The Cruel Prince review

February 14, 2022February 22, 2022

Happy Valentine’s Day! I’m posting a day early with an often controversial YA romantic fantasy. Heard a lot about it and wondered whether it was for you? Read my The Cruel Prince review below.

The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air #1), by Holly Black (YA fantasy, romantic fantasy; January 2, 2018)

Based on what I’d heard, I didn’t expect to like this book. A cruel love interest? Not my cup of tea. Yet I finished reading this brisk, pulls-no-punches read in about three days and snatched up book two.

The Cruel Prince is unputdownable, sometimes because of the many bad things that come MC Jude Duarte’s way (the train wreck phenomenon, if you will). Other times, it’s because it genuinely sizzles and hooks the reader. What a strangely effective mix of exciting, high-stakes plot developments and dread! Like the cruel prince himself, it’s a little bit manipulative and a lotta bit addicting.

Part of why this works is because Jude is easy to identify with. One of the few humans in fairy, she is an outsider who has a love-hate relationship with her father figure, stands up to bullies and just wants some say in her life, for crying out loud. She’s a typical teen with familiar problems, only dropped into a wicked, dangerous world where she is constantly at a disadvantage and her mortality is shoved in her face. Except for Jude, the threats she faces are nothing compared to what her protective fae father, the blood-soaked General Madoc, would do in a rage. She chooses to greet them in silence.

I don’t care for books that handle violence—especially against the weak—callously. Verging on grimdark, the casual viciousness of The Cruel Prince’s fae world was almost too dark to keep me reading. Jude’s situation feels as hopeless as it is complex, but just as she’s headed on a mission of self-destruction through challenging Cardan, the cruel prince of the title, she is offered not only agency but a real role in fairy. One that’s not “cowering human.” The way she develops saves the book from wallowing in darkness and dread, without making everything sunny or allowing her an unlikely amount of power.

The chemistry between Jude and Cardan relies on both tropes and a promise: Jude is the girl from the wrong (human) side of the tracks whom Cardan is both repulsed by and attracted to; the reader is regularly reassured that if fairy wasn’t a vile place of twisted politics and people, Cardan would be a pretty cool dude. Whether or not the last part is believable will vary by reader, but there’s real heat behind their forbidden attraction dynamic.

Like any “good girl” drawn to a “bad boy,” the fact that Cardan is an enigma leaves both Jude and the reader to imagine him as someone better than he may actually be. Knowing that Jude is not and does not wish to be the good girl (in fact, she can’t be in this unsettling interpretation of fairy, if she wants to thrive), makes it more than a little frustrating at times.

So will these two schemers learn to plot together? Or will the unwritten rules of the fae leave them plotting against one another forever? Only one thing is certain: don’t expect the answer to come anytime soon.

My rating:

 4.5/5

To learn more about this author, visit blackholly.com.

Within These Wicked Walls review

January 11, 2022December 13, 2021

Within These Wicked Walls, by Lauren Blackwood (romantic fantasy, dark fantasy, speculative fiction; October 19, 2021)

This fresh take built on the framework of Jane Eyre misses some of the charm of the original, but takes it in a riveting and spooky new direction that had me binge-reading. Within These Wicked Walls is true dark fantasy, with a surprisingly sweet romance at its core.

As a debtera, Andromeda cleanses people of manifestations of the Evil Eye. After being kicked out of her abusive mentor’s home beneath a church, Andi goes from the streets to a grand manor she labels a castle. Yet this home (belonging to a far younger Mr. Rochester, with lighter personal baggage) is in a desert, and no one wants to go near it—including other debtera.

Andi becomes the 11th debtera to try to cleanse the frigid and ominous Thorne Manor, where rooms casually trickle blood or fill up with snow (there’s a whole lot of creepy in that house, but I won’t spoil it too much). She also gets to know Magnus Rochester, the 20-year-old who inherited his father’s curse alongside his chocolate empire.

