4.5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group for providing me with an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

First of all: this book has a recap of book one in the beginning and I cannot express how much I appreciate authors doing this.

I flew through this book in less than 24h, the same way I did with Faebound last year. It sucked me right in and kept me hooked until the very end.

We, again, follow the sisters Yeeran and Lettle. And we get some more POVs in this book, which I enjoyed immensely.

The writing style flows the exact same way the first one did.

All in all, if you loved the first one you will love this one just as much, if not more. I had a fabulous time flying through Cursebound unveiling secrets and finding answers along with the characters.

Special shoutout to Pila for being the best. That’s all.

(if this book just had more oomph to it, it could’ve been a duology instead of a trilogy)

cursebound continues with our two sisters, yeeran & lettle, on mosima but with yeeran leaving to warn her ex-lover and tribe and lettle staying behind with the royal family.

what el-arifi does really well in her stories is pull at your heartstrings with lush and vivid descriptions. and she does that exceptionally well in cursebound. but like faebound, cursebound still suffers (imo) in the lack of struggle? like every problem our characters had was solved in the span of a few chapters. where’s the conflict?? where’s the heavy doom? it ended up with me not caring enough that there even was a Problem™ to begin with.

now to what i liked about it. the banter! the representation!! the side characters! really enjoyed the added POV of alder. i felt that it gave the plot a good direction and hopefully is something that gets more developed in the next book. we got a little bit more world building here and how each group really ties in with one another. it’s in rare form that a sequel does better than the first but i think out of the two, cursebound is that one for me. i’m excited to see how this trilogy will end!

ty again netgalley & del rey for the arc -

A fantastic follow on from Faebound! This book succeeded in not falling victim to the second book syndrome, far from it, in fact I found Cursebound to be far better than Faebound. I enjoyed the characters more and their development. I do wonder if this in part due to the fact that most of the romance subplots were explored more thoroughly in Faebound (to its detriment in my opinion) allowing for further general character development and story progression to flourish.
What I liked most about Faebound was the lore and world building which has been expanded beautifully in Cursebound.
The plot was a little predictable, however there was a little twist I didn’t quite see coming that made me smile.
I am very much looking forward to the final instalment, in the meantime I’m eagerly awaiting my physical copy that I have preordered.

Thank you NetGalley and Random House for the opportunity to read and review this title.

This is how you write a book 2 in an EPIC trilogy.

Loved this book! It was a strong 4.5 stars for me!

However, as with Faebound, I thought this book started a bit slow, stuff would happen but it felt a tiny bit draggy. Pretty soon though, unexpected events flowed and the drama and world building started to propel the story forward at a much quicker pace, at times breathless even.

Saara El-Arifi, the author, did an excellent job expanding the world and revealing past and possible future events that definitely shaped the now the characters were living in. We also got introduced to new characters who changed EVERYTHING and turned all you thought you knew and understood upside down! I really loved that! It was a subtle build into a massive hit over the head when the revelations came.

The main characters have much emotional upheaval to handle and some betrayals that make this a captivating read. We also dive into the realm of morally grey where you wonder who is right and who is wrong. This was some thought provoking writing that kept me thinking and reading through the night.

In the end all I could feel was that the author just took me on an exquisite journey. And now I can only ask when is book 3?!?!?!?!

Thank you once again to Net Galley for sharing this arc in return for my honest review.

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
While I wasn’t a huge fan of Faebound, finding it full of promise but generally rather forgettable, Saara El-Arifi’s writing was enough for me to give this series one more chance. And fortunately, I found Cursebound much more engaging overall.
The world was always my favorite part, and I feel much more grounded within it this time around. It’s immersive and I enjoyed delving a bit more into the politics this time around.
The characters also stood out a bit more. While there are now 4 POV characters, and I did chafe at switching between them, I mostly feel like the balance was decently maintained. Yeeran and Lettle were fleshed out a lot more to the point where they were much more engaging, and new character Alder added some new dimensions to the narrative.
The plot was reasonably compelling, with a murder plot/conspiracy. With a lot of intrigue and danger, the plot moves rather quickly. However, it also suffers from the typical pitfalls of a “middle book,” with there not being much of a sense of progress, as most of the payoff will truly come to fruition in the final book.
However, given the weaknesses of the first book, I found this an improvement over all, in spite of the still-existing flaws. And this is one of those rare cases where I’d recommend people to continue with a series, even if the first book didn’t grab them.

Cursebound picks up exactly where Faebound left off, and thankfully, El-Arifi provides a helpful prologue to summarize the events of book one, making the transition into book two seamless. Once again, El-Arifi paints a whimsical and beautiful world of fae and elves, fraught with conflict. We finally gain more insight into Mosima, the Jani Dynasty, and the curse that holds the fae captive, which greatly develops the plot. While some parts of the story were a bit predictable, there are two surprise twists at the end that caught me completely off guard and left me eagerly anticipating book three! The pacing is well balanced, neither too slow or too fast, and it continues to build upon the characters and world established in book one.
Cursebound by Saara El-Arifi is a 4/5 star read for me! The second installment in the Faebound trilogy was absolutely worth the wait, and I cannot wait to see what happens in the third and final book!

