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A Whispered Oath
A Whispered Oath introduces a dark, vivid, and intriguing world full of complex, morally gray characters. It’s a tale about love, survival, hope, and escaping abuse, told through the eyes of two characters who find common ground in their shared pain.
The queen promised to save us. But now we lie awake at night and stare into the darkness. Every noise, a threat. Every movement, a warning. Don’t go near the forest, for the shadows are hungry.
When Azyliz murders the Order’s knights, he knows that he'll soon share their fate. Nonetheless, he flees from Wedunia, hoping to escape the man who has tortured him for a century.
Marianne, who is blamed for the deaths of her brother and sister, chases after him in a last attempt to redeem herself to those who deem her unworthy of being a knight.
When she captures him, the magical artifact that Azyliz stole binds their souls together. Shunned and hunted, Marianne and Azyliz flee into the forest, where the shadows wait for their prey.
They find comfort in each other’s company, and their bond begins to flourish. Will they escape the monsters of their past? Or will they lose even the shreds of their broken selves?
“A Whispered Oath” contains descriptions of graphic violence and darker themes like abuse, power, betrayal, manipulation, and other topics that may be upsetting for some readers. Please take care of yourself. This book is for an adult audience. It’s not appropriate for children. The intimate scenes happen behind closed doors.
The queen promised to save us. But now we lie awake at night and stare into the darkness. Every noise, a threat. Every movement, a warning. Don’t go near the forest, for the shadows are hungry.
When Azyliz murders the Order’s knights, he knows that he'll soon share their fate. Nonetheless, he flees from Wedunia, hoping to escape the man who has tortured him for a century.
Marianne, who is blamed for the deaths of her brother and sister, chases after him in a last attempt to redeem herself to those who deem her unworthy of being a knight.
When she captures him, the magical artifact that Azyliz stole binds their souls together. Shunned and hunted, Marianne and Azyliz flee into the forest, where the shadows wait for their prey.
They find comfort in each other’s company, and their bond begins to flourish. Will they escape the monsters of their past? Or will they lose even the shreds of their broken selves?
“A Whispered Oath” contains descriptions of graphic violence and darker themes like abuse, power, betrayal, manipulation, and other topics that may be upsetting for some readers. Please take care of yourself. This book is for an adult audience. It’s not appropriate for children. The intimate scenes happen behind closed doors.
160 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 25, 2025
19 people are currently reading
151 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 42 reviews
April 29, 2025
a promising plot with a lack of… everything
March 28, 2025
This was a fun and quick read! Thank you for the ARC copy!
I was amazed at how invested I was in the world, characters and plot in book shorter than I am used to. It was fast-paced and easy to read, and I read through it in one sitting. The descriptions are well-done, and not overly complicated and really gave me a feel for the world this book takes place in.
I would have liked to see the relationship between our two main characters develop a bit more. It felt so sudden, but I think that's fair considering how the length of this novella.
I had fun reading this! Thank you!
I was amazed at how invested I was in the world, characters and plot in book shorter than I am used to. It was fast-paced and easy to read, and I read through it in one sitting. The descriptions are well-done, and not overly complicated and really gave me a feel for the world this book takes place in.
I would have liked to see the relationship between our two main characters develop a bit more. It felt so sudden, but I think that's fair considering how the length of this novella.
I had fun reading this! Thank you!
March 31, 2025
Thank you to the author for providing me with the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
I LOVED this one quite a lot! Short, precise and to the point! The whole idea behind the plot was pretty cool. and was fast paced. Ley deserves more hype honestly tho! And the last line of the book.... Ughh so so so good!
Madeline surely can write a good short story and I'll want to keep tabs on her future works <3
I LOVED this one quite a lot! Short, precise and to the point! The whole idea behind the plot was pretty cool. and was fast paced. Ley deserves more hype honestly tho! And the last line of the book.... Ughh so so so good!
Madeline surely can write a good short story and I'll want to keep tabs on her future works <3
April 21, 2025
I saw what the author was going for. I think she had a wonderful story to tell, but I think some parts need a rewrite or expanded on to make it flow and connect better, and then it would easily be a 4-5 star read. The characters were interesting, the magic system and folklore were enjoyable and there were lots of statements and plot points that could be expanded into another book. For a debut this is a good offering that could really shine up with some beta readers and an editor. ARC provided by Author. Thanks for having me on your ARC team.