Mr. Magnus Rochester is boyish and silly, and insists on informality. Andi is the one challenging him, rather than the other way around. He lacks much of the dashing and intellectual flirting of the original Mr. Rochester, but is a warmer figure, suitable for a girl who’s known little kindness to fall in love with.

The attachment comes on a little quickly for me, being far closer to insta-love than slow-burn. I wondered how fierce and sensible Andi could fall in love so quickly, but wholly believed in her affection for Saba. Mentor Jember is also portrayed unevenly, and Andi’s drive to eke out some admission of caring from him didn’t track for me. When she tries to chalk up his behavior to debilitating nerve pain, it felt unkind to real-world nerve pain sufferers and not believable for his character.

Still, the atmosphere of Thorne Manor, the sweet, young romance and genuine plot twists kept me glued to this book. While I wished for a stronger ending and thought some loose ends were too quickly tied up (or left alone, like the significance of the nasty spider closet), I adored most of this book and would read a title from its author again.

To learn more about this author, please visit laurenblackwood.com.

Maiden of Candlelight and Lotuses review

December 17, 2021November 17, 2022

Maiden of Candlelight and Lotuses (Zheninghai Chronicles #1), by Anastasis Blythe

(fantasy, romantic fantasy, academy fantasy; December 17, 2021)

Other books in this series:
Guardian of Talons and Snares
Warrior of Blade and Dusk

(Note: I received a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. This book contains brief scenes of non-consensual kissing and contact.)

Cute, swoony romance? Check. Kind, handsome prince? Check check! Serious underdog female MC with a ton of heart? Big ol’ check! All of these, plus an extremely engaging storytelling style (with plenty of action), are what made Maiden of Candlelight and Lotuses a truly entertaining, well-written book I enjoyed reading every time I picked it up.

I had a brief introduction to Anastasis Blythe’s (formerly Anastasis Faith’s) writing through free chapters of her Kindle Vella series, Guardians of Talons and Snares, which is set in the same world as Maiden of Candlelight and Lotuses. This was my first time reading a complete work by her, and I am officially a fan. Blythe excels at writing underdogs. Maiden of Candlelight and Lotuses has a plucky, compassionate heroine at its helm, and she is great fun to follow, even through the darkest parts of the Academy.

Protagonist Song Liena begins Maiden of Candlelight and Lotuses as the “half-barbarian” daughter of a poor millet-farming family in the north of Zheninghai. The Songs’ fate is tied to that of each harvest, and Liena never stops worrying about her family, long after a vision derails her trip to the matchmaker. The law requires Liena attend the national Academy for magic users, which means she has a chance to better her parents’ and grandmother’s lives.

Unfortunately for Liena, 16 is incredibly late for magic to develop, and she is more than a decade behind at the Academy. She loves learning and applies herself, but battle prowess (important for a low magic seer) is well out of her reach. The consequences of failure are huge: if expelled, Liena could end up a monster hunter, certain to meet a terrible end. When literally and figuratively warm Nianzu (and his dimples) takes an interest in her (along with mean girl Shu), Liena’s days get way more complicated, and not just because of her Magic Theory class. Nianzu is the equivalent of an ultra popular high school senior–and he’s also the Crown Prince of Zheninghai.

The world of the Zheninghai Chronicles is full of magic and mythology (protective or lucky creatures like dragons, phoenixes and qilin are fearsome monsters in Zheninghai). With its unforgiving academy for magic users, Maiden of Candlelight and Lotuses reminded me of R.F. Kuang’s The Poppy War (but far less grim) combined with Tamora Pierce’s Tempests and Slaughter (but more romantic). And the romance is definitely squeal-worthy.

My one complaint is that Liena often reads as younger than 16 (prior to the end). She is sometimes described as whining or giggling, which made her sound a good bit younger to me. She also goes completely weak-kneed at the sight of Nianzu and talks herself right out of being the focus of his attention. She has a serious case of “who, me?” when it comes to the handsome prince. (On the other hand, the butcher’s boy back home didn’t notice her existence; her experience with boys is nonexistent.)

