Thank you to NetGalley & Claire Wright, and BooksGoSocial for providing the ARC.

I love Ireland and fairy lore and thought the premise of the book sounded interesting. I like the storyline and the mystery but spent most of the book confused. I am used to a LOT of worldbuilding in the first book of a series. This book made me feel like I was dropped into the story halfway through? I would have liked more background on the Fianna, the main characters, and how the worlds were divided. I needed more information on why the clans have split the way they have and how the characters' personalities were shaped by their earlier years. Maybe that information will be revealed in further installments of the series.

I think the story has promise and I don’t regret spending the time to read the book, but don't know that I am invested enough to read what comes next.

So, I'm not sure how to start sharing my thoughts about this book as they're a bit all over the place, but in an attempt to sum them up:

- There were 4 PoVs (Aisling, Tiernan, Setante and Maebh) which felt like at least like one too many. In fact I think 2 PoVs would've been fine.
- The book seemed to lose its pacing from 15-70%
- The premise was super intriguing (it's set in Ireland and has to do with Fianna and the Fae/Fair Ones!) and I thought it seemed well-researched
- My archnemesis, the insta-love trope, unfortunately (at least kind of) reared its ugly head
- Some of the interactions between the two romance "couples" felt random, badly timed and servicey
- The characters were interesting, but I wish I'd gotten to know them better which I don't feel like I managed despite the 4 PoVs
- The cliffhangeeeeeeer

Overall I think I'd end up granting this a 3.4/5⭐

<i>Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review</i>

This was pretty fun! Loved how much Irish and Celtic lore was involved throughout! Those that enjoyed King dom of the Wicked will also enjoy this!

Wow, this book.
I did not have super high expectations going into this ARC, thinking it was going to be another run of the mill fantasy book about faeries. Boy was I wrong!
Realm of Lore and Lies has it all- found family, mystery, romance, fantasy, magic, and the fae.
This book is set in modern day Ireland and involves Irish folklore and creatures. The fairies in this book are NOT what we have become accustomed to in recent years- they are wicked, cruel, tricksters.
Realm of Lore and Lies is multiple POV- which I normally don't enjoy but I found myself completely okay being taken from one character to another in each chapter. I was that engaged! By mid book, all our characters are in the same place going through the same trials together.
There is a smattering of romance with plenty of room for more in the coming books. This first book focuses more on the found family aspect of the story.
This is definitely one of my favorite reads of the year and I cannot wait for the next one!
As always, thank you to Netgalley and the author for a review copy of Realm of Lore and Lies.

A modern spin on Irish myths and lore set in present day Ireland- sign me up!

Claire packed a lot into her debut novel. I enjoyed the world-building, the whole found family trope and the introduction to the many characters who live in this world. The pacing is slow, primarily due to the introduction of the characters and the establishing of the world in which the story is set. With multiple point of views, each of the four main protagonists got to show a glimpse into their minds and thought processes and I know that as this is book one of a trilogy, the characters will mature more and more with each book.

Standout characters for me are Maeve and Ash; two resilient young women who are fated to become the matriarchs of their respective clans. Both have a lot of potential as fierce leaders and we are only getting to see the beginning of their journey to find themselves and claim their birthright.

The only issues that I have with the book is the pacing is a bit slow for me and although I was here for the potential romance between Ash & Setanta, it was a bit of a non-starter (here’s to more of it in book 2 😉). Claire goes into detail about the various aspects of Irish myths and legends she’s introducing in the story- this slowed down the pace but I think is necessary for those unfamiliar with this lore to get a handle on.

I can’t wait to read book 2 coming out next year (Claire - you know I need Ash and Set to get together 😉😂😂)

Thanks to NetGalley & publishers for the arc. Realm of Lore and Lies is out today!

Rating: 3.5/5
Pub: 10/3/22

I was gifted an eARC for my honest review.
This book was a little hard for me to rate, I loved a few things about this book but there were a few things that I did not like at all, and I felt that without those things this book would have been higher up on my rating.

First, I loved how the author showed attention to detail in this book, you could see how the world she was building came to life. I enjoyed that She took her time with research on subjects she was writing about. It really was able to shine through with her writings. I am a huge lover of Ireland and when I found out this book had the setting in Ireland and in-between, I couldn’t have been more excited about that. I was able to see how Claire took great love and care for her characters. I did enjoy the cliffhanger and the end of the book, and I do want to know what is going to happen next.

What I did not like about the book was, I thought the different POV of the characters really got in the way of seeing them shine on their own. I felt sometimes a little lost and having to turn back a few pages to see who was talking now. I was not able to connect with any of them because I really did not have time to understand them.

The pace I found to be a little slow for me and that might have been because of the different POV from the characters, but around 60% of the book the pace did start to pick up a lot more and I did find myself enjoying it a little bit more.

With this being said I would still recommend this book to fellow fantasy lovers. Just because it was not my cup of tea does not mean it will not be theirs.

