This book. I’m not sure. There were many parts I enjoyed and many that dragged. Unfortunately it’s gets rather wordy and repetitive, but 35% really pulled me in. And about 10 minutes later back in a lull of descriptions. I loved the prose and the characters and the ending but could have been cut down a third.


Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the ARC! This is my complete honest review.

DNFed at 31%.
This book was just not clicking with me. There was just something about the writing style that actually made it difficult for me to read. I think there was too many dense paragraphs of descriptions, and it was kind of jumping all over the place, so I just could not follow the story. I honestly don't even know what the plot is or what the characters' goal is. A lot of the dialogue was kind of weird and unnatural. It didn't really sound like anything people would say in real-life and I know that a lot of fantasy books like to add their own world-specific cuss words, but it just got really ridiculous at some points--like just say fuck and get it over with. I don't really know how old the characters were supposed to be (I think 20s maybe??), but they were just too immature for my taste and I could not get myself to connect with them no matter what. I also did not like the relationship between the two MCs. At the point I DNFed it hadn't become romantic yet, and even though I know that's where it was heading, I did not feel any sort of chemistry between the two.
I will give the book 2-stars on NetGalley because there really is a lot of potential. The premise is incredibly interesting and nothing I've really seen before. I wanted to like this so bad and it could be so much better if there was just some more editing done to kind of clean up the writing and make everything more concise.

great story amazing plot and one of my favorite read this book is a solid 4/5 in my opinion. I hope the authour continues to write amazing books like this. I look forward to reading more of their work

Thanks to NetGalley for providing the ARC in exchange for my honest review!

I'm giving this story a solid 4 because despite a few things, it was a very enjoyable and a fun read! I loved the magic and epic feel of it.

I did feel like it was a very slow beginning, but if you stick with it, it's worthwhile and I found myself getting lost in the world once I settled in. There were parts that I found myself skimming just to get to the action. A good editor with some scissors probably wouldn't given this book a 4.5 for me. It is a very long book, but if you're looking for something to hang out with for a while, then I suggest this one!

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC. 4.5⭐ rounded up.

I will say, I have never been more grateful to have stuck it out and given this story a fully proper chance, even when I was close to writing it off after such a lackluster and draggy start. Let me suggest all readers to at least hold on till Chapter 10, which is when this tale truly picks up and never slows down again for me. It almost feels like a reward for not giving up after long, drawn out sentences that could use some editing, and chapter after chapter with mostly exposition.

Once our heroine Audra meets the co-lead of the story, Jaik, this tale truly turns around. I am utterly captivated by the magic and romance that Dugan painstakingly takes over 550 pages (in this particular eARC) to weave. If you're going to use this many pages, I'm expecting great character development and a well-written romance that didn't rush to achieve. Fortunately, it exceeded all my expectations. This is a Magic Quest-styled fantasy built on a foundation of a deep, soulmates-type love story. Yes, the romance is that integral.

From early on, the reality-warping magic system that relies on storytelling intrigued me. Dugan uses the page length effectively by giving us multiple mini stories that Audra tells aloud as a conduit for her power. I'm especially impressed with the revelation that these stories were selected for a reason, despite being set up as seemingly random. Midway through the novel, a mystery unfolded before my eyes which upped the stakes and urged me to keep turning the page to reach the answers. And the resolution did not disappoint!

I also commend Dugan for giving us a wonderfully complex heroine that grapple with extremely human flaws. Audra does possess compassion for others, but acknowledges her bouts of selfishness of wanting recognition for her efforts. It stems from her abandonment issues and deep fear of rejection, having been cast off by her loved ones in the past. Her PTSD and deeply rooted insecurity are major plot points that I feel are handled well. Want to read of a perpetual people-pleaser who learns to fight for her voice? You've got her. And I do so love that it when a female protagonist gets a male love interest who uplifts her in every way. Jaik is a treasure, deserving of Audra's (and my) time and investment. I could use a little more slowburn for this romance, but it was still fleshed out well enough for my enjoyment. They spent so much time together! They bantered well! There was mutual respect grown!

