I loved this story it was very well written and the characters had a lot of growth throughout the book.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sparkly Wave for the audio of A Cursed Son. My opinions are my own.

This is marketed as a steamy, enemies-to-lovers, romantasy with some humor. I did like the story, but it doesn't necessarily stand out from any other fae romance to me. Dark and dangerous male fae falls in love with human woman. They're connected in their dreams, he keeps kissing her temple. He has ice powers instead of shadows. 3.5 stars overall, I did enjoy it, but would not reread.

I did enjoy the narrator, they were able to effectively convey emotions and have strong difference in character voices.

I would like to thank NetGalley for giving me an audio-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Where to begin... this book bad a lot of my favorite tropes: enemies to lovers, marriage of convenience, forced proximity, slow burn. I enjoyed the romance aspect of it the most. Astra and Marlak were great together for 98% of the book. I loved the shared dreams and the way they impacted their lives and how they interacted.

The magic was interesting, though I found it confusing when it came to her magic. The plot was a bit slow as this was more of a character driven story, but I enjoyed watching them grow together... which is why the ending didn't make sense to me!! So mad.

The audiobook was great and I definitely recommend checking it out!!

I really wanted to love this book.....

I first found interest in this book with the kickstarter for the special edition. I wanted it so bad because it's beautiful. So when I got a chance to get an audio copy, I was so excited.

Unfortunately I did not love this one. The narrator was fine, but I didn't enjoy the story so much. I felt that the writing was more of a YA/debut title feel. Yet, there is some mature scenes almost immediately. The juvenile feel of the writing did not align with the more adult content and the way it was written felt a little off to me. The girl gets sexual through a dream type thing by some guy she's never met and she just immediately starts dreaming of home doing all this sexual stuff to her. I don't know, it just seemed an odd way to go about it when the story had barely started. And I just wasn't feeling it with the writing.

I ended up DNFing because it felt weird to have the younger writing style with the adult content. I love me some good adult scenes in books, but the way it's written and the vibe of the story has to match up. It just didn't for me.

It's so interesting from the starting till the end. In audiobook format it was so quick and easy breezy to read 🤌 i absolutely loved the female protagonist of the book.
The details were beautifully penned and the characters were brilliantly drafted. I love it so much.

***It ends on a cliffhanger and I am not okay!***

Astra is training to be a princess' double and the story is told through her perspective. I loved the inner dialogue of this character and how it portrayed this story. The tropes are enemies to lovers and slow burn. Those are my favorite ones so this book just flew for me.

I will be reading everything Day puts out because this was just fantastic from the start!

Thank you NetGalley for this audiobook!

I really enjoyed the characters and world building although the main character is oblivious even by fantasy standards and I'll definitely be looking out for the next one. But the main reason I'll be looking out for the next one is because NOTHING happens in this one, we literally stop just as revelations are being made and action is starting to happen. The rest of the book is spent pining and whining about secrets with very little revealed about anything. Would have been better to have a very long book as is typical for fantasy than have to wait for the next one whenever it may come.

Astra being horny on main 100% of the book was also so funny, the girl needs it bad.

My advice to anyone looking to start this series - wait for the second to come out first

I really enjoyed this audiobook, the narrator was great and and easy to listen to. The story was fast paced kept my attention from the first chapter! This romantic fantasy had a little spice, but it was more of a slow burn romance. I thoughth the main character had great chemistry! After that ending though , I can't wait to read the next book and see what happens next!

A Cursed Son is a fun romantasy with layered world-building to rival Sarah Maas. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Caitlin Davies, who brought the stream-of-consciousness narrative style alive. While much of this book suffers from the dreaded miscommunication trope, I still found the story compelling. I really enjoyed reading this, and I very much look forward to the next in this series!
Thanks to NetGalley and Sparkly Wave for this advanced audio copy to review!

4.5

I really enjoyed this. I look forward to the next book! I am glad the fmc is smart and competent it made the ending even better!

My biggest complaint was this felt a little YA - especially the actual sec scene. We only get one which is fine and works great for the story but if you are going to go for a full sex scene the over use of core and saying things like “down there” feels like you are talking down to the audience.

