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The Key to Donestra
In this dark and twisty fantasy romance novel, Lydia Damon, a soldier from the mortal lands, discovers an encrypted fae realm that has been hidden from the world for years. In it, resides its cursed and ruthlessly feared prince, Raredon Donestra, who has been stuck living in darkness and awaiting her arrival.
And in awakening the encrypted realm, she becomes the start of an entirely new war.
Now, stuck prisoner to the crown in the mysterious fae realm, Donestra, Lydia's reality suddenly feels more like a nightmare. Nothing is as it seems and the more time she spends with the brooding and tortured prince... the more she's left to question her own sanity.
Raredon is not at all who he pretends to be... and neither is she.
And in awakening the encrypted realm, she becomes the start of an entirely new war.
Now, stuck prisoner to the crown in the mysterious fae realm, Donestra, Lydia's reality suddenly feels more like a nightmare. Nothing is as it seems and the more time she spends with the brooding and tortured prince... the more she's left to question her own sanity.
Raredon is not at all who he pretends to be... and neither is she.
690 pages, Kindle Edition
Published July 21, 2026
About the author
Allison McDaniel
1 book19 followersAllison McDaniel writes epic romantasy novels with a dark and whimsical atmosphere. She loves an unforgettable forbidden slow-burn romance that is emotionally gripping but doesn't outshine the intense plot and dark themes. She lives in a small mountain town of California with her family, where she spends her time reading, writing, and dreaming up new worlds.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
August 24, 2026
Yeah, I rated my own book. I read it like 100 times over and I put everything I have into it… so I deserve it! LOL
I hope you all love the story as much as I do and I can’t wait to announce the second book 😉
I hope you all love the story as much as I do and I can’t wait to announce the second book 😉
October 13, 2026
This book was absolutely amazing. The world building and characters were beautifully written. If you want to yearn for a fictional man, this is the book to read!!! I am thoroughly impressed by the fantasy plot as well, so thought out and interesting. A must for your TBR
September 25, 2026
6 stars. Infinity stars! What do I even say about this book??
Over 600 pages and somehow I wanted more! I am so attached to these characters they feel like my own family now 😭😭😭
In this, we follow Lydia Damon, a mortal girl (or so we think) who makes a deal with a witch to save her life after a gruesome battle and after losing people she cared so deeply about. When she awakens, there's a voice in her head and now she has magic?? (Don't wanna spoil it.) She is then sent on a mission to a sealed fae realm, Donestra, and somehow, she has the magic to get in. Here, she meets Raredon (my new favorite male oh my fucking god,) the Prince of Donestra and he is everything she absolutely despises. He's cruel, he's morally grey, he's arrogant, ruthless (and extremely hot.)
She finds herself, eventually, very drawn to Raredon for reasons she cannot explain, but OH DO WE FIND OUT OMG😭😭 and she finds out she is waaaay more than what she thought.
The world building? Phenomenal. The characters? Even better. The side characters? Obsessed. I can't even put into words how much I love this book. Lydia is such a strong protagonist. That girl went through hell and back, suffered the worst fate imaginable, could've easily chosen to die, to end her pain, but she fights like hell. She stays strong for the people she cares about and eventually learns to live not just for them, but for her. Her story alone is truly inspiring to me, as someone with crippling depression and anxiety, I've found so much hope through her.
And Raredon... oh my god that man. It's not enough that his looks are inspired by my favorite singer Noah Sebastian of Bad Omens.. no that's just a bonus. When I tell you this man YEARNS!!!!😩😩😩😩 I don't wanna spoil anything but I will say one thing... this man paints her so he won't forget her. And that's all I'm gonna say. You have to read this to find out because holy shit. The way he protects her. The way he allows her to be free, to be truly her, and the way he loves her is just unlike anything I've read before. And Vice-Versa. The way she loves HIM. The way she sees his darkness and his demons and she still loves him. Their relationship actually made me ugly cry several times!
This is a dark romantasy filled with tension, action, slow burn yearning and love, spice, forced proximity, found family, just everything I love about romantasy books!
I really hope this blows up because guess what... it's gonna be an interconnected series!🥰🥰🥰
Anyway I will shut up now because I could go on and on and on about this. I loved it! One of my top reads of the year for sure!!!
Over 600 pages and somehow I wanted more! I am so attached to these characters they feel like my own family now 😭😭😭
In this, we follow Lydia Damon, a mortal girl (or so we think) who makes a deal with a witch to save her life after a gruesome battle and after losing people she cared so deeply about. When she awakens, there's a voice in her head and now she has magic?? (Don't wanna spoil it.) She is then sent on a mission to a sealed fae realm, Donestra, and somehow, she has the magic to get in. Here, she meets Raredon (my new favorite male oh my fucking god,) the Prince of Donestra and he is everything she absolutely despises. He's cruel, he's morally grey, he's arrogant, ruthless (and extremely hot.)
