Book 1 of Realms of Lore: Fae Series
Adult Dark Fantasy Romance
~ARC Review~
I am slightly obsessed with this book

This book was amazing. No spoilers ahead!

4.5/5 stars
This was a fun and quick read. For tropes, it's got: chosen one and fated mates (x2!). I enjoyed the story from all four main characters' perspectives - even if I did roll my eyes at the "evil" fae men a bit at the beginning. Etain the witch was my absolute favorite though. And I really enjoyed the unique multiverse-type spin this author had on the fae and human worlds - it was an interesting variation on a portal story. This book is perfect for fans of ACOTAR and people who like their books spicy.

My only complaint is that the book ended earlier than I would like. I need the second book in the series already!

For full transparency, I received a free advance copy of this book so that I could review it.

I read this book as an ARC and wanted to provide a review! (Spoiler free)

I loved the story line and the baseline of the book has really great potential! This book did make me laugh out loud a few times as well. I struggled with the instalove/instamates early in the book, that’s not to say it is bad, I just personally didn’t feel like the relationships were earned when they happened so quickly and the way they started. It definitely gets better in the second half. Still enjoyed this book overall and plan to read book 2 when it arrives!

Dαrĸ roмαɴтαѕy
•Spιcy “тoυcн нer αɴd dιe” vιвeѕ
•Fαe world wιтн wιтcнeѕ & нυмαɴѕ •Forвιddeɴ love
•Fαтed мαтeѕ

Thank you to for gifting me a free copy of your ARC! It was truly a pleasure! A felt a lot of SJM and JLA vibes with this read & I was all here for it. The world building stays on pace- I didn’t feel bogged down by too many names, places, etc. Thoma does a great job of initiating the action and plot with a bang.

I enjoyed the multiple POVs and the wicked ways of the Fae in the night court. All of the MC’s grow into new feelings and development from their past. There’s both a slow burn romance & a red hot romance so multiple tropes here

I loved this book! If you enjoy fantasy, this is up your alley! There are four main characters so you get a couple different sides of the story but it’s all tied together very well! It leaves you with a bit of a shocker at the end and a bit of a cliffhanger. I’ve already moved onto the next book, Heirs of Darkness.

"If you want me. . .you must first win my mind, and the rest will follow."

THE GOOD:
The worldbuilding was on point. It's what kept me reading and wanting to know what was next. I saw another review point out the use of old English and personally, I liked it. I thought it helped me adjust to the setting and really get into the "high court" royal vibes. Many of the books I've read this year have been combining modern English with traditional culture and it's quite the juxtaposition when not done correctly. So, all in all, I thought it brought more refinery to the dialogue.

THE BAD:
Ciaran/Etain and Kes/Anin's love stories were so similar that they were practically identical--from how they met, the thoughts of the MMCs, and how the FMCs responded. Additionally, (this one might be more of a pet peeve) the thoughts of a character would be immediately followed by those same thoughts verbally expressed, almost word-for-word. There was a lot of deja vu and in reality, the book could've been halved which explains why the it took until half of the book to really pick up.

The relations between both couples advanced very quickly--a little too quickly for my tastes. I am not a fan of relying on a mate bond to drive the joining of a couple. I find it more enjoyable when it strengthens their relationship rather than being the driving force.

OVERALL:
Despite these shortcomings, I did enjoy reading this story. The storyline and concepts were interesting and there were several bits of the book where the writing was so sensual and captivating. If Thoma manages to write like that 100% of the time, I'll have an entire bookcase of her work. I'm looking forward to watching this author grow because she has so much potential.