I want to thank NetGalley and BooksGoSoical for allowing me the opportunity to read and review this book for my honest opinion.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me a digital ARC via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Realm of Lore and Lies is a ya fantasy that includes murder and mystery. It is set in Ireland and follows multiple characters (4 to be precise) in a world where there are groups of wandering people who have the ability to see and interact with the fae world.

Now, I just want to preface this by saying that I truly believe that Claire Wright is a really good writer, especially with this being her debut novel. I loved how you can tell that Wright has put in the hours and the dedication to learn all she needs to about Irish mythology, and as a whole I really enjoyed that part of the book.

However, there were a few things that brought down my enjoyment of the book. The main reason being the pacing. There wasn't an easy flow to the book and with the 4 different POVs there were too many characters to be able to properly learn and grow to love each of them. There was a lot going on and the jumps between POVs weren't as smooth as I'd have liked. This, then partnered with the amount of mythology, makes the pacing quite slow and the one thing that takes me out of a book the quickest is when it's too slow.

That being said, I think that this could be fixed with more editing and more time to really delve into each and every character. So although it didn't hit all the boxes that I would have liked it too hit, I did enjoy the story and I can see why others loved it.

Let me start by saying I absolutely love the premise of this book. Seeing the fae portrayed in such a different light than you see in most books these days was refreshing.

However I feel the execution was a bit off for the story. Four POVs was just too much, and I get each character needed their backstory/storyline but I felt that it ruined the pacing of the book, the first 50-60% was a struggle to get through which is not what you want when reading a book.

There was also a ton of info dumping which I get we needed all the information about the clans and the irish folklore but it just felt like pages upon pages of information and no progression to the story, felt more like reading a history book than a fantasy novel.

That being said the last quarter of the book did pick up and I am interested to see where the series goes, hopefully now weve got all the information/lore out of the way the next book will focus more on the storyline.

⭐️⭐️⭐️½

A modern telling of Irish folklore. A group of reluctant friends, mysterious murders, a druid, Fae, warriors and a quest. Sound familiar? Maybe. But you should definitely read this book.
The character development I'm the list book was superb. Not just individually, but watching the various relationships come together with real depth, without taking away from the plot. Loves it.
I really, really enjoyed this book and cannot wait for the next one!
Excellent.

Thank you NetGalley for a ARC of this book.

Ash left her Irish fae clan including her mother the clan leader and her younger brother several years ago for a life of university study and living with her foster parents, only to be dragged back into clan when she finds the dead body of clan member who was once close to her. Back in the clan searching for answers, she struggles to find her feet and the confidence to stand up for herself against the clan who thought she had abandoned them, but there are expectations of her she must commit to if she wants to find out the truth. She leads her clan into a competition set by the High King against the other clans but things don't go as planned. Ash and her new-found friends must piece together the puzzle of numerous strange events and bring together her clan for the fight ahead.

Although this book could have benefited from more editing in places, and the fact that I wish there was more character development, I enjoyed it and thought it was a good read. I'm definitely looking forward to book two in the series.

I was lucky enough to be approved for an #ARC of Realm of Lore and Lies by Clair Wright through NetGalley. I've been on a fantasy kick lately, so this sounded right up by my alley.

I was really excited to read this book based on the synopsis, but unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectations. There are definitely things I liked about this book, don't get me wrong, but it wasn't what I had hoped it would be. One thing I definitely liked? The Irish lore & mythology. It was really interesting getting to hear about some of the mythology that makes up Irish culture. I also loved how much you can tell Claire Wright put into creating this world.

Unfortunately, there were more things I disliked about the book, but they still didn't fully take away from the experience. I think the biggest thing about this book that made it a bit hard for me to really love was that is just was a bit much. There were a lot of character POVs, which I do love, but it just seemed that no one or two characters were really developed into what I could see Claire could make them into. There was also a lot going on. Sometimes it was too much to keep track of, & it detracted from the story a bit. Plus, the romantic relationship between Ash & Set just didn't have enough romance for me. I thought there was going to be a lot more to their relationship than there actually was.

Now, despite that critique, I will say that this book seemed to be a lot about creating Ash's world & leading up to more in the next book. The very ending of this book, it got me. I was laying in bed with about 25 minutes left in the book (thanks Kindle for always letting me know how much longer I have to go) when Derek said he was ready to go to bed. I decided that was fine. I could finish the book in the morning. Well, as I laid there, trying to fall asleep, I decided I couldn't wait lol. If the rest of the book was as good as the last, say, 10%, I'd have flown through this book.

Overall, I give Realm of Lore and Lies ⭐⭐⭐. I really wish I could give it more, but it didn't live up to my expectations based on the blurb.

I really wanted to enjoy this one so much. It sounded so good, Fae, Irish Mythology...yep sign me up.

