Rating: 5/5⭐️

In a kingdom where magic has been lost, Fia is a rare changeling, left behind by the wicked Fair Fold when they stole the High Queen’s daughter and retreated behind the locked gates of Tir na nOg. We follow Fia’s journey into the forest of the Folk, with her childhood best friend - and her sister Eala’s betrothed -, Rogan, and a quest to break the princess’s curse from the wicked and dark-hearted Fae lord, Irian, holding her captive. But things are not exactly what it seems and for the first time, Fia feels like she has found a place where she could belong.

I must be in a new round of a romantasy era or maybe there’s been quite a few romantasy books coming out recently, because I feel that I’m founding them - or are they founding me? - in the most magical ways. This was a book I had on my list to look up to in 2024 and I can say, without any doubt, this is exactly my cup of tea: childhood friends with a complicated friends-to-lovers relationship; tall, dark and fictional MMC with an enemies-to-lovers trope; a hidden power and a changeling to faerie to belong with the humans and too human to belong with the faeries. The court schemes - both mortal and Folk world! -, betrayals, dark magic, forbidden love, quests, love triangles and thrilling adventures. I simply could not put this book down.

All characters were intriguing, their relationships complex and the plot twists even sweeter! The writing is impeccable, the fairytale vibe is enchanting and Fia is a fantastic heroine to bring you on a journey full of perilous magic and moonlit forests. This is for fans of These Hollow Vows, Married to Magic series, A Curse so Dark and Lonely and Cruel Prince.

“The tableau was like something out of a story: a proud, tragic queen; a druid foretelling doom; a golden prince promising heroics. But stories were by nature false–designed to fool the eye and twist the mind, to make us believe in things that couldn’t ever be true.”

A Feather So Black follows the story of Fia, a changeling left in the place of a princess and raised by a ruthless warrior queen. Fia is tasked with travelling into Tír na nÓg, the land of the Fair Folk, to get the human princess Eala back and break her curse. She travels with her childhood friend Rogan, a human prince and the princess’ betrothed, and has to face monsters, riddles, and mysterious Fae - especially the dangerous Irian, who’s holding the princess captive.

“I was made of dusk and leaves and hidden places. I was not made to be loved by men.”

The author weaves a lot of nature into everything, using it to describe how Fia sees the world and feels in her own body. It gives the story a very atmospheric and Fae feel to it that I enjoyed immensely (as evidenced by my 41 highlighted quotes, compared to my usual 5-10). Reading it felt like I was really strolling along with the characters, through forests and over hills.
I wish there had been a glossary at the start of the book, rather than at the very back (which I didn’t realise until I’d already finished), as there are a lot of beautiful new words to learn.

“Here, we are all villains. Here, there is no judge or jury to decide whether good prevails or perishes; whether evil thrives or dies. There is only balance–in all its infinite permutations.”

The characters are all intriguingly flawed; all of them navigating lies, manipulations, Fae rules, and complicated feelings for each other.
Fia is messy and wanting and too quick to trust those she craves the love and acceptance of, and it makes for a painful and engaging read that at times left me wanting to shake some sense into her and other times made me cheer on her behalf. She is also incredibly badass, and knows her way around both weapons and nature. The dynamic between Fia and Rogan, as childhood friends separated for a while, was sweet at times but for the most part unfortunately didn’t work for me - and might honestly be my biggest issue with this book. Rogan fell into the same category as many other fictional childhood friends turned complicated crushes often have for me, where their character traits frustrate me as a reader just enough to outweigh the insight they might give into the main character’s past and other relationships.

“A heart is powerful magic.”

4,25 stars

3.5 Stars
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an eArc of this book.

A Feather so Black is a lush and decadent fairytale full of political intrigue, romance and betrayal. In summary, it has all the good stuff. Im especially a fan of stories that are more on the cloak and dagger side and I especially enjoyed the more lyrical writing style. The author has a real eye for beautiful writing and etheral descriptions which were the highlights of the book for me and made it quite difficult to decide if I should round my rating up or down.

