This third book in the series is still a fun, light read, though of the three Fae lord brothers Gareth was my least favorite. (I understand life hurt him, but man was he whiny. Whose life hasn't hurt them? See my review of book 2 of the series for my more in-depth opinion of Gareth)

I didn't like the first book or couldn't get into it... sorry wasn't my cup of tea I shall say! But I tried!

I have really enjoyed this series and although it is great to read Gareth's story I don't think this book is as enjoyable as the first to book. I think I was a bit lost with all the seelie/unseelie politics. Trying to figure out what Niall had done and why he was lying was a bit confusing.

Despite that it is great to have a final story in the trilogy and to see the three brothers and their partners all in one book. Gareth is also the most interesting character of the three brothers because he is the last bard and because of that a very talented musician with his own rock group but what people don't know is that his musical talents stem from magic and his band members are all supernatural creatures.

Having been separated from the love of his life for two hundred years Gareth is amazed to find Niall alive in faerie but Niall has lost his memory. Gareth then makes it his mission to create new memories and recover their lost love. What Gareth doesn't realise is that Niall hasn't lost his memory at all but is pretending to have done so because he doesn't want to reveal his unseelie heritage to Gareth, but when the two of them realise that Gareth's brothers are stuck in dying faerie lands Niall realises that he may need to risk losing Gareth's love in order to save Gareth's brothers.

A good read and a nice ending to what has been a very enjoyable trilogy.

Copy provided by Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆
3.5 stars

The third book in this series throws readers straight back into the action. Having only read the second book a few weeks ago, I still found myself floundering through the first chapters trying to remember the characters and their relationships. There isn’t really any recap at the start of the book, so this is probably best read directly after book two.

I almost put this story down at 30% because I couldn’t get my head around the complicated plot and I was tired of the pointless secrets and lies between the characters. But I’m glad I continued. Once Garreth and Niall get back to Faerie, the story becomes exciting and much more coherent.

In the Outerworld, I enjoyed David and Bryce’s efforts to care for Niall and their plans to rescue Alun and Mal. I also liked finding out more about Gareth and his band.

Unlike the couples in the first two books, Niall and Gareth have a long history – both together and apart. I struggled with the timelines and Niall’s secrets made it even more difficult for me to piece together their past. As a partnership, these two work well together – but only after a whole lot of angst and sulking more appropriate for teenagers than ancient Fae noblemen.

The first book is still my favourite in this series but I enjoyed this more than the second book. Readers with more experience of high fantasy will probably find this easier to follow and enjoy than I did.

From Riptide Publishing:

As far as rock star Gareth Kendrick, the last true bard in Faerie, is concerned, the only good Unseelie is . . . well . . . there’s no such thing. Two centuries ago, an Unseelie lord abducted Gareth’s human lover, Niall, and Gareth has neither forgotten nor forgiven.

Niall O’Tierney, half-human son of the Unseelie King, had never lost a wager until the day he swore to rid the Seelie court of its bard. That bet cost him everything: his freedom, his family—and his heart. When he’s suddenly face-to-face with Gareth at the ceremony to join the Seelie and Unseelie realms, Niall does the only thing inhumanly possible: he fakes amnesia. Not his finest hour, perhaps, but he never revealed his Unseelie heritage, and to tell the truth now would be to risk Gareth’s revulsion—far harder to bear than two hundred years of imprisonment.

Then a new threat to Gareth’s life arises, and he and Niall stage a mad escape into the Outer World, only to discover the fate of all fae resting on their shoulders. But before they can save the realm, they have to tackle something really tough: mending their own broken relationship.

Source: An electronic copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Bad:
Bard is my least favorite book of this series. Because I think Gareth is the least likeable of the Kendrick brothers. He's a sanctimonous, racist, prick. He's a complete ass to his brothers, his Queen, and his brothers' significant others. Really, he's an ass to everyone. Granted, he has spent the last two hundred years mourning the loss of his lover and blaming himself for Niall's kidnapping and what he imagines happened to Niall after being kidnapped (rape and torture being chief among them), but he really channels those feelings all the wrong ways. Even once he learns Niall is alive, he's still a jerk to Bryce and David.

