OHMYGOSH?!!!!

Okay, firstly, I would like to thank this book because it got me out of a reading slump. A six month reading slump might I add!! Do you know how hard that is to accomplish??
I have been wanting to read this book for quite some time now and I’ve been putting it off and I honestly don’t know why I did. I thoroughly enjoyed the storyline a lotttttt more than I ever expected.
The fantasy world building was *chef's kiss* - which is my top favourite part of any book I read. If it doesn’t have good world building, yeah bye!
I was never bored, ever. From the start I was hooked, and the ending has me eager for more.
My only problem the book was the mmc, he could have been a little more scary but that might just be my personal morally grey taste. He was actually a sweetheart, and the love was cute. The fmc made some not so smart decisions, buuut that’s what mistakes are for. To learn and grow from!
The narration was excellent and brought the characters to life just as I would envision their voices would be in my mind, so bravo. This book is super underrated even to this day, it needs more hype….!!!!
Thank you NetGalley for this audio arc.

Right - I really struggled with this audiobook initially.
I listened to the first 3 chapters - about 5 different times and it never caught me.

Then I had a little bit of time so i put it on...and within a few chapters I was hooked. Finished the audiobook over two days, skipped watching the tv and everything to listen to it.

The book had enemies to lover, a man in a powerful position, a damsel in distress who finds her inner courage. It has intrigue, love, spice (a wee bit) and I'm excited to read the next book!

Will add the review to my instagram tonight :)

Enemies to lovers, fae, magic and warring fantasy kingdoms - what more could you ask for! Arwen is a great main character, very lovable and easy to read about and root for! The slow burn romance was written really well, leaning a little more to the YA, I have hope that the series might mature a little as it grows.
Overall a fantastic first instalment, can’t wait to read more!

The first in what looks to be a very good series. I would recommend it for those who enjoyed ACOTR and The Fourth Wing.

I enjoyed this book. It did feel a little confusing to start with but as the story progressed I really started to appreciate the book. Most of the book was getting to know the main characters where the last parts felt it introduce the rest of the world and the plot. It has made me excited to see what comes next.

I particularly enjoyed it as an audiobook, the narrator was easy to listen too and I could really feel them as the MFC.I can't wait for the rest of the series to be available on audiobook.

Picture this: a world filled with magic, fae, love, and war. In this world, the healer Arwen Valondale's step-brother Rider and her love interest Haldon were conscripted to fight against the Onyx kingdom, but they haven't been heard from for a year. Then, Rider returns with stolen Onyx gold and the family flees to Garnet for a better life. But fate has a different plan for Arwen - she is captured and taken to the Onyx dungeons in Shadowhold. There, she discovers secrets being kept from the common folk of Amber and realizes that everything she's been told isn't entirely the truth.

But that's not all - the book also contains breathtaking scenery, well-written magic, and love that will melt your heart. Despite being somewhat derivative in places, it's still an enjoyable read that will keep you on the edge of your seat. The way the author built the world and the relationship between the characters is simply outstanding. You'll feel the romantic tension and enjoy the delightful banter while immersing yourself in a highly detailed and imaginative world. Trust me, you'll fall in love with both the main female character and her love interest, as they are fully developed characters that will capture your heart. I highly recommend this book - it's definitely worth a read!

Due to recent events with Joe Adren, I do not want to comment on the narration.

#netgalley #adawnofonyx #fantasybooks #booksofinsta #bookreview

Thank you to Quercus Audio for providing me with an audio arc,

I was very excited when I grabbed this audio arc and I was finally in the mood to start it but I learned it had Joe Arden in it. Due to allegations against him I will not be reading this as I would not have reviewed it anyways as I am not promoting audiobooks featuring him. I do plan on picking this book up eventually because I've heard amazing things, just not as an audiobook due to Joe Arden.

An amazing romantic fantasy worthy of the Goodreads choice awards nomination!

A dawn of onyx is an ultimate must read for fans of enemies to lovers.

The world building along the relationship was done in such a stellar way, we have so much romantic tension and fun banter while simultaneously exploring a super well detailed and written world that I'd love to lose myself in. I'm absolutely obsessesed with both the fmc and her li, as they are both fully fleshed out characters that were delightful to read of. please do yourself a favour and read this.

I really enjoyed this book! It had most of your typical romantacy tropes that make for an enjoyable escapism type read. The characters were interesting and I will be reading the next in the series!

I had read A Dawn of Onyx previously and had enjoyed it and the audiobook didn't disappoint. This hits all the usual romantasy beats; enemies to lovers, forced proximity, a chosen one with a mysterious past. It is a little formulaic and although I marked the original story as a 3 out of 5, I definitely feel I engaged with this more so have reviewed it a little higher.

