magnafeana's reviews
277 reviews

Middle of the Road 2.75 stars rounded up fantasy adventure novel.

<b>DISCLAIMER</b>: I received this ARC via VoraciousReadersOnly in exchange for an honest review. All my thoughts are my personal opinions.

“A Tale of Nine Lands” is an entryway to an eventual in-the-works series revolving around species and races of the Nine Lands in their struggles for power and hoarding magic, and the oppressed rising against the abuse and misinformation beaten into them. 

I consider this book an…allegedly interesting entry point into a WIP series. 

In the blurb, it speaks of three protagonists: <b>Theo</b>, <b>Ash</b>, and <b>Exiluk</b>. And, to the book’s credit, it steadily and consistently patterns their POVs, each one disconnected from the other. But the blurb also states, “Brought together by fate, an unlikely trio holds the key to release the Nine Lands from the shadows”.

By the end of the book, however, none of these three have met or have a relation to each other.

…

I think this book served not as an entry point but as a prologue book or a Book 0 novel. It gave backstory, but it didn’t do what the blurb set out to accomplish. Once the protagonists are all with each other, I’ll consider the main narrative has started.

I had a few other issues and compliments for the book.

<b>POSITIVES</b>

<b>NEGATIVES</b>

<b>OVERALL</b>

This was more like a prologue, book 0, or prelude act rather than a Book 1 entry point into the world of ATONL. I would have removed “Brought together by fate”, as the protagonists don’t meet each other in the end. This isn’t the type of Book 1 to get me into a series, but it may very well work for others. The author has a vision, and I hope he can successfully translate it into the rest of the series.

<b>A 2.25 star read on a dark bully age-gap romance</b>

<b>DISCLAIMER</b>: I received this ARC via BookSirens in exchange for an honest review. All my thoughts are my personal opinions.

<b>SUMMARY</b>

***

***

<b>CHARACTERS</b>

<b>Grim/Graham Doe</b>. Foster kid. Self-proclaimed “evil”. Cruel. OTT J/P. 2.5 ⭐️

<b>Eve</b>. “Good”. Helpful. Determined. Sees the best in people. Body betrayal syndrome. No flaws. 2.5 ⭐️

***

<b>OVERALL</b>

The story’s net positive was in its summary. I’m a sucker for bully romances and dark romances. Learning this one would be about a man who lured in an unsuspecting but trusting woman to be his wife under his carefully-crafted persona, only for the illusion to shatter, and she’s trapped with him?

My bread and butter.

Unfortunately, I think I lost the plot.

This is a fast burn and something I wouldn’t read, as well as very intense with things being black and white. Rather than the audience also falling for the illusion Grim set up, falling in love with him as Eve does, we’re notified point-blank he’s a “bad guy” in a bit of a Jojo Siwa “Karma” way. He emphasizes how cruel, evil, and uncaring he is, while Eve is perfectly perfect in every way. “Good” and “Evil” are used a lot. From Eve, the most I understood from her is that she’s “good” and easily fooled, and, while she’s in dismay about her husband lying to her, she’s not really wanting to escape him. There’s no struggle with her morality or ethics in staying with him either.

This being around 20 or so pages too many from being a novella coupled with my complaints may have led me to having a lower rating.

I’m not a fast-burn reader, so I cannot appreciate this pseudo-novella. As a dark romance, dark erotica, and dark fiction reader, I would have preferred a fleshed 300-page novel or so, in which in the beginning, we’re in Alice’s perspective, and we see what she sees in “Graham Doe”. We fall for him, though we sense something about him is dangerous, and, at the moment, that excites her. From there, we follow Alice in her marriage with “Graham” and all the intimate details. We also get to where Eve is kidnapped, and she’s doused with the reality her husband is Grim. From there, I could be satisfied in either splitting between Grim and Eve’s perspectives or keeping this in Eve’s point of view. We’re all left on the edge of our seat, not understanding Grim but recognizing his actions are very considerate and romantic towards Eve.

This was a bit of a disappointing read, as I was in the mood for something dark and depraved, and it tricks your mind into believing one thing and then shocking you into another. I wouldn’t necessarily classify this under bully romance as “bully” is self-prescribed by the MMC of how he treats others. He’s not a bully towards the FMC at all, which is a shame. I like bully romances ☹️

<b>BOTTOM LINE</b>: This book is for fast-burn novella readers who want something that doesn’t linger too much on the emotional beats and is very cut-and-dry with “good” and “bad”. Not the book for me, but it could be the book for you.

What’s on the tin is on the tin, and I’m all right with that!


“Heart on Ice” is an omegaverse sports novel featuring Ciara, an alpha FMC with a chip on her shoulder. After perusing a slightly unhealthy relationship with alpha Leith (MMC1), Ciara being blocked from her life is aiding her in moving on from him and moving in to her own hurt  and trauma, not just from her abused history but from a father-figure’s own anger towards her. Four years later, and Ciara encounters the going-blind skater Artem “Artie”, a male omega, the asshole alpha and sports announcer Enzo, Leith in their pack, and free agent alpha Jae-Sun “Wiz”, a hockey player. When Ciara is forced to navigate these new relationships and opportunities, she does what she does best: run. But when two emotional bombs hit her, it’s time for Ciara to  stand still.


POSITIVES

**CIARA***
A female alpha who isn’t burly and surly - yaaaaas! I truly enjoyed Ciara as a lady alpha. 

I enjoyed Ciara so much! I think the people who read this and weren’t on her side may not have a deeper appreciation for Ciara and her relationship with her trauma. I truly did not feel like her decisions to run were “shake” worthy. 

