Name: Faebound
ISBN: 9780008596989

Saara El-Arifi

From the Sunday Times bestselling author of THE FINAL STRIFE, comes an enchanting new trilogy.

Faebound

Me: I hate prologues. They are always unnecessary exposition about how the world was formed

Me: I relinquish my previous statement 😅

Sofia B

And for a time, all was well. But no matter how much the gods wished for peace, they had given their children the one thing that would never ensure it. 

prawnie

From the seeds of the earth Asase made humans. Sprigs became bones and flowers sprouted smiles.

Reminds me of wars in the Middle East over oil

Beneath the bloodied soil of the Bleeding Field were untapped mines of the valuable crystal. And where there is value. there is power, and where there is power, violence will always brew.

Sun sins, she is beautiful. Beautiful in dreams and fierce in waking. 

Sleep didn't come for Yeeran, but nor did she seek it. Instead, she lay there watching the dawn break against her lover's skin, her mind alight with glory and power and death.

Three years ago, he spoke of a prophecy that foretold the second coming of the fae. It was then that the diviners knew that his illness was progressing- the fae only lived in faerytales now. 

I support this flirting more than I support Lettle x Rayan. Ngl Lettle reads like a teenager to me, not a 29 year old (unless elves mature more slowly?) 

Berro's gaze travelled up and down Rayan's body for a beat longer than was polite. 

“It's a shame it wasn't you who bit me...”

Rayan reached out to steady her and grazed her breasts as he grabbed her forearm. Both of them ignored it.

She’s so dramatic oml. He’s literally training. Do you have brain cells?

Lettle felt sick. This was her oWn fault. She had pushed him away and into another woman's arms.

Why are we trying so hard to make Furi likable? Just leave it as enemies to lovers and actually let them be complex characters 😤

Love interests are allowed to be flawed, mean, rude, and moments of weakness. They don’t all need to be sympathetic and amazing human beings.

Before Yeeran could respond Nerad spoke again. 'She is more than the person you have seen. Furi is selfless to a fault, and when something needs to be done, she will volunteer herself be- fore anyone else. There is nothing she would not do for Mosima.' There was true affection in Nerad's tone.

We know! You already told us in EVERY SINGLE chapter prior to this SINCE you found out 🙄🙄🙄🙄🫠

im losing my sanity with every word I read, but I need to read 3 chapters a day to finish this for book club 🤡

“But how can I blame them? When elves have slaughtered so many of the obeah?”

 “That was before you knew,” Pila said

Furi turned up to training the next day. 

When she started the drills and Yeeran was able to dodge all of her magic, she didn't smile or look pleased but simply said, “You finally figured out magesight then.

But she can??? She cut your cheek with her magic! Don't be intentionally obtuse Furi! You’ll wake up the plot holes :(

“You're either not trying hard enough, or you can't do magic at all."

“Of course it is. I just hate not knowing how or why we were plagued by it in the first place.”

Classic writing technique. Make the evil people be mean to animals and the good people good with animals. This books is predictable 🙃

Lmaooo Lettle does not like being a stylist

'Are you really going to spend another hour his eyebrows?' Lettle hissed

He didn’t even ask lmao 🤣 Lettle you silly goose

His eyes met hers and she caught the echoes of rejection in them. It twisted her guts. 

If he asked me to love him now, I'm not sure I have the will to say no. Lettle.

 ‘Yes,' she answered, perhaps a little too quickly.

‘There's something I need to tell you.'

“Don't deny it. I know that you'll likely die.” The word ‘die' ventured up into another octave. 

Komi looked between them. “I'm going to need some filling in this sandwich, please.”

Yeeran’s eyes turned distant, and a small smile quirked her lips before she could stop it. “Nothing.”

“Nothing looks a lot like some- thing.”

It’s so funny cause this whole conversation is between yeeran and giant cat familiar and going on in Yeeran’s mind

“Tell Lettle her ears look pretty,”Pila said, stretching into the empty space the fae had vacated. 

