4/5 ⭐
1/5 🌶

I went into this book with no clue what to expect other than it was a fae romance and that people were really excited about it. While it felt a little slow at times, I absolutely loved it. This world was amazingly built and so unique. I instantly fell in love with the characters too. We get view points from Lettle and Yeeran with an epilogue from one of the love interests that I'm hoping carries into book two.

One of my favorite things about this story is that it's both FF and MF with a lot of gender diversity. Many of the characters identify as he/they or she/they with at least one identifying as they/them. I haven't read much FF, but I absolutely loved the FF scenes in this story. They were soul burning, hot and beautiful at the same time and I can't wait for more.

We got quite a few twists and turns in this story, some I saw coming, some that knocked me off my feet. The story was fascinating and I'll be on the edge of my seat waiting for book two.

Amazing new fantasy. So many twists and turns throughout with deep characters that give us someone to love and relate too. Their complex bonds with family, both found and given help shape the story.

The best thing about this book is the world building and the animal connections. The way the author described the fae lands, the earthy atmosphere, and the adorable magical beasts make the reader want to explore the fae lands for themselves.

This book was genuinely like nothing I’ve ever read before. I loved how real and raw the characters were. They all had secrets and flaws, but also outstanding qualities that were so well written. They were fiercely loyal, wary, mistrustful, clever, and so loveable. One thing that I absolutely adored about the characters is that they all had such realistic and believable reactions. They cried when they were angry or upset. They laughed with humor and hysteria. They fought for what they believed in, took ownership for their mistakes, grew as people, and worked to expand their understanding of the world. Each character had strengths and weaknesses not just of character, but also of ability. Some were physically capable, some mentally, some could do things that others would not be able to do no matter how hard they tried, and some learned skills that they would never be as good at as others were naturally. I genuinely felt connected to the characters in this book.

The relationship between the sisters and the relationship between Pila and Yeeran were some of my favorite parts of the book. Yeeran and Lettle’s interactions genuinely felt like conversations between sisters. They bickered and annoyed each other, but they also loved each other deeply and defended one another fiercely. I loved how they could be mid-conversation about something, stop to throw in a congratulatory remark, continue the conversation, pause to needle at the other, and then carry on. This is one of the best depictions of siblings I’ve read in a book, and I thought it was especially impressive considering the book is so far from being set in a world anything like the one I live in.

The representation in this book felt natural and well written. I thought that the fae language and not being faebound in general were such excellent ways of representing disabilities. I also thought that the characters who were shown to have physical disabilities were done extremely well, especially with the way that we can see how one of the main character’s physical disability affects her day-to-day life. There was also a lot of LGBT+ representation in the book. I really appreciated how things such as characters’ gender identities and expressions were noted during the book without it ever seeming like anything but the typical part of life that it was for the characters. I also thought that the queer relationships were beautifully written.

The way that the bias that the different species held for each other was explained, discussed, and slowly unlearned by the main characters was incredibly well done. The explanation of the expression “sun sins”, for example, with Yeeran admitting that she had never considered the implication of the words after having it pointed out. I appreciated the way that the characters began to consider their own biases during the course of the story and realize that the prejudices that they had grown up hearing were untrue.

The cultures that were created in this book were intricate and had so much depth to them. I was continuously wowed by the world-building in Faebound, particularly so far as things such as dress, ceremonies, and mythology were concerned. The ways that the myths the characters knew were revealed to be a mixture of fact and fiction was so interesting and constantly kept me guessing. The book gives the best descriptions of the settings and appearances of characters of anything I’ve read in a while. I loved that the clothing being worn, the flora and fauna around, and even small details such as placement and appearance of furniture were consistently described.

The magic in this book was an absolute highlight for me. Learning about how and why it worked, as well as the different types of magic that existed, was not only one of the most engaging parts of the book, but it was a part of the book that I thought tied everything else in it together beautifully. I liked how the skills that the elves already possessed were adapted or utilized in the fae lands. I absolutely loved divination and stopped to analyze every prophesy created repeatedly throughout the duration of the book. Becoming heedless was a unique idea that I thought expanded the world greatly.

Lastly, the plot of this book was gripping, shocking, and well planned. There were plot twists that I guessed because they were well foreshadowed that were then followed up with even bigger twists that I didn’t see coming in the slightest. I gasped aloud several times while reading this book because it was so beautifully done. I cannot express how much I enjoyed this book. Every element of the story was written perfectly. It is so obvious that a huge amount of planning, talent, and care went into this book, and I cannot wait for the next one!

