Thank you to NetGally and the author/publisher for an early copy of this title in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This book was fantastic. Who doesn’t love a knight in love with their mage but she’s the knight? Even better. This felt more fantasy forward with romance background which I usually prefer, I think it made the romance feel more genuine. I think it was really well done and had some superb yearning on both parts. Would love some bonus scenes from Kier’s POV.

I appreciate that the world building wasn’t just all in one chapter and was cleverly hidden among the chapter break letters. Kind of made it feel like there were always more secrets to learn.

This book didn’t feel too long but for the first 45-50% the characters are on a quest of sorts and felt more character driven than plot driven which some may not prefer. It does change though about half way through.

I will definitely be continuing this series and really excited for the sequels. I hope to see more from the merry band as well, I really liked their dynamic.

There’s been an influx of ‘lady knight’ novels recently in the romantasy genre. So it was finally time for me to understand the phenomenon, and The Second Death of Locke came along and off on a quest I went throwing myself into the medieval world of mages and wells.

It’s a fantastical feast, but there’s info dumping with a world that still needs to be fleshed out. Character motivations are muddled (we love a main character that runs away from responsibility don’t we? Ahem that’s sarcasm). Mind you, I love a good pining and yearning but my goodness sixteen years of the circumstances of Grey and Kier? The two are set up for a grand love story but the landing is…faulty.

Nevertheless, huzzah for lady knights and thanks to Forever for the digital arc.

I think the magic system and narrative in this book is super original! I loved the hand/mage relationship and how the island played into the magic of the world. The imagery was beautiful and the relationship between Grey and Kier was so sweet. However, I don't think the relationship needed to take that long to develop. I think that it would've been more interesting. To see them get together closer at the beginning and then figure out how their feelings played into their work life. The beginning of the novel was just slow in general, then ramped up dramatically about 60% of the way through. I loved the art and the snippets of information of each chapter, but I think there needed to be a cleaner physical distinction between flashbacks and current events since they some times felt like they were running together.

Hands down (haha), one of my favorite books of the year and it really made me grapple with the fact that I might not hate childhood-friends-to-lovers the way that I have always claimed too.

The Second Death of Locke follows two soldiers, Grey and Kier, on a quest to bring a prisoner to their kingdom’s high lord. The prisoner is supposedly the long lost heir to Locke, the lost kingdom that is the source of their people’s weakening magical abilities- only Grey and Kier know that this girl isn’t who she’s claimed to be.

The magic system in this story is so interesting and you really can’t ask for a better setup for yearning than childhood friends in a codependent magical relationship. Essentially, there are mages, who can use magic, and wells, who the magic can be drawn from. Because magic has been weakening since the destruction of Locke, mages and wells are no longer allowed to be bound together, which would strengthen their power but prevent them from being able to partner with anyone else.

Both Grey and Kier are absolute idiots (affectionately) and I would die for them just as much as they would die for each other. I also loved the found family aspect of both their actual family and their quest team, and how seamlessly the world was queer-normative.

I absolutely adored everything about this book. I already loved the author but this is definitely my favorite of theirs so far. Everyone should go pick this one up- and it’s the perfect addition to anyone having a year of lady knights!

Thank you NetGalley and Forever for the ARC- all thoughts my own!

I feel that this story had a great potential to go deeper with it's characters, political landscape and world building. While reading this story I felt like was hoovering through the story and not immersed in the story. The characters felt flat, the story felt flat, there was no texture to the characters and the story.

What I really enjoyed and desired more of was the political nature of the 6 nations and their relationship with the source of magic. (It somehow reminded me of oil. Whoever controls the oil reserves controls how it's distributed globally). I liked reading the excerpts at the end of the chapters, small nod to what to expect in the coming chapter.

Overall I feel that this story could have focused on one arc, whether it was the journey story (moving from point a to b) or the political story (the on going war for the Isle), instead of condensing the two arcs into one overall story. I feel that if the story focused on one of the arcs there would have been more depth with the characters and gotten to know them beyond their station and aptitude. Also, there was a lot of telling of the story than showing of the story, which left me felling meh when the story concluded.

This story will find it's audience, unfortunately I'm not it.

Rating: 2.25 stars

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) | Forever for the e-arc and thank you Netgalley.

More than a little feral about this. Grey and Kier!!! VERY eager and intrigued to read the other books in this trilogy.

Firstly I’d like to thank NetGalley for the ARC!
This had all the makings of a good fantasy romance / romantasy, and there were some aspects I really did enjoy, but ultimately this fell a little flat for me. I can’t pinpoint what it was exactly that didn’t quite grip me, but this one just wasn’t 100% for me.
Some things that I did enjoy though:
The magic system was interesting and unique
There’s a decent band of characters
You get some found family vibes
Some badass female characters
Our FMC and MMC were solid

I’d still say give this one a try. I’ve seen some pretty positive reviews about it, I just didn’t connect all the way with it for some reason.

