Alchemy & Ashes by. Amy Yorke | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice: 🌶️🌶️

Title: Alchemy & Ashes (The Shadowbound Duet, #1)

Author: Amy Yorke

Format: ebook (kindle unlimited)

Pages: 495

Publication Date: 11/11/25

Categories: Romantasy, Fantasy, Romance, Series

Perfect for fans of Danielle L. Jensen, Carissa Broadbent, and Sarah J. Maas, Alchemy & Ashes is a high-stakes, enemies-to-lovers romantasy where two sisters’ plan to assassinate the king who killed their father goes awry when one of them falls in love with him.

The daughter of a failed rebellion. The king who killed her father. A love that could tear the kingdom apart.

Sylvie has always lived in her sister Adria’s shadow. But at the Great Festival, she finally has her chance to step into the by striking down God-King Ronan, the man who destroyed her family. Adria may have led the rebellion, but Sylvie will be the one to finish it.

Ronan has spent years rebuilding a kingdom broken by the war that claimed his father and shattered his faith. But peace has come at a price. Surrounded by enemies and burdened by secrets too dangerous to reveal, he’s losing of his court, his magic, and maybe even himself.

The closer Sylvie gets to Ronan, the more she’s drawn to the man she vowed to kill. Wanting him would mean betraying not just her sister, but her people and the memory of her parents. Trusting Sylvie could cost Ronan the throne—or his life. Because even if Sylvie refuses to strike, Adria won’t hesitate to finish the job.

The road to the throne runs through his heart. And only one sister will claim it.

Alchemy & Ashes is the first book in the Shadowbound Duet.

Content Warning: violence, death

I picked this one up randomly on Kindle Unlimited one day because of the cover and the synopsis. I was in the mood for a romantasy with all the usual tropes and this one has a few: a rebellion against the current ruling kingdom, a girl who’s plan is to get close to the God-King to kill him, trials, secrets and betrayals.

+ God-King Ronan is throwing the Great Festival, a festival that hasn’t been thrown in 10 years because the kingdoms have been warring. Now in this time of peace, he’s welcoming delegates from other kingdoms to come and partake in the festival and competition in different skills. Sylvie, her sister, guard and group attend this festival with an ulterior motive – to kill Ronan because he killed her father, and her people are starving under his rule, among other things on her list of grievances against him.

+ The world building was interesting and light – which was very easy to consume. There is a magic system based on what you are born with and also use of alchemy. There are different elemental powers people can be born with for example Sylvie is shadow-born, and can control shadows. Ronan is light-born and has powers of light and healing. He also has the power of feeling people’s emotions. There is an alchemist guild that stays a bit mysterious in the story until more is revealed at the end.

+ Sylvie is not like her siblings who are ruthless in battle and rule. Sylvie knows her limitations, she’s the spare and not skilled like the others, but her role is to get close to Ronan. Ronan, I thought was really unexpected. I was expecting him to be ruthless, but he’s not – he wants a peaceful world and is trying to achieve it. He’s kind of a softy! He is loved but also naive and too trusting at times, yet still powerful. I like that he is aware that all the war between their kingdoms have taken so much from everyone and that what he has done may not be forgivable but he’s looking for a way forward so the cycle of war ends. Unfortunately, Sylvie’s family is trying to start another war, and continue the cycle but I like how she learns for herself which side she should be on.

+ It does start of with a little insta-attraction but I love how the romance progressed because there is time for Sylvie and Ronan to get to know one another. There is an attraction growing between them though that eventually leads to some spicy scenes but I liked it because by then Sylvie has to make some hard choices about Ronan and her family. And it’s not an easy choice for Sylvie at all. I do hope we learn a little more about their power of communication that reveals itself in the second half of the story.

+ There is a little bit of romance. Lucan is the Vicar’s adopted son, and he’s been tasked to keep his eye on Isola. Isola doesn’t like him because an incident in the past, but during the Tribunal, they spend more time with one another and decide to team up. Being around one another makes their attraction grow. I was definitely rooting for Lucan and Isola but we’ll have to see what happens in book two.

~ I don’t think we got much of the alchemy part of the story, so hoping that will be explored more in book two.

