I wasn't expecting this to be as good as it was. I wish that the magic was maybe a little more realized, but in some ways that's good because it feels more realistic that it's just there and it isn't overly explained. The twist at the end was wild, and I am anxiously awaiting the next book. I really liked Beau, the other characters were all interesting and mostly well written. Overall I really enjoyed this.

This originally indie published book has been getting so much hype, and I was thrilled to receive an e-ARC of the traditionally published version! Now, I’m not sure if there are any differences between the two versions, but I had so much fun reading this one ✨

While I think many readers will enjoy this story, it’s especially good for those newer to the romantasy genre. The world-building, magic system and politics don’t require too much of your brain power to understand, the characters are easy to like and romance readers will enjoy the stages of yearning within a fated love story.

At nearly 500 pages, it had inconsistent pacing for me where there were periods that were loaded with action and other stretches that really lulled. This was really one of my only drawbacks!

The ending had my jaw on the floor 🤯 I still haven’t decided if I’m 100% on board with it because I have so many questions, but it was certainly surprising! And that’s all I’ll say so I don’t spoil anything 😉 I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next in the second book!

5/5

I couldn't put this book down and finished in two days–knowing I had to wake up at 8 am for work, still stayed up late on Sunday... No regrets.

Metal Slinger has my FAVORITE trope of all time, enemies-to-lovers. I couldn't even pinpoint who the mmc was at first because he was so mean 😭 and I think that says something. I had an inkling he was staring at her because SPOILER *they're fated mates* and that theory was confirmed as soon as he didn't want her to leave haha. Took me back to Rhysand, iykyk.

Second thing, the plot twists. Wow, but that ending hit me hard. I don't know how to feel. Like what?? I was actually recommended this book several times before it went trad, but I didn't read it. I was saving it for when the series is complete. And the tiniest bit of me regret not saving it because I'll have to live with not knowing until Light Wielder is out 😩 But I'm planning a reread and will highlight every morsel of clue. Hopefully I'll have some theories...

Thank you St. Martin's Press and Rachel Schneider for the e-arc. All opinions are my own.

Omg I DEVOURED this book! Metal Slinger has everything I want/NEED in a romantasy. Incredible romantic tension, loveable & relatable characters, a unique world with magic, & action packed!

Rachel's writing style is easy to read and addictive. The world building is easy to understand but immersive.

I'm OBSESSED with literally all of the characters. I don't want to say too much...

Overall, I cannot wait to pre-order this masterpiece and I will continue to rave about it!

Thank you to NetGalley, Saturday Books, St. Martin's Press, & Rachel Schneider for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Okay. What? Like, WHAT?!
I’m still stunned by that ending. GIRL. What just happened??

Let me pick my jaw up off the floor and try to form some coherent words. Ahem.

Before reading, I was deep in a slump, and this book yanked me right out. From the first page, I was pulled into this gritty world of people exiled to the sea, never allowed to step foot on land. The Alaha were banished long ago, and only a few guards were ever permitted to return. Even then, it rarely happened. Relations with other nations are tense, and food is growing scarcer by the year.

Brynn, a lower-class citizen who lost her parents to the sea, was essentially raised by the Commander’s family. She formed a close bond with their son, Kai, and thanks to that friendship, earned a rare chance to join the guard. During Market Day, she finally gets her moment on land, but she's followed by a mysterious stranger who accuses her of theft. She’s been set up, and everything she thought she knew is about to unravel. Who can we really trust in our list of characters?

I also need to shout out her bird companion, later named Blue. Blue was everything. Loyal, clever, and always able to find her. Easily one of my favorite parts of the book.

And that ending? Absolutely unhinged. Brynn is our narrator, but I’m starting to question how much of her story we can actually trust.

I still have questions. Big ones. But that just makes me even more excited for book two. Because after that final twist? You better believe I’m coming back for answers.

4.5 Stars !! Wow ! This one is so good. It sucked me in right away. Sometimes when I start a new romantasy, it takes a little while for me to get into it, but nope, this one had my full attention from the very beginning. I think the story was really unique and characters well written. Wish there would have been a little more world building to explain some things but maybe the next book will go into more details. I love slow burn ! This one has very good slow burn and banter. The middle of the book had a little lull for me and I got a little distracted when reading and my attention was fading but the book picks up and snagged me back in and the ending had me in a chokehold !! Omg the ending, what a cliffhanger. I need the next book ! Looking forward to what this author writes for the next book in the series. Give this one a read !!

Thank you Netgalley and St.Martin's Press for the digital arc in exchange for my honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book! I was captivated from the very start, I loved how the action picked right up, and while it did hit a bit of a midpoint slog for me, that ending had me fiending for book 2! Dying for the next installment!

I think the best review for this book would have been to have a live camera recording my face during the last 10% of this book because WHAT? I gasped out loud. Y'all told me I wasn't ready for the twist and YOU WERE RIGHT. I was completely caught off guard and I never am. Wild. Insane. You know what else is wild and insane? No book two release date. Jail. I need it.

Thank you for the advanced copy, I'll be sending you my therapy bill!!