She finds herself, eventually, very drawn to Raredon for reasons she cannot explain, but OH DO WE FIND OUT OMG😭😭 and she finds out she is waaaay more than what she thought.
The world building? Phenomenal. The characters? Even better. The side characters? Obsessed. I can't even put into words how much I love this book. Lydia is such a strong protagonist. That girl went through hell and back, suffered the worst fate imaginable, could've easily chosen to die, to end her pain, but she fights like hell. She stays strong for the people she cares about and eventually learns to live not just for them, but for her. Her story alone is truly inspiring to me, as someone with crippling depression and anxiety, I've found so much hope through her.
And Raredon... oh my god that man. It's not enough that his looks are inspired by my favorite singer Noah Sebastian of Bad Omens.. no that's just a bonus. When I tell you this man YEARNS!!!!😩😩😩😩 I don't wanna spoil anything but I will say one thing... this man paints her so he won't forget her. And that's all I'm gonna say. You have to read this to find out because holy shit. The way he protects her. The way he allows her to be free, to be truly her, and the way he loves her is just unlike anything I've read before. And Vice-Versa. The way she loves HIM. The way she sees his darkness and his demons and she still loves him. Their relationship actually made me ugly cry several times!
This is a dark romantasy filled with tension, action, slow burn yearning and love, spice, forced proximity, found family, just everything I love about romantasy books!
I really hope this blows up because guess what... it's gonna be an interconnected series!🥰🥰🥰
Anyway I will shut up now because I could go on and on and on about this. I loved it! One of my top reads of the year for sure!!!
September 26, 2026
Has potential.
This book took me forever to finish mostly because every single time I would get into it, we would have a large chunk of information being repeated or unnecessarily long details of unimportant things. Sometimes a large chunk of a chapter was spent repeating something that was read five chapters back. To me it was insanely predictable and it definitely felt inspired by Quicksilver. So much so that I started calling it Great Value Quicksilver. Looking past the random typos or grammar issues, the author would have benefited from having an arc reader or beta reader tell her to thin out some of the unnecessary fat. There was no need for it to be 690 pages long. The author has so much potential, they just need to learn how to cut back on filler and repetitiveness.
Now onto the main characters. I did love Raredon, he was perfect if you ask me. He is what I found myself calling Great Value Kingfisher. Raredon's only character flaw is actually caring about Lydia. Lydia induced rage in me, I didn't have a single ounce of attachment to her and honestly at 53% in I was rooting for the bad guy to ax her off or at least torture her. Raredon trains her and prepares her and I knew what was going to happen because it was repeated to her five times and she still ignores what Raredon says. She isn't deaf, she is just selfish and stupid. Then we get Tanner who is the silent loyal spy, that poor guy deserves a happy ending. Just like I know we aren't done with Harry. Laurie and Stassi were meant to be the Carrion type character in this book, the character who can lighten an intense moment. Elaine will get a book because we haven't seen what happened to her yet either and it was heavily implied that it wasn't good or consensual. It's very clearly all mapped out if you are a reader of romantasy. The foreshadowing is very clear if you pay attention.
All in all it wasn't a bad book, it was just repetitive and would have been way better had it been thinned out.
This book took me forever to finish mostly because every single time I would get into it, we would have a large chunk of information being repeated or unnecessarily long details of unimportant things. Sometimes a large chunk of a chapter was spent repeating something that was read five chapters back. To me it was insanely predictable and it definitely felt inspired by Quicksilver. So much so that I started calling it Great Value Quicksilver. Looking past the random typos or grammar issues, the author would have benefited from having an arc reader or beta reader tell her to thin out some of the unnecessary fat. There was no need for it to be 690 pages long. The author has so much potential, they just need to learn how to cut back on filler and repetitiveness.
Now onto the main characters. I did love Raredon, he was perfect if you ask me. He is what I found myself calling Great Value Kingfisher. Raredon's only character flaw is actually caring about Lydia. Lydia induced rage in me, I didn't have a single ounce of attachment to her and honestly at 53% in I was rooting for the bad guy to ax her off or at least torture her. Raredon trains her and prepares her and I knew what was going to happen because it was repeated to her five times and she still ignores what Raredon says. She isn't deaf, she is just selfish and stupid. Then we get Tanner who is the silent loyal spy, that poor guy deserves a happy ending. Just like I know we aren't done with Harry. Laurie and Stassi were meant to be the Carrion type character in this book, the character who can lighten an intense moment. Elaine will get a book because we haven't seen what happened to her yet either and it was heavily implied that it wasn't good or consensual. It's very clearly all mapped out if you are a reader of romantasy. The foreshadowing is very clear if you pay attention.
