I believe this was one of the first titles I ever requested. Not really interested anymore. I should probably make some sort of organization system to keep track of these

Gosh this was the fairytale I needed right now! It absolutely hooked me and had me devouring it from start to finish!! I absolutely love and recommend this book!!

This is a dark read but I had a great time with it. I really liked the fairytale elements that were dotted throughout this novel.

We were learning everything alongside the character which I had a fun time with and I enjoyed the female main character taking matters into her own hands and choosing the life she wants to lead.

love the twist and meta converstaion about fairytales, well written and a great fantasy book in the new adult range

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for granting me free access to the advanced digital copy of this book.

I was really intrigued to read this book but for some reason it didn‘t catch me. I tried for so long to enjoy it and sadly can‘t say what I didn‘t like.
I didn’t feel the vibe at all, would love to listen as an audiobook some day and see if I like it better then.

We are all familiar with the fairy tales of princesses, knights, and villains who strive to ruin everyone's lives. These stories were read to us as children, and we all watched the Disney versions that became gospel to most of us. The original stories are lost on most people. But what is they were all true to a degree and part of a family tree's fate? That is where the main character finds herself in this story. Her grandmother lived a Sleeping Beauty life story as did her mother. Is she doomed to follow in their fabled footsteps? Not if she can help it.
The description of this book is what got my attention. I love fairy tales, but the same old stories are getting boring. This one put a fresh new twist on it. The stories continue through the generations but can vary enough to mesh multiple stories into one. The Magic in the area feeds upon thoughts and actions to direct one's fairy tale life. But as a group of individuals try to change their fate, secrets are revealed and mistakes are made. 
At first, this story began very slow. Not much was given to the reader to get them caught up with the characters. Little by little, information is revealed. I think it would have been better if the reader had learned the fairy tale news at the same time as the main character. So much would not have been as confusing. 
As the story progressed, I found myself wanting to know what would reveal itself on the next few pages. There were so many secrets and opportunities as they attempted to redirect the path the Magic was intent on taking. Could the simple of act of wearing the right colored clothes be enough? What about the actions of others? There were so many variables that I was on the edge of my seat waiting to see what the impacts would be. That doesn't take into account the other characters who wanted to change the story to fit their own narratives. 
Without revealing too much, I found myself surprised at the end only because so many tales are similar and I was not looking at everything that happened. An enjoyable read that had me wanting to know more about the families and ask a million questions regarding the magic.

I received this book for free for an honest review from netgalley.

Witchy magical fun. I can't wait to reread this one. The setting and characters were so complex.

This was one of my favorite reads of 2023. I loved this so much! I adore fantasy and reimagined fairy tales. This was done so well! The cover is gorgeous as well. This is my favorite retelling I've ever read. I look forward to reading more by this author because her writing style really worked well for this genre.

Trigger warning for SA.

Loren finds herself pulled into a real life fairytale, with only her friends and overbearing grandmother to help her find her way to happily ever after.

I wanted to like this book more than I inevitably did. This book has a lot of connections to fairytale retellings, unsurprisingly for the premise. However, at times it felt a bit overwritten or disjointed with all the different elements going on that made it somewhat hard to follow at points. Despite this, it was an interesting read that I would not recommend for anyone who avoids SA triggers in books.

This was a NetGalley review.

I am embarrassed it took me so long to read this book. I should have read it a long time ago and just failed.

But, I am so glad I finally got through it. My semester is over and my grading is finished and I thought it might be the perfect time to dig into this one. It seemed on theme. :)

I loved this unique and fresh take on the fairy tale. We get to see old stories interwoven together from a brand new perspective and that's just lovely. I look forward to seeing the next.

Llyr has a talent for immersive writing and clearly took time in building such an authentic tale.

thank you to netgalley for the advanced reading copy. I really enjoyed this and will be getting copies for my shop.

This is a wonderful story. Sometimes all the details bogged me down a bit but it was amazing. The world building was phenomenal. All the rules and guesses keep you on your seat wondering what will happen. The characters are deep with many facets. There is a learning aspect to this that I loved going through the different fairytales. The plot is a very twisty one that I really enjoyed. I really enjoyed this story.

Spell Borne is the story of a girl in a land far far away... Loren Hughes is a young woman who just wants to finish her thesis and start her professional life like she's planned. That all changes when a freak accident puts her in the hospital. Auden did a great job of portraying the chaos inside the mind of a neurodivergent person, as Loren navigates this whole new world she knew nothing about. I had so much fun finding the little nods to different tales throughout the book, and was always kept guessing which story would win. The feminist undertones were empowering and I found myself often nodding my head in agreement. The Book overall was good, the start was a little slow but well worth it. I enjoyed the twist on Fairy Tales and how it followed the development of the characters. Be careful what you put out into the universe, you never know how it may manifest.

Easy reading, original fairytale retelling filled with humour. Some darker themes are represented as well, so if you know you have some triggers, I’d recommend checking the TW at the beginning of the book first.

I loved the FMC and her journey to discover who she is and who she wants to be. How she tries to take her story in her own hands, but simultaneously has to learn that sometimes you can’t defy fate.

It’s also original how this story doesn’t limit itself to one fairytale, but covers various stories and their differences, not only sticking to the Disney versions. It was also really fun to figure out which story was going to be Loren’s and how all the elements could fit together. The fact that this book, filled with fairytale elements, is set in the present was also a nice take on the earlier versions of all these tales.

