The premise of this book was so interesting and i knew imminently that i needed to get my hands on a copy so i could find out what happened! I don't think i have ever heard of a story surrounding the fae that has this interesting of a concept. It was really refreshing and unique, and held a lot of tropes that i really enjoy in my fantasy romance books. We're talking; a marriage of convenience, amnesia, fae (duh), humans being where they shouldn't be, and a morally grey mmc. With all of this happening i really thought that i would love this book and enjoy every moment of it, but it did fall a little flat in some areas unfortunately. It didn't impact my overall enjoyment of the book, but it did make things a little harder to follow and overall felt a little rushed.

Again, the plot was so unique sounding that i had to give this book a go! Initially i thought that the mmc might have been the villain/bad guy of this book, because who in their right mind declares that they are married to someone they don't know? I thought that there might have been ulterior motives, or that he actually knew something about her/her past that he just wasn't letting her in on, but the further i got into the book the more i really enjoyed his character.

While i did enjoy this book, and can really see the potential in it, there were things that left me confused. Firstly, the fmc has amnesia right? Yet she immediately dives back into her work instead of trying to uncover her lost memories. Doesn't actually sound too bad until you learn that she is a sex worker... I have nothing against that in and of itself, and thought that it was an INTERESTING direction for the book to take, but i had trouble rationalizing her character as being the kind of person who would jump into that type of work without having her memories back first. Surely there were so many decisions and sacrifices she made before she took up that work in the first place that would be crucial for her to know??? Just seems kinda weird to me, especially the fact that she made the choice to go back into it without any prompting really.

There was also a lot of plot hole and moments that just didn't add up entirely. Maybe i just didn't connect the dots properly, but it really did seem like the author was trying to throw too many things into the mix without properly connecting them all together.
There was just a lot of things that i think need tightening up and tweaking to make the story flow a lot easier, and to take away that confusing quality that it currently has.

Again, overall a good book with an interesting premise and a unique way of story telling, but, it did fall a little flat. If you just read it without doing any critical thinking and take it entirely at face value then it is really quite enjoyable!

Thank you to netgalley, the publisher and the author for giving me the chance to read an arc of this book <3

“Mortal Memories,” by F. A. Eden

I really liked this book. It had a unique plot with the Fae and human marriage pact because she forgot her memories. The plot was so unique because he allowed her prostitution career even though they were married so as to not control her. The silk spider part was very sweet and was my favorite part. It is on the slow side and felt a lot like a slice of life. 5 out of 5 stars.

-Fae
-Amnesia
-Marriage Pact/ Marriage of Convenience
-Prostitution

Thank you for the ARC, Netgalley.

Mortal Memories is such a fun and entertaining read! The slow-burn romance between Carra and Straid had me hooked, and the mix of mystery and fae magic was also fun!!

The premise for this story sounded so good, but the whole book was a mess of plotholes, mixed up names and more. The story and plot would do so well with a massive overhaul.

Not only did the FMC and MMC have zero chemistry, but most of the actual plot, the missing people/missing memories thing, happened off-page. Most of the scenes with Anna/Carra and Straid included them working in silence...

But the biggest turn-off for me was Carra. I am completely supportive of SW, so that wasn't the issue. But the fact that this amnesiac woman just through herself back into work was weird and icky. Even one of her clients initially commented how he couldn't see her until she got her memories back because it just felt like he was taking advantage of her. The only memories she seemed to care about recovering were those of her clients, and finding her family, which she initially said was so important to her, is never brought up again.

75% of the book was spent with Carra either meeting with clients (and only about 1.5 of those sessions resulted in an inkling of information about the plot) or fixing up a room with Straid.

There are so many plot holes throughout the story as well. And even though this is set up to be a series, the plotholes really tank the flow of the story in general because too many things are left open to make you care.

The premise of this book immediately caught my attention. Amnesia. Fae. Marriage Arrangement. Sign me up! This book is great for people who love face-paced books. There isn’t a ton of world building, but I did enjoy the plot (even with the plot holes). There were definitely grammatical errors, which as an ARC reader is expected, but I found myself confused more often than not. I think it needs a bit of editing and some world building and the book could be great!

At first I was unsure if I would enjoy this book, but towards the end I couldn't put it down! There were times that I was really frustrated with the FMC, but I really enjoyed her directness. There were also some small typos and some sentences that didn't really make sense in my head, but perhaps I didn't read them correctly. Honestly, in order to enjoy this book, you have to have a very open mind when it comes to the relationship dynamics. I had to remind myself constantly that both main characters were happy with their relationship and the FMC's line of work. I was also hoping for more spice between the main characters so hopefully that ends up in the sequel. I am looking forward to the next book already!

