To begin with a bit of criticism: This book overemploys the use of derogatory words for sex workers. Throughout the book we have characters refer to themselves as “wh*res” and I honestly don’t see why this was at all necessary. I really could’ve done without this, it added nothing to the story, and I hope the author decides to edit them out in the final product.

I genuinely had so much fun reading this book. Was it a good book? IDK, I’m not equipped to answer this. Was the smut horrible written? Yeah absolutely. It was so bad, if your smut includes the word ‘velvet’ we’re already in the dumpster. But did I have fun reading this? Yeah absolutely!

Despite my dislike for romantasy, this book was able to keep me going throughout the entire story. It was a easy read, but the prose was genuinely so beautiful that sometimes I would just… stop to absorb it. The characters feel a bit flat at points, but not offensively so. And in the case of the main character her internal description of self and outward portrayal match. Which I appreciated.

Furthermore, I really loved how Selene actually anchored this in a culture and employed the tools of the culture to tell a story. Too many fairy novels try and push a vague fantasy Europe with no true cultural anchor. But Selene? Selene did her research, and it shows. For instance, instead of just listing off the neo-pagan wheel of the year, a made up, culturally appropriative, thing invented by local British racists, she uses the actual Gaelic calendar, and thank god for that! Her effort shows through, and I loved it.

That being said, the comparison to the Cruel Prince is an entirely unfair one to <i>both</i> of these books, where the Cruel Prince is a book of genuine antagonistic enemies to lovers and political intrigue, this one isn’t that. It just isn’t. There isn’t enough political intrigue in this to buoy that comparison. Furthermore, instead of action packed pacing, this book is far more languid. Ultimately it’s just an inaccurate comparison.

TLDR; a good romantasy, a fun book, and fantastic worldbuilding. By did we need to use harmful language that much?

Gah, I so badly did not wish for this book to be a challenge, but here we are. Nothing in this story is simple… everything is called something else, even a skirt/dress is given a different name. Hard to follow when you can’t simply follow what is doing what. Oh and the riddles- the entire book is a collection of riddles. From what I could follow, it was a great story of betrayal, love and finding out your purpose and where you belong. The complexities of her duty to family and what path to take when it comes to love was engaging and kept me wondering what/who she was ultimately going to choose.

When I think of the Fae and Folk, this is what I want!! This story was dark and delicious. And a little messy. I went through numerous emotions while reading. This book did what it was supposed to do. I am looking forward to the next installment!

A Feather so Black by Lyra Selene. Book #1 of the Fair Folk series. Swan Princess retelling, Celtic lore, and love triangle.

I rate this 3.75 stars (rounded to 4).

The book started off overwhelming, throwing a lot of information about characters and lore. I kept putting it down but finally stuck with it. Fia (MC) a changeling and half Fae is left in place of the Queen’s daughter. Trained as a spy and to open the gates to the Fae world to break the cruse and return Eala to her mother.

Thank you, NetGalley and Orbit Books for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to NetGalley and Orbit for an eARC in exchange for an honest review! 4.5★

This whimsical romantasy is a stunning swan lake retelling, conveyed through a gorgeous, poetic prose that paints a mystical scene, one lush and deeply immersive with Celtic mythology. The magic system is unique and botanical, which kept my eyes glued to the page with intrigue.

Selene's characters are well-defined, loveable yet flawed, confident and vulnerable. Fia is a driven, intelligent, and strong FMC, and I respected her so much for knowing her own worth. Rogan is lovable yet flawed, and I couldn't help but feel for him even though I felt Irian was Fia's best love interest. And Irian... man, did I feel for this misunderstood MMC!

I'm generally not a huge fan of the love triangle trope, but ultimately it was tastefully done and played an important role in Fia's character development and the story. The pacing of the story was wonderful, with just enough emotion and action to keep your heart pounding. The book comes to a clear ending point, but it also beautifully sets the scene for the next installment.

I am waiting on the edge of my seat to see where Fia's story leads next!

This book is not entirely what I expected, and by that I mean, the plot, the story, and the characters were all very much lost on me. The dialogue feels clunky and forced, the characterization could use a lot of work, and the writing itself feels unpracticed and hurried. I understand what Selene is trying to accomplish here, but I was not charmed by any of it in the slightest. A Feather So Black is not the kind of book I would recommend to anyone looking for a great Fae story.

I loved this book so much! Thank you for writing a great feminist fantasy that puts the woman first. I was worried at first since it started like so many fantasies do. The main character is a young woman that has been told she's ugly, useless, and unloved her whole. She's good for one thing and that is all. (In the real world that be to find and man and have babies. Fantasy novels make them murder that man, but hey...) Some characters made me want to smack them right away, and thankfully it didn't take Fia too terribly long to realize that also. And the duplicity and unreliability of the Fae was delicious. *chef's kiss* I can't wait to continue reading more of this story and the world that was created.