The Good:
Bard brings everything from Cutie and the Beast and The Druid Next Door and stitches them all together to weave a great story that, in the end, has little to do with Gareth and Niall. The Seelie Queen and the Unseelie King agree to marry and perform a unification spell to unite all of fairy, and save them all. During the ceremony, Gareth sees Niall for the first time and believing Niall to be human, takes off to get him out of fairy before the ceremony kills Niall. Only Niall is not human, he's an Unseelie Prince. When he sees someone threaten Gareth, he agrees to run away with the Bard, pretending not to remember who Gareth is and their history.

Leaving fairy before the ceremony completes has consequences neither man stopped to consider - they really are very short-sighted and selfish beings. Unfortunately, their actions may destroy all of fairy, which would in turn destroy the human world. With Alun and Mal trapped in fairy, Bryce and David are freaked and more than a little pissed at Gareth for causing the problems. As they all try to figure out how to move forward, Niall's secrets come out. And then all hell breaks loose. In the end, they must all work together to save the world and stop those who seek to control it.

The Bottom Line:
I'll say it again, this series is a sweet, sexy, supernatural thrill ride. Gareth and Niall are my least favorite of the couples, but David and Bryce play large roles in the story, so it helped me get over that. I don't feel like Gareth ever really redeems himself, but that's just me. If you like supernatural adventures, you will love the Fae Out of Water Series.

I’ve really liked this series, but I’ve gotta admit, out of all the brothers, Gareth was my least favorite. It was pretty much inevitable that he would be the last brother of the three to find his soul mate… or find him again.

To be honest, even when Niall and Gareth ‘found’ each other, I still wasn’t a fan. They did eventually grow on me, but it took a while. I wasn’t impressed with Niall’s decision to fake amnesia – being honest would have saved a lot of heartache. They both ended up doing things that I didn’t like, but to be fair, I think my opinion may have been colored a tad bit by my love of David, Bryce, Alun & Mal.

There was bitterness, deceit, heartbreak and eventually healing, but, as I said, it took a while to get there. The journey to their HEA was full of twists and turns and some heated moments. In the end, both Gareth and Niall ended up redeeming themselves and I ended up liking them both. If I’m totally honest though, David and Alun (Cutie & the Beast) are still my favorite. ❤ Since all the brothers have come full circle, I’m fairly certain that Bad Boy’s Bard is the final book in the series. I won’t complain though if E.J. Russell decides to revisit this world in the future. 😉

Now, if you follow my reviews you should know that I have loved this series since the first book. Don't get me wrong, I did still like this book, I just didn't love it as much as I had the previous books in the series.

To me it seemed like this story was very predictable and while it was interesting, I wasn't *dying* to find out what was going to happen next.

Gareth's character was a super easy character to connect with, but I do believe that's because we had been seeing him in the previous books and so it was easy to follow into his story and hope for the best. Niall's character was one that I didn't really like in the beginning. To be honest, I still don't fully understand everything about his character, (I really don't want to give too much away here.) But I was still able to follow along and enjoy the story.

There were the twists and turns that I have come to expect with Russell's books, and it did keep me interested, but like I said above it just wasn't something I was going crazy about.

Overall, a really good series and I can't wait to read more from Russell in the future.

I enjoyed this book, but much like the second book in the series, this third installment just didn't quite live up to the charm of the first book. It was cute and engaging, but didn't pull me in as much. I did enjoy getting to revisit the brothers and their love interests, and I much preferred this love story to the questionable consent from book 2. If you liked the previous 2 I would say give this a shot.

Absolutely the best book in the series! While it continues the narrative of the previous two books, this book examines the rocky romantic history of the third Kendrick brother. Will or won't Seelie and Unseelie be united or destroyed? Chock full of adventure, action, and romance this is a thoroughly enjoyable way to pass an afternoon.