What a interesting and unassuming little romantasy. While it wasn't perfectly written it had a plot that kept me hooked and I truly enjoyed watching the relationship between Carra and Straid. It was the perfect amount of slowburn for me, where the tension and the draw was there but didn't feel rushed. Plus the respect that Straid showed Carra was refreshing for a male fantasy lead.

I do think the story could be fleshed out a little bit more. The first half of the book didn't really focus on much and I was unsure how much time had passed but then all of sudden the second half all the storyline was happening and time was flying by. There were parts where it wasn't clear who was speaking or there was a scene jump that didn't make sense. I think if the author and editor go through it and give a little bit more meat to some of the scenes and work on the pacing of others before it publishes next month they'll be set for a great book.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of the ebook in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3.50

Discovered alone in the fae Quarter, where trespassing is punishable by death, Carra faces a choice: marry her rescuer or flee. With no memory of who she is or why she was there, she agrees to the marriage, determined to uncover her past.

Mortal Memories by F.A. Eden is an enjoyable read, though not without its flaws. The limited world-building left some fae rules—like the prohibition against thanking a fae—confusing, with the focus primarily on character interactions. While I appreciated the genuine slow burn, there weren't enough moments to build a deeper connection between Carra and Straid beyond a few conversations. The sex scenes were well-written, but lacked context, with some elements left unexplained. The pacing felt rushed, with noticeable plot holes and missing punctuation. Still, I found the story enjoyable, and with some revisions, it could be even better. I would recommend giving it a read if you enjoy a quick read with a good slow burn that leaves you anticipating for more. Thank you so much to BooksGoSocial & NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. I look forward to reading more from F.A Eden!

Prepare yourself for a sizzling, slow-burn adventure where fae and humans mix like oil and water—unless, of course, there's a forced marriage and a sprinkle of amnesia involved. Carra wakes up with a headache bigger than her memory loss, and her options are limited: either marry a brooding fae lord, Straid, or risk becoming a fae snack. Spoiler: she chooses door number one, and the awkward, tension-filled journey to discover her identity and why she was found in the forbidden fae Quarter begins.

Now, let's talk about the twisty plot. It’s like peeling an onion—each layer reveals something you didn’t see coming, and yes, there might be some tears involved (especially from our hero Straid, who hasn’t dealt with emotions since... ever?). But don't worry, the romance, though slow to ignite, definitely brings the heat, promising readers a few blush-worthy moments.

There were a few grammar quirks, but since it’s an ARC, I’ll overlook them—after all, it's not the final edit!

ARC but my opinions are entirely my own.

Thank you in advance for providing the ARC copy of this book!

This book is starting out promising with the description and several chapters at the beginning, it's quite page-turning book with a well development bond of both the main characters. For the building world, I think fae world is already used in many fantasy stories, but the author nailed it with a touch of dark secrets and the personality of the main characters themselves making it's intriguing to keep going.

I like the slow-burning romance between the main characters, as the story itself pays attention a lot to the development of the main characters, so it's very delightful to read. Although, there are some grammatical missing and inappropriate diction choices, this book still enjoyable or at least I can understand what the author means.

I wish I have the chance to read the continuation of this book!

Thank you netgalley for the arc of this book for my honest opinions and feedback and here we go… I really did want to enjoy this one but it just fell flat for me. There didn’t seem to be much worldbuilding and the story line moved way too fast and just didn’t add up. The characters were subpar and I wouldn’t read again.

Mortal Memories follows a human with stolen memories trying to regain what she has lost whilst getting used to new life with a handsome fae. Right off the bat the reader is thrust into action, and with quite a bit of suspense most questions are left hanging until the last quarter of the novel, some of which were a tad predictable.

I enjoyed reading this book, it was a short read and in my opinion the perfect length. There is good connection between characters however I felt that there could have been more emotion provoking interaction between the main characters and sub-characters.

Overall this book is for those who enjoy an arranged marriage trope with plenty of slow burn romance.

Thank you NetGalley for sending me this ARC in exchange for my honest review :)

Mortal Memories by F. A. Eden is a romantasy novel centered on Carra, a human who wakes up in the fae Quarter with no memory of her past, and Straid, a fae lord who is haunted by his long-lost fiancée.

I really wanted to love this book as it has many of the tropes that I enjoy. However the first chapter feels like you’ve been dropped in the middle of the chapter instead of the beginning, which was a bit off putting. The main female character Carra just in general seems immature or perhaps her character development was just lacking? I found some major loopholes in the plot to be irksome. Small loopholes can definitely be ignored for the sake of a good story but I felt like this one had some large glaring ones. I also found there was a lack of world building for this book that made the book even harder to get through as it made it lack depth.

