Hiraeth

by Ruthi Pegues

There is very little kindness left in Adira’s world. Sure, she escaped her foster home but she is still plagued by the events that took place. Her entire life she has yearned for a place to call home, a place in which she belongs. Little did she know she was never meant to live in this world and that she was destined for another. Just when she finds her family and home, it is ripped from beneath her and she must trudge through the web of half-truths to save it and those she loves.

229 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 27, 2023

About the author

Meet Ruthi, a mother, prolific daydreamer, and lover of the written word. Her nose has always been buried inside a book, but she also enjoys spending time outdoors. Ruthi has overcome many hardships in her life, and she channels these experiences into her writing, creating stories that are both heartwarming and inspiring. She currently lives in the Pacific Northwest with her little family, surrounded by her books, and her friends.

Reviews

[Renae · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, what a ride! I had the full range of human emotions with this book. I smiled, I laughed, I girly squealed, I cringed, I raged and I cried literal tears.

This is a paranormal romance story featuring fairies of various types, but there are also elements of family dynamics and healing from trauma. our main character has been glamoured as a human for her whole life and is thrown into a mess of a fairy conflict between her birth parents and an angry faction of dark fairies. She has a bond with a wolf shifter fairy in a fated mates sort of way. Meanwhile she finds out everything she thought she knew about her life was wrong, and her best friend is involved. She literally doesn’t know who to trust or what is real and struggles to find her truth in this new world. The conflict leads to a final battle and shit gets real. You’ll have to read it to find out the rest of the deets.

Adira is complex, she didn’t always do what I wanted her to, but I could understand the things that shaped her into the kind of person that she is. She is misguided at times, and probably way too trusting, but she really does mean well. Watching her grow and blossom into her power and her confidence was beautiful and warmed my cynical heart.

Lyall is just a whole snack, not only that but he is honorable, dependable, unyieldingly kind, he respects her boundaries even when it’s against his better judgement. He is just like the supportive partner that every woman wants and he is destined for her.

I literally shed tears during the final fight scene, I can’t say why because that would be major spoilers but all I can say is that Adira has had so many losses and the loss of opportunities to have what she always wanted for herself, that just broke my damn heart. Literally tearing up just writing about it. Ugh!

I loved that there was a female friendship happening that was actually healthy and not a rivalry.

The villians were hate-able but there were times that I could understand the appeal of Jude. I did empathize with Adira struggling to erase her sweet memories with him in light of all his shitty behaviour.

The ending was a little abrupt but I am aware this is planned to be a duology, so my only hope is that I won’t have to wait too long for the second one.

[Ruthi Pegues · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so important to me. My blood sweat and literal tears went into writing it. For so many years I doubted myself and this book is proof that I can do it.

Adira is a strong capable woman who often downplays herself and lets her past stand in her way. She is often blinded by the idea of something rather than the reality of it. She faces so much betrayal and heartbreak but still has the capacity to love.

[Tieraney (arobynns version) · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was quite literally a phenomenal book.

is it high fantasy? no and for that i’m eternally grateful, i read this off of vibes alone.

adira has a big problem of being a people pleaser, and she’s a bit naive.. but hey who wouldn’t be after being abused their entire childhood and then manipulated by a narcissistic asshole who claimed to be their best friend? yeah, i would be too. i really wanted to strangle adira around the 70% mark for [redacted] reasons.

just know, there’s an HEA for now 😭

bless ruthi for not being an sjm

[Celina J · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was beautifully done. I enjoyed the love story that entangled with another force trying to break it apart. Adira’s desire to be loved by Jude rings true to most of us. Thinking we are not worthy of love. Then Adira learning to love and accept herself. Lyall only a heartbeat way to keep reminding her of that. Such a great book. I can’t wait to see what happens next!

[Jocelyn Mullis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful Surprise

This book was recommended , and it took me a bit to get into. But once in, I fell in love with Adira and Lyall. This story had love, betrayal, love lost and found, an ideal story telling. I can't wait to see the next book from this author.

[Rizzy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting beginning

I love the story as a whole. The writer drew me in with the MFC being a bit on the thicker side, but I can definitely see the naivety in her words. It read like something you'd see in a diary, or a journal rather than a novel. That's not to say I didn't enjoy it. I look forward to seeing the author grow her world and her writing style.