The Courting of Bristol Keats follows Bristol, who along with her two sisters, has been recently orphaned. They are struggling to stay afloat when Bristol begins to receive letters from an ‘aunt’ she has never heard of. Bristol learns that her father may be alive, and has been kidnapped by terrifying creatures and taken to another realm – the one he is from. Desperate to save her father, Bristol travels to the land of fae and makes a deadly bargain with the fae king. What she doesn’t know is that he is just as determined to find her father - dead or alive.

While this book had a great premise and I enjoyed some aspects of the story, I found it to be far too long and the pacing was inconsistent. The plot didn’t take off until the second half, which made the first half feel very difficult to get through.

I didn’t feel very connected to the characters, and this might be because there was a lot of them. The abundance of POV’s was confusing and affected my enjoyment of the narrative. I would have preferred less side characters and either single or dual POV, to allow for more character development.

I enjoyed Bristol’s relationship with her sisters, and the slow-burn romance between her and Tyghan at the start. However, it became very insta-lovey and the feelings seemed to come from nowhere. I would have preferred more tension and angst before they inevitably got together.

I was left feeling very dissatisfied by the ending, which felt like it ended in the middle of a scene. I genuinely thought that my eARC was missing a few pages at the end as it felt like such an unnatural way to end a story.

While I did have some issues with this book, the writing was lush and magical, and I am definitely going to read the authors previous works. I’m unsure if I’ll continue this duology or not - I feel like I need to sit with my thoughts for a while.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan MacMillan/Tor Bramble for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This is an enjoyable fae romance - anyone who enjoys this genre and the books of Sarah J Maas is going to enjoy The Courting of Bristol Keats. Bristol lives an ordinary if impoverished life with her 2 sisters in smalltown America, both her parents are dead and she is struggling to support her family. Her life is overturned when she meets Tyghan, King of the Fae and his advisors - she discovers that she is far from powerless, her entire past is a lie, and who and what she is can affect the lives of all the fae. It's a good and entertaining start to a new series and I look forward to the next

Thank you to Panmacmillan – Tor Bramble for approving my request for a Netgalley eARC of The Courting of Bristol Keats.

My thoughts and feelings about The Courting of Bristol Keats are very mixed. There are things to love about this book, but at the same time reading it felt like it was reinventing the wheel. I want to be able to recommend this book but I can’t as it just wasn’t for me at the end of the day because it was just too similar to other books like The Cruel Prince series by Holly Black. There was just nothing unique in the characters, plot or storytelling that made this book stand out.

Worse still how thick this book is – which makes the first half slow and difficult to get into. I nearly DNFed so many times, but was spurred on by Bookstagram friends who kept telling me it gets better. Too much worldbuilding information and characters complicate the first half that you feel a little dizzy with all the information thrown into the story.

The second half of the Courting of Bristol Keats is flows faster, bringing in intriguing worldbuilding of the fairy courts and finally developing some individuality to the narrative. The romance between Bristol and Tyghan isn’t groundbreaking but I liked them as a couple and enjoyed their banter and connection with each other.

I liked reading second half of The Courting of Bristol Keats, but struggled with the length and complexity of this book at times. I think if the first half had been shorter and better structured, I would have enjoyed this book a lot more. I’m not going to continue to read the sequel as it didn’t enthral me over all and felt predictable and similar to a lot of other fantasy romance stories based on Irish Celtic Mythology.
I won’t be reviewing this book further than Goodreads as I feel it would be unfair to the author and others who might enjoy The Courting of Bristol Keats.

Really enjoyed this book overal, the world building was fantastic and I fell into the world and couldn't get out of it again.

Loved this book. It was not what i was expecting at all but i fell in love with it.

Bristol is one of 3 sisters, they have lived their life moving constantly from place to place, their parents would mysteriously move them in the middle of the night and none of the girls ever felt safe or settled. Their parents have now both died and Bristol and her sisters are coping the best they can, until one day Bristol is told her father is still alive but is in another realm and Bristol may be blood marked and if she can close some magical portals the king will help her find her father.

