I love how so many things happened in the book. I could not keep myself from the book because it was so good

Big thanks to Elexis Bell and Netgalley for the eARC in exchange for a review.

Elairie is working in a prison, when Beluroan is arrested for stealing bread and brought into the prison. Right away, a connection forms and feel drawn to each other.

This book has the same feeling as The shadow wand series written by Laurie Forest, with the separation of the 'types' of fae and segregation and class system.
I'm giving it 3 stars, maybe could be 3.5.
It was a bit drawn out in some parts, and raced through other parts that felt more important. I imagine the second book will fill in most gaps.

Thank you #NetGalley for the advance reader copy, all opinions are my own.

I was excited to read this new fantasy romance. It did have a slow beginning, and it took a bit to understand where the story was going. I liked the magic system and the world building. I think the story idea in general felt refreshing and exciting. However, the execution could have been better. I still enjoyed the story for what it is and am excited to see what else Elexis Bell will write.

The main characters, Elairie and Beluroa have instant chemistry and with their lives destined to be intertwined, are tasked with making their way with danger following them to save the land from being enslaved from a villain that wants to use blood magic. Even though there is interesting adventure and romance, this book also covers heavy topics including depression, suicide, death, racism--so readers should read the content warnings before reading.

A Blessed Darkness is an adult fantasy "romance" and I put that in quotes because to me it was more lust than romance. It had a different magic system and elves than what I have read before which is always great when something is different. However, there were other parts that just didn't vibe with me and that is a me thing and I think it was because of the very rough ending. Overall, this was not my cup of tea.

A solid FOUR stars! A Blessed Darkness by Elixis Bell is a unique read and extremely hard to put down (I read it in one sitting). The book offered a different take on magic and elves and I thoroughly enjoyed the chemistry between Elairie and Beluroan. I can’t wait to see what comes next from Elixis Bell!

I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher.

This was so much more powerful than I thought it would be. From the start to the end, it didn't let go.

Main highlight of the book was Elairie and Beluroan's chemistry and it was so so hot. The whole plot and storyline was interesting and a good and different take on magic and elves. The writing was simple and it was easy to read.

The ending, aaah not what I was expecting but I think it was for the best. Also, the epilogue broke me and I'm so sad reading that.

A few things I would have liked to be different, I think although this book was a romantic one, there was just a whole lot of physical need and lust in the story. Like I would have preferred if it would have toned down a little. Also, the major climax felt a little rushed, and in stead of that a few other details could have been spared.

But nevertheless, this was a really really good fantasy read.

This is the first time I've ever read about elves like this, so it was a nice departure from whatever fantasy romances I've been reading before. Also if you're going to do something close to Insta-love, this is how you do it!
Things I really enjoyed:
-The Lore of the gods and their looking for every path
-The mutual pining
Things I would have liked done differently:
-Trigger warnings at the beginning
-A few more twists
-A more rounded out LGBTQ character
-A little more steam

Otherwise, this was a great read. I look forward to other books by Elexis Bell.

** Received a review copy.**
There were a lot of interesting elements in this book. However, it suffered from dragging in places where some info could have been curtailed only to speed through things that could have used more time.
The relationship had a lot of potential.

Absolutely beautiful read! Elexis wrote so amazing story. Love her writing style. I think the choice made by Elairie and Beluroan was the most sensible one of take all possibilities into consideration. I hope I'll have a chance to read more stories written by Elexis. Thank you for this great read.

⭐️⭐️⭐️
Unfortunately I found this book a little slow, and was hoping for more of a romance story, and didn’t enjoy the ending. The book could have used a better trigger warning prior to starting the book. The cover of the book is what drew me into requesting the arc. Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I really enjoyed the main characters in this book. A strong female mc is always a favorite. The story was interesting. It had some similarities to most fae style books, but enough differences to make it unique. The angst was just right. My only complaint is sometimes it felt like the story dragged. I was mostly captivated, but some chapters were hard to get through. Overall a great start though.

a blessed darkness

i really liked this book- for the most part.

the pacing of this book was amazing, and i LOVED the magic system and world building, even the characters were interesting and felt fully fledged out. My one main issue here, (hear me out!) i think, is that all the MCs seemed to think of was sex, and (without spoiling too much) for how little action they actually received in this book, it just didnt feel right to me lol.

thank you to netgalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for an honest review

I loveeeed this book. I loved the characters, I loved the story, I loved everything, well except the sad ending. Honestly though, there was no other way to end it. It was bittersweet. Thanks for letting me read this book. It was wonderful. I enjoyed every second of it.

(I will be posting on goodreads, tik tok, and storygraph)

A Blessed Darkness by Elexis Bell

Dark & Different…still thinking about the story….and how to review it.

