Overall rating: 3.5

I was really excited going into this book. And I’m not disappointed, maybe a little critical, but not disappointed. I feel like this book has a lot of potential, but I also had some consistent gripes that I couldn’t overcome.

The book really dragged at points. Even towards the end, when there was a sense of conflict, I felt exhausted. It’s one of those books that I had to PUSH to finish. And it felt drawn out to accomplish nothing! Rhya didn’t really improve in her powers, nor did she WANT to improve with her powers. She’s praised as this super strong, fated, awaited powerhouse, but refuses to explore it, despite knowing the amount of people after her.

As much as I liked Rhya, I didn’t love the stereotypical snarky “I’m-not-like-other-girls” narrative. It got old. Quickly. Especially since it felt like she would throw herself into danger and was naive. I also hated (like, really hated) how the other woman in the book was an ultra mean girl. And why? Not because it added substance to the novel. Because she was some level of jealous over a man. Big dramatic sigh.

I also didn’t get much enemies to lovers. They were definitely enemies! And then one day lovers?
Despite the pacing, it didn’t feel like there was much development from enemies to friends to lovers.

Despite these gripes, this wasn’t a bad book! I surprisingly liked the side characters a lot, including Soren. He lowkey gave me Warner vibes from Shatter Me, where he seems manipulative, but there feels like there’s more under the surface. I really enjoyed the worldbuilding and imagery, and felt like the audience was really immersed in exploring the world as Rhya did. The politics were also fleshed out really well, which is not a main focus of the story, but something I appreciated nonetheless. Furthermore, though the book did seem to drag at points, it was by no means predictable. I found myself enjoying the twists and not being to DNF, even if I had to take breaks.

Unfortunately, this novel wasn’t my favorite, but I didn’t hate it. Despite that, I’m excited to see how the characters develop, and I’m definitely intrigued enough to read the next one!

* I received an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I'm adressing Julie Johnson, if you aren't her then scroll away!!!!

Julie, my darling. Please make this why choose. I'm actually on my knees BEGGING.

I thought this was very good and I will have to add this to the shop shelves. Thank you for the chance for us to review.

Unfortunately this one was a DNF at 50%. The writing is fine, if not a bit repetitive. But the overall story just wasn’t enough to keep me engaged.

I found the “banter” between the FMC and the MMC to be less witty, fun, and flirty and more childish and like siblings bickering. The FMC also felt extremely young and immature to me, and I found myself getting more and more frustrated with her responses and decisions. Also so many things were blaringly obvious but our FMC didn’t catch on until much later which was irritating and a bit of a sign of bad writing for either your FMC, or the “telling not showing” writing style.

I also felt like this could have used another POV. Because at 50% into the story I am still so confused about everything and I’m over Penn’s aggressive and broody behavior. And how unrealistically angry he gets with Rhya even though he never explained anything to her and completely refused to tell her anything at all. I can tell that there is going to be a “big reveal” of who the previous wind weaver was to Penn and why he’s trying to redeem himself but I’m not a fan of the reveal being the whole plot. I’d like to know something instead of being kept in the dark along with our very obtuse FMC.

Overall I think this book will have a fan base and the people who love it will definitely really love it. Unfortunately the storytelling and characters were too irritating for me to continue on with.

I had such a great time with this one. The world-building is vivid and full of magic. I loved how the elemental powers felt both fresh and exciting. Rhya is such a fierce, stubborn FMC, and her banter with Scythe was so much fun to read. The romance is a perfect slow burn with just enough tension to keep you hooked. I also really enjoyed the found family vibe and all the little moments of humor that balanced out the adventure.

This is a story about a slowww burn elemental romance

I struggled to get immersed in this one BUT once it picked up it really picked up! The fmc is bold and the banter is clever. The elemental magic system felt both original and reminiscent of classics! Overall, a lovely time,

Thank you so much Berkeley and PRHA!

A strong start to a new romantsy series that involves elemental magic, fated mates, a love triangle, warring Fae kingdoms, betrayals, action and lots of adventure and heartbreak. I enjoyed the main female protagonist, a wind weaver halfling who is just learning about her power and what is involved in the legacy she has stepped into. It was good on audio and I look forward to seeing where the series goes next. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy and to @prhaudio for a complimentary ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you so much Netgalley and publishers for allowing me access to this eARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Rhya Fleetwood (who wouldn't be here if it wasn't for Stevie Nicks) lives in a world torn by war, where humans hate all things Fae and Maegic. Running from those who hunt her but also from herself as well for she is the Wind Weaver, a remnant of Air.
Captured by a group of human soldiers intent on executing her for the crime of simply existing, she gets saved by Commander Scythe who unbeknownst to her has secrets of his own.

