I keep getting burned by books with beautiful covers and interesting ideas, but terrible writing. I found this impossible to get through. This really needed some developmental edits or something, because there were sooooo many long sections of Odile just wandering around unsupervised with no plans or goals. What are we doing here? Certainly not being as witty or clever as we were told she’d be. Also, how are we calling this a romance?

Both the blurb and the cover art implied that this would be atmospheric and moody. Instead, it was clunky and directionless, with a main character who acts like a little kid far too much of the time. I don’t even mean that she’s unlikeable. I mean that she’s written too poorly to feel like a person.

It’s Pride month. I’m not going to drag this book with a public review, but this was not good for me.

I was instantly drawn to this author after having such a deep connection and love for Where the Dark Stands Still. It wasn’t quite where that book was for me but still immaculate vibes. Imagine 17th France, fairytale atmosphere but kind of spooky and gothic. I loved it. The storyline felt incredibly unique and I genuinely haven’t read something like this before.

My connection to the characters wasn’t as strong as I hoped but the writing more than made up for it. A.B. Poranek writes devastation and longing so beautifully — the yearning, the growth, the accepting of flaws and learning to live with them. It’s haunting and lyrical.

I really really enjoyed this book and anything written by this author is an automatic read for me.

A Treachery of Swans is a queer Swan Lake retelling full of mysterious murders and glittering magic spells. The story follows Odile as she steals the identity of Marie d’Odette, her childhood friend, to restore magic to the kingdom she calls home.
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I loved Where The Dark Stands Still, so I was very excited for the release of another book by A.B. Poranek! The cover is GORGEOUS and perfectly matches the story beneath it. I would describe this book as Phantom of the Opera and Swan Lake meet a 17th century French chateau. Odile was a fun POV to read. I loved her constant scheming. I adored the moments with Odile and Marie! They complemented each other quite well. Odile delivers plenty of yearning. I also appreciated the tiny glimpses of a side couple (and honestly would’ve loved to see a bit more).
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While I figured out one of the major twists early on, I didn’t mind watching it slowly unfold. I do wish Odile had the chance to spend a bit more time with Marie, as I expected the romance to be more of a main plot than a subplot (although I do often prefer romance to be a subplot). While I preferred WDTSS (probably from its strong Howl’s Moving Castle vibes), this still provided a lovely after work escape. Thank you A.B. Poranek for giving us an ending that won’t completely rip our hearts out 🙏🏻 I’m not sure I could endure another WTDSS ending. There’s also possibly a nod to WTDSS? I guess you’ll have to read to find out 😉
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Thank you Simon & Schuster for providing this eARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

sapphic swan lake?? say less! this is probably one of my most anticipated releases of the year and i’m so glad to say it did not disappoint. swan lake retellings are probably my favorite out of all fairy tale retellings, and a treachery of swans perfectly epitomizes the atmospheric, gothic undertone of the ballet as well as a hint of the phantom of the opera. a.b. poranek’s prose was definitely one of the highlights of the novel for me, and while i do think this book would’ve benefitted more from having been written entirely in third person, i loved how creative this tale was even just fromfrom odile’s perspective!

my only grievance with this book is that it feels like there’s a lack of substance in the actual story for the entire first half. nothing really happens until about 60% through the novel, and even when things did, the mc struggled to follow through on clues and solve things on her own despite being a so-called clever and gritty character.

surprisingly, the characters that stood out to me the most were the dauphine and damien. both of them held such a weight over the narrative even with the latter’s lack of a physical presence for the majority of the story, and i wish the story explored the two of them together a little more.

4.25 stars! thank you to netgalley and simon and schuster children’s publishing for the opportunity to read this arc in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a dark, sharp twist on Swan Lake with a clever premise and an even more compelling execution. The story is character-driven, with Odile—morally gray, fiercely determined, and torn in all the best ways—at the center of a plot that balances fantasy, mystery, and a slow-burn sapphic romance. The tension between Odile and Marie is palpable from the beginning, and their forced alliance delivers the kind of emotional complexity that feels earned, not rushed. The worldbuilding is atmospheric without dragging, and the murder mystery adds genuine stakes and momentum to a story that could’ve easily leaned too heavily on its fairytale roots. Instead, it walks the line between enchantment and grit, with just enough bite to keep the story grounded.

