Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this arc.

This was a fun read. I enjoyed the characters. It wasn’t too heavy, which was nice for a change. I’d give is a 3.5.

The idea was cool. There was 0 execution though. No world building, things happen that were simply convient and never hinted at, brought up, or even the concept brought up before. The writting was poor, my mind wandered during times that were supposed to be intense and climatic. Things didn't make sense and the pacing was so off, they go on about 4 different journeys/trips in a book under 400 pages. I had such high hopes for this one being Irish folklore inspired, viking vibes, fantasy romance, bog monsters, etc and simply nothing delivered.

“It’s been you and me since that moment in the meadow, and that won’t be changing.”

I enjoyed this book, the word building was amazing and I had a great time reading it but unfortunately that’s all.
I don’t really have any strong feelings towards the characters or the story, I felt like things happened but at the same time nothing important happened. The huge thing in the book was the politics which I didn’t really liked reading about. I haven’t felt any chemistry between Willa and Dempsey at all unfortunately.
Overall I think this was a great book, nothing special but I don’t regret reading it and I can imagine maybe someone would love it.

Thank you to @netgalley and the publisher for providing me an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

HOLY WHAT!!! What a well written book. I sat down to read this one and the next time I looked up, it was over. I got completely lost in this novel and I have been telling everyone I know they need to read it!

Thank you to Netgalley and Lake Country Press for a free review copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Soft DNFing this one at 50%.

This book follows Willa, a clan leader’s daughter with prophetic/seer like powers who has a chance encounter with another clan leader’s son who she is immediately attracted to. Together, they discover an impending doom on their clans, but there are two issues to this love story: it’s very unlikely they can convince their parents to cooperate and, oops, she’s already betrothed.

The aesthetic and vibes Merdalo was going for in this book were my exact taste and that was stellar! It was very much Bash and Mary from Reign (the intro season felt like a replay of the series premiere) mixed with perhaps a little bit of ACOTAR? I really enjoyed a story inspired by Ireland as well and have no complaints about the writing!

This book isn’t what I’d call a fast burn, but it seemed like love at first sight, and that’s just a specific trope I don’t love out of personal taste, so I didn’t really care about the romance. I also struggled with Willow’s POV because she’d tell us things like how ruthless her father was or how cruel her betrothed was, but then what would be shown to us felt much less drastic (her father being really chill most of the time and the fiancé getting annoyed that she seemed into someone else?). I didn’t notice this really in Dempsey’s POV so this could just be part of Willow’s personality to sort of?? See people negatively, especially since she seemed to think badly of her sister and herself and be suspicious of the love interest.

I rated this three stars for now for “I liked it!” As there was not anything I hated and that’s what I think my rating would be if I finished it. I’ve been in a slump due to another book right before this one, so I think if I want to finish it, I should give it another try when I’m in a better reading mood! I will update the rating if I finish it and feel differently.

This is a big soft dnf for me right now. I want to love this book, the whole background for it should be a recipe for my love. In this time though I will be putting it down. It was not sparking my interest and I was bored everytime I picked it up. I will absolutely come back to the finished copy. This is a for now DNF at 25%

My rating is based on the enjoyment I did feel and how I honestly felt I should rate the part that I did read.

I loved the writing style and the world-building, I was a little disapointed coming into the middle half of the book and started losing interest. I felt it was a bit rushed and too many plot holes.

overall i gave this a 3.5 star rating.

This book definitely ticks a lot of boxes, political ✅ romance ✅ forbidden love ✅ characters with powers ✅ Irish lore ✅

There’s a lot of good in this book, the characters are strong and well written, the romance draws you in and you’re rooting for it, the magic system is pretty cool and it’s a relatively easy read. However i do wish some of the scenes were given the time they deserved as some seemed sped through but overall a good new fantasy romance!

This book had a compelling plot and the characters were well developed. Some of the plot elements felt predictable, but overall it was a great read. 3.5 stars.

I received an eARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

3.5 ⭐ rounded u to 4
The book had a very strong start and I loved it, but it did end fast and I was a little bit disappointed by the end. There is a strong line in the story about family that connects the beginning and the end of the book, and the variety of emotions that different kinds of families bring,. I love that part of the book.

The story picked up from the first chapter, was very intriguing and set a lot of questions that I needed an answer for. We dive right into world-building with descriptions of their traditions and it is so interesting.
I love love love the writing style. I was only a couple of chapters in and my eyes were filled with tears. The scene setting is so wonderfully set, everything aiming for that emotion that wraps up the chapter and keeps you reading.
The wedding scene...beautiful, once again, with great world-building.