Why have I gone with the lower rating?
As usual, because of the main character anf well the ending. This latter, I will not talk about to keep this review spooler free.
Back to Fia.
She has FMC femme fatale, not like other girls, Im tougher than you ™ syndrome which is so prevalent in YA novels, I had a hard time believing this book was adult. She is childishly stubborn and for most of the book rather insufferable save for her tender moments when she gets a bit softer and actually likeable. Shame these nice spells didnt last long. To add to this, our heroine never truly fails, sure she loses control of her magic a few times but never to hinder her personally. We dont see her ever getting denyied her goals, she is so good at everything all the time - even fighting mythical fairy beasts that bring down ancient warriors. And did I mention she's only half fae?

I really liked Irian but I never knew how or why he fell for Fia other than her looking like his dead friend. The insta love was a little off chord for me and in all fairness so were the very childish jokes made by Corra, a fae spirit, who should know better than to call people porrige face.

Rogan gave me the ick. Thats the best way to put it. Girls, dont date guys like him and run to your Irian.

All in all, I think I would have given this a higher rating if it was marketed as YA which would explain the unreasonablness of most of the main cast.

A Feather So Black
by Lyra Selene

Review from Jeannie Zelos book reviews

Genre: Religion & Spirituality, Romance, Sci Fi & Fantasy

I wasn't sure what to expect here, an adult debut, an author unknown to me but I adore stories involving fae so requested it. I loved it. After A Court of Thorns and Roses ( loved that too) there seem to be hundreds of fae stories with that type of title, trying to emulate the trilogy. Most for me are just fails, don't have the magic of the story, believable characters or decent writing/dialogue. Sue me, I'm picky about what I read ;-)
So this was a gamble, hoping it was not one of those....and it isn't. Its perfect, great storytelling and plots, realistic characters, fabulously descriptive wring with venturing into “ writing to fill word count” territory and a host of twists, turns and surprises.

I love Fia and her special talents, felt for her awful upbringing even as she's grateful for it and loves the Queen deeply. The settings were perfect, both human and Fae. I would have liked to see more of the Fae folk, mostly we just meet Irian. And Corra of course, I love Corra. I'd rhyme something but I can't..we need morra Corra, that best I can do ;-)
Poor Fia, trained for one thing her whole life and then she finds that maybe things were not as she was let to believe, maybe by following the queens orders things will be worse not better. Who is telling the truth? Who to believe, so much hinges on her decisions.
I am so keen to read more of this series, its fabulous.
I
Stars: Five, a fantastic fae read, great journey, fab ending but I need more ASAP!

ARC supplied by netgalley and publishers

So... I tried so much to continue reading this book but I just didn't have the motivation to continue. Stopped reading this book at 15%. The Reason to this was that it felt confusing to me to continue; I couldn't understand what was going on; at first I was looking forward to read and finish my first ARC but then my motivation all went down.

The book Cover is Beautiful; like that was the first thing that caught my eye; The title was the next thing and then I read the plot which I liked aswell. However after trying to read it, I noticed, maybe it was not made for me to read? First things first, I feel like we weren't properly introduced with the female lead; it went straight into action, then we met her old lover? What Was That? Yes, We met her old love interest, also in the beginning of the book, who out of the blue returned into her life; therefore there wasn't a chance to properly learn who the female lead was.

On another note; how come she liked it when he called her Changeling, but didn't like it when others did? That was confusing for me aswell... I also didn't get some words which were used in the book; didn't know what they were meant, I just know they weren't english words.

Don't get me wrong this book has its' potential; I just couldn't continue reading it..

Thank you to Little Brown Book and Netgalley for this ARC, apologies from my side that I couldn't continue reading the book.

I love anything to do with the Fae, and A Feather So Black is a fantastic addition to this fantasy sub-genre. Its rich worldbuilding and likeable characters make for an immersive reading experience, and I didn’t want to leave Fia, Irian and the land of Tír na nÓg.

There’s a lot more than meets the eye to A Feather So Black, and obviously I don’t want to spoil anything for prospective readers. I will say that it’s not a simple story, and instead has layers upon layers of magic and intrigue. The Fae are dark and dangerous rather than romantic and playful, and there’s always a sense of underlying danger peppering the pages. Fia is never safe, and that becomes apparent with every subsequent chapter.

