Abandoned on the doorstep of a Sardovian orphanage as an infant, Talasyn's life has been intertwined with the tumultuous era of the Hurricane Wars, a relentless struggle against the oppressive rule of the Night Emperor Gaheris. Yet, amidst the chaos, she yearns for an elusive truth: the origins of her existence, the kin she belongs to, and the wellspring of her Lightwave magic, a luminous force coursing through her like golden radiance.

Alaric, scion of House Ossinast and bearer of the mantle Master of the Shadowforged Legion, has been sculpted into a weapon by his father, Gaheris. Imposed with the grave responsibility of annihilating the Sardovian Allfold alliance through the might of his armies and potent Shadow magic, Alaric's vision remains fixed on their mission: the eradication of any threat against the empire.

However, everything changes when he witnesses Talasyn ablaze upon the battlefield, wielding the very magic that claimed his grandfather's life, morphed his father into a tyrant, and ignited the tempestuous Hurricane Wars. His attempt to end her existence fails, the adversary he has come to loathe slipping through his grasp.

Yet, the horizon looms with a graver peril, overshadowing even the dire conflicts of the Hurricane Wars. As this looming threat threatens to shroud everything in darkness, can these sworn enemies surmount their enmity to combat it, or is the culmination of their long-fought battles poised to unravel?

While I am relatively new to the realms of fantasy and mythology, my horizons have broadened and I find myself enraptured by this expansion. The author's prowess shines brilliantly in crafting this narrative. The prose dances elegantly across the pages, endowing characters with vitality, setting scenes aglow with vibrancy, and granting each voice an authentic resonance. A cornerstone of the tale lies in its meticulously constructed world—the author has meticulously woven a tapestry of rich detail, replete with its own histories, cultures, and languages.

In assessing the eBook, a realm of potential for refinement and user-friendliness beckons. By incorporating chapter links, eradicating conspicuous word gaps, and adorning the eBook with an alluring cover, its presentation could transcend its current document-like demeanour. Consequently, a minor deduction from my rating is warranted.

This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

Oh my gosh, you guys, this book! Ooof.

The Hurricane Wars is a high fantasy, slow burn, enemies to enemies but also semi-lovers, filled with magic, politics, intrigue, and passion. There really isn’t a lot to go on just reading the synopsis, so I don’t want to drop any spoilers, which is rare for me; I love spoilers, but I went into the with only a vague recollection of what it was about, and that’s made it even more magical.

Talasyn is a stubborn, fiery heroine filled with Lightweave magic, while Alaric, Master of the Shadowforged Legion, the enemy currently sweeping through the continent and destroying all Sardovia, where Talasyn grew up, is filled with Shadow magic. The two are opposites, yet they are much more alike than anyone would think.

I don’t know what else to say without letting anything slip, so just read this book, please. It’s so good! It's detailed and interesting, and the romance is swoony. Yes, there is some Star Wars inspiration in there; I’m looking at you stormships, but I decided not to hold it against this exciting tale.

This was a slow burn for me but I'm totally in for the ride now. And never have I ever feared more for two kids than for Talasyn and Alaric.
It took me about one third of the book (until the end of part 1) to get hooked, but then I was all in.
I've read a lot about this book before, from people who loved it but also lots of critique. Apparently this is based on a SW fanfiction, and the criticism was mostly that it's just the serial number filed off, and that the plot solely exists to bring the two MCs together.
I can assure you this is not the case at all. I'm not a huge Star Wars fan, and I haven't read the fanfic. I'm also quite allergic of the plot serving the romance instead of the other way around. All that said, none of what is said above applies to this wonderfully epic story imo.
It's a marvelous and fully developed worldbuilding with still a lot to discover. There's mythology and politics heavily interwoven, and it's not an info dump at the start of the book, but the reader can discover it bit by bit naturally.
The FMC and MMC (dual POV yay!) are so so interesting. It's an intriguing grumpy x grumpy pairing, but they're not just brooding and sassy for the sake of it. All of their character traits - especially the dark ones - are explained throughout the book with their background story, and my heart broke with several aspects of it.
This story will live in my head for a long while, and I can't wait to get my hands on book 2.
Right now I'm giving it a 4,75/5 stars, just because I had to work through the first third of the book. I fully expect it to become a 5 star highlight at some point though.