Otherwise, Blythe’s writing is smooth and descriptive. I particularly enjoyed her atmospheric similes and metaphors, like “knife-cold air” and “her mind was like a mushy bowl of rice.” She also excels at combat descriptions, never getting bogged down in minutiae that would ruin the sense of speed. Yet the scenes in which Nianzu helps her with her training are highly convincing. I felt sure the author had martial arts and self-defense experience.

This was a 5-star read for me, and I’ll be sure to dive into whatever comes next in the world of Zheninghai.

To learn more about this author (or sign up for her mailing list), visit anastasisblythe.com.

Of Silver and Secrets review

December 14, 2021December 13, 2021

Of Silver and Secrets (Once in Whispering Wood), by Sylvia Mercedes (fantasy novella, romantic fantasy; December 20, 2021)

(Note: I received a free ARC in exchange for an honest review. This story also contains brief non-consentual kissing and nudity.)

If you haven’t realized it by now, I’m kind of an emotional reviewer. After book blogging for a couple years now, I also tend to mentally give stars to books as I go, knowing the rating will fluctuate at different parts of the story and then I can average them out, ideally so I don’t get swept away.

Of Silver and Secrets swept me away. I could squeal just thinking about it, and that is a noise I usually reserve for Pride and Prejudice, when Mr. Darcy finally remembers how a gentleman courts a lady.

Of Silver and Secrets is a shorter tale, once a serial release for author Sylvia Mercedes’ mailing list subscribers. It follows primary narrator Farryn’s trials as a ward witch’s dreamwalking apprentice who peeks into the wrong person’s enchanting dream. Farryn does not have the money and necessary connections to be trained as a Miphato, the erudite sorcerers of the Whispering Wood’s world. She has only the runes she’s learned from her mentor Mother Ulla (who is so perfectly described I instantly had a voice for her), and they are neither reliable nor powerful enough for the trouble she lands in.

The other narrator, Kellam, is a Miphato, and a new one at that. Worse still, he’s encroaching on Farryn’s mistress’s ward with his expensive, bookish ways (his spells, unlike Farryn’s, must be written on a page). And disastrously worse still, he’s Farryn’s childhood friend who almost kissed her at a dance, then shipped off to Miphato school and NEVER WROTE HER. When it comes to Kellam, Farryn hath some fury indeed.

The plot structure is happily unusual, with a smaller but high-stakes challenge for its narrators early on (in which Farryn and Kellam first collide). Then the mid-section of the book bucks the norm and features chapter after chapter of an in-depth battle so intense and authentically tricky for the protagonists that most authors would save it for the climax. There’s no “beginning, muddle and end” in Of Silver and Secrets.

Speaking of that end…

For much of the book, I figured a solid average of four stars, with an actual rating of 4.25 at times. The dreamwalking sequences were interesting and exciting, and contains Of Silver and Secrets‘ best imagery. But I also thought Kellam’s characterization could be stronger (especially with Mother Ulla stealing the show), and that Farryn tends to dissolve into fits of cursing instead of deeper thoughts. Then the ending approached. (Cue the belated Rumplestiltskin-inspired part of the plot.)

And it was…to borrow a popular phrase, *chef’s kiss.*

The conclusion Of Silver and Secrets is so darn satisfying. In the last quarter or so of the book, the author goes full-throttle with an extremely time-sensitive, tense plot development and it is exceptional—and clever and perfectly romantic. I was completely taken by it and mentally jumping with excitement and nerves on the characters’ behalfs. I couldn’t have asked for a better ending, and this one that had me rounding up to a swoony (and appreciative) 5 stars.

To learn more about this author, visit sylviamercedesbooks.com.

Review of Music of the Night (Ford)

November 29, 2021November 19, 2021

Music of the Night (Tower Knights #1), by Angela J. Ford (romantic fantasy, steamy; 2021)

(Note: This title is for mature readers only. Mild spoilers below.)

