Book Review: The Faceless Mage (Legends of Abreia #1)

The Faceless Mage

Kenley Davidson

5/5

I really liked this book! It's kind of hit and miss with the fantasy romances on Kindle Unlimited, but this one had some really fun and original concepts. Leisa owes a debt to her king, to pay it off she agrees to disguise herself as the princess to investigate the legitimacy of a marriage proposal. When she gets to this foreign court, she realizes it's a much more dangerous game than she anticipated. 

Then there's the Raven, a bodyguard assigned to her by the king. He has no choice in the matter, he's been bound by magic to obey the king's every command. He doesn't have a lot of independent thinking because when he feels strong emotions, the king can feel them through their bond. Even still, he finds himself wondering about the princess who lies about who she is and switches between what is expected of her and something much stronger. 

Plots with shapeshifting like this get me every time- I love it when someone's power is giving them an identity crisis it's such a great way to develop a character. Mirror mages are original and I can't wait to see how her powers develop in the future. I also like the Raven's true identity, it adds a whole additional level of intrigue. I know that's a little overdone, but I fall for it every time. 

All in all, I would totally recommend reading this. It's interesting and it's short so you can stay super interested the entire time. I can't wait till the sequel is released because I'm losing my mind in anticipation.  

Book Review: A Countess Below Stairs

A Countess Below Stairs

Eva Ibbotson

3/5

I found this book pretty interesting, I liked how it was a nice blend of aristocracy and the strife and tragedy of World War I. Anna was a countess but when the Russian Revolution struck, she lost everything. She decided to work as a housemaid to make her own money and her own way in the world. She is employed by an earl's household in preparation for his return from the hospital after suffering severe war wounds. 

I didn't like the weird vibes that this book adopted at certain points. Like when Anna decided that because she wasn't the victim of unwanted advances it was cause she was ugly, and no one really told her to stop doing that. There also wasn't a lot of conversation between her and the earl and it felt a little weird how things progressed between them. 

I did think it was a fun twist to make Myrtle a eugenicist. That's a much easier way to make someone so totally hated from a modern perspective. I always find it difficult when there's another woman involved because I don't want to pit women against each other for a man, but she was a total villain that you could just despise the entire time. 

It was good, it just had a lot of content for something that ended exactly the way I thought it would. Then there were a lot of characters that were left open-ended. Like I really liked Tom and his values and would love to see where his life went. But as a standalone it held my interest and kind of satisfied me at the end.

Book Review: Beauty in Darkness (Royal Hearts #1)

Beauty in Darkness

Elizabeth Briggs

2/5

Not really a mood for me because it felt like there was absolutely no integral struggle. There was a darkness and an inner villain and like grief which was holding people back, but it really didn't influence the plot as much as I would like it too. Princess Rose decided to marry the king, though it was a really gaslighted choice that wasn't really a choice on her part at all. The king is cold but can't deny their instant attraction, as per usual. He's weighed down by his wife's loss but he's eager to end the war with a simple marriage.

Again, it was all so easy. The king literally strolled right into the palace and peace negotiations took two minutes. No diplomacy, no peace talks, no depth to any of it. The ultimate plot reveal was weak, the conflict wasn't even that significant. I was disappointed after two hundred pages of only really being mildly entertained. 

I don't think it's totally hopeless and I can see where the initial plot concepts fizzled out a little. I don't think I would read the next book in the series but there's definitely room for the author to grow and expand on her ideas.

Book Review: A Touch of Darkness (Hades & Persephone #1)

 

 A Touch of Darkness

Scarlett St. Clair

3/5

I saw this book on TikTok and someone had it labeled as a good read for the "I hate everyone but you" cliche. I honestly didn't even read the description before downloading it because I was like if TikTok recommended it and it's on Kindle Unlimited what do I have to lose. I had no idea that it was a modern day type Hades and Persephone and that was a pretty fun surprise. 