Thank you @netgalley and @harpercollinsuk for the eARC!

Very tropey and insta love but the rest was okay and it was mostly enjoyable. The writing wasn't the best and there's definitely room for improvement but maybe in the next one.

This book was fantastic! Thoroughly enjoyed my read of the Hurricane Wars!
This felt like such a unique read, and was so rich with in-depth world building, it was easy to lose yourself in this world as if it were a real place. Loved it!

Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for the eARC!

I mostly only apply for the ARCs I think I will massively enjoy, and this is why I applied for this one, the story sounded cool, I loved the cover, and the hype was spot on. Unfortunately, this book wasn't for me, so if you don't want any spoilers or if you don't want to read a nitpicky negative review, I'd advise you to skip this one. It will also contain some minor spoilers (mostly about tropes that appear).


This is 2.5, but I'm rounding it to 3 stars. Because I feel like it wasn't *that* bad, it just wasn't something I enjoyed.
My dislikes:
- the insta-love/lust/whatever, and characters connecting over nothing
I get that this was fanfic, but without any of the Reylo background, these characters connected over basically nothing. When it's not fanfic you have to create the buildup because we don't know anything about them, and their relationship is non-existent.
Later on, there is some good tension, however, the shift from war/genocide to arranged marriage felt too abrupt. We had a time skip, but even then, this man killed your people, all of your friends, destroyed any kind of happiness you previously had and you're like "omg, he said I was beautiful eeeep". No. Is this a serious political drama with possible romance (which is what I thought it was as I started it), or are we going in a more light, fun, don't question things, "doesn't-matter-that-he-killed-all-of-my-friends" direction? Because I cannot just stomach genocide and then insta-love, without something MAJOR happening.

- slow-paced
It's so freaking slow. And even in all the slow, not a lot of things are happening.

- writing style felt uneven
I feel like the author was trying to write this profound prose, and that it was so poetic in some parts (which I do appreciate and love), but it would be cut abruptly with something sassy, that didn't really fit with the ostentatious descriptions. The only thing I can describe it with is the current popular sound when Ken says "hi, Barbie", and she says "hi, Ken", where Barbie sounds like a monster. I feel like there is just a large disconnect in style.

- dragons
Why are they there? What is their real role? If there was no dragons mentioned, nothing would've changed in the book. I don't even realize what is their real strength. Because in the beginning you have these talks in a war camp, and they are saying with just one dragon they could win the war. And then Alaric comes in Nenavare and they are all scared he can conquer them in a second... but they have a bunch of dragons. So which is it, are the dragons really powerful or not so much? On top of that, I just really didn't see them fitting in this very technological world.

- very tropey (and I like tropes, but these were too cliche)
We have a hidden identity, a lost princess (reveal without any buildup, felt so abrupt!), who grew up in an orphanage; FMC with the great power that she never learned to use or control; enemies to lovers that actually have insta-something; arranged prince and princess marriage, light and dark have to work together to save everything...

All in all... I wished I loved this, but I just didn't. :(

*thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*


Well.where do I even start. This was pretty amazing. It was one of my most anticipated reads this year and I am so grateful to get an early copy .Thank you. I’ll be honest I had a little trouble at the start following the plot and the writing had me scratching my head for a bit . the verbiage is a bit heavy and some of the parts I had trouble understanding.Maybe the language barrier not sure but lots of adjectives were used which I personally think could’ve done without. in saying that once I got into the story I was totally engrossed in it and hooked . The characters and their development had me glued to my screen and I finished it in one sitting .my biggest issue is that it ended on a cliffhanger . Not a fan of those . :) I can see this book becoming a hit, def recommend!