4.75/5.

I am not a fantasy person. I am not a retellings person. I am not, often, a YA person. But this book shattered my expectations and tossed them into the sun.

Intrigue, yearning, devastation—and below it all, the palpable tenderness of two girls who have spent their lives caged, led along with false promises, caught up in their desire to belong in the midst of royal treachery. Inspired by a France at the brink of revolution, wrought with a kingdom decaying from the inside out with a lack of the magic that led it to prosper, A Treachery Of Swans gives us a lush, vibrant world and a web of questions that is spun around the reader just as much as the protagonist and her associates.

All of the characters—side characters and villains included—felt unbelievably tangible and three-dimensional. I was left second-guessing who the real antagonists were at every turn, and I was left unbelievably refreshed by Odile's ability to be human. Too many YA protagonists are infallible even before their coming-of-age at the climax of the novel, and this book allowed both Odile and Marie to feel; to harm and be harmed in turn and to come to terms with the truths they both held so dear being turned every which way. I also felt the prose to be gorgeous: descriptive and visionary, which, though it may not be to everyone's taste, did wonders in drawing me into an unfamiliar world and easily being able to find myself enthralled. I can't speak to the retelling portion as I'm not as familiar with Swan Lake, but I saw no glaring issues that suggested a lack of research or care for the original material.

With that said, though expected from a YA book, the narration did border on a bit juvenile at times to where the flow of the story was moderately disrupted while I read. Though it did help to paint Odile's honed sharpness at the world and the injustice she had been faced, it swung too far in the other direction to continue a believable narrative and instead became reminiscent of much more poorly-developed characters from other series.

Overall, an absolutely wonderful title. Thank you so much to Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing and Netgalle

3.5

I absolutely love how Poranek writes. How they set up atmosphere and setting captures the right vibes; it easy to imagine everything like a movie.

And that cover? Beautiful.

When The Dark Stands Still was one of my favorite books of 2024, so I did come into A Treachery of Swans with high expectations. I fear this was a bit of a miss for me. It read much more juvenile than what I expected. Not a totally bad thing at all but I wasn't in the mood for that and it ended up coloring my reading experience all the way through.
The stakes didn't really hit, the romance didn't hit.
Overall, I was bored and had to force myself to get through it because I did not want to dnf another eARC.

I liked the characters well enough, and honestly if this were a little movie, I may have liked it more.

I suppose I am a little disappointed. I thought I would be captivated and eat this up.

Note: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion. Thank you, NetGalley and publishers.

A Treachery of Swans is a Romantasy inspired by the ballet Swan Lake. Set in a land inspired by France, both land and people are under a curse. Golden blood, the hallmark of magic, is met with fear and suspicion. Orphan Odile has hidden her blood and honed her skills as an actress, all to steal a fabled crown for her adopted father. To do so she will transform herself into the girl she loves but doesn’t trust, and the girl will hide in plain sight as a white swan. What will Odile choose, love or revenge?

This book was overall enjoyable! Odile was frustrating at times, but her being so young and constantly manipulated by her “father” did explain her awful behaviour the majority of the time. I think the mystery element of the book was well-done! I truly didn’t see all of the secret-reveals coming, which was excellent. Normally I can see twists coming, but I didn’t get them all this time.

The character development happened extremely gradually for 3/4 of the main cast, but when it finally happened it was great and very satisfying. While the growth was gradual, it was realistic if you take into account the fact that these are children/very young teenagers who have been manipulated their entire lives. So while I completely understand the timing, it can still feel frustrating at times!

I’m a big fan of the Swan Lake music/ballet/story, so this retelling made me very happy!

