Such an enjoyable read. When it comes to the topic of fairy lore, there are so many aspects of it that you can easily lose the reader. Lyra Selene did an amazing job of developing the story without losing me along the way. Fia was a fun character to read and watch grow throughout the book. I am looking forward to seeing where this series will head next.

A solid fae, Swan Lake retelling that manages to offer something new to the tried and tested tale. Will be adding this to our collection.

A Feather So Black is the first in a series of books about Fia, a changeling woman raised by her foster mother the queen to be a warrior and a weapon, who sets out on a quest to Tír na nÓg. She accompanies her childhood best friend Rogan on a mission to rescue his betrothed, the queen's biological daughter Eala. from a terrible faerie curse. The queen has also given Fia a secret mission to retrieve an object of great power that can restore magic to the human realm, if only she can steal it from a powerful member of the fae gentry.

Fia faces dangers and betrayals on her journey. She does not know if she can trust the fair folk, her foster sister, or herself, especially since she's harboring feelings for Rogan and knows there is no version of their story in which they end up together.

Lyra delivers a version of faerie that is as whimsical as it is dark and rife with danger. I love the way she builds the tension between Fia and Rogan, slowly revealing secrets and half truths as they spend more and more time together. I love getting to walk alongside Fia as she learns that she can trust herself, and that while she may be something to fear, that does not make her any less worthy of love.

Book rating:
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️

Tropes:
🦢Love triangle
🦢Shadow daddy
🦢Strong MFC
🦢Swan Lake retelling
🦢Who did this to you?

I really enjoyed this book from beginning to end. The world setting was really interesting specially the Folk one I just want to know more of this world. The house at the edge of both worlds was so interesting to me. I love Fia’s character since the beginning how she struggled to be accepted for who she was, how she felt that she didn’t belong in the human or fae realm. But what I enjoy the most was the love triangle even half way through the boon I didn’t know for which guy to root for. But then everything became clear towards the end and I loved it 😍. I have seen some reviews saying that this is just smut and let me tell you that this is not true yes there is sex but is not the main point of the story.

The reason I don’t give this book 5 stars and I really wanted to was because all the different terms of this book I’m not sure what language was it but I felt that there were so many words that at time at didn’t know what the author was talking about and yes there was glossary but it was at the end of the book and I didn’t see it until I finished the book so it would have been better if it was at the beginning instead. I wish there was more backstory about what was happening in the human realm since this was such an important factor in the story. And last there was too much time that I was missing in between the story the book only concentrated in Fia’s time in the Fae realms and this was just one day in every month for almost a year.

Over all I really enjoyed the book I will be anxiously waiting for my fairyloot edition. I will be continuing this series. Irian was my absolute favorite 😍

A new adult fantasy about the fae folklore of changelings?? I've always found the lore of changelings to be interesting - a fae child swapped with a human so the changeling may wreak, trickster havoc amongst the humans. This tale is of a changeling that is fostered by the queen (in replace of her stolen daughter) but instead of creating a rift, the changeling becomes more human and truly loves her 'mother'. There's violence, court politics, and a love square.

I usually can really easily generate a picture in my head of a world or setting in a fantasy book, but for some reason, I couldn’t do that with this book. Because of that, I felt a bit of a disconnect from the world and characters. However the writing is solid and the specifics of the story are unique.

Releasing March 12th, 2024!

Description: Set in a world of perilous magic and moonlit forests, this seductive romantic fantasy tells the story of a defiant changeling, her cursed sister, and the dangerous fae lord she must defeat to save her family.

A romantasy with Celtic folklore, A Feather So Black is a wonderfully written story with enemies-to-lovers, betrayal, and such descriptive writing paired with a unique magic system. I devoured this one, it was completely enthralling and eagerly awaiting the next instalment.

thank you netgalley and Orbit Books for an eArc in exchange for an honest review.

*NOTE: Goodreads review posted 2/27/24, see link below

<b>Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced reader copy and the opportunity to share my pre-release review!</b>

<b>Expected publication:</b> March 12, 2024

3.25✨, 1.5🌶️

<i>A Feather So Black</i> by Lyra Selene is Book 1 in what appears to be a planned, ongoing dark romantasy series called <i>Fair Folk</i>.

As a whole, there were things I enjoyed about the story, and things that I did not, hence the slightly higher than middle of the road rating. I’ll start with what I liked.

Aside from a few periods of confusion from me, I thought the worldbuilding, as a whole, was very rich, detailed, and well done. Languages and names are used freely, and the reader needs to pay close attention to keep up. But the world was intriguing enough, especially when we actually venture into the Fae realm, to be willingly engrossed.

