A wonderfully crafted story with enough darkness and blood and romance to make it something special. It's interesting from the first page and pulls you in despite it taking a while for it to really get going, But the plot is worth following and there a lot of complex political intrigue and characters that is as morally grey as they come.

The writing is great and feels well suited for the story as is the world and the lore surrounding it.

My biggest downside is that it was a bit hard to get into despite it having lots going for it. So give it a little time and stick with it and you most likely won't regret it. These characters are worth the wait.

Thank you NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for an advanced copy

Shan LeClaire is the daughter of an incredibly powerful but abusive and fallen-from-grace Blood Worker. Her strength lies in her blood magic training and the network of spies she has built over the years. Her takes a turn when, after killing her father for vengeance, one of her informers makes a groundbreaking discovery; there had been an atrocious murder against a vulnerable member of society. Not only is she set on finding who committed the vile murder, but in doing so, she discovers a lost living member of the Aberforth family, a Royal family line thought to have died after a tragic event.

A witness to the murder's discovery, Samuel Hutchinson, a member of the lowest class, becomes entangled in Shan's life. His life will change forever, along with everything he thought he knew about the world.

Interesting premise, decent world-building. The story starts strong, but the middle is long and I found it a little boring to be honest. I didn't feel any connection to the characters, they didn't have a lot of depth to them and that meant I struggled to see any real chemistry in the romance. I think there was just too much going on in this story and all the good ideas got buried by eachother.
2.5/5 stars.

When I started this book, I was genuinely convinced it was going to be my new favorite thing. It has a lot of ingredients I enjoy in fantasy books; a cool magic system (blood magic!), a magical murder mystery, a central queer polyamorous romance, a trans love interest written by a trans author, and a group of people working to take down systems of oppression. Unfortunately, I didn't end up vibing with the way the book was written.

There are two central POV characters in this book. The first one is Shan, who steps into the title of Lady after murdering her father. She's a member of a disgraced aristocratic family, but also secretly runs a spy network as the Sparrow. The second is Samuel, a normal, poor citizen, whose life is suddenly upended when he comes across a murder scene through a series of events following that discovery, finds out he's the heir to an ancient bloodline. This also leads to the main characters crossing paths.

The country these characters live in, Aeravin, is divided into two classes: those with blood magic, the Blood Workers, and those without, the Unblooded. The latter class are oppressed and treated horribly by the former, especially because they don't have anything to match their blood magic. The worldbuilding was fine, nothing groundbreakingly original, but it served its purpose for this story.

My main problem with this book lies with the characters and the central plot. I couldn't stand Shan in the slightest. We're constantly told she's very perceptive and smart, but instead of focusing on the murder mystery she's supposed to be solving with Samuel, she's distracted by Bridgerton-esque high society balls and events, as well as her love interests. She also believes that the Eternal King, who's of course *very* evil, should be replaced with another king in the form of Samuel, who turns out to be a distant descendant of the Eternal King. She's a monarchist who believes the Unblooded should get more rights, but still wants a new Blood Worker king. Yeah. Many of the side characters challenge her monarchist beliefs and her blindness to the true suffering of the Unblooded, but we're still as readers forced to spend an entire book watching Shan realize how blind and privileged she is. Mind you, this woman runs a spy network full of Unblooded spies who tell her about the things happening to their class. I simply couldn't stand her character arc, nor the way we were told she was very perceptive, even though she was incredibly blind and privileged.

Then there is Samuel, who does want to reform the entire country, but is instantly obsessed with Shan and does literally whatever she asks of him. He becomes exactly the Lord that Shan wants him to be and also loses track of what actually matters—finding out who's killing Unblooded and standing up for their rights. I couldn't stand the way his entire personality seemed to vanish at times, purely because of his feelings for a person who doesn't even share his ideals.

Then there's Isaac, the king's Royal Blood Worker, basically his personal assistant, but also much more, as we discover towards the end of the book. He's the third person in the central polyam triad, yet also the only one without a POV. I understand, for plot reasons, why he didn't have one, but I still was disappointed by that, because he was by far the most interesting character to me. There's a kindness and dedication in him that was refreshing to see, but it was also incredibly clear that he had a lot to hide.

