I loved the narrator. She has a smooth, sensual voice that was honestly perfect for how sexually charged this book is, but that sexual energy was very much not what I was expecting.

The beginning (and all subsequent attempts at worldbuilding) was super wordy in an impenetrable tangle of in-world jargon. I saw that a lot of other early readers didn’t even make it very far past the opening scenes. But when we do go farther, it’s just sex and desire in a sort of sensual display since the royal siblings are basically just walking sex objects and any of our MC’s rational thoughts get completely drowned out any time either of them looks at her.

We spend so much time sinking into the viscous pit of the MC’s desire that we barely glance at the actual worldbuilding or plot-forward knowledge: like how the magic system functions and why exactly she’s so good at it apart from the fact that she thinks the rules are dumb. And when she does actually get to do her magic stuff, it’s always super glossed over.

I will admit that I ended up rather frustrated because I wanted a lot more plot and a lot less sexual yearning and indecipherable exposition.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 stars!

This is not an easy book to read/listen to because the plot is buried under some seriously poetic language but it has so much of what I love in a fantasy book, court politics, a unique magic system and a well built world. For me, the effort required to follow the story was worth it.

Emily Lawrence’s performance is outstanding, her vocals are almost hypnotic as she reads the dreamy prose but she can certainly draw you back to the action by introducing just a hint of urgency in her tone.

The sensuality was a bit more prominent than I usually like but it didn’t detract from my enjoyment of the story.

Thank you to Hachette Audio and NetGalley for the opportunity to listen to this ALC.

DNF 59%

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for this advanced reader's copy of The Mercy Makers.

I really struggled with this. The narrative is so circular and flowery that I wasn't actually sure what was going on half the time. I am a very plot driven person and while there was plot there, it was so hard to understand what I was listening to that I had to keep going back and then I still couldn't quite understand. The narrator was good but this is definitely not a book to only listen to as the pronouns and names were not easy to parse. This was not the book for me.

This story has an ambitious scope and a richly built world that grabbed my attention early on. The writing is often lyrical and evocative, with some genuinely powerful themes around sacrifice, legacy, and the weight of power. There are moments where the emotional depth really shines.

However, the pacing felt inconsistent—some parts dragged while others moved too quickly, making the overall flow a bit hard to follow. I also struggled to fully connect with the characters; their motivations weren’t always clear, and a few emotional beats didn’t quite land as strongly as they seemed intended to.

Overall, it’s a beautifully written and imaginative book with some memorable moments, but it didn’t quite stick the landing for me.

DNF @ Chapter 7

I don’t even know how to be respectful with this one, so I’m just gonna go the direct route and be brutally honest: this is a hot mess. The writing is indecipherable. The dialogue reminded me of what 10 year old children might sound like if they were pretending to be kings and queens in the dark ages.

I can’t even tell you what it’s about. A chick who makes magic with silk and math? But she’s not supposed to use it because reasons? I’m not even certain about that. I seriously hate DNFing, but I can think of a whole host of other unpleasant things I’d rather be doing than reading this book.