This book was a delight to listen to. Avatar meets ACOTAR in this enemies to lovers romantasy! The narrator did a fantastic job bringing the book to life. The dialogue of this story is inside Astra's (our heroine) head and her personality shines through. I wish the author had gone a bit more in-depth with descriptions as I felt them lacking in some ways, and the world-building I felt could have been used a bit more as often I was confused about the layout of the world and social aspects. However, this was an audiobook I was listening to and the actual book might contain a map or something that helps readers sort things out.
I was confused about where this was going in the initial chapters, and it felt a bit chaotic with so many things happening. But once the plot got going I was immersed in the story! I was quite interested in Marlak's past and the mystery of the false fae prince.
Things I loved about this book: the enemies-to-lovers plot, the sexual tension, the dreams between Astra and Marlak, the bantering, the slow-burn romance, the world of courts and magical creatures, and the elemental-based magic.
While this book did focus more on the romance side of the Romantasy genre, I did enjoy seeing all the different courts they traveled to. Most of all the ending had my jaw dropping with that plot twist! A Cursed Son was a thrilling Romantasy that has me early anticipating the next book!
Big shoutout to NetGalley and Sparkly Wave Publishing Group for the awesome opportunity to dive into this book! Thanks for letting me join the adventure early!

This book was so good!!! The MMC reminded me so much of Rowan from Throne of Glass and the characters interactions were so fun to see! I do wish there was more connections with side characters cause some were emphasized as important to one of the main characters but you only see a few interactions between them and thoughts rarely go towards them. There were quite a few times this shocked a laugh out of me because I wasn’t expecting the phrasing and I can’t wait to continue the series. The way this book ended was chefs kiss I just wish I had book two now to go right into it.

I knew 40% in I was going to be obsessed with this series! I absolutely LOVE Astra & Marlak.
I saw another review saying this book was perfect for ACOTAR &A Court this Cruel and Lovel fans and I strongly agree!
Impatiently waiting for book 2! (:

Publisher's summary
In her dreams, he envelops her in love. In real life, he imprisons her in ice. Assassin, liar, impersonator—dreamer.
As a royal decoy, trained to replace the Krastel princess even in a political marriage, Astra’s life is not her own. With a duty like that, how can she dream about love?
And yet she knows she has a kindred soul. She can feel his presence every night, holding her in his arms, surrounding her with his warmth.
But ice-cold reality crashes in when Astra’s carriage is attacked by the Crystal Court’s disgraced prince. Banished for heinous crimes and armed with powerful stolen relics, he’s a wielder of mighty magic and can even infiltrate minds.
It turns out that he is the man in her dreams.
And this is about to get very, very awkward...

Thanks to NetGalley & Sparkly Wave for the ALC of this book!

A Cursed Son
By: Day Leitao
Narrated by: Caitlin Kelly
Publisher: Sparkly Wave
Series: Remnants of the Fallen Kingdom, Book 1
Length: 15 hrs and 20 mins
Release date: 06-25-24

**Thank you to NetGalley and Publisher for the audiobook ARC of A Cursed Son in exchange for an honest review.**
●This review is posted to Goodreads as of 6/25/2024.●
5⭐️
2.5 🌶
☆Review may contain SLIGHT spoilers!☆

I have been waiting for forever to read this one, and I am so glad that I listened to it for my first read-through!! The narrator wad very engaging and it was easy to distinctly identify characters.
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I loved this book. I am so excited for the next one to release and for Astra and Marlak to be reunited.
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What I liked:
•character relationships
•dream sequences and the tension it created between the two main characters
•the unfolding plot
•Cherry Cake
•Astra being able to take care of herself
•Marlak for being the biggest "secret" simp

I had high hopes for this book and while it was interesting, I felt like it read very YA with some adult scenes thrown in for the heck of it. I wish it would have either skipped the spice or been more mature overall. I think this was an ok read but I did feel that it dragged a bit. The concept is interesting but honestly the book fell a little flat for me. I am sure there are plenty of readers that will absolutely love this one and it's not a bad book by any means, I just think it wasn't for me. I did like the world-building and definitely liked the concept of intimacy through dreams.

The audiobook narrator Caitlin Kelly did a great job narrating.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sparkly Wave for access to the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

This book had potential, but unfortunately it didn’t hit the mark for me.

I know it was kind of a slow burn enemies to lovers type deal, but I don’t feel like they ever really treated each other like enemies and it was the slowest burn ever.

