{"id":1572,"date":"2018-01-19T19:00:48","date_gmt":"2018-01-20T03:00:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/?p=1572"},"modified":"2018-02-03T17:44:24","modified_gmt":"2018-02-04T01:44:24","slug":"review-blood-sand-c-v-wyk","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/2018\/01\/19\/review-blood-sand-c-v-wyk\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Blood and Sand &#8211; C. V. Wyk"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"bookreview\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/30975382.jpg?w=1280\" alt=\"Review: Blood and Sand &#8211; C. V. Wyk\" title=\"Review: Blood and Sand &#8211; C. V. Wyk\" class=\"ubb-cover-image alignright\"><strong>Blood and Sand<\/strong><br>by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/reviews\/authors\/c-v-wyk\/\">C.V. Wyk<\/a> <br><strong>Publisher:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/reviews\/publishers\/tor-teen\/\">Tor Teen<\/a> <br><strong>Publication Date:<\/strong> January 16, 2018 <br><strong>Genres:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/reviews\/genres\/young-adult\/\">Young Adult<\/a> <br><strong>Pages:<\/strong> 320 <br><strong>Source:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/reviews\/sources\/netgalley\/\">NetGalley<\/a> <br><br><p>I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.<\/p>My rating: <span class=\"ubb-buy\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/llama-40.png?fit=31%2C40&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"One Star\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/llama-40.png?fit=31%2C40&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"One Star\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/11\/llama-40.png?fit=31%2C40&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"One Star\"><\/span><br><br><br><blockquote class=\"ubb-synopsis\"><p><b>FORGED IN BATTLE...FROM THE DUST OF THE ARENA...A LEGEND WILL RISE<\/b><\/p>\n<p>The action-packed tale of a 17-year-old warrior princess and a handsome gladiator who dared take on the Roman Republic\u2015and gave rise to the legend of Spartacus...<\/p>\n<p>For teens who love strong female protagonists in their fantasy and historical fiction, Blood and Sand is a stirring, yet poignant tale of two slaves who dared take on an empire by talented debut author C. V. Wyk.<br \/>\n<i>Roma Victrix<\/i>. The Republic of Rome is on a relentless march to create an empire\u2015an empire built on the backs of the conquered, brought back to Rome as slaves.<\/p>\n<p>Attia was once destined to rule as the queen and swordmaiden of Thrace, the greatest warrior kingdom the world had seen since Sparta. Now she is a slave, given to Xanthus, the Champion of Rome, as a sign of his master\u2019s favor. Enslaved as a child, Xanthus is the preeminent gladiator of his generation.<\/p>\n<p>Against all odds, Attia and Xanthus form a tentative bond. A bond that will spark a rebellion. A rebellion that threatens to bring the Roman Republic to its end\u2015and gives rise to the legend of Spartacus...<br \/>\nThe story continues in <i>Fire and Ash<\/i>, coming in 2019 from Tor Teen.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote><center><span class=\"ubb-buy\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Blood-Sand-C-V-Wyk-ebook\/dp\/B071L5X3LN\/\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/amazon.png?w=1280\" alt=\"Amazon\"><\/a> \u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/itunes.apple.com\/us\/book\/blood-and-sand\/id1236806057?mt=11\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/apple.png?w=1280\" alt=\"Apple\"><\/a> \u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/blood-and-sand-c-v-wyk\/1126190824?ean=9780765380098#\/\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/bn.png?w=1280\" alt=\"Barnes & Noble\"><\/a> \u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/blood-and-sand-9\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/kobo.png?w=1280\" alt=\"Kobo\"><\/a> \u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.indiebound.org\/book\/9780765380098\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/indiebound.png?w=1280\" alt=\"Indiebound\"><\/a><\/span><\/center><center><a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/30975382-blood-and-sand\" target=\"_blank\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/widget_logo.gif?w=1280\" alt=\"Goodreads\"><\/a><br><\/center><center><p class=\"ubb-buy\"><div class=\"ubb-icon-tags\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/reviews\/book-tags\/3stars\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"80\" height=\"100\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/categories_0000s_0002_3-stars.png?fit=80%2C100&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"3 stars icon\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/reviews\/book-tags\/closed-door\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"116\" height=\"100\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/categories_0000s_0012_closed-door.png?fit=116%2C100&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/reviews\/book-tags\/historical\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"101\" height=\"100\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/categories_0000s_0012_historical.png?fit=101%2C100&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"Historical