These books are art. Truly. I don’t even have words for how beautiful the world building, characters, storytelling are. I don’t want it to ever end.

I am never not nervous about the second book in a trilogy but this breaks every stereotype about them!! Safely entrenched in the world building completed in book one, this deftly introduces us to some excellent new characters and keeps the pacing quick and engaging. We’re above ground for a bit and then back in Mosima for the action-exactly what you want from this book!

Cursebound by Saraa El-Arifi is an amazing second installment in the Faebound Trilogy. I was blessed to not only read the Advanced Reader Copy of the first book, Faebound, but also now Cursebound. Huge thank you to NetGalley and Del Rey Publishers!
I feel like there is always a fear of a sophomore slump when speaking of the 2nd installment in a series, more specifically a trilogy. However, this book contained just as much magic and action as the first. Every complication of the rising action was executed beautifully. They did not only just make an exciting and fast paced story (I flew through this book and couldn't read it fast enough!) for the singular book but it unraveled secrets from the first book and hounded me with more questions to do with the overall arch of the trilogy's story. The politics weren't too heavy to understand, and the plot was so mysterious and riveting.
The characters are just as loveable as ever. It was wonderful to be back in Lettle and Yeeran's world as Elves/Faebound/Seer living in the Fae's world. Reading this book felt like a family reunion with these characters. They are fallible characters that make mistakes yet remain loveable as we see their character arcs blossom. We meet new characters, and they are so well integrated into the story.
El-Arifi did so well in matching the tone of the first book but raising the stakes. I am blown away and cannot wait for the third book to see how this journey is resolved!

The series hits its stride in this sequel. I was fully invested throughout the story, which dove deeper into the lore and history of the world. The romances felt more organic, thankfully with less of the "forbidden romance" drama, and the characters more developed. I appreciated the further exploration of Fae society, addressing issues such as the Lightless's lower status and the use of labor as punishment for crimes.

We are introduced to new characters, whose perspectives add a lot to the story, and a new romance that was so sweet. However, the multi-POV narrative means that readers always have more information than individual characters, which was often frustrating when the characters struggled to pick up on solutions that felt so obvious to me.

I was also frustrated by how frequently I saw lines to the effect of "and then Lettle explained what she had discovered" or "Yeeran explained it all in detail." I understand the need to skip over exchanges that would be repetitive for the reader, but this felt like a clumsy way to accomplish that. There aren't that many POVs, yet that sort of line came up often enough to feel repetitive in itself.

Still, this book exceeded my expectations for a sequel, and I felt that it was better than the first book. The conclusion left me reeling, and I am so excited for the next release.

Bonus points for including a brief recap of the previous book. I still love this series for showing a queer normative society that is inclusive of nonbinary and trans people.

Yeeran has left her new lover, the Queen of the fae, to return to her homeland and her former lover. Her reasons for this are to end the war which she has always dreamed of, Yeeran must get back to the Queen of the fae, but she will not return alone. Her sister who followed after her exile in faebound remains as royal consort. Lettle is guided by the fates that a stranger who falls upon them could be the key to breaking the curse. There is uproar rumbling against the lightless putting Lettle in grave danger and this leads to shocking twists.

I really struggled with this book, it took me a while to get into it. I loved seeing relationships build that we never knew could happen from book 1 as well as those evolving from book 1. We went on some adventures, and one plot twist i predicted one I did not and that was more shocking. Thos book felt like a filler to me and I feel like whilst a lot happened nothing also happened. Honestly I am unsure If i will read book 3 at the moment.