I loved.. the fuck out of this book! There were a few things that bothered me a wee bit.. but I was able to look past that and enjoy the story. (we will get back to that later)
I loved the world building was good, and I loved the unique maegic system that was created. I enjoyed knowing that their maegic did in fact have limits and could have deadly consequences if left out of control.
I liked the banter and the newfound family aspect when it came to the future soldiers Rhya runs into.
Even though the book was long, it actually didn't feel like it. There was enough action and things going on in it that I wasn't ever bored which is nice.
When the ending scenes started, I 👏🏻ATE👏🏻 IT 👏🏻UP. It was awesome. I could literally see myself there.

Now to the maybe fun part?
Cons:

I didn't really like the whole "I like him. no, I hate him. Okay I like him again. No we are enemies." the back and forth just irritated me a bit.. cause like he would listen to her wishes and leave her in peace but then her inner monologe is "where is he? I miss him. how dare he ignore me." it was just bothersome.
Also.. what I really didn't like was the fact that the main character is practically, almost useless. It was almost like she was purposely kept useless, pathetic and in constant need of saving to fulfill a white knight mentality. Disliked that.
When she does actually help, she does more damage to herself because no one bothers to teach her how to use her maegic properly. How is she supposed to know, if no one bothers to teach her?! 😫

All in all, would recommend with my whole SOUL! Epic journey with alot of action and laughs.
Plus, one bed trope, one horse trope, found family, hate to Love.

TWs for Mentions of SA, Child Loss.
Murder on and off page. Blood, gore. Mild cursing.

Thank you to @BerkleyRomance, @netgalley & @author_julie for the free #gifted copy of this book! All opinions are my own.

𝐓𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞: The Wind Weaver
𝐀𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫: Julie Johnson
𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬: Reign of Elements , Book 1
𝐏𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬: 527

𝐌𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬:
𝙍𝙝𝙮𝙖 - She is a halfling that is being hunted/captured by the mortals who want to do away with all things magic. Although she doesn’t fully understand her magical abilities, she is on her way to a fiery death. That is until she is taken by the “Scythe” who ends up saving her life. Rhya is such a strong, fierce character. What a spitfire - I love her sass so much!
𝙎𝙘𝙮𝙩𝙝𝙚/𝙋𝙚𝙣𝙣 - He is grumpy helmet wearing commander with so many secrets. He saves Rhya from death and takes her to his kingdom where he trains her to use her magic and reveals an ancient prophecy that they are part of! .

𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐡𝐚𝐬:
Romantasy
Enemies to Lovers
Forced Proximity
Magic/Mythical Creatures
Slow Burn
Found Family

𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: This book is just a reminder as to why I love Romantasy! The Wind Weaver is the first book that I have read by Julie Johnson and it won't be the last! I absolutely loved this cover!

I enjoyed this writing/plot so much. What great world building and so many adventures. That said, I do feel that at times it had pacing issues and could have been a little shorter than its 500+ pages. I love the character development - the tension between Penn and Soren. It gives such an ACOTAR vibe! This book is loaded with angst and banter. I love the elemental magic added to the story. My only real complaint is that I wish this book was a dual POV.

This is such a great start to the series. I am SO excited to read the upcoming books!

4.5⭐️

I really enjoyed this one! I had seen it pitched by someone as being for fans of Avatar the Last Airbender and Prince Zuko and I was immediately like say less, I’m in. Haha! I can see where the comparison is coming from. It does have interesting world building with elemental magic, and it is divided into kingdoms, and the MMC is an angsty and broody fire-wielder with a bit of a temper who was looking for the missing air-wielder, and the FMC is an air-wielding chosen one who is needed to help restore balance. That’s about as far as the ATLA similarities go though!

I thought that the world building felt well-developed and smoothly-incorporated. I like magic systems that have balance and costs/limits so I liked that the foils/counterparts exist between the Remnants and that the magic drains them so none of the Remnants are entirely overpowered. I thought it was pretty action-packed and I thought the pacing was pretty good overall! There was a section in the middle that slowed down a bit and felt more character-driven than plot-driven, but I did appreciate the found family aspect that was being explored and the emotional impact this brought later in the story due to that middle section having us get more invested in and attached to some of the side characters.

