Cuban Author: Check
Autistic Author: Check
Mulan Retelling: Check
Queer Characters: Check
Body Positivity: Check
Friends to Lovers: Check
Steamy Romance: Check Check Cheeeeckkkk!!!!

I WILL say, the main character perseveres a lot of traumas. Please check the author's website for trigger warnings before proceeding with this book.

While there is romance in this book (very spicy romance, indeed), I am most impressed with the character's growth. As I mentioned, she was heavily traumatized, but Lara grew into an amazingly strong, brave individual. She really reminds me of Aelin in TOG in this. She is a badass!

The two brothers really highlight the duality of MMCs in most romances: one being a sweet softie, and the other willing to burn down the world if she was ever to be hurt. It caused me to be a bit torn between the two of them throughout the story.

This book was really wonderful. I do recommend it but again, please check trigger warnings.

Worthy of the Raven follows Lara and her best friends, Nicholas and Alexander, as they come of age. The book touches on dark topics, such as child abuse, alongside positive representations like bisexuality and polyamory (from the author's website).

I love a good fantasy book with queer representation that keeps me on edge, and I cannot put it down. Sadly, Worthy of the Raven didn't hit all the sweet spots for me. Yes, to the world development, to incorporating ancestral connection and knowledge while juxtaposing to a different reality, which clearly represents the world we live in.

It lacked mystery and a straightforward plot. I found the character development repetitive in some instances, and very easy to see where the story was going. The sexual scenes and how characters will comment on sexual relationships or attraction felt forced, and I couldn't quite imagine them saying such things. The author mentions the protagonist is bisexual, but that's only touched upon as a one-off, and it isn't part of the character development, in my opinion.

By the time I reached the end, I wasn't left thinking, "oh, I can't wait for the next volume to see where Lara goes" for me, the end of the book was the end of the series. I didn't feel there was enough material for it to be a series. I'm happy to be proven wrong.

It had potential and went flat, so I'm giving it 2 stars because I can't do 2.5 on here.

I failed to connect to this book and it's main characters. Lara was often described as strong bodied and willed but was very rarely shown this way throughout the book. She relies heavily on her male friends to solve problems for her and for emotional support throughout the entire book. Her male friends Allesandro and Nicola are brothers who are both obsessed with Lara, or more accurately the idea of Lara they have in their heads. They do not give her the chance to make her own choices or take care of herself, preferring her close (by staying in their tents or riding double on their horses) and taking care of her without consent (like when they CLEANED UP HER PERIOD BLOOD FOR HER IN THE RIVER). The relationship between the 3 of them does not feel like it contributes to what could have been a really good girl power story and mostly gives me the "ick."

Honestly I LOVED the first 20% of the book, and then the pining started, by 30% I was completely over it and I had to DNF at 41% because this book was putting me in a slump. I did what I always do when I start to really disconnect from a story and read some reviews on goodreads and although the ratings were higher that I expected the reviews all seemed to be saying the same things I was thinking.

This book says on the title that this is a Mulan retelling but really it feels like a girl who keeps finding herself in unfortunate situations letting others make choices for her.

This story is one I feel so many need to read!
Please read cw/tw

As you start reading you are seeing Lara and Alessandro and Nicolas childhood. How cute they are together how strong their bond is. It’s absolutely adorable and wholesome.
The more you read the more you fall in love with each one of the characters. Alessandro is so sweet and kind and is basically a cinnamon roll. Nicola is smart and the way he teases her is just to cutest thing ever.
Lara is one I kept thinking the more I read the more I love her. She is a kind of woman that loves to read and continue to learn about the world and loves adventures. She’s not your typical wants to get married and have kids….no she is itching for adventure for more knowledge to see the world. All she dreams about is to travel a join in battle. Hence the Mulan retelling aspect.

Soon your heart gets broken with something so dark that happens. It’s so sad but it’s also a devastating point for not only Lara but Alessandro and oof my heart broke for this.

The story moves on with the boys going off to war.
This is when Lara grows and is there to protect her village. The challenges she takes on and faces with her people omg so good.

But all in all the story continues….from here on out it’s a little harder to explain because so much feels like a spoiler


What I will tell you is if you read this book. You’ll fall in love with Lara personality. You’ll fall in love with Nicola and Alessandro.

You’ll also learn to love more characters and their stories.

You’ll most likely feel torn regarding the conde brothers.

