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Wild Magic #1
Spell Bound
Years after the collapse of the Darshan Empire, the free-flowing magical energy that exists in all things—wild magic—has spiraled out of control. Landscapes are radically altered, lives are upended, and cities are decimated by its chaotic influence.
A refugee from a magic-ravaged city, Ailis Rhis only wants to find a safe town where she can set up shop and live quietly. But fate has other plans for her. Her traveling party is intercepted by a dangerous band of strangers who say they'll allow the travelers onward in exchange for one thing— Ailis.
Resigned to her fate, Ailis accepts. But when she's taken to their village, nothing could prepare her for the reason she's really been taken—or for the magnetic, mysterious man who's at the heart of it all.
A refugee from a magic-ravaged city, Ailis Rhis only wants to find a safe town where she can set up shop and live quietly. But fate has other plans for her. Her traveling party is intercepted by a dangerous band of strangers who say they'll allow the travelers onward in exchange for one thing— Ailis.
Resigned to her fate, Ailis accepts. But when she's taken to their village, nothing could prepare her for the reason she's really been taken—or for the magnetic, mysterious man who's at the heart of it all.
180 pages, Paperback
First published March 11, 2023
77 people are currently reading
776 people want to read
About the author
Heather Guerre
13 books1,017 followersHeather Guerre writes sexy-sweet fantasy, sci-fi, and contemporary romances. A hopeless romantic and an unapologetic nerd, Heather loves everything to do with romance, aliens, shifters, monsters, magic, and outer space.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 92 reviews
March 11, 2023
I don’t care the who, the what, the when, the where, the why, or the how; if Heather Guerre releases a book, I’m reading it.
Ailis is forced to flee her village when it becomes uninhabitable due to wild magic. On the journey to a new home, her traveling party is intercepted by a group of assumed bandits. Their leader Ronan, known as the “Drakkir,” demands Ailis in exchange for her party’s safe passage to a nearby village.
The mystery of the village and its inhabitants was extremely intriguing, and I was unable to put the book down because I needed to know what the hell was going on. I did, however, spend much of my time reading this in confusion, BUT that had nothing to do with the writing and everything to do with my inability to comprehend fantastical lore. I (mostly) understood it by the end.
Ronan was terse but gentle. Paired with Ailis’s backbone, the two made a surprisingly sweet couple. I loved how Ronan listened to Ailis, discerning when she was upset and immediately trying to communicate through it. He was quick to apologize when wrong, and he would change behavior that upset her (e.g. throwing things in anger).
The magic system and worldbuilding of this universe is so rich, especially for how short the novel(la) is. There were hints of storylines future books in the series could expand on, and I cannot wait to see what is done with them. That being said, Spell Bound is a complete and satisfying story on its own.
POV: singular (FMC), third; brief additional pov of MMC
Spice Level: 4/5
Rating: 4.5/5
Ailis is forced to flee her village when it becomes uninhabitable due to wild magic. On the journey to a new home, her traveling party is intercepted by a group of assumed bandits. Their leader Ronan, known as the “Drakkir,” demands Ailis in exchange for her party’s safe passage to a nearby village.
The mystery of the village and its inhabitants was extremely intriguing, and I was unable to put the book down because I needed to know what the hell was going on. I did, however, spend much of my time reading this in confusion, BUT that had nothing to do with the writing and everything to do with my inability to comprehend fantastical lore. I (mostly) understood it by the end.
Ronan was terse but gentle. Paired with Ailis’s backbone, the two made a surprisingly sweet couple. I loved how Ronan listened to Ailis, discerning when she was upset and immediately trying to communicate through it. He was quick to apologize when wrong, and he would change behavior that upset her (e.g. throwing things in anger).
The magic system and worldbuilding of this universe is so rich, especially for how short the novel(la) is. There were hints of storylines future books in the series could expand on, and I cannot wait to see what is done with them. That being said, Spell Bound is a complete and satisfying story on its own.
