I would like to extend my gratitude to the author, publisher and NetGalley for sending this advanced reader's copy in return for a fair and honest review.

I am fairly new to fantasy books. I chose this book for that reason, and it was okay. Characters okay, plot ok, but it fell flat for me. It was like a rewritten fairy tale, but it didn’t improve the original. It was very slow and didn’t make me want to read it in one go. It dealt with LGBTQ issues sensitively. I don’t have anything really bad to say as it didn’t evoke any emotion in me at all.

I was not able to fully complete this book due to personal issues with the story., I implore you to search out other reviews that fully grasped the plot of this book and would be able to better assist your decision making.

Human and Fae at war you say? If I could just fix my problems by putting myself and them to sleep you bet your bottom dollar I'd do it. But waking up couple hundred years later and still having to deal with them? That's just rude. I'm not a fan of slow burns I'd rather not even have one with how slow this one was but the rest of the story *chef kiss*

Bored. Bored. Bored.

Seriously. I found it exhausting to read, because everything felt kinda… like there was no spark. Which is especially sad if it’s a story about magic and the Fae. But aside from boredom the first 19% didn’t make me feel anything so I decided to dnf this one and stop wasting my precious reading time on it.

It might be a small pet peeve but the way magic works (in terms of types) in this story was explained again and again – the only thing I am filing under interesting is how magic and modern technology is put together. That was a great part of wordlbuilding but sadly the only one.

Overall it was a very generic and not thought through book to me. If I can’t care about the characters because they don’t feel three dimensional and the story itself drons on without painting a lively picture… I’m outta there.

I struggled to get around to reading this one. I kept putting it off, I wasn't that interested to start with..... but, goodness, how sad I am to have waited so long! This is a great book. The characters are thoroughly fleshed out, with faults and strengths unique to each one. The worldbuilding is phenomenal, and I'm such a sucker for that. Overall, this is great read, and I strongly recommend it!

HELLO SLOW BURN!

It was nice to read a queer romance with characters around my age (mid to late 20s), and the author really treated all the different areas of representation with respect and care. Each character was developed in their own right, not just in connection to their love interest or family members, so their identities were unique and distinct.

All the ordeals faced by the protagonists are focused upon in a good way but the romance was slow and there was too much happening in too little time to keep track of or even remember and acknowledge. The pace picked up after 70% of the book which was a little too late for me and the remaining 30% did not strike a chord for me to love it.

I’m not sure really what it was about this one but it just felt a bit lackluster for me.

While I’m always down for some LGBTQ stories, this one I just couldn’t connect with the world.

I felt rather at the beginning of this story, it seemed to have a lot of information and terms thrown at you in ways of world building and it takes a while to get in to the story and for the information to sink in.
The pace was very fast and I didn't feel that attached to these characters because I was thrown in the deep end with all the things I had to remember to keep track of.
Larkin and Merrick’s meeting was entirely predictable and the romance was 'she released a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding' vibe even though It was obvious.
It took me a long time to get into this one. I liked Larken and Merrick, but I just wasn’t into the story all that much. There were quite a few characters that I just didn't hold my interest and weren't rememberable. I also usually really like a slow build romance, but this one wasn't as great as I'd hoped. I felt like I was just waiting for the romance to pick up along with the story.

Overall an average read for me, I would definitely try more from this author but for me this just wasn't anything special unfortunately, but if you like flowery writing, fast plot with slow burn queer romance then you should give to a go you never know. It might be a favourite for you.

Lava Red Feather Blue by Molly Ringle is about a magical fantasy tale, about a witch who experiments with new spells and accidentally wakes up Prince Larkin, who has been trapped in his sleep for a long time.
I mean, doesn't it remind us a lot of a fairy tale we were told as children?
The author, however, has added a dash of fantasy to the story, making it more peppery.
And then let's face it, how lucky was our young witch. She accidentally woke up a sexy prince, everyone's dream.
The worldbuilding of the wizarding world explained really really well, starting with the fae realm. Lovely!
The character development is also to be appreciated, starting with Merrick, the protagonist of the book. A bit of a hothead, but a witchy witch.
There is no shortage of tension between her and young Prince Larkin, another amazing character!
Also, anyone who knows me knows how much I love animals and here is a big rabbit. I mean I want to hug him so badly.
An adventure and eventful story with a wonderful cover.
Give this book a chance and you won't regret it.

My biggest regret is not getting to this book sooner - I enjoyed it so much, despite reading it very slowly! Merrick is a wonderful character, and I loved his growth and romance with Larkin, who was also a very fun character, especially in his interactions with others and with the modern world, so different from his of two centuries before.

At first I wasn’t expecting much, but the more I read the more I enjoyed the worldbuilding and the characters. Molly Ringle created a very nice lore surrounding the fey and the country of Eidolonia, and the fey world was described with enough details to make me imagine I was walking there, with the characters, and each part of it felt very distinctive.

I really liked Merrick’s relationship with his family and the way his feelings for Larkin changed and developed; from when Merrick accidentally awakened Larkin from his magical sleep, to Larkin interacting with Merrick’s family and present-day people, until the very end, when they had to work together to find a way to beat Ula Kana. The way they grew to trust and love each other was lovely to read as well.

