Let me start by saying, I think lots of folk are going to love this. It’s a quick, easy read that hits all the usual notes for a beloved romantasy.

Unfortunately, it simply didn’t hit those notes for me personally. I just couldn’t vibe with the master and slave dynamics. I love me some dark romance and I often love a morally black/enemy love interest but I just can’t get down with a romance where the power is so slanted right from the off. I probably wouldn’t have picked this one up had I known this prior.

That said, if you don’t have any issues with a master/slave dynamic, you might well live this one. Dragons, enemies to lovers, a bolshy FMC and a touch her and die MMC.. Like I said, it has all the right notes to be loved.

Thank you to NetGalley, Pan Macmillan/Tor Bramble and Juliette Cross for this eARC. My review is my own honest opinion.

A book that i have to agree with everyone that when this will be out, it will be your next romantasy obsession

It is quite engaging, fast paced, i absolutely love the blending of roma empire history and dragon lore, you don’t see something like this everyday.
I enjoy the way the romance/ relationship between the main characters started, it transported me in a roman empire inspired tv series.
I found the the mix between romanian language while talking about a province in the roman empire ( because there’s no written dacian language) was nice but i wished for more than a word and more like whole sentences.
Overall it was a nice experience i loved the little sneak peek for what to come and im so excited for it

This book is out on 8th of April, be sure to pick this up
I have a feeling it will be everywhere
Thank you to the author for the arc

A conqueror captivated....
A witch prophesied to save them all....
A world where dragons rule Rome...

Yes!!,......I needed this book, the first time I read the synopsis I knew I was going to love it and it instantly became one of my most anticipated books of the year, and as I sit here with a huge smile on my face after finishing I can absolutely say this story surpassed all my expectations!

Ms Cross this book is "chef's kiss" it makes my little bookish heart happy!!

"One day, your gift will turn the tide of war. It will help vanquish the enemy. It will strike fear into the hearts of fierce, dangerous men."

Firebird is dark and steamy, it's every romantasy lovers dream, but if your not used to reading dark romance and are expecting lovey dovey, unicorns and rainbows please go in carefully this is an historically set timeline with a master/slave dynamic.

I loved this book, the story kept me hooked the whole way through, the writing is good but can we please stop with the word "cunny" i just........NO 🥴, the storyline is strong and the characters are amazing and can I just give a round of applause for Malina 👏👏👏👏 we have a FML that has a back bone and a sassy mouth!!!.......love her!

All in all I really enjoyed Firebird and after that ending ( yes I'm looking at you Juliette Cross) I can't wait for Bloodsinger

" you are wise as you are beautiful, little firebird"

Thank you to Pan Macmillan & Tor for this eARC. Set in Ancient Rome this was a new take on dragon Romantasy and had so much potential. I did enjoy it at the start and loved the Dacian culture, it really painted such a dynamic world with the sisters and their dancing.

I wasn’t a fan of the master/slave dynamic in this though and the romance and relationship felt like it happened very quickly and didn’t feel like it had a lot of depth. We all know what things were like in Ancient Rome for women but I felt that the MMC could have handled things a lot differently - I felt he showed little backbone and despite the reasons given why and the larger plan, that’s just not what I want from a MMC in a Romantasy book.

I did like Malina and her feistiness. I also have to say that the language in the romance scenes was really not for me, it felt jarring and ruined it a bit.

I enjoyed the premise of dragons & gods magic in Ancient Rome but overall this book fell a little flat for me personally

I was SO excited to get this ARC. I wanted to love Firebird but unfortunately the whole book fell a bit flat for me.

I'm sad to say the plot was predictable, I wasn't invested in the romance, there wasn't much depth to the characters and it felt like very little actually happened.

Firebird is an easy to read romantasy that's a little bit dark (it had the potential to be much darker) and has dragon shifter centurions. If that's all you're looking for in your next book then happy reading 📖🐉🗡️

I'd rate it 2.5/5 ⭐️ Rounding up to 3 ⭐️ purely because it kept my attention enough to read it in a day even through the disappointment.