POV: singular (FMC), third; brief additional pov of MMC
Spice Level: 4/5
Rating: 4.5/5
March 16, 2023
I really liked this shorter read! For not as many pages, there was a very complete story with an absorbing mystery, a sweet romance, and a big dose of steam. The story starts with widowed Ailis (h) leaving her home because their city is being taken over by wild magic and the only inhabitants left are people who had nowhere else to go or were restricted. As they traveled though, they're confronted by a party of soldiers who demand payment for crossing their land. When no payment can be made, the leader demands Ailis instead. The first introduction to the leader, Ronan (H), is a bit harsh and Ailis isn't sure what to expect, which isn't helped by the fact that she had an unpleasant marriage so she can be wary and cynical. But she quickly learns that Ronan is actually caring, lonely, and has a huge burden on his shoulders. There's also quite the mystery going on in the village she's been taken to and the inhabitants are hoping she'll be the one to break their curse. Written in third person, dual POV. No ow/om drama (there is a young girl who's interested in the H but it's not reciprocated) and neither are virgins but both have been celibate for a while.
Ailis and Ronan were excellent main characters. There's a touch of insta feeling between them and the steamy times occur fairly quickly (and often). But their personalities and histories made them very likable to me and I did feel that they shared themselves with each other in a way that when deeper feelings developed, they were believable. I thought they worked well as a couple. The villagers, including Ronan, are limited in what they can and cannot say about what's happening to them so Ailis is at first frustrated and then determined to try to help. She had such a sharp mind and was very compassionate. I felt so badly for Ronan once the extent of what he went through was revealed. He was a strong leader who just wanted to help his people and have them be safe. Ailis had a touch of lingering uncertainties that get poked at by some of the villagers, sometimes intentionally, but she and Ronan do communicate and resolve any conflicts really well. Ronan's also a dirty talker, fyi.
The world-building for this story was a little bit confusing at times, there are a lot of people and places mentioned. The village is a mix of nationalities and religions, plus there are some major historical events that preceded this story that included a rebellion against an empire and wars that actually have some bearing on the story. The magical elements were also crucial to the plot, but introduced as the story went along so I wasn't always certain about who had magic and who didn't, what was capable of happening and what wasn't. Also, sometimes certain facts are repeated and I think this is because other reviews mentioned that the story was originally released via newsletter so the author may have used those moments to remind readers of pertinent information.
I had my suspicions about the curse and I was on the right track. The climax has significant danger and action. This isn't an "I solved the riddle and now the magic disappeared" kind of curse breaking. The climax was one of the moments where I thought the magic's ability was convenient too. I was still happy with how the curse was resolved and that Ailis and Ronan get a HEA that was very wonderful and sweet with an epilogue a couple of months and then several months in the future. I would definitely read more in this series.
Ailis and Ronan were excellent main characters. There's a touch of insta feeling between them and the steamy times occur fairly quickly (and often). But their personalities and histories made them very likable to me and I did feel that they shared themselves with each other in a way that when deeper feelings developed, they were believable. I thought they worked well as a couple. The villagers, including Ronan, are limited in what they can and cannot say about what's happening to them so Ailis is at first frustrated and then determined to try to help. She had such a sharp mind and was very compassionate. I felt so badly for Ronan once the extent of what he went through was revealed. He was a strong leader who just wanted to help his people and have them be safe. Ailis had a touch of lingering uncertainties that get poked at by some of the villagers, sometimes intentionally, but she and Ronan do communicate and resolve any conflicts really well. Ronan's also a dirty talker, fyi.
The world-building for this story was a little bit confusing at times, there are a lot of people and places mentioned. The village is a mix of nationalities and religions, plus there are some major historical events that preceded this story that included a rebellion against an empire and wars that actually have some bearing on the story. The magical elements were also crucial to the plot, but introduced as the story went along so I wasn't always certain about who had magic and who didn't, what was capable of happening and what wasn't. Also, sometimes certain facts are repeated and I think this is because other reviews mentioned that the story was originally released via newsletter so the author may have used those moments to remind readers of pertinent information.
I had my suspicions about the curse and I was on the right track. The climax has significant danger and action. This isn't an "I solved the riddle and now the magic disappeared" kind of curse breaking. The climax was one of the moments where I thought the magic's ability was convenient too. I was still happy with how the curse was resolved and that Ailis and Ronan get a HEA that was very wonderful and sweet with an epilogue a couple of months and then several months in the future. I would definitely read more in this series.
April 7, 2023
Very enjoyable - I wish it had been a bit longer, the pacing felt slightly rushed, but overall I really liked it. Hoping there will be more in this universe!