The world was fun but a bit excessive at points. I don't know how to explain it, but it felt as though the author was trying a bit too hard to explain how everything was just slightly different from the real world (basically everything had different names and was related to the gods). It was an interesting twist that I hadn't really seen before- the idea of Hades showing up to someone's apartment in sweatpants was particularly well-placed. It had serious urban fantasy vibes like everything you would expect from something of that genre. 

I also appreciated the twist on the six months deal. It framed it in a way that nothing was being forced and it wasn't as creepy as the original story. The author just chose to ignore Persephone's relation to Zeus and Hades and I think we would all prefer to ignore those genetics anyways. There should be a little less reliance on the sex scenes, the characters really should talk out their problems a bit more. All in all though it has potential and the universe could go to great places.

Book Review: A Winter's Promise (The Mirror Visitor #1)

A Winter's Promise 

Christelle Dabos

4/5

Ok the world-building in this book? Absolutely amazing. The main character? She's so weird and quirky in an unobtrusive way. Ophelia is a reader, when she picks up an object she can delve into its history and read the emotions of the people who have held it before her. She can also travel through mirrors, a fun little side trick. But more importantly, she's really awkward. She drops things because of a mirror mishap when she was younger, she has a scarf that has a literal life of its own, and her glasses change color with her mood. She is soft-spoken but strong-willed and she's basically everything you could ask for in a heroine. 

In this book, she has rejected one too many arranged marriages and found herself forced into the position of a diplomatic arranged marriage with another clan. I'm a little confused on how marrying her cousin isn't incest since they're all descended from the same woman, but you know I guess there was a brief explanation. I love a good Forced Marriage Scenario, and a lot of things about this one are starting to check off the boxes. The only reason it lost a star is because they had so little interaction before she was sure that he was in love with her. The characters on their own are good but I don't know what was going on with that when they literally barely talked. 

Again though, Ophelia is such an amazing protagonist and I can't wait to read more about her. I want so much more from her romance with Thorn too, they have the potential to be truly great I just need them to talk to each other more. A lot is obviously happening and the Pole is a lot more treacherous than her previous world, but she has the strength to make it through. I'm really so excited to see where it all goes though. 

Book Review: Thief (Scarred Mage of Roseward #1)

 

Thief

Sylvia Mercedes

3/5

I appreciated the originality of this retelling. There were a lot of fun elements that were touched briefly that could end up being really cool and interesting in the next books in the series. Nelle was a professional thief, but she tried to leave that life behind for honest work. It catches up with her and she finds herself entangled with Soran Silveri, an imprisoned mage, where she has to successfully rob him or lose everything she loves. 

Again, cool concepts. I like the way that magic is like written out, but I wish we had seen more of it. My biggest problem with this book is that it was over 300 pages and absolutely nothing was resolved. It felt much more like a novella than a full-length novel and that was kind of annoying. I would like to see more happening, like either choose the development of magic or the development of the relationship but here I didn't feel like enough was happening.

I liked it well enough but I don't know if it's worth reading the second book before the third book comes out. I also don't know how the third book will possibly resolve anything considering how little was completed here. So overall, it was okay but leaves you wanting more without actually having cliffhangers.

Book Review: Mr. Darcy's Grieving Wife

 

Mr. Darcy's Grieving Wife

Rose Fairbanks

3/5

Another variation because I have absolutely nothing better to do. In this one, Elizabeth's father dies before any of his daughters are secure in marriage. Elizabeth is nearly forced into marrying Mr. Collins before Darcy learns of the situation and offers a marriage of convenience that could suit them both. 

I liked the premise more than I liked the ultimate ending. I think that these variations too often lose the strength of both Darcy and Elizabeth's character. The conflict towards the end felt obligatory and non-important in the grand scheme of things. The grief didn't have the resolution that you would expect from a book with grief in the title. I wanted more drama, this was decent it just wasn't what I feel it could have been. 

All in all it was a quick and entertaining read. I would prefer it to be more dramatic with more of the traditional misunderstandings, but it was okay.