I really enjoyed this fantasy romance novel. The story has great pacing, a unique magic system, and a perfectly gray male lead, along with a TRULY evil villain you'll love to hate.

The plot follows Emelin, a young woman with unusual magical abilities, who's stuck in a loveless home doing mundane tasks. Her life takes a dramatic turn when her town is set ablaze, and she's kidnapped by the notorious fae, The Silent Death. Taken to the Crimson Court, Emelin struggles to understand why she was spared and whether she truly wants to be.

I loved the enemies-to-lovers trope (it's truly a favorite of mine), expertly crafted with palpable tension and angst. The story balances danger, humor, romance, and emotional depth well. The Silent Death is a captivating, complex character, making this series incredibly promising.

One issue was the repetitive language and excessive inner monologue from Emelin. Her youthful demeanor may also irritate some readers (she did grate on me multiple times). Additionally, there are minor editing issues, including overused words.

Be aware that this book is rated R for adult language, mild spice scenes, and minimal violence.

While the first half of the book may test your patience (since I found it really hard to get in to). The second half of the book is worth it, especially for fans of complex characters and fantasy romance. Despite initial reservations, I'm eager to continue the series.

Court of Blood and Bindings
Where to even begin? First of all, I am absolutely obsessed with this series. It's such a different take on fae and magical people in the author's own way.
The world this is set in is filled with both humans and magical people. There's hardships, oppressed and controlled people by the empire and a long history that isn't easily forgotten by some. One person is at the centre of all the problems. The Mother. In this world where gods are now myth and a land that is more magical than the people itself we meet a human girl who changes everything.
Emelin and Creon both get thrown for a loop when their paths meet. Even though this situation is forced on them in different ways, hatred becomes friendship and friendship... something more that neither of them understands.
What is friendship to someone who has never stopped watching their back and only had themselves to depend on?
When both characters decide to take on the world together, neither of them expects their company to grow. And grow it does. How much, is something you don't find out until the second book —> Lord of Gold and Glory

Book: Court of Blood and Bindings
Author: Lisette Marshall
Series: Fae Isles
Length: 436 Pages
Overall Rating: 5 Stars
Blog Rating 5 Saltire Flags

This book’s beginning kind of reminded me of Cinderella where the daughter Emelin with the magic can’t go to the festival. Due to a previous mishap that had happened years earlier. This is where Emelin had nearly burned down a shop where she had been a seamstress' apprentice. They claimed that this gift was inherited on her mothers side but soon Emelin will discover that was a fabrication too. Her parents convinced her to stay home, as the people of Cathra were celebrating at a festival. They thought they finally found a way to keep the cruel fae out of Cathra, but were very mistaken and wrong.

Even the Mother’s who was the cruel heartless ruler of everything fae and the human, even on the fae isles, crimson court was made from human bones she had slaughtered for centuries! Unfortunately the humans of Cathra trick did not work as the mother of fae found out what these humans were up to and wanted a deathly gruesome revenge! Mother sent her most lethal weapon he was called the silent death to burn down the city and every living human. As the fae could still enter Cathra as the humans celebrating had been very wrong in their assumption.

This is where the soundless murderer whose name is Creon Hytherion. He saw twenty year old Emelin using her magic which he caught and realized she could be the very thing he had wanted for centuries. He then abducted and realized she could help be a weapon for him and finally kill the Mother! As she is the magic person whose magic is not controlled by the Mother! Of course Emelin is furious but she also hates herself for being very attracted to this murderer who is absolutely gorgeous with his velvet wings, muscular body and silky dark hair. Except for one minor problem he can’t speak! Will Emelin fall for this murderer or will he kill her? She feels like there is a two sided sword as he is always kind and makes a fae promise to always protect her. Will the mother even allow Emelin to survive? On top of that Emelin starts to fall in love with this silent killer and feels guilty that she can block out all the death and destruction he has done. Read and discover Creon and Emelin’s fate!

All I can say is wow this book is an absolute masterpiece. In the beginning I thought maybe it was another acotar but I was mistaken. This book’s magical world is amazing, the spice level made my heart race. Plus the MMC I couldn’t help but love plus he can’t talk! How brilliant is that! As for the FMC you can’t help but root for her especially after her own family treats her like dirt. Creon is the first person to ever care and respect Emelin. It is really a beautiful read. Definitely one of my favorite books I have read in fantasy. Lisette Marshall is a wonderful writer and I plan on reading the other books in this series. As this book is definitely addictive and I can’t recommend it enough! I loved this book so much!

Disclaimer: Thank you Netgalley and Lisette Marshall for this advance readers copy. I voluntarily agreed to do an honest, fair review and blog. All thoughts, ideas and words are my own.

Finding a good fantasy read while reading mostly non-fantasy dark romances is hard but this one grabbed my attention instantly. The magic use is nothing I’ve read of before which is one of the reasons it grabbed my attention so easily!

Do I still get my broody powerful MMC? Yes I do but he’s not as powerful as he should be and that’s where Emelin comes in. She has that secret past that she didn’t know about and she is the own he’s been looking for the last century.

