The Kingdom of Chaos: Becoming Fae

by J.J. Smeck

Every Fae in the royal Kingdom of Chaos looks forward to receiving their power ring on their twenty-first birthday to refuel their elemental affinities. Evie wakes up to find herself imprisoned instead. She soon finds out that the life she thought she had is not actually the one she was meant to live. The more she seeks the truth, the further she gets from finding it.

Genres: Fantasy

181 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 20, 2022

Reviews

[Dona's Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to J. J. Smeck and KatieandBreyPA for an advanced digital copy to read of this book.

Evie is of the age that she is about to come into her own power. She thinks she knows whom she can trust, be she will discover, as we all do, that she knows nothing yet. Not about her friends, not about herself, and certainly not about her world. What secrets hover all around her and how will the learning of them change everything?

I ended up reading this book for review based one thing-- the cover. I hadn't read a word of the blurb before I asked for a copy. I was drawn completely in by this art, and the title, KINGDOM OF CHAOS: BECOMING FAE. Because I love chaos. Especially when it's well constructed. That physical irony works for me.

This can take a few shapes. A book that covers a great deal of descriptive space in few pages. BECOMING FAE does this. It can also take the shape of rapidly evolving stories or characters. BECOMING FAE has both, with characters evolving in response to their evolving story. Smeck builds great conflict this way-- the reader can never trust in a safe moment because the characters can never trust in a safe moment.

All of this is world work; J. J. Smeck has created a fictional world that is wonderfully, beautifully, playfully chaotic. It's a blast to read, a great and entertaining concept.

Rating 🧚‍♂️🧚‍♂️🧚‍♂️🧚‍♂️ / 5 war-waging fairies
Recommend? Yes, for fantasy fans
Finished December 2022
Read this if you like:
🧚‍♂️ Fairies
👹 Demonic bad guys
🪄 Magic
🪽 Flying
⚔️ Battles

[⊹ Gabriela | Asternyx ⊹ · Rating 2 out of 5]

⇢ DNF 58%

I have 76 pages left but I decided to dnf cause it's not worth the struggle.
I have many things to say about this one and unfortunately, they aren't good 💀

⤏ What to expect:
∘ Adult Fantasy
∘ Fae & magical creatures
∘ "Special snowflake"FMC

⤏ Summary

The book starts with the FMC being kidnapped and with no memory as to how she got into that situation. She soon finds out she's a lost heir to a kingdom and then her adventure begins.

⤏ Thoughts
... I don't even know where to begin.
It reads like a draft. Sentences, and even paragraphs, are repeated every few chapters. Sometimes the words or their order is changed but otherwise, it's the same thing over and over. It makes me wonder if anyone checked it before publication ― I doubt it though. Either way, it's in dire need of good editing, not only for these repetitions but also for the grammar and punctuation errors...

The information about the world, the fae, etc. is just randomly thrown in there.
Random rambled facts about characters. No worldbuilding.
The main character? No substance. She's naive, makes dumb decisions, and gets new powers she magically figures out how to control on the spot with every step she takes.
No idea who the love interest is supposed to be but she feels the need to point out that every man she encounters has "a muscular body". ― so sick of this, honestly.

oh, and why would I need to know how every horse in the barn looks/reacts to her?! that scene was so unnecessary.

⤏ Conclusion
This review is as chaotic as the book was.
If we are to talk about the idea, it could've been a great book, but the execution was not good.

[Aleksandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you J. J. Smeck for sending me a copy of your book!

The Kingdom of Chaos: Becoming Fae is the first book in a new fantasy series by J. J. Smeck and a great start to Evie’s story!

In the Kingdom of Chaos every Fae’s magical abilities awake on their twenty-first birthday.
But on her birthday Evie, our main character, finds herself kidnapped and surrounded by strangers. She meets Declan who introduces himself as the Duke of one of the four kingdoms tasked with bringing Evie, the lost heir, to King and Queen. When Evie realizes someone’s lying to her and not everything is as it seems, she needs to learn how to control her new abilities and find out who she really is.

I enjoyed Evie’s journey and how she grew as a character, she becomes confident and learns how to save herself without waiting for someone else to do it. Also liked how loyal her friends were, Jude and Lukas helped Evie without question, even when they knew it could put them in danger. I hoped for a bit more romance but I have some theories and am sure I’m going to enjoy this slow burn in the next books in this series.

It took me a bit to get into the story but once I did I finished it in one sitting, it’s not a long book, great for a lazy summer read. Recommend to all fantasy lovers.