I also appreciated the FMC’s full character journey, and it was one that was meaningful and made sense. The FMC’s core inner struggles were on full display the entire time, and were tangled and weaved into the plot of the story, versus feeling like two separate entities. It made it feel like this FMC was meant for this story.

Aside from the FMC Fia, I felt that a lot of the supporting cast of characters were lackluster or bland. Their motivations and intentions were written clearly on their sleeve, way too on the nose obvious, from Rogan as the hapless love triangle foil to the evil Queen mom figure, there was no nuance or mystery, so it didn’t end up being interesting. The only character interactions I looked forward to were between Fia and the ‘true’ MMC Irian.

The story as a whole also suffered from repetition; Fia would repeat the same inner monologues over and over, she and Rogan would have the same doomed romance conversation over and over again, and etc. It got to the point where it would’ve been possible to skip pages and pages and end up in the same conversation between the same characters just at a different time. With the worldbuilding being as lush as it was, the dialogue and characters could use a little of that love, too.

Overall, I didn’t connect with this book as much as I wanted to, but I would encourage all dark romantasy lovers who like a villainously hot MMC to at least give this a chance.

the story is good but it wasn’t enough to keep my attention like I would constantly be putting down the book! However, I do love the authors style of writing and I did love fia as a character and her whole journey. I liked rogan in the beginning but towards the end I ended up disliking him. Irían is just another copy and paste mmc like I really didn’t connect to him at all.

Thank you to orbit books and NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review!

What an incredibly imaginative story! It’s very long and at times I was like please get to the point… some action… some story progression. And trust me, all that happens. It’s like long country drive on a lazy summer day. Sometimes we have a straight drive then we speed over a quick little hill, maybe a drop of the belly and then we ride smoothly again for a while. The whole drive is nice and fun and in the end you’re nostalgic and at peace. I have it 5 stars solely based on the ending which I won’t spoil for you here. But it’s beautifully done!

i love a good romantasy! i really enjoyed the atmosphere of the story, i’ve been carving a setting like this. the love triangle set up did prove to be a little annoying but i understand that it’s not for me. i did enjoy the dark fae… interested in the direction of the story.

A Feather So Black is a sweeping, lyrical adult fantasy loosely based around Swan Lake, but I just couldn't get into it. The start really dragged and it didn't get much better ... Such a shame!

Thank you to the publisher for providing a review copy

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit books for the ARC in exchange for my review!

First of all, I have to say I loved the prose of the author, Lyra Selene. I love the whimsical writing of Stephanie Garber (Carnaval and Once Upon a Broken Heart series) and the writing of this book held the same magic for me but, in a dark, witchy world where wild things hide and track you in the night. It feels like the upside down in the best possible way: menacing, terrifying,... thrilling.

We follow Fia, a changeling, who was left by the fair folk in exchange for the Queen's daughter, Eala. Raised as a weapon for the Queen and her kingdom Fia is tasked to rescue the princess bound to the magical realm of Tir na nOg. Fia's childhood friend, Prince Rogan, who is destined to be Eala's fiance accompanies Fia through the secret gate into this world where nothing and no one is who they seem to be. Torn between her own love for Prince Rogan and her rising attraction to the dangerous dark lord guarding Tir na nOg the quest is one of self-discovery for Fia. Strong willed, Fia is forced to come to her own conclusions about what the truth is and her own desires.

Once I got into this fantasy, I was hooked! I love a story where the atmosphere is detailed and fleshed out. At the midway point, it did slow down quite significantly and thought that furthering editing at this point would have helped to drive the story forward. I give this a rating of 4.5 /5 and very much look forward to book 2.

Big thanks to NetGalley for approving me for this ARC, it was exactly what I needed!

This book, though. I have been in a reading slump for what feels like forever and really actually has been a few months and this one was truly just so satesfying. It really gave the old nostaglia for these types of fae books where we actually have magica creatures and elemental magic tied to nature, and where all information must be traided. I love this kind of traditional (Irish?) fae lore. It reminded me a bit of The Iron Fae by Julia Kagawa in this regard (not much else) but oh my gosh, the feeling this book left me with, I haven't had in a long time.

The book follows a changling traded at the tender age of 4 years, raised by a human queen who claims she raised her like a daughter but in reality treats her like a weapon. Tasked with retreaving the origina princess she was switched with, Fia and her childhood love cross the gate into the Tir Na Nog, the land of the fae, to retrieve the princess, but Fia has been tasked with another secret job, to steal a magic weapon which will bring power and prosperity to their land.