Unfortunately this one was not for me.
What I liked. The pacing and writing style were great. I couldn't stop reading once I started.
But unfortunately the rest didn't sit well with me. The romance between the main characters gave me the ick. The way she got over her predicament so fast and started to fall for him almost instantly felt very unrealistic. At the end of the day she was still his slave and he made her act like his slave, so the power imbalance was very uncomfortable. I also felt like the dialogue between them got very childish after the 60% mark.
One more thing I would add is that I feel like it needed a bit more research. At least on Malina's background. There is a list on the internet of words in dacian language that are still present in the romanian language. None of the romanian words that were randomly used in the beginning are on that list. Also the cultural descriptions are a bit off.
I am sad that I didn't end up liking this book because it had a lot of potential.

A tense and romantic story. This is another book about dragons and I can never have too many. It was full of interesting nods to ancient history and I was gripped right from the beginning. I loved the dynamic between Julian and Malina and the politics behind the dragons in Rome. I thought it was a very clever way to combine the two. I am definitely excited to read the next book especially after the sneak peak chapter at the end!!

“The man who’d given me..hope and dreams of a better future, was now my new nightmare, my new master.”

Set within the Roman Empire our FMC Malina is a witch who can read & manipulate emotions. During a raid she is captured by the MMC Julian who is a Roman commander & dragon shifter 🐉

Firebird is filled with possession, obsession & the burn is oh so hot 🥵 but don’t expect a slow burn, Julian & his dragon fall fast and hard for Malina .
“My treasure” 💎 “My entire soul is on fire for you” 🔥 Now keep in mind this is a slave/master forbidden romance which I understand isn’t for everyone.

This book is for you if you love:
>Dragon shifters & witches
>Roman gods
>Touch her & die
>Forbidden love
>I’d burn the world for you
>Fated mates

The ending has me excited for book two! I’m hoping the political intrigue is ramped up & the different Roman gods are expanded upon 🙌🏼

“When death lives in your home, you never let your guard down.”

Please double check the trigger warning page before you dive in!

Waterstones and B&N currently have stunning special editions of this book for pre-order. It has also been hinted that FairyLoot will be including this book as their March Romantasy book pick!

Thank you NetGalley & Pan Macmillan for the e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I fell head over heels in love with the exquisite cover! It is absolutely stunning, and that made me click the request button at the speed of light.
Furthermore, I loved the idea of Rome mixed with magic and dragons, and the backstory of this world was intriguing.
Sadly, that is all the nice things I can say in my review because I had plenty of problems with this book.
Let me start with the rebellion plot—it seemed like every reasonable thought and cautious fled out of the window and felt like they did the absolute minimum to hide their scheming, meeting, etc.
And it was strange that seasoned war leader like Julian acted with such simple methods and plans.
The romance part felt awkward because it was insta love, and that's not a bad thing since it was a delightful idea that the dragon chose her too, but it didn't get the backbone of them knowing each other more to make it a meaningful connection. That led to my next issue that their relationship seemed to be only lust and nothing more….and the combination of her being his slave and his commanding kind of intimacy with her made me feel uncomfortable. Hence, why throughout the whole book, I couldn't shake off the feeling that she was just a lust and a property for him that he was possessive over, not love. It wasn't a moment like a switch that her status shifted from slave to something more in my eyes….she just remained a slave.
Furthermore, the intimate scenes were in the most awkward moments and places—for instance him instantly taking her in the temple.....she was supposed to be his eyes and ears in the enemy home and since he was worried, he should've checked first if she was alright or if she was harmed. Instead, as I said above, it was all about lust and the fact it was in the temple and after her ritual gave me the ick.
The ending was so anticlimactic that I couldn't believe it was over. No resolve or anything .....they just fled and called it a day. And the fact that the next book won't be from their POV's was the last nail in the coffin. If the story continued with them, there was a chance of getting some answers and resolve of their story.