I thoroughly enjoyed the world this was set in, i liked Bristol as a character and i may have falled a little bit in love with the king too, i was completely rooting for him.

Great story, would read more if this was a series, it could be, not sure.

Thank you so much for providing me with a review copy of The Courting of Bristol Keats. Unfortunately I've had to set this one aside for now, I've read over 50% so I would like to return to it in the New Year if possible. It had a really strong start but I feel like my interest has decreased which could be a mood thing.

Having read and enjoyed some of the author’s YA novels, I was really excited about her debut adult fantasy and the premise was really intriguing, but, sadly, this wasn’t exactly what I expected. I felt the action dragged out too much and sometimes there were too many points of views that left me confused. Also, I think that some of the writing and timeline was a bit off and I expected more of a cliffhanger at the end. I enjoyed the plot and the characters enough that left me curious to see what happens next, but it took me a while to finish it.

Overall, I really appreciated the main conundrum in this. Everyone was partly responsible for the way things turned out, and I love me a proper conflict. But while I understood why everyone was mad, I didn't exactly *feel* it, and that is one of my main problems with the entire book.

Another was the premise. Right off the bat, we know these 3 sisters love each other, have gone through a lot and can only rely on one another. So it makes perfect sense for them to just let the middle one go off to a world they *just* learned about with nothing but a few supplies, pages from a book and a pat on the shoulder. Sure. I would totally let my sister do that, no problem. (I get narratively *why* we're doing this, but I'm not going to excuse it.) There was no urgency as a result from this, so nothing was really propelling the story for me. This probably wasn't helped by the fact that the author opted for omniscient narration, since it undid all sort of possible suspense. Oh, and there was no character development to keep me interested either.

The third problem was the meandering. You can't convince me someone desperate to save their father is fine twiddling their thumbs for months because of a promise. Bristol is barely doing anything to search for him. She spends most of her time in class or dancing with the LI. And not that I dislike their relationship overall, but people need to stop labelling it slow burn when the characters are getting together after a month of knowing each other. Please.

In fourth place, we have the fact that nothing in this was new or refreshing. I've not read Sarah J. Maas, but even then I've seen all these tropes and ideas done this way before.

Lastly, I'm all for friendships, especially women friendships, but you could have switched them out for each other and nothing would be different except their magical abilities and one distinct trait, which mostly shone through thanks to the narrator.

Speaking of, big props to the narrator. She was absolutely the right choice, delivered on all levels, including the male voices. And I'll throw in a compliment to the author's writing. She created really evocative passages, especially in the beginning.

Many thanks to NetGalley, Mary E. Pearson, and Pan Macmillan for the chance to read and review this book.

I flip-flop between loving this book and just liking it.
This is the first Mary E Pearson book I've ever read and I'm glad I waited for her adult/Romantasy debut. You can definitely tell that she catered to a YA market but I'm hoping in book #2 she will come into her own.
The Courting of Bristol Keats revolves around Bristol, an absolutely ordinary girl from Bowskeep. We're meant to believe this despite the fact that her parents kept their whole family on the run for majority of her life, until they settled down in Bowskeep, and then her parents died... The book follows Bristol, intensely independent and stubborn, as she tries to provide for her family until an aunt she has never heard of wants to give her a gift. As with all fairy-bargains, the deal goes wrong and Bristol abandons her sisters to live in Elphame whilst they try to figure out if the niche branch of magic Bristol has will save their world. I enjoyed the plot of the book and the characters. They were complex and likeable and infuriating. But the world-building was lazy. There were characters who were supposed to be half-human-half-creature people but we were never given a proper descriptions. I don't know how any of its works.
The other things that bugged me was the intertextual references that Ms Pearson threw in - Elphame will always remind me of Elfame in Holly Black's books. The references to the "cauldron of plenty" will always remind me of ACOTAR. "Anastacia Wiggin's Encyclopedia of Faerieland - you mean Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries. I started keeping notes of the references as I felt like I was losing my mind.
My review sounds negative but I actually enjoyed reading the book and hate that I can't read the second one yet. Its incomplete.
Miscommunication is never my favourite trope but INTENTIONAL miscommunication where the FMC just gets over herself? love it.
It was a good, not fantastical, but solid. Gimme book #2, please

After the supposed death of her mother and father Bristol Keats is thrown into a world of fae and magic in order to protect her sisters and find her father.