And when you take all of this into account you’ll find yourself so I love with the idea of their happiness and when you start to see the devastating things unravel your heart with break. I sobbed SOBBED! I was not okay toward the end. I cried for days after reading this. I couldn’t accept the ending.

The ending was wild! Heartbreaking, devastating! But I have faith that the story will move forward and our heart will be mended. But omg as I mentioned before so much happens! But it all….no matter how I put it feels like a spoiler! So trust that you’ll love this book as much as I did! Because wow it’s unforgettable it’s beautiful and raw!

DNF at 10%

I'm sorry, I'm just not feeling it. I find the pacing a bit wonky, although the premise is interesting and the two brothers make for a nice couple of characters.

Sorry, nothing particularly bad about it so far, but if I find myself skimming the page and reading only half of the text for chapters at the time I guess a book is just not for me.

Thank you to Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to view this arc in exchange for an honest review, **

TW: SA, Child Abuse, Misogyny, War, Sexual content/talk

I had high hopes for this book, its just not the book for me. I loved the premise of a dark Mulan with political intrigue and a diverse cast of characters, the execution however left much to be desired in my opinion. The MC, Lara and her love interests are very thought provoking and have a passionate relationship, but their reactions to the abuse she suffers is just so messed up. After Lara is sexually assaulted, her love interests make her suffering about them. They flow between viewing her as this object that exists exclusively for their fantasies, to viewing her as this innocent, virginal being that needs constant protection from every man in the world. Also the fact every single male character wants to hook up with her for some reason and call her little one?? Alessandro and Nicola were very stereotypical "alpha men" who sexualize Lara at every chance (enough to walk out of the room to "control themselves" around her) even though their entirely aware of the trauma she's been and continues to go through. Lara is also referred to as "little lara" for a majority of the book, which gave me the ick. One of the only positive things i gleaned from this book is the positive representation for polyamorous relationships and sex work, which were handled very well.

I found it very interesting how a plot that begins with a war nobody wants to go ends up as a conspiracy for the power of a magic that supposedly exists.
The magic system has seemed to me innovative, not so much focused on nature but on the bond with an animal. Besides, the author explains enough so you understand how it works but you need to know more. That’s why it’s so addictive.
Another point that has surprised me has been that there are scenes in which it talks about masturbation and female pleasure, and I found it very important since it’s a topic that I have rarely read. In fact, there are several very well written sex scenes that are given much importance to this topic.
Lara is a well-built, strong and empowered female character who shows that she doesn’t let anyone trample her. That’s why I don’t like Alessandro being so overprotective to her. In so many times I wanted roll my eyes because he were exasperating.
But overall I really enjoyed the story: epic battles, plot twists that you don’t expect (especially at the end), a wonderful and wholesome romance, and an ending that has left me in need of more.
I highly recommend it with all my heart.

I have been excited for this book since I saw the author talking about it on TikTok. This is a dark Mulan retelling with body positivity, queer characters, and friends to lovers (one of my favorite tropes). Please check CW and TW before reading this book. I loved this book from beginning to end and cannot wait for the next in the series. The world building was so rich in detail I felt like I was inside the book while reading. This is one of the best dark fantasy books have read this year!

Stalked by darkness is an amazing and satisfying epic fantasy book. The writing was very good and it does a good job at keeping your attention while you read. It had some tropes that I really enjoy like the one bed trope. It is also a polyamory slow burn book that is done great. The main character Lara was amazing and she goes through so much but you see her grow and become an incredible MC. This book does deal with some things that could be triggering so please read the content warning that the author provides in her website before reading it. I really enjoyed this read and recommend it to anyone who wants an epic fantasy Mulan retelling with some really good writing and an amazing world full of magic.

Worthy of the Raven is a story about a land at war against Skin Demons who possess magic. We have our main character Lara, who has befriended the Condé brothers and helps to care for their people while the brothers go off to war against the Skins. While on leave, Lara’s father kills her mother in front of her so the brothers disguise Lara as their younger sister and bring her with them to protect her.

The synopsis of this story sounds amazing, and the characters are really well written. Unfortunately I found the transitions between plot points to be rough and at times a little hard to follow. Overall it was an interesting story.

this book can get very dark. While no sexual assault is described in detail it is still mentioned to have happened and has a pretty disturbing lead up scene to it. If you are not in the right mind frame do not read this book it can get dark.

I like the world building in this book and like that the given rules are never broken. There are three main characters in this book and throughout reading it you really fall in love with all of them. The main girl character Lara goes through a lot in this book and I love to see her journey through this world.