Juliette Cross is a relatively new author to me. I read her Wolf Gone Wild back in 2024, and really enjoyed it. As soon as I heard about Firebird, I couldn’t wait. The premise of this book has practically everything I could possibly want in a book. Epic setting? Check! Dragons? Check! Romance? Check! I was so excited to pick this book up, and I was very excited when I got an early copy to review. I couldn’t wait to dive in and I went in with very high expectations… and boy were they met. I honestly loved this book so much.

Firebird is set to the backdrop of an alternate Roman Empire. The Roman’s are vicious and cruel… and they also happen to be dragon shifters. Our main character is a Dakkian dancer, Malina, who has a chance meeting with a roman dragon shifter. 4 years after this chance encounter, the dragon shifter Julian, sees her across the battlefield and saves her from enslavement by taking her away. Now she is seen as his ‘bodyslave’ and he is doing everything he can to protect her from the brutal goings on in Rome. But can their love survive this dark and dangerous environment?

I honestly loved this book! As I said previously, I have read a Juliette Cross book before and enjoyed it, but honest it has nothing on Firebird. I cannot believe just how different and superior this book is. I couldn’t put it down right from the very start. I will say I struggled a little with the whole slave / slave master elements at the beginning. You never worry for Malina’s safety or anything like that, but personally, I’m just not a bit lover of the power imbalance that comes with this kind of trope. So while I was a little bit like ‘ummm’ about it, I did persevere and I am so glad that I did. It was honestly fantastic and I ended up absolutely loving the dynamic and the relationship that develops between the two characters.

Firebird was honestly such a fantastic book. I loved the whole idea of the Roman Empire being imbued with magic and it made their danger and callousness all the more intense. I really adored this and think Juliette did a fantastic job of building up all of the magic and intrigue set in a familiar historical concept. I really enjoyed the incorporation of the gods and the story with Medusa and such. If you know, you know. It had so many fantastic elements and Juliette expertly weaved them all together. The characters were multi-dimensional and so much fun to read about, the world was dark and dangerous with just a touch of hope to keep you hanging on. I really enjoyed everything about this book. I really mean it when I say that this book is so much better than the previous ones I’ve read from her. If you’ve read the Wolf Gone Wild series and just thought it was okay, I really urge you to give this one a go as it is just superb.

Another thing I adored about this book is while it is first and foremost a Romantasy book, there is also such a strong plot. As a plot driven reader, I personally loved this aspect. I was honestly on the edge of my seat all the way through, dying to know what was going to happen next. I honestly would recommend it to any fantasy fan, as this plot really does stand on its own, away from the romance. It was such a fantastic read and I can’t wait to get my hands on the second book. It was such a fun read and it has definitely turned me into a Juliette Cross fan for life. I can’t stop thinking about this fantastic story and the characters. It’s been almost a week since I finished reading this one, and I can’t get into anything else. This has definitely left me in a book slump… but for the best reasons.

Firebird was truly fantastic. I did have some minor issues with it, such as the slave / slave master dynamic at the start, and I felt like the ending was a little bit rushed. I get the impression that the next book may follow different characters as the protagonists (as she has done in previous works as well) and that made me feel like there was a lot of rushing to get these points of view done so for that reason I have knocked half a star off the rating. But overall, this book was fantastic. I absolutely loved it and I cannot wait to get my hands on book 2. I’m so excited to see everyone else’s thoughts, when this book comes out in April. This is definitely one that everyone needs to pick up. You won’t be disappointed.

Thank you so much to Pan Macmillan, Bramble and NetGalley for an ARC in return for an honest review!

-

4,25 stars - a reasonably sized treat of a fantasy romance with a political subplot set in an ancient Rome with dragonshifters

This book was easy to read and get into fast, with an intriguing world and interesting characters I would’ve loved to spend even more time with. The romance was cute, with a warm-hearted MMC in a complicated position of power and a magical FMC who is willing to listen and trust once given a reason to.
The political subplot was also exciting and easy to keep up with, adding interesting dimensions to the story.

I don’t really have much more to say about this, as I just had a good time with this book without any issues or big feelings about it. Just a good entertaining time, in a world I’m looking forward to exploring more in the next book.

