A Fated Flame

by E.C. O'Malley

Raised in a village that worships the Fairfolk, Neave McCoy is familiar with their supposed power and allure-–even if the home she grew up in encouraged her disbelief. When she wakes one morning with strange magic of her own, the faery stories no longer seem so far-fetched, and her skeptical brothers are now forced to question their own beliefs.

When a Midsummer rendezvous in the woods leads to a fight for her life, Neave winds up in the clutches of the Fairfolk, but they’re not small and harmless like the myths depict. Saved by Rafferty, the unconventional Fae King of Muire, Neave is presented with an offer: he will help to uncover the truth behind her elemental power, if she accepts his offer of one month aboard his rogue ship under his command. Little does she know, the brothers she’d thought she left behind have been searching for her, and their only hope in finding their sister is to begrudgingly secure a Fae alliance of their own.

Forced into close quarters with the Fae King, tensions rise and sparks ignite during their training sessions, and Neave soon realizes that no amount of evasion can spare her from fate. Especially when she cannot reach the truth without first revealing the lies.

A Fated Flame is book 1 in a brand new fantasy romance trilogy inspired by Celtic Mythology. perfect for readers who love teasing banter, a cast of unique side characters, and a slow-burn that is well worth the wait.

Genres: Fantasy

469 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 23, 2026

About the author

E. C. O'Malley is a fantasy romance author from New England who has been searching for a portal into a magical world for as long as she can remember. Having yet to find one, she sets out to create stories that will transport her there instead.

Reviews

[Keikei · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where do I start? I haven’t picked up a book in at least 10 years, nor have I ever written a review on one. I have only recently started listening to audiobooks after being persuaded by one of my very good friend to read a court of thorns and roses, and have read (listened to) more than 80 books since and I must say when that Friend suggested this book I was a little scared since I would have to physically read it. But let me tell you when I finish it in less than a week because I couldn’t put it down. I was shocked.

A Fated Flame is very drawing, easy and fun to read, but also very relatable. In many ways you can find more than one character to relate to and resonate with. The plot is captivating and makes you want to continue reading. I already can’t wait for a book two! One thing I like most about this book is that it didn’t really feel like I was reading just another romantic book about Fae. The way the author, Incorporated Celtic mythology and culture with modern fae fantasy was unique and chefs kiss!

There aren’t many books I keep on my shelf but this is being added to the book trophy collection for sure!

[Michelle Guffey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read! I really enjoyed the Celtic mythology mixed with pirates and Fae. It was very well balanced and well written. It flowed really well and got that whimsical feel as well.

Neave and Rafferty… oh man! Two hot heads coming together and they go boom! One is a human and the other a Far Pirate King… but there’s so much more to each of them!

Perfect for those who love:
💚Bargains
💚Forced Proximity
💚Forbidden Love
💚Elemental Magic
💚Caretaking
💚Enemies to Lovers
💚Celtic Mythology

Thank you to E.C. O’Malley for the opportunity to read your book early!!

[Gwendolyne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was such a good read! While some parts were predictable, I found myself pleasantly surprised at many other unexpected turns. I loved the plot, the characters, and the slow burn romance. And that ending!!!!! Sign me up for all the upcoming arc reads for the sequels. I highly recommend

[lauren ⋆☽˚ · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢 𝕭𝖚𝖙 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗𝖊 𝖆𝖗𝖊 𝖆𝖑𝖜𝖆𝖞𝖘 𝖈𝖗𝖊𝖆𝖙𝖚𝖗𝖊𝖘 𝖎𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖜𝖔𝖔𝖉𝖘— 𝖜𝖆𝖙𝖈𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌, 𝖜𝖆𝖎𝖙𝖎𝖓𝖌— 𝖜𝖍𝖊𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖗 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖞’𝖗𝖊 𝖈𝖔𝖛𝖊𝖗𝖊𝖉 𝖎𝖓 𝖉𝖆𝖗𝖐𝖓𝖊𝖘𝖘 𝖔𝖗 𝖓𝖔𝖙. 𝕬𝖓𝖉 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖞 𝖉𝖔 𝖓𝖔𝖙 𝖋𝖔𝖗𝖌𝖊𝖙 𝖆 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌.⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢

