The Phoenix King by Aparna Verma

Hi, everyone! Today I'm a stop on the Compulsive Readers tour for Aparna Verma's The Phoenix King. The first installment in the Ravence trilogy.

A king unwilling to give up his throne. A would-be queen certain she'll never be accepted. And an assassin who yearns for freedom. 

These three and their stories intertwine to make up Verma's debut, The Phoenix King. 

When we meet Yassen Knight, he's on his last assignment. The last one before he's out of the business. Unfortunately things go very wrong and Yassen ends up on the run. Which is how he ends up in service to the Ravences. 

For Elena, the throne is her birthright. And yet, it seems everything, including her own father, is working against her claiming her place as leader. 

To that end, Leo is not at all ready to give up his seat or his power. 

But war threatens their kingdom, and an ancient prophecy could upend all of their plans. 

The Phoenix King has an interesting history, all things considered. Verma self published the title as The Boy With Fire, gaining popularity and fanbase enough to catch the attention of trad publishers (a perfect storm, in other words). 

And rightfully so! Verma weaves political intrigue, romance, and Hindu mythology into a book and a world that are quite unlike anything else I've read of late!

The Phoenix King is a perfect example of the power of new voices in fiction! Voices that tell stories we haven't heard over and over again. I'd be lying if I said this wasn't one of my most anticipated fantasy debuts of the year—and the book delivers on every possible front!

This is the first in a trilogy and so far I've not seen a date for the release of book 2, but it's already on my mental must have list!