Janeal Falor

3.5/5 stars

Trigger Warning: Abuse. Verbal, emotional, and physical.

Serena lives in a patriarchal dystopia. A very brutal and unkind one, where women are nothing more than property, good for breeding the next generation of warlocks, and the only thing less than women are the tarnished, those men with no powers and women who have been punished by having their identities stripped from them.

It's time for Serena's blood to be tested for the magic it carries, and for her to enter the marriage show more market. The benefit of her marriage will, of course, be to her future husband via the male babies she bears for him, and the benefit to her father is in the money he earns from selling her to her new owner.

Her new owner, Thomas, is everything she feared. He's even more brutal than her father, and he kills someone in a tournament in order to gain that person's position and goods. More frightening for Serena, is when Thomas is killed in the tournament by a barbaric Envadi from a neighboring land. As Thomas's property, Serena could now become tarnished, unless her new owner wants her. And he does.

Early on in the book Serena is showed into a room to wait for a male doctor. When she's left there alone to wait, the lights are turned off. She reflects on that, how women are always in the dark. Electricity is new and prized and women are not worthy of it. That, right there, was the tiny piece of worldbuilding that showed me just how terrible Serena's world was. If women are the only people in a room then the lights are turned off. Because women are property, not people.

Serena's emotions rang true to me. She's always afraid of punishment, and since that's been her life it isn't surprising. It's difficult for her trust, almost impossible, and watching her learn that was good. The best part for me, though, was Serena's relationships with women, especially her sisters. Though this book does have a romantic aspect, the biggest relationships are women-to-women.

I'm hoping for more books in this world. I'd like to see what happens next.

(Provided by publisher) show less

Holy. Freaking.... wow. This book left me in a mess of emotions. I finished it a couple of days ago, but I needed to take time to process everything. It struck a nerve, but not necessarily in a bad way. I was just... wow, this book got me so riled up. I wanted to smack every single man in here. Every. Single. One.
It's a feminist's worst nightmare. Actually, it's the nightmare of all women (me included).
Why?
You Are Mine takes place in a world of warlocks and *sigh* their 'wenches', where show more women are used as simple trophy wives and reproductive slaves. They are mistreated, beaten, and usually sold off to warlocks depending on how much magic they have running in their blood, making the warlock who buys the merchandise sure to have a powerful heir (a boy of course). Serena was discovered to have more than enough magic in her blood, so her father sold her off to a very powerful, but cruel man, Thomas. And by this point, I was fuming.

'"None of that, wench. My possessions don't get away from me. Besides, we'll be married soon enough, I just want a little taste."
My pulse quickens. "No."
The leer morphs into a snarl. "Don't you dare tell me no."
Grabbing a fistful of hair, he yanks my head back. I scream.' -location 677 of 4650 of ARC

I desperately wanted someone to break his pretty little face. Thankfully, somebody did... actually, somebody went all the way and Serena (with all of Thomas's belongings) ended up belonging to another man, Zane. Now, Zane is an Envadi (it's like another ethical group) and he has a different way of seeing things. So when Serena is ordered to go live with him, she's surprised at how relaxed he is. He doesn't even beat her like her father did. She's never had so much freedom before, and the more freedom she gets, the more dangerous her ideas become.

The world building in this book was a huge risk to take on. It's one of those 'you either love it or hate it' books and I'm glad to say that I absolutely LOVED it! Sure, at first I was furious at everyone, especially Serena. She easily conformed within this society and so did all her sisters. I wanted to smack her so badly! But I understood. Women were beaten and brainwashed and there was nothing they could do against the powerful magic of men.
Serena was a little on the rebellious side even though she stayed within the morals of society. She spoke when she wasn't supposed to, she was daring, witty at times, and she drove her abusive father nuts. Yes, her character is slow to develop, but think of it this way: women had no choice and they were in a perpetual state of fear. Serena breaking away from all of this was definitely something I admired. She couldn't fight a group of warlocks all by herself and she was sure to be Tarnished if she didn't conform, so she did the only thing she could do whilst slowly becoming her own. Warning: This slow development might not be for everyone. Serena might get on your nerves (like she sort of got on mine for a while).
Zane, on the other hand, was... well, he was a strange boy. I liked him... and then I hated him, but then I liked him again. Go figure. He drove me nuts in a very surprising manner. The way he treated Serena was just as confusing, but there's a reason for it (a good one). Turns out, he's got more tricks up his sleeve than I gave him credit for. Keep an eye on the guy. He's cool though... give or take some.

