Awwww this was such a cute story. I was just captivated by everything that was taking place. It was just so easy to get into these characters lives and you just can't help but fall in love with them. I can't wait to see what's next from this author.

I didn’t think I could like another book more than These Hollow Vows and These Twisted Bonds, but Lexi has made me fall just as hard in this book as that duology.

I really enjoyed getting to see two different stories in one book!!! Both stories have so much heartache, but the promise of something special.

I cannot believe we have to wait a year to get the second part of this story!!! I need to know what happens to Jasalyn and Felicity! I need them both to stay strong and know that we are rooting for them!!! Jasalyn and Felicity are both so similar, yet so different. I loved watching them in this book and I’ve grown to love them. I’m cheering them on and rooting for them. I feel like I’m right there with them on their journey.

I honestly don’t know how Ms. Lexi Ryan has come up with this incredible world and story. The way she tells a story is captivating! I didn’t want to put this book down, but I also didn’t want to finish it because I knew the ending would leave me WANTING more! I cannot wait to read the next book in this series!!! I hope there a way for Ms. Lexi Ryan to continue writing in this world!

“𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝘃𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗺.”
𝗛𝗶𝘀 𝗲𝘆𝗲𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗶𝗿𝗿𝗼𝗿 𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗱𝗴𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝘆 𝗷𝗮𝘄. “𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗶𝘃𝗼𝗿.”

Thank you NetGalley, Lexi Ryan and HarperTeen for the e-ARC copy of Beneath These Cursed Stars.

Okay, I have two main grievances with this book that kept me from really enjoying it, and I think other readers should keep these things in mind before jumping in:

1. The world-building relies too heavily on the assumption that readers will have read These Hollow Vows first, which I hadn't. The synopsis makes it obvious they take place in the same world, not that this book is a continuation of the previous duology. Because of this, the story doesn't have the essential world-building a brand new reader would need. It wasn't until I was a significant way into the book before I pieced together enough information about Mordeus and the events of the previous duology to really understand Jasalyn, which is just sad. I had the hardest time connecting to her because I didn't understand her, and a well-done world-building crash course in the first few chapters, or even a recap of the THV duology, could have easily remedied that.

2. The jail-bait age gap left a bad taste in my mouth and made every romantic interaction incredibly awkward and icky. The 3 year gap between Jas and Kendrick is almost forgivable (her 17 and him 20) because they did know one another from a younger age. But the Misha-Jas/Felicity situation? Unforgivable. Even though Felicity-wearing-Jas's-likeness is definitely an adult, as far as Misha is concerned, he is experiencing feelings and attraction towards a 17 year old girl in a 17 year old body. We don't have an absolute age for Misha other than he is "ancient", which makes it worse. Is he 35? Is he 400? Idk, but apparently he wants to have sex with a little girl. I think the immortal age gap is one of those things the romantasy genre has run away with in the worse way and really needs to revisit stat.

Despite these two egregious complaints of mine, I did actually enjoy the story overall. I really liked Felicity a lot and despite my feelings about #2 above, I really liked the dynamics of her and Misha's relationship and I am curious about how that would be resolved in book 2. I may add THV to my TBR to see if my overall thoughts on the world-building change/improve.

When this book was released on NetGalley I just knew I needed to get the arc because I absolutely loved These Hollow Vows. Sadly, this book didn't hit the mark for me. I had difficulty jumping back in to the world especially since I had read These Hollow Vows and These Twisted Bonds a while ago. It would have been helpful to give more of a summary of what happened previously, who the main characters are, and the magical system. I felt like the story dragged on as well. There wasn't much happening besides continuously talking and talking and talking. I got a little bored! Even though this book has things to improve on, I did however enjoy one of the MC's-Felicity. I thought overall she had a solid personality and I loved reading about what was happening on her side of the story. I was also pumped to get more of Misha-he was one of my favorites from the previous series! Overall this story wasn't bad but I felt like there could have been more plot, action, and character growth.

I didn't realize this was a continuation from a previous series which I haven't read. I was a little lost at first but I honestly think you could read this without having read the previous books, just know it might ruin some of that story for you.

With that being said, I honestly loved this book and can't wait to read the first books in the series! All the characters were interesting and I loved the individual romances, forced proximity, and secrets it seemed every character was hiding. The plot for each character's storyline is perfectly written, leaving you wondering what comes next!