🩸Enemies To Lovers
🏹Vampire MMC
🩸Knight FMC
🖤🖤🖤🖤
If you only want to see books I rate 4-stars or higher and get book recommendations follow me on Booksta
🖤🖤🖤🖤
🩸Enemies To Lovers
🏹Vampire MMC
🩸Knight FMC
🖤🖤🖤🖤
If you only want to see books I rate 4-stars or higher and get book recommendations follow me on Booksta
🖤🖤🖤🖤
April 21, 2025
2.5 stars
Marianne finds a new raison-d'etre
This was a quick read, and it was well written, but it had so much back story and lore that it definitely felt like I was dropped in the middle of a series.
It's unclear why everyone hates Marianne.
Ley unquestioningly becames their sidekick...
she makes a big ol' announcement at a tavern just out of nowhere and they appear to half ass some adventure there until they're captured and so very quickly escape.
Everything happens really fast and then abruptly ends.
I still have many questions.
Thanks for giving me the opportunity to arc read this novella
Marianne finds a new raison-d'etre
This was a quick read, and it was well written, but it had so much back story and lore that it definitely felt like I was dropped in the middle of a series.
It's unclear why everyone hates Marianne.
Ley unquestioningly becames their sidekick...
she makes a big ol' announcement at a tavern just out of nowhere and they appear to half ass some adventure there until they're captured and so very quickly escape.
Everything happens really fast and then abruptly ends.
I still have many questions.
Thanks for giving me the opportunity to arc read this novella
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 7, 2025
rtc!
March 28, 2025
3.25 ⭐️
ARC review:
This was a nice, quick read. Cool premise. Interesting characters.
I know it’s a novella, but I would have appreciated a bit more world-building and character development. I had to fill in a lot of blanks to give weight to the MCs’ actions and decisions.
It was enjoyable overall and I’d be happy to read more from this author!
ARC review:
This was a nice, quick read. Cool premise. Interesting characters.
I know it’s a novella, but I would have appreciated a bit more world-building and character development. I had to fill in a lot of blanks to give weight to the MCs’ actions and decisions.
It was enjoyable overall and I’d be happy to read more from this author!
August 15, 2025
2.5
A Whispered Oath is a full length story crammed into a novella, and while some people will certainly like that, it felt to me like vastly too much story and world-building in vastly too short a book. The writing was often confusing, like the author expected us to know what she meant and what was going on in her head while the actual words on the page didn't elaborate or give enough clarification. There were many times I had to re-read passages to try to figure out the intention behind them, and to me, it felt more like a writing style error than a comprehension problem.
The world-building was definitely the strongest part of this book, and I actually loved how big it was. This is a real fantasy book that has cities and monsters and lore which added a depth to the surroundings. It just needed to be either a smaller taste of story or a much bigger novel to get a better sense of it all.
I also enjoyed the dark elements here. A Whispered Oath is not a light read. There's plenty of death and murder, tortured pasts, monsters, and huge stakes. I greatly appreciated how rich all of this was and only found myself constantly wishing it wasn't so quick and vague so that I could immerse into the gritty world more.
When it comes to character building, all I can say is that it was okay, though, really, it couldn't decide what Marianne was supposed to BE. I, personally, found her a bit annoying, especially in the first half when all she would do is cry all the time. She's called a thief towards the beginning, but she never steals. She was trained in an order of killers but claims she's not a very good fighter. She was raised to hate monsters but immediately bonds with a vampire. Most egregious of all, she wants vengeance and talks about "burning them all" towards the beginning of the book, and then at the end, says her companions were the ones obsessed with vengeance and that "wasn't who she was." I really don't love a weak MC, especially a FMC, and that's what Marianne felt like to me. The rest of the characters, however, were a little more consistent and likable.
At the end of the day, A Whispered Oath had great potential, - and not to sound like a parrot squawking on repeat - but it needed MORE, more room to share all of the wonderful ideas clearly present here. It's far from the worst debut I've read, but there's a lot of room for growth, and I hope we get to see it! I would recommend this book to dark fantasy lovers who value a fast-paced read that doesn't pause for air.