Final Thoughts:

This is an easy to consume romantasy with light world-building and with the addictive usual tropes. I actually enjoyed that the MMC wasn’t ruthless and powerful though – he was still powerful, but kind of a softy, which I appreciated. I usually like my kings with alpha energy, but I liked that Ronan was still the leader but willing to look for solutions and wanted peace. Because don’t we just all want peace? Plus he is crazy about Sylvie – I loved their romance and the spice. I would like to learn about the alchemy though so hopefully that is explored more in book two. And after that cliffhanger ending, I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Songbird of the Sorrows by. Braidee Otto | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️

Title: Songbird of the Sorrows (Myths of Empyrieos, #1)

Author: Braidee Otto

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 400

Publication Date: 2/3/26 (first published on 6/18/24)

Publisher: The Dial Press

Categories: Fantasy, Romance

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to The Dial Press for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

An outcast princess turned spy embarks on a mission to infiltrate a rival kingdom, but the secrets she uncovers force her to decide whether to follow orders or defy them.

Ask no questions. Obey your orders. Respect your masters. But most of all, love no one.

Spy. Thief. Princess. Songbird.

Princess Aella was ousted from the Palace of Sorrows as a child, shattering her world and forcing her to abandon the truth of her royal lineage. Instead, she was raised in The Aviary, which disguises itself as a school for orphaned children but is actually a secret order designed to train its students as spies for an intelligence network embedded throughout the Empyrieos.

Now twenty-three years old and having completed her final tests, Aella is summoned to join Alpha Flight, the Aviary’s elite team of assassins that’s led by none other than her former flame, Raven. Everything about him calls to her—he’s brave, loyal, and lethal. But is Raven worth breaking the rules and risking everything she’s worked so hard to achieve?

Before she can decide, the Alpha Flight team is sent on a dangerous mission that tests Aella’s resolve in every way. Her role is crucial and she must assume her former title of Princess of the Sorrows, the identity she once had to forsake, to compete in the bridal trials held by the Prince of Eretria. As old sparks reignite and the harsh realities of the realm reveal themselves, the mission begins to unravel, and Aella must decide if she is brave enough to disobey her superiors in order to do what she believes is right.

Songbird of the Sorrows is the first book in Myths of the Empyrieos, an epic romantic fantasy series that follows a feisty heroine through trials, a perilous heist, court intrigue, kingdom politics, and a journey of self-discovery, true love, and redemption.

Content Warning: torture, sexual assault, drugged, death, violence

I thought this book started off really good. I liked the world building. It’s explained pretty well how there was a God War and how the many different islands came to be and their kingdoms. Aella is an outcast princess turned into a spy. She went through very harsh training at the Aviary, who’s leader is called the Eagle. I liked all the bird names they used for each spy! When Aella is given her first assignment, it’s ironically to be the princess she already is. Aella, does have a somewhat secretive history and it is revealed little by little.

There are some interesting cast members in this story. Raven, her former lover, is back – she hadn’t heard from him in a year, but now while back together – the attraction is back. The interesting thing about this love story is I didn’t feel the love, I felt the second-chance romance of it all, without the romance. They are two trained spy assassins on a mission and Raven makes it clear the mission is what matters the most, no matter how many times they put aside the rules and hook up. So I wasn’t really into Raven.

I did love Aella’s friend Nyssa and her new friend Myna and even Titaia. They made a good trio who went undercover in another kingdom to partake in a deadly bridal trial, as a distraction, so the rest of the crew could find this infamous weapon people are looking for. I also loved the captain of The Nightingale – he was a fun character.

I felt like the middle of the story slowed down when Aella and her crew go to Eretia. The competition happens kind of quick, and I didn’t feel the high stakes of the trials until afterwards. After the trials is when things pick up again, and the story finishes off strong. There is betrayal, and a new, interesting character at the end that helps set up book two.

There are a few words that are hard to remember or say in this story so I had to look it up.

Final Thoughts:

I enjoyed the world-building and the assassin spy crew that Aella and her friends are a part of. I liked the beginning and end, but found the middle (the deadly trials) kind of slow and it felt low-stakes. I didn’t love Aella with Raven but I’m intrigued by Xan, the new character we meet at the end of the book. So I’m looking forward to reading book two.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Stolen Midnights by. Katherine Quinn | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️

Title: Stolen Midnights (#1)

Author: Katherine Quinn

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 464

Publication Date: 2/3/26

Publisher: Delacorte Press

Categories: Romantasy, Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Delacorte Press for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This magical new YA romantasy from the New York Times bestselling author of To Kill a Shadow will steal your heart. Set in Andalay, a world where the ruling Fates bestow gifts among the favored, a thief must join forces with the palace darling after he unwittingly steals a necklace with the power to change everything.

When Damien, a cold and hardened thief, is hired to steal a gift from the powerful Fates meant for Andalay’s sweetheart, Wren Hayes, he finds himself entangled in a web of secrets.