For the ending - the way the plot points came together and they dealt with the biggest threat to their lives was very well developed, I think, but then the solutions between characters did feel a bit rushed. At some points I also had a hard time connecting with the characters’ feelings, and understanding how they were reacting to the world, despite them expressing through words often.

Overall it was a very fun book, and I’m excited to read more of this author! I’m glad I got the opportunity to read it.

Full review: https://fictionfixerreads.wordpress.com/2021/04/12/arc-review-lava-red-feather-blue/

I’d like to thank NetGalley for providing me with a free eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Lava Red, Feather Blue by Molly Ringle was a fun Sleeping Beauty retelling that explores the themes of agency, love in different forms, and determination even in the toughest of adventures. As a Sleeping Beauty retelling, it does reimagine a lot of the tale’s aspects and gives its Sleeping Prince more agency and dimension than its origins, and is definitely a lot more openminded and accepting of queer relationships. It builds a fantastical world that combines technology, politics, and magic in interesting ways. Merrick and Larkin’s dynamic was fun to read. It was even better to watch them grow individually and together, and I’m glad that both characters are on equal footing throughout their adventures. That said, Lava Red, Feather Blue suffered from a crawling pace due to extensive worldbuilding, in which some details mentioned didn’t impact the story as much as it should’ve. Its villain, Ula Kana, while having potential to be memorable, is lost in a forest of characters who were given more dimension and characterization than her–it’s a shame, because I really loved the initial motivation and concept for Ula Kana, but there wasn’t more to her.

Unfortunately I didn’t finish this book. The characters were forgettable.. and so was the plot. I didn’t think about this book when I put it down - I wasn’t engaged.

It took me a really long time to get into this one. I liked Larken and Merrick, but I just wasn’t into the story. There were quite a few characters that I had trouble keeping track of. I also usually really like a slow build romance, but I wasn’t that into this one. I felt like I was just waiting for the romance to pick up along with the story. I didn’t really get into the book until around 75%, which for me, is when the story really took off.

That’s why I chose three and a half stars rounded down. I have had plenty of stories pick up at the end and really turn it around and become awesome. This one certainly picked up, but I still wasn’t in love. I did enjoy the ending and how things turned out, but it wasn’t enough to become a great read for me.

I think it was mainly timing for me. I wanted things to be happening faster. By the time things picked up, it was too late for me to love it. And I wasn’t loving all the character mistakes that culminated into this story. With that being said, I think lots of people are going to really love this one. It just wasn’t for me. And that’s alright. I wanted to love it, but it just wasn’t for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Central Avenue Publishing for giving me the opportunity to read this book for my honest and unbiased opinion.

Good plot, refreshing relationships on this, good to see an all male protagonist and love interest in a fantasy book. The world building is really good and the characters are loveable. All round it’s a good read. Will definatly be interested to read more in this rich worldscape.

A book involving fae? Sign me up. In year 2020, Merrick accidentally releases Prince Larkin from a slumber he has been in since 1799, at the same time releasing faerie Ula Kana who hopes to eliminate humankind from the island. One of my favorite aspects of any fantasy book is analyzing how the author chooses to build or describe the world they created. Whether they choose to focus on geography, politics, magic systems, or any other aspect is so interesting to see. I think Molly Ringle expertly wove each of these elements of world building into Lava Red Feather Blue, and I am excited to see what she does next. The cherry on top of this book for me was the LGBTQ+ representation!!

I love a faery tale. But this is so much more than just that - yes, it's an adventurous story that takes us into the heart of the mystical fae realm, but it's also a modern story, a love story, a story of finding one's place in the world. It also regularly mentions homosexuality, bisexuality and non-binary very casually; as in, it's part of the story, but it's not the main story. It's just a piece of people's identity and lives, but it doesn't define them. I really like this way of including LGBTQ+ themes.
The book begins with a scene from 1799, where Prince Larkin is unwillingly put to sleep by a powerful witch. It's done in an attempt to bring peace to an island under attack from a vicious fire faery, Ula Kana. Skip to 2020, and we meet Merrick. He's a witch, but use of magic is strongly controlled in modern society. But, of course, Merrick still manages to get himself into a heck of a lot of trouble. And so he ends up hiding the Prince - awake, after over two centuries - and wreaking more than a little havoc. Thus the story begins, taking them to the palace and then through the realm of the fae, where they meet an array of characters, and come face to face with loss, death, and love.
This was a really enjoyable read. It's a little steamy at times, and while the romance in this book isn't forced, I wasn't 100% sold on it, to be honest. Still, it was a good book, and I'm glad I read it. 4 stars!

I received a free digital copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I will keep this short and sweet. It's a good book, easy read. I liked the characters but the plot was lackluster.

Thank you kindly to the author, the publisher, and NetGalley for this review copy.

I received a digital arc from netgalley in exchange for a review. I liked the novel a lot and look forward to seeing more from the author

This book had solid LGBTQ+ representation, which I think is very important in today's society. I enjoyed this book, but certain aspects did not feel fully developed to me. That being said, it was still a pretty decent read overall, and I would recommend it to others.