So I loved this book overall. The audiobook is pretty good, and It sounded great listening to it at 1.75x speed! I typically listen to audiobooks at 1.25x speed, but this one worked best at a higher speed to read along with the ebook!!

I liked the banter between Astra and Marlak! However I wish there was a little re-writting/editing when it came to some of the sexual innuendos. Some things were just so immature and cringey. I understand Astra is naive, however saying things like "thingy", and "your tits are incredible, as appetizing as ripe mangoes" is disgraceful!!! If it wasn't for some of those comments I would have given it 5 stars. I love Marlak but Astra is not my favorite. Especially when she can have mature and vivid sexual dreams, but yet she acts like she is describing things like she is a 12 year old.

Overall the enemies to lovers, and arranged marriage trope worked really well. I loved the side characters in this book too! I'm so excited to read A Traitor Sister after that cliffhanger!!!

Audio review - I loved this book. It drew me in right from the start and kept me that way. The writing was fantastic and different. The fmc was believable which I loved. She isn’t always the most confident of people and at times I wanted to shout at her but I think that’s what made me enjoy the book so much. The mmc was just amazing. I loved the way he loved the fmc and wanted to protect her. The story was left on a huge cliffhanger after making me cry. I can’t wait for book 2

Audiobook Review— I cannot tell you how much I loved this story. From the very beginning it sucks you in and doesn’t let go. The Narrator for the audiobook is perfection. She was very clear and her voice/style of reading allowed you to flow into the story instead of just hearing her words. I hope they continue to use her for the whole series. I was listening to this while I worked, washed dishes, and any other time I could sneak it in. Our FMC is not always confident in herself and I wanted to reach into the book and shake her a few times but she always figures it out. It’s just part of her but I loved her. And our MMC is amazing! So so amazing. And listen when I say this book leaves us on a massive cliffhanger I swear my jaw was dropped. I have already ordered this book for my library and will continue to follow this series on audiobook and as shelf trophy’s!

This book is a thrilling romantasy that blends intrigue, danger, and sizzling chemistry between its protagonists. Astra, a royal decoy trained to live another's life, finds herself inexplicably connected to a disgraced fae prince—one who both captivates and terrifies her. Their connection, first forged in sensual dreams, becomes all too real when he captures her in an icy prison, setting the stage for a compelling enemies-to-lovers dynamic.

Day Leitao crafts a fast-paced story filled with political intrigue, magic, and emotional depth. Astra is a strong yet conflicted heroine, and the prince, with his dark past and dangerous allure, makes for an irresistible love interest. The tension between them—both romantic and adversarial—keeps the pages turning. Caitlin Kelly’s narration enhances the experience, adding nuance to both characters and making their emotions feel even more raw and real.

For fans of steamy fantasy romance with high stakes, forbidden love, and a dash of danger, A Cursed Son delivers. It’s an engaging start to the Remnants of the Fallen Kingdom series, promising more passion and adventure to come.

I'm sorry, but I DNF at 60%, and here are my reasons:

- Astra was incredibly immature and the narrator voiced her as such. She sounded like she was 16 by saying stuff like "many thingy", but then having sex dreams. It felt weird and disjointed.
- "Dream" Marlak/Astra and "real" Marlak/Astra reminded me a lot of the tv show "Severance" with "outies" and "innies". But the show did it much better as these two seemed daft enough not to realize what was going on.
- The seemingly constant mention of milk. Could you pick a less sexy drink than milk? And then to use it as a sex euphemism - it completely grossed me out. That's when it started going downhill for me.

Pros: the narrator actually did do a good job. The variations between all the characters was good, and her Marlak voice was a strong voice you'd want your MMC to have.

Oh My Goodness

What a story! The action starts immediately, Astra is a tough cookie who will scheme and poison to get what she wants. While this plan seems foolproof to begin with, it backfires as not only is Astra sent to an event with the actual prince (and not a substitute as she expected), their carriage gets hijacked by the disgraced Prince Marlak who has been dreaming of Astra for the past year.

Marlek arrives at the castle and agrees a marriage bargain for Astra, and so begins the tale of enemies to lovers, rivals who shouldn't be connected, but are at the deepest level. As Astra learns about a world outside of the life she's always known, she gets closer to Marlak, and she begins to understand her powers, her knowledge, and her place in Marlak's world.