“Do you not compliment each other's ears?”

“Yes, like with Amnan. I tell him I like his ears by licking them”

“Pila, I'm not going to tell Lettle she has nice ears.”

“Well, if you won't tell her, lick them.”

Two elven sisters become imprisoned in the hidden world of the fae where danger, and love, lies in wait. Faebound is the first book in an enchanting new trilogy from the internationally bestselling author of The Final Strife. A thousand years ago, the world held three beings: fae, elves, and humans. But now the fae and humans exist only in myth and legend, survived by the elves who are trapped in an endless war over the remaining lands. Yeeran is a colonel in the elven army and has known nothing but a life of violence and hardship. Her sister, Lettle, is a diviner whose magic promises a different future for her and her sister, but the prophecies have yet come to pass. When a fatal mistake leads to Yeeran’s exile from the Elven Lands, Lettle, fearful for her sister’s life, follows her into the uncharted territory beyond their borders. In the wilderness the sisters encounter the largest obeah they have ever seen. Part leopard, part stag, the obeah’s magic is harnessed to make weapons for the elven war. It is during this hunt that they are confronted with the impossible: a group of fae who take them captive. Imprisoned in a new land, they must navigate the politics of the fae court all while planning their escape. Now Yeeran and Lettle are fighting a different kind of war: between their loyalty to their elven homeland and the intoxicating world of the fae, between what duty decrees is right, and what their hearts tell them they need.

Not that i had low expectations but I will say this definitely surprised me! such a good plot with some well thought out twists (and some obvious ones). Excited to read the rest!

Soph

Katie Roberts

This book had its good moments…and it’s bad.

The world building was stellar. Some of the most unique and interesting world building I have read in years.

The plot was predictable, I’d say up until the end. A few of the reveals did catch me off guard, but it was so predictable bordering on boring.

Some of the dialogue made this feel YA and the characters very teenager/chlidish

the romance and chemistry needed more development. The pacing was so fast at times it felt like all the substance has been cut

Rayan x Lettle were insta love. Furi x Yeeran insta list. Neither of them worked for me personally. It just felt like they were together because the plot wanted them to not because they actually should be together

Komi…it couldn’t have been more obvious. it made me feel like a smart reader while treating me like I’m stupid.

The spice scenes didn’t make sense where they were emotionally

The amount of times we were told that Lettle and Yeeran starved on the battle field drove actually insane. If all the redundancy was cute form this book it would be 10% shorter and if it was then replaced with character development this book actually would’ve been more enjoyable.

I struggled through it for book club but I had to buy the ebook because the font was so small on my physical copy. 

The writing style was very telly at times and could’ve been edited more. Idk if I’ll read the next book because while I like the plot and the world, I don’t really care for the characters when Lettle acts like a child and yeeran kept repeating how sad she was that obean’s had their souls linked.

We were trying too hard to make the characters likable…next time try less hard

This book had its good moments…and it’s bad.

The world building was stellar. Some of the most unique and interesting world building I have read in years.

The plot was predictable, I’d say up until the end. A few of the reveals did catch me off guard, but it was so predictable bordering on boring.

Some of the dialogue made this feel YA and the characters very teenager/chlidish

the romance and chemistry needed more development. The pacing was so fast at times it felt like all the substance has been cut

Rayan x Lettle were insta love. Furi x Yeeran insta list. Neither of them worked for me personally. It just felt like they were together because the plot wanted them to not because they actually should be together

Komi…it couldn’t have been more obvious. it made me feel like a smart reader while treating me like I’m stupid.

The spice scenes didn’t make sense where they were emotionally

The amount of times we were told that Lettle and Yeeran starved on the battle field drove actually insane. If all the redundancy was cute form this book it would be 10% shorter and if it was then replaced with character development this book actually would’ve been more enjoyable.

I struggled through it for book club but I had to buy the ebook because the font was so small on my physical copy. 