Unfortunately, the end product did not work for me. The pacing was the main issue for me, it took sooooo long for the story to get going. I really enjoyed the first few chapters of Aisling and learning about her, with the elements of her past alluded to and then...we were with another character and this is how it continued...honestly, I read through some other reviews and I totally agree, I was waiting until around 60% before anything really happened.

I also felt there was a LOT of names and information to process and clans and who belonged where and what did this mean and just sometimes so much info dumping. Obviously, sometimes that is needed but show me, don't tell me all the time, show me some of this information and I cannot stand pages upon pages or information, description and no dialogue, it just bores me.

So unfortunately, this one just wasnt for me. With more editing this could be an amazing read as all the elements are there, it just needs some stripping back and more focus on certain areas that are glossed over, give me more depth to the characters, more of a journey and I would be one happy bunny.

*arc provided by Netgalley*

3/5 stars. I wanted to love this book more than I did. I was so excited to read a fantasy book based in an Irish setting.

3rd person pov following 4 different characters overall. As with other fantasy books I expected an info dump at the start of the book instead it seemed a lot time to get more information on the world you were reading about and it was hard to keep up when following so many different characters.

I felt like most of the main characters you followed and some side characters didn't have a full back story at all, which overall meant the plot and characters lacked depth. I also felt like they were lacking different personalities that I expected from the different pov's.

The research and passion that went into this book is evident, I can understand why other people loved it. However for myself the characters needed to be less alike and have more depth.

The story had potential but something about the writing just didn’t grip me unfortunately. I personally prefer books written in the first person, especially when it is dual POV. The beginning and middle were slow but it did pick up towards the end of the book, with an ending that had the critical shock factor.

I loved reading a fantasy book based on Irish mythology as it’s something I haven’t seen done much. Interested to see where book 2 takes the story!

I think the premise of this book is interesting. There are always lots of fantasy novels thst incorportate elements from medieval England, but not many of them draw from the legends of Ireland. This novel introduces us to a cast of interesting characters, each a member of the Fianna, a group of nomads who are sort of keepers like of the fairie.

Although I like the idea behind this novel, I was bored by the execution. Overall, I found the pace to be extremely slow. I think this has a lot to do with the writing. It is very clunky and super wordy. Every single noun is modified by at least one adjective. There are lots of descriptions of what everyone is wearing and what the locations look like but the dialogue between characters is often bland. The book's main action is that the Fianna warriors travel to the fairie realm to compete in an ancient quest to be numbered among the high king's warriors. However, it takes our characters over half the book to get to this point. Before that, all the characters have to meet and be moody for a while. I was so tired of reading the clunky, inelegant prose that I ended up just skimming the second half of the novel. This book could have been really interesting, if it was about a fourth of the size.

Needless to say, I won't be continuing with this series.

I received a digital copy of this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

This book was a great mixture of old Fae lore and what that looks like in conjunction with a community who is still aware of them and tries to live in harmony with them. Ash left her family 7 years ago to live on her own outside of her clan. But now her family history is starting to catch up with her. When strange things start happening, Ash starts to wonder what's going on. When everything hits the fan, she finds herself back with her clan and trying to figure out what comes next for her and her clan while maintaining relationships with the High King and his court. This book made me feel like I was in it in a way that few other books have done recently. It definitely a must read for fans of the Fae.

Claire did a fantastic job of combining a modern setting with Irish mythology and fantasy.
I loved the characters and they were written so well. Ashling is the first character thats met and she is the one I actually loved the most. Her passion for history and archaeology made her very relatable to me because history is one of my biggest passions.

The setting was absolutely amazing. It’s written by someone who has actually experienced those places and has been there and lived there her whole life. You can tell. The places are written in detail and I could picture them in my head.

I loved this book and I’m excited for the second!

I can’t wait to dive into the rest of this series once they come out. This book had everything I needed! Romance, murder, evil creatures, and fighting. No one is as they seem and I wasn’t prepared for the twists and turns this story threw my way.

I enjoyed this book, it was easy to read and held my attention. I will be reading more from this author :)

3.5 Stars

This book was definitely a refreshing take on the usual fae books I read.
Inspired by Irish folk Lore, filled with mystery, intrigue and slow burn romance.
The story follows Ash who is an ex member of a Fianna clan having walked out 7 years earlier only to discover her mum murdered where she works. Fighting for the truth on who murdered her mother, Ash takes on a new role within the Clan but her brother isn’t telling her the whole truth.
We also meet other characters who

Plot was a little slow to get to but eventually it does pick up about half way through the book. I enjoyed the world building but did feel that the pace was a little off.
I enjoyed the characters but felt that they needed a little more to them with some development.

This book definitely has big potential to be an amazing book, I just feel that the pace needs to be a little more consistent and whilst I do enjoy multiple point of views I felt that it wasn’t always necessary.

I’m definitely looking forward to the next book and hope to see a little more in character development going forward.

Thank you to Netgalley , the author and the publisher for an eARC of this book in exchange for a review.