I thought I would really enjoy this one, having enjoyed Mary E. Pearson's past books, but I just couldn't get into this one at all.

I have to admit the audio book got on my nerves after awhile and I switched to the special edition I had received from my book box. I by far enjoyed it more reading it than listening. The world building and the character development throughout was good. I felt at times Bristol was just annoying and had somewhat of a difficult time seeing her fall for Tyhgan, while basically complaining about finding the door. Additionally, the long descriptions left me thinking about other things I needed to do. I felt like so much was happening between chapters that was off page. Why? Like give me something to want to continue, but I knew it was coming that certain cliff hanger at the end. Do I want to continue? Maybe.

The first half of this book felt a little disconnected and the POV switches were unclear and made it so I had to go back and reread off and on to make sure I didn't miss anything once I knew the POV we were in.
But the second half! The second half really saved the book for me. Plenty was happening and there were even a few surprising moments.
The audiobook was EXCELLENT and I would highly recommend.

I’m upset.

This audiobook clocks in at just under eighteen hours, every one was a waste. I’m shocked the author of the Dance of Thieves duology, the pinnacle of political intrigue and slow-burn in YA, wrote this cookie-cutter, stereotypical fae romantasy garbage.

The book was promising at first. Bristol Keats seems logical and level-headed, going to the fae world only to protect her family (the joys of having a protagonist over twenty). She drives a good bargain: in exchange for finding a magical door the fae king Tyghan needs, he will help her find her father, who’s trapped somewhere in the dangerous fae world.

This is the plot I thought we were following, but it quickly derailed into a bundle of withheld information, miscommunication, insta-love, and sixteen hours of filler scenes. By the end of the book, the original goals set out aren’t even close to being met! There’s so much urgency expressed in the beginning, yet most of the book is characters lollygagging and discussing how important their mission is without attempting to complete it.

I wasn’t convinced for even two seconds that Bristol and Tyghan were a good match. Their chemistry was so underwhelming. At first, I assumed Pearson was playing the long game, setting out to build a slow-burn and yearning-filled story. Yet the catalytic interaction of the relationship is so laughably stupid. Invisible dances where neither of them talks? Where is the romance? Apparently, this is enough for both of them to fall head over heels in love.

The sheer amount of filler pages is due to how much Tyghan is keeping from Bristol. There could have been a solid story if he had sat down and had an adult conversation with her, revealing the truth and how much he knew (that’s all spoilers). It would have given the MCs the tension they needed to build a believable romance and the plot the blurb promises would have happened. But since he refuses to tell her anything, the characters rotate going to balls and saying cryptic things to Bristol instead of being honest.

Definitely will not be reading the second book. Yes, this book couldn’t even do me the courtesy of being a stand-alone.


My spoiler summary of the book:
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“It’s vital that we find this door or everyone is going to be in danger and die!”

*500 pages later*

“We didn’t find the door but we did end with a spicy cliffhanger right after Bristol finds out all of Tyhgan’s lies!”


Thank you, NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the advance copy. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

I don't even know how to talk about this. I was intrigued in the beginning. There was a lot of potential for a great story. I was hoping for political intrigue and interesting magic, but we got a cringy and unbelievable romance with a few training scenes in between.

One thing that bothered me about this book was how much happened off-page. The author spends pages detailing a dangerous quest - then it is suddenly three weeks later, and the quest is over. All of it occurs off-page. I never felt the tension, and the political intrigue was not intriguing. The ability to tell time in this book was so difficult. I think it was on purpose, but it made it difficult to follow along. I thought I skipped a few chapters because the timing was so off.

The romance was so cringe. It was a terrible attempt at enemies to lovers. The entire romance felt off, as though the author was uncomfortable writing about them, especially the sex scenes.

Don't even get me started on the ending.

The only thing that stopped me from DNFing this is that Brittany Pressley is one of my favorite narrators, and I wanted to finish this for her.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

"The Courting of Bristol Keats" by Mary E. Pearson is a beautiful sci-fi novel. The world building is rich and the characters are likable and engaging. Audiobook narrator does a great job.

The premise for this book had me interested, but I felt like it dragged on too long. I liked the back story and the reveal moments, but didn’t care for the insta-love between Tyghan and Bristol.

The audiobook was really good quality but I just could not jive with the random POV changes and general confusion in regards to the worldbuilding. It just felt all over the place and I could never get a good sense of anything. I didn't love it, unfortunately, even though I really wanted to!

The Courting of Bristol Keats offers an intriguing premise, but the story felt a bit confusing at times. The plot had potential, but the pacing and character motivations could have been clearer. While there are some moments of charm, the mixed narrative left me wanting more clarity and depth. A decent read, but it didn’t fully hit the mark for me.

I had heard such good things about this author and was very excited to give this one a try! And I ended up having a really good time with it.

Bristol is spunky and snarky and I really liked her. The world was great and I just really enjoyed the adventure Bristol got pulled into. Especially the romance, which was clearly the heart of the book. Though I did prefer the tension in the first half of the book over the sudden escalation to spice in the second half. I would have liked a bit more of a slow burn personally.

But overall the world was one I’m intrigued to visit again and honestly I would actually love a novel about Bristol’s parents cause I find their story fascinating.