This story had complex characters. Penn was angsty and broody and grumpy which, admittedly, I’m always drawn to. I was definitely rooting for them and loved all of the moments of slipped control/composure, and moments of vulnerability and tenderness/softness. That said, he could be kind of a jerk at times as well as a bit controlling and hot-and-cold. Rhya was strong, resilient, compassionate, had a good moral code, but she could be annoyingly stubborn at times haha. I appreciated that she wasn’t just immediately a master of her powers etc. In this book, we get to see her struggling to learn to even wield them at all without losing control and burning herself out, much less really exploring her abilities. But rather than focusing entirely on her wind powers, we get to learn more about her other strengths in this book such as archery and healing. I also like that we got to see her kind of wrestling with questions of morality in the face of her new powers and need for survival. I’m sure she will have a lot of growth and development in the next book(s)!

I think my main complaint with this book was that the romance could’ve been more convincing. Penn was often just off doing other things so it felt like they were separated a lot, but I was just expected to believe they fell in love—like yes he’d often swoop in to save her, they’d have their little moments, they were definitely attracted to each other, but I don’t feel like I really FELT them fall in love. I was just told to believe they did. Sure, I got glimpses in those little softer moments between them but those weren’t enough to convince me of them being in love when they were separated so much, when he was kind of an jerk when they were together, and with him being so push and pull/ hot and cold. 🤷‍♀️ That said, I appreciate that it was a true slow burn as far as the physical intimacy and exploring the emotional connection. They definitely felt a pull to eachother early on, but fought it for a while, leading to some delicious tension and yearning.😍

All that said, with how the dynamics are set up and some of the foreshadowing, I can definitely see things going in the direction that ACOTAR went with the MMCs between ACOTAR and ACOMAF (IYKYK) so I’m definitely interested in seeing where things go with Rhya and Penn and learning more about Soren. I could also potentially see a why choose situation happening with how the Remnant bond is described and talked about so I’m interested to see which direction she takes things (like a ACOTAR-type switcheroo situation or more of a why choose situation—I’m hoping for more of an ACOTAR approach rather than a why choose because I personally feel like why choose stories should be clearly marketed as such for those who may want to avoid them or for those who seek them out 🤷‍♀️).

I am definitely looking forward to book 2! I’m excited to learn more about Soren, to see what happens with the romance, to see Rhya continue to grow into her powers, to learn more about the prophecy and restoring the balance, and perhaps even meet the Earth Remnant! 🤗

Anyway, if you want a story that is kind of like ATLA meets ACOTAR, I would definitely recommend this one!

Thank you to Julie Johnson, Berkley Publishing Group, and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!

📖 🐦‍🔥 The Wind Weaver by Julie Johnson - 4-4.5 ⭐'s

"Air and fire, an inextinguishable passion. Igniting together into pure, unadulterated... combustion."

The world is divided, fae are hunted by humans, and only the most cunning survive...

The Wind Weaver is a stunning introduction to a new romantasy trilogy from author Julie Johnson that is sure to mesmerize readers. With rich world-building, a unique magic system, action-packed plot, and intriguing characters this story gripped me from the start.

I always enjoy unraveling the why's and how's of the world built around you alongside the main character and that is exactly how this story reads. There are secrets and reveals, twists and turns, a slow-burn romantic subplot and so many little puzzle pieces that I am still theorizing in my head after reading. I can't wait to read book two and see if I'm right in any of my inklings!

The banter between all of the characters kept the story entertaining and helped balance the darker moments in the plot. I also loved the fact that despite this being a fantasy world, there weren't any of those head-spinning info dumps that some books in this genre seem to have. And the found family aspect?! *chef's kiss*

Now the story did slow down a bit in the middle and I did cringe at some moments between the FMC and MMC, especially when a certain someone turned a bit 'T-word' but like I said, it's making me question a few little tidbits in the story and I'm looking forward to seeing how that plays out. *wink*

So all in all, a spellbinding tale that I look forward to reading more from!

✔️ Romantasy
✔️ Enemies to Lovers
✔️ Soul Bonds
✔️ Slow-Burn
✔️ Elemental Magic
✔️ Touch Her and Die
✔️ Found Family
✔️ Prophecies
✔️ Fleetwood Mac
✔️ Princess Peach x Aragorn

💨The Wind Weaver🔥

4.5⭐️. 1.5🌶️

🩶Fear of maegic plagues war-torn Anwyvn. Halflings like Rhya Fleetwood are killed on sight. But Rhya’s execution is interrupted by an unexpected savior—one far more terrifying than her would-be killers. The mysterious and mercenary Commander Scythe. In the clutches of this new enemy, Rhya finds herself fighting for her life in the barren reaches of the Northlands. Yet the farther she gets from home, the more she learns that nothing is as it seems—not her fearsome captor, not the blight that ravages her dying realm, not even herself.