Review shared on Amazon, Goodreads, Barnes & Noble and V's Reads: https://vsreads.com/2017/09/22/life-out-of-tune-bad-boys-bard-review-and-giveaway/

4.5 Stars
Gareth Kendrick is the last true bard of the Seelie. His voice has the power to command people to fall in love, heal, or commit themselves to their doom. He’s always been wary of his power, and scared of the voices of the dead that haunt him ever since his tutelage by the ghost of Gwyddion, the most recently deceased bard before Gareth.

Gareth loved only one man in his long-spanning life: Niall. Niall was a human, or so Gareth thought and they met “by chance” nearly two hundred years ago in the human realm where Gareth chose to live the bulk of his life. For Gareth, Niall was all and everything, and he dispaired greatly when he saw an Unseelie escort Niall through the realms to Faerie. HE was sure Niall was lost to him forever.

The true was much different. Niall was a half-Fae Unseelie prince sent to kill Gareth, but he fell in love with the man instead. His brother learned of the situation and escorted Niall back to their father as a favor, so Niall could plead his love and ask a boon to be released from his oath. Their father refused and sent Niall into one of the hells of their realm, Govannon’s forge, to toil for the past two hundred years in retribution for his treachery. Niall endured the punishment because it ensured that Gareth would not be murdered by another of his father’s minions.

Fast-forward: Faerie is dying and a powerful Mage is planning to rescue it with a remaking spell, but it requires all of the Fae to be present. This includes Niall, whose brother–now the King of the Unseelie–has rescued from Govannon’s forge. And, when Niall sees Gareth he knows he can’t tell the truth. Gareth, instead of performing his part in the new magic, steals Niall away from the ceremony, sure that a “human” could not withstand the magic of the rite.

Unfortunately, when they flee Faerie they upset the balance and the spell to fix Faerie goes awry. Oh, and it’s not cool when Gareth learns his ‘dead Human’ lover is really a living Unseelie Prince. It’s hard going for a bit, but a reconciliation is brokered by David and Bryce, the non-Seelie mates of Gareth’s brothers. By connecting with those men, Gareth sees the folly of condemning interspecies mating, and Niall is able to win his heart back. Oh, and save all the realms from the power-mad Mage who had a whole different plan in mind. Expect high stakes, mad love and healed hearts by the end. There’s a wee bit of sexytimes, but it’s more emotion than motion.

This is the end of the trilogy, which I think is best read in order, but there’s a window to new adventures left open, where Niall and Mal can hit the road to find lost Fae in the human realm. I’d tag along for that…

~ 3.5 Stars ~

I wanted to love this third novel in the Fae Out of Water series, Bad Boy’s Bard, as much as I did the first two. I was excited to finally understand why the third Kendrick brother, Gareth, was so much of a loner—and so angry with his brothers. I was intrigued by the fact that it had been hinted at that Gareth had once loved a human and had been pining for him for over two hundred years. I wanted to finally understand the depth of his grief—a sadness that covered him so completely that he denied his fae home and retreated from his family to the point where they barely spoke to each other. All this plus the fact that he was the last living fae bard, whose musical powers could sway even the hardest of hearts, had set my imagination on fire, and I could not wait to get my hands on this third installment.

I will tell you that this story does have some incredibly thrilling action sequences, and that Gareth’s lost lover, Niall, is truly a gorgeously written character, one that just about ripped my poor heart in two. His life for the past two hundred years has been a living hell, and then some, and when his brother, the newly crowned king, restores him and deposes their insanely evil father at the end of book two, I was standing up and cheering. The third book starts out so well, setting up the first moments when Niall and Gareth will come face-to-face after so much time apart. It is teeming with characters from the previous book while giving us a few new ones, bad and good and somewhere in between.

We get to meet Gareth’s supernatural bandmates, who go a long way in both morally supporting Gareth and keeping him grounded. But, it is really Niall who steals the show here. Unlike the previous two books where it was the Kendrick brothers who outshone their counterparts, Gareth almost disappeared in this story for me. In the previous stories, where both Alun and Mal were transformed by their new found loves, Gareth barely seemed to change at all, and, quite frankly, I had trouble warming up to him because he came off as so very selfish and self-absorbed. Admittedly, he didn’t really know what Niall had suffered all those years, and Niall refused to tell him, but still, I found it hard to believe that Gareth had pined so deeply for Niall when he barely seemed invested in the relationship from the get-go. Rather, it was Niall who stole my heart, who grew and changed as the story unfolded, and who selflessly loved Gareth so very much and showed that love time and again.