I do wish that Misha and Felicity's story was more of the main focus because I found theirs was more interesting and I just couldn't get enough.

4.5 Stars (rounded up to 5)

Lexi Ryan and fantasy are such a fantastic combination! If you’ve read Ryan’s adult romances before and are after a change of pace, I cannot recommend this book enough. Beneath These Cursed Stars is a young-adult fantasy romance, set in a world of both Fae and Humans, and many other mythical creatures.

Our story follows Jasalyn, the soon-to-be-fae-but-human-for-now sister of the Queen of the Unseelie Fae, and Felicity, a shape-shifter who needs a miracle. This was such a fun princess-swap story line, following both Jasalyn and Felicity on their parallel journeys. One thing I think this book did really well was provide just enough information about the magic systems present to keep you hooked, without giving it all away. I was desperate to find out more about Jasalyn’s ring and who was and who wasn’t tricked by it.

Is this story full of well-loved tropes? Yes. Does that make this book a little predictable? Absolutely! But that does not make the journey any less fun.
I recommend reading Ryan’s ‘These Hollow Vows’ duology first, as Jasalyn’s story picks up not long after the events of the duology finish. It will save you a little confusion and allow you to fall in love with some of the other characters in this story. One of my favourite parts of this story was getting more of Misha, who was one of my favourite characters in the ‘These Hollow Vows’ duology.

A big thank you to HarperCollins Children's Books and NetGalley for the advance copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4

This book was....fine. I liked it a lot better than the original duology in some ways but some of the issues I had with the first two are back in this one.

What I likes: honestly Jasalyn and Felicity are MUCH more interesting characters than Brie ever was. They each get a unique love interest and, yay, there was no icky love triangle! I feel like this one took more time developing the two girls as characters. The plot is also more interesting and starts off with more of a bang than the original two did. (Hello, the whole thing with the ring in ch 1? Loved it)

However, the pacing of this book is...off. It's still a LOT of insta-love (which makes more sense with one character than the other). The writing also trends younger than I'd like. There were a couple instances where I rolled my eyes at how cheesy some of the lines were.

There also wasn't a lot of world building. Like there's ENOUGH, just like in the first two books, but so much could have been gained with this book that added to the first two. But a LOT more/ most of the focus is given over to the characters, their feelings, and their dialogue. Which is fine, but it makes every single bit of the setting so....boring. The author really could have taken the time to explore the world. Which also ties into the fact that I think this book is too short for what it is!

I'm definitely interested in reading book two and seeing how it all plays out, though. I think she can really solidify these books as better than the first two as long as the next one is done right! I remember liking Brie's second book more than the first, so fingers crossed that happens this time as well.

When I first began this book, I was bored and confused. There's a lot that happens that's never explained, some of which must be from the previous books in the universe, which I haven't read. The characters and plot felt unoriginal from the beginning, like a repeat of so many other books. I figured I wouldn't end up finishing it.

Then, around 15-20% in, I slowly became invested in the story. I was hooked for a while, up until the overused formulas started really shining through and the predictable plot points were checked off one after another. It became irritating to read when secrets were revealed, betrayals exposed, close relationships broken. This is part of why I avoid romance as much as possible, because this exact same boiler plate storyline is used in every single romance book.

3 stars because I was enthralled with the story for a time in the middle, but felt all negative emotions about it in the beginning and end.

This book is like a bad blind date: full of potential, but a total letdown. Ryan had all the tropes to make it work, but wow, did it flop.

First, if you haven’t read the duology before this, good luck! You’ll feel like you’ve been dropped into a foreign country without a map. And for those of us who did read it, where’s the info on the human realm and their magic? Anyone?

The story crawls slower than a snail, and the endless repetition? I got the point the first fifty times, thanks. By 40%, I was skimming; by 60%, I was skipping; by 80%, I was sprinting to the end like I was escaping a dungeon.

The "big revelations" at the end? More like “common sense” than plot twists. Add predictable to the list of crimes here.

Jas is the most boring protagonist ever, always whining. Felicity was slightly better but still split between these two did no favors. Felicity’s story had potential but was underdeveloped thanks to Jas’s rock-like personality dragging everything down.

World-building? Nonexistent. Felt like I jumped into book three of a series I hadn’t started. The plot, if you can call it that, moved slower than a sloth on vacation.

