Make Romantasy Fun Again!

That is exactly what this book set out to do, and it did it so well. I cannot remember the last time that a romantasy book kept me up late flipping the pages just because I was having so much fun with the story. Overall I think what this book lacked in great pacing, more than made up for in addictive plot and loveable characters.

This book follows Rylee, who, with the help of her two friends, decides that she is going to sneak into the royals choosing ceremony to try and find her sister, who went missing a year ago. The choosing ceremony, which happens every year, is when the four princes of the kingdom choose one girl to potentially become their mate, but so far no one has made it past the one-month mark. Rylee, who is supposed to be doing everything she can not to stand out since she has powers when she shouldn’t, ends up getting selected to potentially become the princes' mate. So for the next four months, she will spend time with each prince in their city, getting to know them better, all while trying to keep her secrets, find her sister, and after learning about problems arising in the kingdom, help fight the rebellion that is spreading.

From the start the writing and character are intriguing. I loved the world-building and how each prince and their city were based on four different gemstones. I am excited for the next book and to see what happens next. Thank you so much Entangled/ Red Tower for an ARC of this book.

Thank you Entangled Insiders for sending me an e-arc of this book. It was AMAZING. I’m usually not a big fan of reverse haram but I ate this book up. This book had the perfect mix of spice and plot and I CANNOT wait until the next book !

The Never List
By Jade Presley

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I am so grateful that I got to read this as an ARC!

I tore through this book! It was so fun to read and it was so deliciously spicy! All four mmc’s were great as was Rylee! The chemistry between characters was off the page and I really enjoyed the romance.

I will be really excited to learn more about the world these characters live in when we get book 2 as well as more magic! I found all of the powers in this story so interesting and I can’t wait to see more.

Unfortunately, 'The Never List' just didn't click for me. The dialogue felt consistently unnatural, making it difficult to immerse myself in the story. I found myself skimming through large portions, focusing solely on the conversations, and even then, I wasn't impressed. The storyline itself felt rather generic and predictable, echoing many other fantasy romance tropes I've encountered.

Furthermore, the 'smut' scenes, which are often a focal point in this genre, were disappointingly basic and lacked the depth and intensity I was hoping for. It felt like a missed opportunity to elevate the story.

Overall, 'The Never List' left me wanting more. There were too many missing elements, and the whole experience felt derivative, failing to offer anything fresh or unique to the crowded fantasy romance market.

Wowwwwwww, this was wild.

If you’re in your romantasy era, this one’s for you.

The Never List is a fast paced, addictive, spicy
romantasy. HEAVY on the spice.

In a book where plot could totally be glossed over and forgotten about just to get to the spice, I found that wasn’t the case here. I think the author did an excellent job with the magical system, the politics, the character development and world building. Would I have loved more of that? 100% but only because the story was engaging and intriguing and left me wanting more in a good way.

This was my first Why Choose?! trope novel. There are four male main characters, princes to be exact…and one female main character. I’ll let your imagination put it together from there.

Each prince has their own POV with the main character Rylee and I enjoyed the uniqueness of each prince and their cities, the banter, and the connections they made individually. There are some bigger gaps in time throughout each POV. To fully expand on Rylees time with each prince I believe the book would have had to have been hundreds more pages vs approx. 400. I was anticipating one princes POV the most ( I made a small choice in a “why choose”..fine whatever 😂) and despite the anticipation to get to him I wish there was a little more slow burn during their time together.

This is definitely a mood read and if the moment hits right, its chefs kiss.

Overall, I devoured this and couldn’t put it down. Highly recommend for romantasy readers.

I absolutely devoured this book! Every single character stole my heart, and I found myself completely immersed in the story from start to finish. Rylee is the perfect heroine—feisty, fierce, and unafraid to follow her heart. And don’t even get me started on the Legends of Chaos—they’re pure perfection. You’ll fall for each one of them in a completely unique way, and the nicknames they give Rylee just add to their swoon-worthy charm.

The storyline was so engaging and absolutely everything I wanted in a book like this. If I had one tiny critique, it’s that Rylee seemed to breeze through the tests and telling of her secrets a bit too easily—I would have loved to see her pushed just a little harder. But honestly, that’s such a minor thing in the grand scheme of this incredible story.

A note for readers: this is quite a spicy read! I didn’t find it too over the top, but it’s definitely something to be aware of if you’re diving in.

And that cliffhanger—wow! Jade Presley knows how to leave readers wanting more. I’m already counting down the days until book 2! With unforgettable characters, an addictive plot, and just the right amount of spice, The Never List is a must-read. This story had me hooked from the very first page, and I know it’ll stay with me for a long time.