All in all it wasn't a bad book, it was just repetitive and would have been way better had it been thinned out.
August 2, 2026
The Key to Donestra was more than just a book. It was an experience I’ll never forget. From the very first chapter, I was completely immersed in the world Allison McDaniel created. Every page pulled me in deeper, and just when I thought I knew what was coming, another twist had me hooked all over again.
This is one of those rare books you tell yourself you’ll read “just one more chapter,” only to realize hours have passed. The characters felt real, the atmosphere was haunting and beautifully written, and the story stayed with me long after I turned the final page.
If you’re looking for a book that’s impossible to put down and leaves a lasting impression, The Key to Donestra absolutely delivers. I already wish I could experience it again for the first time.
This is one of those rare books you tell yourself you’ll read “just one more chapter,” only to realize hours have passed. The characters felt real, the atmosphere was haunting and beautifully written, and the story stayed with me long after I turned the final page.
If you’re looking for a book that’s impossible to put down and leaves a lasting impression, The Key to Donestra absolutely delivers. I already wish I could experience it again for the first time.
September 27, 2026
“After meeting Raredon, my eyes have been forcefully pride open. I have never known someone with reopening my heart to pain for I’ve never thought love was worth the agony of its absence.”
This book was so good! It hit so many of my favorite tropes like Lydia being a strong female protagonist. I love reading about a badass woman in a book. She is a warrior through and through. Raredon is a yearner and I can’t get enough. Beeeeeg for me baby lol.
This genre is also one of my favs so we all know there’s a well received formula, but there were also extra elements and intriguing side characters in the story that really made it stand out. The world building was also a perfect amount of detail and I look forward to the next one!
This book was so good! It hit so many of my favorite tropes like Lydia being a strong female protagonist. I love reading about a badass woman in a book. She is a warrior through and through. Raredon is a yearner and I can’t get enough. Beeeeeg for me baby lol.
This genre is also one of my favs so we all know there’s a well received formula, but there were also extra elements and intriguing side characters in the story that really made it stand out. The world building was also a perfect amount of detail and I look forward to the next one!
August 17, 2026
Well I’m officially a romantasy girly now. This book was so well written and had me constantly trying to find time in my day to read whenever possible. It was my first time reading any type of (dark romance- romantasy) and it was easy to follow along while having so much to the plot! Can’t wait for more to be written in this world.
Review of advance copy received from Author
This is the first book I've read in this genre , so I have no reference... giving me what feels like a fresh approach. With that said, this book is a page turner. The author creates a world that you can't only picture but feel. The plot keeps you engaged helping you sense the characters. I'm not much of a reader and I finished it in 4 days. My favorite aspect of the book is the way the author develops her characters and makes their interactions feel effortless and authentic. You feel like you are in Donestra. Highly recommend👍👍👍👍👍
August 14, 2026
I loved everything about this book!! I was immediately pulled into the world that the author so beautifully created. It was exciting, emotional, and captivating. It’s the kind of book you can’t put down, I cannot recommend it enough!!🖤⚔️
Review of advance copy received from Author
Thrilling & dark, this world’s complex characters and twisted history make for an enchanting and haunting read where bad is good and wrong is right 🐍🗡️🗝️
Read
September 23, 2026DNF - not rating this yet bc I might go back to it. Something about the writing is throwing me off.
Want to Read
October 1, 2026Placeholder - Received a free copy via Goodreads Giveaways to review.
Review of advance copy
Wonderful description, intriguing creatures, dynamic and witty romance. Amazing character building and interconnected relationships give it profound emotional depth. The twists and events make it a captivating read. Loved this book!
August 7, 2026
This book/interconnected standalone has everything a busy romantasy girl could want! An epic story full of action without having to commit to a long unfinished series with cliffhangers! Donestra is an immersive world with magic, found family, political intrigue and a disgusting villain! Raredon is a swoon worthy MMC with Slade Ravenger vibes (YES PLEASE!) the yearning yearns and the banter will have you kicking your feet! Highly recommend this debut novel and can’t wait for the next book in the series!
Review of advance copy received from Author
One of the most captivating books I have read in a long time, one that makes you stay up until 2AM reading. If you enjoyed ACOTAR I highly recommend The Key to Donestra. As soon as I finished reading, I wanted to read again. I'm still dreaming of the MMC.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews