“But I promise you this. If anyone touches you, I’ll consider killing them for you.”
Galina’s heart skipped a beat at the tenderness in the other woman’s expression. “Vasilisa Yuryevna, are you flirting with me?”
eARC provided by DAW Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
To Cage a God by Elizabeth May is an accurate blend of Shadow and Bone and Fourth Wing complete with a soft, sapphic romance, and m/f enemies-to-lovers storyline set in an Imperial Russia-inspired world. I’m a sucker for anything sapphic so this was a book I was excited to grab!
To cage a god is divine.
To be divine is to rule.
To rule is to destroy.
Using ancient secrets, Galina and Sera’s mother grafted gods into their bones. Bound to brutal deities and granted forbidden power no commoner has held in a millennia, the sisters have grown up to become living weapons. Raised to overthrow an empire―no matter the cost.
With their mother gone and their country on the brink of war, it falls to the sisters to take the helm of the rebellion and end the cruel reign of a royal family possessed by destructive gods. Because when the ruling alurea invade, they conquer with fire and blood. And when they clash, common folk burn.
While Sera reunites with her estranged lover turned violent rebel leader, Galina infiltrates the palace. In this world of deception and danger, her only refuge is an isolated princess, whose whip-smart tongue and sharp gaze threaten to uncover Galina’s secret. Torn between desire and duty, Galina must make a choice: work together to expose the lies of the empire―or bring it all down.
It took some time to jump into this one (mood reader problems), but once I did, I was hooked. I ended up absolutely adoring these characters. The sibling relationship between Sera and Galina contrasted well with the romantic elements, and I love how each partnership had its own flavor.
Sera has a romantic past with a fugitive who enjoys blowing things up, and now he’s locked in a violent plot to bring down the palace, the same palace her sister Galina has infiltrated.
Galina forms a connection with the princess of the palace, who has isolated herself from the rest of the world (including her mother). Unlike the tense relationship between Sera and Vitaly, Galina and Vasilisa form a tentative bond that tranforms into a cute relationship.
If you’re a romantasy fan, To Cage a God offers a fresh, fast-paced, and endearing experience that will leave you wanting more.