The writing style was very telly at times and could’ve been edited more. Idk if I’ll read the next book because while I like the plot and the world, I don’t really care for the characters when Lettle acts like a child and yeeran kept repeating how sad she was that obean’s had their souls linked.

We were trying too hard to make the characters likable…next time try less hard

It took me a while to get into this, but I found it enjoyable and absorbing once I did - immersive fantasy with excellent representation. However, I didn’t find it as compelling as other romance fantasy books I have read recently.

Laura Dobie

This book had so much potential, but there were so many issues with it that ruined the entire book. For starters, the pacing was ridiculously off, and it was just so madly slow and boring and crawling at a snails pace. And then, the characters were so unlikeable, I don't think I liked any of them except the Obeah. And then none of the romances, and I mean none, had any real meaning, depth, or anything. They were all just forced proximity and then they were like woah you're kinda fit you're my true love now??? Ugh it was such a good concept and I wish I liked it more. I regret reading it tbh.

surtified™

It took me a really long time after finishing Faebound to decide whether I liked it or not and I'm still not sure. On a whole this book is pretty good, I liked the complex world building and rich culture and history and the dynamics between the Elves and Fae. The plot had a steady pacing to it but overall felt a bit predictable

The part I found most lacking was with the characters, they were flat and lacked any distinct personality. While characters liked Yeeran and Rayan were interesting and well written, I just didn't feel any connection with them. The romance between Yeeran and Furi was another aspect I didn't like, they got past hating each other way to fast without overcoming any of the problems they had with each other

Overall Faebound was alright, I enjoyed reading it and there were parts of it that I really liked and I am looking forward to reading the next book when it comes out

June

It took me a really long time after finishing Faebound to decide whether I liked it or not and I'm still not sure. On a whole this book is pretty good, I liked the complex world building and rich culture and history and the dynamics between the Elves and Fae. The plot had a steady pacing to it but overall felt a bit predictable

The part I found most lacking was with the characters, they were flat and lacked any distinct personality. While characters liked Yeeran and Rayan were interesting and well written, I just didn't feel any connection with them. The romance between Yeeran and Furi was another aspect I didn't like, they got past hating each other way to fast without overcoming any of the problems they had with each other

Overall Faebound was alright, I enjoyed reading it and there were parts of it that I really liked and I am looking forward to reading the next book when it comes out

This was a highly anticipated read for me which made it even more disappointing when it didn’t quite hit the mark.

I love the diversity included in this book, there is a wide variety in colour, gender, and sexuality. I also found the overarching plot very interesting and captivating. However, I didn’t think that Lettles pov added anything to the story other than providing us with prophesies and for me Yeeran’s character felt a bit flat. I also didn’t like how Yeeran and Furi’s relationship developed over the course of the book. One minute Furi loathed Yeeran with every fiber of her being and then 2 interactions later they were falling in love. I would have liked for that plot line to be fleshed out a lot more. Some of the plot twists were also very predictable. All of that being said, I will be tuning in for the next book of the trilogy.

gaspamyreads

This was a highly anticipated read for me which made it even more disappointing when it didn’t quite hit the mark.

I love the diversity included in this book, there is a wide variety in colour, gender, and sexuality. I also found the overarching plot very interesting and captivating. However, I didn’t think that Lettles pov added anything to the story other than providing us with prophesies and for me Yeeran’s character felt a bit flat. I also didn’t like how Yeeran and Furi’s relationship developed over the course of the book. One minute Furi loathed Yeeran with every fiber of her being and then 2 interactions later they were falling in love. I would have liked for that plot line to be fleshed out a lot more. Some of the plot twists were also very predictable. All of that being said, I will be tuning in for the next book of the trilogy.

Jennifer Gosnell

Adored the magic system of this book! The writing was also phenomenal, and I really enjoyed the characters. For me, it lacked that magical feeling of a 5-star book, but was still really fantastic. Sometimes the dialogue felt a bit stilted. It’s clearly setting up for a second book in this series, and I would be very interested to see where it goes!