The gift? A locket containing his own phototroph.

Once the locket is opened, hidden truths unravel, ones that shed light on the ruthless ways of the upper-class society. Yearning for the three Fates and the magical gifts they bestow, the lords of Andalay will go to any length to keep their power—including murder.

Brought together by destiny, and fighting a temptation that neither understand, Wren and Damien navigate a seedy world where the truth can destroy not only their lives, but the city itself.

Content Warning: violence, death

Wren doesn’t have good standing in society or among her family, and when her birthday magic gift isn’t given to her, it makes her reputation even worse. Damien, is a thief, and he is the one who stole Wren’s magic gift, a locket – with his picture inside it. But the question is why? When another thief steals it from him he reluctantly joins forces with Wren to find this gift.

Wren and Damien are from different classes, she’s a pampered young lady from a rich family and Damien is from the streets. They clash in personalities, but I found their bickering pretty fun. There is an attraction growing between them but Damien runs from her each time he feels more for her, and she gets upset with him a lot about it. There is a tiny bit of spice, there are barely details in the act of it.

But with this quest to find the missing gift, Wren stumbles onto something more sinister that involves the Fates (the ones that gift the magic), and the high lords in society – including her own father. There are a few twists and turns at the end that was a surprise and it ends in a cliffhanger.

Final Thoughts:

I thought this was a fun, young adult fantasy with a surprise ending I didn’t expect. I love Wren and Damien’s back and forth banter – they are both pretty stubborn. But I love the rich girl/poor boy trope so I was invested in their romance. I also thought the mystery about the high lords and the operation they were hiding really added to the mystery. Overall, a pretty good start to the series.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read From This Author:

To Shatter the Night by. Katherine Quinn | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

To Kill a Shadow by. Katherine Quinn | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️

WWW Wednesday | 1/28/26

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam over on Taking on a World of Words.

The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:

What are you currently reading?

What have you just finished reading?

What are you going to read next?

I am working on arcs from NetGalley but also arcs from indie authors! Glad to be supporting the indie authors and I wish I can read everyone’s book, but I can’t. 😅. But I’m trying to fit them into my reading schedule by requesting less from NetGalley. Now if only I can fit my physical TBR into my schedule lol – reader problems!!

What are you currently reading?

Dawn of the North by. Demi Winter – 33% – this one has such heavy world-building, I had to try to remember this big cast of characters but it is finally flowing for me!

Keeper of Lost Children by. Sadeqa Johnson – 12%

I, Medusa by. Ayana Gray – chapter 2

The Summer of Lost Things by. Jenn Bennett – 31%

Dawn in Ruins by. Magda Mizzi – Chapter 1 – let’s try this one again, and see if I can finish it this time. I wasn’t in the mood for it during the holidays.

What have you just finished reading?

A Curse of Crimson Tears by. Julie J. Morris– ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Masquerade of Mirrors by. Samantha Hartwood – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (arc)

Goodbye and Everything After by. Mae Coyiuto – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (arc)

Maybe This Once by. Sophie Sullivan – ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (arc)

Second Chance Romance by. Olivia Dade – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Still Fighting by. Syianne Horne – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (arc)

Fated Skates by. Victoria Schade – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (alc – audiobook)

What are you going to read next?

A Whisper of Winds and Leaves by. M.B. Reese

The Poet Empress by. Shen Tao

A Vow in Vengeance by. Jaclyn Rodriguez

Mate by. Ali Hazelwood

What are YOU reading right now?

Dragon Cursed by. Elise Kova | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice:

Title: Dragon Cursed (Dragon Cursed, #1)

Author: Elise Kova

Format: hardcover (own)

Pages: 448

Publication Date: 1/6/26

Categories: Young Adult, Fantasy, Dragons, Series

The moment you see a dragon is usually your last…

Since the dragons emerged–along with the scourge that ravaged our lands and people–there’s only one human city that remains standing: Vingard.

But the hellfire from above is nothing compared to the threat from within. For there is no worse fate than being dragon cursed. Slowly and excruciatingly, you’ll be transformed into a mindless beast who destroys everything–and everyone–you love.

Any of us could be tainted. Any of us could be lying. Any of us could be caught and killed by the authorities.

And I’m terrified that I might be next.

There’s only one other person who might suspect my secret. He’s like my shadow, following me wherever I go. Part protector, part tormentor, fully annoying. Sometimes I think I am just one of the million unfathomable secrets he keeps hidden.

