A new fantasy romance series and the world is done so well. Some of the plot's felt a little repetitive however the world is done so well that it help make up for it.

A lovely start to a fun new fantasy series. The Arthur legend is such a unique route to take and the added magic and fae elements are perfect.

I received this book for free for an honest review from netgalley. Thank you for the opportunity

So so good. Hot 🔥🥵

Thanks to NetGalley, here is my review of Crown of Earth and Sky by Emberly Sky.
It is listed under the genre of fantasy, romance, and an Arthurian retelling.
As I mentioned in an earlier review, I love nothing more than a retelling of King Arthur. Not only is this a retelling, but it also includes enemies to lovers and Fae.
Our main character is Vekya Pendragon. She is the younger sister of King Arthur. She was hidden away and tortured as a child by her mother because she has magic she’s not supposed to have and it needs to stay secret. Unfortunately King Arthur is brutally murdered and Vekya becomes queen of the elemental fae. The first thing on her mind is revenge against the person that did this. She ends up getting betrothed to Arran Earthborn and they both try to find her brothers killer.
I was confused for half of the book, there’s a lot we don’t know and it threw me off. The romance between Vekya and Arran also felt really forced and I didn’t feel the chemistry, but once you push through it goes get a lot better.
3.5 stars for me

This is such an amazing book! I love the writing and the storytelling. It held my attention and I had no choice but to just read it!

Crown of earth and sky 2.75⭐️ 4🌶️

Fantasy romance
Dark themes
Dual narration
Arthur reimagining
Revenge
Fae Shifter romance
Secrets
Found family
Intricate magic system
Magic with cost

Tw: suicidal thoughts, memories of rape and child abuse.

The writing gets very stilted when it goes from regular dialogue/scene into a spicy one. Almost the spicy scenes were written separately, then added in where the author thought things were getting slow. When it comes to this story, I almost think that there was enough plot going on that all of the spice wasn’t necessary and did the story a disservice.

Why in the world didn’t we get an explanation about the specific differences between the fae kingdom’s powers until chapter 52! That’s something that should have been laid out WAY earlier. Little things like that make me really annoyed.

There was repetitiveness, some near repeat of a paragraph earlier in the book, that brought me out of the reading and made me annoyed.

The characters are decently flushed out. The found family was very apparent and I enjoyed the different dynamics between characters, I only wish there had been more. I’m assuming with the last chapter we will see more as the series goes forward.

The plot and pacing was also good… there are many unanswered questions, leaving a decent trajectory for the next book.

Thank you NetGalley and Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for the eARC. All opinions are my own

This book was a TRIP!

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. I loved Veyka and Arran's character arcs and relationship. I loved the political intrigue, red herrings, character development, great plot, and world building. Emberly Ash did a fantastic job.

My only hang up was the spicy scenes. The style and some of the word choice really took me out of those scenes, and not in a good way. But, overall, I really liked it and that was a small part of an otherwise very engaging plot!

'Crown of Earth and Sky' centers on Veyka Pendragon who is thrust into queendom by the murder of her brother, Arthur. and subsequently driven by a thirst for revenge. Her journey is only complicated further with the arrival of her betrothed, Arran Earthborn, known as the Brutal Prince, whose disdain for her initially seems insurmountable. Arran's hatred of Veyka's stance on her position and how she rules results in thick tension and volatile interactions.

The chemistry between Veyka and Arran is electric—full of conflict yet undeniably magnetic, and culminating in a powerful alliance. While I personally really enjoyed Emberly's prose style, it did initially require patience as I am not used to it in romantasy. If you are a high fantasy fan, it was very reminiscent of that.. However, the meticulously crafted worldbuilding and character arc for Veyka as she transitions from a solitary, vengeful ruler to a queen genuinely invested in the welfare of her realm was phenomenal. Even the supporting characters were interesting and multifaceted.

While this is my first read of Emberly's, this dark fantasy and romance has me hooked with it's richly drawn world of elemental magic and complex politics that still maintains a balance with the high heat spice. If you're looking for an Arthurian story that is highly rewarding when you get past it's complexities, this is for you.

The premise of this book promises a captivating journey through a richly imagined world where magic and intrigue intertwine. While the book's premise dazzles with its creativity and depth, the execution falters, leaving readers with mixed feelings. The book's world-building is undeniably impressive, painting a vivid picture. However, the pacing feels uneven, with moments of excitement interrupted by slower stretches. This inconsistency makes it hard to stay fully engaged in the story. Additionally, this book was a bit too spicy for my liking. While some may enjoy the added heat, others might find it distracting. In summary, while Emberly Ash's world-building skills shine in "Crown of Earth and Sky," the pacing issues prevent it from reaching its full potential. While it may charm those who enjoy their spice and immersive world-building, others may find themselves longing for a more consistent and gripping narrative.

3.5-4 stars

This book features an interesting magic system. It is a hard magic system (with costs, rules, limits) which I appreciate! It has a good plot and impressive world-building! I enjoyed that it’s an Arthurian legend re-imagining. It took a little while to hold my interest, but had me sucked into the story by the end.

I always enjoy a dual POV! I had some difficulty connecting with Veyka as a FMC. She just came off as selfish and annoyingly petulant for a while. I will say that she got better as the book went on and was rooting for her character by the end. I liked Arran as a MMC, but got a bit a little annoyed with the disparity of him hating/resenting Veyka, but also constantly lusting after her. The romance was a bit too lust-driven for my tastes. I would’ve preferred a bit more swoon-worthy or tender moments to make the romance more convincing. The level of spice did not overshadow the plot, but it was a bit distracting from the plot at times, in my opinion. There were interesting and likable side characters! I was a bit frustrated with how things ended up going with the traitor once they were revealed as that sort felt a bit anticlimactic.