Thank you to Random House Publishing Groups & NetGalley for providing an advance copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.

The best descriptor I have for this is "predicable" - also - I was just not vibing with the writing style of this book, the timeline of the first 100 pages is insane. I don't want to give details / spoilers but I was like ? "yeah there's no way that said person met/found said other person when they were supposed to be at a two day distance moving in the same direction? The characters were likable, but I found the two FMC's and said characters to just be very surface level, same with the plot of the story. The story wasn't bad, but I would say that it is wildly average. I don't think I'll be continuing the series.

**Thank you Random House for the ARC - All opinions are my own**

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey via NetGalley for providing me with this ARC! I absolutely LOVED this book. I read it in three sittings and never wanted it to end. It was a very strong first novel in a series. The world building was great, the pacing was great, and I loved all the representation for queer folks & BIPOC. Most definitely will be recommending to my friends!

Thank you to NetGalley, Saara El-Arifi, and Del Rey books for the digital arc in exchange for my review.

The Plot
This book has a mythology where three gods created the three races: humans, elves, and fae. This book is primarily about Yeeran, an elf and colonel in the army of her tribe. Yeeran makes a mistake that gets her stripped of her title and banished from elven lands. Her sister, Lettle, and her captain, Rayan, follow her. They run into some of the fae, which were supposed to be extinct, and are captured.

I am going to talk about what didn’t do it for me first followed by what did and why I will still read the next book.

What didn’t do it for me:
* Lettle. She was so annoying to me and existed just to give us information that she then gatekeeps from the other characters! At one point she gets upset that she is working harder than anyone else, but she has vital information that she is choosing to not tell anyone!
* Going along with Lettle - The miscommunication from her causes so many weird things in the plot. I do not like when miscommunication is used just to add 30 pages to a book. It’s hard to go too deep into this without giving away plot, but this miscommunication trope made her chapters difficult to read at times.
What I liked:
* I found the mythology intriguing, and enjoyed the parts of the book that centered on it and the cultures of elves vs. fae
* I liked Yeeran and found the storyline from her perspective enjoyable! I’m interested to see what happens with her in the next book
* The obeah!! Without giving anything away, Pila is the MVP and my favorite character
* The ending and set up for book 2 is enough for me to forgo my hatred of Lettle and continue. I hope to see more about the mythology and the different elf tribes. I also liked the twist towards the end and want to see what happens with the fae.

Overall, when half the book is from the POV of a character you’re annoyed by, it’s hard to rate a book 4 or 5 stars. I’m giving Faebound 3.5 because of the mythology, Yeeran, and the setup for book 2. I’m hoping some of the miscommunication will end and Lettle will check her attitude at the door.

I’m a little confused about how I feel about this one. My overall feelings are neutral, but I think it’s more that if I had been in a better place when I started it I would have enjoyed it more. Though the animal bonding is wayyy too similar to the dragon bonding in Fourth Wing, I found the other aspects of the world super interesting. I appreciated the use of Caribbean (?) folklore and the queer rep as well. I think this one might be worth a reread for me down the line to see if my opinion changes!

I’m not too sure what to rate this. It wasn’t a bad book, but it also wasn’t my favorite either.

When it comes to fae related storylines, I think the book world is becoming over saturated- they’re all starting to read the same to me, this book was no exception.

There were some intriguing aspects with the prophecies and and such, sure. But all in all what it boiled down to was a blight ruined the land, tensions were high because of that, a war was brewing, romance was thrown in at fandom, and death was knocking on the FMCs door every 5 seconds. So nothing bad, but nothing new.

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Faebound follows two sisters, one a newly appointed commander (Yeeran) of the elvish army, and the other a diviner (Lettle). Lettle came to Yeeran with a prophecy she interpreted and Yeeran's decisions led her to follow Lettle's divining. In doing so she was exiled from the elven lands and Lettle followed. On their journeys - Yeeran to find a way to be welcomed back, and Lettle to find her sister, they are captured by the fae, a race the elves long thought extinct. The rest of the book follows both sisters learning to live amongst the fae, finding love, losing it, and learning so much more about who they are in the process.

This book was so good. Most of my five star reads I fly through, but this one I loved savoring the story. I spent so much time seeing if I could find the events in where Lettle's prophecies may be true, trying to see if I could sparse out who the villain was, and honestly just enjoying how both sisters learned and adjusted to being thrown into a new life. It was a fantastic commentary on race relations, action intentionality, and politics.