The only thing that could have made it better for me was if it had been a duet instead of duel narration but that's just personal preference and didn't really detract from my engagement. Ruby Cherise is a new to me narrator and I enjoyed her performance as Arwen and the other characters in the story; there are moments of angst, spice and humour which all allow Cherise to showcase her range. Joe Arden is solid as Kane however the POV only flips for one chapter so you don't get much of him in this however hopefully he will be utilised more in book two.

I really tried with this book but I just couldn’t finish it. There was nothing original in this, everything was predictable. The female main character (whose name I could never remember) would constantly flop back and forth in her thoughts which was just frustrating as there was no progress in her character development. Any time she would seem to make a change or decision a few pages later she’d be back to where she was at the start. Also the phrase “physically shook her head” was used far too much in what part I read let alone the rest of the book.

I received an advanced copy of this audiobook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

I couldn’t put it down, a lot of tension that kept me wanting to keep on listening. A small sprinkle of spice, Arwen and Kane had amazing chemistry! And from the beginning I was hooked!

Arwen goes to Onyx to replace her brother Ryder who has been sentenced for commuting a crime. Where she meets a mysterious handsome man in the dungeon.

I really enjoyed this and cannot wait till the next in the series is released. From the authors website it seems it is gonna be a trilogy! Cannot wait for the next one.

Thankyou to NetGalley and Quercus Audio, Jo Fletcher Books for a free e-arc in exchange of a honest review.

I had high expectations of this book going in as i had seen nothing but positive reviews and it did not disappoint! I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

-Mysterious powers
-Morally Grey MMC
-Kingdoms at war
-Fae
-Loveable side characters
-Beauty and the beast retelling (subtly)
-Hidden identities
-"Who did this to you"

I cant wait for the second book- and if it was out id have already picked it up IMMEDIATELY after finishing this one!

Fantastic audio book for anyone why is in their fantasy/ enemies to lovers era!

Arwen and Kane are great characters to follow and the book is well written. That combined with a great narrator makes it an incredible read.

I really enjoyed this book! It's the first book in the series and it did everything I wanted it to. I enjoyed the world building, the romance and the twists. I'm excited to read more of this series!

Audiobook review

I loved this and am dying to read the next book. It had everything I love in a romantasy - a strong female lead, gruesome supernatural beings, a strong friendship, and a dangerously delicious love interest.

From the start, the world-building drew me in and the story started with enough action to hook me. There were some twists I saw coming but I was delighted to see play out.


*I received a free ARC copy in exchange for an honest review*

Arwen Valondale is a fairly normal healer from Abbington - the Amber region of Evendale. Her step-brother Rider and love interest Haldon, have been conscripted to fight a war against the Onyx kingdom. It’s been exactly one year since they have heard from them when Rider returns with a bag of stolen Onyx gold. The family including their ailing mother, must flee their home to Garnet for a better life. However, when Arwen returns for her mother’s medicine, she is captured and taken to the Onyx dungeons in Shadowhold. She soon learns that many secrets are being kept from the common folk of Amber and that everything Arwen had been told about events within the regions of 9 holy gemstones of Evendale, was not entirely the truth.

There is quite a lot to remember in the lore of this book, but it’s laid out well enough that it's fairly easy to keep track of what’s going on. There are certainly areas which I feel should have been discussed more to give the story greater depth. I found the book a bit derivative in places and lacking nuance, some of the enemies-to-lovers romance scenes were also very cheesy. However, I did find it somewhat of a guilty pleasure. The gorgeous scenery makes for a wonderful escapist adventure of magic, fae, love and war.

Although you won’t be finding anything groundbreaking in this book, it is entertaining. There just seems to be a lot of untapped potential to include elements that could make this book stand out from others in the genre. I hope this is addressed in the following books in the series.

The narrator is very good, having a soothing voice and a lovely reading style, her character voicing is great and lends itself to this style of writing elevating the book.


3.5 rounded up.

Oh how I LOVED this book! A fabulous enemies to lovers romantasy that I couldn't stop listening to. The audiobook is very very good.

This book was such a fun ride.

Characters who you fall in love with.

A slow burn romance.

Clever and beautiful writing

And above all ends a captivating story.

All the stars.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC.

This book is a solid debut of a romantasy series. For me, it didn't bring anything super new to the genre BUT it did scratch the romantasy itch in a really satisfying way that will definitely have me continuing the series.

From the start, the world is interesting, but not overly complex and the worldbuilding was done in a non-info dumpy sort of way. I loved the twists and turns of this book, and I enjoyed the banter and growth between our MCs. I would've loved a slower burn, but I'm probably in the minority there and I can't see where this story goes in book 2.

The narrators were great, and the perfect picks for this novel.

Thank you to Quercus Audio and Jo Fletcher Books for this ALC!

DNF 26%. The world building was weird and didn't make much sense to me, Arwen was giving Y/N kind of vibes and I simply couldn't care less about anything happening in this book.