robins_fantasy_reads's reviews
127 reviews

The False Pawn by A. E. Asavi

mysterious tense slow-paced

3.0

Overall, I think this was a decent debut novel and it was set up well to be the first book in a series.

At first, the romance aspect of the book didn’t seem natural, but then in the second half of the book I COMPLETELY understood why…and I liked the little twist in direction! This is definitely a slow burn for the romance aspect, and it was set up to traverse multiple books which I love!

In the first book, the FMC is thrust into a magical world separate from earth. We see her come to the understanding that humans in this realm are slaves, meet some elvish royalty, go on mini heists, and travel through multiple courts…all in attempts to discover how she fits into an old, mysterious prophecy.

At times, I will say that the writing style read like a YA novel and was a bit repetitive, but the contents of the book were mature/new adult…which was a little strange to me. It also took me awhile to form a connection to the characters, but as I said before, the story was set up well for a second book!

The Veiled Kingdom by Holly Renee

mysterious tense

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

I was so hyped for this book and the first half of it was good! I was invested in figuring out why “Nyra” ran away from her home and how she would navigate being with the rebel group. However, I feel like once the spice component entered the picture, the plot went straight out the window for the remainder of the book. Although I understand this is a short book and the first in a series, I was looking for some more world building and character development before it got hot and heavy. Even though I thought the spice came too quickly, I did enjoy the first couple scenes! However, I found myself getting bored once it because just spice scene after spice scene with no progression through the actual story really. To be honest, I was thankful for the cliffhanger at the end because it makes me hopeful that we will get back to the plot in book two! 

Heartless Hunter by Kristen Ciccarelli

dark emotional hopeful inspiring mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes

5.0

6🌟
I’m just going to say it…this is now one of my favorite books of👏 all👏 time👏

With the first few chapters, I wasn’t convinced that this book was going to draw me in, but boy was I WRONG. 

This book had enemies to lovers, cat & mouse chasing, scheming, and plot twists galore. 

I’m speechless…just please, for the love of all that is good, go read this book!! 

Legendary by Stephanie Garber

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Caraval by Stephanie Garber

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Perfection, absolute perfection 🙌

Everyone and their mom has already read this series so my reviews for the books aren’t going to be long. 

I heard some people mention that they found the beginning of Caraval slow, and others were just reading this trilogy to prepare for UOABH so I was a little hesitant going into it.

But OH BOY I swear, this is one of my favorite reads of the year. I was hooked from the very beginning and never EVER lost interest throughout this fever dream of a book. 

So twisted and magical, I’m obsessed ✨

A Pessimist's Guide to Love by Jennifer Hartmann

emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I won’t say too much about this one because I have very similar feelings as I did when I read An Optimist’s Guide to Heartbreak. There were definitely darker tones here which I liked but most of the book was a repeat of Lucy and Cal getting close, then fighting, then getting close, etc…

They have one of the most toxic relationships and by the end, I think I was rooting more for them to finally clear the air rather than them to get together 🤣

Miscommunication tropes are not my thing when it’s the focal point of a story, but that’s just me.

Overall, it was still a very bingable duology!

An Optimist's Guide to Heartbreak by Jennifer Hartmann

emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I feel so conflicted. Half the time while reading, my jaw was on the floor and my eyes were glued to the page. The other half of the time, my eyes were in the back of my head from rolling them so dramatically at all the cringy, forced, cliché moments and d*ck jokes. I also found the FMC, Lucy, lowkey insufferable. I understand that she’s supposed to be portrayed as overly innocent to contrast her deep dark feelings and that it’s important for her character development…but it was just too much. 

AND YET here I am, rooting for the main characters to get together, and wanting to read book two. That cliff hanger made me so mad but it was set up perfectly for a short duology like this one. Their relationship stresses me out so much but I just can’t stop. What kind of crack is this book laced with??? 

I will be immediately binging book two, brb 😂

What Lies Within Masks & Shadows by Nicolle May

adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I just can’t get over the fact that this was a debut book for Nicolle’s new fantasy series…it was amazing! 

I had a feeling this would quickly become one of my favorite books this year, and honestly, it might be one of my favorite books PERIOD. I am so incredibly excited for this series to continue! 

I highlighted and bookmarked so many pages in my Kindle while reading, from the very first chapter to the last. Usually, I struggle with maintaining attention in fantasy books when a lot of foundational information is being described, but here, the world-building, character descriptions, and dialogue were all equally captivating! 

The love story throughout this book is everything I love; it’s not truly enemies-to-lovers, but more of an instant attraction where the FMC is repulsed by her feelings and goes into deep denial for several chapters. And THEN from there, we get a slow burn with tension, fights, and more tension. I can’t wait for their relationship to explode later in the series; it’ll be worth the wait for sure! 