First off, it's nothing personal but I had to dnf at 76%. Getting 2/3rds through this story and not caring about the ending because somehow Sapphic enemies to lovers was boring😭😭😭 is wild. I wanted to love this so much! But the characters were not fleshed out enough for me to connect. I really tried but at some point I just had to acknowledge it wasn't the book for me.

Thank you for sending me the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

As soon as Poranek pitched this as a sapphic Swan Lake retelling with Phantom of the Opera vibes, I was seated. A Treachery of Swans is a Swan Lake story set in a lavish yet dark 18th century fantasy French backdrop, changing the classic story to one centered around Odile as she settles into Odette's identity, only to end up rather reluctantly working with Odette in the end after the king is murdered.

Right off the bat, I fell in love with Poranek's writing style—it's beautifully descriptive and clever with its metaphors. There were quite a few times I stopped to reread a line and ask myself, "Wow, how did she come up with that?" Note to self: it's time to bump up Where the Dark Stands Still on my tbr!

I enjoyed Odile's character arc and her general personality, from her boldness to her bitterness. Odette is a good equal to her in this story, throwing her off-kilter enough to make me laugh and feel soft whenever they got to unpack their baggage together. Our main quartet of characters played off of each other nicely, with just enough hinted at but never explicitly stated.

I'm a little mixed about how abrupt the ending was. I was almost convinced that there was going to be a second book, but then everything got resolved so quickly. Overall, I was still satisfied by how things played out but that ending did throw me for a loop.

This is honestly the perfect book for anyone looking for some gothic, magical sapphic romance. I suspect that anyone who enjoyed Malice by Heather Walter or A Dark and Drowning Tide by Allison Saft would have a riot with this one.

I was really looking forward to this book as I absolutely loved <i>Where the Dark Stands Still</i>. That book was a breath of fresh air, and Poranek just nailed the atmosphere in that one. <i>A Treachery of Swans</i> does not hold a candle to it, unfortunately.

This is a sort of retelling of <i>Swan Lake</i>, but set in a loosely defined fantasy version of the French <i>ancien régime</i> period. We follow Odile, an actor and <i>sorcière</i> (French for "witch") who does her father's bidding (who is also a sorcière). She's sent on a mission to impersonate a former...friend? enemy? frenemy of hers via sorcery using a magical pendant that allows her to look just like Marie (the frenemy), while Marie is turned into a swan. Her motive? To steal a magical crown belonging to the king, in order to bestow her father with great power.

This book has a lot of telling, not showing. We're told that Odile is clever, manipulative, a great actor, yet she doesn't display these characteristics at all. Odile immediately starts acting completely out of character as Marie. She also can't seem to solve a single mystery by herself. She also just frankly sucks. I understand she's supposed to have been manipulated all her life by her father, but there's no threads of likeability in her. I never once wanted Odile to succeed at anything because I did not want to see her rewarded.

Marie I felt was a much better character who unfortunately is sidelined for the entirety of the book. There's also just too much of a suspension of disbelief for me that Marie would even want to help Odile or like her at all. Odile is unbelievably shitty towards her for most of the book, yet Marie falls in love with her. I wanted Marie to fly away to a better woman and honestly, a better book.

There were some good parts of this book. I think the magic system was quite interesting. The dynamic between Odile and her brother Damien was the most interesting in the book and I wish it had been explored further.

I felt that the author had a real passion for the setting in <i>Where the Dark Stands Still</i> that I just didn't see here. The world building felt cobbled together and the French setting didn't really do much for me. It's described as Gothic, but it's really not at all.

I hated to see Poranek fall into the sophomore slump that she herself bemoans in the acknowledgements, but I loved her first book so much that I'll give her another try come next book.

It was a fun retelling and had a great representation of sapphic characters. Swan lake is a favorite story of mine and I thought this captured the essence of it well

I really enjoyed this story! I love the Swan Lake ballet and one of the favorite movies growing up was the animated swan lake so this piqued my interest!

The story telling was great, it had me captivated the whole way through.

At first I didn’t love the ending - the epilogue felt rushed and I wondered what she did over the course of a year to be able to break the spell on Marie but after some reflection I have come to like the ending!

