I enjoyed this second installment a lot more than the guest! I appreciated Lettle’s character arc so much, especially as she was extremely unlikeable to me in the first book. I think the pacing was also much smoother in this installment.

Wow!!!! I also got this arc for the first book and loved that I was one of the few (many) who received the book early.

Cursebound immediately follows on from Faebound. This book was full of twists, turns, betrayals. Honestly so entertaining and kept me on the edge of my SEATTTTT.

I loved how topics such as segregation, class were mentioned. I feel like it’s very reflective of the world’s current and past history, making it even more relatable.

I do think the story is well paced and descriptive.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

The second book in the Faebound series, Cursebound follows sisters Yeeran and Lettle as they work to unravel the curse that binds the fae.

Cursebound is an excellent second installment; it takes time to raise some stakes, really dig into characters we met in the last book, and flesh out the world and the conflict from book 1. El-Arifi's writing is just as engaging as ever, and the characters and their arcs -- though annoying at times -- were a joy to read about. An aspect I appreciated about this book was that, while the romantic relationships between the characters were still vital to the story, it felt substantially more balanced between romance and other fantasy plot than Faebound. The story digs thematically into segregation, classism, and sets the stage for what I hope is a fantastic finale to a solid trilogy.

I did struggle at times with the way the characters just would not communicate effectively with each other. While miscommunication is a normal human thing, I think sometimes it can feel a little forced or heavy-handed in books, and the miscommunications in Cursebound did cross that line a bit for me. Even so, I think this is a solid example of a strong book 2, and I'm so looking forward to the finale!!

Cursebound
By Saara El-Arifi
Narrated by Nicole Lewis
4 ⭐️

Book 2 in the Faebound trilogy leans heavily into politics inside and outside of Mosima. POVs become more distinct and bonds thought to be solid are strained. I really enjoy learning the lore unique to each being’s group and how the past and fates are impacting the present. A solid plot twist awaits at the end of this one which leaves the reader even more antsy for the conclusion book 3 promises. I don’t lean one way or the other as far as eyeball reading vs audiobook. Both are equally excellent. I’m still a big fan of this series and am excited for book 3.

Thank you NetGalley, Saara El-Arifi, and Del Rey books for a copy of this eARC.

I really enjoyed this!!! It was fantastic to see our MCs continue on in such a magical and vast world.
The world building was so well done and built on such a good foundation from book 2.
I loved all the twists and turns we got, and I didn't see a lot of them coming.

I could not get into this book, so it is not for me. I did like the cover art and I did like the overall plot I read in the description.

I love the concept of this series! I wish that I felt more connected to the characters, and that the plot felt a little more connected. I’m hoping that this is just middle book syndrome and she’s setting us up for something big in book three!

Although this was a good continuation, I unfortunately realised how much I tend to dislike romantasy. I will unfortunately not continue reading this, as I had to dnf at about 50%

I love the way that the stories, legends, and prophecies about the three groups are playing out. I like seeing more parts of the world and seeing the various people working to make things better and of course there are people trying to keep the old ways. It is creating lots of tension about the world.
I didn’t love the romance because sometimes it didn’t seem to fit at some of the places where it showed up. There were some rash decisions that were made out of love and those fit and made sense. So just some of the romance bits annoyed me.
The solution to the mystery made sense and to me not a surprise. The way the character was saved was clever and was one of my favorite parts of the book. I liked the new POV that we get and why he is a part of the story.

Cursebound takes everything I loved about Faebound—the rich world, the intricate magic system, and the dynamic characters—and dials it up a notch. This book dives deeper into the politics of Mosima, the tension between lightless and fae, and the characters’ personal stakes, making for an unputdownable read. I adored getting new POVs (Alder stole my heart!), and while Yeeran and Furi’s relationship is definitely going through it, I couldn’t look away. The emotional twists, the bold character choices, and the jaw-dropping ending? Perfection.

Ugh, y’all. I want to love this series so much more than I do.

The Faebound world, magic system, central plot, and characters are truly so good. There is an incredible amount of potential in all of them. But the execution is just not there. The plot twists are obvious, the reveals fall emotionally flat, and all tension and action ends way too quickly. Everything stays surface-level. It’s just not that well written, and it breaks my heart.

If these books were chonkers, I might have given up on them (although tbh if they were filled out more, they might fulfill their promise). But they’re short and very fast paced, which makes them good, escapist brain breaks when life is busy. Plus, as I mentioned, the characters and overall worldbuilding and story are very good! So I’ll still probably read the last one. Until then!

Cursebound is definitely a great continuation to book 1 , Faebound. However, i did feel like it lost some of the fluent speed that it was having in faebound.