I've tried. I've really tried. But this book just isn't for me. I was intrigued by the premise of a Swan Princess retelling but it's just taking too long to get going and my brain simply doesn't want to accept proper pronunciation while reading Celtic names. I'm sure there is a wide audience for this book, but I'm afraid I'm not included.

Every now and then a book finds its way into your hands that possesses a certain kind of magic. It's that very special mixture of lush prose that thrusts you straight into the story, as though you are standing alongside the characters in the heart of the forest with the scent of loam and moss in your nostrils. If that is something you love, then A Feather So Black is for you.

I could not put this down. I had to force myself to slow down and stop reading for a little while because I knew the second I left this story behind, I'd have a horrible book hangover. I finished it, only to decide that the best course of action was to give myself a few days to simmer and then I read it again.

I'm a huge fan of Hannah Whitten and Rachel Gillig's writing style, and this story has that same enchanting feeling I got while reading For the Wolf and I will forever chase books that give me that same dark, but achingly beautiful in all the right places, kind of fairytale story. I cannot wait to have a physical copy of this book in my hand to annotate.

Read this if you love:
-dark fairytales
-celtic lore and mythology
-fae
-Stabby FMC's
-forest magic

I absolutely LOVE retellings and yet this was a tale that can also stand alone. What a fantastic read!

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, & Orbit publishing for the eARC!!!! I was thoroughly entertained!

This is a tale of a changeling girl who was raised by a queen to become a weapon for vengeance, to rescue a stolen princess that was cursed to turn into a swan at night, and to crush the fae world who won't return magic that was stolen. Each full moon she used a magical gate to get into Tir Na Nog and while there she must figure out how to steal an ancient sword and break her "sister's" curse...with the help of her longtime friend with benefits who, by the way, has been betrothed to her sister swan. ANYWHO... The sword is owned by a powerful guardian and HOT as sin fae and I think you know where this is going.
The banter between Fia and Irian curl my toes and when they finally come together ... well, lets just say I and sure that was how worlds were made. IT WAS THAT HOT! Spice level for this one is a 3.5/5.
My absolute favorite aspect of this story though was all the Celtic lore, genuine names, and accuracy. BRILLIANTLY DONE!!!!!!
Put this one on your TO READ list folks, you won't regret it!

NO REGRETS!!!!
5 stars

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC-

Ohoho I'd like to formally welcome this book to my collection of well written takes on fae and folklore.

This book nails the uncertainty of knowing someone's intentions.

Fia is a well written changeling protagonist and her development across the novel is satisfying.

The descriptive locations are also something to be praised. Between Dun Darragh and Tir Na Nog, the places are described with such clarity throughout the seasons. It really is beautiful.

I'd like the sequel asap please and thank you-

this book is stunning. There is no other way to say it. it had me in tears, it had me giggling, and it had me blushing. I was hooked from the first chapter and stayed up all night just so I could keep reading. This book has some of the best passages I've ever read. I highlighted so many, and I cannot wait to buy a physical copy for myself. This book is intoxicating and heart wrenching to read. i will devour Lyra Selene's writing, and I am anxiously awaiting the second book. Seriously, the whole time I was reading all I could think was how I just wanted MORE. more of the story, more of the writing and more of the world. This is easily my most anticipated book of 2024. Please please read it! it is like swan lake meets the cruel prince. Some of the scenes feel strait out of a French fantasy oil painting.

3.5 - I liked this book but something just fell flat to me and I’m not exactly sure why. I think the pacing may have been the hard part for me, it started out slow and then got better but a lot of the action was focused around one night every month so it was hard to keep reading because it felt very disruptive. I liked the world it was set in, it was very atmospheric but I was a little bit confused by some of the words being thrown around at times that made it hard to follow the story.

I received an ARC from NetGalley, thank you!

I really enjoyed this reimagining of the swan princesses. It did it well but with a Fae twist.

I loved the story itself. A girl changeling Fia who has been taught to be a weapon above all else has to rescue her swapped sister from the Fairy realm. She travels with her best friend and secret love Rogan to the gate which they’ll travel every full moon to try to unravel the spell upon her sister. There she finds her sister and the other stolen girls as swans. Fia then needs to discover how to change them back and rescue them from their warden Irian.

I loved the characters and liked that the main character had fighting skills but wasn’t an un-breakable person. I loved Rogan and hope to see him more in the next book. Irian was wrote great as well and I can’t wait to see more. It seems the next book will have some of his perspective.