I feel like some people might find this book a bit slow. There's a lot of storytelling and exchange of words between the characters, but it's also emotional bonding and intimacy, which is what I loved, of course. The forbidden romance, tales and tricks, betrayal (which you must have in a good story) darling little fae creatures, earth magic, I dunno what it was, but I just ate this book up!! I generally don't read incomplete books and this is exactly why. I can't believe I have to wait a whole year for book two! Definately add to your list, this one is a fun ride for anyone who enjoys the traditional fae lore (not SJM's faeries), spells, curses, and a journey of self love, and romance along the way.

Thank you to Orbit Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t realize this was going to be heavy-handed romantasy. Yes, there is a plot, plenty of action scenes, tense moments, and a thrilling backstory to our main character Fia. But, the distraction comes in the form of Rogan—her romantic interest and professional/companionable rival. While the dynamic between these two childhood friends makes for a good romance, it’s familiar fluff and endless smut. (Can we please get something new in the way of Fae fantasy?). And it doesn’t make for a good story focus. This was essentially about a girl obsessing and lusting over a guy rather than the serious Celtic Fae story I expected. And no amount of pretty prose and inserting Celtic mythology terms was going to save this. Very disappointed. Will not be continuing. But hey, if spicy romance is your thing and you like a dash of Fae to go along with it, this might be for you. It was not for me.

This is a far/swan lake inspired story and I’m absolutely obsessed with it. I was so happy to see i received and arc to read. I love the main characters and it was such a good story

Fia is a changeling, replacing the human princess stolen away by the Fair Folk. Rogan is the prince destined to marry the real princess. Fia and Rogan were never meant for each other, but their hearts and desires are too tightly entwined to ignore. Together they must free the princess to save the human lands, but once Fia meets the dark fae lord holding her sister captive, she begins to question her mission, her life, her magic and her heart…

This world was dangerous and beautiful. The vivid, descriptive writing, complex characters and relationships hooked me. Fia was strong and vulnerable, struggling to find her place in the world and wishing for a love that wouldn’t change her. Rogan was caught between love and duty, honorable and desirable but with frustrating limitations. Irian was enigmatic—mischievous and clever, brutal and tender. I fell in love with him despite not knowing if I could trust him for a long time. Fantastic chemistry and heartache.

The overall progression of the story felt a little slow at times, but I was so deeply drawn into the fairytale that I honestly didn’t mind and just wanted to keep reading.

I was grateful for the sneak peek of book two. I’ll definitely continue this series.

Thanks to NetGalley and Orbit Books for the ARC.

Changeling, Fia, is left with the mortal queen after her daughter was abducted to Tír na nÓg. After the initial shock and despair wears off, the Queen raises Fia as her daughter and trains her to be an elite spy. In Tír na nÓg, princess Eala is cursed to transform into a swan by day along with the other stolen maidens. Now that a way into Tír na nÓg has been discovered, the queen has tasked Fia to work together with the princess’s fiancé, Rogan, to break the curse and return Eala home. Unfortunately for Fia, not everything is as it seems, and she must decide where her loyalties reside.

I love the way Selene wrote this book in terms of the actual writing style. The choice to use stories to convey information between Fia and Irian was an interesting choice. It forced us as the readers to sift through the information as well to try and decipher what was the important piece. I also just love the concept of stories within stories. I also love how those stories helped bring Fia and Irian together. The chemistry they have is perfection. The world building was expansive and descriptive to paint a picture of not only Tír na nÓg, but the fortress Fia and Rogan occupy when not in Tír na nÓg. I love how Selene focused on the more traditional and wicked aspects of the Fae. I also found the characters incredibly intriguing, especially Eala. She is a character that will constantly keep you guessing whether by misleading or weaving her own priorities into the tasks. The more you learn about her, though, the more you understand why she makes the choices she does. The main drawback for me was the pacing. By the end, I understood how all of the time spent outside of Tír na nÓg contributed to the overall story; however, in the moment it seemed to slow down and even stall the plot progression at times. Overall, I loved this story and can’t wait for the sequel.

Overall Rating: 4.5 stars

Selene’s Adult debut is a pretty good one. Interesting premise, complex characters, ruthless villains, root magic and much more. I have a feeling this one will become popular like One Dark Window.

Overall the plot was engaging. The ending was a tad surprising. The book could have been shorter. Would have helped with the pacing.

I’ll be reading book 2.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you Orbit Books and Netgalley for the eARC for review!

This book was good. It could have been amazing. It needs some guidance. There are chapters broken into months and some of these nothing really happens to advance the plot. I think the glossary of terms should be at the front also as I didn’t see them till the end and had to google every random term that popped up. I know Irish mythology but I struggled hard. I liked Fia but if I had to read “I was made out of xyz” one more time I was going to lose it. The love triangle/square was intriguing but frustrating too. I’ll read book two but I hope it has a bit more direction and less lag.