Here is a link to my Goodreads review!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/7638948305

It was really good and had me hooked fast! I just wished there was more romance since it’s in the title. I felt a little irritated at the slow burn throughout, but the rest of the story made up for it!

I absolutely DEVOURED this book! Thank you for the ARC, this was one pleasure of a read! If you love a strong female lead, some dragons, fated mates, and fantastic writing, you'll be in heaven. I was so pleasantly surprised with the writing style and overall plot that I could not put it down - just the perfect balance of a slow burn fantasy romance that leaves you with just enough mystery that you'll be begging for the next book. Seriously, give this author and book a shot and you won't regret it!

Didn’t finished sorry wasn’t to my liking or writing I’m so sorry but if I had to rate it it would be a 1 star review bc I didn’t like the characters or writing

I got an advance reader copy thanks to NetGalley for my real and honest opinion of it.
It was way better than expected! I really want to read the next book asap.
I love dragons and we got a little look at dragons and all in the first book and I hope we will dive in more into the second one. It was quite funny how they communicate even their unsatisfied feeling in such a 'human' way hahaha
Sometimes I felt like Silas was a little... slow in thinking for being as old as she is. She was brave and OMG our poor FMC had to endure A LOT.
She deserves the world!!
Fhord (MMC) was blind trusting some people that should not. Hopefully he learned from his mistakes.
I wanted to continue their story! It was slow burn, poor Fhord!
I really think the next book will reveal many things that we are left unsaid on book one (I am soooo intrigued!).
And the antagonist! the Dróttning! I hated her so much I have no words and hopefully she will get what she deserves! She really is a monster.

BTW I must add that at the end gets a little bloody and gore and must be ready to read it. It was somehow difficult to imagine all what happened.

I am sorry. I just couldn’t get into this. I definitely think that people will like it. However i didnt connect with the characters or the story. It could’ve just been I wasn’t in the mood for it.

Sacred Struggle by Rochelle L. Wilcox was absolutely enchanting!
This is the best type of fantasy! I don’t think I can quite put into words.
Wilcox‘s writing is captivating. She knows how to pull the reader into a magnificent and intriguing place.
The story was absolutely engaging and the work that went into the settings was noticeable and superb.
The attention to details in her writing really set the scene and tone

Sifa is in hiding. Being an Elf is punishable by death under the queen’s brutal rule, so she does whatever it takes to stay alive—which means carrying out the city overseer’s dirty work. When she’s sent on a mission to the torturous Nest, she's forced to work alongside Fhord—a ruthless dragon rider believed to be loyal to the very queen hunting her kind. But in this world, loyalties aren’t always what they seem.

Fhord wears his hatred like armor, and it all seems aimed at Sifa, keeping her firmly at arm’s length. But the fire in his eyes tells another story—one of yearning, of something deeper, and far more dangerous. As they travel together, walls begin to crack, secrets unravel, and Sifa is forced to ask the most terrifying question of all: who is Fhord, really? And why does being near him stir something in her that feels like fate?

This world has completely hooked me. So many questions remain unanswered, and so many delicious building blocks have already been laid. I’m giddy thinking about the possibilities. I need more—more dragons, more magic, more of everything. I'm fully at the mercy of this series, and I cannot wait to see where it goes next.

And can we talk about the angst? The relationship between Sifa and Fhord gave me emotional whiplash in the best way. The push and pull, the unbearable tension of being bound to someone you can’t have—especially when your dragon’s life is on the line. The slow burn was absolutely delicious. I couldn’t get enough.

I was also enamored with the majestic depiction of dragons. I can’t wait to delve deeper into their bond with their riders. I live for that dynamic.
And the villain? A true, devilish villain. And I cannot wait to watch her fall.

Dragons, Elves and Dragon Riders? When I read that in the blurb I was hooked. Now this is a very fast paced fantasy book, which I personally really enjoyed and I think was the reason for me reading this in one sitting.
For a Book that advertises that we have Dragon Riders in it I did find it a bit lacking of the actual riding. Mainly also just because I really love that aspect of books with dragons in it.
The world building in itself was okay. I wouldn't necessarily say it was perfect as sometimes I wish we would have gotten even more descriptions, more just plot from the world around out characters in order for us readers to dive even deeper into the book.
The book also touches on subjects of gender inequality, especially men treating woman as object to own and have rather than human beings. It was sometimes hard to read but I think it was necessary in order for us to understand just how bad of a queen the Drottning just is, allowing all that to happen in her lands.
The MMC and FMC were both badasses. But there were SO MANY secrets from both characters that had my brain reeling and unfortunately made me disconnect a bit from them. However the tension between them was god tier and throwing in the mate trope was absolutely delicious to read.
Finishing the book left me with more questions than before and i'm incredibly thankful the following books will her rapid released.
All in all it was a fun read and i'm grateful that i got sent the ARC!

<b>Actual Rating: 3.5⭐</b>

Sacred Struggle is a fantasy romance packed with fated mates, forbidden love, forced proximity, found family, and slow-burn tension—all set in a rich world of elves, shifters, and monarchy intrigue.