Phew, is it hot in here?! This is my second review of a steamy fantasy novel this month!

This romantic fantasy (with the bedroom door very, very open) is a loose retelling of The Phantom of the Opera. With a bewitching theater in a creepy castle and mysterious music floating on the night air, fans of dark fantasy and romance will want to dive right in to Music of the Night.

Orphaned and beholden to the Count cousin who saved her, Aria lives the unglamorous life of a dancer in the Count’s theater. What she really wants to do is sing, if she had the chance—and the training. Seeking to follow in her late mother’s footsteps and avoid the Count marrying her off, Aria finds a teacher when she follows a haunting melody to a supposedly empty tower.

The chemistry between lonely and grieving Aria and the “ghost” of the tower comes on fast and strong (the author is a strong believer in insta-love). You’ll instantly mistrust the Count and never feel Aria is safe at night. It’s deeply creepy in that castle! As gristly murders begin in the castle, the tension grows and Aria’s need to escape to her new teacher becomes more dire.

In a lot of ways, Music of the Night turns the classic “prince comes to the rescue” trope right on its head; the brave knight is in need of a lot of redemption. In that element, Aria’s role pleasantly reminded me of Christine in the beloved musical. While I felt there were some unanswered questions, it’s a short and entertaining read with plenty of atmosphere and a modified fairytale ending.

To learn more about this author, visit Angela J. Ford’s website.

Review of The Daughter of Earth (Pey)

November 9, 2021November 19, 2021

The Daughter of Earth (The Dryad Chronicles #1), by Callie Pey (romantic Fantasy, Steamy fantasy; 2021)

(Note: I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review. This title is for mature readers only.)

This is an engaging, extremely steamy story (with fated mate context) that reads quickly. Yes, a little too quickly at times (and yes there are copy editing issues), but the story and other raw materials are all there, which counts for more to me (and is harder to achieve). If you feel the same and like a good portal fantasy adventure, you’ll enjoy The Daughter of Earth, too. (Note that a late scene involves unwanted contact and may be triggering.)

The storytelling starts at a break-neck pace that was too quick for me. 2 1/2 to 3 chapters in, it slows and lets the characters develop (while remaining fairly fast). Melissa is dropped through a portal just as everything is going wrong, and her reactions are sometimes lost in the swift pacing. I did feel like I wanted to hear her thoughts more, especially as she meets a blur of characters. Some you’ll get to know and love, like Cassie, but others remain in the periphery, like Ferox.

As the pacing eases, Melissa finds more acceptance with her new friends, the Watchtowers, than she found in all her years on Earth. She doesn’t have to justify herself to them or explain her past. They’re like the perfect found family, though they expect her to learn to defend herself. In response to their warmth, Melissa develops a drive to be useful, repaying kindness with service. She also finds love, which is another area where the story really shines.

The MFM romance in The Daughter of Earth is graphic but sex positive, and wonderfully nuanced. I really liked the sweetly awkward early advances of Kelan, who is drawn to MC Melissa and can’t stay away (as a wood elf, he’s pretty fixated on presenting her with his “credentials”), and that her brief interactions with satyr Graak are like a one night stand that leaves both of them confused and hurt. The gods brought the three of them together, and not everybody’s happy about it. I can’t say enough good things about that dynamic.

Throughout the story, Melissa grows in every way possible. We see her go from an orphaned and powerless woman on Earth who’s reduced to an object to a physically strong one who fights monsters and makes her own family. With a world of dryads, nymphs, elves, fae and satyrs, The Daughter of Earth has familiar world-building with a modern twist. The ending was satisfying, too—though I’m already wondering what happens next, thanks in part to one heck of a preview for book two!

All in all, this is a great, unpolished gem of a romantic fantasy yarn.

To learn more about this author, visit her Facebook page or follow her on Instagram (@calliepeyauthor).