I am going to be screaming about this book in the foreseeable 😂

Thank you so much to the author for writing one of my new favourite books of all time. And to netaglley and the publishers for approving my request to read and review an early copy of this. This has skyrocketed to my top fav 10 books of ALL TIME 💓

Where do I even START

The Hurricane Wars is a unique and fresh fantasy following two rivals, Talasyn and Alaric, whose kingdoms are at war. Alaric of the Shadowforged Legion is a terrifying but god almightily sexy villain that I knew I needed more of from the second he rocked up. Talasyn is an absolute badass, and unlike so many fantasy books I did not once feel the “main character syndrome” issue with her.

The book starts off with these characters battling it out as Alaric’s army are invading Sardovia (the kingdom Talasyn has grown up in) and Talasyns people are revealed to be loosing The Hurricane War and in constant surrender. In a last-ditch attempt to find a way to save her kingdom, she sneaks into a neutral territory to try and harvest power and finds out a mind blowing part of her identity.

Let me tell you, probably 90% of the BEST fantasy romance tropes are in this book. Forced proximity? In this book. Only one bed? In this book. Marriage of conveniance? In this book. Gripping angst? In this book. Sexiest slow burn ever? In this book. Enemies to lovers that are genuinely ENEMIES? In this BOOK 👏

The slow burn in this was so teasing and I felt like I was desperate to the point of frantic nearing the end of the book. These two had me SCREAMING. Also, this book has one of the best written spicy scenes I have genuinely ever read 😍 It was so worth the wait.

I heard on the grapevine that these characters were potentially inspired by Reylo and imagining Alaric as Adam Driver as Kylo absolutely shivered my timbers 😍

Away from the romance, I have to commend the author for her brilliant writing and so many quotable lines. I often paused to read sentences again that I found brilliant. Also, I loved the Storm Ships idea, they sound terrifying and awesome!

This book got me with that cliffhanger and I will be waiting, eye on the prize, till book two comes out 🙌

Thank you to Harper Collins and Netgalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have been a fan of Thea's work for years, having followed her through her fanfiction journey, and I was ecstatic to be selected for this ARC.

Thea weaves a tale rich in fantasy, plot and characterisation. Her writing is incredible, and I often found myself flying through the skies with Talasyn, opening the Shadowgate with Alaric, and plotting alongside the Dragon Queen.

At first I found the tale a little difficult to follow, especially as we were thrust deep into the heart of the Hurricane Wars that had already been wreaking chaos and destruction for years. As soon as Talasyn returned to claim her birthright and protect her friends, I was swept along with the political orchestrations, cunning of all factions and the reluctant attraction of two former enemies thrust together to stop the Hurricane Wars.

The Hurricane Wars has been one of the best books I have read this year, and I am eagerly awaiting the next installment in the trilogy.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the review copy. This was a fun quick and easy read. Overall had a lot of good points, I enjoyed the characters, the magic system and the world building. Two aspects that let it down slightly for me were the ending, the plot did not build up to a grand finale but rather just finished. The other was that some of dialogue and interactions between characters became slightly repetitive. Still, this is an impressive debut and I look forward to the next instalment. I'd recommend this for romantasy fans, in particular fans of the enemies to lovers troupe.

~thank you netgalley and harper collins for a review copy
~5⭐️
~This book completely destroyed any expectations I had going into it! I thought it would be a normal fantasy book but this was completely different from what I was expecting. I loved the world this book was set in, the different empires were so unique and elevated the whole book.

This book follows Talaysn who has only ever known the hurricane wars fighting for her life against the Night Empire but she has been hiding a secret, she has light magic, a power that the night empire thought they had wiped out years ago. It is only when the Prince of the Night Empire sees her on the battlefield that they are forever connected.

The characters are absolutely amazing. I loved the development Talasyn went through and what she found out about herself. This is a fantastic fantasy book that has become one of my absolute favourite once finishing it!

5 stars does not do this book justice.

The Hurricane Wars introduces us to a refreshing new world of Sardovia, Nenavar and the Night Empire. I was blown away by the depth of world building and characters with opposing powers. I liked the prose and fast-paced setting.