💧I love this story I couldn’t put it down and once I did I kept thinking about it. This book has a slowwww burn just how I like them😌

The beginning of the story is action packed which I love though it kind of slow down past the half of the book to give a chance for the romance to thrive.

Rhya was such a likable character I enjoyed her journey though I feel that there is more stuff that I needed to find out about her origins it was not very clear to me. Also I still don’t know what to think of Penn’s character he did have some red flags but I feel that like with Rhya we are still yet to see his full potential. One character that I did love even though he was not much in the picture is Soren he reminded me so much of Rhysand I hope to see more of him in the next book.

But one of my biggest question about this book is; Is this a why choose?????🧐 If it is I won’t mind😏

I really enjoyed this one! I liked the use of elemental magic and political intrigue. The slow burn built up well, low spice, high tension. I think their might be a love triangle coming and we'll see if I love it or hate it, ha. Looking forward to the next one!

Thank you to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for providing this advance reader's copy for an honest review.

4.5 stars - I loved this, a solid breath of fresh air in the romantasy genre even though the MMCs name (Pendefyre) was criminal.

*Updating with full thoughts as we are closer to release day now!*

As I said above, this book genuinely felt like a breath of fresh air. It starts exciting and the action feels non-stop, which is not to say there wasn't time for the characters to develop too. There absolutely was, and I felt like the balance of plot progression and meaningful character interactions was wonderful. It actually reminded me of The Road of Bones, in the best way! So if you enjoyed that one, you may like this too.

The story follows Rhya, a "halfling" on the run. A mysterious commander (Scythe...aka PENDEFYRE, still can't get over that name lol) saves her when she gets captured, and he seems way too hellbent on ensuring her wellbeing, and she can't quite figure out why. That doesn't stop him from being a complete grouch though, lol. As these things go, Rhya and Penn (gonna stick to calling him his nickname) begin to realize there's more than what meets the eye when it comes to the other.

Rhya has this mysterious birthmark also, and it turns out that means she's a super magical person aka a Remnant and Penn knows quite a few things about what that role of a Remnant entails. They're on quite the adventure, constantly being pursued by enemies. The action was really fun! The start of the book had essentially no other female characters (other than the FMC) which felt really odd, but eventually there are other women and I loved the found family/sisterly bond they had.

Another slight grievance is the dialogue was a bit jarring, at times it felt a bit "trying too hard to sound medieval" but then contrasted really abruptly with modern lingo.

All in all a very fun read - and I will add I haven't been this unsure about who the final love interest in a book will be a while!! So I need book 2 ASAP.

Thank you Berkley/Ace Books for the ARC!!

3.25 🌟

"He is burning for me, too.

A wildfire in his blood, in his body -- one I sparked. One I want, with sudden wild longing, to stroke until we are both utterly consumed by it. Until the past burns away, leaving space for something new to grow between us." (Ch 25)

Rhya was a hunted fae halfling. She thought herself a nobody, though she knew deep down that she was different. She had a mark on her chest, one that swirled and churned and had been there since birth. One that she was taught to cover and hide. But those that hated her kind caught her. Beaten and strung up, death was eminent. Then he showed up, more a curse than a blessing. Commander Scythe... deadly, menacing, unrepentantly brutal.

I came to hate Scythe so very much! Ugh, he pissed me off. He was an utter monster, treating Rhya so callously and brutishly. And then... he was a contradiction, but still very annoying.

As hard as I tried to keep my attention rooted to reading this book, it took me way longer than it should have to get through. The romance aspect was disconnected. Interactions between Rhya and "Scythe" were limited, but when there was, it was a whole lot of bickering, personality clashes, and belittling. Maybe she developed Stockholm syndrome? Toward the 2nd half of the book, he eased up a bit, was a little more likable, perhaps the helm he wore in the 1st half was pinching his brain *snicker*. Then he was over-protective like she was some special precious treasure, a caged bird, to protect, despite dragging her by the hair and throwing her around like a sack of potatoes in the beginning. But he had a past that made him wary.

She seemed to have an easy comraderie with his men, though. Easy onerous banter.

I would ship Rhya with the other guy instead of the MMC. I'm totally team other guy LOL.