I did feel that this final book dealt with the history and past details of the seelie and unseelie heritage much more adroitly than it’s predecessors. Rather than getting bogged down or jolted from the main plot line by a heavy handed history lesson, I felt the author wove the past and present together fairly seamlessly, and it served to enlighten and further the plot overall. But where that aspect of the novel excelled, the love story itself seemed to falter. I was disappointed that this incredibly gifted bard seemed lost when it came to the language of love and how to woo the man he’d been missing for hundreds of years.

All in all, Bad Boy’s Bard neatly tied up the many plot points that had been so cleverly dangling in the previous two stories, and restored the last of the Kendrick brothers to happiness. I just wish we could have seen more of a sweeping romance to close out this final chapter.

Fun mythology. Good obstacles to overcome in the romance.

This is the third and final book in her MM paranormal romance series, Fae out of Water. This book tied up all the series wonderfully. The book had many plot twist to really keep me interested. Gareth was a character that was present in both the first two books, so it was great to see how his story ended. This also has a very suspenseful story line, which is always fun in a paranormal romance. This is a great book and I can’t wait to read more for this author.

3.5 Stars

Bad Boy's Bard can't be read as a standalone, it needs to be read after the first two books, since there's an ongoing storyline and you'll be lost otherwise, plus those books are amazing and you'll be missing out otherwise.

I didn't like Gareth in the first two books and unfortunately, my opinion of him didn't change in this book. I found him judgmental and selfish and immature. I didn't like Niall all that much at first, either, but by the time I read all he'd gone through, I'd warmed up to him. They didn't quite work for me as a couple, mostly because they didn't communicate all that much. Niall with his lies and Gareth with his arrogance and certainty that he was right about things didn't strike me as a couple that really would make it in the long run.

I loved catching up with Bryce and Mal and Alun and David and see them being such an integral part of the storyline. They were awesome. I even liked the Queen and Eamon.

It pains me to say this, especially since I loved the first two books of the series, but this one was not up to par to them, at least concerning the main couple. The writing was great, though, and I was very intrigued over how everything would play out, I just didn't like Gareth and that made it difficult for me to root for his HEA with Niall. I do recommend reading it because it provides closure to the ongoing storyline and gives a satisfactory HEA to all our beloved characters (Mal, Bryce, Alun and David), though.

*** Copy provided to the reviewer via NetGalley by Riptide Publishing for my reading pleasure, a review wasn't a requirement. ***

Gareth, the last bard Faerie, has not had a easy life. He was trained by dead bards since there weren't any live ones around to do the training. Then he meet Niall O’Tierney and fell in love only to have him kidnapped by the Unseelie Fae.
Niall O’Tierney’s Unseelie Fae prince has had just as hard life. Being a prince who is half Fae and half human is not easy. Then he meet Gareth and fall in love. Before anything could happen his father has in prison him in the underworld. Until his brother comes to his rescue.
Gareth still believes Niall is only human. But Niall must confess everything to save their brother and all of Fae.

First, let me say that I’m not a fan of “reunion or second chance” romances – so this already had a mark against it.

Second, I wasn’t ever too keen on Gareth and didn’t quite warm up to him as a romantic interest.

Third, it was long and the slow burn got tiresome and the reward wasn’t enough of a pay off for my patience to feel rewarded.

Fourth – amnesia as a plot device – blech! I hate soap operas and this felt like that.

I’ve really enjoyed the others in this series and the writing and world-buidling are still great, but this wasn’t my favorite.

3 of 5 stars

I'm going to be honest. This book was disappointing. It was pretty meh despite having a good premise while being absolutely frustrating to read. Ugh! The use of the fake amnesia trope, which is definitely my least favorite romance trope, is partially responsible for the frustration and made the story way less enjoyable for me. Gah! The two main characters wasted so many opportunities to communicate and it drove me crazy. There was so much lying and hiding of critical information that the romance part of the story suffered greatly for it.

