DNF at 36%

Sadly I just could not get along with the writing in this book. It felt very choppy and disjointed.

Overall I enjoyed this book but didn't love it. I was initially drawn in by the cover and then blurb. I hoped for a badass female maim character and in that regard it did not disapoint. I loved seeing Erin through thr story and her strength really shone through. I also enjoyed the slow burn romance through the story.
I just felt that at times the story felt rushed and that in face we could have done with more information at times to flesh events out and make them clearer. I think I've been left with too many gaps in the plot.
Overall though I did enjoy it and I would still recommend to people to give it a try.

While the plot seemed to have some promise, the narrative execution felt quite choppy, and the Point of View felt inconsistent. Perhaps further editing is necessary?

a low 3 stars
arc from netgalley!

this started out really interesting, i loved how it was setting the stage for this character to be very important later on, as there is a little prologue chapter set eighteen or so years before the bulk of the book
however, not much happened with this character following on, or to do with many of the characters really. i felt that they were all quite stationary, and that the plot moved very fast around them and kind of swept them away. I didnt particularly like any of the characters, though the duke had some lines that made me laugh a bit but we dont see him until 60/70% of the way through the book.
our main girl was alright, but her sister was severely overshadowed and she had nothing to do at all. I wish jax had anything to do either, but after chapter five or so there isn’t really anything.
the world was interesting, i got medieval vibes from it though im not sure if that is the inspiration, and what descriptions there were were good.
I did find myself skimming from the 50% mark, and then skimming more after 70%, it was not the most interesting plot and the characters could not carry it alone.

Norcliff was such an engaging read!
The story was well crafted, filled with love, intrigue and the first steps of a Lady, who is much more than she can imagine.

Erin, the main character, is definitely a "not like other girls" type, but she's not a stereotype at that. She actually is taught skills and benefits from using her own thoughts and feelings to make things right. Her character definitely grows and changes throughout the story, where she has to prove everyone wrong. Erin isn't just a Lady, she is a leader, a lover and a fighter all at once.

I would love to read more from this world and see where the ending actually takes us.

So the reason I wanted to read this book is because I saw it on Netgalley and thought the story sounded really interesting! For me, I very much liked this book, I just didn't love it. This book was such an easy read in that it was fast paced, the slow burn romance was adorable and was genuinely had me giggling and kicking my feet at times. I really liked seeing the feminism and female friendship throughout this book and all of the characters were very much likeable. It just seemed sort of rushed in all the wrong places? There would be times where I wanted to know more about what was happening in certain points in the story and to find out more about what happened to specific characters and never got my questions answered. I guess what I'm saying is yes, this book was likeable, but it very much had it's flaws. Would this stop me from reading another K.A. Connolly book? No. Would I pick this up as a physical copy? Also no. However, if you do want a nice easy read which has topics of grief, action and slow burn romance, I would say to go for it when it comes to this one, just maybe don't expect all your questions to be answered.

4 stars!

I always choose books by its cover, and this one didn't dissapoint! Thank you to Netgally for the review copy.

It's a fastpaced youngadult fantasy story, without any magical elements. It was a quick and easy read, but still enjoyable!

We follow Erin who is supposed to marry Marc who she has known her whole life. On her way to the wedding, they get attacked by the Morton's who want to take over the land of Erin's family. They kill everyone 'red wedding' style and kidnapp her and Marcs parents.

Erin who grew up with Liana as her sister and bodyguard, and Jax their teacher, travel to the capital to plead their case to the King and get some help. However, the king doesn't care and his son apparently is horrible and joins the Morton forces.

The story continues by them traveling back to save and rescue her parents. Along the way they try to gather evidence and find allies.

Will they be able to save her family and her land? Will they find unexpected allies? And maybe even some love? Read it now!

I was very excited when I got the ARC for this book. The premise was interesting and I couldn't waited to read it. Sadly, it did not deliver. I had a difficult time finishing this book and have been tempted to dnf it numerous times.

From the very beginning the writing felt strange, at first I thought it was satire but soon realised it was just the author's writing style. Everything about this book felt so unserious, I couldn't connect with any of the characters, they were all unlovable and this whole book just lacks emotion. The idea for the story was good (hence why the premise looked promising) but executed badly. I feel this needs a good editing/rewriting.