[Shawna Squire · Rating 5 out of 5]

I need book 2, please 🧚🏻‍♀️🧜🏻‍♀️🔥

Let me just say it is 2pm and I finished this book. When did I start? Approximately 10am. J.J. Smeck has begun to build a beautiful world with enticing characters throughout. Evie wakes up on what was supposed to be a life turning moment, turning 21 and learning her elemental abilities. Instead, she wakes up alone, imprisoned, and confused. Her journey from there takes her through many trials and man, this woman has soooo many things thrown at her already and I love how she is handling them. This book held so many of my favorite things: fae, elemental magic, and a little bit of spice (with the promise for more) 🔥 Thank you so much JJ Smeck for introducing me to your world. I can’t wait to read more!

[That Library Girl Moved To Storygraph · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Kingdom of Chaos was a book and audiobook that I was gifted by the author. A few parts were problematic to me (like how every single time an area of the world is mentioned it is referred to as "the kingdom of [name]" and "the kingdom of [name]".... no shorter name, no nickname from how the character would refer to where they live, nothing. And a few minor details were repeated over and over and OVER AND OVER, which gets super annoying real quick. The story has potential to be a good series, if it was edited to get rid of a lot of the repeating.

Thank to J.J. Smeck for the gift of audiobook and paperback of your book!

[Chelsea Hancock · Rating 2 out of 5]

The story is pretty good, but honestly the writing needs work.

[Arliz · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐

This book was a nice light read. I needed a quick palette cleanser, and this short novel (181 pages) hit the spot. I like the idea of the plot and where it is heading. Being a short read however, I couldn't relate very well to the main character and the world building is not as elaborate as I would like. Though there isn't any romance on this book, there are hints of them for the sequel.

[Devyn Woodard · Rating 5 out of 5]

JJ I NEED MORE IMMEDIATELY. Thank you so much for sending me your book. I was HOOKED and couldn’t put it down. It has everything good; Fae, elemental magic, and some spice. And a dark mysterious man that I want to know more about 👀

[Shelves_by_sim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every Fae looks forward to their twenty first birthday, for that is when their magic is finally revealed. But the day of Evelyn's twenty-first birthday, she wakes up in a dark room, on the floor and in so much pain she feel like she has been beaten.

She has no body, is no body and knows no one - why someone would want to capture her is beyond her. Until a Duke arrives to save her, that's when she finds out that she is actually the Heir of The Lost Kingdom, who went missing as an infant, and is being taken back to where she belongs.

Only, the Duke isn't actually the Duke and he isn't actually trying to help her. Evelyn must flee. Recruiting the help of her childhood friend, Lucas, they set out on a journey to find the oracle to get as many questions answered while trying to figure out Evelyn's past.

My thoughts:
I really enjoyed this book. I like Evelyn's character and I love how sure of herself she is when it comes to the reality she knows and the lies she is being fed by the Duke. I love her relationship with her father and the maturity with which she handles him not actually being her father. The story was very interesting, the concept was new and different and I enjoyed it. Evelyn and Lucas forms a quirky friendship and it's really sweet to witness. There were a few typos and places where information was repeated but other than that it was a good read. I can't wait for for the next book!

[Leena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Delightful debut of this series. I honestly enjoyed the plot, the characters, the bits and pieces of myths sewn together. I read it in almost one sitting, cannot wait for the 2nd installment 💓

[Gabriela · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5⭐

[Chelsea (2_girls_bookin_it) · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Kingdom of Chaos sounded like a fantasy novel right up my alley. It grabbed me pretty much from the beginning and held my attention the whole way through the book. Between this and being relatively short, I finished it in less than 24 hours.

While it was a really good read, the writing was a bit choppy at times. Now this didn't really take away from the book too much, but there were also a number of typos. Granted, this was an #ARC, so there's a good chance these were caught before being published. Overall, I gave The Kingdom of Chaos 3.5 ⭐. It's a quick read and a fun dive into another fantasy world.

[Angelina · Rating 1 out of 5]

So very bad I don't know where to start. I have read hundreds and hundreds of books. Some of which deserve a one star rating. However I have never taken the time to write a review, tell now. This book was that not bad. It was literally like reading a 14 year old creative writing project. Has to be self published. Is this someone's passion project? So they can tell their friends they are a published author?

Where to start. Herocious editing, if any. Horrible grammar. For example in 12 consecutive sentences the author uses the word lost 10 times. Almost once per sentence. The author just rambles facts off about the characters. Absolutely no use of word building. Maybe a 7th to 8th grade grasp of vocabulary. There's no original material here. It's just a mash up of other authors books about the fae. How many times have we read books with with a magical barrier. Use to describe the world of the fae.