The prose was lovely to read and overall I had a great time with Dugan's writing style (albeit those pesky long sentences!). She knows how to slip in intense tearjerking moments that make this book one of my faves of the year... and it's only just February!

💜Thanks to NetGalley for providing the ARC in exchange for my honest review 💜

This was good good. A Story Spun in Scarlet is about our FMC Audra, a storyteller, who lives in a world where storytellers can’t finish their stories, and the adventure and intrigue start as her and farmhand Jaik find out what happened.

This story was gripping from page one - I loved Audra, she was a great FMC. and I enjoyed the banter, humour and action. The world building was well done too.

Where it loses a few points from me is the wordiness of the book. Honestly this story could have lost about a third of the content and still have been a fantastic pacey story. Whole paragraphs are a single sentence - and I did a bit of skimming past a few parts just to get a move on.

Overall though - a good book and an interesting story.

In a land where magic has died, the people are hungry and struggling. Now stripped of her power, Audra Jashowin has been cast out by her family and friends and sets off on a journey south to start a new life. But when her storytelling in the bar where she works yields actual magic thanks to a mysterious listener in the crowd, Audra begins a whole other adventure than she thought she would take.

Once Audra identifies Jaik Grissom as the person responsible for amplifying her magic, they soon realize that others have noticed their connection. The duo is hunted out of the city and back towards Mithra-Sha, the capital city that Audra had fled in the first place. The more time they spend together, the more Audra and Jaik realize there’s something missing in their memories, something that could potentially unlock the key to the storytellers’ magic.

Filled with twists and turns, mysterious creatures, evil villains, and heroic friends, this epic tale will keep readers guessing as the pages turn. I’ve always believed that words have magic, but in this world that concept is quite literal. The author does a beautiful job building a land replete with monsters and mayhem, as well as friendship and hope. Creative, captivating, and full of heart, this story will bring the reader along for a fascinating ride as the antagonists inexorably make their way to their fate.

I finally did it, I finished this book!

I was so excited to read this book because the premise sounded so unique and intriguing.

What I noticed first while reading was that the prose was nice! It just read beautifully and it’s evident, the author has a knack for storytelling herself.

The story follows Audra Jashowin as she travels the Spine, in search of a job and a place to rest her head, after having been turned away by everyone she loved and held dear, in the aftermath of all Storycrafters, including herself, losing the ability to tell a story with an ending.
I really liked the idea of the magical system, and the mystery about a world full of stories with no ending just left me wanting to know more and find out what exactly happened to tear the endings from all stories and plunge the world into chaos.

I was expecting an action-packed story of lost magic and mind-blowing revelations, but sadly the story got caught up in way too many descriptions and repetitions. The dialogues felt awkward, and the characters lacked emotion and depth. I didn’t feel the chemistry between the FMC and the MMC at all, and most of the time I had to cringe while reading, or skim their dialogues altogether.
What is more, it was very hard to see the motive, the driving force, behind all that was happening, and it made a lot of what happened just seem pointless and irrelevant. I could tell there were parts and information, that were sprinkled in to hint at something bigger happening in the background and make the reader wonder and marvel at the revelation when it finally happened, but the delivery was most of the time just short of satisfactory.

I’m someone that just needs things to be logical, same with fantasy novels. They need to make sense in the framework they are defined in, or the story just doesn’t manage to pull me in because I’m preoccupied with asking myself “whyyyyyyy???” over and over again.
This sadly also happened with this story, because predefined “rules” were just bent beyond a point where they didn’t fit into the original framework anymore. There were just too many plot holes and too much illogical stuff happening, for me to be able to enjoy this book.

In the end I was left with a lot of questions that were either answered in a very unsatisfactory way or not answered at all. I also feel like the story could have been considerably stripped down without it losing any important information.

