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A Songbird's Tale

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Jaren once lived the thrilling life of an adventurer , saving the innocent and slaying foul monsters. But now, blind and haunted, he ekes out a lonely existence as a hermit in the forest. His only companion is a tiny, loyal songbird.

But fate is not finished with Jaren.

Jaren’s solitude is shattered when a wild fey demands he recommence his life as a hero. An ancient demon once believed buried has been growing in strength; if no one stops a fanatic cult from unleashing it, the country will burn.

This quest would be nearly impossible for an entire group of warriors, let alone a single blind man. With Jaren reluctant to heed the warnings, the fey turns his attention elsewhere and transforms the little songbird into a beautiful maiden to send in Jaren’s stead.

“This will be my champion.”

Armed with more curiosity than common sense, a naïve but determined Songbird is unwavering in her quest to vanquish the demon. Jaren is thrown into an impossible predicament- let Songbird charge forth alone to certain death or join her and take up his sword once more.

455 pages, Paperback

Published September 17, 2023

37 people are currently reading
4473 people want to read

About the author

Tiffani Sahara

4 books31 followers
Tiffani grew up on Lord of the Rings, Star Trek, and all-night video game marathons. She’s a jack of all trades and sees no reason why she shouldn’t have as many skills and adventures as her fictional characters. From pull-up competitions to art shows, she likes to do a little bit of everything. When she sets her mind to it, she gets it done. Like that time she ran away and joined the circus. Or that time she rappelled down a waterfall. Or that time she went ice climbing without an ice axe. Or that time… well… you get the idea.

Ever the dreamer, Tiffani absolutely does not have a problem with taking on far more creative projects than any one person can reasonably complete, and she resents the implication.

Tiffani lives in Colorado with her husband and her two fluffy dogs.

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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
Profile Image for Ashley Ottesen.
195 reviews479 followers
October 22, 2024
What an incredible adventure fantasy story. The characters were so well crafted and the imagery was simply gorgeous. This book has the makings of becoming a classic tale akin to Tolkien. Thoroughly enjoyed reading and would recommend to anyone looking for a classic fantasy with dwarves, magic, fae and a fight against darkness.

Splendid.
4 reviews
October 23, 2023
This was such a fun book! Likeable and varied characters with a solid storyline. It's got magic and monsters and of course, love. When is the next one?! I want more of Jaren and Songbird but I really want more about Testsu and her kind and the dwarves - they were all fantastic characters and I want to know more! Overall, great read!
Profile Image for Evelyn Evans.
7 reviews
February 22, 2024
I knew I would love Songbird from the moment she annoyed Jaren. Jaren on the other hand was very self loathing and broody. I do understand how he came to be that way. With everything he had seen and then becoming blind because of the choice he made. He needed someone like Songbird to come and pull him out of his own head and make him realize that it wasn’t his fault. He had to make that decision that lead to his packs death. Finding out how they all died was brutal but essential to understand why Jaren is the way he is.
There is so much adventure and fighting. Songbird maybe naive but she is so brave and willing do sacrifice everything to save the people and things she loves.
Songbird really said this is my quest and I will do it no matter what. And she did it.

This is a SLOW BURN on the romance end. Which I only like when it makes sense. And it makes sense here. Jaren and Songbird being together in that moment was really important for both of them. If it would have happened sooner in the storyline it would not have had as big of an impact for either one of them
Also love that Songbird was in the blue dress for about 2 minutes before that came off. Jaren is so kind and gentle with her. It was very sweet 💕

Chapter 28-
To start. It has this amazing imagery that I can’t stop thinking about. It made me love songbird that much more. She sees the beauty of everything she knows in Reven Woods and it is immediately paralleled to the destruction of the her home and all the creatures that live there if Arznock is freed.
Not only that, it felt like this was a kind of turning point for Jaren. He is starting to really notice her and things about her. He even thinks maybe I should enjoy having my eyesight back- he immediately dismisses that. But you can start to see the cracking in this broody angry dude mask he puts on.