❓ #QOTD Would you rather be an elf, fae, or human? ❓

🦇 Yeeran is a warrior in the elven army and has known nothing but violence her whole life. Her sister, Lettle, is trying to make a living as a diviner, seeking prophecies of a better future. When a fatal mistake leads to Yeeran’s exile from the Elven lands, they are both forced into the terrifying wilderness beyond their borders. There they encounter the impossible: the fae court. The fae haven’t been seen for a millennium. But now Yeeran and Lettle are thrust into their seductive world – torn between their loyalty to each other, their elven homeland, and their hearts. 

💜 I'm honestly struggling to write this review. Faebound is immediately spellbinding, the world-building vivid yet not too intricate. The writing is immersive, woven from threads of African and Arab cultures. This is the perfect read for Pride Month, especially for romantasy readers. The normalcy surrounding queerness and gender neutrality from the start is absolute gold ("[Their] gender was as flexible as the weather, accepted like the fall of rain, and change welcomed like the turns of seasons."); a breathtaking delight that fits perfectly into any fantasy realm. The story's sapphic relationship is layered and interesting; I only wish it was given more time to develop and blossom. 

💜 Perhaps I'm biased (I have three younger sisters), but I absolutely love stories involving sisters. Yeeran and Lettle give the story balance, their distinct personalities and viewpoints of the world giving us insight without too much sway in one direction. The little "journal" at the end with everyone's handwritten notes was the perfect addition to the story; a cute glossary that's often necessary for hefty world-building.

💙 As much as I loved the writing, the characters, the themes, and even the setting...the plot felt lacking to me. There's a moment where the story slows as the characters grow complacent in their new surroundings, which would have been a great opportunity to delve into the mythology or culture. Puzzle pieces are set up a bit too obviously, too; the twists are easy to anticipate. Regardless, I'm curious to see how the story continues.

🦇 Recommended for fans of The Priory of the Orange Tree, Girls of Paper and Fire, Spice Road, and Legends & Lattes.

🥁 Queer FMC/Sapphic Ships (Queernormativity)

🍃 Fantasy Fiction/Romantasy (Fae & Elves)

❝ And where there is value, there is power, and where there is power, violence will always brew. ❞

❝ ‘You are the fire of my heart, and the beat of my drum. I am yours under moonlight. Until the rhythm sings no more.’ ❞

❝ Love and hate are oil and water, separate but similar, and sometimes they swirl together, making it difficult to tell one from the other. ❞

❝ You look for ways to gain power over feelings that make you powerless. ❞

❝ ‘We must let the wind of change ease our flight, not hinder it,’ ❞

Jazelle H

🦇 Faebound Book Review 🦇

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

❓ #QOTD Would you rather be an elf, fae, or human? ❓
 
🦇 Yeeran is a warrior in the elven army and has known nothing but violence her whole life. Her sister, Lettle, is trying to make a living as a diviner, seeking prophecies of a better future. When a fatal mistake leads to Yeeran’s exile from the Elven lands, they are both forced into the terrifying wilderness beyond their borders. There they encounter the impossible: the fae court. The fae haven’t been seen for a millennium. But now Yeeran and Lettle are thrust into their seductive world – torn between their loyalty to each other, their elven homeland, and their hearts. 

💜 I'm honestly struggling to write this review. Faebound is immediately spellbinding, the world-building vivid yet not too intricate. The writing is immersive, woven from threads of African and Arab cultures. This is the perfect read for Pride Month, especially for romantasy readers. The normalcy surrounding queerness and gender neutrality from the start is absolute gold ("[Their] gender was as flexible as the weather, accepted like the fall of rain, and change welcomed like the turns of seasons."); a breathtaking delight that fits perfectly into any fantasy realm. The story's sapphic relationship is layered and interesting; I only wish it was given more time to develop and blossom. 