⚠️ Fair warning: some of the torture scenes get pretty intense. I wasn’t expecting them to be that graphic, and they definitely caught me off guard.

The story follows Sifa, an elf on the run from a ruthless queen, and Fhord, a dragon rider struggling between duty and the undeniable pull toward his fated mate.
Their journey leads them into the depths of a brutal prison, forcing them to face their pasts while navigating the complicated bond between them.

Right from the start, I was hooked. The dynamic between Fhord and Sifa kept me engaged, especially their banter as they were thrown together on a mission that unravels layers of secrets.

That said, there were a few aspects I wished had more room to breathe.
The pacing started strong but felt uneven—everything flowed well until the middle, but near the end, things sped up drastically. A lot of new elements were introduced, making it feel like I barely had time to process one revelation before jumping to the next.
By the final pages, I still had lingering questions, especially about Fhord’s true identity and his connection to the queen.

I also hoped for deeper exploration into the dragons and their riders, as well as the history of the elves. It looks like those elements will be expanded in the next book, especially with Sifa’s new bond with Astarot, which I’m excited to see unfold.

Overall, Sacred Struggle was quite an enjoyable read, and despite a few bumps along the way, I’m definitely invested enough to continue the series.
The world-building has a lot of potential, and I’m eager to get more answers in the sequel!

<i>I received a review copy through Netgalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily. Huge thank you to the author and publisher!</i>

⚠️ 𝐓𝐖: torture, physical abuse, rape, body horror, gore, murder, sexism, sexual harassment, sexual assault, brief mention of genocide.

This book was so well written , fast paced and action packed from start to finish . The romance was a definite slow burn but the sparks between the badass FMC elf and the sexy Xaden meets Rhysand with green eyes MMC dragon rider really held me captive .

This book is very vivid and is not for the light hearted please read the trigger warnings.

I loved every moment of this book and I need to get my hands on the whole series .

THANK YOU TO Netgalley for this amazing ARC read .

Sacred struggle review

Oh my goodness! i ADORED this book!😍

Sifa is a hardened badass who has endured a lot within her life with a deadly secret noone must know. She’s working behind the scenes with Bevin, a person that should not be crossed. She agrees to do some jobs which inevitably ends up with her crossing paths with someone who seems familiar to her.. She wants to get to know him as her curiosity drags her deeper, but is somehow also repulsed by him at the same time and decides she wants to be far away from him as possible. As she tries to stay away from him events keeping happening which draws them together for unknown reasons multiple times until Bevin forces her and her mysterious dragon rider together for a job that needs to be done only by the best but with the risk of sending her back to a prison she barely escaped years ago will the past come back to haunt her and release her long kept secret that could risk her and everyone involved with her.

Fhord is a fierce dragon rider who is known by everyone and even more so by his dragons name, people tremble hearing the name of his bonded dragon. He’s stubborn and does everything possible to stay away from Sifa because he knows what it will cost him if he gives in to the temptation. But yet again the journey they are sent on and the events that happen ALWAYS seem to drag them closer together.

Throughout the book we see the usual amazing tropes of forbidden love, forced proximity, he falls first and touch her and d*e🔥😍

Okay, i absolutely ADORED Sifa and Fhord’s journey together, along with everything that happens in between, i was hooked on the plot always wondering what will happen next! When i didn’t have the book in my hands i was still thinking about it! And MY GOD THE TENSION BETWEEN THESE TWO. I loved every tortuous second of it😂😍🔥

The world building and plot itself was incredible! Constant progression throughout with the characters themselves and the world that has been created by Rochelle. Along with all of the other characters, Toffee is adorable he makes my heart clench! And Astarot and Tindera are now on my favourite dragons list forever🥹 I enjoyed every second of this book and i can’t WAIT for the next books in this series to see what happens! The ending was beautiful but also crazy and still overshadows a lot of the plot still yet to come that i can’t WAIT to read!

If you love everything about forbidden love, stubborn but strong FMC’s, Fierce and Loyal MMC’s, beautiful dragons and impossible situations that keep you on the edge of your set then you MUST read Sacred Struggle! It was INCREDIBLE.😍🔥

Beautifully written by Rochelle and i can’t WAIT to read the next one! SIGN ME UPPPPP😍🥰🔥

I have posted my Goodreads review, linked below, i will also be setting up a social media review on my instagram handle @Readershaven_x and i will post an Amazon review on the date of release! I appreciate you so much for letting me read this book and i can’t wait to continue to read the rest of the series!!💙💙

3.75 stars - A super fast-paced romantasy with dragons, magic and fated bonds. Sacred Struggle kept me gripped the entire way through, the world was masterfully described, Fhord and Sifa's chemistry was fun to read and it left me wanting more at the end. The relationship wasn't rushed, there was some quite intense violence and I loved the dragons.

There was some repetitive language and the book began with a lot of telling instead of letting the reader discover things but overall was an enjoyable read! I'll definitely be reading the next.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

I really loved the FMC, MMC, and the overall plot. I loved that there were some chapters from the MMC's POV. The beginning of the book had me hooked and excited to keep reading. However, I found that the "will-they-won’t-they" dynamic between the main characters became repetitive and frustrating rather quickly. Many of the same words and phrases were reused, which pulled me out of the story at times.