But if you’re a Romantasy fan I think you’re going to enjoy this one. I will definitely be picking up the sequel.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest reviews. I am no super reader critic. I read for fun and vibes. But listen, I won’t lead you astray. Trust meeeee, this book series is going places! Five stars because I was always excited to pick up where I left off. If a book can get me excited about reading it, the author has done a good job. I loved the adventure! I loved that she was a normal girl pulled into this magic world. I love the broody, grumpy, enemies to lovers. I love that our FMC is smart and witty and follows her heart. I can’t wait for my friends to pick up this book and enjoy it with me! I’ve been telling everyone I know!

thank you netgalley for the arc!

this story follows our main character, bristol. she lives in small town with her family trying to make ends meet along with her sisters. she one day gets some mysterious letters from an "aunt" and goes on to say her father may be alive. bristol makes a bargain with a fae king, and is desperate to find her answers.

i received an audio arc of this novel, and this is probably the only reason i was able to finish it. the story is not bad, but it was not really that special to me. the audio is over 18 hours, and i think that was one of the few reasons it dragged for me. while it is a romantasy, there is also a lot of world building and plot. i most likely will not continue with the series, but i would check it out if you are looking for a fun time.
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*I received an early audiobook copy from Macmillan Audio. All opinions are my own*

The mystery of what Bristol's parents were involved in pulled me in immediately. Unfortunately, it was kind of a mixed bag from there.

The romance was iffy for me, and most of the time I was not into it. I just prefer a slow burn and this is not that. Plus, Tyghan is hiding so much from Bristol. And it never seems to bother him.

I did find the world and the story engaging. Although the flow of time being different between worlds made things weird enough to occasionally pull me out of the story. This also complicated the romance for me.

The audiobook was solid. I liked the narration; it was an easy listen.

So I'm not totally sure where I land on this one. I'll probably pick up the next book to see how things shake out.

I was very excited to read/listen to this but the narration fell kinda flat for me and I had a hard time getting into the book because of this.
I also don’t care for the ~insta love~ situation.

HOWEVER I do think the world building in this book was pretty good and I generally respect romantasy books with a complex world over more simplified books.

I think I may try re-reading the physical book and see if I enjoy the story more.

This is not a romantasy for beginners. It's occasionally dense and there is a lot of world building. I'm still dabbling and so sometimes I was a bit overwhelmed with everything that was happening. Also, I was worried for a bit that there wouldn't be any romance and that this would be a straight fantasy because that didn't become obvious to me until around chapter 17 or 18.

All of that being said, it has all of the things that I love. A tough FMC with an interesting character arc, a standoffish, but protective MMC, some light enemies-to-lovers vibes, and fun magical elements.

Also, Brittany Pressley narrating! She is one of the best and elevates everything she works on. This was no exception.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the copy!

First of all, Brittany Pressley is an amazing narrator! She really made The Courting of Bristol Keats jump off the page.

Mary E. Pearson built up a beautiful premise in the first installment of this eventual duology. Bristol and her sisters are barely making it after the death of their parents. When a previously unknown "aunt" shows up, promising to give Bristol more info on her father, she is drawn into a completely new world. Full of secrets, fae, and romance, this is a promising, if at times unevenly paced beginning. I really enjoyed Bristol as a character and I think readers of Holly Black will find a lot to enjoy in this story.

I really struggled with The Courting of Bristol Keats and dnf'd it a bit more than halfway. The beginning was enticing, but overall I didn't enjoy the characters, the romance (the characters did not fit and I thought it awkward the background that involved her father's friend.) The story seemed to slug on a bit focusing back on the romance when I just wanted to get to the gist of the plot.

I've previously enjoyed Mary E. Pearson's books, but this fell flat for me. I found it to be a very predictable portal fantasy story involiving fae and magical worlds. While I typically enjoy that type of story, this felt juvenile. I thought it was YA at first just because story line felt more YA than adult.

This book drew my in immediately, with it being a mix of ACOTAR and Cruel Prince. The "slow burn" romance, I found to be a bit more akin to insta-love, but I enjoyed their story nonetheless. Its complex enough that I had to slow down a bit while reading, and I thik that was in part due to the timing of the book. It feels as though a lot is happening off the page, with time passing quickly. There were also a lot of different POVs that Im not sure all needed to be there. With some editing and refining I feel like this book could have been amazing-- the pacing was just off for me.

{Book Review} The Courting of Bristol Keats by Mary Pearson

If you’ve been here awhile (ok, a long while) you’ll know I’ve been reading and living Mary Pearson’s books since The Kiss of Deception. I was so excited to read her adult fantasy debut and it absolutely delivered. Thank you @flatiron_books for the review copy!

Starting in a contemporary world where a fantasy world exists as well in another world, I loved this unique world. One of my favorite elements in any book is a strong sister bond and Bristol’s relationship with her sisters was incredible.

The plot and reveals of what was actually going on was really interesting and honestly unlike a lot of other fantasy books I’ve read which was such a great surprise and breath of fresh air. I am eagerly anticipating the next book to see what happens next because the ending was 😱.

If you’re looking for a unique way of creating a fantasy world with interesting and surprising twists, this book is for you!