Really enjoyed this book. It took me a while to understand the plot but once I understood the world I was hooked. The writing flowed and I found myself thinking ‘I’ll just read 10 more pages’ then finding myself still sat reading an hour later. Would definitely recommend

Let me tell you a story...

Audra Jashowin and Jaik Grissom, a Storycrafter not able to end a story and a simple farmhand. Brought together by Luck's coin toss, they set out on an adventure to find out, why Storycrafter lost their ability to do just that - craft stories. As their relationship grows, they learn that not everything is what it seems.

I absolutely enjoyed this book. After a long time it was a story that just felt right to me, that scratched all the right points. It was adventurous, captivating and emotional. I really loved Audra and Jaik, they balanced each other and complemented each other well. I respecially loved how Jaik helped Audra thorugh panic attacks.
Even though the focus is on them, I felt like the side characters were also very interesting, so much so, that I now want to read their stories as well and just learn more about the other parts of this world.
The magic system of this book was also interesting, and something I have so far not read yet.
In general, I felt that the story balanced action and lore parts well and so I was not able to put down this book for even a second. I also think that the little hints and reveals about the truth that were placed throughout the book were done very well.

DNF @ 81%

Audra Jashowan is a Storycrafter on a run. Like all Storycrafters in this magical world, she can't finish the tales she tell which breathes magic to life. While working as a barwaitress, circumstances have her spinning a tale where she shockingly completes only because of the presence of a man called Jaik Grissom. That's when their adventure as a pair to find the mystery of themselves and the incomplete stories began.

It's a beautiful and captivating story, really. At one point, it mesmerized me from these pairs adventures, their emotional turmoil (especially Audra's) and their lives living in the wild jumping from city to city. But once the action scenes came down at the Isle of Misspoken Words it was really overwhelming for me, in my head. It was a vomit of purple prose and I felt when it comes to action scenes, sharp and clipped descriptions are best used to hook the reader in the scenes than having the mind so, so focused on the heavy narration instead. It actually gave me a hard time trying to keep up.

Also the info-dumping of the plot twist at the Erasure threw me off greatly, not a decent way of knowing things which made me DNF.

Beautifully woven, but unnecessarily heavy in its prose. I did enjoy reading all the way, it was truly beautiful and mesmerizing with so much adventurous, magical appeal to it and I actually swallowed everything.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the ARC! This is my complete honest review.

2.5 stars. Between the glorious cover and spellbinding logline, I was very excited to read R. Dugan's A STORY SPUN IN SCARLET. All that to say, I really didn't jive with the writing style and found this to be hard to get through. I wish there had been more dialogue and found myself to be constantly bogged down by all of the dense prose. Thank you Wave Walker Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC.

I'll be honest here, I was pretty disappointed that I didn't love this more. It really took too long for everything: plot, magic system establishment, character introductions, etc. Even at 10% in I simply didn't care about any of it! Must just not be for me.

I had high hopes for this book, the cover and description alone hooked me. I originally stopped at chapter 5 and didn't think I was going to go back and finish it but I hate not finishing books.
While the writing and storytelling is beautifully written I think it is too much. There were times that paragraph long sentence made me loose track of what was happening. The world building and magic system are done well described and overall the book was a solid 3.5 for me.

Title: A Story Spun in Scarlett
Author: Renee Dugan
Page Count: 100/663
Dates Read: 2/9- 2/12
Format: Ebook Arc
Rating: DNF
Review:
An Arc given on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I picked this book due to the cover and the description. This is my first experience from this author. Right from the beginning, I was intrigued by the story. I love the tales they storyteller spin. I did find the details were over explained and drawn out more than was needed.

Audra is a storycrafter who, like every other crafter, can't finish the tales she spins. In a world where stories are the magic of the world.

Lio is an amazing character. She brings light into the story upon so much darkness.

I have to DNF for now. Just to much description and word play it is ruining the story. I hope to try this story again some day.