Romance-wise, the relationship between them both was strange at first because it was forced. Serena was engaged to Zane before she even met him. Nice, no? Some guy kills your former owner and voila! You just got yourself a new husband! Congratulations.
But their love gradually escalates (definitely no insta-love here). By the ending, they were perfect for each other.

Overall, I know the whole 'women treated like dog crap' is tough to read about. Trust me, my first reaction to the story was me angry.
It's a bumpy start, but that ending... wow, that ending makes up for it. There's a lot going on by that point and I just didn't want it to end. I wanted needed more of Serena and Zane. They grew on me in such an unexpected manner. Personally, I'd give this book a go again.
Do I recommend it? Oh. Yeah. :) show less

"Katherine's place is the same as any woman's-on the shelf next to the dresses and bolts of cloth." Women have absolutely no rights of their own, and are at the mercy of men, especially warlocks, who aren't known for their patience and tenderness. Women may have magic, but they aren't able to wield it, and women who have a great deal of magic are very valuable, which is why they are sold off to the highest bidder, usually a warlock who just wants them as breeders. They are controlled by show more their owner through intimidation and pain by way of hexes. Katherine has been sold off to a disgusting, old warlock by her father, and doesn't know what to do, until her mother comes up with a plan to help her daughter run, which is very risky for both of them, but Katherine doesn't see any other way.

This prequel novella is a very quick read, but that doesn't keep you from experiencing the horror the females in this society face on a daily basis. You can't help but root for Katherine and the others she meets up with along the way. Her journey is a hard one, but in it she finds meaning and a way of life completely different than the one she thought she would be living.

I enjoyed this prequel very much and look forward to continuing with the series to see where it goes.

5/5 stars.

*** I would like to thank NetGalley, Chardonian Press, and Janeal Falor for the opportunity to read and review this book. show less

In a society where women are worthless, Serena knows that any wrong move could destroy her life. Burdened by her father’s actions to sell her off to the highest bidder, she knows her freedom is going to get even more compromised. But, when her ownership is transferred to the hands of a barbaric Envadi, she discovers a whole new world; a world where woman don’t have to follow a certain set of guidelines and where they can be free.

This book was fantastic! It was really difficult to put show more down.

The world-building was great! The society was crafted masterfully and brilliantly. I could actually start feeling myself (as a female) as suppressed and restricted as Serena felt. I was sucked into the story immediately and found it difficult to put down.

I loved the way the author created the characters. Serena is the protagonist, and she’s an outspoken, independent woman. Problem is, with the amount of magic in her blood, she’s too valuable; and so, her father wants to sell her off to the highest bidder. The way Serena reacted to everything life threw at her was completely reasonable and relatable.

“What do I really want? I don’t know, but not this. Something different. Something that won’t require me to constantly submit myself to another’s will.”

Something that I really enjoyed about this book was the contrast between the Chardonian people and the Envadi. While the Chardonian people are a sexist society that subjects women to corporal punishment if they don’t behave, the Envadi are a people who believe that everyone has rights and treat women as individuals.

I liked the Tarnished concept as well, because it kept up with the magical aspect of this story, and it really did represent a threat to Serena, as well as every other woman in that society.

This book really engrossed me with the romance. It was slow building, but steady and without a doubt, swoon-worthy.

I loved Zade so much! He was hilarious, awkward and completely honest and I loved everything about him!

This story was amazing and completely unputdownable. I can't wait to see what happens in the rest of the books!

I could keep mentioning everything I liked about this book, but I’d just waste your time. Just, please, read this book, like immediately. show less