Lara as a young child is told by a mysterious women that she is worthy of the raven but has no idea what that means. From then on throughout her life whenever something bad is going to happen a raven is there. Her father wants to go to war with their enemy aka the Skin. Her best friends Nicola, Alessandro and all the men in their land are then forced to go to a war they do not wish to fight in.

While I love the world building the one thing I would like to be a little better is the pacing. It doesn’t flow at times and others it feels rushed through to get to the next point in the story. I never had a good sense of time of when things would take place and only knew because the age of the characters would change. There is another thing I had minor issues with but do not wish to get into spoilers.

Otherwise I really liked the fantasy elements to this story and thought it had pretty good world building. The romance elements to this book also do not disappoint. My favorite character was Nicola because he was very straightforward and didn’t lie or omit the truth to Lara.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoyed the world-building and epic storyline of this book, but overall wasn't impressed with the pacing and writing style. The characters were interesting, complex, and at times entertaining, and the romance was passionate and meaningful. The drama of the politics and war was fun at first but took far too long to reach any kind of conclusion. The ending was fabulous, setting the scene for a future book, but after struggling with the writing errors and weird dialogue cuts, I'm not sure I would seek out a sequel.

Story was interesting but overall, wasn't engaging enough for me to recommend.

I just reviewed Worthy of the Raven by Y. L. Zamora. #WorthyoftheRaven #NetGalley

I wanted to like this book. The premise of a dark Mulan with a why choose element fascinated me. However, this book reads like a first draft of a debut novel. The plot is all over the place in the first 30%. There is a lot of showing and not telling, as well as a lot of repetition with facts being told over and over. The two brothers personalities seemed to swap every couple of chapters and a lot of the events seemed disconnected and out of the blue. Dialogue felt awkward and over dramatic, and the depiction of injuries and symptoms made my head spin. It’s very disappointing because the world and culture the author created was fascinating. I tried to push through, hoping it would get better but Unfortunately, I did not finish this book. I think a good editor could have made a huge difference in the quality of this book.

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC. Please, please, please read the TW on the authors website. They are needed and I am so thankful that they were given and easy to access. Here it is again, just in case
https://www.ravenandfoxbooks.com/content-warning

Unfortunately, this book was not for me and I DFNd at 50%. Just because I didn't like it doesn't mean others won't/can't. I genuinely hope this author is successful because they clearly worked hard for this book.

I don't normally review books i DNF, but this one needed one. There was so much i disliked. The lengthy description of people and their brades, the fact that 50% in and they just barely made it to the war camps. But the biggest thing was the way the author wrote about women and very triggering subjects. It wasn't the content that the author warned about, but rather the way those close to Lara handled her abuse. While I appreciate the ruthlessness of the way Alessandro dealt with her abusers, the fact that he and Nicola had to remove themselves from her because they were so distracted by her body was messed up. Them constantly calling her 'little girl' was gross. The fact that Alessandro held her while she was unconscious after being SAd without her consent and the he cried because he couldn't protect her while her abuser was still in the room?? Not ok. The fact that both brothers constantly thought about her while she didn't know what a d**k was?!? Super not ok. I tried, I really tried because the concept was cool but I got 50% in and gave up.

From the beginning I sensed something was wrong. And it didn't really hit until maybe 100 or so pages in where I knew... absolutely without a doubt my heart was going to be torn apart. (I mean I figured earlier than that but this is in relation to a certain someone)

I was extremely invested in Lara and her journey. I felt her fear and pain, her joy and laughter...I wanted to shield her from the horrors of her world just as much as Ale and Nicola did.

To me, Nicola had the most character growth out of the three of them. Especially knowing the world in which they live and the values they had to grow up with...he really grew the most. Ale seemingly did but he's got a long way to go as well as Lara.

I loved the aspects of culture and war and how we get to see both sides of the narrative. This really showcases the muddied waters and how "just because you say they're bad doesn't mean it's true".

My heart hurts for the ending and I can't wait to see more.

Please check the author site for the CWs as this one is heavy with them and protect your mental health besties. It's a beautiful story but not every story is for every one. Happy reading.

a little disappointed. the summary sounded so good but the book wasn’t what i expected. the characters annoyed me and i was bored by the plot. the world was nice i guess but nothing ground breaking either.

