In a Garden Burning Gold

Rory Power

2022 • 448 pages

Ratings5

Average rating3.8

“Fresh and original . . . full of lush writing and detailed worldbuilding . . . [with a] rich fantasy landscape and an almost Shakespearean feel.”—Paste Twins imbued with incredible magic and near-immortality will do anything to keep their family in power—even if it tears the family apart—in the first book of a mythic epic fantasy duology from the New York Times bestselling author of Wilder Girls. ONE OF THE MOST ANTICIPATED BOOKS OF 2022—BookPage Rhea and Lexos were born into a family unlike any other. Together with their siblings, they control the seasons, the tides, and the stars, and help their father rule their kingdom. Thanks to their magic, the family has ruled for an eternity, and plan to rule for an eternity more. But Rhea and Lexos are special: They are twins, bonded down to the bone, and for the past hundred years, that bond has protected them as their father becomes an unpredictable tyrant—and his worsening temper threatens the family’s grip on power. Now, with rival nations ready to attack, and a rebel movement within their own borders, Rhea and Lexos must fight to keep the kingdom—and the family—together, even as treachery, deceit, and drama threaten to strand the twins on opposite sides of the battlefield. In a Garden Burning Gold is a vividly written, atmospheric saga that explores the limits of power and the bonds of family—and how far both can be bent before they break.

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Series

Featured Series

2 primary books

#1 in Argyrosi

Argyrosi is a 2-book series with 2 released primary works first released in 2022 with contributions by Rory Power.

Popular Reviews

Reviews with the most likes.

Elizabeth

This was a lot of fun. Very unique world building and magic system, great descriptive writing, good cast of characters to root for and against. I see this being billed as the author adult fantasy debut, but it did still read very YA to me. Will read the second in the duology.

May 6, 2024

Sarah

i'm too slumpy for this

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Jordyn

For more of my reviews, check out my blog.

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House for providing an ARC copy of this novel.

The premise of this novel had real potential, but the actual book is mostly a let down. In A Garden Burning Gold is Rory Power's first foray into both the high fantasy genre and the Adult label. Prior to this, she's been writing YA books that tended to lean towards horror. These might be reasons why this book struggles, but either way, this was a tough one to get through.

In A Garden Burning Gold takes place in what I took to be a weird sort-of -kind-of Ancient Greece / Byzantine Empire. It's not based on any one particular culture, but those were the two I could see the most of. The main characters of the novel are twins, Rhea and Lexos, who both have powers akin to a god. Rhea changes the season by marrying someone and then killing them when the season is supposed to end. Lexos has power over the night sky and of the tides. Their siblings have powers, too, but they're less important. Their father, Baba, has power over death. He's also horrible, cruel, and mean to his children, all in the name of making them and him more powerful.

This is a book where pretty much every character is an awful person. There's a whole mess of political drama and whatnot, but there was so much information shared at the beginning of the book that I literally could not follow what was going on. That's one of the problems with In A Garden Burning Gold. There's too much thrown in all at once. It's world-building, yes, but it's also extremely overwhelming. It feels like nothing happens for a good chunk of the book. I found myself both bored, and frustrated while reading this. I wish I had liked it more.

In A Garden Burning Gold comes out April 5, 2022.