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March 15, 2023
I picked this up because I liked Heather Guerre’s Tooth & Claw series and saw she had a new release so I thought I’d check it out. It has faint Beauty and the Beast vibes and a very confusing, random magic world building and war backstory that was never really expounded on. The whole curse thing was a little anticlimactic as was the interaction with outside forces and the more crazy random magic that occurs then…I’ll leave it at that so as not to be spoilery, but that being said I did enjoy reading this and the lack of info was necessary for how short this book was. So idk this was mildly interesting and a quick read so I can’t really complain, but I see this is part of a series and I have literally no idea where this would go next but this author does like to jump around to unrelated groups in her other series so perhaps the enemy nation or something? Idk.
April 12, 2023
Oh my goodness! How did this book get released with me hearing nothing about it? If this author publishes it, I’ll read it! I couldn’t put it down!
The world building was absolutely phenomenal. I enjoyed trying to solve the mystery along with Ailis. Ronan was dreamy, stoic, and chivalrous. I loved this book so very much. It had angsty and poignant moments.
The world building was absolutely phenomenal. I enjoyed trying to solve the mystery along with Ailis. Ronan was dreamy, stoic, and chivalrous. I loved this book so very much. It had angsty and poignant moments.
April 10, 2023
It's not so much that this book is bad, it was just underwhelming to me in nearly every aspect.
1. The two characters don't really have chemistry. There's sex and all, but they don't really get the chance to know each other enough in this book for their relationship to seem meaningful.
2. The plot. There is a curse infecting the town where their memories restart after every new moon and only Ronan (the MMC) and Ailis (the FMC) seemingly keep their memories. There's also magic ✨ keeping other people, including the MMC, from telling her information that would help.
3. There's a twist villain. The twist villain is basically the main villain in this story. They are dumb, single-minded, and them leaving after the ending wasn't satisfying at all.
4. Ofc the book ends off with "local healer finds out the FMC is pregnante and they're both ecstatic" because why not at this point.
5. As the reader, I was confused for most of the book. Like the in the beginning of the book, the FMC had her entire village decimated by wild magic and was almost turned into obsidian along with several others, so her entire town had to flee and they named her the leader of the group. The FMC then sacrifices herself to be turned over to the MMC in order to grant the rest of her village safe passage. You would think the concept of "Wild magic is decimating towns overnight and villages had to flee" would come back later right? Nope. You would think the FMC's entire village would be mentioned in some meaningful way during the plot right? Nope.
Overall 4/10, the book had great potential, but the final product ended up feeling rushed and slow all at the same time. Could've definitely benefited from being a bit longer or fleshing out certain bits of lore more. Certainly not Heather Guerre's best work as someone who put a lot of her books as 5 ⭐ reads. I would recommend this book to someone who doesn't mind a semi generic fantasy story and loves the trope of "powerful man worships the FMC, is protective, and a bit of a dom in the sheets".
1. The two characters don't really have chemistry. There's sex and all, but they don't really get the chance to know each other enough in this book for their relationship to seem meaningful.
2. The plot. There is a curse infecting the town where their memories restart after every new moon and only Ronan (the MMC) and Ailis (the FMC) seemingly keep their memories. There's also magic ✨ keeping other people, including the MMC, from telling her information that would help.
3. There's a twist villain. The twist villain is basically the main villain in this story. They are dumb, single-minded, and them leaving after the ending wasn't satisfying at all.
4. Ofc the book ends off with "local healer finds out the FMC is pregnante and they're both ecstatic" because why not at this point.
5. As the reader, I was confused for most of the book. Like the in the beginning of the book, the FMC had her entire village decimated by wild magic and was almost turned into obsidian along with several others, so her entire town had to flee and they named her the leader of the group. The FMC then sacrifices herself to be turned over to the MMC in order to grant the rest of her village safe passage. You would think the concept of "Wild magic is decimating towns overnight and villages had to flee" would come back later right? Nope. You would think the FMC's entire village would be mentioned in some meaningful way during the plot right? Nope.