Worthy of the Raven is the book for you, and I will tell you why. It might be hard for me to remain neutral here since I’m the author’s husband, yes! I am, and even when I’m not a reader, I’m still her husband. I had the honor of reading the book while it was being written. It’s a trap. The book is a trap. Once you start reading, it becomes addictive, you can’t stop, and you want the next chapter, the next one, and the one after. When you get to THE END, you get depressed because you want to know what comes after …. Then you go like… my love, don’t eat, don’t sleep, don’t even breathe, just write, please!

Again not because I’m close but Worthy of the Raven is a piece of art. There are no simple characters in this book, you get to know all of them while reading. You also learn to love ones and hate others as well. The complexity of the different cultures fighting, some for conquering, others to keep their freedom. Their identity, the clothing, the cities with their streets, buildings, and roads, everything is so well described but in a relaxed way, so you can let your imagination fly and have your world within the author’s world. The book is a tribute to friendship, loyalty, freedom, diversity, love, resilience, honor, respect, and so much more.

I’ve witnessed how much work she’s has put into it, from spending several hours watching Kali videos, which is a Filipino martial art with knives, and Capoeira, an acrobatic Brazilian martial art, studying the body movements, the flexing, the blades, so she could create incredibly amazing yet realistic fighting scenes, or the days and weeks of research to put together a selection of words from our almost completely lost Taino, which was the language of our ancestors, the indigenous people of the Caribbean.

Nothing happens by coincidence in this book. There are no loose ends. All characters have a meaningful role, every conversation is a clue for something else, you feel alive while reading, you are there with them, sharing good and bad, they become your people, your family, you want to be there for them, you want to help, you can breathe their same air, you can feel their pain…

I’m not a reader and don’t have vast book knowledge, but I can say this is a great book, and I’m entirely sure this book is for you…

I can’t finish without saying how proud I am of you. Love you.

4/5 stars
3/5 spice

Great world building, an intense love story, and a badass female warrior who survives numerous obstacles and trauma.

Tropes:
Childhood friends to lovers
Polyamory/why choose
Found family
Touch her and die
Forced proximity
Slow burn
Multiple POV

This was an dark epic fantasy romance that takes you on a journey. It's important to check the trigger and content warnings because the FMC, Lara, goes through a lot of trauma throughout the book.

The story immediately draws you in and you get a clear idea of who these characters are. Lara, Alessandro, and Nicola all care very deeply about each other and try their hardest to be each other's protectors. Unfortunately Lara grows up in an abusive household and can't always be protected. When war comes to their home Lara gets the chance to finally become the warrior she always dreamed of being.

Lara's relationship with Alessandro and Nicola grow under their forced proximity in the war camp. You really see the character development with all of them at this point. But then... it's only half way into the book and SO MUCH has happened already you start wondering what awaits you in the end.

It's a lot to take in but the story doesn't feel dragged out. The ending broke my heart but also got me excited for the second book.

If you love epic fantasy that's slow burn with the romance/spice but also great characters and plot... then you'll love this book.

Trigger/content warnings:
Domestic abuse, SA/rape (on screen), war, violence, murder, harassment, Polyamory relationship, positive sex work rep, graphic sexual content, explicit language

** I received an ARC from Netgalley and this is my honest review**

First, make sure you check trigger warnings!! The author has provided a link to the website in the front of the book. This book contains A LOT of potentially triggering content as it is a dark fantasy romance. There is some triggering content within the first couple chapters of the book, so if you have any concerns you need to check those trigger warnings beforehand. I appreciate that the author was thorough in providing those.

Okay so I have mixed feelings about this book. Let me first break down the positives in this book.

- There is a lot of great worldbuilding. We're immediately drawn into the culture and life of our characters. We get to understand very quickly the distinct aspects of both the Longbraids and Skin's cultures.
- Great character details and side characters are well-developed.
- Sex workers, sex, sexual exploration, polyamory, etc... are portrayed in a positive light and in a healthy way.
- The male characters have points where they break out of toxic masculinity. If the"touch her and die" trope is your thing, then we also have that. But we also have times where they show emotions, break down, cry, etc... I really appreciated that in this book.
- This book deals with a LOT of triggering and graphic content. But never did I feel like the writing went too far or was too graphic in the story. It wasn't there just for shock value.
- This book also deals with very realistic effects of trauma and mental health issues. There's no instant recovery and I really appreciate that.
- Magic is mentioned throughout the story and hinted at. It really shows up towards the end but it works and I found the magic system really interesting. Also the links between nature and the Skin was well done.
- This is my own interpretation but the whole story gave me an underlying discussion of patriarchal oppression. But instead of getting a female character who is able to break through all these barriers, we see someone who is constantly broken by the patriarchy and utterly destroyed before being reborn into a figurehead that serves the patriarchal desires rather than herself. I'm not sure if this was intended or I'm just reading into it.