Unfortunately this book wasn't for me, but my opinion is my own and tastes are subjective.

Erin Hart loses her fiance and her parents on her wedding day after an attack by the neighboring Mortons. They have her parents hostage and want her to marry Ardent Morton so he can get control of her beloved Norcliff. Erin goes to the capital for help but fails to secure assistance from the King who professes inability to offer it. She must find allies of her own which she does in unexpected places and discovers unforeseen enemies...

After a good-hearted prologue that sets the stage for understanding some of the main characters we are steeped in a friendly, undeniably readable narrative with humor and earnestness threaded through it, tinged with relatable emotion. Hearty paragraphs rich in details pinpoint the exact images the author wants to convey of the characters, the places and life in this world. The infrequent figurative speech twinkled with imagination.

Politics, malicious gossip and machinations might color our protagonist's time at court, but the book really takes off with the discovery of a letter (you will know what I mean when you read it). The storyline becomes most thrilling and attention-grabbing and in no way predictable. The action is served to us in an appetizing manner.

Erin & Liana have grown up being apt pupils to Jax's teachings of fighting and the whatnot, and we definitely see that in action. The three of them are squad goals, the comfort and respect between them, how they help and care for each other. We admire how they deal with things, get justice and their clever plans. The addition of their yummy, instantly likeable ally is a worthy one. We welcome his charm and his courting. There were times when I wanted to yell at the characters for things they stupidly, in my opinion, even considered. But that just means I cared for them.

There is oftentimes a bit of whiplash when scenes change course abruptly. There are a certain amount of things that seem to be 'forgotten' then 'remembered' while others are repeated. These are a few minor mishaps in this more than entertaining tale.

Norcliff is the name of a place, but even though the book seems to focus on it and how its people defend it (those stories are usually the best), it is really about standing on your own two feet — forging your own path. An enjoyable tale with lords and ladies, chivalry, villainy and the preparations and heat of battle, ultimately gifted with great characters. A story of empowerment that shows us that anyone can be brave and it is worthwhile to fight for what you believe in.

Dnf at around 40% :/

I really wanted to like this book and the start was so strong especially since the prologue was so interesting "'My occupation is death' ...
'Theres no future in death' ...
'Theres no future for me, either'"

Where this book let me down was the dialogue, it just felt so stale an unnatural and it just lacked organicness if that makes sense, all the dialogue felt forced and I would dread reading it because I knew I'd get annoyed. It bugs me more because the descriptions were so good at points and then it'd be ruined by dialogue. While I am praising the description it did also have faults one major fault was the fact it felt like I got more description of Erin cleaning herself than I did of the fight in the beginning which makes no sense. Also while Erin and Liana are written as badasses but I felt like it's never really shown properly (E.g the massive fight in the beginning that we barely get a description of) and overall were just flat as characters.

Additionally, the other characters were also flat, the way it took zero convincing to for the neighbouring kingdoms to spread the word, the entire interaction was basically Erin going "My mum and fiance are dead" and them going "Oh that's a shame we never ever speak to you politically but we will spread the word" its just idk frustrating. I think overall there was potential to the book it just need polished more and maybe lengthened to allow a better pacing,

Thank you NetGalley and K.A. Connolly for the Arc!

This was unfortunately a book I did not finish.

I got about 23% of the way in, and really struggled to connect to it.

Norcliff is about a girl, her “adopted” sister/companion, and the person who took care of them and trained them to fight. On her wedding day, there is a large fight and that starts the book.

The book gets right into the action and plot, but very quickly new problems and conflict are added in. I struggled to connect with anyone because it felt like I was reading on issue into the next, with minimal world building or context. The pacing felt very rushed and things were happening out of nowhere.

I think if you’re someone who enjoys action based fantasy/sci fi/romance, without much world building and context thrown in, this may be more up your alley.

I just know the relationship dynamic between the sisters and their trainer is wonderful, but it was not enough to keep the story going, for me. I did not get a chance to connect to that relationship.

Erin, the FMC, was strong and courageous. Not scared to get into the middle of a fight. She was reading like a strong character!