Talasyn and Alaric's story was just the beginning of this unputdownable novel. Despite their differences, the author manages to weave a world unlike any other. Her descriptions of the environment and action scenes left me on the edge of my seat. With warships and the rich, vibrant and sometimes dark setting based on South East Asia, I liked the juxtaposition between the main characters and the many places they lived in throughout the war. There was always a divide between both sides and I liked how the author managed to settle on their differences through traditional means.

The pacing of THW was pulsating and I loved the slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers romance between the main characters. It was fascinating to see how they worked together through their many differences and powers. I liked how they bonded through their many changes and discoveries of each other. I particularly liked the character development of Talasyn who may have grown up an orphan, but discovered her found family as she came into her power.

As for Alaric, I liked how the author crafted him to be someone who learned how to care despite his upbringing and unconventional family. This powerful and unpredictable ending is only the beginning of what is to come. I can't wait for Book 2!

A sweeping romantic fantasy from Thea Gunazon! A fantastic debut. Loved the world building, the characters, and the enemies to lovers banter. Things really picked up in the last half or last third of the book and I'm excited to read the next book in the series!

4/5

Light and shadow and two enemies caught on different sides of a devastating war. Thea Guanzon’s debut novel The Hurricane Wars is a study in heated tension between her main couple, Talasyn and Alaric, but also the magical kingdoms in the world she has spun around them.

Personally, one of the first things I notice when reading a fantasy novel, epic or romance, is the worldbuilding and the magic system. Guanzon’s world is intricate and very interesting in its light and shadow duality and where this magic comes from but I did have issues with the extent of the book she dedicated to some aspects of it.

There are shadow wielders like our main man, his Highness Alaric Ossinast, the brooding dark-haired prince of the kingdom of Kesath (aka new shadow daddy), there is a race of light wielders all but extinct except for our feisty and always pissed girl Talasyn who grew up an orphan on the streets of Sardovia, a nation at a 10-year long war with Kesath and there is the Nenavar Dominion which is like Wakanda, always neutral and very advanced in its magical practices compared to the other nations. The political intrigue behind all that and us getting to know the nations and experiencing the hurricane wars take up the first half of the book and even though I loved how the author finally connected everything to each other in the second half of the book, I ended up feeling quite tired with all the explaining and the setting up.

Another really important issue for me is to find connection with the characters. Alaric was delicious, sweet and badass at the same time and together with Talasyn, they always made me feel the sizzling tension and the eagerness to see them give in to the spice. Saying that, I must also say that what had me very frustrated and not in a good way was Talasyn’s constant anger. With herself, the world, Alaric, the war, her life, the air around her… seriously, there were moments when I was wondering if she was ever going to stop snapping at everything and just chill…

So, let me come to the second half of the book plotwise. Once we are done with knowing the basic stuff, and we are familiar with the characters, the plot takes you on a journey of delicious tension between the main characters. There is the marriage of convenience thing and the fact that he trains her so they come really close to each other and eventually the only one bed and I was here for all of it! I enjoyed every second of their witty banter, their unconsciously giving away parts of themselves to each other and being vulnerable. Be warned that the romance in this book is extremely slow burn. There is not a lot of spice but when you find it…worth it. Every word.

Not much to say about villains and secondary characters as they took the back seat in this novel but I have the feeling that the Hurricane Wars is just the prologue of a very interesting and extraordinary story full of angst and pining and deeper meanings and action and magic which will unfold in all its glory in the sequels to come and I can’t wait to find out where Thea Guanzon will take us next.

Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for the free copy of this ebook.

Alaric is the son of the vicious Night Emperor, and Talasyn is the orphaned soldier fighting to defend her homeland from the Night Empire's invasion. However, when the two find themselves matched on the battlefield with powers that are equally strong but totally opposite, they both discover a reluctant attraction forming.

This is a gripping and beautifully written enemies-to-lovers fantasy romance, with stellar world building and a non-stop plot. I devoured the book in a weekend and desperately want more - more of the tension, more of the magic, more of the angst. Its everything I look for in a book and I can't wait for the sequel!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Wonderful! That’s all I can say and I am on my way to pre order all of the editions!!! Read this book! Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for my eArc of this book.