Overall 4/10, the book had great potential, but the final product ended up feeling rushed and slow all at the same time. Could've definitely benefited from being a bit longer or fleshing out certain bits of lore more. Certainly not Heather Guerre's best work as someone who put a lot of her books as 5 ⭐ reads. I would recommend this book to someone who doesn't mind a semi generic fantasy story and loves the trope of "powerful man worships the FMC, is protective, and a bit of a dom in the sheets".
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 12, 2023
4.75 🌟
An Enchanting, romantic story!
From page one I was hooked. It had that charming and melancholy vibe throughout the book. The story just flowed and the writing had that lyrical quality I love so much.
Ailis was such a strong and resilient character. I loved how she pieced together the mystery and saved the day. Ronan had a sweetness to him even though he was an alpha to the core, which is typical to this author’s heroes.
If you love a fantasy romance with mystery, well developed characters, good plot and climax with steamy scenes, this book is for you.
P.s did I mention it’s 🔥?
Safe, KU and recommended.
An Enchanting, romantic story!
From page one I was hooked. It had that charming and melancholy vibe throughout the book. The story just flowed and the writing had that lyrical quality I love so much.
Ailis was such a strong and resilient character. I loved how she pieced together the mystery and saved the day. Ronan had a sweetness to him even though he was an alpha to the core, which is typical to this author’s heroes.
If you love a fantasy romance with mystery, well developed characters, good plot and climax with steamy scenes, this book is for you.
P.s did I mention it’s 🔥?
Safe, KU and recommended.
March 14, 2023
My only complaint is that it was too short. Heather Guerre, never stop writing pls
March 11, 2023
I read this novella as a serial, released by the author in chunks via her newsletter - and it immediately became the best part of my Mon-Wed-Fri morning. I was drawn into this world of magic right away and found Ailis very sympathetic. The slow reveal of the curse worked well for me, as did the growing relationship between her and Ronan, which I couldn’t get enough of. The end felt a little rushed, but it was really mostly disappointment about leaving this world I had come to love!
Heather Guerre is always a hit for me, and I will definitely be looking for the rest of this series as she writes it.
Heather Guerre is always a hit for me, and I will definitely be looking for the rest of this series as she writes it.
May 30, 2023
A riveting fantasy romance about curse-breaking. Ailis is the key to breaking a village’s curse but the curse prevents them from telling her anything about it—and everyone but Ronan forgets everything after a new moon. The villain was pretty obvious but I enjoyed watching Ailis figure things out. Plus, the religion around life and death was pretty cool and not just because of what it means for Ailis and Ronan’s relationship.
Characters: Ailis is a 31 year old widowed seamstress with a white streak in her hair. Ronan is a white village leader, farmer, and former army commander in his mid to late 30s.
Content notes: past emotional abuse and marital rape, past child physical abuse (MMC’s father), past death of FMC’s husband (accident related to alcoholism), abduction and captivity, sword fight, godfire, nightmares, insects, past death of FMC’s family (alcoholism, childbirth, war, house fire), past death of MMC’s father, past war, MMC revived a dead man on the battlefield (past), lung damage (secondary character), secondary character with burn scars, religious bigotry, pregnancy and childbirth epilogue, past assassination of royal family, on page sex, gendered pejorative, ableist language, hyperbolic language around suicide, mention of past fat-shaming by FMC’s husband, reference to child who nearly drowned
Characters: Ailis is a 31 year old widowed seamstress with a white streak in her hair. Ronan is a white village leader, farmer, and former army commander in his mid to late 30s.
Content notes: past emotional abuse and marital rape, past child physical abuse (MMC’s father), past death of FMC’s husband (accident related to alcoholism), abduction and captivity, sword fight, godfire, nightmares, insects, past death of FMC’s family (alcoholism, childbirth, war, house fire), past death of MMC’s father, past war, MMC revived a dead man on the battlefield (past), lung damage (secondary character), secondary character with burn scars, religious bigotry, pregnancy and childbirth epilogue, past assassination of royal family, on page sex, gendered pejorative, ableist language, hyperbolic language around suicide, mention of past fat-shaming by FMC’s husband, reference to child who nearly drowned
March 12, 2023
my only qualm with this book is that it is too short. i desperately wanted to dive into the world and learn everything, and i’m sure there will be more books added to this series, but i wish it were just a little bit longer
October 7, 2024
Well this was interesting. Quick
March 30, 2023
Beautiful, unique, sexy, creative
March 28, 2023
I didn't gel with this short book for a few reasons, which bummed me out since I adore the Tooth and Claw series.