💜 Perhaps I'm biased (I have three younger sisters), but I absolutely love stories involving sisters. Yeeran and Lettle give the story balance, their distinct personalities and viewpoints of the world giving us insight without too much sway in one direction. The little "journal" at the end with everyone's handwritten notes was the perfect addition to the story; a cute glossary that's often necessary for hefty world-building.

💙 As much as I loved the writing, the characters, the themes, and even the setting...the plot felt lacking to me. There's a moment where the story slows as the characters grow complacent in their new surroundings, which would have been a great opportunity to delve into the mythology or culture. Puzzle pieces are set up a bit too obviously, too; the twists are easy to anticipate. Regardless, I'm curious to see how the story continues.

🦇 Recommended for fans of The Priory of the Orange Tree, Girls of Paper and Fire, Spice Road, and Legends & Lattes.

✨ The Vibes ✨
🥁 Queer FMC/Sapphic Ships (Queernormativity)
🍃 Fantasy Fiction/Romantasy (Fae & Elves)
🥁 Dual POV (Sisters)
🍃 Rivals to Lovers 
🥁 Afro/Arab World
🍃 First of a Trilogy
🥁 BIPOC Author

💬 Quotes 
❝ And where there is value, there is power, and where there is power, violence will always brew. ❞
❝ ‘You are the fire of my heart, and the beat of my drum. I am yours under moonlight. Until the rhythm sings no more.’ ❞
❝ Love and hate are oil and water, separate but similar, and sometimes they swirl together, making it difficult to tell one from the other. ❞
❝ You look for ways to gain power over feelings that make you powerless. ❞
❝ ‘We must let the wind of change ease our flight, not hinder it,’ ❞

NATIONAL BESTSELLER • Two elven sisters become imprisoned in the intoxicating world of the fae, where danger and love lie in wait. Faebound is the first book in an enchanting new trilogy from the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Final Strife. “A romantic fantasy of epic proportions, crackling with magic and passion.”—Samantha Shannon, bestselling author of The Priory of the Orange Tree Yeeran was born on the battlefield, has lived on the battlefield, and one day, she knows, she’ll die on the battlefield. As a warrior in the elven army, Yeeran has known nothing but violence her whole life. Her sister, Lettle, is trying to make a living as a diviner, seeking prophecies of a better future. When a fatal mistake leads to Yeeran’s exile from the Elven Lands, both sisters are forced into the terrifying wilderness beyond their borders. There they encounter the impossible: the fae court. The fae haven’t been seen for a millennium. But now Yeeran and Lettle are thrust into their seductive world, torn among their loyalties to each other, their elven homeland, and their hearts.

A Novel

Nik ✨

I give it a solid 3 stars, which to me means I had fun, but it’s not a book that I’ll be raving about for the foreseeable future. I absolutely LOVED the world building and the unique magic system, as well as the complicated relationships between Yeeran and Lettle. Where the story fell flat for me was how rushed some of the storylines were, particularly the romance plots. They seemed to come out of nowhere and had no basis, and I wish I was walked through those feelings a little bit more.

This faces the same problem a lot of recenty published fantasy seems to have - a novel that is for the purposes of marketing and including explicit scenes (from sex to gore) an adult one but it is in its spirit, plotting and execution young adult at best. I feel like the journal included at the end proves this more than anything else.

The pacing was all over the place, not allowing any event to take hold and causing the characters and their dynamics to feel flat and underdeveloped. The worldbuilding left quite a bit to be desired as it felt myopic and far less layered than any world at war between tribes, where two out of three core species have gone extinct and the discovery of one of them is at the heart of the novel, should be. The characters, who are all in their late 20's to early 30's, also did not behave plausibly or befittingly maturely, immediately throwing the reader off any time their actual age was brought up.

It is a shame because the novel could have come off much better with a YA tag and rating and another round of editing, either polishing its dialogue or taking advantage of the setting (which even focuses specifically away from humans as one of the three races). The world being queernormative and with a core of characters who are people of colour would have been an added bonus and not about 50% of what is to be appreciated about the novel. I think I would have been kinder then, too, and more forgiving.

