DNF Early Review – Rule (Rule, Book 1) by Ellen Goodlett (3/5 stars)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 384 pages
Publisher: Little Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: September 11, 2018
ISBN-13: 978-0316515283
Stand Alone or Series: 1st book in Rule duology
Source: ARC through Amazon Vine
Rating: 3/5 stars
“Three girls. Three deadly secrets. Only one can wear the crown.
The king is dying, his heir has just been murdered, and rebellion brews in the east. But the kingdom of Kolonya and the outer Reaches has one last option before it descends into leaderless chaos.
Or rather, three unexpected options.
Zofi has spent her entire life trekking through the outer Reaches with her band of Travelers. She would do anything to protect the band, her family. But no one can ever find out how far she’s already gone.
Akeylah was raised in the Eastern Reach, surrounded by whispers of rebellion and abused by her father. Desperate to escape, she makes a decision that threatens the whole kingdom.
Ren grew up in Kolonya, serving as a lady’s maid and scheming her way out of the servants’ chambers. But one such plot could get her hung for treason if anyone ever discovers what she’s done.
When the king summons the girls, they arrive expecting arrest or even execution. Instead they learn the truth: they are his illegitimate daughters, and one must become his new heir. But someone in Kolonya knows their secrets, and that someone will stop at nothing to keep the sisters from their destiny… to rule.
Magic, mystery, and blackmail abound in the first book of this sensational and striking fantasy duology.”
I got this book through the Amazon Vine program to review. This is the first book in a planned duology. I read the first 200 pages in this book and then stopped. I just didn’t enjoy the characters in the story. This seems like just a poor imitation of the numerous other YA fantasy series out there.
This book follows the POVs of three different girls: Zofi who is a Traveler (think gypsy), Akeylah who is an Eastern Reach noblewoman with an abusive father, and Ren who grew up as a lady’s maid in the capital city of Kolonya. The three girls find out they are all heirs to the throne and are called back to Kolonya to compete for the right to be heir. To mix things up a bit, each girl has a dark secret that she needs to keep hidden and is being blackmailed because of.
I was hoping for an engaging and action-packed YA fantasy, what I got was a bunch of intrigue and characters blackmailing and backstabbing each other. The story takes a long time to get going (it still really hadn’t gotten going 200 pages in).
There are some interesting things in this book about war and rebellion; however that takes a backseat to the court politics. The first 200 pages deals with the girls getting called to court and with them trying to navigate the treacherous court waters. It was a lot of backstabbing and treachery and I didn’t enjoy it.
I didn’t really like any of the characters. Each of the girls is quickly given a love interest which seemed contrived. I did like the concept of the Arts (a way to enhance abilities and perform magic) but there wasn’t a lot of time spent on the Arts in this book.
Overall this was an okay, yet disappointing, book for me. If you like politics and backstabbing you might enjoy this. I found it boring and hard to engage with. I didn’t like the characters and the story was too narrow in focus, focusing only on petty court politics.
This book goes towards the following reading challenges:
– New Release Reading Challenge
– Goodreads Reading Challenge