The last chapter was also VERY mysterious, and I feel like we are just scratching the surface with whatever adventures Nicolle has planned for our little group of rebels. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse

The Fabric of Our Souls by K.M. Moronova

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

𝚆𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚖𝚢 𝚕𝚒𝚏𝚎?? 𝙸 𝚊𝚖 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚜, 𝚖𝚢 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚒𝚜 𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚒𝚗𝚐, 𝙸 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝙸'𝚖 𝚐𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚟𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚝, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚜𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚒𝚝.
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𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚒𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚏𝚊𝚒𝚗𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚑𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚝, 𝚜𝚘 𝚙𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎 𝚙𝚛𝚘𝚌𝚎𝚎𝚍 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚌𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗.
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𝚃𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚗 𝚊 𝚍𝚊𝚛𝚔 𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚌𝚎. 𝙸 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚊𝚞𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚛 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚟𝚎 𝚎𝚡𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚍 𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚊𝚕 𝚒𝚕𝚕𝚗𝚎𝚜𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚜𝚒𝚖𝚒𝚕𝚊𝚛 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚠𝚘𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚒𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝'𝚜 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚘𝚗 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚏𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚒𝚗 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔 𝚜𝚘 𝚏𝚊𝚜𝚝...
...𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙸 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚎𝚖𝚘𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚊𝚗𝚗𝚒𝚑𝚒𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚍...

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Gore, Mental illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Grief, Suicide attempt, Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Car accident, Alcohol

The Teacher by Freida McFadden

dark emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

4.75

𝙵𝚛𝚎𝚒𝚍𝚊 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚍𝚘𝚎𝚜𝚗'𝚝 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚖𝚎 𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗! 𝙸'𝚖 𝚗𝚘𝚝 𝚜𝚞𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚛𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚖𝚎𝚋𝚎𝚛𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚠 𝚘𝚗 𝙷𝚞𝚕𝚞 𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚎𝚍 "𝙰 𝚃𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚛" 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚜𝚒𝚗𝚌𝚎 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚝𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚝 𝚜𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚕 𝚢𝚎𝚊𝚛𝚜 𝚊𝚐𝚘, 𝙸'𝚟𝚎 𝚋𝚎𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚛𝚢𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚜𝚒𝚖𝚒𝚕𝚊𝚛 𝚙𝚕𝚘𝚝𝚜 𝚒𝚗 𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚜 𝚘𝚛 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔𝚜. 𝙰𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚎𝚡𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚕𝚢 𝚠𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚗𝚎𝚎𝚍𝚎𝚍, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚕𝚊𝚜𝚜𝚒𝚌 𝙼𝚌𝙵𝚊𝚍𝚍𝚎𝚗 𝚝𝚠𝚒𝚜𝚝𝚜!
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𝙸 𝚠𝚎𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚛𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑 𝚊 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎-𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚙 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚜𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚊𝚕 𝚘𝚏 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚑𝚊𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚜, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚢 𝚎𝚖𝚘𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙴𝚅𝙴𝚁𝚈𝚆𝙷𝙴𝚁𝙴.
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𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚓𝚞𝚜𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚏𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝚝𝚠𝚒𝚜𝚝 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚙𝚒𝚕𝚘𝚐𝚞𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝙸 𝚠𝚊𝚜𝚗'𝚝 𝚊 𝚑𝚞𝚐𝚎 𝚏𝚊𝚗 𝚘𝚏, 𝚠𝚑𝚒𝚌𝚑 𝚒𝚜 𝚠𝚑𝚢 𝚒𝚝 𝚍𝚒𝚍𝚗'𝚝 𝚐𝚎𝚝 𝚊 𝚏𝚞𝚕𝚕 5 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚖𝚎.
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𝙸'𝚟𝚎 𝚗𝚘𝚝𝚒𝚌𝚎𝚍 𝚊 𝚕𝚘𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚙𝚎𝚘𝚙𝚕𝚎 𝚠𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝚞𝚗𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚏𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚊𝚋𝚕𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚜𝚝𝚞𝚍𝚎𝚗𝚝/𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚌𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚛𝚎𝚕𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜𝚑𝚒𝚙 𝚙𝚘𝚛𝚝𝚛𝚊𝚢𝚎𝚍 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔...𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝'𝚜 𝚎𝚡𝚊𝚌𝚝𝚕𝚢 𝚑𝚘𝚠 𝚠𝚎 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚏𝚎𝚎𝚕! 𝙸 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔 𝚜𝚑𝚎 𝚍𝚒𝚍 𝚊 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚓𝚘𝚋 𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚑𝚘𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚞𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚗𝚌𝚎𝚙𝚝 𝚘𝚏 𝚐𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚋𝚘𝚝𝚑 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚝𝚒𝚟𝚎𝚜 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚛𝚘𝚖𝚊𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚌𝚒𝚣𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚒𝚝...𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚒𝚏 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚠𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚝𝚘 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚜𝚝𝚞𝚏𝚏, 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚙𝚒𝚌𝚔 𝚞𝚙 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚘𝚘𝚔!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Death, Violence, Murder, Gaslighting