icon\" \/><\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/reviews\/book-tags\/young-adult\/\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"117\" height=\"101\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/categories_0000_young-adult-copy.png?fit=117%2C101&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"attachment-full size-full\" alt=\"young adult\" \/><\/a><\/div><\/p><\/div><\/center><br>\t\t<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n{\n\t\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n\t\"@type\":\"Review\",\n\t\"datePublished\": \"2018-01-20T03:00:48+00:00\",\n\t\"description\": \"\\r\\n\\r\\nTrigger warnings: physical &amp; sexual abuse, suicidal ideation\\r\\n\\r\\nI loved the premise of this - warrior princess Spartacus, heck yes! \\u00a0There's a definite lack of historical YA, and I was s\",\n\t\"publisher\": {\n\t\t\"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t\t\"name\": \"Llama Reads Books\"\t},\n\t\"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\\\/blog\\\/index.php\\\/2018\\\/01\\\/19\\\/review-blood-sand-c-v-wyk\\\/\",\n\t\"itemReviewed\": {\n\t\t\"@type\": \"Book\",\n\t\t\"name\": \"Blood and Sand\",\n\t\t\"author\": {\n\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t\t\t\"name\": \"C.V. Wyk\",\n\t\t\t\"sameAs\": \"\"\t\t},\n\t\t\"isbn\": \"\"\t},\n\t\"author\": {\n\t\t\"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t\t\"name\": \"ReadingLlama\",\n\t\t\"sameAs\": \"https:\\\/\\\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\\\/blog\\\/\"\t},\n\t\"reviewRating\": {\n\t\t\"@type\": \"Rating\",\n\t\t\"ratingValue\": 3,\n\t\t\"bestRating\": \"5\"\n\t}\n}\n\n\n\n\t\t<\/script>\n\t\t<hr \/>\n<p>Trigger warnings: physical &amp; sexual abuse, suicidal ideation<\/p>\n<p>I loved the premise of this &#8211; warrior princess Spartacus, heck yes! \u00a0There&#8217;s a definite lack of historical YA, and I was super thrilled to read one set in Ancient Rome. \u00a0However, the author notes in the beginning that she&#8217;s taken some liberties with historical accuracy, and actually lays a few out in detail in another note at the end of the book. \u00a0Originally, I thought the warning was odd and unnecessary (well, yeah, I mean, Spartacus wasn&#8217;t a woman), but one inaccuracy in particular turned out to be the big sticking points for me. \u00a0It is worth a warning that this is the first in a series, which I didn&#8217;t realize when I started reading this, so the abrupt cliffhanger ending and unfinished plot threads surprised and disappointed me.<\/p>\n<p>I liked Attia, though at times I&#8217;m not sure why the other characters did! \u00a0She&#8217;s brave, strong, and fierce, a kickass warrior princess, \u00a0though it seemed like she was missing the other leadership skills she&#8217;d need to lead the Thracians. \u00a0She does protect those she considers friends, though it took her time to come to trust pretty much anyone. \u00a0I also liked Xanthus, also, though I had problems believing his tragic backstory would have led to him being so kind-hearted and gentle. \u00a0He is, at heart, a good guy, and he treats Attia with respect, even when she&#8217;s basically treating him like he&#8217;s a monster. \u00a0He&#8217;s also the de facto leader of Timeus&#8217; gladiators, who have trained together since they were first purchased as slaves. \u00a0He&#8217;s kind even to Timeus&#8217; nephew, Lucius, who will, in all likelihood, be his next master, helping train him in sword fighting. \u00a0Xanthus seems to be a born leader, and he and Attia together seem to have all the skills to lead a slave rebellion!<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, the romance between Xanthus and Attia didn&#8217;t work for me. \u00a0I didn&#8217;t feel the chemistry, and it all seemed to happen so fast. \u00a0I wish it would&#8217;ve been more of a slow-burn, because Ms. Wyk did such a good job of showing how alone and suspicious Attia was, that having her fall for Xanthus so quickly didn&#8217;t jive. \u00a0It would&#8217;ve been nice to see them settle in to their friendship before going straight to deeply in love. \u00a0Besides Attia and Xanthus, the other characters very one-dimensional. \u00a0There&#8217;s the darling little poppet who brings out Attia&#8217;s maternal instincts, the aloof concubine, the slave woman who takes Attia under her wing, and the teen heir who hates his life. \u00a0I wish we&#8217;d gotten more about Xanthus&#8217; fellow gladiators. \u00a0They&#8217;re not particularly well sketched out, but what was there was interesting, and I would&#8217;ve liked to read more about their backstories and early training together.