The plot had potential but I found myself getting confused on why things were so important and what the danger really was, even in the end I don’t think we see it.

The cliffhanger at the end felt way too abrupt and felt like it came out of no where, it just didn’t flow well for me!

Thank you to the Author Day Leitao, and the Narrator Caitlin Kelly for sharing your work with us!

Huge thanks to Sparkly Wave and NetGalley for my free audiobook copy of “A Cursed Son”.

I received an advance review copy for free and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

In A Cursed Son, Astra is a royal decoy trained to impersonate the Krastel princess. She finds herself entangled in a steamy enemies-to-lovers romance with a disgraced and banished fae prince. Despite their antagonistic real-life encounters, Astra secretly shares romantic dreams with this very prince. This romantic fantasy with fae magic, arranged marriage, and witty banter is perfect for fans of dream connections and elemental magic.

This book instantly hooked me. To start with it was Astra's personality - I really enjoyed how the author showcases Astra's thought processes and logic, and how she assesses the actions and thoughts of Marlak. I felt like I really understood who she is and how she thinks. So it was Astra and her steamy dreams that hooked me initially but then the mystery of Marlak's history and the developing plot completely got its claws into me, and I finished this book in one day, desperate to see where it went!

I listened to the audiobook and I loved it. The narrator was really good throughout the whole book at bringing Astra and the other characters to life, but where she really outdid herself was during those steamy dream sequences and the hilarious dream aftermath scenes. Because Astra doesn't admit to Marlak that she's experiencing the dreams too, it results in genuinely funny scenes once they wake up that had me laughing out loud today while listening to the audiobook.

I think the audiobook format was fantastic for this book, and obviously the narrator performed it way better than my own voice in my head would have done! She really brought Astra in particular to life, and had me laughing a lot! I can't wait for the second book - it was such a strong ending that sets up lots of drama and secrets to be revealed as the story continues. I'll definitely be picking up the audiobook for book two as well!

Disclaimer: I received an ALC/ARC from NetGalley but this is my voluntary and honest review.

Wow ok, this was actually so good. So I fit this in to my TBR because I was in the mood for a fae love story, you know, as one does, and I was really captivated by this from chapter 1. I loved the premise and I loved the main characters! Chefs kiss. I felt like this was just the right amount of romance/tension/spice and I loved the visits in the dreams, if you know you know..

I also want to mention I consumed this book via audio vs reading and the narrator was really really good. She had a very easy to listen to voice and acted out all the characters really well.

My only note is that... I tend to dislike books where the FMC, specifically, just lies to herself and convinces herself that things that are patently obvious are false, and this book had a lot of that. Like at some point, when a man is CLEARLY obsessed and in love with you, you're visiting each other in each other's dreams, he protects you, provides for you, MARRIES YOU - he OH I DON'T KNOW, maybe DOES love you? Like, what do you need? Do you need it in writing signed with blood? Come on now friend, let's get out of the land of the delulu.

The FMC was insufferable at first, but then she grew on me. I would recommend to anyone who enjoys YA fantasy romance because it did read young. All in all solid book!

A Cursed Son by Day Leitao is book one in her new series, Remnants of the Fallen Kingdom. I was fortunate to receive both the audio and ebook ARC, so this review will be for both copies. A huge thank you to NetGalley and Sparkly Wave for the digital ARC.

The narrator for the audiobook, Caitlin Kelly, was incredible and a perfect choice for this role. A huge thank you to NetGalley and Sparkly Wave publishing for the audiobook ARC.

What I loved:
- Lush worldbuilding with complex magic systems and intricate political landscapes
- Tricky and nefarious fae - my fae-vorite (haha)
- Personable, fleshed out, well thought out characters!!
Complicated and intertwining love - maybe fated mates???
- Excellent supporting cast of characters
- Pacing that makes sense and seems consistent through the plot
- Hard to put down - I finished this within 36 hours of starting

Usually I’d write what I didn’t love here, but I truly don’t have any criticisms of this title. You can check my other ARC reviews to see that I usually do write something here :)

I am rating A Cursed Son 5/5 stars with an extra 3.5/5 spice rating. This title is perfect for fans of Song of the Marked, ACOTAR, A Court this Cruel and Lovely, and similar titles.