The central plot is a mix between romantic buildup and the characters going to various places to find out more about who's killing Unblooded. The problem for me was that neither storyline managed to capture my attention. No progress in the murder mystery investigation is made until the final portion of the book, and the romantic buildup felt somewhat empty to me. My favorite bonding scenes were those between Samuel and Isaac, but we didn't nearly get enough of those compared to scenes between Shan and both men individually. I didn't personally like Shan's dynamic with either Samuel or Isaac, so that was a great disappointment to me.

I would like to give credit where it's due; I really did like Shan's twin brother Anton and his scenes with Shan and Samuel. I almost wish he'd also gotten a POV, considering we find out he has his own (very interesting) hidden agenda and an interesting dynamic with several of the central characters. I also would've loved to learn more about his boyfriend, Bart, who also happened to be Shan's second-in-command within her spy network.

All in all, this book was a massive disappointment for me. I didn't like the POV characters, the central romance, or the magical murder mystery. I considered giving this book more than 1 star because I believe craft-wise, it's genuinely not a bad book, but unfortunately the way everything came together was a big disappointment to me personally, hence the 1-star rating.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

I enjoyed the world-building in this novel and the way we are introduced at a point that might be the ending of another story. Shan, Samuel and Isaac are interesting characters, though I wish we'd had more time with Isaac in this novel. Polyamory is an area of romantasy that isn't as well explored so good to have rep there as well, and the discussion of class privilege was good. However, I found it a slog in places and wasn't fully connected with the narrative.

I struggled with getting into this book, possibly due to the writing style.
It’s not exactly bad – but it was way too flat in my opinion.

Looking at the characters – in theory, all of them were interesting. Shan, merciless and determined, Samuel powerful but tortured, Isaac torn in two.
But if I’m being honest, only Isaac actually interested me.
Shan may have had an interesting base, but I really didn’t like her and really couldn’t empathise with her. She made stupid decisions, she was selfish and I didn’t see any kind of character development.
Samuel was nice enough, but he was too much of a chosen one for me. That trope really should’ve been left in the last decade. He also made stupid decisions and despite his difficult life he seemed incredibly naïve in some instances. He trusted the wrong people without a second thought. He was also incredibly passive. Yes, he has no idea how to behave in his newfound reality, but he literally just did everything the others told him to, no matter whether he thought it was wrong. He didn’t take any kind of initiative and it really frustrated me. Here he is, with all this power and he ends up simply being a pawn. Is it realistic? Perhaps. But it was also boring.
The relationship between Shan and Samuel was also way too constructed for me and I didn’t feel it at all.
Isaac was the only one with at least some kind of layers. From the first page on I was unsure whether he was going to be good or bad, whether he could be trusted or end up as a traitor. He was the only one whose goals weren’t entirely out in the open and I kept waiting for his agenda to be revealed.

As for the plot, it could’ve been interesting, but it was something that has been done hundreds of times before (one part murder mystery, one part lost heir found again, one part monarchy is evil and must be destroyed) and there wasn’t enough that stood out for me. The bad guys were bad. The vampiric world building could’ve been good. It was an interesting idea, something different. But there was barely any world building. It seemed like a very generic city, the magic was barely shown and didn’t do anything spectacular, I have no idea, what was supposed to make this different. It simply felt flat. All of it felt flat.
I don’t mind clichés in general, I don’t mind reading things I’ve read a hundred times before, but it has to be interesting and this book failed to capture me.

I also kept waiting for something to happen, but for the first three quarters of the book, it didn’t. It just kept going and going and they kept talking about what they should do and what they could do and they didn’t do anything. It was so frustrating. The rebellion was basically some demonstrations and a lot of politics about how to stop them. No escalations, no interesting ideas. Once in a while, a new murder would pop up, but there were never any kind of leads, so that part of the story was also boring.
It's fine if a book is slightly slower. But I still need at least something interesting to keep me going.

When the big finale finally came around, I was already bored out of my mind and simply wanted it all to be over.
Which is a shame, because the finale was good! There were some plottwists and things happened and it actually started to be interesting! If this had happened 200 pages before, I might’ve given this book 4 stars, but the build up was way too long and simply unnecessary in parts.

