This was the perfect blend of our world and Greek Myth. I loved the characters and couldn't put this one down. Although parts did seem a little thing and confusing but overall I can not wait for the next one. I think fantasy and contemporary lovers will die head first into this story and not come up for air until they are done!

Actual Rating: 4.5 out of 5


First of all, WHY AREN’T MORE PEOPLE TALKING ABOUT THIS BOOK?

I was just browsing through NetGalley and I saw the beautiful cover of this book, I just had to check it out. The description provided on NetGalley made me think this would be a familiar plot and I’m usually interested in this kind of stories, so I decided to read it.

I’m here to tell you that you shouldn’t think Faye and the Ether would be just like other fantasy books because of the book description. This book is a great example of why I love fantasy: you can always find something unique in each fantasy book. I thought this is going to be another “normal person finds out they are not who they thought they were and then gets tossed into the world of the usual magical worlds” book. I was wrong!! Faye and the Ether tells you a story about beings that are not usually given attention to. Sure, it’s related to Greek Mythology. But it’s in a totally different way!!! I really liked reading about the world of the Ether and every being connected to it, it’s like I’m learning about them as Faye learns about them, too.

Let’s talk a little bit about the romance. THE ROMANCE. It came out of nowhere, but I loved it so much!!!! I really did not expect what happened. When it happened, I was thinking, “Oh right, THAT’S WHY!!” I was legit screaming because of everything, and I couldn’t put the book down!! I NEED a twist as amazing and scream worthy in my life as this one has.

This is the last book I’m reading for 2020 and what a great book it is!

This book really had a lot of potential, but sadly, the execution wasn't all that good.

The story is told through voices of Faye and Daron and we follow them through their adventures in Ether, a land where all the mythical creatures dwell.

Now, first 50% of the book were really enjoyable - Faye discovers that she is of the Ether and she goes to the new land with Daron on a mission to stop/win the war that endangers both Ether and the human world.

The problems with the plot start when the LGBT relationship is brought in the picture.
Honestly, I have nothing against LGBT relationships in books, but I have a lot against them when they change the course of the whole book. And I also have a problem with them when they are introduced out of nowhere.
We haven't had a single hint or a scene where the two characters might show any interest in each other. And then, all of a sudden, they can't live without each other and they are, excuse ME, destined for each other or whatever.

Okay, I could swallow that, no problem. People fall in love out of nowhere all of the time.
But then their relationship takes the stage and becomes the main point of the book. The war (that we know very little about; I can safely say that I'm not even sure what the whole war was about and I'm not sure the author knew it either) is completely forgotten, and now we have something like a civil war just because a leader's child couldn't mate with another person of high status, or whatever.

And THEN, the previous war is somehow mixed with this stupid Revenge of the Rejected, but if you ask me how the hell Faye turned it all around, how did the good guys win, or what happened to the bad guys - I can't tell you. It was all just so, SO sloppy and mixed up, and just so rushed.

I have no intention of sounding rude, narrow-minded, or like I want to exclude any<i>one</i> or any<i>thing</i> but this could have been such a good book if the LGBT relationship wasn't added just for the sake of having one in the book.
ACTUALLY, it might have been so much better if it was added just for the sake of having one in the book without giving it a place in the front row.

Also, I am certain that the author had no intention of being racist or anything, and the mess could have been avoided with just one more read on the author's side (or more attention on the editor's side), but there is a thing that was just beyond horrible.
Somewhere in the first part of the book Faye asks one of her fellow warriors what is her type. And the fellow companion says that it is rude to ask one's type, because types in Ether are just like races in the human world, and we know that it is not polite to ask someone "Excuse me, what race are you?"
BUT THEN, when the two characters admit their love for each other and they talk about it, we have this sentence:
"... a bird type raised me and I'm in love with a bird type, as far as I'm concerned, this is forever for me..."
Which would be almost like "my parents are Caucasians, and so I can love only a Caucasian person"
WTF Nicole!???

There are several more inconsistencies, but I'm too tired of them to point them all out.

As for the writing style, it was okay (pretty nice, even) until it all got so jumbled up towards the end.

However, I didn't see the point of own voices in this story because we learned nothing of neither Daron nor Faye's inner world from that. Additionally, one chapter is told by Daron, the second one by Faye, the third one by Daron again, and so on. This pre-established idea of who should tell the story next got in the way of story itself. Many chapters were told by Faye when it was clearly Daron's story to tell and vice versa. It made no sense.

