I can’t believe this was a debut novel! I think it was a great first book to a series, and I am very excited to read the second book coming out in June. Published April 3rd, The Court that Bleeds Gold is a fast paced, dark fantasy novel that I think rivals ACOTAR. I loved how the MC is competent, and especially how she doesn't immediately lose all her senses the second she sees a hot fae man. This book ended with a cliff hanger that made me bummed I couldn’t get the next ARC to find out what happens next, but I am very excited to continue with this story!

"Desperate to escape marrying a brutal king, I make a deal with a Fae Prince" offers a refreshing twist on the classic fairy tale narrative, blending elements of fantasy, romance, and suspense into an engaging story. The protagonist's plight is gripping from the start, as she navigates the treacherous world of both human and fae royalty in a bid for freedom.

One of the highlights of the book is its framing, which draws readers into the protagonist's dilemma and sets the stage for the unfolding drama. The dialogue between the main characters is another strong point, injecting wit and emotion into their interactions and deepening the reader's investment in their journey.

However, while the story is enjoyable overall, it falls short of reaching its full potential. The pacing occasionally feels uneven, and certain plot points may leave readers wanting more depth or exploration. Additionally, while the main characters are compelling, some of the supporting cast could benefit from further development to fully flesh out the world and its inhabitants.

Despite these drawbacks, "Desperate to escape marrying a brutal king, I make a deal with a Fae Prince" remains a worthwhile read for fans of fairy tale retellings and fantasy romance. Its inventive premise and well-crafted dialogue make it an engaging choice for those seeking a blend of magic, intrigue, and romance in their literary escapades.

LOVED this debut novel. If you're a fan of ACOTAR, beauty and the beast and Rumplestiltskin, RUN, don't walk, RUN to this book. The world building, character development, plot, and romance were *chefs kiss*!
I was kept at the edge of my seat wondering what's going to happen next and I love that in a book. I can't wait to read the rest of the series because this book was truly incredible

I liked the Rumplestilkskin-like setup. I liked some of the interactions, but honestly by 60% I was bored and ready for it to be over. I kept reading just so I could know if it pulled off something I really liked in the end. But this book was too long with pacing that didn't work for me.

Other things that kind of irritated me:
1. The Low Fae - This was a choice on the part of the author, and maybe it'll get addressed in the future, but even with a "morally grey" MMC, I have trouble accepting someone allowing a whole class of beings to be made less than
2. I saw the twist with Fiona coming a mile away. It was entirely too convenient. This isn't a bad thing, but I kept waiting for it to happen, and I wondered why the FMC wasn't more suspcious just because she was (apparently) human.
3. I'll admit, there are time when a "big misunderstanding" can work for me, but it's not often. And it didn't here. I'm especially not a fan of not talking about it with someone you purport to love.
4. I didn't realize this was book 1 in a series, so the cliff-hanger was a little annoying, but that is the least of my issues.

I liked this, the story was original and the worldbuilding was very good. I think the love story was lacking there wasn’t any relationship development between I hate you to I love you.

I had high hopes after seeing all the positive reviews but unfortunately the writing and lack of original plot was too hard for me to get through. This book was the epitome of telling the reader what’s happening, instead of showing the reader. I also should have realized that any beauty and the beast romantasy retelling would be too similar to others that have come before it but I was hoping for some unique world building or at least good characters and chemistry. Unfortunately, I was disappointed on all of those parts. This book obviously was a hit for many people, just not for me!

I absolutely loved this and I need the second one right away! The plot of the book was well done and the characters were amazing.

This was a strong start to the Gold Weaver series, it had that dark fantasy elements that I was looking for. The characters were wonderfully done and worked with everything that I was looking for. Zara Storm has a great overall concept and I enjoyed the way it was written. It left me wanting to read more in this series and from Zara Storm.

