YES! I was so happy to dive back into the Glacian universe! Ryon is still the epitome of perfection, Dawsyn is our lovely flawed anti-hero, and everyone else is a delightful and loveable mess. We get new characters in this sequel, learn A LOT more about the world as a whole, and see so much of the history of our leads. I will say the action in this installment is toned way down from Ledge - it's a lot of waiting around and talking - but McEwan still manages to keep the reader engaged with excellent storytelling and no clunky exposition. Everything felt organic and natural. I'm already so excited for the final installment!

**Thank you NetGalley and Angry Robot for the eARC**

Chasm," the eagerly anticipated sequel to "Ledge," picks up right where its predecessor left off, resolving the cliffhangers from the previous book.
While the opening was satisfying in this regard, my overall experience with the story left me with mixed feelings.

The middle section of "Chasm" seemed to suffer from what call "middle book syndrome." It lost the energetic and action-packed quality that had originally drawn me into the first book.
In comparison to the fast-paced "Ledge," the pacing became noticeably slower, and the narrative meandered for a considerable portion.

I should mention that I thoroughly enjoy the writing style of the author, which is consistently well-crafted. It's just that the storyline, particularly in "Chasm," fell a little flat this time.

Dawsyn's acquired magic from the pool, a central element in "Chasm," left me initially underwhelmed. It was only when the story revealed the dire threat it posed to Dawsyn that my interest began to stir. This twist added depth to the plot, but it felt somewhat lacking at the outset.

This leads into another portion of the story that left me ambivalent was the inclusion of her being a natural born mage as well as her acquired magic from the pool.

It appeared to primarily serve as a tool to further Dawsyn's "not-like-the-other-girls" character arc, This element didn't seem to contribute significantly to the overall plot and appeared to have been added mainly for character development.

Dawsyn's unchanging and seemingly long-winded anger towards Ryon, a recurring theme throughout the book, began to feel unnecessary and tiresome.

However, as I progressed through "Chasm," the story started to regain its momentum, promising an exciting lead-in to Book 3. The latter part of the book rekindled my anticipation and curiosity.

In summary, while "Chasm" had its moments and adeptly resolved earlier cliffhangers, it grappled with a slower middle section, introduced elements that felt underdeveloped or unnecessary, and included a lengthy conflict between Dawsyn and Ryon. It did regain its appeal toward the end, and I am hopeful for the continuation of the trilogy.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Angry Robot and Stacey McEwan for an advanced e-copy to review.

I loved this book, unexpectedly so, and cannot praise it highly enough for the way it so seamlessly married titillating yet heart-warming romance, all wrapped up into a flawlessly written, impressive little gem. It was a joy to read this book. Now, I can’t wait for the finale.

I found this book to be every bit as captivating as the first installment. It maintains the same level of excitement, engaging banter, and showcases Dawsyn's unwavering strength in the face of adversity. Her resilience remains unshaken, even as she grapples with her complex emotions.
Dawsyn's journey in this book begins at a low point, with a heavy burden of grief, guilt, anger, and a myriad of powerful emotions that threaten to drown her. Adding to her challenges is the newfound power from the Iskra, a pivotal development that becomes both a boon and a hurdle she must learn to master and control.
Dawsyn's prevailing anger towards Ryson is palpable throughout the narrative, bringing back the enemies to lovers vibes, we got from the two of them in book one, which I for one, enjoyed. Her unyielding determination to liberate the people from the Ledge is a driving force in the story. However, the people confined to the Ledge harbor a deep-seated skepticism; not only toward Dawsyn but also toward the allies she brings in her quest to rescue them. It becomes evident that aiding those on the Ledge is far from a straightforward task, adding layers of complexity to the plot.
Moreover, Dawsyn is burdened with the weight of responsibility in her relentless fight to rescue those on the Ledge. Her path is fraught with conflicts, from her relief, yet anger at Ryon, the Queens searching for her, to former allies turned adversaries. Despite her desire to maintain the façade of an aloof, ruthless survivor from the Ledge, we glimpse another facet of Dawsyn's character. We witness a Dawsyn who cares deeply and strives to protect, secretly fearing the loss of those she holds dear, even if she refuses to openly admit it.. It's a transformative journey that allows her to embrace her emotions and exhibit genuine care.
The 'found family' trope is beautifully developed in this book, eliciting genuine empathy and support for this unlikely group of allies. We are once again, reunited with characters who captivated our hearts in the initial installment, endearing themselves to us even further. Esra and Salem, in particular, maintain their status as favorites, infusing the story with humor through their delightful banter.
Undoubtedly, the standout character in this book for me was Baltisse. Baltisse's wit and humor injected a delightful energy into the narrative, quickly making her my favorite character, next to Dawsyn.
Furthermore, I found the world building, as well as the magic system, undeniable strengths that enrich this series.