3.5 ⭐️

This is one of the most beautiful books I’ve read this year. Deeply atmospheric, filled with characters you can’t help but fall in love with and a rich and intricate fantasy world, The Second Death of Locke needs to be on every fantasy fan’s radar. 2025 has been an amazing year so far for the fantasy genre, but this one is my favorite new release I’ve read so far. Every aspect of the story is excellent, and I think everyone needs to read it. I loved this story so much I feel like I can’t even describe it; but if you are a fan of beautiful, heart-wrenching relationships, unique and well fleshed-out magic systems, and gorgeous writing, please read this book. Just be prepared to fall in love with these characters and become so deeply immersed in the story, you’ll never want to leave. And fair warning- you will probably cry (positive).

I would recommend The Second Death of Locke to readers who love well-written relationships full of yearning and emotion; fans of high-stakes, intricately plotted fantasy; and really, to anyone who loves to read.

Thank you to NetGalley & Grand Central Publishing for the arc! All thoughts & opinions in the review are my own.

V.L. Bovalino’s upcoming fantasy romance novel, “The Second Death of Locke,” follows a long-lost heir to a powerful nation who must confront her heritage. The plot features a well-developed, angst-filled friends-to-lovers relationship in a fantasy world. The dynamic between Grey and Kier had me hooked from the start and I eagerly await more adventures in this amazing world!

This was my first time reading something by V.L Bovalino and I must say she delivered! I knew I was going to love this as soon as I started it.

Grey is a well who has dedicated her life to Kier her mage and childhood friend. She acts as his protector, healer, and his source for magic. Grey and Kier, along with a few others, are sent on a dangerous quest to return a child to an enemy kingdom.

This is exactly what I am looking for in a romantasy. There is political intrigue, secret identities/complex history, found family, and yearning (both in a romantic way & for home). I thought the world building was great and the magic system was unique. I really enjoyed the characters and thought the book was well paced.

Ultimately the main message of the story revolves around choices, love, and sacrifice. I really didn't want it to end.

A few of my favorite quotes:
-"Everything I have is yours. Everything I am is yours."

-"They were fools when they were young; so often on the edge of death, so desperate for someone to fall into the chasm alongside them, as if the reaper's teeth would not gnash them to nothing as long as they remained together."

-“What is love, without freedom?” “What is life, without you?”

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for the advanced copy.
Pub date: September 23, 2025

High fantasy has been the strongest it's ever been in 2025 and this is no exception. Hands down, one of my favorite reads of the year.

Pristine. It's been a long time since I've read a story with such romantic LONGING in it, and Bovalino hit it firmly on the head. There's also a solid political story and some very lovely found family vibes. It has ALSO been a long time since I was SO WORRIED about the outcome for the characters that I had to actually flip to the end of the book and check if it was all going to be okay before proceeding, so the stakes and tension are done excellently, as well.

This had big vibes of The Queens of Innis Lear to me. The stories themselves are very different from each other (Queens is a straight-up Shakespeare retelling and this is not) but the feel of the two stories are in the same bucket.

Overall I LOVED this, a rarity these days. I am so excited to see Bovalino enter the adult fantasy space, and can't wait to see what is next in this series.

I devoured the first 25% of this book as it had everything I want in a fantasy novel: rich world-building, compelling characters, layered political tension, and a creative magic system with real depth and stakes. I was hooked.

Unfortunately, after that strong start, the story started to lose me. While I still enjoyed parts of it, the political dynamics became too easy and predictable. The protagonist developed a bit of a savior complex, and when she reclaimed her lost title, it happened far too conveniently—no one questioned her, no one made her prove anything, despite the fact that everyone believed she was dead. It just didn’t feel earned.

Worse, the male protagonist, who had so much potential and nuance early on, was reduced to a flat love interest once their feelings were confessed. His character arc seemed to stop entirely, and he became little more than a romantic prop.

And then there's the ending, which I won’t spoil, but it honestly left me irritated. It felt over the top but somehow not enough at the same time, as well as clashing with the tone the book had set in the beginning. If the book had maintained the quality and complexity of the first quarter, I could have easily given it 5 stars. But it started leaning into tropes and overly tidy resolutions that just didn’t work for me.

That said, if you’re looking for a fantasy with some light political intrigue, a friends to lovers romance, a strong (if overpowered) female lead, and a happily ever after, this might still be your kind of read.

This book was so refreshingly unique! I really enjoyed the different take on the romance, the friends to lovers was so well done.

ARC REVIEWER

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️♾️

Spice 🌶

TROPES
Friends to Lovers
Grumpy Sunshine
Adult Epic Fantasy
Female Knights!
Mages
Yearning

LOVE LOYALTY SACRIFICE
I am going to yell I AM OBSESSED WITH THIS BOOK!!!