I do understand the hype about this book as having a big, shocking twist but I fear the reason why it’s shocking is that it doesn’t really make any sense and was not foreshadowed throughout the book.

This has a lot of interesting concepts. I think the whole water world with settlements idea is a cool one that leaves a lot that could be fleshed out, if an author wanted to do so. This also had plenty of political intrigue and interesting powers.

Unfortunately, I just felt so let down by the last 10% of the book. It doesn’t work as a first person POV book. It just doesn’t.

I have SUCH mixed feelings about this one... The ending reaaaaally threw me for a loop. I enjoyed most of it, and will probably still read the next book because the ending left me totally clueless as to what's going on. Like not just confusing, but kinda disappointing and made me feel very mislead by the author if that makes sense. Idk, I'm rambling now but overall: entertaining at the very least!

Metal Slinger is a high-octane debut that kicks off Rachel Schneider’s Fire & Metal series with seafaring adventure, forbidden romance, and breathtaking twists. Raised among the Alaha—an exiled people forced to live at sea—Brynn has always trained to protect her adopted home. But a single encounter with a Kenta soldier at the annual market shatters her reality and triggers a dangerous political fallout.

As Brynn learns the truth about her identity and the world of magic she was denied, she’s forced to choose between the life she’s always known and the future she's only begun to imagine. Schneider’s vivid world-building, knife-sharp fight scenes, and simmering enemies-to-lovers romance create a gripping read that keeps the pages flying.

Though some plot points feel familiar for the genre, the fast pacing, high stakes, and strong emotional undercurrents make Metal Slinger a standout romantic fantasy debut. The bonus scene and stunning embossed special edition are perfect for fans hungry for the upcoming sequel, Light Wielder.

Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Metal Slinger is the first entry in the Fire & Metal series. It follows Brynne, who lives on an isolated island, as she goes through the consequences of unexpectedly threatening a treaty after attending an annual market on the mainland.

I definitely have mixed feelings about the book. I enjoyed how capable Brynne was. She is not afraid to try, has many skills built up from living on an island, and clearly states how she is feeling to others. While I liked the MMC (referencing as MMC as I didn't see his name mentioned in the synopsis of the book to avoid spoilers) towards the first half of the book when he was out of his element, I liked him less and less in the second half because there are times when Brynne clearly states that she is upset, but he tries to make light of the situation without addressing her concerns multiple times. I especially liked the side characters and the relationships between them, which helped round them out to stand on their own.

This is a fantasy book which centers mainly on Brynne and the MMC’s quests and relationship rather than the world and the magic in it. I did enjoy the descriptions of the different landscapes Brynne encounters and felt like there was a lot of potential in the setup of the world. I was disappointed to find that they do not have much time to explore the magic system of their world despite the title as they are mainly focused on getting from one place to another. This focus additionally led to some pacing issues. At one point, they are lost going from point A to point B for multiple chapters, which really slowed the story down.

The book ends on a cliffhanger that I felt was unexpected which can be good and bad. I appreciated the twist as it caught me off guard, but I also thought it did a disservice to Brynne’s first person point of view and her character for a vast majority of the book due to how out of the blue it was. Perhaps it explained a lot of the questions I had throughout the book, but it happened so sharply and so close to the end that I didn’t feel like they were resolved. I thought that if the book was written in third person, then I would have appreciated the twist more.

I think readers that like working through a book with a payoff at the very end and like being invested in a series with a long term goal will enjoy this and be excited to read the rest of the series. Just for me, personally, I just didn’t think the payoff was worth it, and it felt like all the important points of the book were crushed to the end while the rest of the book is just waiting for the ending to happen. However, I do feel like it has a lot of potential to expand as the series goes on.

Such a great fantasy romance! Adored the writing and the setting, and it was so easy to fall in love with the characters. I can't wait to read more of this author's work!

So, so happy to have received this as an ARC!! BELIEVE THE HYPE. I have whiplash and a book hangover from finishing this book. Gives me all the From Blood and Ash vibes. I need book two IMMEDIATELY.

One of my favorite quotes about Acker: "He is probably somewhere committing atrocities while being shamelessly good looking."

This review will be posted on my booksta, toomanyfivestarreads.

Ummm the plot twist?!?! I need book two ASAP! I wish some parts of the book were more drawn out but overall I really enjoyed this book!

After seeing so many great reviews I went into this fully expecting to love it but sadly, that wasn’t the case. The premise was interesting and there were some things I liked about it but the ending ruined it for me. Had we not spent the entire book in Jovie/Brynn’s head it may have been better but as it is, the twist isn’t very believable and felt like it was only added for the shock factor. It probably doesn’t help that I didn’t really care for Brynn or the romance either.
I’m glad a lot of people have loved this but it just wasn’t for me.

Thank you @saturdaybooks for an eARC of the traditionally published Metal Slinger! Ok, y’all, this has 4.3 ⭐️ and like 60,000 ratings on Goodreads 👀

If you want a beginner friendly romantasy, Metal Slinger is for you!!! It was easy to dive into and understand, with a unique world that’s not deeply complex. The romance is so sweet and well done. And as many fantasy books do, you’re left with quite the twist at the end! All good things!!

