Royal Bastards

Written by Andrew Shvarts

Narrated by Brittany Pressley

Being a bastard blows. Tilla would know. Her father, Lord Kent of the Western Province, loved her as a child, but cast her aside as soon as he had trueborn children. At sixteen, Tilla spends her days exploring long-forgotten tunnels beneath the castle with her stablehand half-brother, Jax, and her nights drinking with the servants, passing out on Jax's floor while her castle bedroom collects dust. Tilla secretly longs to sit by her father's side, enjoying feasts with the rest of the family. Instead, she sits with the other bastards, like Miles of House Hampstedt, an awkward scholar who's been in love with Tilla since they were children. Then, at a feast honoring the visiting princess Lyriana, the royal shocks everyone by choosing to sit at the Bastards' Table. Before she knows it, Tilla is leading the sheltered princess on a late-night escapade. Along with Jax, Miles, and fellow bastard Zell, a Zitochi warrior from the north, they stumble upon a crime they were never meant to witness. Rebellion is brewing in the west, and a brutal coup leaves Lyriana's uncle, the Royal Archmagus, dead--with Lyriana next on the list. The group flees for their lives, relentlessly pursued by murderous mercenaries; their own parents have put a price on their heads to prevent the king and his powerful Royal Mages from discovering their treachery. The bastards band together, realizing they alone have the power to prevent a civil war that will tear their kingdom apart-if they can warn the king in time. And if they can survive the journey . . .

• Language: English
• Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc.
• Release date: May 30, 2017
• ISBN: 9781501960673

Reviews for Royal Bastards

[Evangeline Porter · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Fantastic story. Loved it so much. Thrilling and adventurous.

[familiar_diversions · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Tilla is the bastard child of Lord Kent. Although she tries to act like it doesn't bother her, part of her misses the days when her father seemed to genuinely care for her. Now she spends most of her time with her half-brother Jax, a stable hand, and wonders when her father plans to cast her aside for good.On the night of Princess Lyriana's arrival at Castle Waverly, Tilla, the Princess, Jax, Miles (another bastard, one of the few in the area close to Tilla's age), and Zell (a visiting Zitochi bastard) witness a horrible crime. Suddenly they're on the run from everyone, including their own family members, and nowhere is safe.I read this because I have an old ARC of the second book that I figured I should finally do something about. Will I be reading the ARC? Yes, although some aspects of this first book make me suspect it won't work as well for me.Royal Bastards had nice energy, and I generally liked Tilla. She wasn't a delicate flower of a girl, but at the same time she didn't look down on girls who were, and actually kind of liked the idea of wearing pretty dresses and making friends with a princess. She loved her half-brother, had very mixed emotions where her father was concerned, and struggled to figure out how to deal with Miles, the childhood friend who clearly had a crush on her that she didn't reciprocate.The romance aspect with Zell started off okay, I guess. Initially he was a hot new stranger Tilla probably would have flirted with a bit and then forgotten later on. Then Tilla, Zell, and the others were forced to either stick together or die, and there were suddenly many more opportunities for Tilla to notice Zell's abs. Zell was one of those stoic warrior types who was secretly tortured and vulnerable. While I could understand how their life-or-death situation added fuel to their romance, their "I love yous" didn't work for me at all. I couldn't help but wonder how long they'd manage to stay together once they weren't in constant danger.Overall, this was a lot more bone-crunchingly violent and bloody than I expected. For the most part, it worked, although there were a few bits that made me feel weirdly like I was watching a too-slick action TV show. The plot didn't always seem to mesh naturally with the characters' emotions. For example, the one betrayal, early on in the book, made zero sense to me, even considering the money involved - it completely contradicted what readers had been told about how all the characters involved felt about each other, to the point where I wondered whether any of the people after Tilla and the others could do mind control, because that was the only explanation that really made sense. Then there was the big final showdown: it had multiple "cool" moments that felt more staged than real, and the dialogue in that portion leaned hard on cliches.It was frequently implied that there was no "right" side in this conflict Tilla and the others found themselves in the middle of, and it'll be interesting to see whether the next book continues in that vein. Crossing my fingers that Zell and Tilla don't moon over each other too much now that they're officially a couple.(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)

[mickyfine · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I can't tell if I'm losing my tolerance for teen fiction or if the writing in this one is mediocre or less. I Pearl ruled this one as the vibe the author was obviously going for was typical medieval fantasy setting but all the characters spoke like modern real world teenagers and I just couldn't do it. For the target audience this one might be more enjoyable but it's not for me.