A Whispered Oath is a full length story crammed into a novella, and while some people will certainly like that, it felt to me like vastly too much story and world-building in vastly too short a book. The writing was often confusing, like the author expected us to know what she meant and what was going on in her head while the actual words on the page didn't elaborate or give enough clarification. There were many times I had to re-read passages to try to figure out the intention behind them, and to me, it felt more like a writing style error than a comprehension problem.
The world-building was definitely the strongest part of this book, and I actually loved how big it was. This is a real fantasy book that has cities and monsters and lore which added a depth to the surroundings. It just needed to be either a smaller taste of story or a much bigger novel to get a better sense of it all.
I also enjoyed the dark elements here. A Whispered Oath is not a light read. There's plenty of death and murder, tortured pasts, monsters, and huge stakes. I greatly appreciated how rich all of this was and only found myself constantly wishing it wasn't so quick and vague so that I could immerse into the gritty world more.
When it comes to character building, all I can say is that it was okay, though, really, it couldn't decide what Marianne was supposed to BE. I, personally, found her a bit annoying, especially in the first half when all she would do is cry all the time. She's called a thief towards the beginning, but she never steals. She was trained in an order of killers but claims she's not a very good fighter. She was raised to hate monsters but immediately bonds with a vampire. Most egregious of all, she wants vengeance and talks about "burning them all" towards the beginning of the book, and then at the end, says her companions were the ones obsessed with vengeance and that "wasn't who she was." I really don't love a weak MC, especially a FMC, and that's what Marianne felt like to me. The rest of the characters, however, were a little more consistent and likable.
At the end of the day, A Whispered Oath had great potential, - and not to sound like a parrot squawking on repeat - but it needed MORE, more room to share all of the wonderful ideas clearly present here. It's far from the worst debut I've read, but there's a lot of room for growth, and I hope we get to see it! I would recommend this book to dark fantasy lovers who value a fast-paced read that doesn't pause for air.
May 4, 2025
Thanks to the author for giving me the ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Wow. Just wow. I’ve never read a fantasy novella before but this was amazing! It felt like I was reading one of those finished fanfics on AO3, which is incredibly complex and accounts for the shortness of the work (not novel-length). The romance, which could feel “rushed” to some because it happens quite fast, is also understandably so given the fact that it’s a novella and there’s only so much slow-burn development that can happen in such a short length. Despite this, I found the relationship between Marianne and Azyliz to be so sweet. They’ve both been through extensive trauma and I love that they both can support each other. Don’t even get me started on the adventurous elements in this book and the magical artifact. Marianne’s dreams, which are tied to the artifact, were so fascinating and I just know it’s going to be brought up again in future installments of this series. The only qualm I have with this book is that I wish it were longer. There were a few scenes that I felt lost in because certain characters’ reactions confused me like they were going from 0-100 rather quickly. Although, considering I did get an ARC (and there were 30 more pages in the final version), take my critique with a grain of salt.
Again, thank you for the opportunity to read this novella! I hope to be able to read more from this author in the future!
Wow. Just wow. I’ve never read a fantasy novella before but this was amazing! It felt like I was reading one of those finished fanfics on AO3, which is incredibly complex and accounts for the shortness of the work (not novel-length). The romance, which could feel “rushed” to some because it happens quite fast, is also understandably so given the fact that it’s a novella and there’s only so much slow-burn development that can happen in such a short length. Despite this, I found the relationship between Marianne and Azyliz to be so sweet. They’ve both been through extensive trauma and I love that they both can support each other. Don’t even get me started on the adventurous elements in this book and the magical artifact. Marianne’s dreams, which are tied to the artifact, were so fascinating and I just know it’s going to be brought up again in future installments of this series. The only qualm I have with this book is that I wish it were longer. There were a few scenes that I felt lost in because certain characters’ reactions confused me like they were going from 0-100 rather quickly. Although, considering I did get an ARC (and there were 30 more pages in the final version), take my critique with a grain of salt.
Again, thank you for the opportunity to read this novella! I hope to be able to read more from this author in the future!
March 3, 2025
I'm ARC Reader, so thank you for this advanced copy and here is my honest review:
In this fantasy world full of secrets, the author introduces us to our two main characters: Marianne and Azlyz, who ended accidentally bounded together. They shall escape from their past.