To top it off I purchased the audio version of this book. The narrator sounds like she was asked to read aloud in class. Certainly not a professional narrator. Leaves me wondering if the author talked her best friend into doing the audio?

By far the worst book I have ever read. The only bright side is that Audible has a return policy.

[Sudeshna Banerjee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would like to thank J. J. Smeck and KatieandBreyPA for an advanced digital copy to read and review it. The Kingdom of Chaos: Becoming Fae is the first book in the fantasy series by J. J. Smeck and a great start to Evelyn's story! This book was a nice light read. The characters are really good and specially I loved the brother-sister banter between Evie and Lucas. Declan was quite a hateable character. I really loved how Evie's character developed and how she found out what kind of magic she possessed. I really loved the fantasy world of fae and elemental magic created by J.J. Smeck. I really loved reading everything. It was quite an entertaining book for me.

[books_with_sass · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received a digital copy of this book from katieandbreypa in exchange for an honest review, and...

...Honestly, I was not a fan of this book. The concept seems new and interesting, but the execution was lacking, in my opinion. I think this has already been published (I'm assuming self-published, but I don't know that for sure) but it needs a good editor and proofreader to go over it. There were numerous typographical, grammar, and punctuation errors, along with things being repeated multiple times, to the point that it was annoying and distracting.

I don't find Evie to be a likeable character that you want to root for. She falls for Declan's lies easily even though it doesn't make sense and she knows he has the ability to do spells and magic, which gives him the ability to manipulate her. There were multiple times where I thought she was just dumb and I just wanted her to figure shit out already.

All in all, I would say to skip this one. I gave it two stars instead of one because it has good bones, it just needs work to make it good and/or great.

[Mariana Lucero · Rating 4 out of 5]

B͟o͟o͟k͟ R͟e͟v͟i͟e͟w͟ 📖

𝚃𝚒𝚝𝚕𝚎: 𝚃𝚑𝚎 𝙺𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚍𝚘𝚖 𝚘𝚏 𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚘𝚜: 𝙱𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝙵𝚊𝚌𝚎
𝙰𝚞𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚛: J. J Smeck
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

E̶v̶e̶r̶y̶ F̶a̶e̶ i̶n̶ t̶h̶e̶ r̶o̶y̶a̶l̶ k̶i̶n̶g̶d̶o̶m̶ o̶f̶ C̶h̶a̶o̶s̶ l̶o̶o̶k̶s̶ f̶o̶r̶w̶a̶r̶d̶ t̶o̶ r̶e̶c̶e̶i̶v̶i̶n̶g̶ t̶h̶e̶i̶r̶ p̶o̶w̶e̶r̶ r̶i̶n̶g̶ o̶n̶ t̶h̶e̶r̶e̶ t̶w̶e̶n̶t̶y̶-̶f̶i̶r̶s̶t̶ b̶i̶r̶t̶h̶d̶a̶y̶ t̶o̶ r̶e̶f̶u̶e̶l̶ t̶h̶e̶i̶r̶ e̶l̶e̶m̶e̶n̶t̶a̶l̶ a̶f̶f̶i̶n̶i̶t̶i̶e̶s̶.̶ E̶v̶i̶e̶ w̶a̶k̶e̶s̶ u̶p̶ t̶o̶ f̶i̶n̶d̶ h̶e̶r̶s̶e̶l̶f̶ i̶m̶p̶r̶i̶s̶o̶n̶e̶d̶ i̶n̶s̶t̶e̶a̶d̶.̶ S̶h̶e̶ s̶o̶o̶n̶ f̶i̶n̶e̶s̶ o̶u̶t̶ t̶h̶a̶t̶ t̶h̶e̶ l̶i̶f̶e̶ s̶h̶e̶ t̶h̶o̶u̶g̶h̶ s̶h̶e̶ h̶a̶d̶ i̶s̶ n̶o̶t̶ a̶c̶t̶u̶a̶l̶l̶y̶ t̶h̶e̶ o̶n̶e̶ s̶h̶e̶ w̶a̶s̶ m̶e̶a̶n̶t̶ t̶o̶ l̶i̶v̶e̶.̶ T̶h̶e̶ m̶o̶r̶e̶ s̶h̶e̶ s̶e̶e̶k̶s̶ t̶h̶e̶ t̶r̶u̶t̶h̶,̶ t̶h̶e̶ f̶u̶r̶t̶h̶e̶r̶ s̶h̶e̶ g̶e̶t̶s̶ f̶r̶o̶m̶ f̶i̶n̶d̶ i̶t̶.̶