🍃❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･🌊❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:🍃･𝓈𝓅𝑜𝒾𝓁𝑒𝓇 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝑒 𝓇𝑒𝓋𝒾𝑒𝓌 🍃❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･🌊❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･🍃

🏴‍☠️ Fae pirates
🌊 Slow burn
🏴‍☠️ Multiple POVs
🌊 First in a trilogy
🏴‍☠️ Action packed
🌊 Beautiful prose
🌶️.5 (open door, 1 scene)

⁀➴ 𝓡𝓔𝓐𝓓 𝓘𝓕 𝓨𝓞𝓤 𝓛𝓘𝓚𝓔…
Pirates of the Caribbean, Fae pirates, slow burns, elemental magic, mythology, a cast of characters, multiple POVs, romantasy books that have a strong plot with high stakes.

What can I say other than I am absolutely obsessed . The fact that this is a DEBUT is INSANE! This was an amazing experience all around.

⁀➴ 𝓝𝓔𝓐𝓥𝓔 𝓜𝓒𝓒𝓞𝓨 🔥
⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢 “𝕯𝖔 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖐 𝖋𝖔𝖗 𝖔𝖓𝖊 𝖘𝖊𝖈𝖔𝖓𝖉 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝕴 𝖆𝖒 𝖌𝖔𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖔 𝖋𝖊𝖊𝖑 𝖆𝖓𝖞 𝖘𝖊𝖒𝖇𝖑𝖆𝖓𝖈𝖊 𝖔𝖋 𝖗𝖊𝖒𝖔𝖗𝖘𝖊 𝖋𝖔𝖗 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖑𝖎𝖐𝖊𝖘 𝖔𝖋 𝖘𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖜𝖗𝖊𝖙𝖈𝖍𝖊𝖉 𝖍𝖚𝖒𝖆𝖓 𝖌𝖎𝖗𝖑?”⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢
What a refreshing FMC! I loved her fiery attitude, but also the realness she exuded. She was soft-hearted and kind, even while being hot headed. She wasn’t a “badass” warrior; she was doing her best in a world that seemed to want to keep her down. And that meant learning to fight (and not being great at it), coming to terms with her fate, and accepting help from others (with much resistance). I really enjoyed reading a FMC who wasn’t perfect or likeable 100% of the time. Neave was real and had complex emotions. She was scared and alone; it made her lash out and struggle. I thought she was well-written and I can’t wait to see how her character develops throughout the rest of the trilogy.


⁀➴ 𝓓𝓔𝓒𝓛𝓐𝓝 𝓜𝓒𝓒𝓞𝓨 🎼
⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢 𝖄𝖔𝖚 𝖈𝖆𝖓𝖓𝖔𝖙 𝖎𝖌𝖓𝖔𝖗𝖊 𝖒𝖊, 𝕾𝖔𝖓 𝖔𝖋 𝕷𝖎𝖊𝖘, 𝖋𝖔𝖗 𝕴 𝖆𝖒 𝖆𝖘 𝖒𝖚𝖈𝖍 𝖆 𝖕𝖆𝖗𝖙 𝖔𝖋 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖆𝖘 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖆𝖗𝖊 𝖒𝖊.⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢
The eldest McCoy sibling, a hopeless romantic, and captor of my heart. I won’t give spoilers, but his POVs were SO interesting. I did not see ✨that✨ coming. Very cool indeed. And his adventure was engaging. I love him and Fia! I already know they are going to be at each other’s throats in book 2.


⁀➴ 𝓡𝓞𝓡𝓨 𝓜𝓒𝓒𝓞𝓨 ⚔️
⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢 “𝕴 𝖘𝖊𝖊 𝖗𝖎𝖌𝖍𝖙 𝖙𝖍𝖗𝖔𝖚𝖌𝖍 𝖞𝖔𝖚, 𝕽𝖊𝖉. 𝖄𝖔𝖚’𝖗𝖊 𝖓𝖔𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖇𝖚𝖙 𝖆 𝖘𝖈𝖆𝖗𝖊𝖉, 𝖑𝖎𝖙𝖙𝖑𝖊 𝖇𝖔𝖞.”⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢
On to the youngest McCoy sibling… He has a lot of growing up to do. I liked how each sibling was stuck in life but for very different reasons. I truly loved these three siblings and their dynamic. It felt authentic. The bickering but softness was soooo real. I thoroughly enjoyed how the siblings were depicted because we are SHOWN their relationship, not just told about it. It makes the story far more gripping when I can actually feel their connection—their anger with one another mixed with unwavering love. The balance of ✨3✨ was very important.
Rory was probably my least favorite though. With peace and love of course!