Gareth has been pissed off at the world since his lover disappeared with an Unseelie fae. He's taken is grief and anger out on everyone for TWO CENTURIES but he's especially harsh with his brothers and their significant others. It was annoying in the first two books and it was even worse in this one. I get that this is the book where Gareth grows up and gets his head out of his ass but it took a most of the book and didn't make for as enjoyable a read. His "poor pitiful me" mentality drove me bonkers. He's definitely my least favorite character in this series.

I did fall in love with Niall despite him faking amnesia to avoid telling Gareth the truth about how they met, where he's been for the last 200 years, and that he's actually not human. You can imagine how that went down when he finally told Gareth. Even then the whole truth didn't come out. I wanted to throw my kindle at the wall it was so frustrating. So instead of making up for lost time and reconnecting with each other after centuries apart, they kept themselves emotionally separated. Ugh. It's still driving me crazy to think about it.

The overall storyline and its twists were entertaining as a fantasy story but the romance portion was a huge let down. I'm glad that they finally worked things out at the end but it felt rushed. I hope we get at least another book in the series so the storyline feels more complete.

Bad Boy's Bard by E.J. RussellWe've seen Gareth Kendrick in the last two Fae Out of Water books. The last true bard of Faerie, he's had kind of a crappy life. First his brother sent him to be trained by dead bards (since there weren't any live ones around to do the training. Then his human lover was killed by an Unseelie Fae. And not just any Unseelie, it was none other than the new king!

Niall O’Tierney's life hasn't been any better. He's the son of the last king, half-brother of the new king and he's spent the last two hundred years avoiding his one true love so that he wouldn't be forced to kill the man. Well, to kill Gareth. So when he sees Gareth's shock his first instinct is to fake amnesia. Uh huh. But that's not their biggest problem, there's a threat to all of Faerie that only Gareth and Niall can contain.

Probably my least favorite of the three books. Both Gareth and Niall were just a little too much in their own heads. That being said, I enjoyed this whole series overall and look forward to more from Russell.



Three stars

This book comes out September 11

Follows The Druid Next Door

This book was 'fine', but I must admit that I didn't enjoy it nearly as much as book 2, which was rife with snark, longing, and giving over to some pretty inevitable feelings.

In contrast, this story was chock full of secrets, lies, and never-ending attempts for the MC's to not voice how they still feel about one another, which got old fairly quickly.

Let me be honest here, folks. Gareth was the baby of the Kendrick clan and, well, just as it had in the first two stories, it pretty much showed.

Gareth had been pissed off at the world for the past 200 years, since his lover disappeared with an Unseelie fae, and he'd since taken it out on everyone within spitting distance, including his own brothers.

I got that this story was the story where Gareth grew up and became less prejudiced and jaded, which he *finally* did, but it took a long time and didn't make for as enjoyable a read, as he at last put his "all about me and my past injustices" mentality to rest.

Then we have Gareth's past love, Niall, who after 200 years of imprisonment refused to be forthcoming in regards to his past deceptions and entrust Gareth with the truth. So he fakes amnesia to avoid any and all questions. GAH! Faking memory loss is one of my absolute least favorite of all tropes.

As the story progressed, there was so much lying and hiding of critical information that the romantic aspect of the story suffered. Greatly.

Then when the truth finally, involuntarily, must be revealed, as the fate of both Fairie and the Outer World hung in the balance, of course, Gareth refused to listen to the *whole* truth. The critical parts that explained away any malicious intent behind Niall's questionable actions. Yep, completely crazy making for the reader, that one, guys.

So yes, even though their 200 year physical separation had passed, for nearly the entire book, there was still an emotional separation between the MC's, who should have been making up for lost time and reconnecting.

The overall storyline and its twists were very entertaining as a fantasy story; however, as for the romance, I'm not the biggest fan of books that wait until the clock is a few seconds until Midnight before the MC's truly connect once and for all. There's UST and then there's *THAT*.

I'd have to rate this one at 3 *highly-frustrating* stars, in large part because the bad guys do get their comeuppance as the Kendrick brothers' series drew to a close.