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Sixteen-year-old Veronyka has always dreamed of being a Phoenix Rider like in the stories of old, but after the Blood War, phoenixes have been all but annihilated, their riders killed, and anyone with the animage magic who doesn’t pay their heavy taxes are taken as bondservants. To be a Phoenix Rider, especially now, is to invite death and danger, but the idea also fills Veronyka with hope. She’s always wanted to be a part of something bigger.
After a sudden, unexpected betrayal from her controlling older sister, Veronyka strikes out alone to find the rumored Rider remnants. She’s determined they’re still out there and is set on joining their ranks, even if she has to go so far as to disguise herself as a boy to be accepted.
But the Riders’ numbers have dwindled far more than she expected, and there are no new phoenix eggs to be found. Veronyka’s hope of becoming a rider alongside them is bleak — and perhaps just a dream after all. Still, she’s determined to stay. Posing as a stable boy, Veronica finally starts to feel like she belongs, but when her sister turns up, a tangled web of lies is revealed that will change everything for Veronyka, her sister, and the last of the Riders.
Crown of Feathers is a fantasy of epic proportions filled with glorious phoenixes, ancient heroes, and a complex history. I found this story world to be so vivid and intricate that the details became both the strongest and weakest points of the story, with a lot of information thrown in throughout the chapters and sometimes seeming to interrupt the story itself. However, despite the drag of the middle, the story picked up speed toward the end, and I couldn’t put it down.
Woven throughout the book is the story of Avalkyra Ashfire, the last Rider queen, who died in the Blood War 16 years earlier. I loved the little quotes, letters, and documents from the past, found at the beginning and the end of the chapters. They added a nice touch. I also enjoyed seeing the exploration of love’s incredible power to save and unite or isolate and destroy, with examples drawn from both the past and the present.
Rated: Mild, for only a handful of uses of mild language and one use of moderate language. While romance was not the main focus of the story, there were still several awkward moments between a girl disguised as a boy and a boy who start to have feelings for each other. One scene involves a chance meeting in a bathhouse. The girl is wrapped in a towel while the boy undresses. Nothing is described, though the girl’s eyes keep wandering. At another point, they are found in a stall together and it’s obvious some think that more was happening between them than just talk. In another instance, a woman’s bound breasts are revealed in an attempt to humiliate her. Again, nothing is described. There is also an almost-kiss scene between a same-sex couple.
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