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, I also found the plot predictable and a bit tortuous. \u00a0For instance,\u00a0I found it very strange that Attia, who beat up her master, his bodyguard, and a slew of city guards shortly after she was bought at a slave auction, would then be given the job of being nursemaid to the master&#8217;s young invalid niece. \u00a0It sometimes felt like people did things out of character just so a certain situation could be created for Attia or Xanthus. \u00a0Besides the predictable plot, the grand finale was the aforementioned historical inaccuracy that was just&#8230; strange. \u00a0To try to explain without giving away any spoilers, first off, we know from the historical record that basically anything that happened in that last bit would&#8217;ve been scientifically and geographically impossible. \u00a0I&#8217;m willing to suspend disbelief for a lot of things, and I&#8217;m certainly not expecting 100% historical accuracy, but it seemed like it was there just to make a big grand finale, and I would&#8217;ve preferred a more character-driven final climax. \u00a0There were plenty of other shocking things that happened at the end of the book that felt overshadowed by the event.<\/p>\n<p>OK, so it sounds like I didn&#8217;t like anything about the book, but in all honesty, it was entertaining and I did enjoy it while reading it. \u00a0I loved the action scenes. \u00a0There&#8217;s one particular one mid-way through the book that I thought was particularly wonderful (you&#8217;ll know what I mean when you get there!). \u00a0 I also think it did a good job setting up the atmosphere of the Roman empire, the politics, and the oppression of anyone who wasn&#8217;t Roman, and how it affected Romans and non-Romans alike.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, if you&#8217;re hungry for a YA historical with a smart and fierce heroine, and don&#8217;t mind some historical inaccuracy, you will love this book!<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Trigger warnings: physical &amp; sexual abuse, suicidal ideation I loved the premise of this &#8211; warrior princess Spartacus, heck yes! \u00a0There&#8217;s a definite lack of historical YA, and I was super thrilled to read one set in Ancient Rome. \u00a0However, the author notes in the beginning that she&#8217;s taken some liberties with historical accuracy, and&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1574,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_kad_blocks_custom_css":"","_kad_blocks_head_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_body_custom_js":"","_kad_blocks_footer_custom_js":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_kadence_starter_templates_imported_post":false,"_kad_post_transparent":"","_kad_post_title":"","_kad_post_layout":"","_kad_post_sidebar_id":"","_kad_post_content_style":"","_kad_post_vertical_padding":"","_kad_post_feature":"","_kad_post_feature_position":"","_kad_post_header":false,"_kad_post_footer":false,"_kad_post_classname":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[11,27,45],"book-tag":[162,269,194,282],"class_list":["post-1572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews","tag-3-stars","tag-historical","tag-young-adult","book-author-c-v-wyk","book-publisher-tor-teen","book-genre-young-adult","book-source-netgalley","book-format-ebook","book-tag-3stars","book-tag-closed-door","book-tag-historical","book-tag-young-adult"],"acf":[],"featured_image_src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/30975382.jpg?fit=317%2C475&ssl=1","author_info":{"display_name":"ReadingLlama","author_link":"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/author\/readingllama\/"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Review: Blood and Sand - C. V. Wyk - Llama Reads Books<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/2018\/01\/19\/review-blood-sand-c-v-wyk\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Review: Blood and Sand - C. V. Wyk - Llama Reads Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Trigger warnings: physical &amp; sexual abuse, suicidal ideation I loved the premise of this &#8211; warrior princess Spartacus, heck yes! \u00a0There&#8217;s a definite lack of historical YA, and I was super thrilled to read one set in Ancient Rome. \u00a0However, the author notes in the beginning that she&#8217;s taken some liberties with historical accuracy, and...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/index.php\/2018\/01\/19\/review-blood-sand-c-v-wyk\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Llama Reads Books\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-01-20T03:00:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2018-02-04T01:44:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/01\/30975382.jpg?fit=317%2C475&ssl=1\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"317\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"475\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"ReadingLlama\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@llamareadsbooks\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@llamareadsbooks\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"ReadingLlama\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\\\/blog\\\/index.php\\\/2018\\\/01\\\/19\\\/review-blood-sand-c-v-wyk\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\\\/blog\\\/index.php\\\/2018\\\/01\\\/19\\\/review-blood-sand-c-v-wyk\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"ReadingLlama\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.llamareadsbooks.com\\\/blog\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5e74a3baab5108c5a3d39c380268f6ab\"},\"headline\":\"Review: Blood and Sand &#8211; C. 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