****3.25 STARS****

Thank you Netgalley, Harper Voyager and the author, Thea Guanzon for providing me with an ARC. All thoughts and views are my own.

I have always been a fanfiction fan and it is when I finished the book did I realize that this was a Reylo fanfiction. So for me who is not a Star War's Fan this story was fresh. Most of the time a fanfiction is all about making your wish of seeing your favorite characters getting together and having a happy ending. But I think I have mixed feelings about the fanfiction of it all.

The book started off pretty good with the world building and lot of words thrown at you, I mean it was a good base set for the readers who may or may not be familiar with this sci-fi/fantasy world. But slowly few chapters in the story deters from the action packed war sequences and world building or even character build up.
There was grave injustice done to the side characters as they had so much potential but in the end it seems like they were only there to strengthen the protagonist's relationship. The author tried to make some efforts in world building but there were times when things didn't make sense. More like the rules in this world is bent to make it more convenient for our couple to end up together.
I have read a lot of trashy romantasy books to know why this was done but after all the hype I think I was expecting more out of this book (I was honestly expecting pure fiction, but alas!).

Now to why this book gets a 3.25 is because of the fast pace and easy to follow story. The spice was a medium. Kudos to all the 'pining for the one', it worked for me. Though it is presented like a fanfiction but the characters felt original. Also the gorgeous cover would have led me to pick this one off of the bookshelves immediately.

I am moody reader and there was an 80% chance I wouldn't have picked this one up. After reading it though I think I would have made a mistake as this is at least a one time read.

DNF at 31%.

The Hurricane Wars was one of my most anticipated releases of 2023, so the fact that I'm writing a DNF review for it is devastating for me.

Formerly known as Landscape with a Blur of Conquerors on AO3, this book is that very same Reylo fanfic brought through the gates of traditional publishing, with some additional Southeast Asian influences and new names for each corresponding Star Wars character. Unfortunately, that was The Hurricane Wars's downfall.

Reading this, it was evident that the author forgot the rules of fanfiction and novel writing are not the same: in fanfiction, you don't have to spend the time setting the scene or developing the characters and the romances, because readers already know what to expect. They know who they're reading about, and what's going to happen between them.

The worldbuilding in The Hurricane Wars, to start, was too heavy-handed, and too much all at once. It was a bit of an info-dump, to be honest. I can't imagine, had I made it through to the end of this book, that I'd have taken any of it in, simply because of the way it was presented. Going back to my fanfic point: it was like the worldbuilding was awkwardly shoved and jammed into the book, because it wouldn't have been needed in the original version.

The characters and romance's development - or lack thereof - was really what brought me to DNF this book. Essentially, there isn't any. Talaysn, the book's Rey character - was bland and reactive. In the 31% I read, she spent most of her time reacting to situations around her, not moving the plot forward through her own actions. Alaric (Kylo Ren/Ben Solo) was a little more interesting, but again, he had little to no development in what I read, so I can't say too much about him.

The romance between these two was, I'd think, the main selling point of this book for... well, almost everyone who picks it up. As with the characters themselves, the romance (or what I'd read of it) between them was undeveloped and rushed. They'd met probably 2 or 3 times by 31%, and went straight from fighting to having feelings for each other for seemingly no reason at all. There was none of the nuance or development you get with the real Reylo – Talasyn and Alaric were a cheap knockoff. I'd read spoilers for this book about a certain trope being involved later on (arranged marriage), which unfortunately is one of my favourites. It wasn't enough to entice me to keep reading though.

I know I'm in the minority with this book, but - as you can see - I really didn't enjoy it. I tried to move past the clunky worldbuilding, but the lack of development coupled with my lack of connection to either main character meant I couldn't continue reading. The Hurricane Wars had so much potential, and maybe it would have been better off with the author getting more advice/help from her agent in translating the fanfiction to a novel, or maybe another couple rounds of editing.

I guess we'll never know.

Thank you to Harper Voyager for sending me an eARC!

↠ 1 star, DNF at 31%

A brand new high fantasy/romantasy, first in a series.
Talasyn is the last of the lightweavers, fighting on the side of the sardovian army. Alaric is the heir to the Night Empire, intent on conquering the world. Two sides on a war that has been raging for over 10 years. But when the fighting stops, these two find themselves as the key players in a treaty that could end the Hurricane wars for good.