⁀➴ 𝓡𝓐𝓕𝓕𝓔𝓡𝓣𝓨 👑
⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢 ℌ𝖊 𝖜𝖆𝖘 𝖇𝖊𝖆𝖚𝖙𝖎𝖋𝖚𝖑, 𝖑𝖎𝖐𝖊 𝖘𝖔𝖒𝖊 𝖘𝖔𝖗𝖙 𝖔𝖋 𝖛𝖊𝖓𝖌𝖊𝖋𝖚𝖑, 𝖎𝖒𝖕𝖔𝖘𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖌𝖔𝖉.⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢
King of the Muireann Fae ✨⚔️ My mf man!!!! I loved him! He wasn’t just your typical brooding MMC. He was likable from the jump, even with his rude remarks and constant elusiveness. His relationship with Neave was definitely a slow burn and left me FURIOUS! I am not sure how I’m meant to wait for book 2 😪 But anyway, I was right there with Neave: Rafferty was irritating but oh so hot. He wasn’t perfect and I kinda loved that? I still can’t seem to figure out his end goal/motivation and it’s stressing me out in all the best ways. That epilogue was WILD!

⁀➴ 𝓣𝓗𝓔 𝓢𝓘𝓓𝓔 𝓒𝓗𝓐𝓡𝓐𝓒𝓣𝓔𝓡𝓢
I loved them all! The crew! The other Fae! Patch! The whole lot! But my favorite side characters include:
✨Draighean “𝕬𝖗𝖊 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖘𝖔 𝖕𝖗𝖊𝖏𝖚𝖉𝖎𝖈𝖊𝖉 𝖆𝖌𝖆𝖎𝖓𝖘𝖙 𝖒𝖞 𝖐𝖎𝖓𝖉 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖜𝖔𝖚𝖑𝖉 𝖑𝖊𝖙 𝖞𝖔𝖚𝖗 𝖕𝖗𝖎𝖉𝖊 𝖘𝖙𝖔𝖕 𝖆 𝕱𝖆𝖊 𝖋𝖗𝖔𝖒 𝖘𝖆𝖛𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖍𝖎𝖘 𝖑𝖎𝖋𝖊?”
✨Mairéad “𝕴 𝖍𝖆𝖛𝖊 𝖓𝖊𝖛𝖊𝖗 𝖍𝖊𝖆𝖗𝖉 𝖋𝖎𝖑𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖊𝖗 𝖒𝖔𝖚𝖙𝖍𝖘 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖓 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖔𝖋 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝕱𝖆𝖊.”
✨Fiannoula "𝕴'𝖑𝖑 𝖍𝖆𝖛𝖊 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖐𝖓𝖔𝖜 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖙𝖍𝖊 𝖍𝖚𝖒𝖆𝖓 𝖒𝖆𝖑𝖊𝖘 𝕴 𝖒𝖊𝖊𝖙 𝖆𝖗𝖊 𝖚𝖘𝖚𝖆𝖑𝖑𝖞 𝖇𝖊𝖌𝖌𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖒𝖊 𝖙𝖔 𝖑𝖎𝖊 𝖜𝖎𝖙𝖍 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖒. 𝕾𝖔 𝖒𝖚𝖈𝖍 𝖘𝖔 𝖙𝖍𝖆𝖙 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖞 𝖆𝖗𝖊 𝖜𝖎𝖑𝖑𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖙𝖔 𝖑𝖊𝖆𝖛𝖊 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖎𝖗 𝖜𝖎𝖛𝖊𝖘, 𝖌𝖎𝖛𝖊 𝖚𝖕 𝖙𝖍𝖊𝖎𝖗 𝖕𝖔𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖘𝖘𝖎𝖔𝖓𝖘—”


⁀➴ 𝓢𝓔𝓣𝓣𝓘𝓝𝓖/𝓟𝓛𝓞𝓣
This book started off slow, but that is NOT a bad thing. I really loved the gradual set up and peek into the main characters origins. By the time shit started to go down, I already had a grasp on the siblings and who they were to one another. I was also shown a lot about them rather than just info dumping, which I really appreciated. It makes my attachment to them feel authentic and earned.