This is the type of book you can't stop reading. Concise descriptions help you imagine this whole new world, memorable characters, unexpected turns and scenes that are a sunbeam among all the drama that occurs in this novel.
Maybe, I missed some more complex depth in the relationship between our main characters and how they fall in love (although I am aware that it's a novella, I'm a huge fan of slow burn). Anyway, I really enjoy this book.
That being said, I will keep my eyes on new releases of this author, because I think she has a huge potential and I want to know more about all the stories to come in this incredible fantasy world.
In this fantasy world full of secrets, the author introduces us to our two main characters: Marianne and Azlyz, who ended accidentally bounded together. They shall escape from their past.
This is the type of book you can't stop reading. Concise descriptions help you imagine this whole new world, memorable characters, unexpected turns and scenes that are a sunbeam among all the drama that occurs in this novel.
Maybe, I missed some more complex depth in the relationship between our main characters and how they fall in love (although I am aware that it's a novella, I'm a huge fan of slow burn). Anyway, I really enjoy this book.
That being said, I will keep my eyes on new releases of this author, because I think she has a huge potential and I want to know more about all the stories to come in this incredible fantasy world.
April 3, 2025
A Whispered Oath by Madeline R. Behr is a short novella written follows Marianne, an orphan that was picked up by The Order and basically used as a slave. Then we have Ayzliz, a vampire fledgling who is sent on a mission from his evil Master. Together, these two are set on the same quest, retrieve an artifact and be redeemed in the eyes of their keepers… but these two have other plans.
A Whispered Oath is a shorter story/novella with only around 200 pages total, it is fast paced but the author describes and writes so well, you just keep reading and devouring it! I loved this book and it was a great palette cleanser for me!
I rated it 4 stars with only 2 on the spice level, there was implication of explicit content but no visual open door sex scenes, which makes it a little more YA friendly I think!
This title will be released April 25, 2025 it will be available to purchase on Kindle.
April 9, 2025
Nothing could have prepared me for these vibes!! This felt dark, gritty and heavy, and I was absolutely stunned by the amount of worldbuilding that this author packed into a very lean book! In some places, detail felt sparse. I would have loved to see and hear more about this setting, about the Order and both their history and the history of the world, but this sets the stage so well for subsequent novellas that can build off of this one very easily.
Azyliz and Marianne are both compelling as characters, riveting in their pain and grief, and I loved them both the whole way through. I do think that a lot of bits of this novella would have done so well with more flesh on the bones, but I never felt like it interrupted my enjoyment of the book.
Fast-paced and lyrical, this dark fantasy author is one to watch, and I'm very excited for more from them!! I need more!
Azyliz and Marianne are both compelling as characters, riveting in their pain and grief, and I loved them both the whole way through. I do think that a lot of bits of this novella would have done so well with more flesh on the bones, but I never felt like it interrupted my enjoyment of the book.
Fast-paced and lyrical, this dark fantasy author is one to watch, and I'm very excited for more from them!! I need more!
April 23, 2025
This being a novella equals it being far too short for me! This left me wanting for more.
This is a wonderful dark fantasy romance.
We are quickly thrown right into the plot, first meeting the FMC. She has been abused into a quiet and meek woman who does what she is told. Shortly into the novella, we meet the MMC who is dark and disturbed. The two are destined to kill one another, however they form a fast alliance.
Bonding over a mutual desire to better the land they live in, the two go on a mission to discover how to escape their circumstances and better their lives.
They fall in love and heal throughout their journey, while meeting a variety of curious characters along the way.
A truly wonderful read and I look forward to more of their story!
This is a wonderful dark fantasy romance.
We are quickly thrown right into the plot, first meeting the FMC. She has been abused into a quiet and meek woman who does what she is told. Shortly into the novella, we meet the MMC who is dark and disturbed. The two are destined to kill one another, however they form a fast alliance.
Bonding over a mutual desire to better the land they live in, the two go on a mission to discover how to escape their circumstances and better their lives.
They fall in love and heal throughout their journey, while meeting a variety of curious characters along the way.
A truly wonderful read and I look forward to more of their story!
April 25, 2025
Thank you Madeline R. Behr for sending me this advanced review copy for free. I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This was a great quick read. Lots of action, and really likeable characters. Marianne starts out beat down, abused, and traumatized, and we get to see her growth and inner strength as the story goes on. Azyliz was hands down my favorite of the bunch, and the romance between the two was lovely.