My first gripe is the infodumping at the beginning. I hate fantasy and sci-fi stories where the setting is just a bunch of facts and history thrown at the reader with little context for where the main characters fit in.
I did not know this was going to be a vague beauty and the beast retelling, it came out of no where and just did not work at all for me.
The magic and how it worked tied with the theology was confusing.
Villains motives and lack of action confused the heck out of me.
What I did like...
Spicy scenes were pretty dang spicy.
Main female character was on the older side of 30, which I appreciated since I get sick of fmcs in the 20s to early 30s.
It was short so I even though I didn't really like the book, I didn't have to plow through for very long or leave it DNFd.
SPOILER and rant ZONE
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So... The "villain" just sits around for a decade for no real reason before taking action? Was I missing something there?
And the entire village knows it is cursed, but doesn't know about the monthly reset?
My first gripe is the infodumping at the beginning. I hate fantasy and sci-fi stories where the setting is just a bunch of facts and history thrown at the reader with little context for where the main characters fit in.
I did not know this was going to be a vague beauty and the beast retelling, it came out of no where and just did not work at all for me.
The magic and how it worked tied with the theology was confusing.
Villains motives and lack of action confused the heck out of me.
What I did like...
Spicy scenes were pretty dang spicy.
Main female character was on the older side of 30, which I appreciated since I get sick of fmcs in the 20s to early 30s.
It was short so I even though I didn't really like the book, I didn't have to plow through for very long or leave it DNFd.
SPOILER and rant ZONE
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
So... The "villain" just sits around for a decade for no real reason before taking action? Was I missing something there?
And the entire village knows it is cursed, but doesn't know about the monthly reset?
September 9, 2023
I think this could have been interesting, but execution didn‘t work for me.
I don‘t mind smut in my books, when it is well balanced, but here they get it on rather early and that was basically all of their relationship building. She basically talks more with every other villager than her LI. Pacing was also off for me. All in all it felt more like an early draft, that would have needed way more work before release.
I don‘t mind smut in my books, when it is well balanced, but here they get it on rather early and that was basically all of their relationship building. She basically talks more with every other villager than her LI. Pacing was also off for me. All in all it felt more like an early draft, that would have needed way more work before release.
April 9, 2025
I love Heather Guerre, I love her Female characters and her stories and I knew this one was a short novella and I have no problem with that but...
Ok, so I liked the story. I found it intriguing, mysterious and fun to read. The characters Ailis and Ronan were fun to read and get to know. Heather really knows how to catch your attention and create magical worlds.
But my problem with this was that everything happened so quickly! We had a mystery and Ailis is the only one who can discover how to break the spell, but suddenly there's a villain that I didn't expect, in one or two chapters happened so much but at the same time not enough that when I realized that I was reading the epilogue I was a bit surprised because I wanted to know more!
And I want to be clear: I know the diference between a Novella and a Book. That's not the problem.
But I think that If you, as an Author, create a new magic world where your readers are going to dive deepley into it, maybe make it longer and not su rushed!
And sure, this is the first book in a Series? So maybe in the next few books we get to understand better this unique world but for me, this story needed more. At least 100 more pages.
Ok, so I liked the story. I found it intriguing, mysterious and fun to read. The characters Ailis and Ronan were fun to read and get to know. Heather really knows how to catch your attention and create magical worlds.
But my problem with this was that everything happened so quickly! We had a mystery and Ailis is the only one who can discover how to break the spell, but suddenly there's a villain that I didn't expect, in one or two chapters happened so much but at the same time not enough that when I realized that I was reading the epilogue I was a bit surprised because I wanted to know more!
And I want to be clear: I know the diference between a Novella and a Book. That's not the problem.
But I think that If you, as an Author, create a new magic world where your readers are going to dive deepley into it, maybe make it longer and not su rushed!
And sure, this is the first book in a Series? So maybe in the next few books we get to understand better this unique world but for me, this story needed more. At least 100 more pages.
April 14, 2023
Trigger warnings? Yes! Found in the author’s note.
Safety?
