Many Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing the Audio review copy in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
As a confession, I already own this physical book but when reading the physical copy I couldn’t get into the book as I found all the Spanish words distracting, so I was delighted to receive this as an audiobook, and I’m so pleased that I did as it was so much easier to immersive myself in the story. The narrator was fantastic at pronouncing the Spanish words, but I hated and I mean hated her portrayal of Reinas voice, which I found far too deep and breathy.
I didn’t find the worldbuilding that strong in this book and had huge holes in the plot for the different species. The book was set over a small continent but didn’t give any information on the world as a whole. The magic system was interesting however, and I would have liked for this to have been explored more. There are a lot of things going on in this book, political intrigue, myths and gods, fantasy elements, racism and speciesism, but I just couldn’t connect with the characters, none of them were particularly likeable, especially Reina, when she started helping to sacrifice babies.
Overall, I enjoyed the audiobook, but I probably wouldn’t buy the sequel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Bonnier UK Audio for the ARC

I liked the worldbuilding in the book. It was fleshed out and good. The characters were ok, but I couldn't connect with any of them, perhaps because I listened to it as an audiobook. I think I would've liked it more if a read a physical copy.

I was excited to read this book - it's an unusual premise and represents the LGBTQIA+ latam community, which is rare in the genre, but it didn't meet expectations.

The story itself is an interesting premise but to work it relies heavily on Reina's naivety (dare I say stupidity), and it made her character incredibly irritating. For me that disrupted the whole of the rest of the narrative. Eva was better, but I didn't feel like there was enough character development on that side of the story, and I would have wanted more. The relationship at the end was totally unbelievable - no one in their right mind would forgive that betrayal and behaviour (although maybe that's the point).

It could be tightened with another round of edits but I feel like previous edits may have damaged the narrative and flow irrevocably.

I would have DNF'd this book at 5% if I wasn't reviewing it.

First of thank you Bonnier UK Audio and NetGalley for the audiobook of The Sun and The Void I already bought the book was excited to listen it I fully enjoyed the audiobook The Sun and The Void is about fantasy folklore ancient god it was a bit slow pacing in the beginning when halfway through it was became fast and more exciting to listen hopefully they is book 2

1.5 ⭐ rounded up.

I tried to push past the slow, boring bits and made it to 55% but then realised I didn't care about any of the characters, so I skimmed the rest until the last few chapters. Didn't miss much.

There was potential there, with the morally corrupt family, but I didn't feel they had convincing enough motivations to go along with what they did. Especially Reina with the whole babies thing.

If there was more romance early on, I would have something to root for but it was weak, and the characters weren't interesting enough to care about.

When I started listening to this fantasy audiobook I found the names difficult to follow. It took time for my ear to become accustomed, but the story pulled me in. That’s character names. Not the author’s name - Gabriela Romero Lacruz should be proud to have her name on this book’s cover. I’m sure her name is going to be on many more. She gives us the start of a series that is dark and broad in its world setting. As I read I kept thinking Reina, (the main character) no! But all she really wants is to find her place, a place where she is wanted; even if my every no was because she was so intent on her own needs she ignored everyone else’s. But there are many demonic characters presented to us, in form or attitude. If this is your sort of book, earphones in and prepare for the start of an unsettling new adventure. Can love conquer deceit and naivety? Thank you to Bonnier UK Audio and NetGalley for the audio ARC. The views expressed are all mine, freely given.

I enjoyed this one. I listened to both the audiobook and ebook alongside one another thanks to NetGalley and the narrator did a really good job. The story itself is engaging, the twists twisting and the characters felt real.

Reina and Eva are two sides of the same coin and I’m interested to see where their story goes. Both are manipulated by those in power which leads to them seeming to have no agency in their choices. I was a little irritated by the way Reina is still so obsessed with Celeste at the end even after everything. I hope the second book sees her becoming more of her own person away from the decisions of other people.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the copy of this audiobook.

I adored this story. I think having the audiobook might have improved the experience judging by other reviews. The narrator did a fantastic job bringing the world and characters of Romero Lacruz's to life. The star of the book is the second half for sure, once we got into it I was so sad every time I had to hit pause on the recording.

Interesting magic system, always nice to see inspiration from cultures outside the typical fantasy magic setting.

This was a lush and vibrant book that was far darker than I expected, and I really enjoyed it. I did struggle to keep the two plots straight initially, but thought that the way in which they came together was really well done. I loved Reina and Eva and the very real danger they both faced, as well as their moral dilemmas, which gave both characters a lot of depth. The world was fascinating and the various types of magic on display were intriguing. Overall, I found this to be a really compelling read and I will definitely pick up the sequel.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review.

I struggled with this one. It’s difficult to put my finger on why, exactly, but I couldn’t really invest in any of the characters. I wasn’t always sure whose pov we were in, mixing up Eva and Reina, and their backgrounds. I found my attention wandering and the narrator’s style didn’t really work for me either.
I wasn’t sure what the purpose of the story was, and for a book of this size, I need a compelling reason to make it to the end.
It has all the right ingredients for a successful epic: a family vying for political power, religious leaders preaching fear and ignorance, racial tension, dark magic, myths and legends, but it lacked tension, jeopardy and emotion. It’s billed as an LGBTQIA romance, sci-fi and fantasy - and maybe that’s the problem for me; it’s trying too hard. At the point where I stopped, there were subtle signs of a potential lesbian romance and there had been a relationship between two male background characters, but the LGBTQIA theme wasn’t especially strong. The fantasy theme had come through in the magical elements, but I wasn’t getting romance or sci-fi, tbh.
I lost track of the plot and interest in it, at 34% in, when all of a sudden the topic of sacrificing babies seemed to emerge from nowhere, and the character involved in it seemed like the last person who’d ever do this.
I’m sure there will be people who love it, but it just wasn’t for me. With thanks to NetGalley and the publishers, Bonnier UK Audio for the chance to listen to an ARC.

This started off pretty well - the first chapter was engaging and set in motion the rest of the book. The world was interesting, if not a bit confusing, but I was quite eager to keep listening.

However, almost halfway through, and I feel nothing whatsoever for any of the characters. The writing style is extremely detached, which can be fine but for me I need to feel something.

Lucy Walker-Evans narrates well, but her narration added to the monotony for me. Maybe this was supposed to be the case, but it left me feeling disengaged.

The plot is also very dark, and while this is something I usually like, there was nothing much to lighten things.

Overall, it was a massive project for a debut writer and I credit her that, but sadly this didn't work for me. That said, I would be up for trying her work in a few years time, as I think with editing this could've been pretty great.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for the ALC

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for lettting me listen to this audio book

gods, magic. betrayal and monsters in the mountains

what more could a person ask for....

once i understood each character i was able to relax into someone else reading this book to me and it was a delight... thank god i didnt have to translate some of those words or try to pronounce them... apart from that this i needed to hear right till the end to find out what happened as i had already started to pull for certain characters.... the outcome was what i wanted to happen....

glad i invested the time to listen to this one well worth it