Also, Magic 🔥

“The world outside Reven is a sad and complicated place, but perhaps I could help someone. Perhaps I could make it just a little less sad.” -Songbird 💕


Why I need a follow up book

1. Kroegan and the dwarfs. I need the relationship between Jaren and Kroegan to be mended. Dwarfs have all their rules and honor but songbird is literally part of their clan. Something must be done. Kroegan and Ozzaek’s last words to Jaren made me unreasonably sad and I need them to meet again.
2. Tetsu. Songbird started to trust her more. But idk. She is giving secret villain vibes.
3. Shadecrag Mountains and the Sorja Lake 💕
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Julia Mikes.
128 reviews
February 2, 2025
I loved everything about this book. The story is enjoyable, the world created quite complex and even as such, its real strength lies in the characters. It’s so rare to find a book where even the secondary characters are so well written and fleshed out. And of course there’s Songbird. With her unbridled passion for life and genuine pure joy and curiosity she must be one of the most lovable heroines I ever encountered.
Profile Image for Lucy Dosch (EBookObsessed).
1,181 reviews26 followers
February 17, 2025
Good premise but the story could have used some cleaning up.

It has been six years since Jaren of Mulk and his crew fought the demon, Arzinock, and Jaren was the only survivor of the party. Jaren ran but only after his oldest friend sacrificed himself to trap Arzinock between realms.

When a Fae comes to Jaren, now a broken, blind man and tells him that Arzinock's cult followers are amassing and Jaren still has a job to do, Jaren passes on the great honor to sacrifice himself but the little songbird who lives in the nearby forest and sings for Jaren each day jumps at the chance for a great adventure. The Fae being capricious decides to grant the Songbird's wish, makes her a human woman and tasks her with killing Arzinock.

Jaren might still not have been swayed to care except he and Songbird are attacked by cultists at his home.  Arzinock having tasked them to bring Jaren into the fold or bring his body for sacrifice. Even blind, Jaren has been practicing with his sword and they are on his land. Defeating them is not hard but traveling toward danger blind is certain death. Staying put risks the entire town so Jaren asks the Goddess's blessing to return his sight so he can complete his mission.

Jaren and Songbird take to the road to defeat Arzinock before Autumn arrives but can a broken warrior and a tiny songbird be enough to save the world.

THOUGHTS:
I saw a TikTok from a book tok reviewer who indicated she switched to just self-published books and received over 600 books to review. This was one she talked about and highly recommended...then as always I touched something on my phone and could not find her again.

What definitely caught my attention was the basic premise of the songbird-turned-human fighting against evil with the blind warrior. Although I  did question how far we would get with a blind warrior.  The first fight made sense since no one expected him to fight back but it wouldn't take much for a group to take him down.   Obviously once he returns to his quest, he is no longer being punished for cowardice and is given his sight back.

As you can imagine Songbird had a lot of questions about everything and Jaren has little patience.  I spent a lot of time being displeased with snappy Jaren.  So much so I was delighted when she finally yelled at him that no, he actually doesn’t explain anything to her until after something happens, such as when a musician is try to convince Songbird to come to his room and he will teach her to play his big flute. She obviously does understand his double meaning and Jaren waits until after this issue to explain the dangers of the men in town.   He just kept saying don't to this and don't touch that even knowing she won't understand why and a few more words would have explained.   Grrr.... 

While it was an interesting premise. This books suffered from many slow points, unnecessary side quests and awkward attempts at a slow burn between Jaren and Songbird which were mostly Songbirg and Jaren staring at each other and getting flustered.

We also should have had a few more flashbacks or dreams involving Jaren’s brother and the other adventurers who were killed before we found out about the ultimate failure of their attempt against the demon so we would have felt a connection to those characters and understood Jaren’s devastation with more sympathy as to why he ran away from his task to kill the demon. Obviously they lost since that was part of the whole set up but their loss didn’t mean enough to us since we barely knew them.

The biggest problem with the story is that some parts were unnecessary.  There was a whole section where they come upon a dwarf who is an old acquaintance of Jaren. He sends them on a side quest to get special pinecones which will allow the forges to burn hotter so he can make Jaren a proper sword for this important quest.  It takes two week to get there and two weeks back to the dwarves' mountain.  Then the dwarf prince offers to forge the most amazing sword to fight the demon. He is working non-stop for days into exhaustion and says he will need to keep working non-stop for 2 more weeks to finish it properly. Jaren says we don’t have 2 weeks but since the prince swore an oath to create this amazing sword, he won’t be able to stop until it is done.  He then suggests that Jaren will have to steal the sword “as-is” and of course, become a criminal to the dwarves never to return. What was all the about? Couldn’t the dwarf have started something in the month it took to get the special pinecones? A whole month.  He probably could have done it in a month with the regular forge if it takes 2 weeks with special pinecone fuel.  They could have been on a quest to get a special bridal gift for the dwarf's upcoming wedding while the dwarf made the sword.  Or why didn’t it take three days of non-stop work the the special pinecones? I don’t understand the whole purpose of this dwarf/sword thing as they almost died on this side quest and it was really for nothing. If the author didn’t want to dwarves going on the quest with them, we already knew he was getting married in a few days—in a political arranged wedding that couldn’t be put off.   Make the sword in a few days with the magic pinecones, take the sword and go with the gods’ blessings, and they could have returned to celebrate the wedding with the dwarves.   But no, Jaren had to steal the unfinished sword, finish putting it together himself while they traveled and become a pariah to the entire dwarf clans. Why? It wasted a lot of time and we were all but plodding slowly along w the horses for weeks at a time.  A whole section of the story which made no sense and should have been cleaned up. 