MMC has been celibate for 10 years. OW is interested in him, but he’s not interested in her because she’s too young (and he would never abuse the village’s trust in him like that).
FMC hasn’t been with anyone since her husband died.
My thoughts?
I absolutely adore all of Heather Guerre’s work that I’ve read.
While I didn’t read this in her newsletter, I did read it on kindle-unlimited in one swoop. I devoured this within a day. Once I started reading, I didn’t want to stop!
Ronan and Ailis’ story was filled with mystery, fantasy, spice, and humour. I love how Ronan proved to her that he truly *wanted her* and not because she can break the mysterious curse placed on the village. Both of the characters were in need of some love and affection, so they soaked each other up like sponges. This ended with a wonderful HEA (that does include marriage and a baby). Plus the villain in the story got what they deserved (no spoilers for that part lol).
Safety?
MMC has been celibate for 10 years. OW is interested in him, but he’s not interested in her because she’s too young (and he would never abuse the village’s trust in him like that).
FMC hasn’t been with anyone since her husband died.
My thoughts?
I absolutely adore all of Heather Guerre’s work that I’ve read.
While I didn’t read this in her newsletter, I did read it on kindle-unlimited in one swoop. I devoured this within a day. Once I started reading, I didn’t want to stop!
Ronan and Ailis’ story was filled with mystery, fantasy, spice, and humour. I love how Ronan proved to her that he truly *wanted her* and not because she can break the mysterious curse placed on the village. Both of the characters were in need of some love and affection, so they soaked each other up like sponges. This ended with a wonderful HEA (that does include marriage and a baby). Plus the villain in the story got what they deserved (no spoilers for that part lol).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 17, 2023
Super good!!
I’ve loved every book this author wrote so I’m not sure why I was surprised that I enjoyed this one. Great world building, characters, 🌶🌶🌶 smexy times, and an awesome mystery to be solved. FMC was taken by bandits on the road to another town with the last remaining survivors of her town…these bandits turn out to be not ordinary bandits, but the mystery of why she was taken begins. It was sooo good. Not sure how another book will be added, but I’ll definitely read it.
I’ve loved every book this author wrote so I’m not sure why I was surprised that I enjoyed this one. Great world building, characters, 🌶🌶🌶 smexy times, and an awesome mystery to be solved. FMC was taken by bandits on the road to another town with the last remaining survivors of her town…these bandits turn out to be not ordinary bandits, but the mystery of why she was taken begins. It was sooo good. Not sure how another book will be added, but I’ll definitely read it.
April 5, 2023
I really liked this, so much, and I wanted more. I am completely fascinated by this world, I have so many questions though, a lot of things weren't properly explained and the mystery of the curse was a fun plot device, but I don't feel satisfied by how it played out. The best parts were obviously Ronan and Ailis and their sweet love.
March 20, 2023
This was such a great read. It’s a novella, around 170 pages I believe, but very well paced with an intriguing story and a great (and super steamy) romance. Highly recommend if you’re in the mood for a quick fantasy romance read!
April 23, 2023
Fantastic!! A whirlwind of a story, it was really engaging and fast-paced with a beautiful story between two characters shrouded in death and life, respectively. I wish I could have more, but it was a nice and well-rounded story.
November 13, 2023
4.5 stars, i will read anything this woman writes
May 30, 2024
For some reason I kinda kept picturing the MMC as a 5ft guy. I liked the world building tho
November 11, 2025
Really interesting world building but truly needed to be longer since so much lore happens before the book started.
April 14, 2023
Fast and easy to follow world building. Really liked the spicy scenes.
March 18, 2023
The plot and world building in this novella are well developed without being overwhelming, and leave enough to make me excited for future books in the series. I loved both main characters, and the steam is excellent, though the relationship development is very quick. (Really, the only tradeoff for the book's short length, which is impressive.) It's a grittier, almost dystopian high fantasy world, but the story still felt light and hopeful.
March 29, 2024
Repetitive writing reminds me of you every chapter or so about previous events…
March 17, 2023
“Spell Bound” by Heather Guerre
3.5⭐️/5⭐️
3🌶/5🌶
“As she lay in his arms, awash in contentment, she realized that this was the intimacy she’d dreamt of when she was young. It did exist. So she hadn’t been naive—just ill-used.”