Fia is a badass heroine from the very start, with her determined, strong personality being a personal highlight for me. I liked her more as her story slowly unravelled like a spool of thread, with more secrets and lies being revealed at every turn. Irian and Rogan are both great characters too, with Irian being my favourite — he’s layered like you wouldn’t believe, and I can’t wait to learn more about him and his shadowy exterior.

A Feather So Black is very well-written, perfect for fans of fantasy and the Fae, and is brimming with intrigue, romance, fantastical worlds and creatures. It’s a little slow in places, but that didn’t bother me at all; if anything, it let me appreciate the expanding world even more than I already did. I hope this one does really well, and I’m already looking forward to the sequel. If your book is about the Fae, I’m immediately going to be like an excited brownie with riddles on their tongue, and there’s plenty of that in A Feather So Black. Just beware, though, as they’re not always as they seem…

I really struggled to get into this book, and wasn't totally clear what was going on for a good chunk of the story. The world building was quite confusing and I got too frustrated with it to really enjoy the characters. Things did get better later in the book, but I couldn't totally forgive the beginning!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for the ARC in exchange for an honest review


First of all wow I loved this book so much it really is a spicy cruel prince meets swan lake.The lyrical and enchanting writing had me hooked and I just couldn't put it down.

If you like:
Enemies to lover
Friends to lovers
A love triangle done in the best way
A shadow daddy
A badass FMC with a unique power
Characters with alot of depth


I honest cannot wait for the next book and love the UK cover it is beautiful 😍

5 stars

I will post this review on goodreads and Instagram once I have a physical copy to post a photo with

A Feather So Black is a gripping epic romantasy. I thoroughly enjoyed this. The vibes of this felt like a mix of Uprooted/Deathless and The Cruel Prince. Without spoiling things, I'll say the use of the linear storytelling following a timeline was interesting and refreshing.

The romantic storylines were well developed and the love triangle, or rather an exploration of experiencing more than one love in life. I'm invested in Fia and Irian, who was such a compelling love interest. The fae folk lore was fantastic worldbuilding and gave a new perspective to what this gruesome world of the Folk can look like.

I was rooting for Fia and Irian and can't wait to see how their dynamic will play out. I just want more of them. Their banter was thrilling. The whole story played out in such a satisfying way.

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

ABSOLUTE PERFECTION - 5.5 stars!

This book swept me away into a place filled with magic and enchantment. Everything about this was mesmerising - the plot, the words, the characters. I felt this story on a soul level

*****

"I was made of earth and sky and endless waters. I was made to be loved fully, or not at all"

"You are dangerous and intoxicating. You are sharp thorns and bright flowers. You are darkness and the starlight shining within in. You are whatever you wish yourself to be. Do not let anyone tell you what you are or what you are not"

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this book.

As an avid reader, I sometimes get a gut feeling that a certain book might really hit the spot for me, and A Feather So Black was one of those. I felt really drawn to it and I just had a feeling I would love it, and luckily, my intuition was right!

I loved this book so much. I've had a decent reading month so far but it had been a while since I found a book that truly got me excited, and I was so happy when this one turned out to be the one to break my slight drought.

It had so many elements that I love: the Celtic mythology and folklore, the magic that is very rooted in magic, a villainous love interest, and dark vibes to accompany it all.
There is a bit of a love triangle, but it is resolved very well, in my opinion, though I usually enjoy love triangles, so if you're a love triangle hater, I might not be the best authority to trust here.

The plot was so intriguing that I was captivated from page 1. I really enjoyed the first half, but the second half blew me away and I could not put the book down. The ending had me in tears. I loved it.

I also really loved the FMC and her development. I think it can be summed up with the quote, "You can't hate yourself into a version of you that you love." It made me feel really seen, and I teared up multiple times. That was another reason why I loved the romance in this a lot, I really loved how the love triangle reflected the FMC's journey.

There were definitely some classic romantasy tropes there and I think they can be hit or miss, but for me, they were definitely a hit in this one.