But a good lesson for me to follow my gut and not pick up books just because my local library has brought something fairly recent to their "New" shelves.

This faces the same problem a lot of recenty published fantasy seems to have - a novel that is for the purposes of marketing and including explicit scenes (from sex to gore) an adult one but it is in its spirit, plotting and execution young adult at best. I feel like the journal included at the end proves this more than anything else.

The pacing was all over the place, not allowing any event to take hold and causing the characters and their dynamics to feel flat and underdeveloped. The worldbuilding left quite a bit to be desired as it felt myopic and far less layered than any world at war between tribes, where two out of three core species have gone extinct and the discovery of one of them is at the heart of the novel, should be. The characters, who are all in their late 20's to early 30's, also did not behave plausibly or befittingly maturely, immediately throwing the reader off any time their actual age was brought up.

It is a shame because the novel could have come off much better with a YA tag and rating and another round of editing, either polishing its dialogue or taking advantage of the setting (which even focuses specifically away from humans as one of the three races). The world being queernormative and with a core of characters who are people of colour would have been an added bonus and not about 50% of what is to be appreciated about the novel. I think I would have been kinder then, too, and more forgiving.

But a good lesson for me to follow my gut and not pick up books just because my local library has brought something fairly recent to their "New" shelves.

concept was very cool and neat, the third act plot twist to propel the series was stunning. but i feel there was a lot where it dragged and was just describing an overly detailed fanart realm vacay???? idk fun tho

Cici Pearson

This book had some great world building and I liked the characters, but the pacing was really off. This book was meant to be a romantasy, but the romance was the least interesting aspect of the story. The two main couples had very little chemistry with each other. I also felt frustrated more than once by how obvious the foreshadowing was and how bad the characters were at connecting the dots. I mean, there is more than one occasion in which a prophecy literally spells out exactly what’s going to happen, and the characters sit there thinking, “What could it possibly mean??” LISTEN TO THE WORDS AND YOU WILL KNOW WHAT IT MEANS.

I keep picking up Saara El-Arifi’s books because I really like her voice, and this book was definitely her strongest one yet. However, I get the sense that this book would have been different (and better) if it weren’t trying to compete with the SJM fairy romance craze. 

Cloudface

This book had some great world building and I liked the characters, but the pacing was really off. This book was meant to be a romantasy, but the romance was the least interesting aspect of the story. The two main couples had very little chemistry with each other. I also felt frustrated more than once by how obvious the foreshadowing was and how bad the characters were at connecting the dots. I mean, there is more than one occasion in which a prophecy literally spells out exactly what’s going to happen, and the characters sit there thinking, “What could it possibly mean??” LISTEN TO THE WORDS AND YOU WILL KNOW WHAT IT MEANS.

I keep picking up Saara El-Arifi’s books because I really like her voice, and this book was definitely her strongest one yet. However, I get the sense that this book would have been different (and better) if it weren’t trying to compete with the SJM fairy romance craze. 

Megan

I honestly never give books 1 stars because I usually DNF them. I held out on this one because I loved the concept and thought it might get better. It didn’t. This book was *so* boring. I feel like almost nothing happened and it dragged on and on. The characters were bland and one dimensional. The plot was boring. The romances had no chemistry. Honestly, I should have DNF’d this 50 pages in when I originally wanted to. It was not worth pushing through, and honestly put me in a reading slump.

A lot of very interesting ideas but not executed as well as I had hoped. The twists were too easy to figure out or just so completely out of left field and the character development often times felt rushed/not earned. I probably will not continue the trilogy when released which is a shame since I was so excited to read this!

Victoria 

Another book where the plot is amazingly complex and interesting but the delivery in the writing was flat. I felt the characters were very one dimensional and the dialogue rudimentary. Usually I can overlook the writing if the plot is really good but I found myself being bothered by a lack of detail within the storyline. I found Lettle shortsighted and the way she acted made it seem like she was 16 and not 28, Yeeran was complex but I felt as if she had little development in her choices at the end of this first book. The only character I came to truly love was Rayan and we only got one POV chapter at the very end. It does seem like we will get more of him in the rest of the trilogy but not sure if I am going to continue. 