Ailis, the leader of a refugee group, is stopped on her travels by a group of strangers. To pay the toll, she must agree to follow the strangers to their village. Ailis soon realizes the villagers are living with a curse, and she is the only one who can break it. What’s more, their leader, Ronan, isn’t the merciless man she thought he was. He’s gentle, kind, and generous. Can Ailis break the villagers’ curse? And what will happen between her and Ronan?
-Ah, I really wanted to like this book more than the rating I gave it. In fact, I was committed to giving it four stars up until ~75%. The big villain reveal felt very obvious, and after that my interest tanked; I struggled to pick this back up despite only having a few chapters left.
-I think this story has a lot of potential, but the novella format hinders the plot. The magic system wasn’t explained very clearly, and I felt confused most of the time when vague instances of magic occurred. I do find the idea of wild magic causing destruction interesting, and the mystery surrounding Ronan’s village’s curse kept me on my toes.
-Something that I loved, and what Heather Guerre wrote really effectively, is Ailis’ personal character growth. She is an inspiring individual who has overcome many difficulties. Guerre has a talent for writing FMCs who are ‘down on their luck’, but through the events of the story find the self confidence they need to flourish.
-There is a good amount of smut, and all of it is enjoyable. Again, that’s another thing Guerre does well, she writes fun smut.
-Overall, I’m disappointed I couldn’t connect more with the story, but I’m hopeful subsequent books in this series (the author has suggested this is a prequel story, or at least one that sets up a new series) will grab my attention.
3.5⭐️/5⭐️
3🌶/5🌶
“As she lay in his arms, awash in contentment, she realized that this was the intimacy she’d dreamt of when she was young. It did exist. So she hadn’t been naive—just ill-used.”
Ailis, the leader of a refugee group, is stopped on her travels by a group of strangers. To pay the toll, she must agree to follow the strangers to their village. Ailis soon realizes the villagers are living with a curse, and she is the only one who can break it. What’s more, their leader, Ronan, isn’t the merciless man she thought he was. He’s gentle, kind, and generous. Can Ailis break the villagers’ curse? And what will happen between her and Ronan?
-Ah, I really wanted to like this book more than the rating I gave it. In fact, I was committed to giving it four stars up until ~75%. The big villain reveal felt very obvious, and after that my interest tanked; I struggled to pick this back up despite only having a few chapters left.
-I think this story has a lot of potential, but the novella format hinders the plot. The magic system wasn’t explained very clearly, and I felt confused most of the time when vague instances of magic occurred. I do find the idea of wild magic causing destruction interesting, and the mystery surrounding Ronan’s village’s curse kept me on my toes.
-Something that I loved, and what Heather Guerre wrote really effectively, is Ailis’ personal character growth. She is an inspiring individual who has overcome many difficulties. Guerre has a talent for writing FMCs who are ‘down on their luck’, but through the events of the story find the self confidence they need to flourish.
-There is a good amount of smut, and all of it is enjoyable. Again, that’s another thing Guerre does well, she writes fun smut.
-Overall, I’m disappointed I couldn’t connect more with the story, but I’m hopeful subsequent books in this series (the author has suggested this is a prequel story, or at least one that sets up a new series) will grab my attention.
July 14, 2023
2.75, rounded up. I’m giving this book some slack since it was a newsletter release and, ya know, I love Heather Guerre.
But I guess the question is: should a fun newsletter story be released as a book? In this case, probably not. The romance was rushed and built entirely on sex. Two days after being kidnapped, she learns someone in the village has a crush on the MMC and she gets jealous. Later that day, the two leads have sex for the first time. Like ma’am please he’s told you where the bathhouse is and you watched him peel some vegetables why are you feeling so possessive?
Ailas will sometimes go on these like mini political rants where she’ll have internal dialogue about having no sympathy for separatists in the war but we the reader never really learn about the situation behind the war and her opinions interjected in don’t really further the plot or give insight to certain characters so I feel these could have been cut out.
The twist villain is not a twist at all. It’s obvious for the first time they meddle in the leads growing romance.
So what did I like? I appreciated how fast Ailas caught on to some of the workings of the curse, even if she was blind to the villain behind it. I enjoyed the very brief moments with other townspeople.