Willa, the main character, is a grumpy powerful heroine that's refusing her power, keeps all her thoughts to herself, choosing not to open up to her family, and it is such a lonely feeling. It takes the arrival of someone from the other clan for her to realize that she doesn't have to settle with the decisions that others made for her and to open up her heart and start listening to what she wants.

Callan is a lost soul who lost his identity in this whole "last people of the Clan" thing. It is a strange relationship with Willa, a childhood adventure that was misunderstood as the love of lovers but turned out to be just a cage for both of them.

As for Dempsey, I love the two sides of him that we see at the beginning. The soft, gentle side with Willa and the firm and commanding attitude with Callan. Willa and Dempsey have such a gentle growing connection with a lot of understanding and appreciation in both ways and cute banter between them.

The problem that I had with this book is the plot twists. They would show up in a chapter, wrap it up and that was it, in the next chapter we move on. Not a lot of attention to them, they were just there to change the course of the story. The problem that would be brought up within the scene, raised a lot of questions and connections that needed to be presented so that the certain plot twist would happen, but they were not addressed at all. Something just happened and we will leave it behind, not deal with it, not deal with the trauma that that has occurred, not deal with the people that must have been involved in the plotting against the main characters. They were important to the story, yes, and I do get that the accent was on character development, but that fast pace with the plot twist kinda suffocated the story.
<spoiler>It kinda lost my interest in the second part of the book. The first part was perfectly paced but at the breaking point of Callan's death, the story got rushed, leaving some parts just scraped where I feel there was a lot more to be said. I was quite annoyed to see Callan's character end like that. I was looking forward to some better development of Callan and Willa's story and maybe a strong dialog that would end the things between them giving Willa a chance to get with Dempsey. I feel that Callan's character's death ended things so conveniently for Willa and Dempsey.
I am not standing on his side. A lot more should have been said on that part.
Willa`s and Dempsey's connection was evident but it was just rushed at that point. Everything felt too convenient.
At some point, Dempsey died and the question regarding his return (because of course he will return) was resolved in the shortest chapter ever and with only one casual conversation with the gods. Just rushed...</spoiler>

Overall I loved the writing style and the world-building. It was the plot that had some holes in it and it felt untold in some parts, but this is a book that I would recommend, and will read the next one.

3.5 upped to 4
There's a lot of potential in this story, there's an intriguing world building and interesting characters.
The plot not always flows and sometimes it drags a bit.
Many thanks to the publisher for this arc, all opinions are mine

I loved this book so much I've scared it on my Facebook and in groups it's so good and so worth the read I read it all in a sitting and could not put it down

Oh my, I am so invested in this story and hope there is more to come!
There is an arranged marriage, family drama, betrayals, fighting for love, your island and people!
Great debut novel!
Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC

ARC Review* Thank you Netgalley for providing me with a copy of the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I will be posting this on Amazon when the book releases!

Let's talk about this! I'll start off by saying the premise of this book was what drew me in. The promise of epic fantasy based on Irish folklore and history. The story is set on the Isle of Eiram, where three clans are amidst an outbreak of war with the Sectarians, a group that invaded and slaughtered the fourth clan that left them scattered across the remaining clans. The main character, Willow - or Willa-from the Forest Clan, has the gift of foresight and is the portal to the gods. However, Willa isn't happy in her life. She is betrothed to Callan of the Clan o' Cliffs since before birth, and the two never seem to grow feelings for each other. Willa is constantly backed into a corner and coddled, and feels like her life is going nowhere and constantly ignores the visions the gods have granted her. This changes when she meets Dempsey, a warrior and heir to the Mountain Clan.

It is this first meeting that drew me into the storyline with the promise of forbidden love and adventure. It is Dempsey's nature with Tadpole (his very cute wolf hound) and sweet encounters with Willow that truly made me continue reading. While it did deliver with adventure and romance, the aspect of political dilemmas far overshadow the plot and I couldn't help but feel the writing was a tad bit blunted when it came to things.

There are instances where Willow is experiencing some emotional turmoil on the inside but the writing does not convey those feelings to the reader. Certain events also have no build up or tension and rather resolve too quickly without conflict. I think as a reader of fantasy, especially epic fantasy, there needs to be conflict and tension in the steps to resolution, it allows the reader to experience the complete character ARC. I felt Willow's ARC felt incomplete, this was my main issue.

It was a great story and I loved reading about all the gods and goddesses. It wasn't for me but doesn't mean that it wont be for you!

A refreshing fantasy romance inspired by Irish lore. It has a compelling plot, unique monsters, the perfect amount of spice, and characters you will both love and love to hate.