There was some repetitiveness in the writing that felt unnecessary (like repeatedly mentioning how fae have good hearing, how magic has a cost, how Veyka had large breasts, etc.) at some points I did think “yes, we get it”. Something about how the spice scenes were written (word choices/ descriptors), also didn’t quite do it for me (probably the repetitive use of words like “juices”, “c*nt”, and “p*ssy”). The writing gave me similar feelings to how I feel about JLA books at times: the storytelling is very good (concept, plot, world-building, characters, pacing, etc.), but the writing style perhaps isn’t quite suited to my personal preferences. (Really, I had the same issue with this book as I tend to have with JLA books too: the repetitiveness within the writing and the over-sexualization of the characters. That said, that likely has more to do with my personal reading preferences than any actual issues with the book or writing. To clarify, I feel that I should also point out that I still very much enjoy JLA books so this isn’t meant as an insult to either author’s writing.) 🤷‍♀️

I enjoyed this book overall and thought it had good storytelling, but certain aspects just didn’t hit quite right for me. If you’re a big fan of spice and lust-driven characters, you will likely enjoy this book a bit more than I did!

Thank you to Emberly Ash, Victory Editing, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

If you're a fan of fae romantasy with spice- this is the series for you!

When her brother is married, Veyka Pendragon finds herself betrothed to the Brutal Prince. While seeking revenge, Veyka also has to adjust to her new role as ruler of a kingdom. This story had Arthurian vibes and reminded me a bit of ACOTAR. The FMC was fun to read- she was bold and daring and not a damsel in distress by any means.

The romance was definitely the selling point for me- I love a book with spice! There was a lot of politics/world building, but I didn't find it overbearing- the book is the first of a series so I think it's to be expected.

Can't wait to read #2!

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

Definitely not something I would recommend for students but I really enjoyed reading this! Nothing out of this world in terms of character relationships and plot development but it hit the spot for a romantasy novel! However, with that said I did enjoy the strength of our female protagonist right off the bat. It was a bit unconventional for these types of stories and I think the author did a good job at showing her complexities. Will be happy to continue reading this series! Thanks for the ARC!!!

Spicy fated-mates romance with Arthurian influence.

I enjoyed the world building and the conflicting realms. The main characters weren't my favourites as I found them quite unlikable, Arran slightly more because his existing relationships made him somewhat more redeemable.

My favourite character was Parys. He has a fun personality and made scenes much more enjoyable.

The world-building and character development in this one is on point! I love a good retelling and the Cliffhanger at the end! Ugh! *Chef's Kiss*

I really enjoyed this book. The world building and characters were interesting and new. I don't think the King Arthur retelling is as big a deal as the publisher and many readers make it out to be. It's present but if you changed the names and removed the round table, I would never have made the connection. Overall, I really enjoyed this and will be promptly moving on to the next book in the series!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Book Review 📚
Crown of Earth and Sky by Emberly Ash - 3.5/5 ⭐

Okay the problem is, we all, as a community held to much expectations against this book and it's not payed off well. What we see is a ACOTAR/Tog/Blood and Ash - you get the idea. And unfortunately this book was of no similarity at all.

I'm not by any means saying it's bad, it's actually very good! But because I went in with the above vibes instead of a freemind, I've let myself down. I did end up DNF the book, but I will try again at some point and I'll go in with an open mind next time!

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing for allowing me to read this ARC - this is an HONEST review from my own personal opinion.

I really hate being the person who writes a less than raving review, because I know authors work so hard to tell their stories. I always try to be as positive as I can, so here goes. This book had SO much potential. It’s a retelling of King Arthur in the most badas* female way. Unfortunately it just didn’t land for me. The plot was great. I kept reading because I needed to know what was going to happen. The characters felt fully fleshed out, they dealt with trauma, and the love story was even sweet. I enjoyed the spicy scenes for the most part as well, and there were quite a few! BUT and this is a big but, to get through the story we had to hear about her ample curves, hips, and breasts a lot. We all love a curvy queen, but we don’t need to hear about it every other page. There were also an abundance of typos, I usually look past these fairly easy, there were just a lot. All in all I will continue to read the series because I need to know the ending. I just can’t see myself recommending this to anyone because it seemed to get on my nerves a lot.

Crown of Earth and Sky
by Emberly Ash
Publication Date: September 17, 2023

Thank you to Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for the opportunity to receive this ARC in return for an honest review.

I ended 2023 and started 2024 with this book and absolutely loved it. This was my first King Arthur retelling and it was so good. This book was slow to start but the story and spice kicked off and I couldn't put it down. I finished at 3:00am and didn't even know the new year had already taken place! The ending was insane!

I loved the two different species of fae in this as well. I also liked the character and world building that took place.

I cried right at the beginning. That character death right off the bat was jarring. I feel like you really felt that she had no desire to rule and Arran's frustration with her was fantastic. The banter and spice was so good!

I would like to thank NetGalley for sending me an ebook copy of this to read and review. I would say I enjoyed this book very much. The world building, characters, dialogue, romance, and plot were enjoyable and fun the read about. I really enjoyed Vekya's journey from being a selfish princess to a formidable queen. I enjoyed her chemistry very much with Arran as well as the banter between them. I really liked how Arran helped Vekya through her grief and help her come out of her shell and become the queen she was meant to be. Also the cliffhanger at the end was lovely and I will be jumping into the second immediately.