In my opinion, the pacing in the latter half felt a bit rushed. Some character developments and relationship shifts happened abruptly and left me a little confused in the moment, even if they made more sense in hindsight.

I loved the dragons and the concept of dragon telepathy. I’m open to continuing the series because I do think the overall plot is compelling.

This darker fantasy romance perfectly balances mystery, dragon and elf lore, action, and romance. I started it at 7:30 am and finished it at 12:45 pm on the same day, I absolutely devoured it. Both the main characters are grumpy, competent, and relatable. Tropes in the book: slow burn, fated mates, he falls first, forced proximity, and possibly enemies to lovers (debatable on a technicality I can't reveal without spoilers). The spice is open-door but relatively mild. The world is bleak, and I wish we could have had a little more lore/history in this book, but I can tell there's much more to learn from whatever sequels we get next!

I was lucky enough to read this book before its official release and I loved it!! I went into this book knowing nothing about this author and I will definitely be continuing this series! Dragons, elves, fated mates, dragon mates, secrets this book was SO good I loved the longing of the MMC and I can’t wait to see where the next book takes us and learn the secrets I was desperate to learn in this book! 3.5 ⭐️

For those who are slumped after ready Onyx Storm or any Fourth Wing novel in the series.... I think I found the cure.... and better yet a replacement. Sacred Struggle was such a fast pace book I couldn't stop reading with each chapter revealing more and more of Fhord and Sifa keeping us engaged the whole way through. Our two main characters had a fun and interesting love connection throughout the book! And of course we couldn't have dragons, elves and magic without some forbidden love story which Im very curious how it all plays out at the end!

Each chapter gives us a different POV of the characters which I loved and was overall a more engaging / geared to adults when you compare it to the Fourth Wing Series (I had to push myself through those books but not with this series!). After reading this...... I must say Fourth Wing seems like a YA book lol. Rochelle! You killed it! I hope everyone has the opportunity to read this book when it's released! It's going to be the next hot thing!!!!!

Now I'm patiently waiting for book number two to be released! lol <3

I don't know what it was about this book but it wasn't for me. I had no connections to the characters or plot at all and I couldn't wait for the book to be finished.

Not for me at all.

If you like fantasy romance with dragons this is the book for you!

I got this as an ARC and I’m so happy I did. This was fast paced enough that the world building wasn’t boring or difficult to understand. There is a glossary but it’s small and not intimidating. I was able to read it once and not have to reference it again.

I really enjoyed this take on fated mates and how it compares to bonding with a dragon. You could really feel the love and yearning between the characters.

I also liked how these dragon have feathers. I hadn’t read a book with this before and I really enjoyed it. The way they were described I was able to visualise exactly how the dragons would look.

I am definitely going to continue the series. If I could do decimals I would rate this a 3.75.

I hate that you can’t give 1/2 stars - but here we are! 3.5-4/5 read for me. Had tons of potential but I feel like it maybe fell a little flat for me in the areas I expected to be blown away. For example, not a ton of dragons for it to be a dragon series, the magic system isn’t explained super well, Gods are mentioned all the time but there’s no history really shared, and there are just a lot of loose ends that I feel could have been explained better and still would have had a great cliffhanger to read through.

Tropes:
👩‍❤️‍👨 he falls first
🙅🏻‍♀️enemies to lovers
😍 fated mates
⚔️ high stakes
🧝‍♀️ elves and magic
🐉 dragons
👸🏻 evil hierarchy

Did I like it? Yes.

Would I read book 2? Probably.

Is it the book I’d recommend to friends who love reading about dragons, elves, and magic? No, probably not.

Sacred Struggle 🐉♥️🧝🏼‍♀️

📖 BOOK REVIEW 📖

ARC READ:
I just finished Sacred Struggle by Rochelle Wincox, and I’m still recovering—in the best way possible. This is book one in the Tales of the Vanir series, and if you’re craving the intensity, dragons, and slow-burn romance of Fourth Wing, this book is your next obsession. It officially drops May 22, 2025—so close, I can taste it!

Let’s talk about our FMC: total badass. She’s part elven, can manipulate minds and emotions, and she does not back down from a fight. Think: brains, brawn, and magic. She’s assigned to a mission that pairs her with someone she never expected—Fhord.

Now, Fhord? He’s it. He’s giving “shadow daddy” energy—but make it primal, not broody. Alpha without being toxic. He’s a top-tier dragon rider who doesn’t just walk into a room—he owns it. And yes, he’s 100% the “touch her and I’ll destroy you” type.

Their story is packed with action, chemistry, emotional tension, and the kind of world-building that makes you want to cancel plans and keep reading. I flew through it and loved every second.

And guess what? Book two, Frenzied Fates, is coming June 26, 2025. I’m already counting the days

Sacred Struggle Rating: 4 / 5 ⭐️
Spice Level: 🌶️