Took me a few chapters to wrap my head around everyones stories but once i got into it i was hooked, Fourth Wing meets Harry Potter in my opinion. Look forward to the next installment of this book

A gripping and unique fantasy that has high intrigue levels. Vividly imagined characters that immediately draw the reader in.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC!

4 stars!

The Ellyrian Code is a richly imagined epic fantasy that blends dragon lore, political intrigue, and academic tension into a slow-burning, character-driven story. The world-building is ambitious and thoughtful, with multiple perspectives that deepen the exploration of privilege, power, and the institutions that uphold them. The university setting adds a compelling pressure-cooker atmosphere where students must navigate corruption and societal expectations while wrestling with their own identities.

While the pacing is deliberately slow and the opening can feel disorienting, the layered themes and morally complex characters offer strong payoff, especially by the end. Standout characters like Jadon and Christina are flawed, real and well written, and though the dragons take a backseat in this installment, the groundwork laid here hints at even greater things to come. This is a solid start to a promising series, especially for readers who appreciate intricate world-building, emotional stakes, and stories that reward patience.

I really liked the sound of this book as I am a big fan of fourth wing and it was good, however it didn't have as much romance for me. I was intrigued and I couldn't put the book down and will be reading book 2, I just wish it wasn't so slow to start with.

I really enjoyed this book. It follows several students of a magic school, as well as their own personal journeys getting there and some political intrigue. It’s much more fantasy focused than anything like romance or personal drama. I enjoyed all the different characters. The pacing was a little slow at first but once I got to know everyone and especially after hitting half way I started to see it all coming together. I ended this read really wishing I had book two to go on to straight away.

I was initially drawn in by its premise: an academia setting with dragon-riding and magic-wielding peacekeepers sounded exactly like something I could sink into. The atmospheric cover sealed the deal. Unfortunately, the reading experience didn’t live up to the anticipation. The book didn’t capture my expectations in the first couple of chapters and I chose not to continue reading.

the ellyrian code isn’t at all what I was expecting. I thought it would be more like fourth wing, but it really wasn’t. there was a noticeable lack of romance, which didn’t bother me, but if someone’s thinking this is anything like fourth wing, they’ll be significantly disappointed. the similarities end at dragons.

first and foremost, the plot and premise of the ellyrian code was very well thought out and intriguing. my interest was held from the very first page. because this book is heavy in politics and an academic setting, the pacing was a lot slower than i’d typically expect from a fantasy novel. it wasn’t bad (ever, at all), just something I wanted to point out. it’s a nice medium pacing with some fairly slow bits.

while there’s a lot of world building and things to learn, I found myself loving the characters a lot. they were relatable and loveable, which are the main things I’m looking for when it comes to characters. the dialogue between each of them was so well written, it felt like I was really there, watching everyone bicker.

the ending was really well done. it speed up enough for the climax to really hit hard. I absolutely can’t wait for the next book.

It's unfortunate that this book has been compared to Fourth Wing, as this exceeds it in every way.

It has a bit of a slow, meandering start, but starts to lay the pieces of the puzzle out and hooks in around 30%.

A promising new fantasy world!

The Ellyrian Code: The Treaty of Edriendor is an Epic Fantasy set amongst dragons and primarily set within a school.

The book revolves around four students and their attendance to an elite university, with the POV switching between each to weave the story together.

The chapters are much longer than I'm used to but given the backgrounds of the characters, I feel the longer chapters work as it allows you to really get into the world and really learn and understand the character whose POV you are reading.

Diar, Jenne, Christina and Jardon all come from different lives and yet B.F. Peterson blends them perfectly, which each character having a worthwhile, important role! Of the four, I actually really liked Christina ❤️.

There is also epic worldbuilding from the landscape to the politics and magical system, which all feeds back into this world! We also have dragons, though they aren't featured heavily in this first book... yet, I hope 😉!

As this was year one at the University, I can't wait to see what happens in the sequal... hopefully, we get to see more dragons and learn more about how they fit into society.

Fantasy Acadamia at it greatest. I liked this better than Fourth Wing I think. I loved the slow burn, The world building was rich and beautiful. I liked the pacing for the most part and the characters were likable.

