I loved this story! The characters are very well developed, there was no "insta-love" and the romance developed naturally. I loved the supporting duo characters. The world building was descriptive and had me glued to every page. I need to add this title to my book shelf. I would highly recommend!

I feel like this could have been a really good book in another author's hands- the premise was really interesting and I was excited to read it. However the world building and plot was very disjointed- the entire time, characters kept referencing events of characters from past events with little to no explanation, causing me to wonder multiple times whether I'd accidentally started reading a sequel instead of the first book of a series. But alas, this was not so and instead seemed to be a case of the author trying to fit as much as possible into a story which resulted in a lot of timeline confusion and stories half told.

I thought that the plot could have been streamlined--it seemed like things just kept happening one after another, without a smooth narrative arc. Too much happened in the first few chapters, so that I didn't get a good sense of the characters before the action took off. In the end I just didn't find anything new or exciting about it, unfortunately.

This is a hard book to review. There are some aspects that I really like and others that I don't.

The characters: I really didn't care for the main characters. They were too self involved and wrapped up in each other which is their greatest weakness. Zad, Diza and Zeren on the other hand, I enjoyed and felt were more well-rounded characters.

The plot: Part of the book seemed to drag for me. The author seems to use this book to set up for the future books in the series, however, I imagine that the world will be flushed out further as I'm was left with quite a few questions after finishing the novel.

I'm not sure if I will be picking up the sequel and if I do it will be because I don't have anything else on the docket.

To be honest, it took me about 35 - 40% of this book to be hooked. I think like any high fantasy book for me, with all the world building and figuring out characters, it just personally takes me a little while to become attached. I can not wait for the rest of this trilogy, once I was hooked I didn't want to put it down. I'v come to love all the characters and their little rag tag team trying to save Faerie. So far a clean YA series that could be given to middle-school kids in my opinion.

The over all story was entertaining. I did feel that some of the relationship between characters were rushed and not fully exploited.

4.5 - 5 stars for me. I love fae fantasies and the fact that the author combined them with alchemists was just downright cool. I liked what I took to be a spin on the Seelie and Unseelie, loved Sylvie and Taylan's chemistry (pun intended). Alchemists are a very interesting group not seen enough, which is why I enjoyed reading this so much. The thought of science and magic coming together is always exciting, you know? Add that with the medieval tone and their adventures through Faerie, and you've got quite a unique and entertaining read.

I really enjoyed the other characters, as they all had their own interesting stories as their POVs came up. I loved her friends, but weirdly, my favorite character would have to be the antagonist. Cas is a bit of a weirdo but an awesome, determined one who doesn't take anything but what he wants to hear. He's horrible, of course, but so complex... I thought the writing was nice, and the world build up on a classical, magical place left me wanting more of it. I can't wait to see what else Faerie is hiding in its mysterious, scary depths. Definitely check this out if you love adventure, overdue I love you's and what makes Faerie, Faerie.

I received this e-book courtesy of NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

As soon as I saw "alchemy" and "faerie" in the description of Halayda, I had high hopes for it. Unfortunately, this book was a huge disappointment, and frankly, a waste of time.

The novel's major flaw is the lack of world-building. White is extremely ambitious in her attempt to create a universe of a human and faerie realm, but she was unable to execute her vision properly. The physical aspects of the world itself was averagely described--in no way did White paint a vivid description. What I'm more disappointed in is the lack of foundation provided for the magic/alchemical systems. There was no structure for either of them, and it seemed like anything was possible without any limits or laws. I would have liked more of strict set of rules that applied to magic, it would have made the story much more believable. Another thing that could have added some verisimilitude is explanation of history and culture between the human and faerie realms. We were only given what was necessary for the story and nothing more; the world lacked any true depth for this reason. The complexity White was trying to achieve would have required subtle world building as the story progressed, but most facts were info-dumped in large amounts, making it very confusing to keep up. The fact that I needed the glossary to understand the different nuances of the novel just shows that White did not do her job.

The plot of the story seemed never ending. Honestly, the book seemed about 150 pages longer than it needed to be. Sadly, I found myself counting down the pages until I could finally be done. The story was not bad for lack of action--in fact, there was too much action. It just kept going and going, without respites for much-needed character development or world building.

Yet, somehow, I felt as if I had missed a couple chapters from the beginning. Right from the start, we are thrust into a story that just assumes that we know what is going on. There is minimal explanation for the situation, and it never comes. I was extremely confused for a solid 50 pages. This trend continues throughout the story--there is never clarification for any of the events, and the flow seems choppy. All I saw were the bare bones of a book rather than a finished product.

The characters are shallow and lack depth. Sylvie, our protagonist, is a supposed "good soul", but all she ever did was whine that the world wasn't fair and resolve to fix it like a good little Girl Scout. She really didn't do much other than complain and cry. Taylan, the majestic faerie king, is a twat with about as much personality as Cinderella's Prince Charming. The "love" between these two characters consists of them confessing to each other within 100 pages after 8 years of sexual tension. Then, all they do is kiss in every. Single. Scene. They never show their love, they only tell it.

The other characters were tolerable but stereotypical and shallow. My favorite was Sidika, a banshee who got 30 pages of screen-time (read-time?) max. The villain was typical, there was no motive to his malicious deeds.