I really wanted to love this book, but it wasn’t for me. I felt like it was far too reminiscent of other popular romantasy series and lacked any original plot lines to add appeal. I also felt it was conflicting in its main storylines. Fated mates and why choose are by definition complete opposite tropes, and while maybe there’s a way to do that tension well, I didn’t feel like this story pulled it off. There were also some inconsistencies throughout the story and the pacing felt strange. We rushed through some parts that seemed like they should have been important and spent far too long on less important segments. I did finish the book and didn’t truly consider DNFing, though, so maybe there’s something to be said for that.

I fear I will not survive the wait for Book 2 after this and that cliffhanger 😅
I knew I was gonna love this as soon as I heard why choose, mates and 4 princes and it did NOT disappoint. How does one even choose which Legend of Chaos they love most? Because I sure can’t.

OH. MY, GOSH. Let me start with a few comments:
1. I had no idea what this book was about when I got it, so I went in pretty blind other than it was a romantasy.
2. Thank you SO much to Entangled and Jade Presley for this ARC.
3. This book brings the HEAT and SPICE, so beware.

Now with that out of the way, this book was so so good. I was not expecting for how good this was going to be. When I realized it was a why choose trope, I was a little worried because I generally don't like that trope, as I always love one so much more than the others and am like "why can't we just choose him", but all of our Legends were so different and so loveable that those thoughts did not exist in this book. You truly got every piece of men you wanted just separated into 4 men. Now, if you are not wanting a super spicy book, this book is not for you as the spice is almost 1st and plot second. It is also not just like a little spice, this is full on detailed of multiple men in multiple scenes and about every other chapter includes that level of detail. I was not prepared for that, but it was done super well. Our FMC had some of those "insta" love situations but it also makes a lot of sense in how her character was written so that did not bother me one bit, but if that is not your style, again beware.

If I could change anything, I wish I got a little more detail of her with the individual legends in their months, as it felt like it really skipped over a lot of that time together in favor of some of the spice, or sometimes quick plot details, so I wish that was developed a little more overall.
This is going to be a multi-book series, and the cliff hanger is so cliff-hanging that I can't wait for the next book because I loved these men. Kal and Jax are forever my favorite and truly complete opposites from cinnamon roll MMC and walking red flag MMC, but I cannot wait to get back to them in the second book!

Very spicy read! I loved getting to know each of the kingdoms/towns each prince rules over. Every one has their own unique personality shining through. I wish we got more time during each setting, but maybe that will happen in book 2! There’s definitely a lot of story development in book one, I can’t wait to see where this series goes!

ARC review
Publication date 8 April 2025.

'The Never List" by Jade Presley is a steamy why-choose romantasy.

Thank you Entangled/Red Tower Books for the e-ARC.
Opinions from this review are completely my own.

When I started the book I did not expect to finish it in 1 day, but the story and the characters made it hard to stop.
The four princes of Lumathyst, also called the Legends of Chaos, need to find a mate that will make them more powerful. Rylee snuck into the Choosing, to find out where her sister disappeared, but is chosen by the princes as potential mate.

I liked Rylee from the beginning. She is smart, funny, strong, loyal and doesn't let herself intimidated by powerful men.
When there are multiple main characters, it is important to be able to differentiate them easily. In this case, they have distinctive physical and emotional traits, but also special magic. Jax is called "The Nightmare" and is the darkest one, Kal is "The Dreamer" and the sweetest one, Axel is "The Player" and Pierce is "The Mind".
They are all seen as morally gray, bad guys from the outside, but you get to know how they really are and you understand why it would be impossible to just choose one.

Even if the plot is mostly about the development of the relationship between Rylee and the princes, there is also a good world building, interesting magic system and many secrets.
Considering the plot twist and cliff-hanger from the end, I hope the next book will reveal more about the conflict and secrets.

4.5 stars. I went into this book completely blind aside from knowing it was a why choose trope and it was fantasy. It was totally worth it because I loved every second of it. I loved the characters and the intrigue which was more intricate than it seemed. Getting through the whole book was like peeling layers after layers and the build up to the ending was really nicely done. Rylee is strong and I love her sass and no care given attitude when it comes out. And the Legends?! My oh my, I am selfish and wish we had more time with each of them indiviually because I absolutely loved how we get to know them one by one and then as a unit. Every side character brought something extra to the story and fit perfectly. The spice was sizzling, the character development amazing, this story just hooks you in from the start and doesn't let you go until it leaves you stunned with the finale. I cannot wait to see what comes next.