"The Court that Bleeds Gold" by Zara Storm is an amazing debut in the romantasy genre that had me completely enthralled. Storm crafts a tale that's both familiar and refreshingly unique. From the moment Eleanor is thrust into the world of faerie, I was hooked. The blend of metallurgy and magic adds an intriguing twist to the story, and Eleanor's journey from reluctant pawn to a force to be reckoned with kept me turning the pages. While I wished for more detailed character descriptions, the chemistry between the main characters crackles with intensity, and I found myself rooting for them every step of the way.

Overall, "The Court that Bleeds Gold" is a gripping read that perfectly balances fantasy and romance. I'm already counting down the days until the next installment! Huge thanks to the author for providing an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I really enjoy this book about Ella the gold weaver and Ruskins! The book was easy to read and has an amazing plot/world building. I really connected with the characters and I really love an MMC who’s grumpy but has a heart of gold 😉

This was a great debut book, a little bit rushed to be honest if it had more pages and the story were told with more depth I’ll give it a 4 stars. It has an amazing concept but like I said it needed more. It was very linear.

Ps: I would still read the second one

I really enjoyed the premise of the book as it was a very neat take on beauty and the beast and rumplestilskin. I thought the science aspect of it was interesting and enjoyed this new point of view. The spicy scenes were also excellent. This book was a solid 4 star however because I thought that the side characters were not fleshed out and developed enough. I also found the FMC's decision making and thought process questionable. I did find the book overall enjoyable and the writing was good. You should give it a try.

What a great debut! I adored reading this book! The Court that Bleeds Gold is the first book in a new dark fantasy romance trilogy. It features enemies to lovers, a wicked Faerie court full of trickery and bargains, a morally grey half-seelie/half-unseelie MMC, a feisty MFC with a talent for metallurgy magic (very cool), and a story with shades of "Rumpelstiltskin" and "Beauty and the Beast" to pour over.

“𝑫𝒆𝒔𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒔𝒄𝒂𝒑𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒓𝒚𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒃𝒓𝒖𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝒌𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝑰 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒂 𝒅𝒆𝒂𝒍 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒂 𝑭𝒂𝒆 𝑷𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒆…”

This story has a great pace and even though we are familiar with the dangers of fairie bargains, the author Zara makes them feel fresh and new with her setting of a Fae court where truths (names) are dangerous. These courts are definitely filled with cruel fairies who like to play vicious games! Also, be on the lookout for clever references to characters in both fairy tales, as well.

There’s a good balance between the romance which is slow smoldering and the plot which kept me guessing. I needed to know why the MMC Ruskin Blackcoat (Rumpelstiltskin) agreed to Eleanor’s bargain and what secrets is he hiding from her? The whole setting is dark, atmospheric and deadly. The chemistry and dynamics between these two are so compelling.

If you’re a fan of fairy tale inspired romantasy reads, slow-burn romance with spice and plot twists - then you should definitely check this debut author.

I’m on a fantasy kick and this hit the spot! This was fresh and new with hits of why we love our fantasy books! Can’t wait for the second book

The Court that Bleeds Gold by Zara Storm is one part Rumpelstiltskin retelling, one part enemies-to-lovers and one part dark Romantasy, with a sprinkling of gold of course.

Eleanor makes a deal with a dark fae prince to escape a forced marriage to a gluttonous king and finds herself deep in fae territory without an ally in sight. Her captor, Ruskin, is interested in Eleanor's unique skill... she's able to turn ordinary metals to gold. Although it's not gold, he seeks, it's the exact opposite as it turns out...

Eleanor is pretty brilliant, and her quick wit and sense of humor is everything. Her banter with Ruskin is entertaining and strengthens the storyline. I'm interested in seeing the characters and their relationship, develop a bit more in the sequel. That ending is quite the cliffhanger, Zara, I hope you're deep into the next one already!

Thank you, NetGalley and Relay Publishing, for an ARC copy of a The Court That Bleeds Gold by Zara Storm in exchange for an honest review. I'm patiently awaiting Gold Weaver #2!

An amazing story! This was my first Rumpelstiltskin retelling and it did not disappoint!! I loved it so much! I loved how smart and sassy Eleanor is! And Ruskin is dark and mysterious! As a whole, the book was very well written and fast paced!