Being a novella there wasn't room for a ton of worldbuilding, but it was enough to get me through the story, and left me wanting more of the lore and world to come in future books.
My only complaint is that the ending felt very rushed. We had a ton of awesome build up, and then whoosh it was done before I even realized it happened.
This was a great quick read. Lots of action, and really likeable characters. Marianne starts out beat down, abused, and traumatized, and we get to see her growth and inner strength as the story goes on. Azyliz was hands down my favorite of the bunch, and the romance between the two was lovely.
Being a novella there wasn't room for a ton of worldbuilding, but it was enough to get me through the story, and left me wanting more of the lore and world to come in future books.
My only complaint is that the ending felt very rushed. We had a ton of awesome build up, and then whoosh it was done before I even realized it happened.
March 31, 2025
**ARC REVIEW**
Fantasy, even dark fantasy, has always been a little hit or miss for me. This Novella was a straight HIT. Sucker punch with extra force. I LOVED this.
Super endearing for a dark fantasy, these characters were raw, emotive and complex. Their chemistry was both soft and passionate and I LIVED for the last line of this book. Cracked me right open 🥹
This plot has so much richness. You could run a million directions with this story and concept; really turn it into an omniverse.
If Madeline decided to take this story, expand it and turn it into a full-length fantasy series, I'd be one of the first to volunteer as tribute to ARC or Beta read.
Fantasy, even dark fantasy, has always been a little hit or miss for me. This Novella was a straight HIT. Sucker punch with extra force. I LOVED this.
Super endearing for a dark fantasy, these characters were raw, emotive and complex. Their chemistry was both soft and passionate and I LIVED for the last line of this book. Cracked me right open 🥹
This plot has so much richness. You could run a million directions with this story and concept; really turn it into an omniverse.
If Madeline decided to take this story, expand it and turn it into a full-length fantasy series, I'd be one of the first to volunteer as tribute to ARC or Beta read.
April 9, 2025
This novella is: Dark, tender, captivating.
A Whispered Oath weaves a haunting enemies-to-lovers story with a touch of gothic magic. Azyliz and Marianne are morally gray, beautifully flawed characters bound by a stolen artifact and their shared pasts. The world-building is rich, and the tension between them is perfectly slow-burn.
The themes are heavy—betrayal, power, and manipulation—but the depth of their connection makes it worth the emotional journey. Some moments feel a bit stretched, but the dark atmosphere and tender moments more than make up for it.
For fans in need of a quick read with fated love and brooding vampires, this one’s a must.
A Whispered Oath weaves a haunting enemies-to-lovers story with a touch of gothic magic. Azyliz and Marianne are morally gray, beautifully flawed characters bound by a stolen artifact and their shared pasts. The world-building is rich, and the tension between them is perfectly slow-burn.
The themes are heavy—betrayal, power, and manipulation—but the depth of their connection makes it worth the emotional journey. Some moments feel a bit stretched, but the dark atmosphere and tender moments more than make up for it.
For fans in need of a quick read with fated love and brooding vampires, this one’s a must.
April 19, 2025
Big thanks to Madeline for the ARC, I’m truly grateful for the opportunity to read and review this early! 🫶🏻
Honestly, I love the premise of this world! It’s my first time reading a book featuring a vampire and a woman knight as the FML, and the fact that their fates become entangled after accidentally releasing a magical artifact? Yes!! Sign me up 🙂↕️🤝🏻
The fast pace is understandable, considering it’s a novella, though some events left me with questions, and the relationship between the leads felt rushed. Still, we get glimpses of the world that the next story will explore more deeply, and I’m definitely intrigued to see where it goes.
April 20, 2025
This was a fast-paced story that follows Marianne, a knight of an Order who is ordered to recover an artifact and find the thief. During her travels, fate intervenes when she meets Ayzliz and despite them being on opposing sides, they are bound together when the artifact activates.
I heavily sympathized Marianne's backstory and her need to belong to something. The characters were interesting but the writing felt a bit disjointed and the character building could have been better. I was still interested in the book and came up with theories to fill in the gaps.
I'll read the second book and see what happens with Marianne and Ayzliz.
*Thanks to Madeline for the ARC!