A nice fantasy novel with a good premise. Just a little hard to read as it’s a bit wordy and intense. Could use editing, but overall a good story.

"Renee Dugan's 'A Story Spun in Scarlet' is an enchanting tale that captivates from the very first page. Audra Jashowin's journey from a purposeless storyteller to a seeker of forgotten endings is beautifully woven into the fabric of Mithra-Sha. The chemistry between Audra and Jaik Grissom adds a spark to this literary adventure, revealing a unique bond that transcends the ordinary. As they navigate through the twists of fate and the depths of storytelling, the narrative unfolds into a tapestry of bravery, brilliance, loyalty, and love. Dugan masterfully crafts a mystery that keeps readers on the edge, with each revelation bringing them closer to the heart of Mithra-Sha's fractured tales. The tragic truth awaiting Audra and Jaik is a poignant reminder that every story has its cost. 'A Story Spun in Scarlet' is a triumph, rewriting the very essence of storytelling and leaving readers spellbound with its unforgettable journey."

For feedback:
I wanted badly to love this book, but I could not connect with the writing style. It may do well with others, and that’s why I will hold my review off of Goodreads until a month or so after release, but the book was overly descriptive and the writing got a bit clustered for my taste. I found myself lacking interest and falling asleep trying to force myself to continue reading when at 25% I still couldn’t find a plot that held my interest.

My review:
I DNF’d around 25%, which is a lot, as this book is pretty long. The writing is beautiful but I wasn’t captured by any significant plot by this point of the book. At over 600 pages, I’d expect to have hit something that would entice me by now, such as plot or romance, but instead I’ve been lost in exorbitant description.

Maybe at another time, I’ll give this book another chance, but right now, I’m spending too much time trying to force myself to continue with something that isn’t there for me.

Thank you NetGalley, Wave Walker Press and R. Dugan for allowing me to review and provide feedback for this ARC.

A Story Spun in Scarlet is an immersive fantasy novel, even if the descriptive style gets tedious at times.

The novel follows Audra, a storyteller living in a cursed world where storytellers can't finish their stories. She is incredibly talented, though, making up tales that will have you turn the pages. Her stories are one of the best elements of this book. I also liked the sweet romance between Audra and Jaik. Both main characters are thoroughly likable and will have you rooting for them.

I liked a little less the use of too many descriptions, some of which are unnecessary. A good editor would likely be able to cut out a good chunk of this novel to make it flow better. The author does make up for this flaw with incredible world building and an interesting plot. Despite its flaws, this novel can keep you hooked from start to finish.

Thank you, Netgalley, Renee Dugan, and Wave Walker Press for access to an advanced copy.

It has been a long time since I read a book that consists of paragraph-long sentences. This boy was wordy. Some parts, I felt, could have been cut by a factor of 25. And this is my main criticism. The world building was acceptable, not overly complicated; the magic system, while indeed unique, was straightforward enough. All the makings of a perfect (albeit, respectfully, YA) fantasy.

Some chapters felt like the author wrote out the outline in a draft and then expanded each sentence by 2-3 paragraphs. That does not allow the reader to flow along the plot. And again that's a pity, because the plot was definitely there.

I liked the FMC. She was willful, had a goal and morals. And she was witty, and had a way with words (kind of came with the territory but made her a refreshing leading lady, compared to the moody scared and damaged FMC's we get saddled with in fantasy novels too often). Then there was Jaik - what is there to say of him, other than: that's a crazy name. And this just raises the question for me - why must we have strange names in high fantasy nowadays? I was already utilizing 87% of my braincap to follow the overly wordy prose, and had hardly any left to process all the titles and names. Although as it turned out later, there was a 'dictionary' of sorts at the end, so that one is on me. The romance was not enough for me personally. I think this story would have benefited immensely from a few generous sprinkles of spice. As it stands, we got a few kisses.

All in all, if you are into heavy on page numbers well edited prose in YA high fantasy, this world will be enjoyable for you, and I would recommend this book.