Really fun fast paced sequel that added so much to the world! Excited for more!!
Loved all the new characters and how the romances and relationships were built on from the previous book!

🥭 REVIEW 🥭

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Mark your calendar and get your pre-orders in because you need to keep up with this trilogy!!

I was absolutely HOOKED by Faebound and was so excited to get back to Mosima and see how our girls were doing, and Cursebound did not disappoint!

The premise of this series is so different, so refreshing, it has immaculate worldbuilding and I just find it mesmerizing.

This series is an example of LGBTQ representation done IMMACULATELY. The characters feel so authentic and having a variety of preferences and identities and it not even be a talking point in the story, just a part of the reality of this world is beautiful.

I do think this book suffered a little from the plight of the second book in a trilogy as it felt like a slight step down from book one. At some points in the middle I found it dragging a little but BOY does the ending bring it right back in the most chaotic and devastating way.

I loved the introduction of Alder (although I did have a bit of the Manon Blackbeaks about him at first, wishing we could go back to the main POVs) and his love story was so beautiful and wholesome and heartwarming I was kicking my feet everytime they were on the page.

The setting and description in these books is just delicious, everything seems so lush and rich I feel like I’m on holiday in some beautiful tropical wonderland while reading.

I am SO KEEN for book three already and highly recommend diving into this world

Buckets of gratitude for the privilege of an ARC 🫶

Thank you to NetGalley for this review copy. I re-read Faebound to be fresh for the story but the author gave us a nice “previously on” so you get a good recap.

The story itself progressed nicely. I was excited to see the characters branch out on their own journeys. We meet a new friend who is interesting to say the least and the prophesies get tricker! I’m excited for the conclusion because the last chapter was 😱😵‍💫

Almost a year ago to the day, I read Faebound. I was brand new to fantasy, having been a purveyor of mostly thrillers my entire life. It was a 5 star read for me and set me on a path to reading more and more fantasy.

With book 2, Cursebound, on the horizon, I was given the opportunity to read an ARC. What else could I do but jump at the opportunity?

Cursebound picks right Almost a year ago to the day, I read Faebound. I was brand new to fantasy, having been a purveyor of mostly thrillers my entire life. It was a 5 star read for me and set me on a path to reading more and more fantasy.

With book 2, Cursebound, on the horizon, I was given the opportunity to read an ARC. What else could I do but jump at the opportunity?

Cursebound picks right up where Faebound left off. Our story unfolds again in alternating chapters. Our first narrator is Yeeran who has left Mosima homeland only to find out that her former lover threatens war against her current lover. As this unfolds, Lettle narrates her chapters as she works to break the curse that binds the fae to their homeland. We get to enjoy a couple of other alternating perspectives that lend much to the story as it progresses.

I enjoyed this book as much of the last and found it much more full of character development and struggle. Each different group of characters engages in a struggle that boils right up to the end, leaving us to wonder what happens to all three of the world's races in the final installment of the series.

I still love this world so so much! I love seeing a fantasy world that is not in a European style setting. Not only that but I love the LGBT rep in this series. Soul-bonded animals? Amazing! Everything was set up so so well that I am impatiently waiting for book three!

Thank you so much to the publisher and to Netgalley for this eARC!

Faebound was one of my very favourite 2024 reads, so Cursebound was one of my most anticipated 2025 releases. Returning to this world was a delight, as was reuniting with my favourite characters. The triple POV, with the fantastic new addition of Alder to the line up of MCs, helped making this rich fantasy world even more fleshed out.

in this sequel, which picks up right where Cursebound left off, Yeeran and Lettle have a LOT on their hands, with the fae curse to solve, Lettle's tragic prophecy to avoid (although she alone knows about it), an impending war to prevent and numerous assassination attempts to evade... and that tension can definitely be felt! However, I did feel that some things were a bit too easy or convenient, letting the tension fall quite quickly. That said, the plot-twists were excellent, the spark between old and new pairings tangible (and very cute, in the case of the new pairing!) and the ending made me very curious for book 3.

I'd highly recommend this series to fantasy lovers who want to delve into a brilliantly-built world, with interesting lore and well-developed characters.

A very worthy continuation from Faebound! First, I always love it when a book takes the time to catch the reader up on what happened before, a few pages refresher helps a ton. After that, we’re right where book 1 left off. Without giving anything away, this is a great example of how to do a second book right. If you enjoyed the first book then you’ll be happy with this one!

