Review: Castles in Their Bones (Castles in Their Bones #1)

Title: Castles in Their Bones (Castles in Their Bones #1)
Author: Laura Sebastian
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: February 1, 2022
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

A spellbinding story of three princesses and the destiny they were born for: seduction, conquest, and the crown. Immerse yourself in the first book in a new fantasy trilogy from the author of the New York Times bestselling Ash Princess series.

Empress Margaraux has had plans for her daughters since the day they were born. Princesses Sophronia, Daphne, and Beatriz will be queens. And now, age sixteen, they each must leave their homeland and marry their princes.

Beautiful, smart, and demure, the triplets appear to be the perfect brides—because Margaraux knows there is one common truth: everyone underestimates a girl. Which is a grave mistake. Sophronia, Daphne, and Beatriz are no innocents. They have been trained since birth in the arts of deception, seduction, and violence with a singular goal—to bring down monarchies— and their marriages are merely the first stage of their mother’s grand vision: to one day reign over the entire continent of Vesteria.

The princesses have spent their lives preparing, and now they are ready, each with her own secret skill, and each with a single wish, pulled from the stars. Only, the stars have their own plans—and their mother hasn’t told them all of hers.

Life abroad is a test. Will their loyalties stay true? Or will they learn that they can’t trust anyone—not even each other?

Review:

Since Empress Margaraux gave birth to triplets, she planned to marry them off to princes in three different countries so that she could reign over them all. When they turn sixteen, Princesses Sophronia, Daphne, and Beatriz are each sent to a different country to get married, with the promise that they will be reunited at home a year later. They have been trained to take down the monarchies using seduction, deception, and perhaps some magic. However, their mother did not tell them all of her plans. The three girls have to navigate around new countries and monarchies while dodging the tests that are put in their way. 

I knew I would love this story because I loved Laura Sebastian’s Ash Princess trilogy. This one lived up to my expectations. The settings were descriptive and distinct. The three sisters were sent to different countries, and they each had to deal with a completely different situation with their new husband and politics at the palaces. There were loads of twists that I didn’t expect. The ending was shocking and I found it hard to believe that one thing really happened. I’m so glad I will get to read the next one soon, as it comes out next week!

Castles in Their Bones was a thrilling start to a fantasy series!

Thank you Penguin Teen Canada for providing a digital copy of this book.

What to read next:

Other books in the series:

• Starlight in Their Veins (Castles in Their Bones #2)

Have you read Castles in Their Bones? What did you think of it?