Which leads me into why I found this book so frustrating.

My issues with the book don't stem from the writing, or even necessarily the plot. I had different expectations of Lara and I struggled with a lot of frustration with her character and the love interests when reading.

- We have some sudden time jumps throughout ranging from a few weeks, to months, to years. I wish maybe we had some date system so we could ground ourselves before the time jump.
- I feel like Lara had no real agency for a majority of the book. She is so often described as being an amazing fighter, smart, capable etc... But we don't get to see this very often. Instead we see her male friends saving her time and time again. Getting revenge for her time and time again.
Even when she supposedly makes a decision, it felt like it was at the direction or control of the males around her. At first this made sense. She was young, raised in a culture where her word and actions had no value. But even after she supposedly proves herself and countries around theirs are signing her praises, she's still bent to the will of the men around her.
Even at the end, I struggled to see that spark that told me that she was in control. She goes through a lot of trauma and I appreciate that the author explored the very real effects of PTSD and realistic recovery. But even on her upswings, the men in her life seemed to keep stepping in before she had any chance to take control. There was character growth but it felt almost stunted to me.

All of that honestly may be intentional. Like I said above, I think this story focuses more on those very real instances where women we admire as strong and amazing, have to go through hell and back to be even recognized and their stories don't end as happily as we think.

- Nicola gave me the heebie jeebies. I'm sorry if anyone disagrees. I love the possessive, alpha, "touch her and die" stuff but the way he thought about her just made me say ick for the first half of the book and even some of the second half. He refers to her being "little" so often and uses infantilizing language to describe her that it made me mad. It was fine at first but I wish his mindset had changed a little sooner to realize that she was a kickass woman.

- The pining wore me out. If you like pining and love her from a distance and stay in the friendzone tropes, then this is perfect. But it was too much for me.

- I feel like we awkwardly skip some interesting parts. There's a Skin attack where supposedly Lara "defends herself fiercely" but WE DON'T GET TO SEE HER BEING KICKASS. There's several years where she accomplishes things that are touted as making her revered across her country and in all the surrounding countries but we only hear about them. We don't get to see her in action when she's being amazing. We only seem to see her when she's being broken or making decisions that will break her for the majority of the story. Yet we see the male main characters kicking ass quite often. I feel like we could have cut some of the paragraphs of internal pining and added more action.

- I feel like I needed to see Nicola and Alessandro interact more, ESPECIALLY in regards to their relationship with Lara which gets complicated. I feel like the love triangle that we get for much of the book would make a little more sense at the end if we had just one scene where they discuss their intentions.

- I've seen this described as a Mulan inspired retelling (not sure if it's marketed that way by the author) but I disagree. Yes, we have a young woman hiding as a warrior in a heavily patriarchal society. But Mulan made choices and was in charge of herself. I felt like Lara so often was just dragged along by the men that felt they were doing what was best for her.

This is probably one of the longest reviews I've written. This book makes you think and for that, I think it's a solid 4 star read. Personally, it frustrated me but I wonder if Lara's story is meant to frustrate and upset the reader; to challenge them to examine how the people we put on pedestals got there and if they are truly happy.

Personally, I did not enjoy this book as much as I wanted to. I thought the premise was good, and the book had a strong beginning, but it quickly fell off and never picked back up for me.

Before I continue, I just want to state that just because this wasn't the story for me, that doesn't mean it won't be the perfect story for someone else!

We're told that Lara is this bright girl, who dreams of being a warrior. She trains to fight with her best friend who is considered to be the best fighter in the village. Then she finds herself completely defenseless during a (trigger warning!) SA. This didn't sit well with me. Assualt like that is already pretty triggering, but to have it thrown in as only a plot device, and then it doesn't even fit in with the plot? A total turn off. I wanted to DNF the book there, but I continued on, hoping it would improve.

The weird love circle happening between Lara and her best friends, who are brothers, was weird. Alessandro would kill a man with his bare hands for Lara, but also hold her while she does it with his brother?? This was so strange and off-putting to me. And then to be traumatized the way she was, only to agree to aid the people that caused the trauma?? There was just too many unbelievable things about the story, and that's saying something when it's fantasy.