BLOG TOUR: The Cup and the Prince by Day Leitao - Release Day Review + Giveaway
The Cup and the Prince by Day Leitao
Author: Day Leitao
Published by: Sparkly Wave on 15 October 2020
Rating: ★★★★★
Genre: Young Adult // Fantasy
*The author was kind enough to provide me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review, and Farah is participating in the release day blog tour. This has in no way impacted my review of this book.*
*This review is spoiler-free*
Synopsis from Goodreads :
One prince wants her out.
Another wants her as a pawn.
Someone wants her dead.
Zora wants to win the cup and tell them all to screw themselves.
Yes, 17-year-old Zora cheated her way into the Royal Games, but it was for a very good reason. Her ex-boyfriend thought she couldn't attain glory on her own. Just because she was a girl. And he was the real cheater. So she took his place.
Now she's competing for the legendary Blood Cup, representing the Dark Valley. It's her chance to prove her worth and bring glory for her people. If she wins, of course.
But winning is far from easy. The younger prince thinks she's a fragile damsel who doesn't belong in the competition. Determined to eliminate her at all costs, he's stacking the challenges against her. Zora hates him, hates him, hates him, and will do anything to prove him wrong.
The older prince is helping her, but the cost is getting Zora entangled in dangerous flirting games. Flirting, the last thing she wanted.
And then there's someone trying to kill her.
Happy release day to The Cup and the Prince by Day Leitao! Throne of Glass meets Minecraft in this exciting YA romantic fantasy.
BINGE READ ALERT!!!!!
Plot and story concept
So the concept of this book is pretty simple - an adventurous girl goes to the capital to try and win a prize called the 'Blood Cup'. The story follows Zora as she goes through a series of trials in a competition hosted to get this artefact. But this story had so much more!
Overall impressions- characters, plot, worldbuilding and relationships
Firstly - there was a very good detail added to relationships between characters that helped the plot. Zora's motivation to get the cup is simple - she wants to have revenge on her ex-lover and to prove to herself that she is worth something. A nice coming of age, getting to know yourself sort of motivation.
While its central to the plot and Zora is clearly upset by what her lover did, she does not constantly moan about him or is horrible to other characters that are in love. This is very nice and refreshing as with some YA protagonists they often come across as bitter and jealous. While Zora does know she is jealous and recognise those feelings, she does not dwell on it which is nice.
Griffin was a very interesting character. There was a lot of mystery about him that is explored in the book and while he is her rival, he remains a complex character with his own wants and desires, he is morally grey and has reasons for his behaviours. His brothers are interesting too and complex family relationships are touched on well in this book. Alegra is also a very intriguing character and I suspect she will have an even greater role to play in the next book.
Friendships are also nicely explored between Zora and her few female friends that she makes in the story, and they are nice friendships. Not backstabbing horrible ones. While Zora certainly has trust issues, she does not take them out on her friends. She is a nice role model for younger girls.
The plot is simple yet there are so many layers to it! There is the main story - Zora aiming to win the competition, but there is also Griffin's story about why he wants to win the competition and Alegra's story.
Summary
Overall this reminded me slightly of Throne of Glass except there were actual competition chapters. Which is nice because so many books try to explore competitions but at the same time don't feature actual chapters about it. I enjoyed the challenges that Zora faced and they were a nice break from the world-building, side plot things that happened in this book. I must say, I am looking forward to book 2!
This is certainly something I would pick if I wanted a nice relaxing read.
AUTHOR INFO:
I'm originally from Brazil but I've been living in Canada for over 10 years now. I have some influence from Brazilian writers and Brazilian culture, but I also read popular books in English. I watched some Anime as a kid, my favourite being Yamato. I'm a longtime Star Wars fan and I'm active in the fandom podcasting at Lords of the Sith as Denise.
I've always loved to write stories, and I like to always include romance, action and humour in my writing. I think stories can touch us deeply. I live in Montreal, Canada, with my son.
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The author and MTMC Tours are hosting an INTERNATIONAL giveaway and going to give a lucky winner a paperback copy of The Cup and the Prince!
Have you had a chance to pick up The Cup and The Prince Yet?
What do you think?
Let me know in the comments!