Court of Blood and Bindings is book one in the Fae Isles series by Lisette Marshall.
Marshall had created an amazing fantasy story with magic, intrigue, politics, and an absolutely killer couple!
The world building is so well done and thought out.
I found this part of the magic system to be so interesting.
Honestly, this is the best book I've read in a while. Exactly what I needed right now.
I can’t wait to read book two.

Thank You NetGalley and Publisher for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

I really enjoyed this Arc of Court of blood and bindings from Net Galley. I rated it 4 stars.

It was an easy read with what felt like a fast paced plot, full of a different kind of magic system to anything I’ve read before!

Creon might be silent death but I thought he was a really fun and interesting character. The book had tonnes of quirky and likeable characters

I’m excited to read the next book in the series.

I'm shocked by how much I liked this book! It's perfect for those who love a morally grey male, sassy heroine, fae court politics, a quest against evil, and magical training.

Blurb: "When the empire’s deadliest fae murderer catches her wielding forbidden magic, twenty-year-old Emelin believes her hour has come. Instead, her captor spares her life and takes her to the Crimson Court, where the Mother of faekind has ruled unchallenged over fae and humans for decades. The Silent Death is supposed to be the Mother’s loyal servant, her invincible warrior, her ruthless, soulless killer. But in the shadows he is playing a game of his own, and he needs Emelin’s magic to win it."

First of all, the magic system is based on colors. I thought that was unique and I am excited to learn more about the magic in the next books. One of the hardest things for me in a fantasy is when the story doesn't grip me from the very start. This book did that so well! It was easy to get into and understand. There wasn't a time when I was bored.

Although the male main character was magically mute, somehow there was still fun banter. The romance was a slow burn that felt earned. Fake situationship, reluctant allies and magic lessons - I'm all in!!

Check it out if you like:
Magical creatures
Completed series
Mute MMC, sign language
Enemies to lovers
Spice (2 open door scenes)
Reluctant allies
Single POV
Slow burn

Available on Kindle Unlimited. A perfect start to the series - onto book 2!

I absolutely LOVED this!

Bit late to the party with this series but it’s brilliant.

It has forced proximity, enemies to lovers , touch her and die trope with magic, fae and a bit of smut to go with it 🖤

Ok, so to be honest the title for this one had me feeling a certain type of way. I'm an absolute sucker for A Court of somethin' and somethin' but I honestly feel like those books are often hit or miss, leaning towards miss. This is NOT A MISS! I was pleasantly surprised. Fantastic world building and a story that is not just another "ACOTAR Dupe." Please look past the title because this book was fantastic and can stand on it's own without the Court of Blah and Blah label. I also love that we've got spice, but not so much that it becomes a 100% smut book (which don't get me wrong, those can be SO fun). It rides parallel with the storyline instead of becoming the storyline.

This book will satisfy your need for the favorite tropes without being too tropey too! Definitely worth checking out!

I'm a fan of Lisette Marshall, and this was an okay novel from her. It didn't hold me like I wanted it to and I struggled to finish it. I did love the unique magic system!

This book has been on my TBR for quite some time, and I'm happy I finally picked it up. This is exactly what most readers expect when they dive into a fantasy romance or romantasy. The fantasy world is filled with fae and humans, and other to-be-revealed species. The magic system is unique, and I enjoyed the color-based system. I found that it opened the possibilities in how magic can be performed and the world around you manipulated. Though, I did wonder why the color drawn seemed always to need to be from clothing. Why couldn't magic be pulled from trees, grass, walls, dishes, hair?

Overall, I think many, even most, readers will read this and continue on in the series happily. It has the same vibes as all the big romantasy series, so if that is what you're looking for then you won't be disappointed.

Unfortunately, I will not be continuing with the series. I found the first 60-70% of this book a a bit slow to get through before the real action started up. My biggest frustration was the minimal communication between the main characters due to Creon's loss of voice and his preference to communicate via shrugs, eyebrow raises, and glares. While he does use written, and eventually sign, language, even those are limited to a handful of words at a time. This resulted in the vast majority of the content of this book being Emelin's internal monologues. It was just too much for me, especially since I wasn't connecting with her as a character and therefore didn't enjoy being in her head that much.

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing for a digital advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I loved this so much. Fake dating, only one bed, enemies to lovers, a silent assassin and a heroine who's so much more than she realizes. The magic system is so interesting and intricate. And I love when there's plot with my romance. A very interesting mystery to solve.

Overall thoughts:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️

‘I was his weapon now. His treasured unbound little mage.’

‘If someone doesn’t know there is a choice in the first place, can you really blame him for what he ends up doing?’

Tropes: Magic, Fae, He Falls First, Enemies to Lovers, Morally Grey MMC, Fake Dating, One Bed

Emelin has spent her life hiding herself & her magic away. Until one night when her city is destroyed & she is kidnapped by a [gorgeous] winged fae male known only as The Silent Death. An enemies to lovers fae fantasy with political intrigue.