Is the plot pretty predictable yes did that hinder my enjoyment not all. I found it fun and fast paced love the world and detail of all the different fae. Bristols growth and development and uncovering the secrets had me invested.

Knocked off one star for the ending I felt forgiveness was given too quickly and easily. Looking forward to book 2.

I really loved this romantic story! I thought it was a great take on fae and a nice addition to Mary's books. It's a little slower than some other romantasies but once you are invested it's excellent. Highly recommend!

I really enjoyed this book and I can't wait for the next one. The story was easy to follow from the very beginning and I really enjoyed the characters,the plot was also really interesting and had me eager to know more. It felt a bit slow at times, but other that I absolutely loved it.

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for the eARC!

This was my first book by this author, but it certainly won’t be the last. I really enjoyed the characters, the captivating setting, and the plot. While I found the pacing a bit slow at the beginning, it gradually picked up and kept me hooked.

I did feel a bit lost initially with the world-building and the introduction of the creatures, but as the story unfolded, everything became much clearer. The tension and romance between Bristol and Tyghan were absolutely brilliant and kept me turning the pages.

I can’t wait to dive into the second book in the series!

**I reviewed this is all the usual places and totally forgot to pop it on here (which is kinda the point!!) but here it is :)

I genuinely don't know what I was expecting from this story, because honestly, give me a promising blurb and I'll happily dive in quite blind to whatever world is placed before me.

The Courting of Bristol Keats is a delightful slow burn of a book.

Bristol and Tyghan are both fragile and vulnerable in their own ways, thrust together through needs and desires to secure a future for a family and a people.

The world building is beautiful, with the history and mythology of Tuatha Dé Danann (Irish, pre Christian, origin folklore) is beautiful woven into the world of Elphame, the pace is spot on and I can't think of a single character that wasn't fleshed out exactly as you'd want them to be.

There are lies and treachery, bonds forged of fierce loyalty and duty, and for some, an almost desperate, consuming passion, tenderness, and finally a place that feels like home, like somewhere to belong ❤️

There are plot twists and turns - revelations I did not see coming despite the fact that it was right there if I had just looked!

The ending is not ok, but it's also kind of ok because it would have been way worse a few pages earlier, nonetheless I need the next one in my hands like I need my next breath!

The Courting of Bristol Keats is my favourite book of the year so far after Lilith, but they're quite different genres and this is 100% my favourite fantasy of 2024!

5 huge stars, can't recommend enough, it's the Fae story I didn't know I needed or wanted but now it's here I can't get enough and I absolutely need more.

Thank-you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the eArc.

A fantasy romance featuring fae and monsters? Right up my street! Is what I'd thought.

The Courting of Bristol Keats is the first of a duology following Bristol Keats, an orphan in charge of looking after herself and her sisters in an unforgiving world. Life is tough and money is hard to come by. Until a mysterious distant Aunt makes a proposal on the behalf of a Fae King to enlist Bristol's help in an adventure.

Much like other reviewers, I have to question whether this has been edited. The story is dense and oddly detailed. The pacing is incredibly slow, I was 100 pages in before anything really got started. The side characters are quickly introduced and have little to help identify themselves - they talk the same, act the same and often sound the same to the reader. The chapters change their narrating character frequently and with little warning. And dear lord that ending!

Interesting premise, poor execution.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

At 560 pages, this definitely felt like a slog at times and I feel some editing could have been made while still retaining the key plot elements. Also, what the hell with that abrupt ending? I did enjoy elements of the novel, while others felt recycled from every fae romantasy published in the last ten years. And weirdly, I actually liked the supporting cast more than the main protagonists, particularly the recruits. Pearson has left a lot of loose ends to be wrapped up in the next installment, so it will be interesting to see how she does it.

