Great book! It's a g rated version of the book, "Hunted Heir". A princess runs away from her abusive father and into the arms of the opposing side.

Cat Sirota’s Forgiving Darkness dives headfirst into a world brimming with tension, mystery, and moral complexity. As the first installment in the Binary Souls Duology, it masterfully sets the stage for an emotionally charged journey where light and dark intertwine both literally and figuratively.

The story follows Alina, a young woman with a shadowy past and a rare, dangerous gift that makes her a target in a society where secrets are currency and betrayal looms at every turn. When she’s forced to confront the ghosts of her past while forging unlikely alliances, Sirota weaves a narrative that balances introspection with action. The protagonist’s inner conflict is as compelling as the external dangers she faces, making her a character both relatable and unforgettable.

Sirota’s prose is evocative, painting vivid landscapes and emotionally resonant moments without bogging the pace. The worldbuilding shines with intricacy, combining a dystopian edge with almost mythological undertones. The binary theme—exploring dualities of trust and betrayal, power and vulnerability, and light and darkness—is compellingly executed, offering depth and nuance to the story’s core conflicts.

While the plot is engaging, it can occasionally feel dense with exposition, particularly in the early chapters, which slowed the initial momentum. Personally I also felt that some side characters, though intriguing, could benefit from further development to enrich their contributions to Alina’s journey.

That said, Forgiving Darkness is a strong debut for the duology, with its gripping twists, complex relationships, and morally grey undertones leaving readers eager for the sequel. Sirota crafts a story that is not only entertaining but thought-provoking, making readers reflect on themes of redemption and the choices that define us.

Fans of character-driven fantasy with high stakes and emotional depth will find this a rewarding read. Forgiving Darkness is a promising start to an intriguing duology.

This review will be posted on instagram (@kerryreadbooks_ and @kezzie87) in late December 2024.

This is a book that has been done many times before, and much more successfully. Estrid has run away from her father, the tyrannical king, and runs into a Fae during a hunting trip. Of course, they are attracted to each other and even though they both have secrets, they can't fight the bond between them.

The best part of this book was Estrid's wolf companion. The characters are discount versions of better fantasy leads, there is no personal growth arc or well crafted relationships, we are just told about them and so they are. The world is your standard fantasy world, with little to recommend it or distinguish it from other, better, fantasy worlds. This should have been the first of many drafts before a finished product saw the light of day.

DNF'D at 11%

The story is quite action packed and fast past. Tze world building and the characters interesting. The wrinting itsself and the inner thoughts of the people just weren't for me.

Thank you for letting me try this book.

This story has everything to be great.
Amazing premise. Great world-building and really interesting characters.
Unfortunately, the execution is lacking and I cannot get over that.
I really tried to enjoy my reading but the writing is a bit amateur and you can see all the plot ideas getting mixed up and confusing.
I could see that the author was going for plot twists but they were unsuccessful.
All in all, it has the potential to be better and perhaps it should happen before publishing.

P.s. Estrid and Zain's constant inner thoughts ruined me.

Thank you @NetGalley for the copy!

Wowza - intense and rich reality building, Fae versus human, hidden lineage, fated mates, shifters, forbidden lovers, betrayals - it is all here. I yelled at my eReader repeatedly! And yep, ends on a cliff - but with this intense plot you knew that ...

Thank you NetGalley, the Author Cat Sirota and Victory Editing for an early copy in exchange of an honest review.

The start of this book was amazing, Estrid was realistic, her ways of speaking and uncertainty with Zain when he popped up waved a perfect start to the book. Alvey bless his sweet soul needs to have more screen time in book 2 or I will riot while I'll be if Del doesn't end up with Mr It's-been-a-while-since-I-lost. But for me the MVP of the book is hands down Rafe, oh you lovely wolf I want 10 versions of you to keep close to me at every time.

This of mine is a question with spoilers: Why doesn't Estrid have pointy fae ears if both her parents are fae? And Zain knows about mates, unlike Estrid, shouldn't he recognized the signs that she was his mate?

Sooo many questions which I hope will be answered with the sequel and last installation of this duology.

The book felt...lacking after I passed the first half, some (maybe all) twists were obvious. Taking out Zain's complement I hated the way Faris and Estrid became basically besties from day 2. With him always hugging her and her yet not calling her father with that title. It felt unreal, a bit forced, they don't know each other well (they aren't even family) and yet they go around hugging and grinning and displaying way too much affection. Especially since we were referred to how Estrid and Zella were raised while living under Rodden. (Another thing that felt short was Zella becoming so good into wielding a sword after what? A month? Two? Especially considering she isn't fae but 100% human.