If you like the above, you’ll have a great time with this one. The writing was easy to get into, not too lore heavy. The romance is evenly balanced with the other areas of the plot.
It does initially feel like a story you’ve read before but the MMC is so unique that once he’s introduced that changes everything.
Whilst we’re on the topic, the MMC was my favourite character, his sarcasm, his true character was great.

Good banter & unique magic system.

I did feel like I wanted more from the ending, it really was a ‘to be continued..’ ending but not quite a cliffhanger ending, if that makes sense.

Thank you to Net Galley, Lisette Marshall & the publisher for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Did I just start a new and long romantasy series? Yes! Is the Wings and Fae timeperiod over? NO! Action-packed, magic and a well written fantasy!

A Court of Blood and Bindings is a great start to the Fae Isles series, we follow our FMC, Emeline, a human who has kept her magic a secret all her life, is captured by the Silent Death, a feared fae warrior. Despite his reputation, he spares her life and takes her to the Crimson Court, a realm ruled by the Mother of faekind. The Silent Death offers Emeline a chance to free humanity in exchange for her magical abilities. However, as she spends time with him, she begins to question his true motives and her own feelings towards him.

There are a couple of really unique things about this book that really drew me in, Firstly, the magic system in this book was very unique and I thoroughly enjoyed learning about the colour magic, I just wish we saw more of it and more of Emeline's training later in the book. Secondly, I loved how Creon and Emeline communicated, it's something I haven't really seen done before and I really fostered a sense of comradery and intimacy in their relationship.

The plot moves at a steady pace, with plenty of action and twists to keep you engaged. I love a forced proximity, enemies to lovers trope and this delivered with those! However I felt it to be a little rushed at time and I think Emeline's decision were a little childish and infuriating at time for a 20 year old women.

Overall, Court of Blood and Bindings is a solid fantasy read and I'm look forward to reading the next installment.

I really enjoyed this book, I think this has been totally under-hyped. It’s currently available on KU along with others in the series so I will definitely be reading on.

You have a winged morally grey (or so we are lead to believe) fae MMC and a half fae bad ass FMC.

The world is really easy to get into, I love the way the magic system works using colour. It was easy to understand as you learn along with Emelin as she realises her powers.

I absolutely adored the connection between her and Creon with the non verbal language barrier it gave that extra dimension to their relationship.

It leaves you wanting more and thank goodness we’ve got more ready to go in the series.

If you like ACOTAR, spark of the Everflame or fans of Carissa Broadbent I think you’d like this too.

The tea ☕️

⚔️- enemies to lovers
✨ - magical powers
🦇 - dark winged MMC
🌦️ - grumpy/sunshine
🙋‍♀️ - single POV
🌶️ - 2/5 spice

Highlights - a glimpse of the banter from Emelin

“Oh, Zera help me. I didn’t need another demonstration of corded muscle and gleaming skin”

“A blush stormed my cheeks. Considering how little I wanted to do with his body, it would really be better if he just didn’t acknowledge I had one at all.”

‘First of all,’ I said, a stab of fury momentarily trumping my fear, ‘piss off. The name is Emelin. Second of all, the unhappiness is mutual. Third of all, to what do I owe this charm offense?’

This was a very slow read for me. The first half was very slow, descriptive, and repetitive. The ending was great though. I wish that we had spent more time in the Labyrinth and that it had been a larger part but otherwise a pretty good book

Little dove 🕊️
The slow burn in this nearly killed me im not gonna lie- but it was worth every minute!
I am completely obsessed! Emlin & Creon are just absolutely beautiful & I love that she’s teaching him sign language!

Also can not wait to read more and find out the last between Creon, Tared & Lyn 🤎

If you LOVED the SJM universe & the shadow hunters series you’d really love this series! Ive only read the first book & I’m totally invested.

There is something about this book (and entire series) that scratches an itch I didn't even know I had. This book has so many elements that make an enjoyable romantic fantasy book for me. The main character and love interest were perfect lovers to enemies and both are flawed in ways that made me resonate with their characters. There was lots of found family as well as a unique magic system that Id never seen done before. There is fae, vampires, demons, and many more magical elements. If you’re looking for something that’s a quick, fun, and easy read this is the perfect book.

Court of Blood and Bindings by Lisette Marshall is a beautifully written enemies to lovers romantasy. The Mother of all Fae's ruthless mercenary, the Silent Death, catches Emelin wielding forbidden magic and carries her to his home on the Fae Isles. As Emelin gets to know the Silent Death she discovers there is a lot more to him than meets the eye and he needs her magic to finally end the dangerous game he's been playing for over a century. The world building was very well executed and the magic systems were incredibly unique. The characters are well written and well developed. This was my first book by Lisette Marshall and I'm excited to finish this series as well as read her other books.

I would highly recommend this book to any romantasy lover, especially those who love the enemies to lovers and morally gray MMC tropes. Thank you Victory Editing for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.