The book being 440 pages was at the same time too long and not enough. There was too much endless action that didn't seem to progress the story. I just really, really wanted it to be over. Within those infinite pages, there was no expansion or depth added to the world or characters. The premise seemed cool, but there wasn't anything special about the magic or alchemy. The prose was average, but nothing witty or elegant. I was sorely disappointed with this one, and I couldn't recommend it to anyone in good conscience. I won't be continuing with the series.

This book is well-written fantasy. Full of magic and imagination. The world building and mythology that was woven into this story was lovely. The characters were more one dimensional than I would've liked. There weren't many surprises in how people beheved or in how the story played out.

I only got about ten pages in before I gave up. This book did not pull me in and seemed a bit boring.

I feel awful for not finishing this book knowing how much work has gone into it, but unfortunately it wasn't clicking with me.
I wasn't a huge fan of the prose - I'd be reading but nothing would stick with me which was off=putting and I was getting irritated because it wasn't memorable. None of the characters were particularly appealing to me and at times I found it a little juvenile.
It's a shame because I was looking forward to reading this, but if I have to force myself to pick a book up to read then I don't think it's fair to push myself to finish it. I've not rated it because I don't think it's fair of me to rate a book I haven't finished.
I can see this being appealing to others (most likely younger teens) but I personally didn't get on with it.

This is a great Fae fantasy that will intrigue and charm fans of Holly Black. I had no idea this was an indie book originally but it stands up there with offerings from the big five. This is vivid, colourful, replete with sensory details and memorable characters. I loved the MC in particular. A its core this is a story about hope and redemption both the personal kind and on a grand scale. Really thoroughly enjoyed this.

Magic, romance, adventure and fantasy come together to form a story that allows you to meet new characters while having fun in the journey.

White did a wonderful job in her character development so that Sylvie, Casimir, Taylan and others become real people to the point you can’t help but get sucked into their melodrama. It’s like watching a soap opera with fantasy themes. The battle themes of warrior versus peacemaker really added an explosive element to a plot that is intriguing and easy to read. Sylvie is a great protagonist that you can get behind due to her kind heart and strong spirit. She takes in those no one wants, how can you not love her?

Along with characters that you wish existed so you could meet them in real life you’re treated to vivid settings as she builds 2 worlds simultaneously; an ordinary world where we all live, albeit with a little bit of the supernatural, and a Faerie world where only our dreams can take us. Her writing talent is strong in her world building, the plot follow through makes sense, all the characters have a decent role, and she has this fun way of making faeries seem more human than fantasy.

Sylvie is an part-fae alchemist who also takes in the half-fae waifs and strays of her society while trading in illegal alchemy goods on the side. King Taylan, her friend and potential love interest, hides a dark secret in order to protect Sylvie. However, when poison destroys the kingdom, the two must unite, and risk secrets being exposed, in order to restore the realm.
This was an intricate world, with so much to explore, and for that I loved the story. Sarah Delena White clearly cares about these characters, and this is reflected in how well developed they are. There is a richness to the story that can only come from a writer who is heavily involved in the world they're trying to create.

Having said that, I found the pace of the story slow, with a lot of background information given between characters. While this helped with the world building, it did slow down the pace significantly to the point where I really wanted some action. I felt like the characters spent most of their time explain events that had already happened instead of being 'in the moment'. I'm also not a massive fan of multiple points of views in books. I get easily confused, and find I get attached to one character in particular and want to hear more from them than the other characters. In this case, Sylvie was by far my favourite and her character development was the most well defined. However, I wasn't overly convinced by her relationship with Taylan. Clearly I thought she could do better!

In conclusion, this was an interesting high fantasy world, with some great characters. I look forward to seeing what the writer comes up with in the future.

This novel was an enjoyable read. It combines magic with romance and adventure as the characters of this story try to stop the star-fae from recreating the world. The plot moves smoothly, which allows you to get know the characters but not all their secrets are revealed.
Sylvie Imanthiya is part fae and is an alchemist. She is able to make stronger potions that others. Her talents attracted the attention of Casimir, who began to mold her. When Sylvie discovered his agenda, she destroyed all her research and fled. She takes in orphans, especially those who are half-fae and helps the Faerie king, whom she is in love with.
King Taylan Ashkalabek has been ruling for centuries, trying to keep the balance between fae and mortals. He has a dark past and tries not to let it taint him. He is a shadow-fae, which all fear. He met Sylvie and looks forward to the times of the year where they meet. He cares for Sylvie and will do anything to protect her, but his people are are cruel to half-fae. He also fears when Sylvie discover the truth about him, she will turn away from him, which is something be cannot bear since he also loves her.
When Taylan is portrayed to be responsible for an attack, it sets into motion several events. Sylvie develops wings, which defines her as the Dragonfly, who only appear in desperate times. Taylan knows his people will never accept her, but knows she is their only hope to save the faerie. Sylvie is a kind and caring person, but is afraid and is more of a peacemaker, whereas Taylan is a leader and a warrior. When Casimir finds out the Sylvie is the Dragonfly, he will do anything to get her is his grasp. Taylan and Sylvie must work together to stop Casimir. They receive help from Sylvie's friends, who are more than they appear to be. However, there are those in Taylan's kingdom who want him dead and/or disagree with his choices to help the Dragonfly, since Dragonflies have been killed when they are found. Will Taylan and Sylvie be able to stop Casimir's plans and restore the dying faerie kingdom?