Overall, a big meh. If you loved “These Hollow Vows,” maybe give it a try. Otherwise, don’t bother. Thanks to NetGalley, Lexi Ryan, and Harper Collins for the eARC. Too bad the book was such a dud.

I wasn't aware when I applied for this ARC that I would need to read 2 other books as it wasn't marketed as the 3rd book in a series, which, in my opinion, it should be. I was able to get to the 2 books before this one, but because I was unprepared for reading those 2 books, it put me behind for this one. I've been able to start it and if I hadn't read the two books previous, I would be completely lost. I think this needed to have been marketed better. So far, the books really good, and I'm hopeful to finish this soon, just bummed about not being aware beforehand.

This book follows the story of how people. Madalyn and Felicity.

After Jasalyn was freed from the harsh king she finds herself now living with her Queen sister Abriella while trying to cope and deal with the trauma she now faces while being captured. Everyday is still a struggle for Jasalyn. But because of this everyday fear she now lived in she traded almost everything to seek her revenge with her new gift- a ring that provided her with the kiss of death. A ring she wears at night and transforms her into the Enchanting lady.

On this quest for revenge she finds someone who was very important to her during the time she was captured. Kendrick. He then convinces Jasalyn to help with his quest as they want the same things ! They want the harsh king dead and the old Elora restored, but to do this they need the help of Felecity.

Felecity has been in the run for some time now because of her father but also because of the oracles prediction. But when Kendrick asks for her help she finds that she can’t say no. Her job is to fall in love with the Wild Fae King Misha in order to find this Hall of doors that will help Kendrick with his plan. But to accomplish this she must pretend and take the form of Princess Jasalyn.

Will felicity complete this mission with her heart in tact? And will Jasalyn help Kendrick in killing these people while staying true to herself and not let the Enchanting lady take over ? Find out in this book!

My review ~
This book exceeded my expectations and I was truly shocked! I went into this totally blind as I had not read the duology before reading this! I do think that in so parts reading these hollow vows could have helped. Especially when it came to the world building and understanding the different courts and their magic system as I found at time I was confused on how it all worked.

But overall I really liked the concept and the plot of the book! It was a little slow at first but I expected that as this was the first book in the series. I really liked felicity and her storyline. I really liked how tho hook followed those two characters and their adventures. The only thing that was a little odd was I found we followed more of felicity than Jasalyn and this is Jasalyns book. I know that what felicitys doing pertains to Jasalyn but it was a little weird. Overall not hating it though as I grew to love the connection that felicity had with Misha. Misha….i have no words for that man. I am obsessed with him and the way he was written. I saw some mixed reviews about the way the relationships in this book are written, but honestly I really enjoyed them ! I thought that there was depth and a real connection ! I liked both Kendrick and Misha !!!

Also the betrayal and deceit was something that I totally did not see coming and honestly for me made this book so much better !!! Really enjoyed reading this book and CAN NOT WAITTTTT for the second installment because that cliffhanger was just too good

Huge thank you to Harper Teen, Hodderscape ( this is your year for Fantasy keep it up) and Netgalley for my ARC of this amazing book I binged in one sitting. 4.75 stars rounded up to 5!

First. I didn't read the previous duology Brie's story. I am late to the Lexi Ryan game and I most certainly am going to remedy that. I think I would have been immediately immersed in the book had I been reunited with this cast of characters not plunging headfirst into it.

I am a big fan of fierce female characters and Princess Jasalyn and Felicity have been added to my faves of. 2024. I love that Jasalyn is her own person, Fae Royalty who cares less for the crown more interested in justice. The Princess swap is an amazing trope; and Felicity going in her place an Echo Shifter who has Misha our Wild Fae King completely smitten in a week? I swooned.
His character is a cross between Cardan of the Cruel Prince and Jacks from Stephanie Garber's Once Upon a Broken Heart. He is a morally grey Fae loved by his people, but don't you dare lie to him.
There was just enough love for a YA and for me to comfortably recommend this to a high schooler. Lots of longing, angst ..I need to see what happens in book 2.

The cliffhanger.. did I toss my phone across the room? Just maybe but it was sooo good.