Personally I think it could have used some more polishing or editing because some information seems to be missing and the storyline can get quite chaotic at times. The ending was also rather abrupt, I would have liked to see one or two extra chapters to give some more closure. Nonetheless it kept me sitting on the edge of my seat and I absolutely enjoyed reading Loren’s story.

I can absolutely recommend this book to fairytale lovers who aren’t afraid of some darker themes and like a strong (yet vulnerable) FMC. Add some interesting male characters and some romance (yet barely any spice, it’s more fade to black). It’s the first book in a series and holds lots of potential for the books that are yet to come.
3.75/5 ⭐

Thank you Netgalley for this review copy.

Thank you NetGalley & publisher for this eARC.

First of all, I appreciate that this book has listed TW on the first page (a long list). And second, I love the idea of this book as it reminds me a bit of Once Upon a Time series, where they were cursed in a town and fairy-tale related.

I just - did not expect that this book will caused me trauma as well. It was too painful as there were multiple assaults. I thought it will be whimsical with magic here and there but nope. I think one of the main reason was lack of world-building, I even have a hard time connecting with the other characters.

So yeah, I can sense that the ending was meant to set up a sequel but I think I will pass it.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.

When Loren visits her grandmother in the small town of Lointaine so she can finish her thesis, she steps back into a life ruled by fairy tale Magic and discovers she comes from a long line of Sleeping Beauty princesses. It turns out there Magic ruling fairy tale bloodlines in Lointaine is determined to give her a tale, a prince, and a happy ending whether she likes it or not.

Spell Borne is a fun story about fighting destiny and long-ingrained social norms that have become cages to those trapped within the Magic running their lives. Told in the first person from Loren's point of view, we follow her struggles as a young woman everyone tries to control from the moment she sets foot in her grandmother's town. From her clothes and manners, to her profession, to her goals, Loren is told she's not Princessy enough. She's accused of murder, attacked, wounded, and corralled into terrible situations all by the power running the town's inhabitants.

Ultimately Loren has to figure out which parts of the Fairy Tale Princess role she wants to keep and which parts she can chuck. In effort to avoid sleeping for a hundred years (like her grandmother) or a hundred months (like her mother), Loren and her friend Connor decide to try to shape the Magic into a Beauty and the Beast tale, preferably the Disney version.

The premise of Spell Borne immediately caught my attention: it's really a fairy tale critique within a fairy tale, pointing out all the different versions of stories throughout the ages and commenting on social structures affecting the main characters. Unfortunately, it took me a long time to care about the characters: Loren is rather whiny at the start, and those she interacts with are a bit wooden at first. But, the weaving of fairy tale commentary and actual fairy tale gets smoother as the book goes on, the characters become much more human and complex, and the story has a few fun twists. I will say from a romance perspective it was pretty easy to see what would happen, but there were enough challenges and turns to make the journey a fun read.

There is a massive trigger warning for this book for sexual assault. In the non-Disney Sleeping Beauty tales, SB is raped while she's asleep, and in some versions gives birth while still unconscious. I appreciated the depth of fairy tale lore in Spell Borne that shows fairy tales aren't actually all that charming, but I thought Loren's emotional and physical aftermath from her own attack to be a little too surface-level. It was probably appropriate for a fairy tale woman's character, because no one really comments on the emotional and psychological trauma of being raped in fairy tales, but it felt like Loren's fast emotional recovery and mild trauma was too easily explained away as Magic. For all the author's obvious and wonderfully blunt feminist critique of the misogyny of fairy tales, that part fell flat for me.

Ultimately Spell Borne felt like a first novel, but it got better and better as I kept reading. I enjoyed the author's expertise in the lore. She also clearly knows her way around creating art, sailing, and other skills I did not expect to learn about in a fairy tale. I liked Spell Borne, and I'll definitely read book two in the series.

From the start I was intrigued by the premise of this book - a dark fairytale set in the modern world - which I think it delivered on. I also enjoyed the world building and thought the character development was good.

However, I found the pacing a bit slow and the prose a bit chunky/awkward at times. And the ending felt a bit rushed. As well, I started reading expecting a new adult book, but it read a bit more YA (although there are more mature themes).

Overall, I enjoyed the book but think it needed a bit more refinement (in my unprofessional opinion).

A very interesting fantasy novel.

I also dream of waking up in a world with magic suddenly and that is the premise of this story! Perfect premise.

The writing was not my favorite style and the characters were a little plain. The story plot and premise is what made this book better.

DNF at 7%

After the line about using the word “fuck” and saying it means a “lack of creative variance in a person’s vocabulary”, I was a bit put off.

I honestly was kind of ruined for the story after that. I cannot stand the main character. Maybe I have a bad taste in my mouth after the insults about using the word “fuck” (which is a good word? Like?), maybe I am a little sensitive about insinuating people think you need to be institutionalized when your brain doesn’t work after a brain injury (I would consider myself almost fully recovered from my TBI back in 2018…5 years later), but I just have too many books I want to read to read one that degrades people for the language they choose to use, insinuates about brain injuries the way it does, and doesn’t know the conservation effects of Big Game Hunting like elephant hunting (part of my degree) so just shits on it.

This was not the book for me. This review will not be posted in its entirety anywhere else