Finally, the additional chapter was beyond useless and I really didn't see the point behind in apart from getting subscribers to the mailing list. Which is just not good quality work.

Also, who the fuck arranges a date in 3 weeks!?!??

I won't lie, I liked this book for the most part. But the ending was just so rushed and messy, and I'm giving this book 3 stars just because I think it has potential. I'm not sure if this is Nicole's first book, but if it is, I am sure that she will only get better because the story was engaging and the writing style was solid. It just needed a little more time and a few more revisions.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for allowing me to review this book.

Faye loves the ocean more than anything. In her senior year of high school, she is looking to the future and the possibility of college. When she meets Daron, a new student, she doesn't know the world as she knows it will be turned upside down.

I quite enjoyed this book. The setting is lovely the characters are good, and I loved that there is a gay romance. Representation is important, and in a novel about groups of different creatures coming together, this lesson plays heavily. I enjoyed a new twist on mythology, and found the retellings interesting.

This book blends mythology and humanity together well. the flow is good and it reads easily and quickly. Before the reader knows it, he or she is absorbed into the story, which is always a good thing. This seems to be the first in a series, and I can't wait to see what happens next as the story unfolds.

Faye thought that the most difficult choice she’d need to make would be about college applications. Instead, her world changes overnight when a mysterious new student appears. Faye learns that there’s a world called the Ether, filled with mythological creatures. When the new student is revealed to be a magical protector searching for her, Faye discovers that she has a place in this magical world. But before she can adjust, Faye must quickly learn to use magic before a power-hungry villain causes chaos.

In Faye and the Ether, well-known myths and creatures we assume we know are creatively re-imagined. Mythological politics, power plays, and magical lessons create a compelling story. Faye’s struggle to adapt to the magical world was very relatable and I enjoyed seeing her form connections with a wide cast of characters! I absolutely love that there were selkies in this story; I hope we see more of them. I would recommend this if you’re seeking YA featuring magical adventures, mythological creatures, and LGBTQ rep. This was a very fun adventure and I’m looking forward to seeing how it continues! Faye and the Ether is out now! Thank you to Nicole Bailey, BooksGoSocial, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks, Netgalley for the copy of this book in exchange for my thoughts and ramblings.

STORY ★★★★☆ - As soon as I read the blurb for this book I thought it seemed interesting and I was confident that I would enjoy it. I love anything magical, mythical and otherworldly so it definitely seemed like it would be right up my street and it did not disappoint! Faye and the Ether is the story of a girl called Faye who has always been drawn to the water (the ocean in particular but a swimming pool will do in a pinch!) who meets an Ether named Daron and her world is turned upside down. Faye needs to find her place in this new world, master her powers and decide whether or not she wants to be part of the war that she is fated to turn the tide of.

CHARACTERS ★★★☆☆ This is a pretty short book and I feel like because of that there really isn't a huge amount of development so this was a bit of a failure for me as I really do love a well fleshed-out character. What I do really like though is the variety of different types of characters, particularly types not usually seen in these types of books. You'll meet Centaurs and Griffins and various other races. There is also lots of magic, who doesn't love magic? Every race masters a different type of magic. There is air, water, fire and earth

WORLD ★★★☆☆ Another interesting concept in this book is the worlds. So obviously you have the human world, dull and boring and very much the world we all know. Then you have The Ether, which is where the creatures, races and legends of myth live. The Ether is vibrant, colourful and peaceful. The Ether will provide anyone with basic essentials like food and clothing. It simply just appears, you pull it from The Ether as it were. This I found to be an interesting concept but I would have really liked more information about how this worked as it just seemed to be something that was like, "okay so this is how it is, and that's that". You can't pull just anything from The Ether though so no pulling out weapons or other "non-essentials".

ENDING ★★★★★ The ending was the best part of this book (and that doesn't mean the book was so bad that I was glad to finish it!) At about 70% the book really found its feet and the pace was brilliant right through to the end with quite a lot of tense and dangerous moments for the characters. It was a bit of a rollercoaster and then when it was done I just thought wow, I really need to get my hands on the next book to see how this all works out. I wouldn't say it ends on a cliffhanger or anything but there is definitely more to see in the Ether and I am looking forward to reading it.