In this Beauty and the Beast-esque story, Eleanor calls on a dangerous fae to save her from a marriage to a terrible king. Though she is ‘just a peasant’, the king is set on keeping her hostage as his wife because she has this special new skill, spinning gold.

In making a deal with this devil called Ruskin to get away from the king, she is swept away to fairy, where she promises to help Ruskin with an impossible task. However the court is more likely to kill her than she is to complete her task in her lifetime. As the court intrigue heats up, so does her relationship with the mysterious Ruskin.

(While I wouldn’t classify this as dark romance, it is spicy, about 3 chilis peppers! Fyi to all the girlies who are sensitive to that! )

This book was a 3.5 for me! It will be a part of a trilogy, so I hope the author is setting up the characters for more growth. Sometimes they felt a bit flimsy. It wasn’t that I disliked them, rather I wanted more. Maybe there were some sub-plots that could have been added?

Overall I do suggest the book, especially since I suspect the sequel will reveal things that are long overdue and force characters to take action!

Clever and witty human who isn’t afraid to stand up to fae who can easily kill her? ✅

High fae prince who will steal your heart despite his reputation for being dark and dangerous? ✅

Hilarious and loyal besties? ✅

Eleanor, through her love for alchemy, learns how to create gold from other metals. While her only plan is to use this knowledge to provide food for the people she cares about, her secret soon gets out and the human king declares that she must marry him so he can claim all the gold she makes. Seeking to avoid such a fate, she tries to escape the castle before the wedding. But when her escape route doesn’t go as planned and she is left with no good options, she has no choice but to speak the riddle that brings about the mysterious and dangerous fae known to make deals with humans in their times of need that do not usually end well for the humans. And it just so happens that he has a problem only a gold weaver can solve. Or so he thinks. He soon learns that he may actually need Eleanor for reasons entirely different than what he intended. And she learns that Ruskin might be dangerous for reasons far different than she ever expected.

“𝙏𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙙𝙤𝙚𝙨𝙣’𝙩 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙢𝙚,” 𝙄 𝙨𝙖𝙮, 𝙢𝙮 𝙫𝙤𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙘𝙤𝙢𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙚. “𝙔𝙤𝙪 𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙚.”

𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝙨𝙢𝙞𝙧𝙠 𝙗𝙧𝙤𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙣𝙨, 𝙚𝙮𝙚𝙨 𝙗𝙧𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩.

“𝙊𝙝, 𝙂𝙤𝙡𝙙 𝙒𝙚𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙧, 𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙞𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙚.” 𝙎𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙣𝙮 𝙢𝙚𝙖𝙣𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙥𝙝𝙧𝙖𝙨𝙚, 𝙡𝙖𝙮𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙪𝙥𝙤𝙣 𝙡𝙖𝙮𝙚𝙧𝙨. 𝙄 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙞𝙩 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙞𝙭 𝙤𝙛 𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙞𝙣 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙫𝙤𝙞𝙘𝙚 —𝙄 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙠 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚’𝙨 𝙖 𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙨𝙖𝙙𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙚, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙖𝙡𝙨𝙤 𝙖𝙢𝙪𝙨𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙖𝙡𝙡, 𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙩.

This is a great first book that definitely keeps you turning the pages and wanting more! Eleanor falls right into place with Ruskin and his friends, but there is a past that threatens to ruin the fragile trust they worked so hard to build. I definitely enjoyed this book and can’t wait to read book two!

I adore this book! This is a great debut for a fantasy trilogy I see myself loving. It definitely is for the fans of Raven Kennedy (at least in my eyes) and the world building in this one was just amazing! The characters were great and I got a connection to them very easy. Can’t wait for more!

The court that bleeds gold is such a captivating debut novel, and first in the Trilogy- The Golden Weaver.
A definite slow burn, the characters kept me interested and there were elements of a certain folklore retelling!
This book had fantastic world building with intricate descriptions of beautiful scenery throughout.
A definite reccomend if you are a fantasy fan!
Loved this one! Can't wait for book #2