Because Lucan definitely knows something.

And if I’m dragon cursed, death might be the only mercy I get.

Content Warning: death, violence, torture

I have the hard cover sprayed edged version of this book and it is gorgeous!

+~ Isola is Valor Reborn and the savior for all of Vinguard, if she can learn how to harness and use her power. But Isola has a secret – she doesn’t feel like she is the savior everyone wants her to be. In fact, she feels like she is dragon cursed and she’s doing her best to hide it. I could sympathize with Isola’s mental state – she’s scared, her parents aren’t with her (for different reasons), there is a lot of pressure on her. She’s keeping secrets and afraid of the Vicar, but there were some spots in the story I was frustrated with her. She’s lying to her best friend, but then gets mad when Lucan lies to her. But she does grow so that’s good.

+~ World building is interesting but focused on the Tribunal taking place, which is a trial where competitors become Mercy Knights at the end of the trial. The trial was okay, I wasn’t sure what they were supposed to be doing to prove they could be amazing Mercy Knights. The dragons are enemies in this story but we don’t know much about the history and I want to know more. I do feel like we were thrown into the story a bit and I had to catch up with understanding what Etherlight and sigils were.

+~ Secondary characters play a big part in this story but I needed more about her parents because their role in this story is important but we barely get anything. I did love Isola’s relationship with her best friend, Saphia. There are other characters at the end of the book who I hope we get to know more in book two.

+ My favorite part has to be the ending, which has a few twists, some I suspected, but it was still fun seeing it play out and all the action that comes with it. It’s a cliffhanger though!

Final Thoughts:

I enjoyed this one but I do want to learn more about the dragons or dragon shifters and the magic. I need more history. This first book focused on the Tribunal, which was interesting, but I felt like we were thrown into this world quick. Isola as the FMC is conflicted and challenged, at times she was frustrating but there is growth. I liked the growing romance, and I really loved the ending of this book! I loved the twists and the action – it is a cliffhanger though. We’ll see what happens in book two!

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read From This Author:

Arcana Academy by. Elise Kova | ARC Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Duel with the Vampire Lord by. Elise Kova | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

A Dance with the Fae Prince (Married to Magic #2) by. Elise Kova| Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

A Deal with the Elf King | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

WWW Wednesday | 1/21/26

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam over on Taking on a World of Words.

The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:

What are you currently reading?

What have you just finished reading?

What are you going to read next?

Tomorrow is the BTS pre-sale and I already know it will be impossible for me to get anything because why are the Chicago and LA sale times during when I have to drop my kids off to school or pick them up? 😅 Like…I’m still going to try but…I doubt I can get anything. I did sign up for Toronto also – so we’ll see what happens! Wish me luck!

I am trying to work on February arcs but I’m getting a few indie authors asking me to read their books, so it’s getting a little crowded on my list! 😅

What are you currently reading?

Dawn of the North by. Demi Winter – 10%

A Curse of Crimson Tears by. Julie J. Morris – 21%

Masquerade of Mirrors by. Samantha Hartwood – 4%

Goodbye and Everything After by. Mae Coyiuto – 20%

Keeper of Lost Children by. Sadeqa Johnson – 5%

I, Medusa by. Ayana Gray – chapter 2

Maybe This Once by. Sophie Sullivan – 30

Second Chance Romance by. Olivia Dade – 37%

What have you just finished reading?

Dragon Cursed by. Elise Kova – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Wicked Onyx by. Debbie Cassidy – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Silk & Iron by. Alexis Calder – ⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Queen Crowned in Flames by. Hazel McBride – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What are you going to read next?

A Winter of White Ash by. Lucia Damisa

A Whisper of Winds and Leaves by. M.B. Reese

What are YOU reading right now?

Silk & Iron by. Alexis Calder | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️

Title: Silk & Iron (#1)

Author: Alexis Calder

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 385

Publication Date: 1/20/26

Publisher: Alexis Calder

Categories: Romantasy, Fantasy, Romance, Indie Author

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from the author in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Alexis Calder for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

The emperor. The prince. The enforcer.
I want them all dead. Until I fall for one of them.

After losing all my family to the rebellion, I lost hope. When my ex-boyfriend begs me to pose as the prince’s betrothed, I know it’s an opportunity the rebellion won’t ever get again.

I’m sent with the goal of finding out how to kill an immortal emperor, but I don’t want to wait on someone else to get my revenge. I want the emperor, the prince, and the enforcer all dead.

But the palace is full of secrets. And I’m not the only one playing a game of life and death; lies and betrayals. The closer I get to my goal, the closer I get to one of the men I vowed to kill.

