Written by Tasya
Zera is heartless. Literally. A witch saved her from death by making her a heartless and in return, she has to serve the witch. With the threat of war around the corner that could leave the witches decimated again, Zera is sent to the kingdom to take the heart of Lucien, the crown prince of Cavanos. It should be easy right? After all, she only has to win the prince’s heart (literally).
Except, it turns out there are some… complications along the way.
Bring Me Their Hearts is a YA fantasy book that promises a lot of banter, action, and of course, a star-crossed romance. In a market where almost every other book promises the same thing, Bring Me Their Hearts really needs to deliver to stand out or twist the common tropes into something else. After reading this book, I can say that it certainly succeeds in some of these areas!
This book was incredibly fun to read, and this is mainly because of all the characters being quite snarky, which makes for great dialogue. While it was amusing at first, as the story continues it did begin to become too much causing the characters to blur together due to their similarities. Other than their wits, they all have a ‘more that meets the eye’ personality going on. The characters are also reminiscent of those which have become popular in YA. For example, a female assassin is sent to murder someone resulting in them earning their freedom, along with their love for pretty dresses, frequent quips and banter, and falling in love with someone who they are supposed to kill.
Personally, the secondary characters were more intriguing, such as Malachite and Lady Y’shennria, and it would be great to learn more about them, especially the latter because she formed a really amazing relationship and story with Zera. Plus Malachite seems quite interesting because he’s part of this race known as the Beneathers.
The world building is incredible and well fleshed out, without dumping too much information on us. We get to learn about the different races, the Sunless war, their religions, and the political issues they face. The religions especially play a huge part in the story as it’s important in the history of Cavanos, especially in the recent war. We see the people living in poverty while the royals and nobles live in opulence in the middle of it all… So cue the alleys, drinking taverns, chaotic markets and some high-speed thief chases.
Although the plot was enjoyable to read, it did carry the predictability that has become come in YA with their ‘tried-and-true’ formula. That being said, the way the story unfolded was great with it starting off with Zera being presented at the Spring Welcoming, before moving back to the point where she was initially recruited. The story then moves forward until we reach the starting point before continuing onward to what happens after the Welcoming. Since this is Zera’s first time going to court, she had to learn everything about the kingdom and court, which as a result, we get to experience everything alongside Zera without it being overkill. While it may sound slightly confusing, it’s not something I have encountered before.
Overall, despite having a great time reading it with its political intrigue and action, it did blur together with other YA fantasy books. However, hopefully in the next book we will see more of the side characters. With the major cliffhanger at the end of this book, I’m interested to see how the next book will take us.
You can find Bring Me Their Hearts on Book Depository, Amazon, and other good book retailers!
Have you read Bring Me Their Hearts? Or will you be checking it out? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
Zera is a Heartless – the immortal, unageing soldier of a witch. Bound to the witch Nightsinger ever since she saved her from the bandits who murdered her family, Zera longs for freedom from the woods they hide in. With her heart in a jar under Nightsinger’s control, she serves the witch unquestioningly.
Until Nightsinger asks Zera for a Prince’s heart in exchange for her own, with one addendum; if she’s discovered infiltrating the court, Nightsinger will destroy her heart rather than see her tortured by the witch-hating nobles.
Crown Prince Lucien d’Malvane hates the royal court as much as it loves him – every tutor too afraid to correct him and every girl jockeying for a place at his darkly handsome side. No one can challenge him – until the arrival of Lady Zera. She’s inelegant, smart-mouthed, carefree, and out for his blood. The Prince’s honor has him quickly aiming for her throat.
So begins a game of cat and mouse between a girl with nothing to lose and a boy who has it all.
Winner takes the loser’s heart. Literally.
P.S – The Nerd Daily may receive earnings for the links included in this article, however, all earnings received go back into funding giveaways!
One Comment