Things I didn’t love: The love triangle. I feel like Rogan gets the shaft in life so many times and he never gets any happiness. Then the MC chooses someone else and he’s stuck with a person he doesn’t want to be with. I kept hoping she would turn back to him? But then I liked Irian as well. Maybe I want a reverse harem lol.
The other big thing was the language used interchangeably in the book, I’m guessing it is Gaelic. Some of the words were never well defined and it was hard to guess. The pronunciation guide was at the back of the book so I completely missed it until it was over. Hopefully it’ll be moved to the front when published. But she mentions magical creatures with names I’ve never heard of and doesn’t really tell the reader what they are.

The book was a great read and I’m excited to grab it in the future. I can’t wait for the second book and see how things end up!

Of course fae romance has been done plenty of times, but this one still managed to be refreshing. I really liked the characters and the romance, the beautiful prose and descriptions, all the twists and turns in the story. I enjoyed the integration of Celtic mythology as well and ended up learning more than I'd expected. A fun read overall that I'd recommend to romantasy fans.

Thank you NetGalley and Orbit for this eARC! A Feather So Black follows the changeling Fia as she tries to free the princess and pseudo-sister she replaced while also exploring her own past, magic, and heart. This book has all the romantasy elements I tend to love - a shadow lord, a girl with mismatched eyes and strange magic, fae, a fickle spirit companion, and plenty more. The story is unique and engaging. My only real critique of the book is that the pacing feels a little choppy - Fia is visiting the Fae world once a month over the course of a year so which messed a bit with the flow of the story. All in all this was a strong start to a series and I'm excited to see where it goes!

This book was like falling into a fairytale. The world was magical and enchanting and drew me in from the first page. The author did such a good job with making the characters come alive. The FMC in the book is a girl who has been used by others her whole life. She has no self worth and throughout the book works on discovering who she is and what she is worth. The love short is beautiful and devastating. It had me on the edge of my seat not know what would happen next. This book is also pretty unique and is not like your average fantasy. This is my first book by this author but i will definitely watch out for what comes next!

Well okay, Lyra. Lyra, okay. This book kicked ass. Could not put it down and seriously thought about staying up all night to finish it but unfortunately I am a somewhat responsible adult.

This is probably one of the most well written romantasy books I’ve read all year, definitely in the top 5. There were a couple of slips in language, (“flipping” someone off, referring to a character as “high” instead of inebriated), but I think I only counted three and they weren’t all that jarring. My only criticism is that the lyrical writing got to be a little non-sensical in parts and we probably didn’t need three singsongy, hyphenated, contradictory adjectives to describe Fia AND Irian AND Tir Na Nog every time they’re mentioned and sometimes Eala too. Corra’s speeches/riddles were impossible to parse most of the time. But I understand she was going for a vibe. I will admit I just glossed over that after a while.

I really enjoyed Fia’s relationship with Rogan because it was realistic, especially Rogan’s reactions. Irritating and off putting, but realistic. I also enjoyed that the relationship with Irian took time to build and would probably constitute a slow-burn. I like that they spent time getting to know each other through sharing stories. In stark contrast you have her insta-trust of Eala which I suppose given the context of her training and childhood does make sense, but it seemed a little out of the blue to me.

Most importantly, I liked that Fia isn’t an overpowered super badass who is great at everything for no reason. She’s overpowered, out maneuvered, and out witted almost constantly. You’d think she’d learn, but no.

Very much looking forward to the next one!

I just want to take a moment to thank NetGalley and the publishing company for sending me a copy of this book for my honest review.
If you love, fantasy and romance, then I would definitely add this to your to be read shelf! There was politics, Fae, romance, and most of all adventure. I truly liked how the main character of this book was navigating to truly find herself. Overall a fun book!

Fia, a changeling switched with the queen's real daughter (Eala) at a young age, has always been an outcast. The queen she calls Mother views her only as a weapon to wield. When her only childhood friend, Rogan, returns to the castle, Fia is suspicious of his sudden appearance. She soon learns the queen has a reason for brining Rogan back. A gate to the fae realm is weakening and Fia and Rogan have been tasked to bring Princess Eala back. However, it won't be as easy as it sounds. They must first figure out a way to break the princess's curse before she can leave the fae realm.

I really like how the book starts out! The author drops the reader in the middle of a scene and slowly starts giving you more information. Large information dumps are not my favorite and I think this book did a great job of avoiding that. I also like that we see Fia's character grow throughout the book. She's never had a chance to love herself and I cannot wait to see where the author goes next with her character!

While I loved how it started out, it ended up slowing down a little too much for me. I wish some of the time in the human realm was spent really getting to know the characters. I know this is the first book in a series and I'm sure we'll get more as the series progresses but I had some trouble connecting with the characters. I would've liked to see the relationships fleshed out more too. I also think at times the conflicts/characters felt more YA than adult.

I'm sure we'll learn a lot more about Fia as the series progresses and I'm excited to see where the story goes next!