Expected publication date: July 31st, 2018
Cover blurb:
Bold, brutal, and beautiful–a must-read fantasy full of fierce sisterhood, action, and political intrigue for fans of The Selection series, Caraval, and The Handmaid’s Tale.
In a world where women have no rights, sisters Serina and Nomi Tessaro face two very different fates: one in the palace, the other in prison.
Serina has been groomed her whole life to become a Grace–someone to stand by the heir to the throne as a shining, subjugated example of the perfect woman. But when her headstrong and rebellious younger sister, Nomi, catches the heir’s eye, it’s Serina who takes the fall for the dangerous secret that Nomi has been hiding.
Now trapped in a life she never wanted, Nomi has only one way to save Serina: surrender to her role as a Grace until she can use her position to release her sister. This is easier said than done. A traitor walks the halls of the palace, and deception lurks in every corner. But Serina is running out of time, imprisoned on an island where she must fight to the death to survive and one wrong move could cost her everything.
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I’ve actually been trying to step outside my ‘safe zone’ recently, and read several books that don’t have G&G (guys and guns for the uninitiated) on the covers. Right now I’m on a winning streak, and this one added to it nicely! As the description mentions it has similar themes to The Handmaid’s Tale, but as this is YA it definitely is not as graphic or jarring just in case you were wondering.
The world of Viridia is not a pleasant one for women or girls. They are forbidden to read or go to school, and their only choices are to work in factories or as servants, be wives/mothers or serve as Graces for the Superiors or Heirs. (Basically concubines if you will.) Serina has been in training her entire life to become a Grace if she is chosen, and her sister Nomi will serve as her handmaiden.  Well, at least that’s the plan, but as we all know, there wouldn’t be much of a story if that’s the way it actually goes. Both girls are shocked when the Heir chooses Nomi instead, and Serina is forced to act as her sister’s handmaiden…that is until she is caught ostensibly breaking one of the kingdom’s greatest rules.  Serina is banished to Mount Ruin, a volcanic island prison where women are forced to fight each other for food and survival.
From there the story is a wild ride told in chapters alternating between the two sisters. This type of storytelling doesn’t always work for me; as I mentioned in a review of a previous book, I usually end up just wanting to read them in halves and not alternate. But it really, really worked in F&G and I found myself reading faster so I could get to the next chapter sooner because I wanted to know what was going to happen! And that is a big thing in this book because I didn’t see some of the surprises coming, especially what I consider the biggest…but I’m not going to spoil that for you here!! (NO hints!)
I will say that the storyline is not wrapped up in the one book so I’m now frustrated that I have to wait to find out what happens next! (With no idea how long we’re going to have to wait for the next book…) For those that don’t like cliffhanger endings, I believe this will end up being a two book series so you might want to wait until you can read both back to back. But if you like fantasy YA with a feminist theme, this is definitely the book for you!
Thank you to Netgalley and Little, Brown Books for making this available to R&R!