I devoured this book, literally every available moment I was putting my headphones in and sinking into another chapter, and another, and just one more.

I can't wait to dive into book 2.

This book had me torn in the best and most frustrating way possible. I loved so much about it: the slow, immersive world-building, the rich character development, the intricate fae court politics, and that jaw-dropping ending that had me sitting there in shock. But the one thing that nearly drove me up the wall? The two leads refusing to admit their feelings for almost the entire book.

I get it—tension, slow burn, enemies to lovers and all that. But the level of foot-dragging in the romance department? Infuriating. I wanted to shake them both and scream, “Just talk to each other already!” If lack of communication frustrates you in books, be warned—you might find yourself fighting the urge to yell in frustration.

That said, A Cursed Son really nails the cozy-yet-compelling fantasy feel. It’s not a breakneck-paced book, but I loved how it took its time letting the world and characters unfold. And when the plot does hit the gas? Whiplash. In the best way. That ending had me desperate for the next installment.

I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator was quite good—engaging, easy to listen to, and really brought the characters to life. If you’re an audiobook person, this one is definitely a solid listen.

If you love books with a strong focus on relationships and characters, enemies to lovers, very light spice, and fae court intrigue, you need to pick this one up. Just know that you’re in for a slow-burn romance that might have you yelling

A Cursed Son follows Astra and Marlak in a forced proximity romantasy. Our main character Astra, is trained from a young child as an elite guard to be a substitute for her realms princess. However, she has a secret that she must keep at all costs. When she suddenly gets to prove her loyalty to her kingdom, she is thrust into the world fae and has to navigate its vastly different society while simultaneously questioning everything she's ever been told about the realm.

Overall, I liked the story and the plot. I enjoyed the world building and explored different realms like the Bees and Mist courts. I liked that it allowed us to see and interact with the different types of fae. I was genuinely interested to learn more about Marlak and I wanted our two main characters to get together. I was also very happy that Nelson was given the chance to redeem himself. This book has action, romance, jokes and fated mates which is a great combination.

There were two things I didn't like in the story. I found some of the writing to be a bit young/childish for some of the adult themes. At times, it read as a teen/YA crossover with words such as "wimp, awkward, obviously" and they were used very frequently. I felt that different words would have helped the overall story to fit the target audience as there are multiple open door scenes. Second, I felt that we made more progress in their dreams then we did in their every day interactions and I would have liked to see a bit more progress earlier on then what were given.

Again, I did really enjoy the book and think it is a great recommendation for those who like spicy, fun, forced-proximity. I am definitely looking forward to book 2!

Thank you to netgally and Day Leitao for allowing me to review this e-arc.

Wow! This was a great romantasy! A well written fantasy world, magical characters and interesting story.
Dreams, intrigue, action and that sweet spicy romance! The narrator did a great job, and kept me captivated through the the story.
Every time I thought I need what was going to happen, the story took a new twist.
A Princess in disguise, enemies/hate to lovers, forced engagement and promixety and lot's of secrets, banter and tension!
Definitely worht reading!

Post on IG the 14.feb 2025

I loved this! Day is a new to me author and I’m glad I took the chance on this book. Such an interesting story and I loved the the interactions between the FMC and the MMC. Im looking forward to continuing this story.

This audiobook was well made and I really liked the narrator!

A Cursed Son is the first book in the Remnants of the Fallen Kingdom by Day Leitao. This book was so good that I devoured it over two days (I would have completed it in one, but work and sleep got in the way.)

This books is perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas, Jennifer Armentrout, and Rebecca Yarros!

I thought this book was masterfully written, with incredible characters, and a story that kept me on the edge of my seat!

I thought the narration by Caitlin Kelly was wonderful! I loved how she brought this book to life!

I highly recommend A Cursed Son if you enjoy a romantasy! I can't wait to read the future books in the series!!!

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


A Cursed Son (Remnants of the Fallen Kingdom #1) by Day Leitao
Narrated by Caitlin Kelly
Publisher: Sparkly Wave
Genre: New Adult, Romance, Sci Fi & Fantasy
Published: July 5, 2024

This was...fine.

I'll preface this with the fact that I listen to audio books around 2x-2.5x speed usually in order to keep my brain engaged. For this one, I had to bump it up to 2.75--the narration is REALLY slow, so even if you're not someone who usually speeds up books, you're probably going to on this one. The narration was fine and I think the voice fits the character incredibly well. But wow, was it slow.