10/10 will absolutely be recommending to everyone I know.

Curses, prophecies, and magic intersect with devastating romance in this sensational sophomore series debut from author Saara El-Arifi. In Faebound, El-Arifi sketches a brutal landscape divided by war and two sisters on separate paths that must converge, Yeeran with her rough edges tested by her fate as a Faebound and her newfound abilities, and Lettle, a dreamer who must harness her innate power to divine. Faebound is everything I’ve been yearning for from fae-centered fantasy – rooted in compelling quests for truth, an end to generational traumas, and the altering of history and its power over entire civilizations. Bonus for its intricately developed relationships between women, romantic and familial. This is a fast-paced, sensational series debut and one I’ll be singing praises to for months to come. Faebound is a dark, glorious fae story empowered by love, sisterhood, truth, and an end to war.

When I saw that Saara El-Arifi had a new book coming out, I couldn't have been more excited. She has a way with characters and world building. Faebound was no different. The never-ending war of the elves, the land of the fae, the different types of magic, all peaked my curiosity.

Faebound follows the path of 3 elves when they find themselves in a foreign land. The history of the three gods, paves the path for interesting developments. I am interested to see where this story progresses.

Where I think this book fell short was the pacing. It often felt rushed and was very predictable. It read much like a young-adult novel, but with spice that at times didn't feel necessary or make sense for that moment in the story. There were moments that could have been so powerful, but the build up wasn't there for the full payoff.

I still enjoyed the book, but just wish there had been more. 3.5 rounded to 4

Thank you to NetGalley and DelRay for the Arc

What an amazing book 1! I cannot wait for the next book in this series. Good world building, I loved the folklore as well!

Mark my words this will be the fantasy read of 2024. Stories with fae/elves always immediately get my attention so I was expecting to like this one but it blew my expectations out of the water! The world building was whimsical and so detailed. The characters were complex and so loveable. I am struggling to find the right words to give this book the hype it deserves. Please Please do yourself a favor and read it! It’s got a sapphic relationship that I adored. I am so excited to see what the next book has in store.

I absolutely loved every second of this book. It was so alive to me and reminded me of everything I love about these kinds of stories. Pila was my favorite and made me want to always call me doggy over so I could snuggle her. Although I did kind of make some guesses of what may be coming and some did end up true it didn’t take away from any aspect of the book for me. Because the journey of getting to them was so well put together and magical.

This will absolutely become a top fantasy read for 2024. With an intriguing fantasy world of Three Gods. The Sun, Moon and Earth. Each creating their own race. One of Fae. One Humans and one of Elf’s. All of which I found fascinating from the start. Two world are lost and unknown. While the third world must fight an endless war to stay alive. The author built a very detailed world and wrapped her characters in it. This book definitely made you think you knew where the author was taking it, until she pulled the rug out from under you. Left on a huge cliffhanger. It will be interesting to see where it all goes. Who will rise and who will fall. There wasn’t a lot of romance in this book, more world building. But we definitely have the story step up for it as the series continues.

⭐⭐⭐⭐
🌶️

I have a prediction this book will be the ✨it girl✨ of 2024!!!
Ya know how sometimes the first book in a series is kinda meh bc it has to all the heavy lifting for the rest of the books get, but Faebound 100% doesn't suffer that fate the story is compelling from the beginning.

The world is really where this book shines. The mythological lore that was peppered through the story was amazing (one thing about me is I love mythology in a book). The fae world was amazing, the magic, creatures, and architecture were so fantastical and whimsical.

If you like animal companion related magic, READ THIS. Easily one of my favorite characters was the animal companion (if you've read Fourth Wing and love Andarna you will be obsessed as soon as I met this character I was obsessed & literally wrote in my kindle notes "would die for her already")

I really love that Saara included both the fierce woman warrior archetype as well as the softer girl who sometimes needs saving. A lot of times fantasy books either choose one and lean really hard into the stereotype, but Saara uses these archetypes to her advantage while also subverting it when necessary

I loved the romances! I was punching the air several times kicking my feet and twirling my hair vibes, but that being said, this is where the book lost a star for me. The romances didn't completely enthrall me I think primarily bc two romance storylines were happening at the same time. bc of the switching povs it felt like we missed important narrative beats in the romances plot lines, so it sometimes the romances felt rushed. That being said I was still rooting for them and very excited when things were happening, but it just didn't hit like I wanted it to if that makes sense?