At about 500 pages, I did have moments where I felt like the book dragged, but generally it was full of action. I really loved the world and magic system, to the point where I wanted more of it!! I hope we continue to develop this in the next book.

I loved the characters, and I think Messer was low key my favorite!!! I will need more of him in book two.

Thank you St Martin’s Press for the free book! #SMPPartner #SMPRomance All opinions are my own.

“You can never get loving someone wrong.”

Attending the annual market is a rite of passage for all young guards but Brynn could never have expected the chaos that erupts when a century long peace treaty is broken in the process. Nor could she have predicted that she would find herself helping an enemy soldier and embarking on a journey to find the truth about who she is and where she comes from.

No spoilers but for those who have read it… that ending (jaw drop) This one took me by surprise because it started slow and it took me a minute to figure out what was going on. There is a ton of world building but also a strong romantasy vibe which made it right up my alley. I love a strong female lead and Brynn delivers in leaps and bounds. I honestly am not sure what else to say, less I give something away so instead I’ll just leave you with this: I’m not entirely sure what I read but I absolutely can’t wait for book two!

Read if you like:
Elemental Magic
Slow Burn
Forced Proximity
He Falls Firs
Touch her and Die
Lots of twists and turns
World Building

―୨♡୧―
⚔️First person pov
🖤Forced proximity
⚔️Fated match
🖤Spice Level🌶🌶
―୨♡୧―

Metal Slinger was an unpolished mess and a slog of a read. I have a hard time believing proper editing was done once the book was picked up for traditional publishing. I do think it has potential but it never quite gets there completely. It could have been a really fun read but it just meanders a lot.

There were parts that I liked such as the tether aspects of the bond, but the story itself felt like it was really dragging on. This is in part due to the pacing being a bit off it just felt boring to read at some parts. It gives off this feeling of reading their literal day to day. It doesn't help that the journey on the sea then to Kenta felt a bit repetitive as the chapters went on. It never really fully picks up steam either.

The writing style was a bit choppy and short at times like it just didn't flow that well. This shows in the world building too. I found it to be a bit minimal like concept wise its interesting on paper but that's it. The world just didn't feel very fleshed out like I had trouble really visualizing it and really feeling immersed in it as a setting.

*spoilers ahead*
What really didn't work for me in the book was the twist and it's where the book lost me because it doesn't make sense.

There's a great quote by George R.R. Martin that feels applicable here, "it’s easy to do things that are shocking or unexpected, but they have to grow out of characters. They have to grow out of situations. Otherwise, it’s just being shocking for being shocking."

The surprise twist felt like it was more for shock value rather than what made sense for the characters. Maybe it would have worked a bit more with proper foreshadowing or breadcrumbs sprinkled throughout the book, but that's not what we got. Instead the book randomly switches back in time and the reader finds out right before the book concludes.

Then there's the aspect of the perspective being from first person rather than third person. By going with first person pov we as a reader are directly privy to Brynn/Jovie's thoughts, feelings, and motivations, so with the twist it makes her seem unhinged and not internally consistent. I don't think it's a case of an unreliable narrator either cause if so I don't buy it. Is she trying to gaslight herself the whole entire time? Her personal thoughts and reactions should have reflected Jovie's ultimate end goal. It should show that her thoughts versus her actions cannot be trusted. There's definitely way too much happening off page in order to make the twist seem more shocking, but it just left me feeling cheated of a proper story.

Any possible development we get for the romance gets thrown out the window like everytime Jovie gets upset at Acker for withholding or lying about information, looks real minor now. It just makes Jovie seems crazy and super petty when she's the one that's withholding the biggest lie.

The twist could have even been improved with a dual point of view, but by solely having Brynn/Jovie's as the only narrator, it fails in terms of execution. Also, the twist is very similar to another romantasy book, How Does it Feel? by Jeneane O'Riley, which also didn't work for me. So it's not like Metal Slinger improved on the concept either.

Thanks to St. Martin's Press and Saturday Books for the eARC.

Noooooo 😭. I KNEW the book was going too perfectly for something tragic (to my heart) not to happen, like I literally should have known better. The cliffhanger?? What am I literally going to do until the sequel comes out?? You think any other book is going to fill the void? Because I’m not sure! lol okay I’m a big dramatic with this review and all over the place but as someone who is a cliffhanger lover, I just not okay 😂.

I can honestly say that I didn’t see the ending coming at all and that really is quite impressive. I’m desperately begging Saturday Books to have ARCs for the sequel because my mind will not be resting until then ahahah.

I went into this book pretty sure I was going to love it, thanks to all the hype and what I was hearing about it. I’m so happy to report that it didn’t let me down at all! I will say I had icks towards the main love interest for a while and then he grew on me. Don’t ask why, sometimes I was just like 🤨 but now I adore him which makes me even more sad.

Honestly I’m just going to keep this review just like this so I don’t give anything away accidentally but take this as a sign that I loved the book ahah.