Want more fantasy titles with romance?

Review of An Enchantment of Thorns (Rookwood & Vince)

Review of Throne of Glass (Maas)

Review of When the Tiger Came Down the Mountain (Vo)

Review: An Enchantment of Thorns (Rookwood & Vince)

March 27, 2021June 9, 2021

Today’s Indie Book Spotlight lands on a retelling of one of my very favorite tales…

An Enchantment of Thorns (A Court of Fairy Tales #1), by Helena Rookwood and Elm Vince (Romantic Fantasy/Fairy Tale Retelling, May 6, 2021)

Note: I received a free advanced review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Holy mackerel! I love this book.

In all seriousness, this retelling of Beauty and the Beast was everything I could have asked for. For one thing, the magic has been upgraded more than a few levels. The royals of An Enchantment of Thorns are not just people born into the ruling class, but long-limbed, terrifying and impossibly graceful fae who belong to multiple courts throughout the land. But there’s more than one kind of fae in this world, and it’s hard to say which is more dangerous.

Narrator Aster is most familiar with the fae of the Folkwood, which surrounds her home in Rosehill. The Folkwood is a dangerous place, full of wicked tricksters (the small folk) and deadly ones, like the puca who’s been stalking Aster since the day it took her mentor, Sage. There’s also the beast, a fae creature seen once a year at the Tithe (more on the that in a minute).

Haunted by Sage’s death and burdened with replacing her as Rosehill’s only greenwitch, heroine Aster lives her life bottled up, geographically and emotionally. She’s as comfortable in a fight, thanks to her father’s training, as she is nurturing both plants and humans, often doing both in the same day. But she’s not as empowered as she seems. When the local farmers ignore her orders, or when servants in her wealthy half-sister’s household murmur each time Aster visits, there’s nothing Aster can do but suck it up. As her butt-kicking older sister Laurel puts it, Aster isn’t exactly living a complete life.

Roses with thorns

The characters in An Enchantment of Thorns are complex and unique. To break the curse, Aster must drop her prejudices against fae; after 99 years of cursed life, Throne must learn to let go of his. But are the fae to be trusted?

“To Rosehill, you have to be the calm and collected greenwitch who keeps her head in emergencies,” Laurel says, “but I know you, Aster…I know how much you feel.” Those emotions will be the key to Aster’s future and developing her particular human craft. They’re also what lands her at the beast’s Cursed Court, via the annual Tithe.

Once a year, every girl of a certain age must step onto a pathway that forms in the Folkwood. One girl will be chosen, and never seen again; the rest return shaken and almost unable to describe the terrible and beautiful fae lord they’ve just seen. If the people of Rosehill try to resist the Tithe—if even one girl fails to appear—the Folkwood closes in on all the girls, and no one survives. Yet the girls presented at the Tithe are meant to look “pretty and innocent,” with a requisite crown of flowers in their hair. As Aster describes it, “this was not a day for beauty. This was a day for iron and steeled nerves.”

When Aster’s silly half-sister Ava and her friends read one too many fairy tales and want to be chosen, Aster, who is also of age for the Tithe, must intervene. No surprise—though she appears ragged and wearing thorns instead of pretty blooms—the beast picks Aster instead.

It’s hard not to picture the temperamental Disney beast at times, but this one, who goes by Thorne, is more beast after the curse is broken than before (albeit with a really good head of hair). His house is more woodland than palace. Thorne has servants, of course, but they are lesser fae, and include the adorable Mosswhistle, a brownie Aster lures into her service after a few days of torment by the little folk.

And they do torment her: invisible at first, they leave out a beautiful dress full of pins, snatch the heat from a steaming bath the moment she sets foot in it, and never grow tired of laughing at and mocking her. There’s no “be our guest,” sung or stated, in An Enchantment of Thorns.