Overall, this story fell and read a little flat and aimless for me, which was disappointing since I was so excited to read it and even more so when I got accepted to review it. The last 10% was the best of it.

Thank you NetGalley, Berkley Publishing Group, Ace, and Julie Johnson for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

Rating: 2.5

What I loved:

- The first thing that caught my eye is this STUNNING cover. I am obsessed.
- I always love a fun adventure in a romantasy! The quests always make for a fast-paced read.

What I struggled with:

In all honesty, I considered DNFing this around 70%, but decided to push through. The marketed “slow burn” did not last for very long, and a lot of plot points seemed to be repeating throughout the book. I feel like this book could’ve been much shorter.

Read if you like:

Enemies to lovers
Found family
Elemental magic
(Potential) love triangles

Have you ever read a book and yet the more you think about it, the more you dislike it?

Rhya Fleetwood is a halfling (half fae/half human) in a world that wants anyone with a drop of magic eradicated. Rhya has no magic. Eli Fleetwood, her adopted human father, did his best to keep her hidden from the world at large. But when an army came to town and started burning their tiny seaside village, Eli told Rhya to run and not look back. Rhya fears she may never see her father again.

But even on the run, Rhya can’t hide her pointed ears forever and the army is closing in. She keeps ahead of them for days but she is ultimately trapped. Now she’ll hang and her body burned to ash–who really thinks dead fae can resurrect from a hanging? Standing with a noose around her neck, waiting for the arrival of one of the generals, she almost wants them to just get on with it already as the iron shackles are burning her wrists. Except when the general known as Scythe shows up, it isn’t Rhya who he kills. He turns on his own men, cuts Rhya down and throws her over the back of his horse. Barely hanging on to the back end of a horse is just slightly better than the hanging tree, especially when your rescuer doesn’t slow down or feel it necessary to explain himself. As far as Rhya knows, they are racing to turn her over to a different fae-hating kingdom for a worse fate than death.

Yet when they arrive in the Northern Kingdom, Rhya is surprised to find that her rescuer believes she is the prophesized wind weaver, who with the fire, water and earth weavers, will save the Kingdom from the coming destruction. Rhya doesn’t believe any of this, especially not for a no-magic halfling like herself, but if she confesses that, will he dump her body into the next ravine or leave her to the trailing enemy army?

THOUGHTS:
Let’s be fair. While reading this story, I was engrossed in the story as the whys and wherefores were unfolding. I wanted to know why Rhya was saved by Scythe and why he attacked his own men? Why was he treating her so badly while still having moments of kindness? Why Soren, the water wielder, had such a tension-filled adversity to the fire wielder? What Rhya’s wind weaver magic is and can she wield it? I was intrigued while reading the story. It was only when my brain went back over some of the scenes where things didn’t make sense. I am dropping most of my thoughts into a spoiler so as not to ruin things if you like to go into a story without being swayed by other opinions.

Let’s start with the fact that Penn (Scythe) has been undercover for years with the Southern kingdom to find the missing wind weaver. He finds Rhya and then instead of grabbing a horse for her from the army’s corral, he let’s them all go and then tosses Rhya on the back of his horse. Yes, his horse is awesome and fast but wouldn’t they go faster with Rhya on her own horse riding days at a time? And maybe sitting upright like a normal person. Can you even ride on a horse when you are thrown over the back end behind a saddle like a dead body? I want to find a stable and ask if I can try to flop over the back to see if it is even possible without falling off. This is the person he has been looking for, so why would he treat her so badly? Yes, she’s filthy as she has been crawling through bogs trying to outrun an army but his treatment was very dehumanizing. This is someone who is part of the big, important magical square and someone you need to be working with. So WTF? We do find out that both the fire weaver and the water weaver had a thing for the prior wind weaver who was killed. Even if he didn’t want to fall for the new wind weaver, you wouldn’t treat an animal so shoddy. It doesn’t make sense.

We also have the age gap in characters as only a Fantasy can provide. Penn and Soren are both over 100 years old and Rhya is 20. When she meets Soren, he is shocked Rhya knows nothing about her abilities at all and he is very derogatory to her that she hasn’t mastered wind weaving while he sits there doing party tricks with water. He has had 100 years more to practice and prepare, but he calls her pathetic because (remember-raised by humans) she doesn’t know how to wield properly.