I still highly highly highly recommend this book! It was such an enjoyable read that had all kinds of twists and turns that made it such a page turner. I couldn't put it down at a certain point and finished the last 50% of the book in one sitting. I will definitely be reading the rest of the trilogy!

Thank you to NetGalley, Saara El-Arifi, and Random House for providing this arc in exchange for a review!

Features:
✅ One Bed
✅ Enemies to lovers
✅ Force proximity
✅ Queernormative (also characters' pronouns were in the back of the book!!!)
✅ Afro/Arab world

Two sisters, trapped in the fae world, unlikely romances, court politics, and defying destinies. Yeeran is a warrior in the elvan army and has known bloodshed and violence all her life. Lettle is her sisteer, a diviner who wants nothing more than to find a better future within the prophecies. Yet when a mistake from one of Lettle's prophecies leads to Yeeran's exile from the Elan lands they both end up entering into the most impossible place... the fae court. The faes had not been seen for millenniums and now both Yeeran and Lettle are both trapped in their, along with Yeeran's general Rayan who went with Lettle to search for Yeeran when she was exiled. Once all three of them had made it into the fae court, they are told they are no longer allowed to leave. Yeeran will have to test into the fae guards in exchange for Lettle and Rayan to be allowed to live a peaceful life in the fae court... despite the faes being prejudiced and hating the all elves. Yeeran is caught up in the elf court politics, with the elf princess Furi who also is a warrior...meanwhile Lettle is learning how to read prophecies.. except her own prophecy states that she will kill her beloved... who just happens to be Rayan. The closer they get the harder it becomes for Lettle to push him away. Meanwhile something is going on, someone is vying for the throne and Lettle discovers a prophecy that states two elves will be killed.... but when they discover which two elves.. it might be too late for them. This is the first book in a trilogy and it definitely was an interesting read, the pacing is a bit slow and it does feel at times like you are getting info dumped, however the overall journey of the plot was interesting and I am interested in where the next book goes. The romances in the book were good in some aspects, not so much in other. I did enjoy the romance between Lettle and Rayan but couldn't believe the romance between Yeeran and Furi. Then there was the mystery and the way that wrapped up, and it kind of was an obvious one and didn't really feel carefully laid out or surprisingly really. I was interested in the world of the Fae court and how Yeeran and co had to integrate and navigate it but for some moments it just didn't really expand on it all that well. Overall, it's a fun start to a fantasy series and if you enjoy court politics, a bit of romance with prophecies, then give this a go.

*Spoiler: Yeeran and Furi get together, Lettle and Rayan get together, Furi's younger brother poisoned his mothers to give Furi the throne (without her knowing). Rayan turns out to be the long lost son and chosen king (he's essentially Furi's cousin) and is chosen as king. Lettle is the diviner's prophesized apprentice and begins learning how to divine. Yeeran can talk to Pila, her animal familiar essentially.

*Thanks Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Del Rey for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Wow, this was amazing! I finished this in one day after craving more from this author since reading The Final Strife. I’m so happy I got approved for this arc!

As a hardcore elves-and-dragons fantasy girly, this was right up my alley. I say dragons because the bonds the fae had with their obeah reminded me of the bonds to dragons in books like Eragon, so if you like that dynamic then you‘ll love this.

I adored The Final Strife, but I dare say I like this even more because of the worldbuilding with the elves and fae. The home of the fae, Mosima, was so beautifully written and reminded me of Farthen Dûr and Du Weldenvarden in Eragon- so again, if you loved visiting those places in that series, this would be right up your alley too!

Getting to know the elf sisters Lettle and Yeeran was such a pleasure, and they were both so headstrong and independent but in such different ways. The fae Furi might be one of my favorite characters though, omg I loved her and <spoiler> I could so see why Yeeran was smitten with her omg </spoiler>. Rayan was also such a wholesome character and I am so looking forward to what he discovers in the next book.

Think elves and fae and magical lands but with tons of complex and powerful female characters, enemies-to-lovers spicy wlw (and wlm) romance, and zero heteronormativity, just like in The Final Strife. Fans of other authors of fantasy with these traits like Samantha Shannon would also love this!

Highly recommend this one and can’t wait to read the rest of the series!

Another exquisitely written book by this author. She is exceptional at world building and even when she is writing something heat wrenching you still are taken aback by beautifully it is written.

I’m new to the fantasy genre and I don’t know if that’s the reason for me not really enjoying this one. I couldn’t seem to connect with the characters like I had wanted to. The summary seemed promising it just fell flat for me.