I have a confession. I’ve never read a Reylo book. You see, I’m a huge Star Wars fan, and I thought I could never enjoy reading books based on the Rey/Kylo Ren ship. However, I recently decided to try a Reylo book for the first time. A Tribute of Fire fit the bill! It’s a Romantasy with politics, princesses, a deadly race, and a searing romance with a sailor.

Amazon (free on KU) / Goodreads

Synopsis:

The fate of a cursed nation depends on a princess who must outwit a mortal enemy and outlast the trials of a death-defying ritual in a thrilling adventure by USA Today bestselling author Sariah Wilson.

Lia is the princess of Locris, a dying desert nation cursed centuries ago by an earth goddess—one still worshipped by the thriving and adversarial nation of Ilion. Every year, Ilion offers the goddess a sacrifice: two Locrian maidens forced to compete in a life-and-death race to reach her temple. In a millennium, no maiden has made it out of Ilion alive. This year, Lia is one of the hunted.

An education in battle gives her a fighting chance, but the challenges are greater than she feared: Lia’s beloved but untrained sister Quynh has been put in the path of danger. The winding streets of Ilion itself have been transformed into a labyrinthine maze of countless choices and dead ends. And if the risks weren’t significant enough, Lia is reluctantly drawn to the commandingly attractive Jason, an Ilionian sailor she loathes to trust and desires like no man before.

The tribute game is on. It’s up to Lia to lift the goddess’s curse, restore Locris to its former glory, and change the fate of every young woman destined to follow in her path.

Review:

Let me get this out of the way first: if you have no idea what Reylo is, it refers to the shipping of the Star Wars characters Rey and Kylo Ren. You do NOT need to know anything about it to enjoy this book. While there are nods to certain characters and situations in A Tribute of Fire, the characters are distinct and stand on their own. The main male character, Jason, stood out especially. He did not remind me of Kylo Ren at all. He was charming, suave, and adorable. A Tribute of Fire is almost a reverse grumpy sunshine, which I did not expect! This change worked so well for me. Lia is a determined heroine, and I adored her – flaws and all. She was a bit of a mess, but I think it worked.

As for the world, there are two kingdoms in the book, Locris and Ilion. They are not really at war because Locris, where Lia is from, is so much more disadvantaged than Ilion. Locris has been cursed by the goddess and has been kept down by Ilion for years. There are politics galore in this book! If you enjoy a fantasy world with politics, a hot romance, and lots of feisty nun-like sword maidens, this is an excellent book for you!

Final Thoughts:

This book was incredibly entertaining! While it wasn’t the best book I’ve ever read, it was incredibly fun, and the tropes were delightful. It’s spicy but not too explicit. The writing read as YA, but I think the spice and emotional content is most appropriate for the NA crowd. I will absolutely continue this series when the next book releases this year! 

Rating: 4 Stars

Content Warnings for death of a sibling and religious trauma.