I loved faebound so damn much, I literally devoured it in a day, it was such a breath of relief from your everyday fantasy romance, and it's one of the reasons I'm thankful to subscription boxes for working with a wider range of authors.
Not only is there such a beautiful romance plot, the worldbuilding keeps giving, and it doesnt sacrifice the heavy political topics and themes we saw in book one.
I am dying for book three pleasseeeee

4 🌟
3 🌶️

This is the second book I have read recently, which is a second book in a series, and there is no second book let-down. I must say, in fact, that I did not read Faebound; just never got around to it. So, I wondered how it would be to read the second book without prior knowledge. The author does a great job of reintroducing readers to the world at the beginning of this book. I went in knowing who the characters were and the relationships already established. This book had many twists and unexpected events, but we never wavered from the plot's core. I now know several things:
1. that things are more intriguing than ever.
2. we have a wild ride ahead for the next book.
3. I am definitely going to read the next book.
4. I want my own obeah (read the book).

This book had no lags; once you get going, you do not put it down until it's finished. I was surprised at how quickly I read this one. It was fun, diverse, and a well-told story. Very inventive world-building and the connection like beings, at the core, are the same whether they are elves, fae, or humans, making the story relatable from all perspectives.

Thank you, NetGalley and Random House, Del Ray, and Inklore, for the eArc. These opinions are mine.

I wasn’t really sold on the series after book 1 but this book was far more gripping for me. The plot was more interesting and the lore and world building felt far more in depth. The relationships felt less rushed too and the plot twists kept me engaged right to the last- and after that ending I do definitely want to know how the trilogy wraps up!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House for the ARC

I think that sequel gets a lower rating because the first book is like a revelation, we didn't expect to like it that much. While the second one we expect a bit more, we wish to have answers to our questions.
So yes it is a 4, but still, this is a good romantasy, especially because it is accessible to new fantasy readers.
And of course because the representation is amazing ; POC, queer relationships, disabled characters, and nonbinary characters.

Thank you net galley for the copy

This review contains spoilers!!!
Faebound was one of my absolute favorite reads last year, and I’m happy to say that this sequel, the middle book of what’s shaping up to be an incredible trilogy, continues the story in the best way possible.

One thing I really loved about this book—especially since I’ve been struggling with other sequels lately—is that I didn’t feel like I had to re-read Faebound to pick up where things left off. It never left me feeling lost or bogged down with info dumps. The transition was so smooth, and I honestly can’t praise that enough.

This book was a whirlwind. So much happened in just 400 pages, but it didn’t overwhelm me. Saara El-Arifi nailed one of my favorite tricks in a series: just when you think the main conflict is wrapped up, she flips the script and reveals that a smaller, seemingly less important issue has actually been the heart of the story all along. The Lightless and their plan to overthrow the Dynasty due to the massive power imbalance between the two factions seemed like a minor plot point at first, but it really turned out to be the backdrop for something even bigger. I loved how this played out, and it was great to see more of that class struggle explored in this book.

The characters really shine in this one, and I especially loved Lettie. She’s hands down my favorite now. I loved how, in book one, she was kind of figuring out her place in the world, and now she’s grown so much—she has a clear purpose and goals she wants to achieve. She felt like the real lead in this book, while Faebound seemed to focus more on Yeeran.

We also get more on the Elves and their ongoing war, which I think will be a major focus in book three, and I’m really excited to see how that all plays out. Sadly, Yeeran’s mission to warn her tribe went pretty much how I expected, setting up what’s looking like an all-out war between the Fae and the Elves. Can’t wait to see that come to a head in the final book!

There were some betrayals and plot twists I saw coming, but I definitely didn’t predict who was behind the conspiracy. This story really made me feel for Furi, though—after becoming Queen, it seems like she’s just drowning in betrayal and loss, and I’m not sure how much more she can take. Having Yeeran there to ground her was a nice touch, especially after all the tension between them in book one.

And that final chapter? The reveal about spoiler Humans and Obeah? I did not see that coming. I literally had to pick my jaw up off the floor. It’s got me so hyped for the final book—I can already tell it’s going to be an epic conclusion to what’s turning into one of my favourite trilogies!