Would this book had been better had it been 50 pages longer? Yes. Maybe with even less characters? Again Yes.

At the end, however, this is a gripping debut perfect for those who would like even remotely to have something close to SJM'S ACOTAR.

Great story! I enjoyed the slow burn romance and introduction into the fairie and human world. This book would be great for fans of SJMaas, as I caught a lot of themes in common with the ACOTAR series.
My main issue with the book is that the writing is rather simplistic and at times the actions of the characters seemed comical or cliche. Zain is an idiot and IMO Estrid forgave him too quickly because of the bond.

Forgiving Darkness by Cat Sirota is a touching exploration of trauma and self-forgiveness. The story follows Estrid, a young woman wrestling with a painful past that continues to shape her present. Sirota’s writing is packed with emotion, capturing Estrid’s internal struggle with sensitivity and depth. The novel excels in portraying the complex, ongoing nature of healing, though the pacing can feel slow at times, it really picked up in the second half.

I adored many of the characters in this book, although I struggled with Zain, and found his character development to be sporadic. I think this was an incredible debut, and cannot wait to continue with the series!

What drew me in was the cover, but what got me to stay was the world building. The plot didn't get lost at all, which was amazing. Especially for a debut book, and for being a first in a duology.
Check this out!

Thank you to NetGalley, author, and Publisher for the eARC.

This book has the type of trope that is my favorite- girl in human world meets fae from a faerie world, and gets thrown into all their drama. The story is interesting from the first chapter, and i found myself having a lot of questions after only a few pages- so it definitely leaves you wanting to know more from the start.

I felt like the story at times did end up being a bit rushed, as we jump very quickly forward and I wish that we were left in a bit more suspense throughout the book. However, the story is very action filled all the way through, which is a big plus. The pacing did however affect how i connected with the characters, as i felt like i could not connect as deeply with them as i would like- including that i wish there was a bit more character development.

However this book does have lots of twists and turns from the very start, that will intrigue fantasy lovers. I also found myself really liking a lot of the side characters, with their banter and sass. And of course one of my favorite things about this story is Estrid's wolf companion, Rafe. Absolutely loved him. And the ending was a major cliffhanger, that will definitely leave you with lots of questions!

I would recommend this book to fantasy readers that love a fast-paced and action filled book with a cute romance, companion animals, found family, twists & turns, and fae. A solid debut novel from Cat Sirota! <3
Thank you so much to Netgalley and Cat Sirota for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book was good! Thank you, NetGalley and Cat Sirota, for the ARC copy. Honestly, I waivered between a 4 and 5 star for this book because I really enjoyed the story, the characters, and the twists in the plot. It was excellent, and I can't wait to see what happens in book 2. The book needed to grab me more to get to a 5-star. It's a book that I really enjoyed reading and might think about for a day or two, but it won't continue to ruminate in my brain.

Estrid and Zane work together to fight an evil that is rising, and the book ends on a cliff hangar—especially the twist between the FMC and MMC at the very end (chef's kiss). Cat Sirota gave an excellent twist on the light and shadow powers seen in many romantasy novels by making the FMC the shadow/dark magic wielder.

If you are looking for an easy read with engaging characters that involves battles with both fae and mortals, dark vs. light, and fated mates, this book is for you. It does lean teen/YA, but there are a few spicy scenes, which are tastefully written without being overly graphic for a younger audience.

The cover is so beautiful. I have got to include that with my review!

I give this book 4 stars simply for the plot. It really is a well thought out plot, my only issue,(which is personal), would be the writing. I didn’t really FEEL connected to the characters, and a lot of parts almost seemed rushed (to me).

WITH THAT BEING SAID, give the book a chance. It may not have been for me, but it could be your next best read!

-Happy Reading

Thoroughly enjoyed this story - I need to know what's gonna happen next! Definitely will be on the lookout for book 2. The writer really sucked me in with the world building and the interesting magic going on. I loved that our FMC was the one with the dark all encompassing power not our MMC. I will say this wasn't 5 star read for me because I'm not super emotionally invested in the characters or their love story. I'm more interested in some of the side character at this point. Either way this was an enjoyable book that I flew through reading and definitely want to read the next one!

I was blown away by this remarkable debut! You couldn't even tell it was a debut. The writing, the story, the characters, the world building; it was all phenomenal!

Forgiving Darkness: Book 1 in a Binary Souls Duology by Cat Sirota follows Estrid, a 19 year old witch who has run away from her father, the king. She encounters an injured male in the woods she's been hiding in. He happens to be a extremely handsome, mysterious, and has a ton of dangerous secrets. Oh, and did I mention? He's fae and has no idea how he portalled to the human realm.