“If you think these are ugly, you should see what he left in my head.”
-Jasalyn is just a perfect mental health rep character. She is dealing with trauma on her time, she is working through her scars and learning to trust others around her. I love the relationships she is building., but most importantly the healing she is working through for herself.

What to Expect:
➼ Forced Proximity
➼ Forbidden Love
➼ Secrets & Betrayal
➼ Revenge
➼ Slow Burn
➼ Healing From Trauma
➼ Fate
➼ Fae Royalty
➼ Fae Shifter
➼ Spin Off
➼ Two Separate Parallel Storylines ( Princess Swap)
➼ Dual POV
I need book 2 yesterday!

First I would like to thank you to Lexi Ryan, NetGalley and HarperCollins publishing for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book took me a while to get into and at some points, I would have to go back and re-reread what I was reading because my mind went wondering a few times while reading it. While I really enjoyed These Hollow Vows and These Twisted Bonds, for me, Beneath these Curse Stars kind of felt like a different world. In the first two books we had loads of beautiful world building and descriptive settings while in this book, it fell a little flat in that department. Im not sure if this will be marketed as a new series but, I would say that you for sure need to read the first two books that came before this in order to understand where this book picks up. I had to refresh my memory about some of the characters and their involvement in the first two books to understand where this new story was going.

I love a DUAL POV and especially when it’s two FMCs who feel very different from each other but I think there was some flaws in their characters that made the story a little hard to get into. Jasalyn for me seemed just such a contracdition and at times it was confusing. She wanted this revenge on all Fae so badly and seemed to be driven only by this but then would appear meek and scared most of the time whenever anything else was going on. Her relationship with Kendrick was also not my favorite and it felt very rushed I think mainly because we were just given a little blip of what happened to them in the dungeons and were are supposed to go off that alone. They hadn’t seen each other since being locked up and the second they did they were lusting after each other which was kind of weird.

I loved that Misha was in this book as well, he’s so cheeky and fun. I was pretty sad when Misha learned of Felicity’s betrayal because he seems like he knew something was off but didn’t want to believe it. As for Felicity, I felt bad that was was kind of made to do this whole princess switch because she is written as such a decent person but I guess she really had no choice because of what needs to be done. I would have loved a little more from her POV but maybe that’s something we will see if there is a follow up to this book.

I kind of guessed the ending of the book so it wasn’t a huge shock to me but overall I thought the book was an okay read. I’d love to see more world building in the next books and a happy ending for Felicity and more strength from Jasalyn in the next book.

DNF @ 9%. I tried several times to give this one a read, and unfortunately, I could not get passed the third chapter. I think it's because "Beneath the Cursed Stars" is a spinoff of another duology, which needed to be read prior to starting this story, and the story couldn't hold my attention.

So, keep this in mind before diving in. I hope you find it more enjoyable than I did.

Thank you, NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this story in advance.

***Disclaimer***I do not give authors less than three stars because I do not want them to be penalized by retailers, especially when other readers will enjoy their work more than I did.

I will start this buy saying I loved These Hollow Vows duology and was so excited to jump back into that world. With that being said, this book did not disappoint and I truly loved reading it. I think to fully enjoy this series though you should really read These Hollow Vows first or you will be lost and annoyed. Also, this book is a duel POV book and I found one storyline much more compelling than the other, but I am still very excited for the next book in the series! Overall these are fun reads!

Fast-paced read! Beneath These Cursed Stars by Lexi Ryan is the first book in a new YA fantasy series set in the same world as These Hollow Vows. It’s been three years since Brie saved her sister from the dungeons of the false king, but Princess Jasalyn is still trapped there mentally. Her fear and need for vengeance drove her to a witch in the human realm of Elora where she bargained her magic and fae-life for a magical ring. With the ring, Jas sneaks away every night to assassinate those who kept her prisoner in Mordeus’s dungeons. With rumors that he has returned, Jas teams up with her former cellmate in the hopes she can find and take him down.

I really enjoyed this book. It is told in dual POV which is a deviation from the original duology. Here we get Jasalyn’s POV and Felicity’s. Felicity is a new character who I really like. She is an Echo, which means she can take the form of anyone as long as she has some of their hair. It isn’t like a normal shapeshifter though. With this power, she sees their memories and can even smell like them. With Felicity’s power, Jas is able to join a renegade group who is looking for Mordeus. Felicity takes her place when Brie sends Jas to the Wild Fae kingdom with King Misha.