I appreciate NetGalley and K.A. Connolly for the early read.

This was a quick, easy read, however, it really missed the mark for me. I found the storyline quite predictable and it didn't really capture me. The main thing I did like was the FMC, Erin, and her perseverance throughout the book. It's quite often in these type of books that the FMC is a damsel in distress who needs saving but Erin is the complete opposite and is a badass! I also liked her bond and friendship that she had with Jax and Liana, they were their own version of the three musketeers! The book was quite short which is why I ended up finishing it, but I did find some of the storyline was rushed especially the ending.

Thank you to the author, the publisher and Netgalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

On paper, I should have loved this, and while I didn't hate it, it just wasn't for me.

Things I did enjoy:
-The vibe and imagery of this story is beautifully done. This is such a vibrantly told story.
-The beginning of the story was really great
-The slow burn romance

Things I did not love:
-The pacing was almost too fast. I felt like I could dig deeply into anything because we were moving onto the next thing
-I though the plot got somewhat confusing and unnecessarily complicated in the second half

What's supposed to be the happiest day of Erin's life turns out to be the worst. She is on her way to her wedding when she hears fighting. Her fiancee is dead and her parents have been kidnapped.

Erin must seek an audience with the King to see if he will aid her in getting her parents back. She will need powerful allies.
Things don't go as planned, so she must seek them elsewhere.

I liked these characters, but the insta love definitely didn't work for me. I think if the book was longer, it might not have felt so rushed.

Thank you to NetGalley for an Advanced Reader’s Copy in exchange for an honest review.

Norcliff began with a strong start. I was immediately interested in Jax’s story, his mysterious background, and the contrast between his personality and that of Finley, the duke of Norcliff. Erin’s first chapter was well done as well – action packed, with a quite a shocking inciting incident.

However, after that, I struggled with the narrative. I wish the author had spent more time on each of the plot points. Norcliff is a story of political intrigue, war, feminism, and romance, yet most of the biggest plot points were lost due to the extremely fast pacing. Many of the secondary or ‘side’ characters only appeared for a scene or two and were not fleshed out – especially the ones the reader meets while Erin, Jax, and Liana are in the capital. Considering Liana’s existence and subsequent adoption were such major moments in the first chapters, I wish the reader could have learned more about her and gotten more closure regarding her love story.

I do appreciate that Erin and Hugo’s romance was more of a slow burn and not an insta-love connection. It gave their eventual coming together much more of an authentic feel.

One thing I love is a good fantasy I love a book that can make me forget what's going on in the world and go into an imaginative world where the impossible happens and you meet characters and creatures you would never meet for real and this book had ot all

This is a fast-paced, action-packed story that builds an interesting world and keeps you on the edge of your seat.

It follows Lady Erin as she seeks revenge for the death of her fiance and capture of her parents, combining court politics with action.

I enjoyed that Erin wasn't held back by the expectations of being a lady at a time that was meant to be medieval. She was happy to fight, sneak around and do what had to be done without worrying about appearances.

While the pacing was great and ensured the focus was on the action and important moments, it also meant that I couldn't get a good picture of what the world looked like. It seemed far too easy to travel quickly even by horse. I also thought Erin's recovery from her fiance dying to falling for someone else was a bit too fast.

I also found some of the language to be slightly too modern for the time in which is seemed to be set. 'Mom and dad', for example, took me out of it a little bit.

Overall, it was a fun read and very quick for under 300 pages.

Thank you to K.A. Connolly and NetGalley for the ARC copy of this book.

Norcliff has a fun premise, but from the jump the slightly clunky writing style and the flat characters makes it hard to engage with. Every character has little to no background or development. The reader is TOLD who these people are and how we are meant to feel about them, but we are never SHOWN anything on page.

The best example of this is early on in the first four chapters. We are told that Jax has been training Erin in stealth and combat since she was three. The first two times conflict the resulted in violence happens, Erin freezes up and just watches it happen. While I understand the first time (nerves get the better of all of us sometimes), it’s the constant reassurance from the other characters that Erin is capable making it all feel incredibly forced.