The Celtic mythology was amazing. I, personally, don’t know much about any mythology, including Celtic, but I felt the author did a great job of not making it too convoluted for someone unfamiliar. I’m sure there are nods to things I didn’t pick up, but I never felt lost. I also felt it was a gradual build, as in, it wasn’t thrown at you all at once. The mythology appeared in pieces, slowly unfolding the further I got into the novel. And based on the ending, I’m certain a lot more is going to come in book 2.

I also loved the classic “Fae cannot lie” attribute. It made for very interesting conversations between characters. Everything in this book felt very purposeful and developed.

⁀➴ 𝓞𝓥𝓔𝓡𝓐𝓛𝓛 𝓣𝓗𝓞𝓤𝓖𝓗𝓣𝓢
A GREAT BOOK! The writing was chef’s kiss (still blown away that this was self-published). There were so many characters but none of them fell flat and I never felt like it was too much. The plot was plotting. The romance wasn’t exactly a side plot, but it also wasn’t overpowering. I really loved the balance. I seriously cannot wait for book 2 & 3. I NEED THEM IMMEDIATELY! Thank you Miss O’Malley for a wondrous read.

⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕱𝖆𝖊. 𝕿𝖍𝖊 𝕱𝖆𝖎𝖗𝖋𝖔𝖑𝖐. 𝕿𝖍𝖊𝖞 𝖍𝖆𝖛𝖊 𝖈𝖗𝖔𝖘𝖘𝖊𝖉 𝖔𝖛𝖊𝖗, 𝖆𝖓𝖉 𝖞𝖔𝖚 𝖜𝖎𝖑𝖑 𝖓𝖔𝖙 𝖘𝖚𝖗𝖛𝖎𝖛𝖊. ⋆‧°𓏲ּ𝄢

[Yolanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so excited to read A Fated Flame. Fantasy mixed with Celtic mythology? That is basically guaranteed to get my attention.

So I started reading and immediately fell in love with it. It was fun, immersive, and had that slightly cozy fantasy feel that made it incredibly easy to sink into. I was happily reading along, enjoying myself, feeling safe.

And then I got to the end.

I got suckered again.

Somehow, despite knowing this was the first book in a series, I let my guard down. I got lulled into a false sense of security, only for the ending to come flying out of nowhere and emotionally body slam me. Absolutely devastating.

You authors are really the worst sometimes.

And yet, I would highly recommend this book.

The world-building is wonderfully done. If you've read other fantasy books inspired by Celtic mythology, some elements will feel familiar, which makes sense because they draw from the same source material. But familiarity does not make it any less engaging. The descriptions are vivid without becoming overwhelming, and the world feels rich and lived in.

I also really enjoyed the magic system. It felt fresh and different from anything I have personally come across before. I am intentionally being vague because the magic system is closely tied to the story itself, and explaining too much would take away some of the discovery.

The plot follows Neave, who through a twist of fate finds herself in the clutches of the fae during a midsummer festival. More specifically, she finds herself tangled up with a fae king. Meanwhile, her fiercely loyal brothers set out to find her, and chaos naturally follows. Add in danger, banter, fae creatures, secrets, and a healthy dose of trouble, and I was completely invested.

The characters were one of the strongest parts of the book for me. I loved Neave and Rafferty. They are both carrying their own scars and burdens, which made them feel real and relatable. Their banter was fantastic and added so much charm to the story.

I also loved Neave's brothers, Rory and Declan. They are incredibly different from each other and from Neave, but both of them brought something unique to the story. The secrets they were carrying added extra layers to their characters and made their storylines just as compelling as the main plot.

E.C. O'Malley delivered a fantasy that was fun, magical, emotional, and impossible to put down.

Do not wait to add this to your TBR. Just don't make the same mistake I did and assume you're safe when you get close to the ending. You're not.

[Morgan Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an amazing read, just could not put it down. From page one, I was pulled into this story and these characters have just so beautifully come to life.

We have Neave, the FMC, and she has a huge secret that is always threatening to be exposed. She is just so loveable and you just are rooting for her to be able to live happily. But after a huge fight with her brothers, things begin to get insane and Neave takes her chances jumping from a cliff into the waters below. And that's where everything begins to get so interesting.