The book itself? Also...fine. It takes through the halfway part for anything interesting to start happening, and I just really felt no connection to any of the characters. Our FMC's whole purpose of existence is to pretend to be someone else for safety, and she literally never asks a single useful question--just goes along with whatever she's told. The most frustrating thing with her was this whole bit where the MMC repeatedly told her to stop using her magic in his mind/stop trying to read his thoughts, and she says nothing to him. We get pages of her internal monologue about how she's not doing anything/doesn't know what he's talking about/doesn't have magic. But she never says that to him and we don't get a real reason why. Lack of communication is just not it for me in any book unless there's a reason.

And I'm not going to lie, I got the ick about midway through where there was a LOT of talk about drinking milk. For no reason. It was so random, a huge focus, and let's be honest, if you're a grown adult drinking milk regularly (straight up milk, I'm not talking about adding it to coffee or tea), you're probably a psychopath.

I think this didn't really work for me is that the inner monologue and plot/character development felt like it was originally written for a YA audience and then everyone was randomly aged up to get in on that NA money. Nothing wrong with YA, but it just is not for me anymore, and I don't think this was written in a way where the characters actually feel like they're adults with developed frontal lobes.

I don't think I'll be picking up the next book in the series.

This was a fun, wild ride. I loved it. Be prepared! This is a major slow burn. I can't wait for the next one. I need to know what happens! That cliffhanger. It hurt my heart.

Narrated by Caitlin Kelly. Love her voice range.

This book has so much! Marriage of convenience, political aspects, magic, royalty, dreams and betrayals that all hold your attention. I felt the fmc Astra was so relatable especially because she is such an empathetic overthinker.

Ａｕｄｉｏｂｏｏｋ Ｒｅｖｉｅｗ
4.2 🌟
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𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬 :
•enemies to lovers
•fantasy world
•elemental magic
•forced proximity
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This book premise is very good, the audiobook is done very well. The narrator did a great job. She changed her voice when it was different characters, so I was never confused about who was talking.
My biggest ICK is why are the chapters 30 minutes long? No chapters should be that long, that along almost made me want to stop listening to this book.
The storyline did hold my attention, so I will be continuing the series. This book does end on a cliffhanger.
𝐑𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 July.5
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Thank you, Netgalley and Sparkly Wave, for the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

thank you to NetGalley for this audiobook arc in exchange for an honest review.

This is a 3.75 for me. Some of this was quite confusing and I really had to go back and relisten to what had just happened. I feel some of the transitioning could have been a bit more seamless. With that being said on to the good parts! This had so many of my favorite tropes! One horse, forced proximity, forced marriage, fae, enemies to lovers! The list goes on and on! I am so excited to see where this series leads! The FMC has so much finding herself to do but I believe she will truly be one b.a. heroine! This world building was magical and at times even whimsical! The narrator felt like an absolutely perfect fit for this FMC and narrating definitely made this an even better adventure!

ACursedSon by DayLeitao
Book One of the Remnants of the Fallen Kingdom series. Is a 4.2 ⭐️ read.

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.

They talk about sharing a bed with your enemy, but what if you shared more than that?

This book was fast paced and catchy. I didn’t want to put it down and finished it as fast as I could. The FMC and MMC were brilliantly crafted, their dislike for the other was chefs kiss!

Thoroughly enjoyed this read!

Spicy Level - 🌶️🌶️

Audio Book Available
Publisher: SparklyWave
Narrator: Catitiln Kelly
Publication date: 24th FEB 2025

This book starts in a palace, main character is Astra. A fully trained (from birth) princess decoy.
She comes across a fae prince named Marlak, and the love/hate relationship evolves. The sexual tension in dreams are so much fun.
Magic and mystery and a cliffhanger.
Can't wait for the next installment.

Holy gods what a jaw dropping plot twist! This was a fantastic romantasy read! Fast flowing plot, dreamy steam right out of the box, hilarious snarky banter, enemies to lovers to?, forced proximity/marriage, hot fae, great magic system. Highly recommend! I can’t believe I bought the ebook months ago, influenced by booktok, and have been sleeping on it until the audio came available. The hype from booktok was certainly valid. I can’t wait for Traitor Sister!

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of A Cursed Son! This book was so enjoyable!! I cannot wait for book 2!