Thank you, NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The book has a really strong start, setting up a cruel world of blood magic and power abuse, and a trio of wonderfully morally grey characters. Shan, Issac and Samuel get woven into each other in this game of lies, power and attraction - so much even that it becomes hard to tell who is playing whom.
It has a poly and trans rep that from my understanding is developed and portrayed greatly.
However, about 50% into the book I got the feeling that the plot basically vanished. Things get muddled and the pacing is weird, so much even that I lost trust that the book knows what story it really wants to tell. There's the politics, but then somehow it became less important. There's the magic system, but there's not enough information to really get a grip on it. There's the murder investigation, which seems more like an excuse for our MCs to work together. And there's the romance, but I didn't care enough for the characters for me to matter.
I would have loved to love this book, but sadly this one wasn't for me.

3/5 stars

Thank you @netgalley and @littlebrownbookgroup_uk for the eARC!

#MistressOfLies #Netgalley #Bookstagram

A bloodthirsty heroine Yes
Vampires Yes
Morally Grey character, dark fantasy, political intrigue Yes Yes Yes
This book stared with a bang and kept me locked in.
Character driven and so much fun.
This was a great read and I'm so excited for the next.

A great book with an original take on vampirism. The tension and the love triangle were brilliantly written.
Full of political intrigue and morally grey characters, it grabbed me from the first page until the bittersweet ending.

Would recommend

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book.

2.5 stars

Mistress Of Lies sounds like an interesting world of politics, blood magic and a hint of romance so I was thrilled to be accepted for an arc of this book.

Realistically, the story has a intriguing beginning, a surprising end and an extremely long, boring, slow paced everything else. The romances felt contrived and lacking any real chemistry, unsurprisingly since the characters themselves lacked any real depth.

The world building was adequate and you did gain a sense of the inequality between the class systems but it certainly wasn't enough to draw you into the storyline. The magic system, though interesting, didn't really feel that important to the progression of the story.

Overall, whilst the premise was really good, the execution was disappointing. I was really excited to read this but have now cancelled my preorders for the book as I know I won't read it again.

I enjoyed this one!! Sure, there were some things that could’ve been improved, but it’s a fun and quick read. Let s delve deeper into the things I liked and liked a little less.

Likes:
- the characters were really the strong suit of this story. The book is written from a double POV of two very different characters and I loved that. Their voices are unique and they both have a very different vision on what’s going on in their country which makes it interesting
- Hand in hand with strong and well developed characters, there was a very good romance story. This book lays the foundation for an MMF polyamorous story and I love that so much. We need more stories like that. The characters were cute together, they fit well together and the chemistry is amazing. Can’t wait to see more of them.
- The political intrigue was very well worked out. I love some good politics in my books and this one certainly had that. We step into a society on the brick of revolution, with an immortal king that threats his human subjects like crap. With all of that come some amazing morally grey characters

Dislikes:
- The pacing of this book was a little weird. The story didn’t really focus on the most important things in my opinion. There’s a murder mystery going on but we don’t see that much of the characters actually trying to figure out who did it. There’s also a lot happening off the page which felt a little weird.
- Stuff happening off the page caused a more “tell than show” writing style to happen. For example, Samuel had to learn how to controle and use his power. Yet, we see barely anything of that training. We’re just told he’s making great progress every so often.
- A last thing that could’ve been better is how easily the main characters trusted each other. Their inner monologue keeps saying that they don’t trust other people, yet they readily keep telling each other everything. Samuel was taught his whole life to never trust a bloodworker, but he immediately accepts and trusts the help of two of the most powerful and influential bloodworkers of his generation. A little more tension and trust issues would’ve been nice.

So overall there are some weaker points that could’ve been improved, but it was a fun and quick read and it keeps your attention. The romance was definitely the strength of this story. I’m excited to read the second book.