First I will start with the synopsis:
Grey Flynn has dedicated her life to her mage, Kier. She will be his blade on the battlefield, his healer and protector. The deep well of raw power inside her is Kier’s to wield. They are bound together by blood and magic, but there is one truth Grey dare not reveal . . . not even to Kier.

When a quest to protect the child of an enemy kingdom pulls them into a dangerous mission, Grey will need to decide what she’s willing to sacrifice to protect her secret.

For Grey is no ordinary magical well, and if she dies, all magic dies with her.

My opinion when I say I did not want this book to end it took me 3 weeks to finish this book. I typically finish a book in a day or two. BUT this! Omg I knew it was a standalone so I did not want it to finish. Kieran and Grey! I have never had this much yearning in a book. I will try to keep it spoiler free. I cried so many times. I almost threw my kindle across the room because of a certain scene.
I cannot wait for the audiobook, when it comes out I will listen to it again to live in this world again.

These are my favorite quote so SPOILET WARNING ⚠️

"No, maybe not. But perhaps you're right. Everyone I've ever loved has died for me, or tried to."

" I swear it to you, there will be no second death of locke"

This is the year of the Lady Knights and V.L Bovalino delivers with The Second Death of Locke. V.L Bovalnio builds us a world rich with magic, war, and amazing characters that will leave you speechless in the end.
Still sitting here I am thinking of Grey and Kier and how their friendship over time turned into something more. This is a friends to lovers relationship. Grey is Kier’s hand. But also there is so much more to Grey than the world knows then just being Kier’s hand and Kier and Grey have to protect that as well. When they are given an assignment to protect the enemy kingdoms child it just ramps up the book and the plot even more and keeps pushing the book forward and not making you want it to put down.
I have read a lot of books this year. I am almost at 300, yes you read that right, and this is one of the best of them so far. It is memorable, amazingly written, kept me engaged, and took me on an emotional ride that I wasn’t ready to get off of. I can’t believe this is only the first book and there are already two more announced. I will be anxiously awaiting them as they are now going to be at the top of my list for most anticipated reads of their years!
Thank you to Forever for the complimentary copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Two words: CHEFS KISS

May 2025, the summer of lady knights, reign supreme. The world in The Second Death of Locke, the characters, the feelings - all of it are just so lush and wonderful and heart breaking and hopeful. I looked up after I finished it and realized it was 1am and had no idea I had gotten that sucked in.

The Second Death of Locke takes a lot of beloved tropes and flips them on their head. You may think you know where it is going and what the twists may be but it's a whole net full of red herrings and I ate up every drop of ink (or pixel rather on my kindle). The found family, the queerness, the begrudging adventure of it all!

I adored The Second Death of Locke and I'm not sure I'm fully recovered yet. The Second Death of Locke was everything I wanted. It was full of so many swoons, I almost swooned myself. The beginning is full of so much tension you'd have to cut it with a sword not even a butter knife. If you love exquisite and tender work, The Second Death of Locke is for you. It has such incredible pacing which only increases until we're riding a wave of an avalanche. But it begins at the heart of the book with Grey and Kier. With these two characters who have become pieces of each other. It's a relationship that transcends words and labels. That's just the way a mage and well operate as it relies on trust above all else.

When someone could hold our ruin or our power in their hands, that relationship becomes something more. And The Second Death of Locke begins there. It quickly develops into a story about choices and sacrifice. With a beautiful heart of found family, The Second Death of Locke unfolds into a story about care in a world that puts the individuals second to their power and potential. It's a world where we are constantly asked what people would do for power, the ways they would break families, alliances, and children to their will.

Perhaps my favorite fantasy of 2025 so far! I am a sucker for a magic system that makes two people rely on each other and Grey and Keir’s relationship was exactly what I wanted it to be. What begins as a classic quest story with loveable side characters, tense fight scenes, and plenty of yearning quickly turns into a tale of secret identities, political intruige, and what it really means to give up everything for the one you love. And through it all is managed to avoid the cliches and repeated tropes I and many others are tired of in recent fantasy. I can’t wait for others to get their hands on it and thank you so much for letting me get my hands on it early!

The yearning is palpable.

I would love to write a long, detailed, glowing review for this book - it deserves it - but I honestly don't even have the words to express how entranced I was, and right from the first chapter.

Kind of gothic, very queer normative, lots of yearning, FOUND FAMILY, fantastic world building (how lucky are we to get companion books set in this world??), elements of a road novel, emotional beats all over the place, a lady knight, is it any wonder that this is probably my favourite book of 2025 so far?

(And also, I cried.)

Thank you to the publisher, Forever, and to NetGalley for the ARC.