And I’m not sure I can bring myself to harm him. But there’s nothing stopping him from killing me as soon as he finds out who I really am.

I’m playing with fire and I want this whole empire to burn.

But nothing is as it seems.

Just when I think I have nothing left to lose, I find out how much I have to live for.

And when faced with losing the only hope I have left, I must decide how far I’m willing to go to watch this empire burn.

Silk & Iron is a slow burn, spicy enemies-to-lovers romantasy full of court intrigue, betrayal, and deception. Mind the cliff.

Content Warning: violence, death, mentions of sexual assault, torture

+~ Sabina is undercover as a princess and is supposed to be marrying Caiden, the Prince of Pendralia, but what she is really there to do is kill his dad, the emperor because they killed her family. There is court intrigue, but not as much as I was expecting. There are a lot of scenes of Sabina getting close to her ladies-in-waiting, which was fun. But I just wanted more danger.

+~ The world building is the usual for a romantasy: warring kingdoms, princess used for an alliance, secret identity of the princess, a rebellion trying to kill the emperor, magic that keeps him alive. But only certain people have magic in this world. I wanted more from the world building. As for the characters, I just felt like none of them stood out, I wanted more depth. Also, there is magic but we learn a little more about it near the end.

+~ There is a slow burn, forbidden romance between Sabina and Brevan, her guard/enforcer and who is Caiden’s right hand man. And when I say slow, it is slow, and I didn’t even feel the chemistry between them. There are two spicy scenes but because I didn’t even feel their connection, I wasn’t really invested in them.

+ The ending has a wild twist and probably was the most interesting part of the book because it was unexpected.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I thought this was an okay read. I wanted more depth to the characters, more chemistry in the romance and more world building. But if you are someone who doesn’t like heavy world-building in romantasy and wants something easy to read through, definitely try this one. The ending was very unexpected so I might read the next book.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Author Website

Other Books I’ve Read From This Author:

Kingdom of Blood and Salt by. Alexis Calder | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️

King of Ravens by. Clare Sager | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️

Title: King of Ravens (Upon a Broken Throne, #1)

Author: Clare Sager

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 480

Publication Date: 1/27/26

Publisher: Forever

Categories: Fantasy, Romance, Series, Hades/Persephone Retelling

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Forever for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

He’ll do anything to keep her. She’d do anything to escape.

Rhiannon is dying—of what, she doesn’t know. Kept protected by her family in their remote seaside cottage, she spends her days searching for a cure. Her world is torn apart, however, when a fae King of the Dead invades her home.

Cold and cruel, Drystan offers her a choice: descend to the underworld as his bride or watch her family die. Trapped in a twisted bargain, Rhiannon is thrust into a world of withered gods, scheming courtiers, and ancient magic, but she refuses to be a pawn in a game she never agreed to play. She attempts over and over to run away, until Drystan offers her a new bargain: escape his deadly labyrinth, and he will set her free. Fail, and become his bride.

But in a court where every promise has teeth, Annon must make an impossible choice: return to the home she’s always loved or claim her place in a world where she might finally belong.

Content Warning: violence

I always enjoy a Hades/Persephone retelling and I definitely saw elements of it in King of Ravens. This is book one in a series that I assume will be exploring the Underworld. Annon/Rhiannon, is a chronically ill woman in her early thirties who is given to Drystan, an Unseelie Fae and King of Death, as his bride. He doesn’t know that she is ill, but that doesn’t matter because Rhiannon is determined to find her way back home.

Rhiannon is human, which doesn’t go well with the Unseelie, but she holds her own at Drystan’s court. She even makes a friend with her maid, Min. I feel like the beginning of this story where Rhiannon is acclimating to Drystan’s world moved slowly. But I appreciated the chronic-illness representation. I wanted more court politics.

Drystan offers Rhiannon her an option: find a way out of his labyrinth and she gets to go home to the surface. If she loses, she belongs with Drystan in the Underworld forever. She has two weeks to do this and there is danger in the labyrinth but also she befriends a creature called The Collector. Speaking of Labyrinth – there were times in the book that it reminded me of the movie!

The romance is a slow burn with tension growing between them. And when it really takes off, the spice is spicy. I did like it when Drystan and Rhiannon spent more time together as they build an emotional connection.

There are a few twists at the end, one I suspected, the other I felt came out of nowhere but it did feel a bit rushed. We barely get to know anything outside of Drystan’s land, so the ending was kind of a surprise.