Overall, there’s a reason why beauty and the beast retellings tend to be a bit long. It takes a while to build a believable love story when someone kidnaps you and keeps you hostage and the story needs space to world build. This book just didn’t have the length to support either of these goals.
But I guess the question is: should a fun newsletter story be released as a book? In this case, probably not. The romance was rushed and built entirely on sex. Two days after being kidnapped, she learns someone in the village has a crush on the MMC and she gets jealous. Later that day, the two leads have sex for the first time. Like ma’am please he’s told you where the bathhouse is and you watched him peel some vegetables why are you feeling so possessive?
Ailas will sometimes go on these like mini political rants where she’ll have internal dialogue about having no sympathy for separatists in the war but we the reader never really learn about the situation behind the war and her opinions interjected in don’t really further the plot or give insight to certain characters so I feel these could have been cut out.
The twist villain is not a twist at all. It’s obvious for the first time they meddle in the leads growing romance.
So what did I like? I appreciated how fast Ailas caught on to some of the workings of the curse, even if she was blind to the villain behind it. I enjoyed the very brief moments with other townspeople.
Overall, there’s a reason why beauty and the beast retellings tend to be a bit long. It takes a while to build a believable love story when someone kidnaps you and keeps you hostage and the story needs space to world build. This book just didn’t have the length to support either of these goals.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 28, 2023
Eu achei que essa seria uma saga, mas pelo visto é um série de livros independentes. E pela história que estava sendo contada eu preferia uma saga, mas não posso dizer que estou triste por não ser, já que a continuação ainda não foi lançada.
O que eu sinto com esse livro é o mesmo que senti com o outro livro que li dessa autora. É um bom livro, bons personagens, bem criativo, muito bem pesquisado, mas... muito muito rápido.
As coisas acontecem muito rápido e não deu pra realmente sentir o amor dos protagonistas um pelo outro. Também não gostei que o MMC iria apenas se matar e abandonar a FMC sozinha no mundo. E também por ele ter acreditado na FMC não porque ele a ama, mas porque ele a sentia e sentiu seu pânico. Como disse, não deu para realmente sentir o amor deles. Ou me importar.
Fora as coisas que não fazem sentido: tipo a falta de raiva do MMC pela bruxa vagabunda (que deveria ter morrido, a cadela saiu sem nenhuma punição por fazer uma vila inteira sofrer por 10 anos) e por ele ter aceitado tão fácil ela ir com ele. O que ele achou que ia acontecer com ela lá? Seria melhor se ela tivesse ido escondida.
O sexo pelo menos foi realmente memorável. To gostando que essa autora parece adepta ao tropo "segure minha mão em público e meu pescoço no privado".
No geral, essa história teria se beneficiado bem mais com algumas páginas a mais, melhor planejamento e uma punição adequada para o vilão.
EDIT
Ah, e a magia selvagem, que dá nome a série, aparece no início do livro para nunca mais ser mencionado. Estranho.
O que eu sinto com esse livro é o mesmo que senti com o outro livro que li dessa autora. É um bom livro, bons personagens, bem criativo, muito bem pesquisado, mas... muito muito rápido.
As coisas acontecem muito rápido e não deu pra realmente sentir o amor dos protagonistas um pelo outro. Também não gostei que o MMC iria apenas se matar e abandonar a FMC sozinha no mundo. E também por ele ter acreditado na FMC não porque ele a ama, mas porque ele a sentia e sentiu seu pânico. Como disse, não deu para realmente sentir o amor deles. Ou me importar.
Fora as coisas que não fazem sentido: tipo a falta de raiva do MMC pela bruxa vagabunda (que deveria ter morrido, a cadela saiu sem nenhuma punição por fazer uma vila inteira sofrer por 10 anos) e por ele ter aceitado tão fácil ela ir com ele. O que ele achou que ia acontecer com ela lá? Seria melhor se ela tivesse ido escondida.
O sexo pelo menos foi realmente memorável. To gostando que essa autora parece adepta ao tropo "segure minha mão em público e meu pescoço no privado".
No geral, essa história teria se beneficiado bem mais com algumas páginas a mais, melhor planejamento e uma punição adequada para o vilão.
EDIT
Ah, e a magia selvagem, que dá nome a série, aparece no início do livro para nunca mais ser mencionado. Estranho.
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