It starts with blood! I was hooked from the outset - I haven’t read many books that start with patricide from our FMC who goes on, attempting to fill the void her father’s murder has created. This book was a refreshing fantasy with vampire-like humans and their ability to harness the power of blood. The worldbuilding was brilliantly woven into the narrative and every chapter in this was action-packed and developed the story well. The characters were great, with Samuel being particularly endearing! He was thrust into a world that he had long hidden himself away from and has to very quickly learn the political games of the King and the ruling elite, whilst not entirely knowing who he can truly trust, all at the same time as trying to keep his power under control. I really like that the story only centred around a few main characters, with the rest being good supporting side characters that helped to develop the plot of the story well.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this, the first book in a series and loved the cliffhanger that it ended on! I will eagerly anticipate the next installment from this debut author! Congratulations to K.M.Enright!

I have also given it a 1🌶️ for the spice, as there was a little much later in the story, but it wasn’t overpowering in the narrative, it actually added to the tension in story as the three main characters were intwined into each other’s lives (often in life-or-death situations)!


Thank you to NetGalley, K.M. Enright and Orbit for an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Mistress of Lies is a fast paced fantasy with an interesting magic system. Unfortunately, I just couldn't get the writing style to work for me, and I found it hard to get through. Definitely worth giving a go though if you like your fantasy dark and full of action!

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

Thank you to the Little, Brown Book Group, Orbit and NetGalley for providing me with an early copy in return for an honest review!

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“She had ruined people before and would do so again. What did it matter that he was the most innocent person to ever cross paths with her?”

From the very first chapter we are thrown into the action, magic and politics of the story, and I was hooked immediately. The writing is easy and intriguing to read, and I didn’t have any trouble keeping up with what was going on despite the plot becoming increasingly intricate as the story goes on. The vibes through it all were dark, bloody, tense and had me on the edge of my seat. Elegant ballroom scenes, fast paced chases through dark streets and scheming over drinks in offices and at parties. Delicious!

“Aeravin was a city of flaws, and a city of blood, a city of tragedy, but it had still been so alive.”

The world building was recognisable and familiar enough to be easy to understand and slide right into, but distinct enough that it felt magical and I was intrigued and wanted to learn more about all its inner workings, cultures, and the magic that shapes it all. I especially loved how normal and incorporated into the characters everyday lives queer identities seemed to be. And seeing a polyamorous romance slowly bloom on the pages of yet another anticipated book makes me more happy than words can describe; why have only two people navigating their complicated emotions for each other and the world they live in, when you can have three and add several more layers of angst and pining in all directions. It turns me into the embodiment of the Elmo fire meme.

“Now if she could only get past his morals— or hone them into a blade that she could use.”

I am, forever and always, incredibly weak for any magic and power related to manipulating blood - and this book really takes it to a level that had me on the floor. There’s something so incredibly romantic and sexy about ingesting each other’s blood, and I am very here for it.

“Haven’t you learned anything yet? We all work for Shan. She’s seen to that.”

The female main character, Lady Shan LeClaire, is complicated and ambitious. And I love her so damn much. I support women’s rights, and god how I love women’s wrongs.
The male main characters are also all intriguing, and lovable in their messiness, but the real star of the show was Shan and her scheming. I wish her nothing but success and power.

4,5 stars and I cannot wait to have this gem on my shelf to admire for a long time!

*Thank you to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK | Orbit for providing me with this book in exchange for an honest review*

This book was really good. I couldn't put it down. I can't wait to read the next one. There's going to be another one, right? *Fingers crossed*

I loved the story, the pacing, the world building and character building.
My only issue was with the writing style, which wasn’t hugely for me, but I can respect a good story for sure.

I'm really sorry but I'm throwing in the towel at 38%.

I've been pushing myself to read this because I was really looking forward to it, but I'm so bored and I've ultimately lost interest in the book.
Couldn't care less about the characters or plot and the vampires didn't seem like vampires to me.

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I couldn't put this down!!! I loved it so much that I want to form a fanclub and be its president! The author does not step a foot wrong in his storytelling, and the feeling of "I wouldn't change a thing, not even a comma." is so, so rare but also so gratifying when it comes.