Note: ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 25%
I gave this 3 stars as I gave Faebound the same to be fair as I didn't complete it. For me the characters and their relationships didn't jump off the page and I couldn't really connect to them, it was also hard to understand why all the moon tribes were different and what made them/their cultures stand out when characters from each came onto the page. The world and magic system was original and I loved the Obeah and their sassy natures. This had a lot of promise but could've benefitted from being fleshed out!

I loved this read! A little slow at times but I got into it just as much as the first book! Diving back into this world with more details really expanded it for me and I can’t wait for the next!

4.5 stars for this amazing sequel!!
This book did not fall victim to the dreaded 2nd book curse. It was just as incredible as the first book!!
We continued plots from the first book, met new characters but still followed our favorites, had some great mysteries come up, and got some fun plot twists.
This book has less action than the first I feel but we got to see more political components and character driven plots.
I could not put this down!! I read it in 3 days!! And for a toddler mom, that’s fast!
I am so excited to see how what we learned in this book plays out in the next one. We are building up to a big battle and some crazy revelations.
The only thing I didn’t like was that I guessed basically all the plot twists or mysteries. There were about 6 “big reveal” moments and I saw 5 of them coming from the beginning of the plot line. BUT it was still so fun to read.
I highly recommend this series!

I had high hopes and expectations for Cursebound because I genuinely enjoyed Faebound so much. Unfortunately, this one was a bit of letdown for me. I had an appreciation for the unique the magic system in this world and the complicated political environment Saara introduces to this story. It felt well executed in the first book but for some reason, the characters in Cursebound were insufferable and the plot is all over the place.

The character relationships began to feel superficial and any interaction they had with one another was so surface level for a second book. The dialogue was cheesy & corny for the events going on around them (it's giving try-hard). in the end, I lost interest and care for where they were headed and when you don't care about the characters it's hard to care about the story.

In addition, the events in this book are so random. There's two big separate things going on here, the Fae are trapped and we're trying to find out why and how to free them. The Elven lands are at war and Yeeran, who still considers this her home, is trying to negotiate peace. However, the war somehow ALWAYS feels like an after-thought to the reader but because that is what is driving Yeeran as a character, it leads to some very big moments in the book. that connection to the war doesn't resonate or come through to me with any significance. (view spoiler)

Now let's account for the fact that someone is trying to kill Lettle with a secret-underground rebel group. This entire part of the narrative is so unnecessary. It's introduced, it's resolved once with a mistaken culprit and then finally with the true killer but it adds nothing to the story. there are strong ways to give depth to a character's arc than this, in my opinion or if this is something we wanted to commit Lettle's character too, it should have been developed well ahead.

And finally, we've reach the Nomad Elves who don't belong anywhere and also are harboring a human - again, another species thought to be extinct. Where this all plays out? We have no idea. I guess that's for the third book.

I understand and feel for the fact that second books in trilogies are hard to write but this one felt underwhelming. I don't feel as a reader that the plot developed any further than where we left off in Faebound. I will be honest, I mistakenly though this series was a duology so when I was approaching the end i couldn't believe I had just read that entire book only to feel like that & have to wait for ANOTHER book to get anywhere.

In the end, there's too much going on too fast. Did I buy the Fairyloot special edition to match Faebound? Yes. Am I going to do it all over again for the third? Also, yes. I love Saara's writing and I think she has grand ideas, but the execution is where it's lacking.

TW/CW: Violence, death, sex

REVIEW: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and DelRey books and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

I really enjoyed this book! El-Arifi’s writing was as engaging as always and I love her unique take on fantasy tropes. Her inclusive and interesting characters are also a favorite for me!

While I can’t go into much detail on the plot of this book without including spoilers for Faebound, I thought this one moved even more quickly than the first book. It didn’t seem to suffer from Second Book Syndrome, as it had a definite beginning, end, and plot structure of its own while fitting in the main plot of the series as well.

I look forward to the final book in this series and more from El-Arifi in the future!

I wanted this to be a 5 so bad, my main issues were in the foreshadowing elements, which I felt were just a little too obvious and so the big reveals like that of the protagonist was not only not much of a reveal at all, but I felt very frustrated with Lettle in particular for not coming to the conclusion herself, I think this was a case of second book syndrome, but the information we got I think will at least set us up for a good conclusion. Love Saara and her writing.

I received this as an advanced readers copy from Del Rey and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book picks up where the last left off. The fae are trying to adjust to their new rulers, Yeeran is on her way to try and save her people from war, and Lettle is trying to find a balance with her partner, and her own goals. This book is a lot more fast-paced than the last one, and while we still get the agonizing metal tension from miscommunication, there is a steady forward momentum throughout the entire book. There are a bunch of surprises and twists which I can't spoil, but make this book more exciting than the last. Overall this book was great and I read it quickly. I love that the world building was still growing, love the different cultures, and I'm excited to see how it all begins to connect in the last book.