Some vibes:
- Ancient Rome
- Delicious food descriptions
- Hurt/comfort
- Possessive dragons
- Fuck the system

In theory I should have loved this- it had dragons, Ancient Rome and was a Romantasy. However the execution fell really short for me; there were too many ideas put into one story that by 70% wasn’t really going anywhere. The ideas of the dragons being the romans was strange to me, mixed with the Romanian language being used and the lack of inclusion of details about the ancient setting made this a 1 star for me unfortunately.

Thank you to Net Galley for this ARC. I really enjoyed this book and I am looking forward to the series. This has a bit of everything from historical fiction, dragons and romance. I am looking forward to the next instalment to see where the story goes.

It should be said there are some heavy themes of sexual assault which needs to be clearly advertised to people before they start the series.

It wasn't really anything new and was predictable plus too much SA for my liking when it didn't add anything to the plot. Bonus points for dragons.

I won't be continuing this series though.

I really struggled to get into this book. I love Juliette Cross and her writing is usually super fun and whimsical, however, this was a complete departure and was a lot heavier.

Unfortunately this was a dnf for me, I feel the world building wasn’t for me and I struggled with the writing style however that doesn’t mean somebody else won’t love it

This was essentially a tick list of romantasy tropes:
- Fates mates
- Enemies(ish) to lovers
- touch her and die
- giant man, fairly tiny woman

It was also a lot of fun and exactly what I wanted it to be.

I enjoyed the alternate history, with dragons fitting quite well into the story of the rise of Rome. The fantasy world building was fairly good without being too heavy - utilising the fact that most people will have at least a basic knowledge of the Roman Empire.

The dual POV is ways a favourite of mine, although I did find that Julian seemed fairly whiny at times - not really what you want from a 7ft tall dragon shifter.

As this is an alternative Roman history, the book does deal with slavery and there is mention of sexual assault. I think this is handled well, however, and there is no gratuitous sexual violence.

It's absolutely not a dark Romantasy but is a lot of fun, an easy read and actually showcases a healthy relationship - groundbreaking. Good solid, tropey fun.

Malina & Julian
Dragon shifters
Forbidden Magic
Touch her and ☠️
Fated Mates

Our MCs meet in the prologue 4 years prior and we see an instant connection between them! Malina is a Dacian Dancer and Julian is a Roman General, the nephew of the emperor.

I love that this one is based on Roman Empire and I love the world building in this!

I really enjoyed this one. I love the dual POVs and cannot wait for the next book!

Rating: 5 🐉 Stars

Firebird is my first book by Juliette Cross. It’s a pulse-pounding novel set during the Roman Empire. Except, the Romans are dragon-shifters who rule Rome and beyond. 🔥

Firebird consisted of strong worldbuilding and themes of conquering and dragons… lots of dragons. With major themes of dark romance and forbidden romance in this book.

The protagonists, Malina, a Dacian dancer turned slave, and Julian, a Roman general and dragon were exceptional. I liked that their POVs were in first-person which enables the reader to fully immerse in their world.

Despite my initial dismay with the power imbalance between Malina and Julian, their relationship was anything but. Malina is a strong-willed character and is fully aware of the power imbalance. She even questions Julian and he always treats her well. Julian is her main protector and their relationship really blossomed from the beginning. I liked that there were tropes that were used such as the 'touch her and die' parts and mention of 'she's my mate'. Both Julian and Malina accepted his feeling from the very beginning and hid very little from her.

I’ve always been a huge fan of fated mates and this ticks all the boxes for Romantasy fans. In a world filled with uncertainty, I was glad that these two found each other.

The sneak peek of Book 2, Bloodsinger made me so excited for the new characters and what they are to bring.

Huge thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an eARC of FIREBIRD for review!

I was really hoping to love this but sadly it fell a bit flat for me. It didn’t really have any unique or special aspects that make it stand out from all the other romantasy books out there.

I wasn’t a massive fan of the writing style and the world building was pretty non-existent.