I absolutely enjoyed readin cursebound,
However I do have to say that cursebound felt a bit loose from the story and the plot felt slow and at the same time too rushed, weirdly enough. Perhaps it felt like there was a lot of meaningless things happening, but nothing truly important. Also I could not enjoy lettles chapter for some reason and i just didnt feel like i liked her. On the other hand I really enjoyed Alders chapters and found them really interesting. And I would die for Pila, such a sweetheart.

The writing was good and enjoyable, perhaps the plot just needed some work? Or perhaps it would have been better as a duology instead of a triology? The Twist in the end however was nice so im intrigued to see what book 3 will be like!

Thank you Del Rey ( Penguin Random House) & Netgalley for an advanced reader copy. All thoughts are my own.

Review posted on instagram, fable, storygraph & goodreads. Will be posted on Amazon once Amazon approves my review.

Omggg this book was definitely so much better than the first book. I loved the new characters! I loved that this book went into the politics more and the magic system. Yeeran and furi relationship is definitely going through a rough time and shall I say maybe some trauma bond is going on between them but I love them so much! I love alder and golan! Check out my TikTok for a quick review!

While I was eagerly anticipating 'Cursebound,' I found myself ultimately disappointed. The world-building was a definite highlight, showcasing a rich and unique setting that held immense potential. However, as a romantasy, the romantic elements fell short. The relationships felt rushed and superficial. Instant attraction was the norm, with characters falling into reciprocated feelings without significant development or hesitation. This resulted in a lack of genuine connection, making the pairings feel arbitrary rather than organic. The shallowness of these relationships was further compounded by a perceived lack of high stakes, diminishing the overall tension.

The main plot, while intriguing, was explored too briefly, leaving many aspects underdeveloped. I did appreciate the final plot twist, which successfully sets the stage for the next installment and demonstrates the author's ability to create compelling cliffhangers.

Ultimately, 'Cursebound' left me wanting more depth. I longed for a deeper exploration of the fascinating world and more nuanced, emotionally resonant relationships. I am grateful for the opportunity to read this ARC, but I hope the final book will deliver on the promise of its world-building and offer more substantial character development.

I was very excited to receive this ARC after reading the first book, but I was a little underwhelmed. I feel like this story has the potential to become an amazing romantasy series with a diverse and interesting magic system, however the characters fall incredibly flat to me. The pacing is also very strange, and I have to go back and reread constantly. I’m not sure if I’ll continue this series, but if you like some magical twists and turns, this could be a good fit for you.

I have been patiently waiting to for the followup of Faebound and had a bit of a book hangover so I'm so glad that book 2 is here!

I loved that the first book had romance elements however while book 2 did not have much as much romance this book we do see is more development in the story and the character growth. I actually loved that I got to see more of Lettle and her growth development. We also get more POVs and new characters (which provided more insight in the story). Overall I enjoyed Cursebound- I would rate this book a 4.25 ⭐️

I'm really looking forward to the next book (esp after the ending).

DNF at 53% - I really tried with this book but I think this just isn't for me. I loved the Ending Fire trilogy, but I just don't feel interested in any of the characters or what is going to happen to them in this series.

I am so glad I picked up the second book and I read it instead of consuming the audiobook. I found Faebound was fine, with a mediocre audio experience. However, Cursebound has not only elevated the story but with the addition to some more POV's I thought the second book really brought me into the world of Mosima, the politics and the disparity of the lightless.

I also thought Lettle and Yeeran grew as characters and how they are able to succeed as their own characters but also as sisters. I can't wait to read the the last book in the series.

Overall I give this sequel a 2.5 stars. If you really enjoyed Faebound, give it a shot, but if you didn’t, this might be a series that you don’t want to continue.

Pros: Creative world building, diverse cast, interesting side characters, and unique magic system.

Cons: This plot points of this book felt extremely rushed, and I wish there had been more depth and higher stakes. I didn’t like many of the decisions the main characters made (some were just flat out bizarre). This book felt a bit like filler, and I think this trilogy could have been written better as a duology.

That being said, it was a quick read and I may read the final book just to see how it ends.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC of Cursebound!

Unfortunately I wasn’t drawn to this book, I actually struggled to read just 3 chapters as I wasn’t finding it engaging. I actually had to swap to the audio which was much better - some books are made for audio for me this book was one of those, otherwise I fear I’d have just DNF this. Though I enjoy the lore in this book and series it felt like we got a lot less of it than we did in book 1, and the plot was a little lacking for me. We did meet a new character, Alder, and gained 2 new POVs in this book but my main issue is I just didn’t engage with any of them and therefore I wasn’t invested.

Overall I gave this book a 3⭐️ as I still see the potential of the series. The lore we get hints of could be really interesting but it clearly wasn’t the aim of Cursebound to give us any answers at this stage. This would suggest book 3 could be really good but unfortunately this book felt like it dragged on a bit too long and I found myself losing focus and interest often.