While fast moving, the plot really has two stories that run side by side. Jas is with Kendrick, a human she was imprisoned with who is also trying to take down the regime who rules Elora, the human realm. Their story unfolds slowly. Jas is way too trusting of Kendrick and his crew, blinded by her need to find and kill Mordeus once and for all. Felicity’s story is heartbreaking. She is fated to kill her brother and hasn’t been in her true form in over three years. Now she is taking on Princess Jasalyn’s form, being asked to make Misha fall in love with her, and find the mythical Hall of Doors.

I liked both storylines and how the author brings them together. However, it can be jarring to go from one POV to another especially if we are left with a cliffhanger. As much as I like Jas, I loved Felicity’s storyline. I found it fascinating and was thoroughly engrossed in the story. Ryan continues to build upon the world of the fae, and I’m excited for what is coming.

Overall, I really enjoyed Beneath These Cursed Stars. There are so many twists and turns that you do not see coming, and Ryan makes you feel all the feels from the warmth of first loves to the heartbreak of betrayal. If you are a fan of fantasy, I highly recommend.

I don’t know how I missed that Beneath These Cursed Stars was a sequel series to These Hollow Vows, but here we are. There was a lot of lore and casual references to events of the first book that felt like they were lacking in context—and it’s context I had, I just didn’t realize it was actually connected and would have reread (or at least read a synopsis of) the duology before diving into this.

Jasalyn’s story is separated enough from These Hollow Vows that you could technically read it as a standalone, but I wouldn’t recommend it.

While this is presented as being more Jasalyn’s story, Felicity was the character I was rooting for. I felt she had the more interesting plot (who doesn’t love a case of fake identity and hot fae king?)

The novel ends on a cliffhanger, which is incredibly rude because waiting is the worst.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperTeen for the opportunity to read an ARC, all thoughts are my own.

3.5 stars

Beneath These Cursed Stars follows Princess Jasalyn on her journey to kill Mordeus who held her captive and tortured her. Meanwhile, Felicity takes on Jasalyn's appearance to become close to the wild fae King Misha to learn the location of a portal. Both FMCs experience unexpected romance which adds soon angst and tension.

Overall, I was not able to get into this story as much as I hoped. It was a different storyline but I did not become invested in the characters as much as I did in Ryan's previous books. It was still a good read and I will probably read the next in the series.

Thank you to Harper Collins for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Lexi Ryan did not disappoint with this book set in the world of These Hollow Vows! I usually find myself bored with one POV when a book switches but that wasn’t the case in this story, Lexi did a fantastic job establishing interest in both narrator’s stories right off the bat.
My heart broke for Jaslayn who felt like she had to be so strong that she let herself wither away rather than let her sister see the truth of what was done to her. Felicity’s strength in being able to truly become someone else and keep the true person’s feelings in mind while acting in their stead never ceased to amaze me. Lexi really outdid herself with the character development. Oh.. And don’t forget how much that growth added to the surprise of all the plot twists, it made the story that much more addictive.

One thing I wasn’t a huge fan of was that the reader would be introduced to magic unheard of or bits of lore out of nowhere and they were never fully explained. Which was hard for me because I felt like at times I struggled with wondering “why is this being mentioned if we’re never even going to know why it’s important,” and it jarred me out of the story. That being said, even when we did get “explanations” I found myself hoping for just a little bit more information so it felt like I as the reader was more in the know on what was happening in the store.

But in terms of romance and intrigue this book had me HOOKED. I couldn’t tell who I wanted to fall in love with more, Misha or Kendrick. These men are so totally swoon worthy and I need them to find their happily ever after. The sheer amount of sass and banter in this book was delicious, and as a huge fan of romantasy it did make up for the lack of information at certain parts. Overall, I can’t wait to find out what’s next for Jasalyn and Felicity!

Thank you so much to NetGalley and HarperTeen for allowing me to write an honest review of the ARC for Beneath These Cursed Stars!

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

My review was posted to Goodreads and Instagram on 7/25/24.
My Amazon review will be submitted on 07/30/24 when it is available for review and will be posted on my profile within 48 hours.

This book was everything I could’ve ever hoped for. I waited to read this book since I heard it was coming out and I am so blessed to have gotten an arc of it. Thank you for writing a masterpiece for your fans to read