Final Thoughts:

I wasn’t feeling this story in the first half of the book because I felt like it moved too slow and wasn’t giving me enough information. Rhiannon gets taken to the Underworld and isn’t really given instruction from Drystan on what to do or what he expects of her, so thank goodness for Min. We don’t get to know Drystan much either. But I think everything picks up in the middle, with the labyrinth, and the romance and spice. I do feel like I just wanted more from the story though, hopefully book two will have more depth.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Fallen Stars by. Imani Erriu | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice: 🌶️🌶️

Title: Fallen Stars (The Heavenly Bodies, #2)

Author: Imani Erriu

Format: audiobook and paperback

Pages: 544

Publication Date: 11/25/25 (first published 2/14/23)

Categories: Romantasy, Series

In this stunning sequel to the viral TikTok sensation Heavenly Bodies, Elara searches for a way to save her star-crossed lover and defeat the Stars out to destroy her.

“Stars will fall.”

Elara is vengeful. Her love, Prince Lorenzo, is in a deep sleep, trapped between the realms of life and death. Her enemy has vanished, and with him, Enzo’s only hope of returning to the waking world, leaving Elara with a life she has never wanted and new powers she cannot control.

Now a disgraced queen, Elara must find a way to save Lorenzo while also seeking the lost Titans, a league of gods who ruled the world long before the Stars. But there is a darker power at play, one that even the King of the Stars is afraid of. With enemies at every turn, Elara must tread carefully if she has any hope of waking her soulmate and fulfilling her promise to make every Star fall.

Content Warning: death, violence

There are four parts to this story and multiple POVS by Elara, Adrian and Merissa. But I felt like there are two main parts of this story – when Elara is walking in dreamscape trying to find Lorenzo and then the other part when Adrian comes into this story and it takes it in another direction of water adventures. There is a lot that goes on in this story, most of it coming in at the end, but I did feel like at times there was too much going on.

One thing I loved about book one is Elara and Enzo’s love story. They are apart for Part One, but I felt like Elara was holding her own with her friends, Merissa, Leo and Eli. Eli is a Star but on their side, and I found him an interesting character with a past we don’t know much about. When Elara reunites with her soulmate, there are some challenges because she can’t control her shadows. And though there is spice, it was very interesting and creative spice, which at times seemed awkward because of timing. Also because the story doesn’t focus on falling in love, it did feel like something was missing. Obviously, they will die for one another. But then they started calling one another “soulmate” and it triggered my pet peeve of the word “mate” being overused.

Also, there’s is not only one love story taking place. Adrian becomes one of the main characters of this story. He’s a pirate, he is drawn to Elara but he doesn’t know why. He meets someone, a mermaid and there is some spice between them. Adrian being a pirate, really pulled this story into a water adventure because he’s a pirate, and they encounter creatures in the sea. That was very interesting but definitely something I wasn’t expecting.

As for the conflict between the Stars (Ariete) and Celestes (Elara-Moon, Enzo-Sun), it seems like there is a truce for a little while because they have to defeat the Dark (and when they revealed who the Dark is I was like huh? Who is that? Because there are so many characters to remember! 😆 Then I remembered). Also, I’m assuming Elara will be finding other Celestes (or Elementals) in book three. So not only is the world expanding but the character list is also.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I thought this story was kind of choppy with a lot going on, especially at the end. I feel like it was the book that was helping transition Elara/Enzo’s love story into the next phase where maybe someone like Merissa will have her time to shine. I did like having the world expand and the ocean adventures. I liked meeting new Stars, and characters like Adrian, but the list is getting long and I am bound to forget somebody. Maybe a characters list can be included in the next book? I think the ending is intriguing where Merissa’s POV comes in so I will be definitely reading book three to see what happens with her but I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I did book one.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read From This Author:

Heavenly Bodies by. Imani Erriu | ARC Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

WWW Wednesday | 1/14/26

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam over on Taking on a World of Words.

The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:

What are you currently reading?

What have you just finished reading?

What are you going to read next?

Today I am going to be in the Ticketmaster war for Bruno Mars tickets – hopefully for the Vegas show. 😩 I’ve seen him at every tour except for his first album – and he only has 3 albums and then the collab for Silk Sonic (I did see that show in Vegas). So may the ticket Gods be with me today! 😅 May the odds be in my favor!

And this is why I am back on a book buying ban again. It doesn’t help that BTS concert ticket presales are next week also and my sister really wants to go, so I’m trying to get tickets for her.

Any concerts you are dying to go to in 2026?