Aster is an interesting character who makes a great vehicle for the reader; she falls in love slowly and unexpectedly enough that it never feels forced. What makes her interesting is never forced, either: Aster is a young woman with many responsibilities and very few choices. She’s found her calling with plants, but her days aren’t exactly her own.

Aster is young, and lacks the respect Sage had though she must do the same work. Even supportive big sister Laurel, a fighter working for their smuggler father, doesn’t realize just how much there is to Aster. “The Beast should beware if he chooses you at the Tithe this week, what with your arsenal of plants,” she quips. (But also note: at least half of my highlights in this book were Laurel’s lines.)

It’s wonderful to see Astrid gradually become empowered. Best of all, she becomes empowered before she’s swept away by her heart. In this retelling, it isn’t all about falling in love to break a curse.

Dark fairytales

The dullahan makes a chilling appearance in An Enchantment of Thorns, along with barghests and too many pixies, brownies and goblins to count.

There’s so much depth to Thorne’s “beast” character, too, from his sarcasm, goading and irritatingly (for Aster) indirect encouragement, to the despair driving his weather-changing bad moods. He’s neither beastly nor overly handsome, like in some romantic fantasies. Says Aster, “His wild beauty was like a knife to the gut.”

Interestingly, Thorne also takes on the role of mentor. Unlike the selfish beast most of us know from Disney, Throne never appears truly uncaring. He doesn’t appear at her door the first night to try to force her to dinner; he only expects it as a courtesy to a seriously down-on-his-luck Court Fae, and because the other Tithe girls always managed it. He doesn’t forbid her food if she doesn’t eat with him, either. Moody, complicated, humane and ultimately lovable, he’s a beast any smart gal could fall in love with.

Fans of dark fantasy will feel at home reading An Enchantment of Thorns, thanks to the nightmarish curse and the monstrous fae in the Folkwood; there are some truly chilling settings and scenes thanks to both. Fantastical ones, too. But romantics will also love it. And if you’re like me, you will deeply regret not having the next book to read immediately after finishing it.

An Enchantment of Thorns is currently available for pre-order, and will be released on May 6, 2021. To learn more about these indie authors, visit their websites at helenarookwood.com and elmvince.com.

Review: Gods of Jade and Shadow (Moreno-Garcia)

March 13, 2021June 9, 2021

Gods of Jade and Shadow, by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Fantasy; 2019)

Go on. Get your heart broken by this book. I dare you.

After finding the Mayan God of Death locked in her grandfather’s room, Casiopeia Tun embarks on a modern-ish (a hundred years ago) Odyssey-style quest to return Hun-Kame to power and thwart his usurping twin. Sounds like a romance, right?

Just wait.

Casiopea is not a willing participant in her adventure—although it’s fair to say she’s a dazed one. Trapped in a life of servitude to her harsh uncle and tyrannical (somewhat one-dimensional) cousin, she has dreams of driving a car, swimming in the sea and dancing like in the movies. Nowhere do her dreams include having the life slowly sucked out of her by Hun-Kame. And that’s exactly what will happen until she can help the deposed god reclaim the rest of his body.

Then again, life at home as a servant wasn’t that great, either. Family issues aside, her home region is also extremely religious. Now that she’s been seen leaving it with a man, her reputation is ruined. For Casiopeia, there can be no going home.

Fantasy without borders
Readers eager to read fantasy in non-european settings will be thrilled to delve into this Mexican mythology-based Adventure

With the promise of repayment and the whole thing just being over, Casiopeia bears it stoically even as Hun-Kame asks more and more of her (and her reputation is continually ruined). She flirts, she gets a flapper bob, she slides in amongst revelers in cities she only dreamed of seeing. It’s a wild ride, and she comes fairly close to taking it in stride even as a whole slew of mythological figures and creatures cross her path. Sometimes, though, it’s just too much. As strong as Casiopeia is, she has a vulnerable side and occasionally has to cry—as most of us would after meeting hungry ghosts.

