Reviews for Castles in their bones
Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Triplet sisters leave their homeland to marry princes from other countries, a step in their mother’s plan to expand her rule. Sophronia, Daphne, and Beatriz have trained their whole lives in the art of deception. Empress Margaraux wants them to drive their new countries to war with each other so she can sweep in and assume control. Kindhearted Sophronia is sent to Temarin to finally meet her betrothed, for whom she has already started to develop feelings through their exchange of letters. Daphne, the sister closest to their mother, heads to Friv, where a rebellion is brewing, and Beatriz trained with courtesans for her assigned duty in Cellaria, a country where magic is outlawed. Margaraux gifted each daughter one wish, pulled down from the stars, to use only when desperately needed. But the empress has plans of her own, and as truths are revealed and new friendships and romances bloom, each sister must decide where her loyalties lie. Kicking off a new trilogy, this enchanting tale is filled with captivating court intrigue and espionage. The narrative shifts between the three sisters, creating page-turning momentum. The worldbuilding is expansive yet never overwhelming, as the multiple settings and characters are distinct and compelling. While there seems to be no racial diversity on this fantasy continent—the characters present White—queerness is present, accepted in some countries and not others, and there are tensions between people of different classes. Dazzling, female-driven fantasy. (Fantasy. 14-18) Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
School Library Journal
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Gr 9 Up—Now 16, Daphne, Beatriz, and Sophronia have been molded into exactly the princesses their mother wanted—ones who will marry into their neighboring kingdoms and tear them down, leaving the empress to conquer the breadth of the continent. Sophronia fell halfway in love with her betrothed via letters but arrives and discovers him far more tyrannical than expected; Daphne finds herself planted in a kingdom already halfway to rebellion; and Beatriz is in a kingdom where her "star-touched" birth is a death sentence if discovered. Each daughter is trained in a different kind of espionage to help wreak havoc on her new home, but the three of them didn't anticipate their loyalties to their mother would be tested by the friendships and romances waiting for them there. Three points of view is a delicate balancing act, especially when all three heroines have essentially the same mission—marry and murder her way to the throne. Sebastian differentiates the triplets by assigning them early stereotypes—the sweet one, the pretty one, the ambitious one—before letting the characters grow into themselves. While the plot is rather simplistic for a novel bent on political intrigue, the stage is set for future installments to be more complex. VERDICT The writing style skews younger, but paired with the mature (not explicit) themes, it'll find a home with readers who usually struggle with works of this length. For fans of Stephanie Garber's Once Upon a Broken Heart, this novel will be an easy sell. Recommended for larger collections.—Emmy Neal
Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.
Daphne, Beatriz, and Sophronia were born and bred for one purpose: to bring down three countries so that their mother, Empress Margaraux, can take over the continent. They were trained in the arts of seduction, deception, and violence so they could infiltrate under the guise of naive girls and create havoc between the three countries. When the sisters turn 16, they are married to the princes of the three targeted countries and begin their tasks of weakening the countries. However, things begin to go differently than they planned as they become more emotionally invested in their new countries. They also learn that their mother has kept secrets from them and have difficulty knowing whom to trust. Daphne, Beatriz, and Sophronia have much to prove during their quests, but they ultimately must decide whether to follow their mother’s orders or forge their own paths. Sebastian’s new fantasy novel is a page-turner that brilliantly blends magic, romance, and adventure. A twist ending leaves readers reeling but ready for the second installment in the planned trilogy.
Publishers Weekly
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In this extravagantly built series starter, Sebastian (the Ash Princess trilogy) introduces three 16-year-old princesses: devious Daphne, beautiful Beatriz, and altruistic Sophronia—triplets conceived through magic by their scheming empress mother. The three have trained their entire lives to leave their home in Bessemia, marry princes of nearby kingdoms, and orchestrate those husbands’ demise, allowing their manipulative mother to take over. Skilled in the arts of poison-making, message-coding, and seduction—and granted one wish each from the stars—the sisters confidently assume their roles. What they aren’t counting on are the friendships they forge in their new homes, the feelings they develop for their husbands, and the many treacheries they face at court. Though the three kingdoms and their casts are extensive, the lushly told three-part narrative churns along quickly, volleying between the sisters’ perspectives until the threads begin to intricately twine. In Sebastian’s fairy tale world of royalty, power, and magic, the duplicitous but no less championable princesses engage in enough surprise twists, romantic entanglements, and dicey predicaments to keep readers entertained. Ages 14–up. Agent: John Cusick, Folio Literary Management. (Feb.)
Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Triplet sisters leave their homeland to marry princes from other countries, a step in their mothers plan to expand her rule.Sophronia, Daphne, and Beatriz have trained their whole lives in the art of deception. Empress Margaraux wants them to drive their new countries to war with each other so she can sweep in and assume control. Kindhearted Sophronia is sent to Temarin to finally meet her betrothed, for whom she has already started to develop feelings through their exchange of letters. Daphne, the sister closest to their mother, heads to Friv, where a rebellion is brewing, and Beatriz trained with courtesans for her assigned duty in Cellaria, a country where magic is outlawed. Margaraux gifted each daughter one wish, pulled down from the stars, to use only when desperately needed. But the empress has plans of her own, and as truths are revealed and new friendships and romances bloom, each sister must decide where her loyalties lie. Kicking off a new trilogy, this enchanting tale is filled with captivating court intrigue and espionage. The narrative shifts between the three sisters, creating page-turning momentum. The worldbuilding is expansive yet never overwhelming, as the multiple settings and characters are distinct and compelling. While there seems to be no racial diversity on this fantasy continentthe characters present Whitequeerness is present, accepted in some countries and not others, and there are tensions between people of different classes. Dazzling, female-driven fantasy. (Fantasy. 14-18) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