It was an interesting premise but this story definitely could have used a good editor to help kick up the excitement  of the slow parts and clean up or tighten up some of the scenes that we could have done without.

The ending was unexpected so I would say it ended well.
Profile Image for Brandie Michelle.
114 reviews6 followers
December 4, 2025
First of all, thank you so much to Tiffani Sahara for sending me a code to listen to the audiobook. It was going to be a while before I could get to my physical copy, and I am genuinely so grateful she gave me the chance to experience it this way because the audio was incredible. The dual narrators for Jaron and Songbird were perfect and the little musical touches throughout made the entire story feel magical. I truly think the audiobook brought something special to the experience that I would not have gotten from reading alone.

The story follows Jaron, a blind MMC whose perspective was so beautifully written, and Songbird, who I am now fully obsessed with. She has such an inquisitive, excited, curious nature that honestly reminded me a little of myself. She is energetic, lovable, and just so easy to root for. Together they go on a journey full of quests, adventure, danger, and a romance element that I did not even realize would be there, but ended up loving. It is soft, it is sweet, and it fits the tone of the book perfectly.

I also really appreciated seeing a blind main character in fantasy and the way the author portrayed how he views and interprets the world. It added so much to the story and made his character feel incredibly grounded and real. And then you pair that with Songbird, who feels like this little spark of life, and their dynamic is just so fun to listen to.

I highly recommend the audiobook for this one, especially because of the musical elements. It made everything feel so immersive and emotional in the best way. The narration truly brought the characters to life. There is a bit of spice much later in the book, around chapter forty four, but it is easy to skip if that’s not your thing since the rest of the story is very fun and adventure based.

Overall, this was such a fun and sweet read. It was well written, nothing felt like it dragged, and I just thoroughly enjoyed the entire experience. I am so excited to continue on with the rest of Sahara’s short stories and her novella next. I loved this book and would absolutely recommend it to anyone who enjoys a charming fantasy adventure with a touch of romance and wonderful character dynamics.
1 review
November 11, 2023
Absolutely loved this book.

You can tell this is to be the start of what will be great series of stories and adventures. Reminds me of the first time I read Dragon’s of Autumn Twilight and how excited I was to one day hear more.

The author did an amazing job of developing two characters: One well into his life’s journey rich with the hints of lifelong friendships, battles and a deep pain - the other brimming with the eagerness, excitement and slight overconfidence that comes with one taking on a familiar new world for the first time.

The adventure of these two contrasting characters are a great welcome and gentle pull into the world of Galhadria; Jaren and Songbird briefly encounter many fantastical creatures and introduce multiple names of characters that we will undoubtedly hear about again someday…

With the curiosity peaked for the tales that came before a wild fey sought out a blind man and the seeds sown for the untold adventures yet to come, this story is a beautifully written tale of pain, transformation, light and love.
Profile Image for Heather Byrd.
172 reviews3 followers
November 11, 2025
The audiobook is amazingly done! The narrators created that immersive sense to the story. The songs in the story were produced with music and sang by the narrators! It was so good! I replayed a few, well done.

The story:
Songbird!!! She's my favorite,and not just the fun naivety she brings, but those bird like qualities that stick with her. Like slaying spiders, and talking to animals, and whistling arrows --like YES she would be very good at arrow-dynamics! 😄 BUT truly everything about her is spot on and fun. And Jaren is the ultimate grump to her sunshine.

And that’s just some of the characters. There are so many more interesting characters involved. The plot and action is well balanced. And I love a good questing which this book has. I understand the LotR vibes — good vs evil, adventure and quests, chosen champion to rid the world of the evil demon.