If Fourth Wing and The Atlas Six had a darker, more ambitious cousin, then this would be it.

At Eshtem University, the path to power lies through fire, magic, and dragons—and four students will risk everything to earn their place among the elite dragon-riding Edrei. But ambition comes at a cost, and beneath the academy’s glittering legacy, corruption is quietly taking root. A high prince escaping his father’s shadow. A commoner haunted by a forgotten past. A noble caught between faith and love. A royal with everything to prove. Each of them are fighting to survive… and not all will make it to the end.

My Thoughts:

While the story begins slowly, once the characters arrive at the university, it really takes off. The multi-POV narrative is layered and surprisingly effective. This is a richly built world full of politics, secrets, and morally grey choices. I think it’s perfect for readers who love complex fantasy with a sharp edge. Just be warned: the world-building is dense, and the chapters are long, but it’s all worth it.
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This was a breath of fresh air, I am in fact getting a special edition of this as I enjoyed it that much. Solid world building and I didn’t feel lost in any of it. Am recommending currently to all my family and friends.

The Ellyrian Code has been marketed as being similar to Fourth Wing, but I think the comparison is more appropriate to Game of Thrones, if we spend the time at maester school. This book has a lot of characters (I definitely struggled to keep them all straight without a guide), but our main characters in Eshtem University are two royals: Princess Christina and Prince Jadon, and commoners Jenne and Diar, all of whom attempt to navigate their studies and a university which is supposed to be a place with equality, but contains its own hierarchy and cliques.

The book does a great job in balancing the mystery element of the epic fantasy and the romance subplots. As I said, I wasn't sure who all the side characters was, but I appreciated that the plot kept moving as a pace that wasn't slow and I could follow well. The characters are all well drawn, and I suspect most readers will have favourites (mine was definitely idealist Christina), even if they are still circling around each other rather than working as team.

By the end of the book, I was sad to see it end on a cliffhanger, and I will be excited to read the next entry into the series. Thanks to Angry Robot for the early copy - fans of George R.R. Martin or Brandon Sanderson will enjoy this one.

DNF - I found the world building to be a bit too convoluted and I didn’t want to come back to it after taking a break. I do think I wasn’t in the right headspace for this and I could see myself revisiting it maybe down the road!

Dragon Riders, Academia, Corruption, Magic!
I mean....you had me at hello! There is really nothing not to like about this book.
I'm a big fan of all of the tropes found within the pages, not that anything is new or different but it's all put together with well thought out world building, characters and prose.
This doesn't have the pace of Fourth Wing, for which I'm grateful and really isn't anything like it. This is slower and builds over time. I can see this setting up book #2 very well and I'm hopeful that everything just gets better and better as we go along.
We have lots of political machinations going on and our characters have to navigate that while trying to learn and grow as students. I wish we got to know more about the dragons themselves but I know it will be more of a focus going forward. I cant wait to see where this story takes us!
My rating is 4.5
Thank you to NetGalley and AngryRobot for this advance reading copy. My review is based on my own thoughts.

Maybe I dived into this book with extremely high expectations but I was hoping for an epic fantasy with dragons, high stakes and an intricate magic system. Unfortunately, it didn't deliver on those fronts for me.

There was surprisingly little focus on the dragons themselves. The pacing was slow, which in itself is not a bad thing whatsoever (at least for me), but while I usually enjoy a character-driven story, I struggled a lot on this point because I genuinely didn't connect with any of the characters. They felt a little flat and a little underdeveloped. Because of that I found it hard to care about what was happening to them or their world.

The worldbuilding had pontential but it was a bit too confusing at times. Obviously this is a fantasy book and that's usually how it goes when you first start reading them, but The Ellyrian Code felt confusing from start to finish. I do wish the magic system had been explained in more detail as it felt more like an afterthought rather than an important part of the story.

The stakes felt low for what was supposed to be an intense and dangerous setting and this only made it hard for me to feel any tension or urgency from the characters.

Overall, although my review criticizes a lot of caracteristics, The Ellyrian Code is not a bad book per say. I think this book might work better for readers who prefer a more slower-paced fantasy focused almost entirely on character emotions and internal conflicts. Unfortunately, that is not me and so I feel like this book wasn't targeted towards readers like me.