Admittedly, I didn’t like Ciara’s characterization in book one and skimmed her in book two. She gave “Romance Book Bestie” syndrome constantly, so having her in her own book was nice to actually see a personality.

Now, I don’t like Brynn’s personality. But negatives later.

**WIZ**

I love him. No notes. He consistently had Ciara’s back and brought the “comfort” into hurt/comfort.

**THEME OF FORGIVENESS**

I did enjoy  that Ciara did not immediately forgive Finneas, her abusive father.

**ARTIE**

I enjoyed him as a male omega. He might  be  my  favorite one yet as well. No spoiled, not bratty, and an active pursuant of Ciara without being pushy.

NEGATIVES

**THEME OF FORGIVENESS**

The book had a theme of forgiveness and how forgiveness should not be because someone feels sorry and they’d changed. It should be granted by the person wronged and only when they feel ready for that. And even then, forgiveness is not automatic, nor does it ever need to come into fruition.

Where this is a negative is two points: (1) Alexei and ((2) Enzo.

ALEXEI

Alexei is Ciara’s father, or father-in-heart. In the first book, we understand that Alexei unfairly  lashed out at Ciara, causing Ciara to go away. In Book one and now in THIS book, we never see how Alexei and Ciara repaired their relationship. I think the author didn’t know *how* to write that repair, so we got the cliff notes version of it. Ciara’s book was the perfect time to enlighten us on her and Alexei, but we didn’t.

ENZO

Enzo himself is an entire negative. I’m glad Ciara and others called out his manhandling, but it pisses me off that he was so easily forgiven for the direct  pain and harm he brought to everyone around him. I hated that Enzo does a kind thing and vomits his own story for Ciara and all is forgiven.

**LORE DUMPS**

Didn’t care for all the lore dumps on character’s backstories. No.

**SEX OVER LOVE***

It’s always the omega’s heat that jump starts everything—always. Didn’t care for Ciara’s biting Artie in public. It WAS irresponsible. I just sighed. Such is omegaverse. Rarely can an omegaverse book not have the first heat in a book be what puts the relationship together. Dang. No courtship. No emotional intimacy. Just lots go physical.


NEUTRAL STANCES

**THIRD ACT**

I don’t love the third act, but I’ll tolerate it.

I liked that Ciara ran. I very much think she needed to. And I’m an angsty person, so Ciara running to see her father, and Wiz backing her up, was all I needed. I personally just needed more. I wasn’t really feeling that Ciara was ready to open up to anyone outside of Wiz. Especially  with what Enzo pulled, my hurt/comfort loving self wanted some more hurt to earn comfort.  I was hopeful Ciara would be upset  with Wiz for selling her out,  and she’d need time away from everyone. FROM THERE, she’d visit Finneas. Finneas would tell her about things, things that give Ciara something to think about. 

The guys would find a way to grovel and apologize. Ciara needs things to slow down. They do simple things. The death happens. The pack has a talk about things to get them onto the right track, and we FINALLY see some courtship happening! 

Not to mention, the pregnancy thing was getting old. It was just added more as a connection to keep her with the men and they “Take responsibility”. I wanted Ciara to stop running on her own volition without needing a biological connection to the pack. I will never not be weirded out by the “touch the bump” stuff, I’m sorry.

I  understand emotions were high, but I just don’t feel all that great with the third act conflict and it’s resolution.

OVERALL

A good book with a female alpha, so I’ll rec it. Not too terribly impressed but not overly vexed.

Alpha Kings was a book I wished went on longer!

This’ll be a short review.

Premise matches the plot to a certain extent. Prince Aiken is an abused omega forced into silence by his father, a king who knows nothing better than how to kiss his own ass. Bear and Wolf, leaders of a “barbaric” land, have come to remind the king his foolishness in cleaving peace with war will cost him his omega son. And in that, Aiken learns how to shed the shrouds of his past and embrace what it means to be a  liberated omega.

AIKEN

I liked his character. I wouldn’t call him lovable,  but I wouldn’t discount him either. I don’t quite buy that he was “defiant”, and that portion of him felt forced than what was implied. He gave into the demands of his omega biology fairly quickly. I enjoyed his judgment wasn’t loud.

**What I wanted more of**

I wish he had been a bit more reserved and hesitant. The book explicitly tells us he is, but I wanted more implications of him doing so. For example,

when Aiken witnesses his first fertility celebration, he caves to Bear and Wolf, while both brothers abstain from it. But Aiken further pursues this. I was hoping that Aiken wouldn’t, honestly. I wanted more sexual tension.

And for another meh thing

with all the allusions off omegas falling in love for the winning Alphas, and Aiken’s sudden jealousy, I was hoping Aiken would use that a bit. He’d make it clear that, as Bear and Wolf sought other boys, he’s free to seek another Alpha. Let the brothers fight for their right to Aiken and let Aiken experience what the book set up.

Overall, Aiken is a cutie.

BEAR AND WOLF

I wish I had more to say, but I don’t.  Both didn’t really have any growth. I understood why Roe chose to show

both brothers enjoying the flesh of other omegas

, but eh… Wolf was the resistant one, but it wasn’t a firm resistance, and Bear was all-in. That was kinda it.

OVERALL

This was an erotic romance, and I enjoyed reading it for that aspect. It was a 3.75 star read.

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