The second book in the Faebound trilogy is here. With it brings Alder, a new character and new POV, Also, while the last book was told specifically from Lettle and Yeeran’s POVs we do have previous side characters POV’s in this as well which opened up our story line more to what is going on in the world.
So I do like how the world expanded. How we get more information and world building/background information as the story progresses. I did find that, for me personally, the latter half of the book was a bit faster than the first half. While I like Lettle, I personally prefer Yeeran’s POV’s and that relationship a bit more.
I do really like the representation of the LGTBQIA that Samara El-Arifi brings in this series. I really can’t wait to see how she ends up wrapping it all up with the last book in the trilogy.

As a huge fan of Faebound, I was thrilled that Cursebound exceeded my expectations. I eagerly dived back into this wonderfully unique world, expertly crafted by the author. The challenge of reintroducing the complex world without overwhelming the reader was handled brilliantly. The intricate politics and vastness of the universe truly captivated me.

Although the pacing was initially slower than I preferred, the final sections more than made up for it with their intensity and excitement. The plot, while somewhat predictable, was still engaging, and I appreciated the new points of view introduced in this installment. The character growth was commendable, and I loved seeing the characters evolve throughout the story.

Overall, Cursebound was a fantastic addition that left me eagerly awaiting the next book in the series. I'm excited to see where the story goes from here!

For a second book in a trilogy, I was floored by how much I enjoyed this. I often feel like the second book is used as a way to carry the characters forward with no real action happening, but the way I was entranced by the writing and the story proved me wrong. The addition of POVs added depth to characters I did not realize I was missing and an element to the story that made it feel complete.

I thought the pacing of this book was perfect. There was enough action to keep to interested and the addition of political intrigue had me wanting even more. I did not see what was going to happen coming and had me all the more excited for book 3!

I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting to like Cursebound. I absolutely love El-Arifi's The Ending Fire Trilogy, but I thought Faebound was entertaining and just okay. This was a great follow-up and seemed more in line with the writing style I loved so much from The Final Strife! If you were on the fence about continuing the series, I think it is worth giving Cursebound a try. I really enjoyed it!

We still follow Yeeran and Lettle, but get additional POVs as well. El-Arifi is great at adding in extra characters that I didn't think I needed or would enjoy, but then end up being my favorite chapters to read! This is a pretty fast paced story, but more internal politics with enemies that are hard to hate than action packed. The world is beautifully fleshed out and I really felt like I was there with the characters. I think it flowed well and I'm very excited to read the conclusion to the series when it is finished! There was no middle book syndrome felt from me! I'm someone who appreciates romance in fantasy, but I tend to dislike pure romantasy, and this was a perfect mix of both elements.

Thank you, NetGalley and Del Rey, for an early copy in exchange for this honest review.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to review this ARC

While I think I would love this story more but I just couldn't. The issues I had in the first book carried over into this book.

The world is very interesting and the character development is well done. That is where my praise ends.

My issue is the flow of writing. It is very choppy and feels immature. The story is easy to follow and very predictable.

With the understanding that this is Adult it makes sense but then we have romance which isn't matching the feeling of the writing in this book. The writing feels so much like a middle school or young adult book. If this is adult then the author has to do more than just adding spice.

I really wanted to like this series more and gave the second book a chance because I hoped for a little better but unfortunately I was a little let down.

The second book in a trilogy is always hard to write, but I must commend Saara for doing such a great job with Cursebound. In my opinion, it was even better than Faebound. It expanded on the things I really enjoyed from Faebound and made better the few things I didn’t like as much in Faebound.

The world, lore, and history is one of the best parts of this trilogy so far. As such, it was so easy to dive back in to this series even though I read book one about a year ago. Usually I struggle to continue a series if it’s been awhile since I read the first book because I hate not remembering everything, but the Saara starts the book off with a wonderful synopsis that was very helpful. Additionally, this world just really hooks you back in so easily. It’s so vividly described that I remembered it so well. Cursebound does an excellent job of expanding on the lore and history which made it a very exciting read for me. So many things I wanted to learn more about, I got out of this book.