Swan Lake retelling? say no more! Ever since my friend had me read Daughter of the Forest I've had a soft spot for swan lake retellings. A Treachery of Swans by A.B. Poranek is a Queer gothic Young Adult retelling of the tale with a sapphic love story and a secondary mm pairing. An atmospheric story filled with magic, betrayals, beasts, emotions, and a beautiful slow burn romance.

Final Thoughts: I will say I got excited at the thought that maybe there was going to be a sequel where we would follow Odile on her quest but unfortunately instead we got a time jump to the end of that journey.

Thank you to NetGalley and Simon and Shuster Children's Publishing for the e-arc. Publication date: June 24, 2025.

This is a sapphic Swan Lake retelling. Coming from someone who knows next to nothing about Swan Lake, I liked this!! The overall plot and storyline was really good, however I wished some of the characters were a little more fleshed out. Towards the end it was hard to believe how the protagonists teamed up together. It just did not make all that much sense to me. If the characters' dynamic was a bit more fleshed out, I would have rated this higher. Other than that, I had a good time reading this. So much so that I ended up having a dream about it.

A Treachery of Swans is a beautiful sapphic retelling of Swan Lake and I am OBSESSED. I knew I would love it based on the cover alone, but Poranek's writing style and the complicated relationships within the novel really sealed the deal.

This is a book that will make you smile with joy and gasp in shock and cry in every emotion possible. I had the best time reading this book, and I cannot wait for her next release.

Thank you to the publisher for the e-copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A Treachery of Swans by A.B. Poranek is a darkly enchanting reimagining of Swan Lake that blends court intrigue, ancient magic, and slow-burn sapphic tension. Raised to steal the crown and restore a long-lost magic, Odile assumes the identity of her former friend turned rival, Marie, transforming the real girl into a swan. But when the king is murdered and her brother is blamed, Odile’s mission is thrown into chaos, forcing her into an uneasy alliance with the girl she betrayed. Poranek delivers a richly atmospheric tale full of betrayal, longing, and the blurred line between love and vengeance, perfect for fans of morally complex heroines and gothic fairytales.

I adored Where The Dark Stands Still and while this gorgeously atmospheric sapphic retelling of Swan Lake is just as entrancing I found myself wanting a liiiiittle bit more from our main characters! That said, I would rate this as a can't miss and the perfect late autumn/winter read!

3.5 stars

I need more sapphic Swan Lake retellings in my life.

This book follows a sorceress who lives in a kingdom devoid of magic. To bring magic back, her father devises a plan to steal the king’s crown—the only magical item left. To do this, she must impersonate her childhood friend, the beautiful Marie d’Odette: her childhood-friend-turned-sworn-enemy. But when the king is murdered, she must team up with Marie to uncover the killer and help restore magic to the kingdom.

The first thing that jumped out to me about this book was how well-written it was. The prose was exceptional, and the story was intentionally structured with a clear beginning, middle, and end. A.B. Poranek is a very talented writer, and it showed throughout the book.

I really enjoyed Odile as a main character because she isn’t your typical heroine. She’s complicated and layered, and you’re never quite sure whether you should be rooting for her. I love when the characters I read are complex and nuanced, and she definitely was throughout the entire story.

That said, this book needed a little more room to breathe—especially the romance subplot. The shift from enemies to lovers happens too abruptly and wasn’t as believable as I would have liked.

I also wish I had cared more about the characters and the plot. There wasn’t anything glaringly wrong with either, but it just didn’t leave a lasting impression. I doubt I’ll still be thinking about this story or these characters in a few weeks.

The last 25% of this book was exceptional. The plot was intense and kept building, and the groundwork Poranek laid early on really paid off. There were several exciting plot twists I didn’t see coming, but the clues were there if I’d looked a little deeper.

If the entire book had the same energy as the final quarter, this would have been a home run. I wasn’t as connected to the story or characters as I wanted to be, and that’s why the book didn’t fully work for me. However, I overall had a fun time with this book.

Thank you so much to Simon Teen for gifting me an early copy of this book ahead of its official release!