Happy book birthday to Alice Ivinya’s new dark, fae fantasy, Crown of Glass!
This is a brand new series starter, with three more novels coming soon, each retelling a familiar fairytale in a fresh, exciting way.
Crown of Glass is a Cinderella retelling set in Faery. Only in this retelling, the prince is the villain, the balls are deadly, and Ella has much better reasons to run that coaches turning into pumpkins!
The ugly sisters will get you drunk on faery wine, and the fairy godmother is a bloke who’s a spy!
Here’s the official blurb:
Sometimes the strongest things are made of glass.
Half kelpie, half human, Fenella belongs to neither Faery nor the mortal realm. She strives to remain unnoticed, for humans have always distrusted the fae.
And distrust breeds violence.
When Fenella is kidnapped by a ruthless stranger, she lands in Faery at the center of deadly schemes. Her only chances to escape back to her family are during three glittering balls.
However, escape from this dangerous world becomes more complicated as she’s torn between a villain and a spy.
Neither will give her up.
Neither will let the other live.
And both will wage war to place a crown of glass on her head.
Crown of Glass is a heart-pounding young adult fantasy with clean romance. It is perfect for fans of Holly Black’s The Cruel Prince, Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone, and the retellings of K.M. Shea and Marissa Meyer.
If that sounds like your cup of tea, you can grab Crown of Glass, book one in the Kingdoms of the Faery Path series by Alice Ivinya, right now:
Hi friends! There’s just two weeks until my next charity anthology, Enchanted Forests, is released, and today I want to give you a sneak peek at the absolutely beautiful artwork Elena Shelest has created for our stories. Plus, a little summary of each tale to give you a flavour of the anthology.
In this fresh take on the Frog Prince fairytale, two female dwarves on the run from an indentured labour camp at the mines become entangled with an arrogant fae lord.
When Estheryn overhears the royal family’s secrets, it’s her father who pays the price, resulting in a careless murder that propels her to do the unthinkable: disobey the direct order of the Prince of Persianna and enter the forest.
What do you do when a six-headed dragon complains of indigestion after it’s just gobbled up a dark elf? Easy, you tell him to wait in line and go consult your Granny’s magical books.
A lot has happened to the curator of a supernatural treasure trove since she discovered that she can walk through different dimensions, now she’s traveling with Bigfoot.
In this retelling of Erutan’s Celtic song, The Willow Maid, a woodcutter follows a song into the forbidden depths of the forest and finds himself tangled in a deadly conflict between the Willow Daughter and the Forest Father.
One Fair Eve by Lyndsey Hall (that’s me!)
Pip’s desire to escape his impoverished mining town and play piano in the world’s most prestigious concert halls leads to a bargain that could spell his doom. Are three years of fame and fortune worth the price he’ll pay – an eternity as the Goblin King?
And there you have it! If those brief blurbs and the stunning artwork haven’t sold you on Enchanted Forests, then nothing will! Except, maybe, the fact that we’re donating all profits to the Rainforest Foundation to support their work preventing deforestation and working with indigenous communities who rely on the forests for income and resources.
We’ve smashed our preorder goal (and honestly any expectation we ever had is on the floor in tatters, and we couldn’t be prouder!) but we’d still love to raise even more money for this incredible organisation. So if you can spare $2.99 and you love folklore and fairytale inspired fantasy stories, then you can still preorder Enchanted Forests here: https://mybook.to/Enchanted-Forests
Or, you can wait until release day, 1 July, and buy the beautiful paperback!
And get ready for an exciting announcement next week about our next project…
Welcome back friends! I’ve got another book review for you today, this time it’s a fantasy fairytale retelling that’s perfect for these frosty, winter days. It’s Feathers of Snow by Alice Ivinya, book one in the Kingdom of Birds and Beasts series.
I bought the ebook of this story as soon as I saw the cover (I mean, just look at it!), but I was actually given a signed copy by Alice when we met in person last July, so of course I read that! And I was so honoured and emotional to see my name in the acknowledgements when I finished.
This was a gorgeously gripping read, keep scrolling to see what I thought of it…
Blurb
In Brianna’s new world of ice and snow, the coldest things by far are the eyes of her betrothed…
Brianna bears a deadly secret: she’s not the princess she is pretending to be. If the prince finds out, her life will be forfeit and her country plunged into war. But there is more to the icy prince than meets the eye, and Brianna slowly unravels the secrets of his dark past while surviving in a strange culture.
However her goodness and wit will only get her so far. Terrifying beasts stalk the border and a murderer is at work in the town. They know the truth of Brianna’s identity and will stop at nothing to destroy all she has fought for.
Review
Title: Feathers of Snow: A Goose Girl Retelling (Kingdom of Birds and Beasts #1)
This book swept me away to a snow-covered castle and made me fall in love with a frosty prince. I loved the unique world Ivinya created, especially the snippets of history, myth and folklore we were treated to.
It’s a truly original adaptation of The Goose Girl fairy tale, with a strong, steady heroine who faces danger and heartbreak head on, and a stoic, brooding prince who’ll do whatever it takes to protect his people from the threats over the wall.
If you love clean but still swoon worthy romantic fantasy, fairytale retellings and lush, richly detailed world building, you’ll love Feathers of Snow.
I adored Brianna from the beginning, Ivinya has such skill with character creation, she really makes you identify with her protagonists, hate her villains (ooh I really wanted bad things to happen to the baddie in this book!) and fall for her love interests. Plus, her side characters are fully-formed and have their own back stories and motivations that inform the plot and make the whole story feel very well-rounded – I have such a soft spot for Jeremiah and may have messaged Alice at the halfway mark threatening our friendship if anything bad happened to my sweet cinnamon roll of a guard.
In a nutshell, Feathers of Snow is the book for you this Christmas if you love:
Sweet, clean but swoon worthy romance
Fairytale retellings
Rich world building with unique magic
Quietly strong, independent heroines (badass but in a subtle way)
Brooding, reluctant heroes who don’t soften easily
A villain you will LOVE to hate
Mind-talking animal familiars
Tense whodunnit murder mysteries
Fantasy series you can really get sucked into and fall in love with