The Courting of Bristol Keats is an enjoyable romantasy steeped in Irish mythology.

I really like Mary E. Pearson’s writing style, however, I did feel this read very YA. The characterisations often lacked the depth I would expect in a new adult novel. The resolution of the conflict was very underwhelming and I was left confused with the poor ending. There were various other points in the book that would have made more sense, rather than with a sex scene which didn’t really add anything to the plot. Those scenes were well written, but just seemed like an odd choice.

Overall, this was a fairly quick and easy read with interesting magic and other elements. There is enough intrigue for me to want to continue with the series, but I was a little disappointed. I would still recommend this to lovers of romantasy and particularly to those new to the genre.

This book was beautifully written, as are all Mary E Pearson books. It was full of magic and strong relationships, whether that be friendship, sisterhood or romantic. This was Pearson’s first adult book and it was nice to see characters of a similar age to myself trying to find themselves. There was some spice in this book and it was very tasteful, to reassure those who are adverse to those kinda scenes.
The main male lead Tyghan was lying to Bristol through most of the book, which was hard because their relationship felt natural and sweet (only a little bit of enemies, mostly lovers).
I was desperate for more closure at the end of the book, but it is a duology so I am hoping we get everything we need in book 2. I am so excited to meet Bristol’s mother
This was not a quick read, it took me a few weeks to get through, but that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing because I enjoyed every bit I read.
Overall rating is 4.5 stars

𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝒊𝒏 𝑬𝒎𝒐𝒋𝒊𝒔: 💕🐍🚪🕰️🧌🏰

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒕: Book 1 in an adult Romantasy Duology for fans of The Folk of the Air series🤭

𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕:
🩷Secrets & Mystery
💚Hidden Identities
🩷Fae Realm & Faerie Courts
💚Time between the human and Fae Realm is wibbly wobbly
🩷Slow Burn Reluctant Allies/Enemies to Lovers


𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘:
This was a really enjoyable fantasy in the same vein as The Cruel Prince. The Fae world was dangerous and dark, the characters morally grey and the love interest a brooding, secretive king who just can’t stay away from the human FMC who bargained with him.

I thought the world building was good, with Elphame being a richly crafted place both seductive and deadly with an often gothic edge and I was invested in unraveling the secrets and mysteries of the story.

There were two things that stopped me from rating this higher: the length and ending of the book. This book was chonky (over 500 pages) and I actually felt towards the end that a climax, confrontation and resolution weren’t far off. If some bits had been cut/sped up in the middle then it probably could have been a standalone. Honestly though, I probably wouldn’t have felt like that if it wasn’t for the strange and abrupt ending- I have never read anything end so abruptly and in such an … odd?… place. I will be interested to see if Book 2 is another 500+ page book and where the plot will go next

I think most fantasy lovers, especially fans of Holly Black, will enjoy this one and feel compelled to keep reading like I was. For me, this was set to be a 4.25/4.5⭐️ up until the ending which brought it down a little BUT I do still definitely recommend giving it a go!

𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.75

The Courting of Bristol Keats follows Bristol as she becomes entangled in the world of Elfhame. After being forced into a deal with a fae king she must learn to navigate magic, mystery, deceit and romance.

Whilst my overall opinion of this book is a positive one, I did find the pacing was weird. I felt the plot (and therefore my investment in the story and characters) didn’t arrive until the second half.

I really loved the political intrigue that we encountered as the second half of the book progressed and I can’t wait for the second book in this duology.

The romance felt a little ‘insta-love’ and I would have appreciated some more yearning and tension on the lead up to them getting together. I did enjoy the scenes between Bristol and Tygan later on in the book and I loved how messy their situation became.

I really enjoyed the writing and the whimsy of the world. I’m very much looking forward to book 2 and in the meantime I’ll finally be reaching for Mary E Pearson’s Dance of Thieves duology.

I would just like to add that the ending was the most abrupt and bizzare way to end a book I’ve ever encountered. Had we been left with a cliff hanger it may have tipped the scales towards a 4⭐️ review from me.