[mt256 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Royal Bastards sat upon my shelf unread for longer than I intended. I was in a fantasy mood recently, so I decided to pull it down and give it a go. I could tell from the summary that this was going to be an action-packed book that would be hard to put down.Tilla is the main character of the book. She's the bastard of Lord Kent of the Western Province. Like the other bastards in the book, she desperately wants not only her father's love, but also wants to be acknowledged as legitimate. Which, I think, is the most heartbreaking part of this story. A visiting dignitary, Princess Lyriana, shakes things up when she decides to sit at the Bastards' table during a feast in her honor. At that table is Tilla; her brother, Jax; her friend, Miles, and a Zitochi warrior named Zell. From henceforth I shall refer to them as the Fellowship of the Bastards or FoB. The FoB plans to go to the beach after the feast and it is there where their fates are forever changed. They witness the beginnings of a rebellion that will start a civil war. They flee for their lives pursued by many different groups determined to have their heads. They face many dangers, including giant spiders--which of course is paramount in any good fantasy. The FoB must learn to trust each other and work together or die alone.This was a quick read for me. Once I got started reading, it was hard to stop. I enjoyed the character dynamics, the bit of magic, and the overall storyline. It was predictable in some parts, but that didn't take away from the story. I would love to see this made into a television series. Jon Snow would have some fierce competition in the bastard category. I'm so glad I finally picked up this book. It was well worth the wait.

[tikamajere-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Enjoyable. Watch for sequels

[kmartin802_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Tilla is the bastard daughter of Lord Kent of the Western Province. When she was younger, her father paid a lot of attention to her but since he married and had three legitimate daughters, she has been set aside. She spends her time with her half-brother Jax who is a stablehand. She still wishes that her father would acknowledge her and she still admires him. She is attending a banquet honoring the visit of the Archmagus and the Princess Lyriana who is heir to the throne. She is in the outskirts, sitting at the bastards' table, with Miles who is the bastard son of the head of House Hempstedt and Zell who is a disgraced Zitochi warrior. Things change quickly when the princess decides that she wants to join the bastards' table. The four kids decide to join Jax later for a trip through the hidden tunnels to the Whitesand beach. There they find themselves an unwilling audience to a coup. Tilla's father, along with Miles's mother and Zell's father, are killing the Archmagus and overhear that Zell's brother has been sent to kill Lyriana in her room.The five of them have to flee to get word to the king. They head across the country being chased by Zitochi warriors including Zell's brother and other mercenaries too. The face all sorts of adventures along the way. Friendships grow and a romance blossoms too. Then there are losses and betrayals.Fans of epic fantasy will enjoy this story. The characters, especially Tilla, are well-rounded and intriguing people. I can't wait for the second book in this series to find out what happens next.

[mhanover10 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is a great YA fantasy story. The characters of Tilla, Jax, Miles, Zell and Lyriana are well rounded and we learn their history without it dragging down the storyline. The author does a great job of weaving in their backstories. The story starts out nice and lighthearted and then it takes a dark turn. There is humor, friendship, fighting, romance and death. The story moves along nicely and I cared for the characters hoping they would all be safe and survive. I don't like to wait for the next book in a series or a trilogy but when this book was over I was kind of wishing it wasn't a stand alone. Very entertaining, I had a hard time putting it down. I actually thought about having my tablet on my desk at work so I could read while I was working and hope no one would notice. This is well worth your time if you like this genre.

Thanks to NetGalley for my copy.

[eduscapes · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

ROYAL BASTARDS by Andrew Shvarts is the first book in an adventure fantasy for teens.The castle is filled with illegitimate children of the nobles including Tillandra. Along with half-brother and stable-hand Jax, Tilla becomes part of an unexpected adventure when a visiting princess named Lyriana decides to befriend her. The teens must run for their lives when a brutal coup threatens to cause civil war. The group must work together to survive and stop the war.Librarians will find this young adult fantasy adventure a hit with teens. Readers will immediately connect with this raucous group of outcasts with a mission.Published by Disney-Hyperion on May 20, 2017. ARC courtesy of the publishers.