Besides the lack of character development, the pacing is all over the place while the plot turned out to be extremely predictable. I could have forgiven one of these issues, but both together is impossible to look past. Every event is happening at light speed so nothing is rewarding. It comes across more like a storyboard outline than a completed narrative.

My final note: if you are going to write a medieval setting either commit to the bit or purposefully subvert expectations. Half committing leaves everyone, characters and readers alike, confused.

Norcliff is a romantasy with deep roots in the classic, swords and sorcery fantasy tradition. It follows Erin, the inheritor and heir apparent of the duchy of Norcliff, who finds herself ensnared in a plot of political intrigue after her wedding is interrupted by the targeted assassination of her fiancé by the man who wants Erin and her lands for himself. After losing face in court, Erin needs to find allies in alternate places to save her parents and protect her people, only to discover that the political situation is worse than it appears. And amidst all of this toil and tribulation, she finds new love along the way. While nothing about this premise is particularly groundbreaking, Norcliff promised to be a familiar, comforting type of tale, so that’s what I hoped for going in.
Unfortunately, despite the premise being the sort of thing I like, the execution is where Norcliff falls short for me. While reading, I felt as though I was being told a story secondhand, or reading a sparknotes summary of the book, more than reading a complete story in itself. The plot relies on telling over showing, making the pace breakneck throughout but without earning any emotional payoff. This lead to scenes of battle, the romantic leads wooing, travel, and training all lack any tonal differentiation and left me with an overall one-note experience while reading. There was also a seeming avoidance of building up conflict in service of getting the story to move more quickly. Erin arrives at the palace, is immediately welcomed by the nobles (no court intrigue or hidden intentions from the other courtiers?), then is assaulted by the prince and everyone’s opinion turns on a dime (again, no sympathies or anyone else knowing the prince is a predator?) in the course of, like, four pages. There’s no time for any of those events to sink in before they’re each brought to some sort of resolution and all the potential tension is dissipated, leaving the characters to be whisked to the next series of un-nuanced, cause-and-effect-but-no-feelings-or-complications plot events.
The speed also didn’t allow for differentiation between characters. Most everyone shares the same mannerisms of speech regardless of social class or geographic difference, and information and skill are granted to or withheld from characters seemingly at random. There’s scenes where Erin, purportedly the heir of Norcliff and thus raised to be at least aware of her surrounding duchies, has to be told about the politics and customs of her neighbors. Erin is also trained enough at swordplay and strategy that she can hold her own in a battle or scale castle battlements undetected but inexplicably has soft lady’s hands. Inconsistencies like this further broke my immersion in the story, and kept me guessing as to what the actual traits, fears, wants, and feelings of the characters actually were.
And since this is a romantasy, where the central relationship between Erin and Hugo should be at the heart of most of what’s going on, it’s imperative that I know at least about what makes the two of them tick. I found myself feeling like their relationship was instalove-y and bland to the point where I didn’t even mind the instalove, because to mind it would meant I cared about it at all.
However, while it didn’t work for me, I think Norcliff could still very much fill the comfort-read romantasy niches for people who want quick, uncomplicated reads with all their favorite fantasy tropes making an appearance. The writer clearly knows and cares for their genres. Their scenes of riding horses on a journey, chivalrous courtship practices between the romantic leads, character tropes like the poisoneer madame and turncoat advisor, and a badass Princess female lead kept me reading instead of DNFing outright. With just some more fleshing out, showing to balance out the telling, I think Norcliff could’ve been quite good. I would be interested in seeing more from this author and seeing whether that element of their writing style evolves.

This fell very flat for me, I did not like Erin at all. She was confusing for me.. your fiancé dies and you’re laughing.. 2 weeks later we love someone else😐 not adding up for me.
This also felt all over the place, we went from wanting to help our parents to revenge on the prince..
Allies we met at the beginning are forgotten for the rest of the book.
We lost a lot of the story cause we had characters hurt the MC or her family and it’s this big betrayal but we don’t know them.. so we as the reader have no reason to care.
The little missed details also didn’t help, we have a poisonous kiss, then don’t take the antidote but kiss our love interest? That seems so small but it’s definitely important and it’s just not there..
Not for me