Prepare to once again, experience a wide spectrum of emotions, from moments of joy and laughter to instances of angst, heartbreak, and even those heart-fluttering, swoon-worthy moments. The bittersweet ending leaves us eagerly anticipating what lies ahead in the series. I for one, can not wait to see how this story ends.

This was such a good follow up to Ledge, I cannot wait to see where this goes in the next book.

I really enjoyed it and highly recommend!

Great next installment. I didn’t love it quite as much as the first, but I think that was just the world building, etc. characters were well thought out and plot made sense. The pacing was well done. Can’t wait for more!

4.5 stars. I loved it! So much new information. So much plot development. Great new characters.

The ending was luckily slightly less gut wrenching than the end of book one. Can’t wait for book 3 and the conclusion!

I absolutely loved Ledge and was so excited for Chasm. I really enjoyed that we got a lot more characters added to the journey this time, and it felt like so much was constantly happening. Once again, tears were shed and I felt like I was holding my breath a lot. At the same time, it somehow felt slower to me and a little harder to get through. I think certain scenes and scenarios felt like drug out a bit. I’m not sure if it was a case of right book, wrong time, but I will definitely be continuing to read Stacey’s books.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

I was so looking forward to this one but it felt very second book slump -y to me. The majority of the book felt like it moved so slow and didn’t pick up until really close to the end. I am super pumped about book 3 but this one was a little bit of a let down.

Thank you to the author and NetGalley for providing an arc for me to review!

This series really started off strong for me and I loved the first book. Sadly, Chasm fell a bit into the second book syndrome category for me. I was relatively hooked throughout the story and finished it in two days, but some of the plot just dragged and not much was happening. Other than that, I loved the characters and am still planning on reading the next book.

A new adult romantacy must buy author for me to enjoy! I was invested in the characters and the world from chapter 1. Give me enemies to lovers and I will RUNNNNN with it. It's like reading a childhood fave but with the added adult themes . I love it!

I support Dawsyn and her axe swinging no matter what happens.

I was really excited when this book was announced because I fell in love with our murderous axe swinging Dawsyn from the first page. And despite the author's needs to torture her characters and try to make her readers cry, I had a really great time.

It was nice to meet some new characters and to spend more time with characters we already knew. The pacing was great, and it didn't suffer the second book syndrome.

Thank you to Netgalley and Angry Robot for an e-copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Chasm has been one of my most anticipated reads this year. I LOVED Ledge and the cliffhanger absolutely devastated me. Chasm picks up right where Ledge ended, Dawsyn is imprisoned and grappling with her feelings about Ryon (namely, his death and deception).

I enjoyed this book just as much, if not more than the first book. I feel like the second book in a trilogy isn’t always as strong and sometimes just feels like a filler until the final book, but that’s not the case here. The story was just as layered and exciting as Ledge. Most of the book was centered around the characters we already met in the first book, like Baltisse, Ruby, and Esra. We learn a lot more about each character, and there’s really great development on an individual level and also for the group as a whole.

This book has everything from found family to romance and angst. Did I mention angst? My emotions were all over the place!

I can’t recommend this one enough and I can’t wait for the next book!

Ledge literally left us on the edge of our seats with that ending!

The wait for Chasm did not disappoint! It was everything I had hoped it would be and gave me more than I was expecting. The characters not knowing who is trust worthy, questioning what should be done, and what consequences can come from all the choices; it made it impossible to put this down.

I NEED the next book now!

Picking up where Ledge left off, Chasm begins with Dawsyn's false imprisonment in The Mecca. With the help of her found family, Dawsyn narrowly escapes being hanged and travels back to familiar surroundings. While dealing with mixed emotions around Ryon's deception and tragic death, Dawsyn sets off to seek help from her new allies in Glacia and free the humans still stranded on The Ledge.