The atmosphere was so good, I loved the dark forest vibes with all the magic around and the many elements and creatures of Celtic mythology that were incorporated here. I don't know if this book was an accurate depiction of Celtic folklore, but the way it was done got me really interested in it and I would love to read more books that feature it so heavily.

Overall, I really loved this book and it's one of my favorite romantasy novels I have read in a long time.

(3.5 Stars)
For full clarity, I received an ARC copy of this book.
The beginning of this book was quite slow and confusing, to put it lightly you are dumped into it and expected to be able to swim. Filled with what I believe is an abundance of Gaelic terminology for which I clearly missed the glossary that was placed at the end of the book. Also, the overhaul of nature metaphors got to a point that it was almost too much before they eased to a bearable amount.
It took until 30% through that I finally knew what was happening properly enough to be interested and then finally I could connect with the characters, which of course could just be me but I have seen a lot of reviews state the same things.
That beginning aside, the story was unique for me apart from the swan princess retelling, and provided an intriguing path to follow. Filled with a complicated manipulative family and strange dark intrigue I can see the beauty in this world.

"Fine--life and death are simple," he rasped. "Love is not. I have never known a love that did not twist, did not curdle, did not Poison. Life hurts. Death levels. But love--love destroys."

I vivid romantasy retelling of Swan Lake, full of scheming and secrets, betrayals and bloodshed, love-triangles and lore. Its the perfect choice if you fancy a bit of Fae, spice and a dark broody shadow daddy hiding a heart of gold beneath a morally grey exterior (I mean who doesn't want that!)

I loved the world building and the character development. The main character Fia had a great arc, her characters development was steady and I loved her realising her own self worth. The story is intriguing and keeps you turning pages into the early hours and I can't wait for the next installment.

Overall a great fantasy read, sign me up for the sequel because I need more of my morally grey shadow daddy ;)

Thank you Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK, Orbit for a free e-arc

I did not finish this: DNF at 15% and i even regret spending that much time on it.

Yet another romantasy title, with hot faes, tall and dark shadow daddies, and a super-strong-but-have-you-seen-how-tiny??-drop-dead-gorgeous-so-insecure-so-strong teenage FMC. I’m honestly so tired of it!

The world-building was non-existent: spouting Celtic folk names doesn’t mean anything if you don’t explain your take on the lore.

The plot didn’t exist either - most of the page time is smut. The writing is atrocious, purple prose at its finest.

If you enjoy this kind of empty book for the smut part, maybe go for it. I enjoy them from time to time, but i would recommend going for another author who at least knows how to write erotica.

Thank you, NetGalley and Orbit Books, for the advance copy. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

The world building was great and both the setting and plot at the start of the book really reminded me of From Blood & Ash.
The spice and the love triangle were captivating and I disliked Rogan’s treatment of Fia and enjoyed seeing her switch teams and realise her self worth.
At times the plot felt a little confusing amidst the world building and I was left wondering about the human queen’s retaliation and what actually happened to Eala and the maidens; however I raced through this and was happy it didnt end sadly given the large amount of implied tragedy throughout.
Thankyou for letting me read and review this!

Fia is a changeling - left behind in place of the High Queen's daughter as an infant with no memory before this. Over the years the queen has come to love and care for the fae as her own flesh and blood - or has she? There is a lot of scheming and secrets in this book that do get gradually revealed throughout the story. Her childhood friend Rogan returns from his home town after mysteriously returning there 4 years ago and the two of them are set a task to save the High Queen's true daughter and the 11 other children that were taken as children and kept by a cruel member of the fair folk. But of course all is not as it seems there either. I absolutely love stories about the fae and this one was a good entry into that category. I did find some of the writing quite repettitive (e.g. at the start of the book how many times did we need to be reminded about how Rogan had chosen to leave Fia 4 years ago - apparently the answer was MANY) but the overall story was engaging and I'm interested to know what happens next.

Summary:
In a realm where magic has vanished, Fia stands out as a rare changeling, abandoned by the perceived to be malevolent Fair Folk when they abducted the daughter of the High Queen, Eala, and sealed off the gates to the Otherworld.