Notes:
* Definitely a fantasy world predominately composed of Elves of various varieties at odds with one another
* Young twenty-ish aged male and female lead characters
* Chemistry is instant but grows slowly into more between the main characters
* There is a quest that the two must go on and hope to succeed in – to save many elves
* There is a Merlin-like sage to help the two learn and hone their skills
* There are God/esses pulling strings
* Evil is known and definitely a force to be reckoned with
* Torture, pain, abuse, mind control, blood magic, murder, and self-harm are explicit and could be a trigger for some
* The main action in the book takes place in the last third to fourth of the book
* At first I thought this would be a good book for young adult readers then thought maybe new adult when the couple coupled and then…wasn’t sure who it would be for without trigger warnings explicitly stated in the beginning of the book
* Rereading the ending…I know why it had to happen as it did but it did hit hard and play with my mind…
* It was a bit slow in the beginning
* I wonder if this is a prologue to a series for this fantasy world or meant to be a standalone book
* This was not what I expected. I loved a previous book by this author so gave this one a try.
* Would have liked a bit more world building, mythology-history of the fantasy world, and information about the characters
* This could have been a trilogy or series
* The author’s comment at the end was a good idea but still think the trigger warning should come before anyone decides to read this book.

Did I enjoy this book? Yes and No
Would I read more by this author? Yes

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for the ARC – This is my honest review.

3-4 Stars

Unlike most of my reviews, I'm keeping this one brief. I nearly stopped reading several times. The story sounded incredibly intriguing and I was excited to read it. However, the way it unfolded just could not hold my attention. I pushed through because I felt I owed it to myself to see it through.

Spoilers incoming:

I got to the end of the final battle, that readers were led to believe would be incredibly difficult and barely survivable. And it was over within a few pages, and only because they were toying with the "villain" and drawing it out. The tension and high stakes required in a climax weren't there.

And then, the "heroes" commit suicide together? Ending a book this way feels like a slap in the face. And there was not a single content/trigger warning anywhere to let readers know those themes would be in this story at all. A suicide scene, followed by a little authors note saying suicide isn't the answer feels really tone deaf.

When this book is published in the coming weeks, please, PLEASE put trigger warnings in the beginning of the book. Attempted sexual assault, sexual harassment, discussion of past sexual assaults, and suicide. Readers need to be warned before they choose to pick this novel up.

Let me just start by saying - I really wanted to like this book.

It started out promising. Very fast and very insta-lovey, but promising! I quickly liked the characters and was excited to see where their story was leading.

However, the author lost me pretty quickly. In general I found the book too long. I found it really slow from around the 20% mark and found myself feeling like I read a lot of words without any real meaning. The characters ended up falling flat and so did the plot. The writing itself was fine and even lyrical at some points, but the story itself had no build-up and just didn't really end up making much sense to me. Stuff kept happening, new people showed up and new information was introduced, but it never really ended up feeling like a comprehensive story.

The ending/climax was sadly rushed as well. I didn't mind the somewhat controversial parts of the ending, but I wish it would have been executed differently.

Overall, I liked this book. If you are expecting a high fantasy or a romance, this is neither. It's something between. This is more of a tragedy in a fantasy setting. Readers, please check trigger warnings.
I thought the author did a good job of portraying the newness in relationships. I stopped myself and legit thought, "Wow this is definitely a new relationship," at several points in the book. It really reminds me of when you're young and fall in love for the first time and it makes you feel it while reading. If you like the fantasy setting, but don't love world-building, I would pick this book up. It's a dual POV, fast-paced with tension, and kept me reading.
Personally, I'd prefer a little more world-building. I also wish there was a little more to the characters. There are some topics that feel like they were just resolved because of the bond between the characters. Because this book is so fast-paced, the details that lead to significant character development aren't there. There's definitely character development, it just jumps very very quickly. I also found myself wanting more out of the magic system. I did not anticipate the ending until maybe the last 100 pages or so, and I still don't know how I feel about it two days later.

Thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for letting me review this DRC. This was a DNF for me. I got to the 10% marker. Here's why: I have to lead with the names. I understand wanting great and unique names for elves, but these names made me sit and try to phonetically sound them out repeatedly only to give up and carry on. This alone added to my disconnect with the characters. The start of the book is jumpy and hard to follow. I'm not sure who I'm supposed to be focusing on and everyone seems very one-dimensional. The following 2 chapters that introduce the actual main characters also leaves me feeling disconnected from the entire story. I don't really understand how the FMC has immediate affection for the man in the jail. I feel like this story needs a bit more development and it could have some better flow. I won't be posting a review for this on my social media as I don't like to bad mouth authors who legitimately have put in the effort for their work, which I feel like this author has a great story to tell, but might need a little more work getting there. I applaud their effort and wish for them to keep practicing their craft because there is a LOT of potential here.