Enter Rafferty, the broody fae MMC. Him and his crew are just delightful to read about. I absolutely fell in love with them all. And of course Neave and Rafferty are just at odds with each other from the beginning. But the BANTER??!!! I was absolutely giggling and kicking my feet in happiness. They absolutely want to hate each other but they keep seeing sides to each other that makes the vulnerable and of course emotions and feelings come into play. And the things that Rafferty says???? Well I was over here blushing and having a great time 🤣 and Neave and her come backs are just perfection. She's fiery, especially to him, and I love it!

Now what I absolutely love about this book is, it's not just Neave and Rafferty stealing the show, oh no. The brothers also have some time to shine. I absolutely LOVE Declan. He's the typical older brother who is stuck keeping his siblings in check but I loved that. He also has a secret of his own and I cannot wait to see more of it in the next book. Rory is an adorable idiot and while he doesn't have as much page time, he does do quite a lot of growing up and I definitely am excited to see what he ends up doing in the next book. This whole family of siblings was just a fun dynamic because they really do love each other and would do anything to keep each other safe, even if they annoy each other at the same time.

I really just loved all the characters, they each play a vital role in the story but we don't quite know what they all are yet. Because the moving pieces are so mysterious and covered in secrecy that what is happening is just up in the air. The ending was diabolical and Rafferty has so much explaining to do, on his knees preferably. I am absolutely stoked for the next book because this cliffhanger leaves me needing MORE!!

[Michelle Andersen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Omg!!!!! This book had everything that I love about fantasy! We had absolutely wonderful characters. Each character was so thought out and has a specific role they play in the story. I feel like we will have so more character growth in book two and I cannot wait to see how to each of the characters develop. If you love all things mythology like I do you will devour this one. It was so fun to get Celtic mythology for this story, its not something that gets touched on much, we get a lot of greek mythology so the fact that this incorporated Celtic lore was so incredibly fun and refreshing. I absolutely love our main FMC. She is strong and mouthy but also has her vulnerability. And the MMC was great until he wasn’t 😩. If you love slow burn with fantastic banter then this one is it for you! I will say the few chapters had me gasping out loud while reading on the plane while simultaneously wanting to throw my kindle from the emotion i felt for one of the characters, i dont want to spoil anything but just know once you finish you will instantly be yearning for book 2. Thank you so much for this ARC read but now I am going to be struggling to wait for the next! 5+ stars I loved everythingabout thisbook and it was exactly what I needed!

[Miranda Theis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This pirate-fae romantasy gave me everything I didn’t know I was missing in my fantasy reads!

We follow the fmc Neave, a human with powers she doesn’t understand, forced to hide her power and never learn to control it, strike a bargain with a pirate fae king after a deadly run in on Midsummer Eve in the Wildwood. We also follow her two brothers, Rory, and Declan. Rory and Declan journey into the woods to find Neave, ending up on a very unexpected path. And Declan… he has a secret of his own…

This read kept me hooked the entire time! I loved the journey on the sea, the woods, the magic, the creatures, the banter with the fmc and mmc, but also with Rory, he’s so untrusting and standoffish 🤭. I loved the mystery around their mom, and the unknown truth as to why Rafferty wanted to strike a bargain to help Neave, THE REVEALS 😩👏👏👏

This book is third person, with multiple POV’s, and let me tell you every time the POV switched a was dying to come back to each character.

I can’t wait to see where this trilogy goes.

Thank you so much for allowing me to read this ARC 🖤🌊🏴‍☠️

[Terri McCarrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'd put this one at 3.75 stars for me!
This book had an interesting and unique magic system (I'm still not entirely sure I understand it all, and imagine it will all be clear in subsequent books of the series). I love a human x fae portal world, and this one is done well! The variety of sea fae and land fae is very interesting. I'm excited to understand the world's more as the series progresses.
I had a hard time connecting with the FMC, her reactions and feelings towards the MMC seemed to change every chapter and I didn't feel as invested in them as a normally would. The larger cast of characters was really compelling, especially her two brothers. I can't wait to see what we find out about them in the next books.
If you love Celtic mythology and see Fay, this is a good book for you!

[Elizabeth *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ · Rating 5 out of 5]

"𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒐𝒐𝒅𝒔—𝒘𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒘𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈—𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚’𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔 𝒐𝒓 𝒏𝒐𝒕. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒅𝒐 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒂 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈." 🔥✨🍃