The Ellyrian Code follows 4 students: Jadon, a rebellious prince seeking an opportunity to find himself, Christina, a princess from a rival house who views the Edrei as the highest honor, Jenne, a commoner with amnesia and a hatred from the nobility, and Diar, a member of an outcast religious group, in their quest to become Edrei, an elite-group of magical, dragon-riders who are tasked with maintaining peace in the world. As they navigate the pressures of social rivalry and academic competition, unsettling truths about corruption within the Edrei order begin to surface. The quartet must realize their loyalties, beliefs and futures, how to challenge the status quo all while trying not to get expelled in the process.

This book, while I thoroughly enjoyed it, suffered from first-book in a fantasy series syndrome. Not much happens plot-wise while the author tries to setup the world and the characters. I enjoyed the characters and thought they were fleshed out while not revealing everything about them. The world building was also really good in establishing the hierarchy and the order of the Edrei. The academic competition was also really interesting to experience as well and honestly made me a little anxious for the characters with how easy it was to gain demerits. The one negative I had about this book was the wordiness of the classes. There would be pages of rhetoric and politics that ultimately felt like fluff with no real use for the story. At least I hope there is no use because the class monologues were so wordy, I found myself confused every time I read them. There are also a lot of minor characters that I was having trouble keeping track of who they were and who their loyalties lied with among the 4 main characters. The conflict at the end was honestly a little dumb in the aftermath of how it was resolved but at the same time I'm curious to see how it plays out with Jadon and Christina being linked for the rest of their years at Eshtem (hopefully Jadon's learned him lesson 0.0).

DNF at 30%.

Firstly, I think the comps of Fourth Wing x Atlas Six set this book up to fail

Aside from the issues I'll put below, I just wasn't massively drawn in. Maybe I would have been without the stuff below, but I was really disappointed by this.

I don't think anything I point out below are major plot spoilers, mainly because I didn't get far enough into the story. Read at your own risk (tw SA and descriptions of race/heritage)

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- There's a scene right at the start where the Prince (Jadon) is hosting an audience, and a father brings his daughter who is pregnant after being r*ped by one of the Prince's guards. The Prince (in his head) knows this is likely true, but settles it as a 'he said, she said' and that's that. While I am well aware that this can be the case for so many women, this just felt so unnecessary?? The Prince also points "She was so young - younger even than Jadon, who, at seventeen, had just reached majority himself" I'm sorry??

We're now on our way to the war college or whatever

- I wish I could speak more eloquently about why these parts bothered me. I think it's relatively clear? Quotes below all relating to Diar, the only 'dark-skinned' character (at least as far as I read)

"The dark-skinned initiate in the company of a strapping blond youth and a scruffy dwarf? ... There could hardly be two such trios wandering the streets of Lystra."

'Bringing his dark-skinned roommate to an event for War House nobles would certainly irritate some, as Diar's obviously Rishara heritage made him unlikely to be either noble or War House-sworn.'

This follows to say Rishara people worshipped 'the White God' ... 'keeping the White way' and how 'few dark-skinned people had married into noble families, and in War House territory, intermarriages were rare even in the lower classes'

Diar is offered help to learn how to ride a horse and replies "White help me, no"

Are you picking up what I'm putting down? That was quite enough for me.

I really thought I was going to love this one; the premise sounded amazing and I was excited for dragons and a big fantasy world. But the book felt incredibly dry instead. There were so many characters and not enough depth, and I never really connected with any of them. It wasn’t bad, just kind of flat and forgettable, which was disappointing.

DNF at 33%

This book sounded so great from the synopsis and the first couple of chapters had me intrigued but after that it fell flat for me. I found once they'd got to the school there were so many different characters mentioned by name and I couldn't keep them and their allegiances straight. I would have liked more information about the different countries in the world and my lack of knowledge and ability to separate the different characters in my head affected my enjoyment because I lost interest in what happened to anyone.

I'm hoping this might have just been the wrong time for me to read the book and will consider trying it again in future because I have heard good things from people.

Thank you to Angry Robot and Netgalley for the ARC.