I also think the characters had some growth that I really appreciated. I remember in Faebound, there were a few times I got annoyed with certain characters. A lot of those annoyances were gone with this book. One example would be Lettle’s deciphering of prophecies, I felt like she did a lot better this time. But that’s not to say there is no character drama, cause there is a lot since these characters can’t seem to communicate that well with each other. But even still the character interactions are so interesting. There are so many different relationships to consider. Like we have the couples obviously, but we also have Yeeran-Lettle sister relationship, Yeeran-Rayan comrade/military relationship, Lettle-Furi kind of hating each other but not fully cause they love the same people. It makes for interesting interactions for sure that were fun to read about.

There were more twists and turns in my opinion in this book. I usually guessed them before they were revealed but sometimes that was literally just a page or two ahead of time. But it was fun to see some things Saara foreshadowed that I didn’t catch when it was first shown.

The book also left off at a really fun point (okay fun is probably the wrong word choice here but I just mean that there is so much potential for book 3 and I’m very excited for it). I am really so curious how everything is going to shake out in the end. That last revelation has me so excited though.

Overall, I’m so thankful to the author and publishers for the ARC I received. It’s been so cool to get to ARC this series and I can’t wait for the finale of the trilogy. I think overall, I would give this book a 4.5/5. A lot of really awesome stuff that hooked me and made it so enjoyable to read.

Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for giving me an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

I felt pretty meh about most of the book (common for 2nd books in trilogy), but the ending completely changed that! I cannot wait for the third book and the culmination of everything!

If you find yourself struggling a bit in the middle I believe that the ending makes up for it and I am really excited for book number 3.

4.25 Stars

WOW. I liked book one in this trilogy, but I think this book was better. I loved the way this cast of characters developed throughout the course of this book and I really enjoyed the addition of Alder. I had a little bit of a hard time getting into this book, but that final 25% was phenomenal and I devoured it. There is something about Saara's writing that just pulls me in and makes her stories devour able.

The relationships in this book still frustrated me. I am not a huge fan of these couples, but that's ok because I feel like this series is more fantasy than romance. I really enjoyed where this storyline went and I am excited for third and final book in this trilogy now.

"Love can be enough, as long as the other person chooses it too."

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced reader copy.

Cursebound is the second book in Saara El-Arifi’s ‘Fabound’ series. In this story, there is more magic, more danger and more conflict than ever before.

I still think that my favourite aspect of this series and of El-Arifi’s writing is the world-building. The strange and wonderful world of the Fae has so much lore that can be explored. Like in The Cruel Prince and Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries, this is not a gentle fairytale world. There is strife, political conflicts and plenty of danger. But the added element of mythology and magic makes the world much more intriguing. This fantastical place allows the author to examine important, real-world issues in a strange setting. I’m glad that she decided to expand on political topics like rebellion and discrimination more in this second book and I think that she’s setting up some really interesting issues for her third and final book.

Once again, I loved reading about the relationships in this book. I appreciate the focus on sisterhood and queer love in this series, relationships that are often neglected or relegated to the side in most fantasy books.

Of course, as with most second books in a series you do get the sense that the author is setting up plot points for later on. I think that the pace of this book was good, and there were plenty of dilemmas to keep you reading, but it wasn’t as fresh as the first book and probably won’t be as thrilling as the third. Nonetheless, this is a great series and definitely worth reading! Just be warned that you’ll have to wait a while for the last book.

Review coming. Need to leave a publisher note. I am such an idiot and I've been waiting for the first book from the library and I accidentally took my kindle out of airplane mode so the book returned. I'll consider buying the first one so I can leave a proper review and not wait 16 weeks for the book to get to me again. I'm so sorry. This was entirely my fault. I usually give my reviews in a timely manner.