𝘔𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘴：
𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘤𝘬 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘐 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘥 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘌𝘷𝘪𝘦 𝘫𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘴𝘩𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘸 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘳． 𝘐𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺 𝘧𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘺，𝘧𝘢𝘪𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴，𝘮𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘤，＆ 𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘢𝘥 𝘨𝘶𝘺𝘴 𝘐 𝘩𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘭𝘺 𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘥．

𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 @katieandbreypa & 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙪𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙧 𝙅.𝙅 𝙎𝙢𝙚𝙘𝙠 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙖𝙙𝙫𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙙 𝙙𝙞𝙜𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙘𝙤𝙥𝙮 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙗𝙤𝙤𝙠. 🖤🖤

[jlreadstoperpetuity · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
I have so many questions and for 181 pages, I just went through 😐😶🤨🫣😳🤯🤨🙄😬🤯 If these emojis are any indication of the roller coaster, then yeah 😅

For a first book on a series, the plot is still a little bit chaotic, although the I'd reckon and hope it will be more cohesive on the next few books (saw the blurb for the second book, excited to see what happens next)

Concept of magic and introduction of elementals - which I assume is influenced by mythology based on the use of Greek (and Roman) gods and goddesses names; is quite interesting. Although, how it was encapsulated by the FMC had some hints of YA-esque writing. Since this was just a short book, the descriptives and punchlines of possessing each element wasn't delivered quite well.

FMC, hmmm I am still debating how I feel about her and all the cast introduced on the book. There were few peaks here and there but not subliminal to be called a development as of yet. Found the banters quite amusing for good and bad reasons.

Let's see what Book Two brings us, hopefully some arcs and answers.

[Cathryn Melani (cat.inspired) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a quick read fantasy following Evie as she comes into her Fae power on her 21st birthday. Only all doesn't go as expected as she finds herself kidnapped and seeking answers to who she really is.

For a relatively short book, this packs quite a lot in and we really get to know the MCs, Evie (half Fae, half human ) and Jax (🧛‍♂️) well that's just hot.

The writing style is quite simplistic in parts and yet you still get a world of magick, different species and some pretty awesome adventures as she travels across kingdoms seeking answers. There's some violence in this series as it progresses and spice so this is definitely aimed at an 18+ audience.

Evie is a smart mouth, strong, fighting kick butt FMC and I absolutely loved her interaction with her friends and how she had learnt to take care of herself.

This book does end on a cliffhanger so you'll need to read the next two books in the series after this.

I actually went on to read the next two books, as I needed to know what happened next. Overall this series was a good, quick fantasy read, I loved how the story developed over the 3 books, and was glad with how the series ended.

This series was definitely a solid 4 ⭐ read.

While book 1 is relatively low spice (a 🌶🌶 🤷‍♀️) it definitely hots up in book 2 🌶🌶🌶🌶 & book 3 🌶🌶🌶🌶🌶

[Cassie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every Fae in the royal Kingdom of Chaos looks forward to receiving their power ring on their twenty-first birthday to refuel their elemental affinities. Evie wakes up to find herself imprisoned instead. She soon finds out that the life she thought she had is not actually the one she was meant to live. The more she seeks the truth, the further she gets from finding it.

This was a quick read, I read it in one day, but it is also a great read. It is perfect to introduce you to the Kingdom of Chaos without overwhelming you.

The characters are well-developed and so is the plot. There are a lot of mysteries to solve, and in the end, enough questions that I want to read the next book, but no so many questions left that I hate the book.

Overall a great book and I can't wait to read the others in the series.

[Reads_Must · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Kingdom of Chaos: Becoming Fae
Fantasy
J.J. Smeck
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

This book was a short but fast paced read. The world building is well developed and I liked the feisty FMC, Evie, and her growth throughout the book.The side characters were good too and very loyal to Evie.

It was nice to have the main focus on the plot with a little spice added, rather than the spice being the main focus and taking away from the plot as some books do.

There were a few typos and errors that could easily be fixed with more editing and some parts/descriptions were repetitive which pulled me out of the story every so often. The writing style was a little choppy for me too.

*Thank you to @katieandbreypa and the author for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review*

[Breysreviews]

Becoming Fae: Kingdom of Chaos book 1 by JJ Smeck follows Evelyn, a newly 21 year old elemental on her birthday waking up in an unknown dungeon with no memories of how she got here. It’s the day she’s meant to find what element she controls, but that’s not what fate has planned.

This is a very short and quick read, totaling under 160 pages, and serves as an introduction to a spicy new fantasy series about fae.