OVERALL ★★★★☆ I think I have summed up my thoughts and pretty much covered everything in the previous sections. The only other thing I would like to mention is the romantic relationships in this book. I will not go into detail and spoil this for potential readers but it was a surprise and it was a very refreshing change of pace for the book heroine not to fall immediately and crazily in love with the male lead.

**Thank you Netgalley and publisher for giving me an electronic ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.**

I was totally expecting Daron and Faye to be together because that's the trope, but I'm very happy that it wasn't the case! It was so exciting and I love the magic and the world. It was so beautiful.

Faye is tossed into a current of uncertainty as she deliberates over her college choices. More than anything she wants to study by the sea, forever chasing the line where the ocean meets the horizon. Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book. This was a great book to read.

Faye and the Ether grabbed my attention right from the first line - and the fantastical mystery didn't stop the whole way through. I was transported to a glimmering world of magic and darkness that Faye and Daron had to wade through, Faye was an exceptionally loveable and curious character right from the start and following her on her journey to stop the dangers facing the world was a pleasure.
Delving into mythology, this book gave it's own unique spin on a lot of classic tropes we've all grown to know and love.
It was a wonderful fantasy, but also a beautiful coming-of-age story all wrapped into one.

**Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an ARC of this title in exchange for a fair and honest review**

An interesting combination of different folklore and a relief to have a strong lead female character who doesn't immediately fall in love with the lead male character.

I'll look out for further titles in the series.

The story is very imaginative, but not hard to follow along with. It’s a classic fantasy book about the main character (Faye) being unaware of their magical abilities until the other character (Daron) comes along and introduces them to a whole new and wonderful world. This new world is often in jeopardy and the main character is usually the key to saving the fate of the second character’s way of life or magic system.

This book is all of those things, however... YOU SIMPLY MUST READ THIS BOOK!

First of all, Faye and Daron are beings that aren’t commonly written about in the fantasy genre, and are definitely not the usual type of beings that are written as a main characters (there’s no stories that I’ve read to say the least), but Nicole Bailey just proved to me that there should be so much more of this kind of content!

Second, alongside this wonderful exposure to creatures that I didn’t know all that much about, the book also has some really fascinating twists and different approaches to some more commonly known myths/ folklore.

Third, the characters are beautifully developed and are so multi-layered that they feel real and familiar to me. I loved that Nicole didn’t let the characters shy away from their negative emotions, and was realistic about how they responded to different situations and challenges, but also kept their responses so true to each individual personality.

I wanted to remain in the fantasy genre, but I was looking for something to read that was out of my comfort zone so that I could broaden my horizons as a reader a little more, and I’m so glad I found a home with Faye and the Ether.

The cover of this book is simply stunning. Faye’s journey continues further in Nicole’s next book, Faye and the City in the Sea!

Faye and the Ether is a coming of age fantasy story, in which a girl named Faye is whisked away to a magical land called Ether, where she learns that she has powers she never could have dreamed of.
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I really enjoyed this book! The world building was wonderful, and it was easy enough to understand that I was engrossed in the story after 20 or so pages!
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The characters were wonderful, and I will protect Faye and Alec with everything I have.
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The story did seem a little bit rushed at the end though. There is only 300 or so pages, and in the last 100 a lot happened, and most of it was mentioned in a very off-hand way. It almost seems like there was supposed to be 50 more pages added.
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Other than though, I felt that this was truly a hidden gem, and I don’t know why people aren’t talking about it! I cannot wait to dive (get it??) into book 2!
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Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

Thank you for allowing me to read the arc for this book.

I found it quite an enjoyable read. It is loosely based around Greek mythology which is something I am coming to enjoy reading about. I love a good fantasy read and I would say that this is a low fantasy which still makes it enjoyable.

The Ether is an alterative world to ours and Faye is thrust into a battle to save both worlds. The descriptive writing in this allows for some really captivating imagery and the multiple point of views introduced perspective from more than one angle.

It really is an enjoyable read and I hope to be able to read the second in the series soon.

Will be listed on Goodreads, my blog and amazon.

"Faye and the Ether" is a fantasy book centered around a girl named Faye who always felt like she belonged to the sea, and she eventually finds out that she was raised as a human, but was born from the water. Upon finding this out, she is urged to stay away from various mythical creatures in a group called the Ether, which the other main character (Daron) is a leader of. Over the course of the story, Faye finds her place among these creatures and learns to uncover and harness the powers she has.

I was very intrigued by the plot and the characters, and the story overall had me entertained throughout, I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a new fantasy read.