I heavily sympathized Marianne's backstory and her need to belong to something. The characters were interesting but the writing felt a bit disjointed and the character building could have been better. I was still interested in the book and came up with theories to fill in the gaps.
I'll read the second book and see what happens with Marianne and Ayzliz.
*Thanks to Madeline for the ARC!
April 21, 2025
Green eyes <3
I would have loved for this book to be longer. I could've easily read this book dragged out for a couple more hundred pages. Its a short and fast read but its great. There are some parts where I was confused and did not understand a little but it did not take away from the enjoyment of the story.
Marianne's change through out the book from being scared and timid to becoming brave and fighting for what is right not matter what happened to herself.
Azyliz is such a tortured soul and I love that he was able to get the justice he deserved.
Venset = karma. I giggled at that part (IYKYK)
I would have loved for this book to be longer. I could've easily read this book dragged out for a couple more hundred pages. Its a short and fast read but its great. There are some parts where I was confused and did not understand a little but it did not take away from the enjoyment of the story.
Marianne's change through out the book from being scared and timid to becoming brave and fighting for what is right not matter what happened to herself.
Azyliz is such a tortured soul and I love that he was able to get the justice he deserved.
Venset = karma. I giggled at that part (IYKYK)
April 23, 2025
I adored the premise of this story, it has a super interesting plot that was easy to follow and enjoy. I really loved both Marrianne and Azyliz, although I would have enjoyed more detail about their backstoriea - both of which seem super interesting!
This book is really fast paced and action packed. I would have loved to see this book expanded, with more focus on the world building and character development. We get glimpses of what appears to be a really interesting world, and complex characters. What we see is extremely well written - I just wanted more! I will absolutely look out for any further work Madeline produces in this world as I'm super intrigued to learn more.
This book is really fast paced and action packed. I would have loved to see this book expanded, with more focus on the world building and character development. We get glimpses of what appears to be a really interesting world, and complex characters. What we see is extremely well written - I just wanted more! I will absolutely look out for any further work Madeline produces in this world as I'm super intrigued to learn more.
April 26, 2025
A Whispered Oath is a dark romance with morally grey characters that is told from the perspective of the two main characters who share their tale of hope, survival, love and escaping abuse. This is the story of Marianne and Azyliz.
This book was a quick novella which did not allow for a lot of detalied world building but for the length of the book, the plot was thorough and well written. The relationship between the main characters seemed a little fast and lacked some depth due to the shorter length but in the end their love was evident. The intimate scenes are closed door and was mild.
Overall the book is well written and a quick, fun read that gives you a well rounded story.
This book was a quick novella which did not allow for a lot of detalied world building but for the length of the book, the plot was thorough and well written. The relationship between the main characters seemed a little fast and lacked some depth due to the shorter length but in the end their love was evident. The intimate scenes are closed door and was mild.
Overall the book is well written and a quick, fun read that gives you a well rounded story.
April 29, 2025
📚✨ Book Review: A Whispered Oath by Madeline R. Behr
⭐️ 3/5 | 🌶️ 2/5
This novella was a quick, enjoyable read with a cool premise and intriguing characters. While I liked the story, I found myself wanting more—especially in terms of world-building and character development. I had to fill in a few too many blanks to fully connect with the MCs' choices.
That said, it still held my interest and had moments that stuck with me. A solid intro to what could be a much bigger world, and I’d definitely be happy to read more from this author!
✨ A promising start—and I’m curious to see where their story goes next.
⭐️ 3/5 | 🌶️ 2/5
This novella was a quick, enjoyable read with a cool premise and intriguing characters. While I liked the story, I found myself wanting more—especially in terms of world-building and character development. I had to fill in a few too many blanks to fully connect with the MCs' choices.
That said, it still held my interest and had moments that stuck with me. A solid intro to what could be a much bigger world, and I’d definitely be happy to read more from this author!
✨ A promising start—and I’m curious to see where their story goes next.
September 15, 2025
dnf at 42%
Not a bad book. I likes the writing and the characters, definitely an interesting plot.
My biggest issue is with the world building. I honestly struggled to understand who every side is, what they want or do, especially since the characters are unreliable narrators but in third person, which is a little jarring.
Genuinely not a bad read, I just couldn’t really stay focused when I kept being confused about pretty basic plot details.
