Havenfall (excerpt) by Sara Holland gives us a sample of what we can expect in this new book. I liked reading the first few chapters and it makes me excited to see what the rest of the book has in store.

*review will be posted 7/15/24

I started off reading a sampler of this book and got hooked enough to purchase the full book on my own. Though the beginning is a little slow with Maddie arriving at the Inn, I was really intrigued by the concept of all these worlds converging at this one spot. I loved how magical the setting felt and I desperately wanted to learn more about all these worlds.

The plot was fun as well. It gave a sort of fantasy murder mystery vibe. Aside from trying to figure out what was going on at the inn, I was also really curious to learn more about Maddie's backstory. That said though, I wasn't a huge fan of her character. She felt naive, too trusting, and easily manipulated. I think Taya was a great addition to the story. She balanced Maddie's character out and helped the plot move further along in the right direction. 

I also didn't think the villain in this book was very well developed. He felt too one-dimensional. I wish his motives had been more complicated.

I'm a little curious to see how the romance develops in the next book and whether we'll be looking at a love triangle situation or not. Despite its flaws, I still had fun reading the book and really want to see how things continue. I'm hoping Maddie steps up more in the next book so we can see her as a true leader.

The excerpt of "Havenfall" by Sara Holland promises an enthralling dive into a richly imagined world where realms converge in a secluded sanctuary. Holland's evocative prose and vivid descriptions immediately draw readers into the mysterious haven, setting the stage for a tale filled with intrigue and magic. Protagonist Maddie's voice is compelling, capturing the blend of wonder and tension as she navigates her new surroundings and the secrets lurking within. The teaser hints at complex characters and a plot brimming with potential for adventure and conflict. With its intriguing premise and immersive world-building, "Havenfall" seems poised to captivate fans of fantasy and young adult fiction, leaving them eager for more.

I really like Sara Hollands writing but I dont think this one is for me. The story just did not capture me enough to finish the story.

I am giving this excerpt a three out of five stars. It was hard for me to get into at first but the more I got into the more I was ready to read the whole book.

I love the cover and the synopsis shows a lot of promise too.
Hope the book is just as good. I definitely want to give this book a try.

This was a wonderful excerpt of the book and it definitely had me excited for the full novel to come out. Sara Holland is a fantastic author and her worlds are very vivid and beautiful.

Very interesting. Definitely made me interested in reading the full novel. Very interesting premise and world.

A great start to what looks set to be either a duology or trilogy. I love hidden worlds that take you from the real world to somewhere else. This looks set to do this and not disappoint. Imagine an inn you can go to with doors to other worlds.

I loved this title! this was such a great start of a story, it had me hooked from the first page. I'm looking forward to the second book! One thing I would love to see in the next book would be a bit more character development for Maddie, I feel like some of her character traits were a bit redundant. Other than that, the story was pretty strong and the world building was awesome!

Thank you NetGalley ! This excerpt was good! Sounds so promising.
This has definitely got me curios about what the rest of the story will be like.

Thank you NetGalley ! this excerpt was sooooo good! Cant wait to read this book.Sounds so promising.

What an interesting book! This has definitely got me intrigued about what the rest of the story will be like.

ARC kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book was fantastic, I haven’t read many books that were contemporary based but had such fantastical elements and I really enjoyed that side of it. This also read a lot easier and was more understandable early on because of this as well. It is set in a magical place on earth but since not everything about the story was new, there was very little confusion early on about what was happening.

This story is about a girl named Maddie who has been going to Havenfall every summer since she was a little girl. This year her father really didn’t want her to come, as he does not have the same pull to the world as her mother, who is now on death row for murdering her younger brother many years ago, always did and feels it is unsafe to return. Ignoring his wishes, she secretly travels there when she initially told her dad she would be visiting her grandmother. Soon after arriving, weird things start happening and her uncle, who runs Havenfall ends up almost being killed by magical beasts and it is up to Maddie, who will become the new innkeeper once her uncle passes on, to figure out how to stop the beasts from killing the townspeople and how to help save her uncle in the meantime.

I ended up devouring this story in about a day or two because I was so gripped and just kept wanting to find out what was happening. Holland has such a unique way of storytelling and I loved her series before, evermore and so when I saw the news of this book, I was very intrigued and I can say I’m very impressed with this book as well and cannot wait to see where the sequel ends up taking us.

I also love that Maddie is bisexual or pansexual (don’t remember if it is actually on page wording or not) and that we get both sides of that attraction in this novel.

I highly recommend this to anyone who is wanting to try a new contemporary fantasy novel about magical beasts, political intrigue and a badass group of characters.

Unfortunately, I was denied for the early access of the sequel from NetGalley, so I will have to wait until the release date in March 2021 for more of this wonderful world.

Where to start.... Havenfall was a book filled with magic and wonder from start to finish. With twists and turns even i didnt see coming. This book is a must read for fans of YA fantasy

This excerpt was very good! I look forward to reading the rest of this book and I hope I really love it! I am also looking forward to the sequel coming out next year!

This book was hard for me. The pace was slow but overall i enjoyed the characters and the story. I felt that it needs more but what that more was I just can't put by finger on. I assume that this is a series and we will see more and I will read the next book. However, it needs more adventure and a faster pace.

Author #Sara Holland of #‘ Everless’ is a bestselling writer. Her new novel ‘#’Havenfall’ is a contemporary fantasy about a haven between worlds. And the girl ‘Maddie’ sworn to protect it. Each
summer Maddie spends it at Havenfall and the Novel just takes off...

Thank you,
#Netgalley, #Sara Holland and #Bloomsbury Publishers

Having read the full book, I felt that Havenfall had a really interesting set up... and to be honest, in the first 50 pages I was kind of intrigued! but I found the rest just didn’t quite deliver. There wasn’t much world building and it was difficult to empathize with the characters. There was a romance which I didn't feel added anything to the plot, as well as a MC who was frustrating and naive and made stupid choices consistently.

I was intrigued by this excerpt. Got approved for the full e-arc. Will have more thoughts n that. So far I like the main character and the world building is clear.