We also have that moment when Rhya is on the run an Penn catches up with her, confesses his attraction and kisses her, convincing her to return with him. Then he spends the next few week avoiding her because suddenly he doesn’t want to get close and lose her like he lost the last wind weaver. Dude, you won’t cry less if she dies you will just cry harder that you missed the opportunity to be with her. I hate when we have that romantic moment of connection, and suddenly in the next scene, we jump back to the hated or enemy level. Once you confess that you no longer hate your enemy, unless they actually stab you in the back, move forward.

One final complaint, Soren indicates his ex-brother-in-law is King of the Southlands and very jealous of those who wield magic and is now performing black magic, stealing that magic from others in sacrifices. Soooo, why were halflings being rounded up, hung and bodies burned rather than rounded up and brought to the king for sacrificing? Seems quite the waste of battery power for his black magic.

Some of these are the usual Fantasy tropes of the young heroine doesn’t know of her abilities/raised ignorant of them. In this case, everyone in the North knows about the prophecy but no one in the South seems to know.

Soren (water weaver) also tells Rhya that they haven’t seen an earth wielder in generations but no one seems to notice that there are increasing earthquakes which are moving closer to them. They think it is an indication that the world failing. I am guessing that is the earth wielder who is floundering with her own emerging/increasing powers. Yes, her as there are currently two boys and one girl. What’s a romantacy without more couples. There is also discussion that fire and wind are more drawn to each other, where fire and water, aren’t buddies. This would leave earth and water to be our next romantic couple. Probably.

This is noted as Book #1 but no indication if it will be a dualogy or a trilogy. Am I going to grab the next book? Yes, I am. Even with the flaws in this story, I want to see where it goes and if it improves.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5)

Okay Wind Weaver, I see you.

This book came in swinging with elemental magic, forbidden romance, and enough angst to feed my fantasy-loving soul for days. From the jump, I was hooked—Rhya is a halfling on the run, one heartbeat away from execution, and then boom: she’s snatched up by the cold, mysterious, probably-going-to-break-my-heart Commander Scythe (ugh, why are the broody dangerous ones always my favorite?).

Let’s talk vibe check:
✨ Found family? Check.
✨ Dangerous quests through cursed lands? Yup.
✨ A girl discovering her power (and battling her feelings)? Triple yes.
✨ A slow burn romance so tense I wanted to yeet them into a kiss? You know it.

The magic system was super intriguing—Rhya’s powers were such a cool twist, and I loved how her connection to the world and the other Remnants unfolded slowly but purposefully. The stakes were high, the world was gritty and immersive, and that tension between her and Scythe? Chef’s kiss.

Now, was it perfect? Not quite. There were a few slower moments, especially when we dipped into inner monologue land a bit too much, and I wanted just a smidge more info on other pieces of the story.

If you’re into elemental romantasy, deadly slow burns, and heroines figuring out they might be the literal storm, The Wind Weaver needs to be on your radar. Just go in knowing you’ll probably fall for the guy you definitely shouldn’t trust.

I ended up dnfing this one. I really liked the cover and the title. It sounded intriguing from the blurb as well! I was enjoying where the story started as the reader is thrown into an ongoing war towards the faes and half fae alike. It was pretty brutal already from the beginning! I think my disconnect was from the writing itself and no matter how hard I tried I just didn't like the characters and for that reason I decided to put it down.

First, a big thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for the ARC of Julie Johnson’s novel “The Wind Weaver" – “Magic and adventure swirl through this spellbinding romantasy where a young woman reignites the embers of an ancient prophecy, unleashing a storm that could save her realm or doom them all.”

Overall this story was action packed straight out of the gate. It does slow down here and there but this leaves room for world building. Rhya is a strong willed, hot tempered half fae with a witty sarcastic disposition. The chemistry between the two main characters is intense.

There was a great balance of plot progression and meaningful character interactions which is not something we see very often. The story follows Rhya, a "halfling" on the run. A mysterious commander saves her when she gets captured, and he seems way too hellbent on ensuring her wellbeing, and she can't quite figure out why. That doesn't stop him from being a complete grouch though, lol. As these things progress, Rhya and Penn begin to realize there's more than what meets the eye when it comes to the other.

Rhya has this mysterious birthmark also, and it turns out that means she's a super magical person aka a Remnant. They're on quite the adventure, constantly being pursued by enemies. The dialogue was a bit jarring, at times it felt a bit "trying too hard to sound medieval" but then contrasted really abruptly with modern lingo. And this is something that I notice a lot in this genre. And it gets me every time.

Thank you NetGalley and Berkley for a copy of the digital ARC. All opinions are my own.