This book had everything I could ever ask for; he falls first, enemies to lovers, secrets and deception, reverse harem, court politics, soul mate bonds, an interesting magic system, and four gorgeous men!! I enjoyed every moment of this book from start to finish, it is fast paced, with easy to understand world building and magic systems, as well as a strong romance plot line that I ate up the whole time.

Rylee was such a brilliant character, she was brave and witty, and she stands up for herself and those around her, and isn't afraid to go for what she wants. She is perfectly complimented by our four MMCs the Legends of Chaos, I absolutely loved that each MMC had different personalities which was shown through their time with Rylee, but that each would go to war for her at the drop of a hat, although some took their time to acknowledge it!! Not to mention the spicy scenes, ooooh they were amazing! Each man definitely had a different spicy side and I loved it!!

The ending of this book has left me bamboozled, breathless, and chomping at the bars on my cage for more... That last chapter was full of shocking plot twists and a brutal cliffhanger. How could you leave me like this Jade???? I am scared for how long I will have to wait for the next book in the series, I will be impatiently waiting!

Thank you to Entangled Publishing for providing me with an eARC of this book!

Thank you to Entangled Publishing for providing an ARC of The Never List!

4.5 ⭐️

I was addicted to this one from the first chapter!

Our FMC, Rylee, is trying to find out what happened to her sister who disappeared a year ago. She sneaks into a party for the 4 princes to chose their next mate potential to try to get info on where her sister might be. Obviously, she accidentally gets chosen as the next mate potential and embarks on an epic journey.

I gotta say, Rylee is one lucky gal. She’s got not one, not two, not three, but FOUR princes to fall for (and doesn’t have to choose one!).

I feel like by the time we got to Jax, the story was a little rushed. They had such a strong chemistry at the beginning, so I missed seeing more of just the two of them. Jax also didn’t make her work as hard as I thought he would with how he was acting throughout the first 3 months. Hopefully there will be more of their story in the next book!

The book ends with a (somewhat predictable) twist and a cliffhanger. Needless to say, I can’t wait for the next book!!

I just finished The Never List today. I really hate a cliffhanger, but I really enjoyed this book. I have been anticipating this read for months and I was so happy to receive an advanced copy from Entangled Publishing thru NetGalley to read this early! I love a good RH romance and this one did not disappoint! The story and spice were about equal in this. This is definitely not a read 80% and get one smutty scene book. The spice is spicing all the way thru! I had made some predictions throughout the story so I wasn’t really surprised by the ending. I just wish it hadn’t ended 😩. Can’t wait to read more when the next one comes!!

Wow this book was AMAZING! I couldn't stop flipping the pages. I literally debated calling out from work so I could continue reading this very spicy romantasy that gripped me from chapter one. This hasn't even released yet and I need book 2 IMMEDIATELY!

The Never List
Jade Presley

Tropes/Vibes:
Why Choose
Forced Proximity
Multi-POV
Secret Identity



Quick Thoughts

The Never List is a fast-paced, multi-POV why choose. It grips you pretty fast with the secret identity/heist beginning to the story. Rylee has to keep this identity a secret while around the four Legends, and hope that she can survive. She is unfiltered, and allows her self to be a true as she can. The men are swoon worthy, and the spice gets HOT.

I am really excited for the special edition I have preordered, and it great if you want a spicy read that has great world building. I will say the “twist” is pretty easy to guess, but it still was a wild ride.

Thank you Jade Presley, Entangled Publishing, and NetGalley for the ARC!

This was such a fun read! All of the princes have my heart, but I think fell the hardest for Pierce. Getting to see Rylee fall for each of them individually was a sweet (and spicy) journey. THAT CLIFFHANGER THOUGH. I know for sure I'll be reading the next book to find out how we get out of the pickle we currently find ourselves in.

In a word

Why choose
Prince x4
Goddesses / magic
Super spicy (x4, duh)
Trials / tests


I've never read a why choose especially with 4 love interests (!!!), but I honestly loved this one. One month with each Prince in his home / city?? Sign me up. It felt like a good balance of plot and spice, and each of the princes was well developed! I ended up liking each of them by the end, but still having a clear favorite (Jax, duh). The stakes were high and fair warning, the cliffhanger had me gaspingggg. 4.5 rounded down just because one plot point was kinda predictable, but honesty? So worth the read. 500ish pages, but goes pretty fast. I do recommend! As always, big thanks to the publisher for the ARC copy!