This is the first installment in this dark fantasy romance duology.

I enjoyed this book so much. It was full of twists and turns and had me hooked from the first page! I liked that it wasn't the typical fae romantasy. It had many unique and surprising pieces.
It kept me interested from page 1 until the very end. And there were just enough details, that it was still surprising but easy to read and understand what was going on.

I am so excited for the next installment! Thank you to NetGalley and Cat Sirota for providing me with an ARC of this book!



Amazon & Instagram: 12/13/24

First of al thank you Netgalley and Cat for the opportunity to be one of the first to read this book.

I enjoyed myself with this book it has a good world building and that is one of the most important things for me in a good fantasy book.

I can’t wait to see more of this autor

4⭐️!

Wow! For a debut novel this was pretty damn good! (Also, bonus points because the author lives in New Zealand, where I’m from!)

To be honest, the cover art is what initially drew me in. It’s so fucking sick I love it! And then the blurb sounded interesting too and I knew I had to give this a go and I’m really pleased I did.

I like to think that world maps should be a standard inclusion in fantasy books, so I loved the fact that there was one!

What makes this a 4 star read rather than 5 is that I have a couple grievances. For starters, although I like Estrid and Zain as characters, I do think their relationship was quite rushed and because of this I didn’t really see much chemistry between them or connect with them how I would’ve liked to. I would’ve loved to hear more backstories about them. Also, for two powerful characters who have gone through some bad things, they were very trusting of each other in the start, which I felt was a bit unrealistic.

Secondly, I would’ve really liked some more development and backstory about the Courts (Shadow Court in particular) and a bit more world-building so I hope book two will deliver on this!

There were some things I also really enjoyed, like the contrast between the characters having light magic versus shadow magic, and I LOVED that it was the FMC that had the shadow magic rather than the MMC. The shadow magic is so interesting (and deadly) and I want more!

The plot was super interesting and adrenaline-filled which was super cool to read.

I will say, the first few chapters really draw you in, but then the story falls flat in the middle, before picking up again in the second half. Goddamn that second half was SO good. Infinitely better than the first half. And that battle and ending? Amazing!

I am really glad I had the opportunity to read this, and I am excited for book two!

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and Cat Sirota for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

ARC Review of Forgiving Darkness by Cat Sirota
* * * * *
A thrilling start to a series that taking us on a journey of redemption and chaos, magic and fae, life and death!

The start of the read had already drew me in, believing that our FMC Estrid was into so trouble, but this young woman has got power that others shoudl prepare for. She has darkness and malice, but it is also obvious she has empathy and an awareness of her actions. With her haunted past, and the present where she struggles where she progresses through her own character's evolution, her future may be not of shadows and blood and carnage.
Then we have the MMC, Zain. Hello, yes please.. When he enters a place he did not plan, and gets some unexpected help from a dark witch, he also did not expect to fall for her.
Dang they are spicy together!
There are people we want dead. There are people we want to fight and live for. Eic battles, steamy scenes, a cliff hanger that has you burning for the next read!
Plus, Rafe...can I have him?

As a debut novel I was very surprised.
The world building was good and simple.
The characters enticing and OMG the cliffhanger.
I can't wait for the next one.

I really wanted to love this one. There's so much potential to the story, but unfortunately it fell a bit flat, though I will say it got a lot better in the second half which is the reason I'm giving it 3 stars and not 2.

Estrid as the daughter of the tyrant king could have been incredibly interesting, if: the relationship between her and Rodden had been better fleshed out, we had seen more of the kingdom and generally the topic had gotten more time.

I liked Zain and Estrid both well enough on their own, but the relationship was also incredibly rushed and to be honest I didn't feel a shred of chemistry between them.

The rest of the characters just felt flat, mainly because every interesting relationship was build off-page. We never saw Del and Estrid became anything resembling friends, we were just told about it. We never saw Estrid building the friendship with that bookstore owner either, it was just suddenly there.

The first half felt very rushed to get to the second part which was a lot better. We actually got some time to process some happenings for a while, there was actually some meaningful interactions and a bit more worldbuilding. But even then, give me details about the Shadow Court! Show me the city, show me more of the people, the history, the quirky little details that make a fantasy world feel alive. I would have loved more worldbuilding in this book.

Overall, I think this book would have benefitted from either having less happen or from having a couple hundred pages more. However, I would recommend giving this a go if you are just looking for a quick, fun fantasy read with fae.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the arc.