This was a really cool book that has a lot of world building and action. I liked the steamy romance between Willa and Dempsy. I wish there were some more in depth explanations of the gods and fae. Based on the ending it seems like it could possibly be a series so I am hoping that happens so we can get some more info!

Reign of Clans and Gods offers so much adventure and intrigue that I didn't want the story to end.

Inspired by Irish folklore, daughters and sons of the three clans of the island, Eiram, live to see the mistakes of their parent's generation emerge as a disturbance in the magic of the land and the resurgence of their invader enemies.

Willa is the second daughter of the Forest Clan. Although she is touched by the gods with the gift of prophetic dreams, her family relegates her as their spare and betroths her at a young age to secure clan allies. While her life is planned to serve, the gods and magic of the land will work its ways to ensure Willa exerts the strength and voice she has kept hidden for far too long.

Dempsey is the only son of the Clan Amongst the Rivers. He may curse his misbehaving wolfhound for dragging him into a kill-or-be-killed faceoff with a starving Faodlah, but he is also blessed with his chance encounter with Willa. The attraction between the two may be instant but the love is forbidden while Willa is promised to another.

The two will represent their clans in search of Oracles, in espionage missions against the island's enemy, and in tests of very soul that will change the course of the future.

I loved the world of Reign of Clans and Gods. As old as the time of Willa & Dempsey is, I really got the sense that the world's history is deeper and richer than what could be fit onto the pages.

The lure for me here was the promise of fantasy and romance, however it was the story's intrigue and adventure that kept me turning pages. Secrets and choices with significant consequences provided Willa and Dempsey quite a bit more to do than just pine for eachother.

A critical note though is regarding the depiction of Callan, Willa's betrothed. His introduction is first that of an immigrant out of place looking for evey opportunity to prove his worth. An early scene has Willa, her sister, and mother all react with exasperation and annoyance to his presence though he literally only asked if he could help with wedding prep and didn't pick up on their sarcastic remarks. Alright, so maybe hes passive and a bit dense? Not so. Later, theres a shift in Callan's depiction from both Dempsey and Willa's point of view, to that of arrogance, calculating, and possessive. This discrepancy within the first few chapters didn't give me a single faithful perception of who Callan was.

There was also some early confusion caused by the choice to regularly refer to Willa's parents by their names (Brigid/mother & Viktor/father). I honestly thought mother & father, Brigid & Viktor were all unique characters due to the choice to have Willa think of them by their given names and also casually as mother and father.

Bonus points are awarded in full for the inclusion of a pronunciation guide and map. This will always elevate the reading experience.

I am very much invested in this world and hope to see either a true sequel or more story following any one of the supporting cast. Maybe at least a novella, as there was a tease of a possible future adorable stealthy squirrel messenger service.

My thanks to Lake Country Press for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you NetGalley for a chance to read Reign of Clans and Gods.

I loved this book. I couldn’t put it down once I started it (I read this in a few hours). This book is written well, and there’s excellent character development and world building (but I wish there had been a little more about the gods and fae). The premise of this book is unique, there’s magic, visions from gods, there’s witches, warriors, clans uniting as one against an enemy, BETRAYAL(s), and a steamy love story. Really all you could ask for in a fantasy romance. I’m hoping this is a series based on how it ended, and I can’t wait to read more from this author.

3.5✨

Reign of Clans and Gods follows Willa, the youngest daughter of the leader of the Forest Clan on a mythical isle of warring clans. Willa has the power of foresight and communication with the gods, and she’s in an arranged engagement to one of the men from a now nonexistent clan. On the night of her sister’s wedding, she runs into the handsome stranger, Dempsey, from the Clan of Many Rivers, and forbidden love blooms set against the backdrop of political games and the threat of war.

Willa’s character development was so great. While she starts off as powerful, her lack of confidence in herself is what’s truly holding her back. And she begins to accomplish her goals and grow in her strength, she becomes as strong as a queen.

The world building was really great in this book. I haven’t read a lot of Irish folklore-inspired fantasy before, so the new take on fates, gods, and prophecies was really enjoyable. The setting and conflict reminded me a little bit of the Bridge Kingdom, with the warring kingdoms and love story.

The romance was good. Because Willa was engaged, I wasn’t sure how her and Dempsey were going to get together. Let’s just say it’s climatic and epic af.

I did feel like this book was entirely flushed out. It felt like it was missing something. I want more of the conflict and more of the gods and MENTIONED fae. The fae are brought up so often, but all the characters are human. I wish we saw more of that. While Willa did have some character growth, I feel like she could have developed more too. There were plot twists, but they felt somewhat predictable. Overall it was still an enjoyable read!

Thank you Netgalley and Lake Country Press & Review for this arc! You can read this when it comes out on November 2nd, 2022!