When a hidden entrance to the Otherworld is uncovered, Fia is given a task by the High Queen to rescue Eala and dispel her curse. However, she is not alone in this endeavour; accompanying her is Prince Rogan, Eala's intended husband and Fia's childhood companion.

As they venture into a realm where magic permeates the very essence of nature and appearances can be deceivingly perilous, Fia's mission becomes entangled with her conflicting emotions towards the prince and her unexpected attraction to the sinister fae lord, Irian, who holds Eala captive. Despite Irian's monstrous demeanour, he seems to possess an understanding of Fia that no one else does.

Review:
I thoroughly loved this! I couldn’t put it down and it was just the perfect read for anyone who loves Faes, romantasy, spice and a truly captivating shadow daddy! We follow Fia in her quest for love in its many multifaceted forms from self-love to romantic love, as well as in her quest for freedom to be who she truly is.

This story is truly a story of love, with the most important love above all, being self-love – and I think that this message was delivered by the author in such a beautiful and achingly resonant way. I cried during some parts where the writer has woven in themes of belonging, self-actualisation and the need to hide or hate parts of ourselves to conform to society or to feel loved; this really resonated with me and the way that the author has expressed these complex themes through the character of Fia and through her connection with Irian was just so wonderfully intimate, intricate and just beautiful.

This is the kind of story that you will love if you want an engaging, hard-to-put-down and romantasy read that has all the lovely elements found in similar classics like the Cruel Prince and ACOTAR! I loved the characters in this book because they were so flawed, interesting and wonderful to read about. Fia’s character was one that I absolutely adored; she’s strong, yet soft and vulnerable but very flawed and real, which adds to her depth as a complex FMC. I also liked Rogan despite all his flaws, and I found that I could sympathise with his struggles, which were all too human and indeed quite sad – however, I felt that whilst he truly does love Fia, he does not deserve her. Irian, on the other hand, is just an exquisite man and I am utterly in love with him, and he WHOLEHEARTEDLY deserves Fia. I will die on this hill proclaiming that he is one of the best shadow daddies to have ever graced the literary space of fae lords. He is dark and brooding, soft and gentle, protective and exudes that perfect ‘touch her and die’ vibes!! He is probably my favourite character just because I truly loved how he was portrayed as this almost Byronic, fallen hero and his tragic background makes him so much more layered as a character – yet despite all the miseries of his past, he has become this powerful, strong, very loving (in his own way) and passionate man who will protect the ones he cares about with his life.

‘A Feather so Black’ has shown me once more why I love reading stories about Faes, strong FMC and dark brooding men who have a heart of gold underneath their morally grey exterior and has reminded me of all the reasons why I love to read romantasy in all its imperfect yet wonderfully captivating ways!

I recommend giving this book a try if you love all those things and if you want a read that will transport you into another world with whimsically beautiful writing and engaging characters, with romance and spice to top it all off.

Received via netgalley as a free arc to review

The description had me hyped and it met and surpassed expectations!

I will be recommending to friends and be buying a physical copy!

It's 1am and I just finished this book because I COULD NOT PUT IT DOWN.

Thank you to Netgalley and Orbit for this ARC but also how could you toy with my heart so much????

This book is stunning. Gorgeous writing. Beautiful, immersive magic. And a love story that had me screaming!

Why I loved it 💕:

*Hidden identities
*Love triangle
*Fierce FMC
*Beautiful world building - gave me shivers!
*So many twists and betrayal
*THAT ending 😭

A feather so black by Lyra Selene
Published by Little, Brown Book Group UK
5/5 stars!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I absolutely fell in love with this book! It’s so captivating and beautifully written, I couldn’t not put this down!
Fia is a rare changling who was left behind when the Fair folk stole the High Queen’s daughter, the High Queen took Fia in and created a weapon out of her powers. However, the real princess was bound to Tír na nÓg cursed to become a swan by day. Fia is sent to retrieve the princess with her best friend (who is also the lost princess’s betrothed), adventuring through the Forster of folk and falling for the fae lord holding the princess captive.

I cannot wait for the second book of this series and will definitely be buying the physical copy!!

Thank you to Lyra, the publisher and NetGalley for this gorgeous arc!