Member Reviews
Following where we left off in Lakesedge, Violeta is now with Lord Under. If, like me, you have a thing for villains and constantly root for them to win the girl, then Lakesedge had you gripping your seat in anticipation for the release of Forestfall.
I will not tell you if we got what we wanted. What I will say is that Lyndall Clipstone is an incredible writer. After the first book, some authors tend to leave the world building behind and focus solely on the characters. That’s not what happens here. Lyndall only expands the world that she had already created and with such vivid imagery I at times forgot I was even reading a book.
Loved this finale to the duology and think that you will to.
In this direct sequel to Lakesedge, we follow Violeta as she tries to make her way back to her found family while also dealing with the Lord Under and how their bargain changed everyone's lives.
I was highly anticipating Forestfall after finishing and loving Lakesedge, but unfortunately, I felt disconnected from it. I can't quite place my finger on why, but I was a little bored and not super interested in most of what Violeta went through. I loved Rowan's chapters and the desperation he felt to get Violeta back, but her chapters had me feeling annoyed often, especially when it came to the love triangle. The ending was great and just what all of the characters deserved, but the build-up to it was a little slow and dragged on at times. I loved Lakesedge; this book just wasn't my favorite!
Thanks to NetGalley and Henry Holt and Co. for the ARC of Forestfall by Lyndall Clipstone.
Loved the ending to this dark, romantic duology. The Hades and Persephone vibes were stunning and the building complexity between the MC and the Lord Under.
Love this book!!! Devoured the series. Lyndall’s prose is haunting and beautiful and I love these characters so much.
"There are monsters, and there are monsters : There’s a boy who was cursed and a creature who rules the dead."
I was looking forward to the continuation of Lakesedge last year and was excited to read the conclusion to this duology. We meet again Leta, Rowan and the Lord Under, exploring deeper into their connection.
If you enjoy a story within a dark forest, where different gods rule under, where monsters lurk in the dark, wild magic is set free and you are allured to a hades & persephone like romance, then this is the book for you.
Thank you @tbrbeyondtours & @lkclipstone for the opportunity to participate on this book tour.
#TBRBeyondTours #Forestfall #LyndallClipstone #darkforestaesthetic
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of Forestfall. I found Lakesedge while browsing around Barnes and Noble one day, enjoyed it, and was excited to see a sequel come out so quickly after I read the first. The pacing in this one wasn't as gripping as the first. I wasn't hooked the same way I was with Lakesedge.
I really liked Lakesedge and was excited for the sequel. It fell a little short for me. Part of it is that I don't really enjoy books where the main characters are separated for the majority of the book. I know that they were able to meet occasionally through their thread link, but mostly Rowan spent the majority of the book trying to get to Leta, and while Leta was trying hard to get back to Rowan, she was also intrigued by the Lord Under and his world.
I am a fan of more dark, gothic books, and this book definitely met those expectations. While the plot line felt slow, it was intriguing enough for me to finish the book. There was a little bit of a love triangle, but I wouldn't say it was a true one.
I ended up really liking how the story wrapped up. It isn't my favorite duology, but I think if you liked the first book, it's worth finding out how the story ends.
This won’t hold the Ya audience, but it may hold the attention of adults that are interested in Ya.
The world building is great, and the characters are interesting. It just takes too long to get into the story.
I loved this sequel!! It was slow but in the best way. The pace ratcheted up the tension and raised the stakes. Very happy with the ending to this duology and cannot wait to see more work from this author!
I sometimes struggle with duologies, and unfortunately, I did struggle with FORESTFALL, probably because I loved LAKESEDGE so so much. It almost felt like LAKESEDGE could've been a longer book and been a standalone with the same effect. (I read it before release but forgot to add a review until now.)
If you love books with dark, gothic, romantasy, strange, and unusual themes. This is for you. I personally really enjoyed LakesEdge. These books won't be for everyone but specific audiences. I couldn't wait to read Forestfall! This sequel did not disappoint me. This book went in a direction similar to underworld lore. Very Hades and Persephone vibes. So a little different from book 1 but still fantastic.
*thank you netgalley for an arc.
Didn't finish in time to review before release. But I adored this book.
Lyndall captures that dark vibe so well.
I wasn't able to put this down.
I will definitely be reading everything she writes.
I enjoyed both of the books in this series! I just wished the plot had moved faster in this second book. In the first book, things moved very quickly!! One thing I've realized is that I'm kind of get tired of love triangles. This book would probably be enjoyed mainly by tweens and teens.
I really liked the first book so it disappoints me to say Forestfall just wasn’t for me. I wish i had a better idea of why, but I was just pretty bored and not invested.
(3.75 rounded up)
I really enjoyed the first book, Lakesedge, in this series and I was really looking forward to the sequel.
I received an e ARC for this before it's release and I ended up buying my own copy after release as well.
First things first, I did enjoy this book and would recommend for those who enjoyed the first in the series.
This book has more of the dark fairytale feel that the first one has. The sentences are beautiful and lyrical. The descriptions of the world Below were very well done. I felt like the first part of the book contained a lot of filler and repetitive scenes, which were probably unnecessary.
I was disappointed to see that the side characters only got a little more story in this one. I was also confused as to how exactly the Lord Under came to suddenly have feelings for Leta. It almost seemed to come from nowhere. Her love for him was also confusing. Especially after he'd hurt her and Rowan, tricked her, used her, etc. The relationship between the Lord Under and Leta needed a bit more fine tuning. I don't think the love triangle was necessary at all.
The pace picks up toward the end of the book. I liked where the story ended, besides the connection to the Lord Under.
Overall, this was a good read. It just might have been better without the love triangle.
Thank you to the author for providing ARC.
Although I do wish that this series would go a little darker it was a great story. I loved how this one ended and I would love to see more books set in this world. The writing in this one was a little off at times but not enough to make me want to stop reading it. Just know that it does get a little stilted at times. The characters were spot on and I loved learning more about each of them. The ending was great and I need more.
Thank you for the ARC in return for an honest review .
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Forestfall starts where LakesEdge left off . Violetta , or Leta , is now stuck in the underworld with the Lorn Under . Hoping to get back and save her brother , Rowan , and everyone in the above .
While everyone thinks Leta is gone and dead , Rowan and Leta are able to still communicate with one another . So naturally Rowan is not giving up on Leta and will do whatever it takes to get her back . We come across a sort of love triangle between the 3 characters , magical tales and creatures .
I enjoyed this one and would recommend reading for anyone who wanted a monstrous love interest , gothic / dark setting and bittersweet endings .
The perfect sequel to this haunting duology!! Lyndall created such a gorgeously dark and ethereal world, and getting to explore more of it was an absolute delight. By the end I almost didn’t know which character I loved most, and though I was sad to see it end she wrapped up this story perfectly. Just as in book one, her representation of casual queerness was both wonderful and refreshing, and her love story left my heart aching in all the best ways. The perfect end to a gorgeous duology for anyone craving a hauntingly atmospheric dark fantasy romance.
I LOVED the first book in the series, Lakesedge and was so excited to read this one, but Forestfall just didn’t work for me. I wish there was a little more of a recap about what happened in book 1. I did enjoy getting to know Lord Under more.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher MacMillan Children’s Publishing Group for this digital arc in exchange for my honest review which is not affiliated with any brand.
I enjoyed it, not as much as the first book though.
Also, YA books should not have open door sex scenes.
*Thank you to the publisher for this eARC