I absolutely love the premise of this series, and Chasm delivered in all the ways I had hoped it would. I read Ledge and Chasm back to back. The latter expands on tropes like slow burn, hidden identity, and found family. The rescue at the inn and Dawsyn's moments with Gerrot hit me right in the feels. I also was super invested in the group discovering a means of escape off the The Ledge.

Though I really enjoyed the overall plot of this book, the slow burn was a bit too drawn out for me. Combined with Stacey's more poetic writing style (think less colloquial than other popular romantasies), the series feels more YA than I expected. I loved the map, but it drove me a little crazy that important locations don't seem to be positioned and/or labeled accurately (i.e. The Ledge appears as a large landmass but is described as a small ice shelf).

Overall, I think Stacey has done an incredible job creating a romance fantasy series that appeals to everyone. Chasm ends on another cliffhanger and I'm excited to see how The Glacian Trilogy will conclude! A big thank you to Stacey McEwan and Angry Robot Books for providing me an eARC through NetGalley.

Thank you to netgalley for this arc! Honestly Stacey McEwan can do no wrong, and this is def one of the better sequels I've read recently. I feel like a second book usually struggles to keep the excitement of the first while also building well to the next. This book was so good in that it felt like it had its own quest that made it interesting while also tying off loose ends and readying us for a third. My only complaint is that the enemies stayed enemies a lil long before becoming lovers, but that's a me problem lol

I really wanted to love this book as much as I did Ledge but I found myself confused a lot of the time. There are a bunch of different characters and I could not keep them straight for the life of me. I also felt confused a lot of the time and I felt like a lot of the issues from Chasm where the same problems that we read about in ledge just reinvented. I needed Dawson to just up and forgive Ryon a lot sooner because I felt like her anger drug on and on.

Overall it was an alright continuation to the story but I kinda had to push myself to finish this one.

Thank you Angry Robot books via NetGalley for the eARC of this book.

Tropes: Forced Proximity, Savior, Found Family

This was one of my most anticipated reads for 2023. I read Ledge in a day and absolutely loved it- this book was good but didn't match book 1 for me. I know that the POV is third person in book one but for some reason the POV in Chasm read weird for me.

SPOILERS AHEAD
.
.
.
.
This book follows Dawsyn after she has been captured by the Queens of Terrsaw which is where her family comes from. Her family was in power before they were sent to the Ledge to be a power source for the Glacians Iskra pool that was powered by human souls. Ryon has been stabbed and Dawsyn thinks that he betrayed her and was killed in the process.

When the captain of the Guard in Terrsaw helps Dawsyn escape Baltisee finds her and helps her learn about her new found powers. Ryon is alive and has a way to track Dawysn thanks to Baltisee. The premise of this book is the journey of the group finding a way to save the people of the Ledge.

Baltissee was one of my favorite characters in this book. She is so sassy and is honestly a badass. I did enjoy her backstory and how she is tied in with the Glacians, the pool, and the creation of the Ledge.

Ruby putting her life on the line was very heroic, and I am excited to see what happens with her in book three.

Ryon and Dawysn's relationship is so chaotic, and I wish they would have had a deep conversation. I feel like they fixed things and admitted their feelings but they never really discussed the issues that they have. I wanted a little bit more from them.

Yenne was an interesting twist to the story. I liked that she exists and I do think that she will be very important in book 3 due to what happens at the end of book 2. (I def teared up with the ending of this book).

I will be honest it took me until about 60% for the book to pick up for me. The third person was reading oddly for me, but I might just be reading a lot of first person POV so the switch threw me off. I really enjoy the story and how the world building isn't so dense that you have to track all the components. Stacey really loves her dang cliffhangers so the ending just left me wanting to know what will happen next.

Everything I loved about Ledge was brought over ten-fold. The character depth, the engaging, seat-gripping storyline, and, of course, the horrible, horrible emotions I am made to feel.

Return to the chasm and feel every thought and emotion Dawysn feels as she struggles to battle what's "good and evil." Discover new and captivating depths of Lore into the world of the Ledge, Glacia, and Terrsaw. Uncover just enough to make you beg for the third 👀

I really enjoyed Chasm, it kept me entertained and on the edge of my seat at times. This world is easy to be consumed by. Can't wait for the next book