100% Recommend to all.
1 review
January 11, 2024
"Everything has a price." This is one of many quotes that has remained with me after finishing Tiffany Sahara's "A Songbird's Tale". While some of the characters can and do use magic, it's use comes at a cost. This concept, along with some humor, raises the level of this fantasy. I particularly enjoyed the details the author included, emphasizing the effort & practice of both physical & magical skills. Nothing came easily to Jared & Songbird, the main characters of this adventure. Their story of their journey and quest is richly described, but not at the expense of the the forward momentum of this delightful tale.
Profile Image for Liz Caballero.
5 reviews
August 2, 2025
I won a copy of this book from a Goodreads giveaway, so thank you.
Let me start by saying this is not my usual type of book. However, I really enjoyed this book. It gave off Lord of the Ring vibes. Two characters are on an epic quest to save their world from a demon.
Songbird was delightfully innocent and inquisitive. Jaren was world weary and haunted by his past. Together, they made a great team.
This was a well written book and great adventure. I wish there would have been a map to help me visualize where their journey had taken them. Would definitely recommend this book to people who like fantasy adventures.
2 reviews
February 5, 2025
A Songbird’s Tale is a beautifully crafted fantasy adventure that blends rich world-building, well developed characters, and a unique take on magic. Jared and Songbird’s journey is one of struggle, growth, and perseverance, making their triumphs feel earned and deeply satisfying. The stunning imagery, humor, and classic fantasy elements bring the story to life, making this a must read for any fantasy lover. An instant classic in the making! I absolutely loved it!
Profile Image for Lisa Stryker.
1 review2 followers
March 21, 2025
I loved having this book to curl up with on a weekend afternoon or after a long work day. I got lost in the story and looked forward to each new development. The descriptions were so vivid I felt like I was IN the book. I enjoyed coming along with Jaren and Songbird as their relationship deepened and I was fully invested in their quest. The author did something that always delights me - she surprised me with twists and with the ending. A very entertaining read!
681 reviews14 followers
April 3, 2024
This was one fantastic book. I thought it was completely original and I was stuck to it like glue. I just had to know how or if a blind man could become a hero. To the author, you have a new, extremely delighted fan. This book was an amazing piece of work and I cannot wait to read more of your incredible work. WOW!
Profile Image for Jennifer Abrahamsen.
Author 4 books34 followers
May 25, 2025
This book came highly recommended by Ashley Ottesen whose Reals I watch often. It didn't disappoint. I really enjoyed traveling through this world with Jaren and Songbird!
I have to say, though I really WANTED the 'afterward, I was ok with the book ending at the last chapter and leaving me wondering. I would have liked to see what my mind decided had occurred. lol
Profile Image for Gustavo Recinos.
6 reviews1 follower
October 7, 2025
This was such a fun and cute unique story!!! I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know the characters and watching them grow/learn together. A really fun adventure. I highly recommend the audiobook, there are some scenes where there is singing and the narrators did a brilliant job at encapsulating the emotions, both in song and in the regular text. I can’t recommend this book enough!!!
1 review
January 15, 2025
Lovely and Unexpected Tale

I very much enjoyed this book. The characters were unique and endearing and easy to relate to. Their lessons and shortcomings and strengths relatable which really lends to caring about them and what they are going through. Was a wonderful read!
Profile Image for Laura Holley.
67 reviews2 followers
July 24, 2025
I received this book as a Goodreads giveaway and really really liked it. It’s a unique take on what happens to the hero after the quest. A sweeping fantasy with slow burn romance, this was a fantastic story.
Profile Image for Nik Putnam .
41 reviews
September 18, 2025
A lovely fantasy about a bird and knight who must go on a quest together. This is a perfect story, with a unique plot line. I really enjoyed it. The character building was beautiful. You really got to like the side characters.
Profile Image for Sheila.
21 reviews3 followers
December 26, 2024
Fantastic book. Thoroughly enjoyed the characters and the story. Would highly recommend it to anyone who enjoys quality fantasy. I truly hope the series continues.
Profile Image for Karin Mallard.
65 reviews
Read
December 8, 2025

Had to DNF because I had to cancel my KU subscription.

Premise was awesome and hit me in the nostalgia, but I was having trouble sinking into the world and the characters.
Profile Image for Kindrie Grove.
Author 10 books6 followers
December 31, 2025
Really enjoyed this adventure. I listened to the audio book and loved that the music and songs were a part of the experience. Both the male and female lead character readers were fantastic. Lovely book with shades of cozy fantasy mixed with life and death action. Very fun!
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