It is told by two perspectives, of Shan's and Samuel's. Shan is truly ruthless and has a villainous aura. Her anger against the system is so loud, so tangible, and her desire to protect her loved ones is palpable in the air. I LOVED HER! She's smart and competent and efficient, and she can take her time to form a plan but she can also improvise and take an opportunity when it arises. I loved how aware she is. Aware of herself, of the bad and the good, aware of the consequences of her manipulations. She's the queen of "I know this might hurt your feelings / I know this is wrong but I need to do this, so I do it anyway."

If Shan is the beating heart of the book, then Samuel is the soul.

Samuel is the moral compass, the one who decisively sees right from wrong and reacts without considering the political and social implications. He speaks his mind even in situations that could lead him to some serious trouble. In a bloody and bloodthirsty world, Samuel's morality shone through every step of the way. He was the beacon of hope we needed. I loved him so much.

I want to hug and protect Samuel, and drink with Shan.

The romance between Shan, Samuel, and Isaac is sooo good. I loved how the author paid attention to all pairs but also to them as a throuple. Shan and Isaac had a turbulent past but they slowly overcame it because Isaac was sincere and Shan simply understood his motivations. Also because Isaac definitely looked like he regretted most of his life choices. Poor guy. Samuel and Isaac had this calm yet intense flirty vibe. Shan and Samuel clicked together like two pieces of a puzzle. Albeit being very different from each other, they fit together. Every bit of romance is believable and oh so very delightful!!

The plot was good and I really liked the pacing. It had many twists and many plot threads, but we also had time for character and romance development.

It's not a light read, though. The world in the book is truly brutal and bloody. Cw include but aren't limited to: patricide on the page, mention of rape (happened in the past to a now dead character), murder, blood, experimentation on humans.

I LOVED EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS BOOK!!!! I CANNOT HOLD MYSELF TO WAIT FOR BOOK 2!!!!!! I mean, what did you by THAT, Samuel my dear?!!!

This book is a monthly pick for an August box, and RENEW, RENEW, RENEW!!!!!! I can't wait to see it!!!

There was so much promise in this book - based in a society where the upper classes have access to blood magic and the lower classes are "unblooded", an eternal king sustained by an annual sacrifice and general scheming and conniving. When a long lost member of the Royal family is discovered people are keen to use him to further their own aspirations, and there is a love triangle (circle? unclear). Unfortunately though I found the writing and pacing very disjointed, things seemed to plod on for ages then all of a sudden a major plot point would happen with not a lot of reflection and moved on from. People's motivations weren't made particularly clear and they seemed to change on a whim as well. By the end I did feel it was a bit of a trudge and even the final reveal wasn't that revealing!

There were/are a lot of debuts that I was/am excited for this year, but if I had had to choose, Mistress of Lies would have probablymy number 1 most anticipated one. Everything about this sounded so amazing and I could not wait to get my hands on this, and I am very happy to report back that my intuition didn't lead me astray.
This is easily one of my top 3 favorite debuts ever, I am OBSESSED.

There are just so many elements in this book that I love, and combining that with amazing writing and storytelling means that Mistress of Lies immediately catapulted itself to the top of my reads of the year.
I'm always down for a vampire novel, especially when it's high fantasy rather than paranormal romance, and the way it was done here was so unique. It's really more blood magic than vampires while still delivering on the vampire vibes.
I've really noticed this year that I love fantasy with sci-fi elements, and it was done so well here. Combining blood magic with science is just a great match in my opinion.
I love a good poly romance and the development of the relationships in this book was top tier.
Murder mystery and puzzle solving are tropes I always enjoy, especially in fantasy, so this being the main plot was right up my alley.
And finally, the whole setup with all the court intrigues, morally gray characters and villainous main characters was just so good, without ever feeling tropey or trying to follow trends (not that there is anything wrong with that).

I adored the three main characters and their character arcs were all done so well and I can't wait to see how they continue to unfold.
Shan is a favorite for sure, but the two men are both great in their own ways.

Another thing that was done really well was the genderqueer and Filipino rep, it was woven so effortlessly into the story.

This really felt like Six of Crows meets These Violent Delights meets Game of Thrones meets vampires and I never knew I needed it, but as soon as I read the synopsis for the first time, I realized that this is, in fact, something I desperately needed in my life.

Highly recommend!

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