Casiopeia is a dreamer, and though she always wanted more from life, what she really wants isn’t so unreasonable. All she’s ever hope for is to have control of her own fate. Though she’s finally away from home, her unwitting bargain with Hun-Kame means she has to face just how little control she has.

To put another wrench in the works, as Casiopeia begins to come into her own as a young woman, Hun-Kame becomes increasingly human. A theme of the hopefulness of the young—and a youthful romance—begins to take shape.

There isn’t much dawdling in the book, but I did feel as though I’d been on a long journey by the time it was through. For all its somewhat glib adventures, it’s an emotional story, and readers run the gamut alongside its young protagonist. The crisp prose and historical tidbits about each location on Casiopeia’s odyssey also added flavor. I very much enjoyed the writing, and often read the lightly snarky chapter openings aloud to family members, who were mostly willing. But as the story goes on, it becomes more character-driven, particularly as the end of the quest creeps into sight.

Of all the characters in the story, though, it’s Casiopeia and Loray, a demon she encounters, who feel the most real, which is perhaps why they find their way back to each other: they’re the only two who have the depth of character to continue on after so much change and loss. Casiopeia starts out young and hopeful; Loray, a little too wise about the ways of the world and literally trapped. For all Casiopeia stands to gain from her quest, she loses a lot, too—including her hope. It leaves the reader with the same sort of stunned emptiness Casiopeia feels at the end.

After going through so much with her, I wish there had been more to the ending than watching Casiopeia drive out of sight—even if she does seem to be in good company. For all he knows about human kind and the underworld, Loray is still full of a zest for life (and exploration), even if it’s all about simple pleasures. He also proves to be particularly kind.

Want more Mayan Mythology?

The Popol Vuh is filled with foundation myths and can be read for free on google.

The climax of the Gods of Jade and Shadow is heartbreaking, beautiful, and in all, makes it a gorgeous novel with a slightly abrupt ending that will still leave you thinking about it long after—and hurting for its characters. I did wish for a lot more out of the wrap-up section of the book, but was left with a lasting emotional impact from it, a sort of raw open ending that its main character is left with.

Then again, maybe that’s just a sign of good writing and a loveable character. It’s true that, just like Hun-Kame, I would’ve like to stay with Casiopeia a little longer.

To learn more about other titles by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, visit her blog.

The Fishermen’s Princess Cover Reveal!

March 6, 2021March 6, 2021

It’s cover and synopsis reveal time for my new serial novel!

(Be warned, this is a graphics-heavy post!)

The Fishermen's Princess

A Serial New Adult Fantasy Novel by C.K. Beggan

The Little Mermaid is turned upside-down and inside-out in this creative retelling about merfolk, true love, wicked and benevolent pirates and a princess trying to find her place in the world.

Advisors tell Princess Alexandrina that fishermen are the lifeblood of their corner-of-and-island nation. Folklore says the fishermen serve the merfolk more than the crown. So why on earth are the fishermen following Drina?

When Drina sneaks out of the castle, the fishermen are there. When she plans to outsmart the meddling Cardinal and her formidable mother, they are there. And when Drina just might marry the prince she wants to (instead of the baron she’s supposed to), they are there. Just like they were there when her father, the lowly fishermen who married a future queen, was buried at sea.

As Drina fights for a love story of her own, tragedy sails ever closer to her kingdom, and its black sails carry the standard of the sea’s most terrifying pirates. Can the fishermen help Drina when she needs it most? Or do they only serve the crown beneath the sea?

This serial fantasy novel is packed with romance, danger, adventure, pirates and of course, mermaids. Join the CK. Beggan author mailing list to receive a new chapter in your inbox each month.

I’m so excited to begin sharing this story with you all. Please join me as we see how Drina’s story will unfold, together!

That’s all for now. The next post will be an in-depth review of Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s wonderful and heartbreaking Gods of Jade and Shadow.