The writing style felt a little bit awkward at times, but was easy to follow along. Spice is very quickly introduced and the body positivity and sexual positivity are well written, showing having sex isn’t a bad thing, and wanting it to be good.

I do like the fantasy world and I can’t wait to explore it a little bit more in the following books!

[Bayan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Every time I dive away from fantasy for a little bit, and amazing writer just like JJ here, brings me back so strongly, that I have enough will to read all the fantasy in the world!

The world building here is stunning, the characters are very well written, the magical, shapeshifting, sass, and spice elements of this book kept me on the edge of my seat!

This was such a short fast entertaining read, that is filled with so many amazing elements, has a strong FMC, and is a wonderful start to a stunning series, that is all available on KU!
I totally recommend!

Thank you @katieandbreypa and @j.j.smeck for providing me with an ARC ecopy of this book for reviewing!

[Bee (Bookladybee) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the story of this and intrigued by what happens in book two because it definitely has a lot of potential. I love Evie as a FMC, she's strong and sassy and hopefully she really becomes the badass she's been set up to be. The world is good, mix of Fae, shifters, magic etc all incorporated really well. There are a few bits in there that felt a bit sudden such as her friendship with Lucas (who is the male equivalent of a golden retriever) and being able to harness magic she didn't know she had straight away but it doesn't take away from the story really and it was a great little palette cleanser too 😊

[L.L. Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to this on audible and it was lovely and easy to follow. 👌

I love how right from the beginning this feels like your on an adventure since its written from Evies perspective and she’s constantly moving it had a good pace to it.

I liked the main character Evie and look forward to following her story further. Having had a hard life so far it was great to see that she didn’t sit around waiting to be saved. Shes independent and curious as all the best characters are .

bring on book 2! 😍

[CJ Beimler · Rating 3 out of 5]

Evie wakes up on her 21st birthday to find herself kidnapped. She soon finds out that the life she thought she had is not actually the one she was meant to live…

This was a good, quick read! I finished it in one sitting. It’s got a lot of my favorite things; fae, myth and magic, a budding heroine, a couple loyal friends, and the promise of fated mates. It pulls you right into the world without getting too heavy with intense world building. There’s a lot of lingering questions, but I like the direction the series is taking, and I can’t wait to get into the next one!

3 1/2 stars.

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Happiness Boosts: the magic system, and how different character races get bigger major roles than normal (eg male siren). The building intrigue re the MC's powers was wonderful!

Downside: the whinge about a lack of parental figure - contrary sentences revolving around that was off-putting for me. As was the "I was bored and unmotivated" - I wanted to reach in and shake her. Then DO something!

Overall: this ends on a really good cliffhanger, and I like the promise of more magic to come. But I'm not completely invested in Evie, the MC.

[Nikita Stanley · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fabulous and imaginative start to the series! I was spellbound!

This book is not only easy to read and follow, but extremely imaginative! I was mind-boggled at the unique approach to this story and I absolutely loved it!

This book is fast-paced and intense. It sucks you in to another universe and will leave you captivated!

This book is a fae adventure/fantasy series with some Greek mythology thrown in and adult themes that just round it off perfectly.

This book is a definitely recommended, but settle in for the long haul because you will NEED to read on!

[aliteraryarchivist · Rating 3 out of 5]

Actual Rating 3.5
The Kingdom of Chaos: Becoming Fae by @j.j.smeck was a delightful beginning to a series. The book introduces readers to a wonderful magical system, which was one of my favorite things about the book. I also loved the glimpse into the political aspect of the world. Evie was a wonderful character to read about and I am excited to see her grow throughout the series. There’s so many questions I have about Evie’s true identity. If you are looking for a quick fantasy read this book is for you.

[Fiona · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Aasfjdksjsisb ughhh
This story has so much potential.

For a 1st person POV, Evie feels a little detached from her own story. We get a lot of telling us what's happening instead of showing us.

Love Jake and I'm so intrigued by what's happening there. Love the banter between Lucas and Evie and the best friend vibes.

I think if I just got some more details and vivid descriptions during events and conversations instead of Evie telling me what's going on after the fact, I would be absolutely in love with the story.

That being said, I'm looking forward to the next book!

[Azyamarie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! Nothing but action throughout this book and starts right at the beginning. You get to see the growth of Evie throughout this book. I love the way she does her world building. I felt like I was right there with Evie throughout the entire book. I love how she made Evie a fae that has regular and normal doubts and feelings. I really felt what she was feeling and what she was going through. I cannot wait to read the second book in this series and get to see what adventures wait for Evie and those around her.