Macy M

Mel 

This was disappointing. It started off well. I like how engaging the writing was and easy to understand. The world building was also done really well. However, despite the many good ideas presented in Faebound, not a lot of it is executed well. I felt that the romantic relationships were very flat and/or rushed which was strike 1 since this is supposed to be a “romantasy.” 
Yeeran’s romantic relationship is the more compelling once but still feels rushed. The prophecies fell flat for me because they were to easy to uncover and were constantly being repeated. So many big things were happening so quickly and I think this would have been a much stronger book if it was just slower paced and took the time to fully develop the characters, the relationships and establish the stakes of this conflict. 
There are so many good and interesting ideas presented in Faebound which is why I’m so disappointed. 

Overall - I am interested enough to keep an eye out for the next book in this series.

3.5* with love and opportunity though. The world and conflicts were good and while the world building could be clunky, I’d say I enjoyed it overall. I really enjoyed Yeeran’s and Lettle’s relationship which was full of love but also deep misunderstanding of each other based on their distance spent apart over years. BUT the Story was mostly very predictable which is kinda disappointing cause it’s so easy to get things to go over my head…I swear I lose all critical thinking skills when I read. There were some aspects of the ending that got me but most of it was obvious by the time you hit the 50% mark. I also thought many of the overall plot points lacked emotional depth. Things that I thought should have hit harder or that should have taken more time to get the full impact were just glossed over quickly and didn’t draw you in to feel any particular way about it and you just moved on. I do think all these issues could be fixed going forward in the series and I am definitely going to pick up the next one. I would have rounded up to 4 as I did really enjoy it but I think there is just too much to improve upon in the writing. However, do still think this is worth picking up and continuing with the series. 

Laura Wilson

I found myself so absorbed in the characters and relationships that even when the plot felt at times predictable, it didn't matter because the foundation of the book is its characters. Saara writes honestly about the complexity of love (in all its forms) and doesn't shy away for depicting the ugly in tandem with the magical. Can't wait for the sequel! 

Samantha 

I was a little weary going into this as Fae stories aren't not my thing, and I didn't love the authors other series. 

The fae-lore really carries this book for me, and I got completely absorbed within it, making me very intrigued to continue! 

The characters felt fleshed out, with a few twists there that I couldn't predict. So while some aspects of the plot were predictable, this didn't dampen on my enjoyment of the book because I felt invested in the characters and felt myself routing for them, which was something I struggled with in The Final Strife. 

The plot does start to drag in the middle slightly, but not enough to leave me feeling bored and unable to continue. The ending more than makes up for this, and the epilogue perfectly sets up the sequel, which I am looking forward to reading!

Victoria Justice

I was a little weary going into this as Fae stories aren't not my thing, and I didn't love the authors other series. 

The fae-lore really carries this book for me, and I got completely absorbed within it, making me very intrigued to continue! 

The characters felt fleshed out, with a few twists there that I couldn't predict. So while some aspects of the plot were predictable, this didn't dampen on my enjoyment of the book because I felt invested in the characters and felt myself routing for them, which was something I struggled with in The Final Strife. 

The plot does start to drag in the middle slightly, but not enough to leave me feeling bored and unable to continue. The ending more than makes up for this, and the epilogue perfectly sets up the sequel, which I am looking forward to reading!


This is what readers and writers should aspire to within the Romantasy genre. Plot, intriguing characters, tight pacing, romance that was earned and made sense, twists and turns, this had it all in only 375 pages. I’ve never read this author before but I enjoyed her writing. It was concise but lyrical in the best places, and the world she has constructed has definitely drawn me in. I cannot wait to see how this series continues. A great book to end the year on. 

Faebound

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