Cheers and be well,

-CKB

Indie Book Spotlight: Tapestry of Night (Vince)

February 20, 2021February 19, 2021

In a world where only one late-bloomer can save her people from a terrible fate, the time has come…for another Indie Book Spotlight!

Tapestry of Night (Star Cast Series #1), by Elm Vince (2020; Romantic Fantasy)

The opening chapter of Elm Vince’s Tapestry of Night shows us that fate can be written in the stars—if those stars are charted properly. Thanks to the Stellar Sisters of Celestial Devotion, Cassia is an expert of making natal star charts, and she has an “uncanny intuition” to go with it.

Eventually, Cassia entrusts the reader with the exciting secret that she has the most unusual—and difficult to understand—prophesied fate of anyone. For a magically late-bloomer with no shortage of problems, there seem to be a lot of important roles heading Cassia’s way. Too many, in fact, to be solved in one book.

Which is why I need the next book.

This is Elm Vince’s debut solo series (Vince co-authored the Desert Nights series with Helena Rookwood). Teasers aside, Tapestry of Night really hit all the right notes for me. The tone isn’t overly dark and depressing, the truly bad guys are creepy, the love interests are unlikely and there’s a truly loveable alchemist to boot. The spy plotline is put to very good use. It reminds me of Brandon Sanderson’s The Final Empire (Mistborn series). Fans of Garth Nix’s Abhorsen series will probably love it, too.

There are a lot of details in the opening chapters about monstrous snatchers, mysterious nuns in astrology-themed convents, and a few types of magic. The backstory and said details are never piled on, but carefully set the stage for a riveting story in which the stars are nearly omnipresent. Tapestry of Night is literally and figuratively dark from the beginning, with warm characters and fanciful magic to light the way.

As the nature of the Governance is gradually explained to the reader, things get a whole lot darker. It’s illegal to be a mage in Myrsia, and those with a talent are taken by snatchers to become Governance slaves. They’re also fitted with alloy collars to restrict their magic. In the Governance’s eyes, magic is too dangerous, and the alloy makes it safe (but cruelly useable).

Unlikely spy: struggling to control new magic, Cassia must sneak away to “a quiet shadow in a city of light” in order to study with endearing alchemist Ptolemus.

And then there’s the Defiance. Hidden away in the Rust Desert, the Defiance is the last vestiges of the now-eradicated Guild’s magic-users, but signs of former glory exist in the capital, too. The glasshouses Cassia uses as a rendezvous point was once “created and tended to by the Guild’s earth-signers, housing exotic greenery from across Myrsia and beyond. Now they sit abandoned, the plants slowly trying to reclaim the building.” There’s a lot of horror and decay behind the capital’s pretty veneer.

Myrsia’s Governance is reliably crooked and pitiless (without any flat villains, just some blind ambition). But the Defiance may not be all they’re cracked up to be, either: after all, they kicked Cassia out as a girl, right after her father died on a mission, because she had no magic.

All that changes as Cassia wanders into adulthood. She has an empath’s gifts, but they refuse to work in the usual way. She can feel what others feel, not just sense it. And it’s pretty out of control besides.

Depending on whether she can learn to control her gift, Cassia just might be the Defiance’s perfect spy. But she has zero time to master it. With the life of a friend on the line, Cassia is about to head off to the capital with a fake identity, where she witnesses constant reminders of how important—and dangerous—her task is.

Eventually, as a side note, we hear there are fey out there somewhere, closed off in their own country across the sea. And for an unknown reason, the leader of the Governance is out there visiting them. This series has a whole lot of space to grow, with some interesting plot points set up for the next book.

The settings of Tapestry of Night are just as interesting, from a red desert to the peculiar convents to the inner bureaucratic chambers of the Governance. The Governance is sort of like evil Hogwarts at times, complete with its own wizarding ball.

On a copy editing note, the excess of commas can be looked past after a bit, so don’t let that stop you. This is a great take on magical “job classes” and a good late-bloomer story, too. Not to mention the spy-craft! I’ll be continuing with the series for sure.