How could a monster, a murderer, her enemy, be so breathtaking?
Not a bad book. I likes the writing and the characters, definitely an interesting plot.
My biggest issue is with the world building. I honestly struggled to understand who every side is, what they want or do, especially since the characters are unreliable narrators but in third person, which is a little jarring.
Genuinely not a bad read, I just couldn’t really stay focused when I kept being confused about pretty basic plot details.
That small taste of freedom is enough to keep me going for now. And to drag you along if necessary.
April 22, 2025
Both were just trying to escape their paths, and they ran very similar paths. Marianne and Azyliz ran. Together, they fight not only for their paths to be able to live the lives they want. This is a quick read, and it did semi-jump around a little bit, but at the same time, the storyline was so cute. It was a quick-paced book that did have details on what was being written about and just described in general, but at the same time, there were not tons of details within this book. But that was okay considering you were still able to fully able to understand what was going on.
April 9, 2025
** ARC review **
3-3,5 stars.
A nice and quick read although it could have been a bit longer to give the characters a bit more development and explain their actions a bit more. Sometimes it was a bit confusing to follow. But overall, I think for a short story it was a fun read and really has potential to be something really good with just a bit more written out.
Edit to add: I do really like some of the names. "Azyliz", "Nazrisz" "Venset" all sound really cool.
3-3,5 stars.
A nice and quick read although it could have been a bit longer to give the characters a bit more development and explain their actions a bit more. Sometimes it was a bit confusing to follow. But overall, I think for a short story it was a fun read and really has potential to be something really good with just a bit more written out.
Edit to add: I do really like some of the names. "Azyliz", "Nazrisz" "Venset" all sound really cool.
April 11, 2025
A Whispered Oath by Madeline R. Behr is a fast-paced fantasy novella that is the perfect start to a compelling world with many new stories to explore.
Whilst I usually am a sucker for a long book, this was a fun quick read that still has a good fleshed out story with an endearing romance, interesting plot and the perfect feel-good ending. I will definitely be keeping an eye on Behr's future work. A fantastic debut.
Whilst I usually am a sucker for a long book, this was a fun quick read that still has a good fleshed out story with an endearing romance, interesting plot and the perfect feel-good ending. I will definitely be keeping an eye on Behr's future work. A fantastic debut.
April 25, 2025
I was given the opportunity to ARC read this book, and I am posting this review completely voluntarily.
This is a great first work for an author that shows a lot of promise, I just wasn't stunned by it. A few other reviews have mentioned that with an editor and a few beta readers this would be a marvelous novel, and I whole heartedly agree with that sentiment. If you've got a day to kill this book is an easy way to pass it, especially if you don't mind overlooking a few rough patches in exchange for a very wholesome romance embedded in a lot of darkness. The world seems very interesting, but there were a few things that were either inconsistent or just confused me. But if you're not looking for the devil in the details the over-arcing story is action-packed and full of adventure.
This is a great first work for an author that shows a lot of promise, I just wasn't stunned by it. A few other reviews have mentioned that with an editor and a few beta readers this would be a marvelous novel, and I whole heartedly agree with that sentiment. If you've got a day to kill this book is an easy way to pass it, especially if you don't mind overlooking a few rough patches in exchange for a very wholesome romance embedded in a lot of darkness. The world seems very interesting, but there were a few things that were either inconsistent or just confused me. But if you're not looking for the devil in the details the over-arcing story is action-packed and full of adventure.
April 6, 2025
This was a good book for a change of pace in your normal genre. Typically, I wouldn't pick up a fantasy book. However, this one keeps you engaged with the story. The MFC and MMC are on the same quest to find an artifact, but they have other plans that lead you down the road for one rememberable adventure.
April 8, 2025
I read this as an ARC. Despite this being a novella, I was hoping for more character and story building. It was challenging to understand what was happening in some parts of the story as it felt rushed. This story had potential for a full length book if some of the storylines were more fleshed out. Interested to see if more stories come out of the book’s ending.
April 14, 2025
This book has a lot of potential, to be a 5 star read. The reason why it was a 4 star read is because it was lacking in background history of the characters. Very descriptive, easy to follow, short for a perfect quick read. I loved how adventure packed the book was and I’m looking forward to book 2.
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