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chris070488's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
swemo's review
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
pajamamomreads's review against another edition
4.0
If you like:
✅ Good soup
✅ Cute puppies
✅ Good Banter
✅ Older women
✅ Good soup
✅ Cute puppies
✅ Good Banter
✅ Older women
seetaylorwrite's review against another edition
4.0
Actual rating was 4.5/5
Bound by Blood is the second novella in the Starry Kingdoms of the Fae. In this novella, we meet Erryn, a soup maker who lives a lonely life. One night, a commotion outside draws her attention, causing her to open her door. That’s when she sees Button, a creature that looked like a puppy dog with wings. Chasing him is blood elf, Ryul, who was attempting to create something akin to an attack dog with his blood elf magic. When Erryn refuses to give Buttons back to Ryul, they strike a deal. She makes him soup to help him build his magic back up in exchange for Buttons. But Ryul’s one rule is that Erryn must promise to NOT fall in love with him.
This novella was super cute. I absolutely ADORED seeing Erryn worth through her past and find friendship in Ryul and Buttons. Seeing the relationship blossom between Ryul and Erryn was super sweet and I’d put it between insta-love and slow burn. It was like smack in between. I also loved Quinn, Ryul’s sassy house. So if you like stories with food that feeds the soul, cute puppies, and a HEA, then this is the story for you!
Bound by Blood is the second novella in the Starry Kingdoms of the Fae. In this novella, we meet Erryn, a soup maker who lives a lonely life. One night, a commotion outside draws her attention, causing her to open her door. That’s when she sees Button, a creature that looked like a puppy dog with wings. Chasing him is blood elf, Ryul, who was attempting to create something akin to an attack dog with his blood elf magic. When Erryn refuses to give Buttons back to Ryul, they strike a deal. She makes him soup to help him build his magic back up in exchange for Buttons. But Ryul’s one rule is that Erryn must promise to NOT fall in love with him.
This novella was super cute. I absolutely ADORED seeing Erryn worth through her past and find friendship in Ryul and Buttons. Seeing the relationship blossom between Ryul and Erryn was super sweet and I’d put it between insta-love and slow burn. It was like smack in between. I also loved Quinn, Ryul’s sassy house. So if you like stories with food that feeds the soul, cute puppies, and a HEA, then this is the story for you!
melycp's review
3.5
I didn’t expect to like this as much as I did. It was actually pretty good. There are a few instances that I didn’t enjoy, one of which being a specific word that I really don’t like being used. But other than that, decent.
Compared to the first book in this series of standalones (all by different authors) this one is much longer and therefore has time for real character and story development. It seemed like their backgrounds were a little all over the place at times, but they made more sense in the end.
It was so refreshing to read a book about the fae where the human woman is older than the male fae. That like never happens. You don’t find out exactly how old Erryn is, but she says she is a few years older than Ryul’s 24.
I weirdly really enjoyed the scenes where Erryn makes soup. It’s so mundane but I’ve always enjoyed cooking scenes in books, probably because I love food so much myself. I’m not, however, a big fan of soup.
The world-building was pretty decent and it was fun to learn about the different types of fae. I think these books are all set in the same world so it’s cool to expand on the first one – assuming I’m reading these in the correct order, but I don’t think there is one.
The romance seems a little instalovey, but they do spend multiple evenings together, bonding over soup and whatnot. That makes this sound really boring, but you do find yourself rooting for them. The whole ‘I love you’ curse is weird though. I didn’t (and still don’t) fully understand what it is.
Overall Bound by Blood was a very decent standalone fantasy. I like that each book is by an indie author and it’s cool to have a large expanded universe. I’d recommend checking them out if you have Kindle Unlimited.
vicariousbookstagram's review against another edition
5.0
Super cute and cozy read. It’s a clean read with a who will say it first storyline. I got hints of Rapunzel (which the author mentioned at the end.) It starts out a little bit Grumpy Sunshine and then the MMC becomes a total cinnamon roll. He’s respectful and consent is very important. Some aspects of the story could have been fleshed out a little more but overall it was a very enjoyable read and well written. I found 1 character to be slightly distracting because I never knew what to expect from them but then they just kind of petered out. So they felt a little… useless. It has an adorable “dog” character, a cast iron pan as a weapon, will they/won’t they, curses & bargains, she’s older, he’s a “baby” fae. I would definitely read more about these characters but would love to read a more PG-13 + aspect. A quick, sweet, and clean read.
blossomedcookie's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0