This book has examples of all the tropes that many of us enjoy - slow burn enemies to lovers, marriage of convenience, missing princess, one bed. So with that it certainly ticks all the right boxes.

This book started off really great - there was obviously some background and world-building that is key to the overall story, and this was part of the initial outlay. It did feel like it was a little but of an info-dump at the beginning, and although this seemed like a lot, it was crucial to the understanding of the plot and setting up the overall scene. But, because of this background, it took a little while to get into the nitty-gritty of the story - I didn't feel like the plot really picked up until well into maybe the 8th chapter, where it started to become more interesting.

I felt that the magic system was really unique and interesting. It was based on an elemental premise, with magic being weaned from the core elements - earth, air, wind, fire, as well as light and dark. Although this type of magic has been done before in other stories, it felt like it was a completely new take on the idea. I did feel that the magic also took on quite a sci-fi element, especially with the ships, and weapons that the different nations were using, and that felt quite new as well. Without spoilers - Nenavar reminded me a little of Wakanda - a nation that keeps itself hidden from other countries and has heightened technology. I'm not sure if this was deliberate but it was a nice touch.

And now onto the more negative thoughts on this book. Firstly, there was some political intrigue in this story, but only in the first section on the book, and only really to set up the tropes that ended up completely overtaking any other aspect of the story - the marriage of convenience was part of the political allegiance/treaty between the nations and it kind of fell away after that initial set up was past. So for me, I would have liked to have more of a political intrigue element, and not just as a segue into another part of the story.

Throughout the story, there was a clear miscommunication trope between the two main characters. I say that lightly though, because in reality there was no communication whatsoever between them and I found that really frustrating. I understand that this was probably a deliberate choice by the author designed to try and create tension, but really all it did was frustrate me as a reader. I was rolling my eyes so much. It created unnecessary angst rather than tension.

Which leads me onto the enemies to lovers aspect - this would have worked much better if the tension had been better, and if there was more banter between the two characters. The author made a solid attempt at banter between the two characters - moving towards sarcastic clapbacks that unfortunately, for me, fell a little bit flat. There wasn't enough of a level of humour injected into their interactions to make it compelling. It felt to me more like two teenage siblings bickering than sexual tension.

The main element that was missing for me - The Dragons. I was expecting so much more than just a couple of cursory mentions of the creatures. If you have dragons in a story - they need to be front and centre, not relegated to the background. There was only one scene in the entire book where the dragons are relevant, but otherwise they seem like an afterthought. I would hope that they would appear more prominently in subsequent books.

Finally, the ending was completely underwhelming. I was expecting a cliffhanger ending, as I went into it knowing it was the first book in a series, but unfortunately the ending was not sensational enough to warrant any strong emotions. A good cliffhanger should leave the reader shocked and reeling from the final page, not leave them feeling "is that it?" For quite a long book, it felt like it was building to something that the ending just didn't deliver.

In my opinion, there was a lot in this book that was really relevant or required to progress the plot. I feel like it could have realistically been a third of the length and still been good.

Having said all of these points, I did still enjoy the book. I would recommend it to others - those who perhaps enjoyed The Poppy War or SJM books.

I feel that this book was good enough to pass as everything it describes, but is by no means THE book of the year/ THE book for enemies to lovers etc. It's passable and entertaining but it mainly scratches that itch of looking for another romantasy. The writing was a little immature and repetitive in parts, which was frustrating. The characters weren't very deep either and their sudden interest in each other was too soon. Also the book felt like a slog to read at times. The pacing would change so quickly that you were forced to be more excited about the two MCs having interactions because otherwise it was painful war descriptions/ worldbuilding descriptions overload.

Also I felt so bad for Alaric. Talasyn treats Alaric like shit most of the time and what is both a flaw but an endearing one at least for him is that he does seem to be a softie. Whether that's intentional or not, it doesn't matter, but I feel bad for him.

This is probably a 3.5 for me