeem itself.

Thank you to Inkyard Press and NetGalley for the gifted copy!

The book releases December 6, 2022.

Content mentions:
https://www.theopenbooks.net/2022/12/...

✨Book Review- This Cursed Crown✨

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This is one of the many books that I purchased solely because of how beautiful the sprayed edges by @bookish_signs are, and always, I got more than I bargained for. This so far has been my favorite book this year. I absolutely could not put it down once I got about half way through. It was full of drama, mystery, secrets, and magic. I seriously hope that Alexandra Overy write more YA or Adult books because WOW

Also, I absolutely adore my Book Review sign from @bookish_signs! You can get your own from their Etsy (link in bio) and use my code Christy10 for 10% off! I’m a huge Gold fan, but you can customize your sign with whatever color you want!

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#bookishsigns

Last year I read and liked THESE FEATHERED FLAMES, so when I saw this sequel, I decided to read it and find out how the story ends. I enjoyed the story world a lot. There are some really interesting elements with magic. If someone uses magic, they have to pay a price. It can be as small as a few strands of hair or as large as someone’s life. If they don’t pay a price for using magic, then the Firebird, Asya, finds them and exacts the price through the power of the firebird, which lives in her.

I like that the story alternates between the points of view of the sisters Asya and Izaveta. I was really drawn to both points of view in this book, and I liked the complexity of their relationship.

The only thing that I struggled with reading this book is that it felt like it took a long time to read, especially at the beginning. Like, I felt like I’d been reading for a long time and when I checked my progress, I was only 10% through the book. I don’t know if the writing is more complex than other books that I usually read, or if the plot was slow to start or what.

Once I got to about the 40 or 50% mark, I seemed to be moving through the story more quickly. The end was pretty climactic, so that definitely helped.

Overall, I would say I enjoyed the book and am glad that I read it. I think the end kind of made up for the slow start in its higher action and satisfying story elements.

I think readers who enjoyed the political intrigue and magical elements of SHADOW AND BONE by Leigh Bardugo or THE WAKING LAND by Callie Bates will like this one.

3.5 stars
Thank you, Inkyard Press & NetGalley, for allowing me to finish this duology with this arc and giving my honest review!

Much more political aspects in this novel and the intertwining of more Russian and Slavic myths and tales: Koschei the deathless & the Firebird.

The separation of the twins and how much different their journeys were were strangely both a hit-and-miss for me. I wasn't as involved in this book as in book one, and I cannot put my finger exactly on why. The writing was good; the flow could have been better on part but generally, excellent lore mixing!

The reveal of the truth about the twins and the Firebird curse was exciting and was a clever twist.

I do prefer book 1, and I wish Asya didn't annoy me like she did in this book!

I had a good time! I read These Feathered Flames kind of on a whim from a bookish box offering last year. And I have to admit that it was a great choice. I appreciated the intrigue, the betrayal and the angst that the first book garnered and continued to give us into the second.

It was a solid YA fantasy read and I adored the main characters, even if there were some times that I wanted to help them myself.

My only qualm with the book is that there was a lot of despair. Which I can appreciate why, especially since it's meant to be a duology, you've got to pack a lot into two books, but I would have been happy with one less "everything is totally f*cked" moment. Otherwise it was a delight!

Thank you to Inkyard Press, and Netgalley for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.