2.75⭐

This Romantasy wasn't anything original or memorable, yet it was surprisingly fun to listen to.

Arwen Valondale is your common village girl with not-so-common healing magic. Her country of Amber is being decimated by the forces of the Onyx kingdom. She has already lost her brother to the conscription, and now it might soon be time for women to fight too. Then the war comes to their doorstep, and she becomes a prisoner in the Onyx King's fortress. She is woken up to the realities of the world and has to find the courage and strength to face them.

There is not much when it comes to the setting. Nine countries are named after nine Holy Gemstones that are never mentioned again, only when swearing on them. There is witchcraft and legends of monsters and fae. It's all very bare-boned.

The story was serviceable. It was more there to allow the characters to build their relationship. We only went more in-depth at the end of the book. There were a lot of sudden reveals that kind of came out of nowhere, yet were also very what one would expect from this kind of story. I did enjoy the first revelation, though. That was somewhat unexpected.

As for some interesting characters, we have Mari who is the kind of chipper character that instantly befriends Arwen. While again not so original, I enjoyed her character. She just does what she decides to do and damned be the consequences. Arwen herself does suffer from some classic Romantasy character tropes, yet most of the time I didn't have a problem with her and she does have pretty good banter with everyone. As for our romantic interest, I can't say much without spoiling him, but he again falls under the typical dark and troubled trope. Yet, somehow, he still wasn't insufferable.

Then of course there is the romance. It is enemies to lovers with a bit too much insta lust. I did enjoy the banter quite a bit. It was probably what I enjoyed most about the book.

Lastly, I consumed this book as an audio version, and I think Joe Arden's voice was one of the reasons for my enjoyment. While it wasn't the best narration I ever experienced, it has definitely been one of the better ones out there. It was easy to understand, with proper pauses, and each character had its own distinctive voice.

This review may seem like I am complaining more than praising the book. While I wasn't sure between 2 (ok) and 3 (liked) stars at first, I think my enjoyment leans more towards 3 stars. I am not sure if I want to pick up the sequel when it comes out, but I might revisit the entire series once it has been completed.

I received an ALC for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. ( )

5⭐️ 2🔥

"I do not want to live in a world without you in it"
"You have scars" "yes" "who did that to you"

This was awesome from the very beginning! She got kidnapped in the first 3 chapters. And she has super special mysterious healing powers. It has witches, dragons, unique magic, fae, mythical creatures, and bada** FMC/MMC.
I was completely consumed with the world and magic system and characters and all the secrets. I had many emotions throughout this book. I nearly cried, I was beyond frustrated, I laughed, and my heart broke with loss and betrayal. This was darker than I expected it to be. I loved it!
I need the second book RIGHT NOW!

Tropes:
Friends to Enemies to lovers
Slow burn

Ending Type: Cliffhanger

Below are my SPOILER thoughts and reactions:
[
35%: What! No shit the secret man is the king! I knew it! Mari and Dagan are the kind of friends we all need in our lives.
100%: I loved the pond scene. I smiled! I like Kane. I can tell that there's much more than meets the eye but I also have so many questions. I don't like Halden. I don't trust him. He's using Arwen. She's a fae isn't she?? I'm so glad she wasn't able to escape with Halden. WILL YOU JUST KISS ALREADY!! Um... what the fuck just happened in ch. 21 after saving the chimera?! Why is she dying?! (poison from the werewolf) Wait, can Kane hear her thoughts? Oh no. She's just completely Delirious. Oh shit, HE'S FAE! And Lazarus's son. Finally they kissed! Um no. She can't leave. No! Griffin complimenting Mari 🤣 I laughed out loud. He brought her her family! Are you shitting me? They were finally about to do it and they had to abruptly had to stop.... OMG KANE IS THE DRAGON!!!!!!! No... mam! Oh my God this is horrible! She has to die in order to kill the Fae king... and so what Kane lied. It was for a good reason BECAUSE HE LOVES YOU DUMBASS! Get over it, jump his bones, find a way to kill the king without dying and save the world together. ( )

My first two thoughts after finishing are why isn't book two in my hands and where can I get my own Kane?

But seriously for Kate's debut novel, this one is one of my favorite reads of the year and I loved the world that she built. The Kingdom of Onyx is both dark and beautiful and full of monsters. The atmosphere held just the right amount of creepy vibes that kept me turning the page to read more. The Kingdom of Amber by contrast gave off simple but much harder life than the dark monstrous Onyx Kingdom that was also beautiful and so full of hidden depths.

The characters were so on point for me. I loved Kane and Arwen. The secondary characters were well rounded and spoiler: the Friendship between Arwen and Mari is goals. Even though they are from different warring kingdoms there was no Betrayal! I love that and more than I can say
Arwen's motivations for ending up in Onyx made sense and stayed true throughout the Book.
Kane was just everything. Dark, Grumpy, and the perfect Enemies-to-lovers. He matched Arwen in strength and will to save his Kingdom.

I highly recommend this book and anything else that Kate writes in the future. ( )