**Disclaimer: I was given a free finished copy in exchange for an honest review from as part of a tour from TBR and Beyond Tours.**
Title A Dragonbird in the Fern
Author Laura Rueckert
Release Date July 21, 2021
Date Finished August 3, 2021
Description
When an assassin kills Princess Jiara’s older sister Scilla, her vengeful ghost is doomed to walk their city of glittering canals, tormenting loved ones until the murderer is brought to justice. While the entire kingdom mourns, Scilla’s betrothed arrives and requests that seventeen-year-old Jiara take her sister’s place as his bride to confirm the alliance between their countries.
Marrying the young king intended for her sister and traveling to his distant home is distressing enough, but with dyslexia and years of scholarly struggles, Jiara abandoned any hope of learning other languages long ago. She’s terrified of life in a foreign land where she’ll be unable to communicate.
Then Jiara discovers evidence that her sister’s assassin comes from the king’s own country. If she marries the king, Jiara can hunt the murderer and release her family from Scilla’s ghost, whose thirst for blood mounts every day. To save her family, Jiara must find her sister’s killer . . . before he murders her too.
Initial Thoughts
I was super excited to be chosen for this tour. I’ve been eying this book for a while and was thrilled when I received a copy in the mail. I’m obsessed with the cover and I adore the arranged marriage trope.
Some Things I Liked
The arranged marriage trope. I love it and I feel like it’s entirely underused. Every book should use it. No, that’s crazy, but it was really well done here.
Murder mystery. I love a murder mystery and I love to puzzle out a crime. I enjoyed the political intrigue as well as the idea of solving the actual crime. For a standalone story, I found the world building and setting to be rich and I’d really like to read more set here.
Darker themes. This story is YA but the elements of the story are a bit dark in nature. I also really appreciated that. So many of the YA novels I’ve read gloss over reality and I enjoyed the realness here.
Dyslexia representation. I loved that the author included a representation not often seen in literature in this book. Again, I think this just added to the realism and gave a richness to the main character that I strongly connected with.
Series Value
I really enjoyed Jiara’s POV. I think this story is pretty much concluded but I’d enjoy revisiting this world as well as reading more from Laura Rueckert.
Final Thoughts
I loved this book. I read it all in one sitting and am so glad I applied to be on this tour. Definitely add it to your TBRs for August 2021.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Book Links
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/50674206-a-dragonbird-in-the-fern
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Dragonbird-Fern-Laura-Rueckert/dp/1635830656/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=A+Dragonbird+in+the+Fern+by+Laura+Rueckert&qid=1623033868&sr=8-1
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-dragonbird-in-the-fern-laura-rueckert/1136068601
Book Depository: https://www.bookdepository.com/Dragonbird-Fern-Laura-Rueckert/9781635830651
IndieBound: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781635830651
About the Author
Author Links
Website: https://www.laurarueckert.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LauraRueckert
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laura_rueckert_writes/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19365618.Laura_Rueckert
Books Over Everything 