I won’t say this was a bad book as I did finish it, it was just not for me.

I wanted to enjoy this one but it just didn’t work for me. I really like the premise of this novel but it just didn’t meet my expectations. There didn’t seem to be much worldbuilding and I felt like I had to just guess what some things meant because they weren’t properly explained. I didn’t find any of the characters to be particularly interesting to me and at times they didn’t seem to make much sense.

“She had never believed that women should give up their lives for marriage” This was 20% in, she couldn’t even remember her name but apparently she knows her lifelong beliefs??

The way fmc got her memories felt rushed and anticlimactic considering I had thought this was meant to be a significant part of the story. I did think though that the pacing felt off and rushed, particularly at the end. There seemed to be a lot of time spent on parts that didn’t really matter to the plot and the plot was all very rushed at the end. Clearly, this is meant to be a series (which I didn’t realise going into this) but I still felt like the ending could have been fleshed out more.

2 stars
Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an arc if this book for review.
This book made me feel a bit eek. The plot started off fine enough, with lots of potential, but then took a turn. The female lead does not seem to have much idea about what she is doing, and the male lead - I think the author wanted him to give off a strong Rhysand vibe, but he just felt off.
Everything progressed too quickly or too slowly, certain scenes were really unnecessary and did nit contribute to the plot.
The female lead just seemed really shallow to me, and her investigative skills and thought process were not exactly screaming “I’m intelligent!’
The fact that this book deals with someone who willingly sold their body, and the details surrounding that, including the arrangement with the husband, really triggered me.

Rating: 3/5 ⭐️
Review:
This romance novel set in a fantasy setting is great if the world building of fantasy books confuses you. This book
is on the lighter side and is more of a romance book with a sprinkle of fantasy. The plot is easy to digest but with a kick of spice, beware. I wouldn’t say this is a must read but if you’re looking for a quick spicy romantasy novel then this one is for you.

F.A. Eden's *Mortal Memories* is a captivating blend of mystery, romance, and fantasy that grips you from the start. The story centers on Carra, who wakes up in the fae Quarter with no memory of her past, and Straid, a fae lord who is haunted by his long-lost fiancée. As Carra’s life becomes intertwined with Straid’s, their evolving relationship is both touching and compelling. Eden crafts a magical and treacherous world that is immersive despite the minimal external world-building. The dynamic between Carra and Straid adds depth, though some readers might find their initial romantic connection lacking. The narrative keeps you guessing with its intriguing plot twists and the mystery of Carra’s past, although a few plot holes and a somewhat predictable ending might detract from the experience for some. Overall, *Mortal Memories* is an engaging read that fans of fae lore and slow-burn romance will enjoy, leaving them eagerly anticipating the next installment in the series.

Where do I even start?! This book hooked me in from the very start!
The sense of mystery and air of suspicion that is around the story line really did a great job of keeping me guessing the whole time. Straid is my favourite character by far, and I love seeing his journey to opening up romantically after 5 decades of grief and recluse. It was so beautiful to see.
I love that this is going to be a series as I can’t wait to read more about this world.
As for the world building, there was little external world building which surprisingly I didn’t mind. I feel like the story line was very centred in the here and now and what was happening in the here and now felt intriguing enough to keep me interested and guessing what would happen next.
None of it felt predictable, and I truly didn’t know where the plot was going to go which was actually quite refreshing for me!

I can’t wait to read the next book, and thank you for the opportunity to read and review this title!

Summarized:
A human woman stumbles in the fae quarters that are off limits to all mortals. Before a disaster occurs, she’s rescued by a fae lord that claims her as his wife in order for nothing bad to fall upon her. However, she doesn’t know who she is, nor how she stumbled into the quarters. How can she marry someone if she doesn’t even know her own name? Mortal Memories is a spicy fae romantasy that follows Carra, a mortal who’s cursed by memory loss. And her temporary husband Straid, who does everything to help her get her memories back before the person that stole them finds her again.

Thoughts:
Cliffhangerrrrrrr, WE END THE BOOK ON A FREAKING CLIFFHANGER!! It took forever for me to get into reading this book at first. I can’t tell if it just seemed super slow in the beginning or if my current reading slump is just messing up my head. But the second this book comes out this needs to be at the top of your tbr. Like I actually need the sequel to this right now. Tomorrow, in a few hours actually because that cliffhanger is insane. I’m not going to spoil a thing about this book but I strongly recommend you read this asap.

This book was just……. Not it.
It moved so fast with no world building, and no explanation. The beginning felt like it started mid chapter and never stopped. Writing was a bit juvenile. And the fact that the main character turned out to be a prostitute and wanted to go right back to it, kind of made no sense to me at all. I DNF’d it.