I am sorry for the inconvenience but I don’t have the time to read this anymore and have lost interest in the concept. I believe that it would benefit your book more if I did not skim your book and write a rushed review. Again, I am sorry for the inconvenience.

So this book was a lot longer than I expected but it was a good read! A spicy, fun fantasy. It's a beauty and the beast retelling and overall I really liked it. I do wish I knew there was a book to read before this one, but I am going to go back and read that one. That stated- the book definitely doesn't need the first one read, as I could follow along. Romantacy addicts will love this book.

I feel horrible for taking such a long time to write the review. But I had to hunt down the first book before I could start on this ARC. Which I'm glad I did—while "In the Shadow of a Hoax", could be read as a stand-alone, it made more sense to start with the first book. It took a while to get through both books because I didn't realise it was 500 pages.

Overall, I really enjoy the elements in the book: romance, politics, and a fantasy world mixed into one. However, there were times I felt like I was missing something. Or parts of the story didn't make sense to me. While I'm not the most avid fantasy reader, I felt like it could've been more cohesive. However, there was a good quality of spice and suspense. The world-building was good, and for the most part, I liked the characters.

I can't wait for the next book!

Maci has yet again blown me away with her amazing writing. I could not put the first book down and this one was no exception. I am constantly recommending these books to my audience!

This was a wonderful sequel to a great story!! Lachlan and Tarley make for wonderful characters and I really was swept away in the world building. Definitely recommend this series!

This book was everything I thought it would be based on the blurb. Whoever wrote it sure did a good job capturing the style and tone of the novel. Tarley Fareview, disguised as a boy to avoid arrest, falls upon a plot to kill the Crown Prince, Lachlan Nikolas, who doesn't fall for her disguise for a single second. While she may not want to help him, the two find themselves more reliant on each other than they thought possible. This was the second book in the series, which I didn't realise till I was halfway through. While you could read this one as a standalone, I would recommend committing and reading the series from the beginning. There were certainly hints to things that had happened in the first book which I would have liked to know more about, and a nice cliffhanger to hint at the next romance pairing in the series. Overall, a great fantasy series which responds to gendered power imbalances in a realistic way.

This was a NetGalley review.

This book was so good thanks so much for the copy I really enjoyed this so much along with the writing definitely will recommend

This book is amazing. I gave it five stars, it was entertaining, I loved the tension and romance, the setting was interesting and really gave me intense feelings good and bad about what was happening in this story. This is a fantasy romance, with a dual perspective of Tarley and Lachlan, one is royalty and the other has to be careful of their every move and hide who they are. When Tarley rescues Lachlan after an assassination attempt and needs to nurse him back to health, it forces them to rely on each other in order to survive.
This world and setting made me so angry at times, while cheering Tarley on to keep fighting in every way possible. I think that one of the great aspects of this book is that it can provoke such strong feelings while reading that you know you're invested in what happens to these characters.
Another compelling part of this book was the tropes that were used included secret identities, forced proximity, and a type of enemies to lovers. I love all these scenarios and it was an amazing combination not to mention I loved both Tarley and Lachlan, strong, resourceful, both have reason for keeping secrets. The development of their relationship and the tension between them, not to mention the spicy bits, were all top notch. I highly recommend checking this book out. It is one of the best books I have read so far.
Trigger warning: sexual harassment, blood, violence, death of animal
I received this advanced ebook, via Netgalley. This review is my own honest opinion.

This was an okay book. I think I might have liked it more if I read the first book, even though this can be read as a standalone. It was longer than I anticipated, and felt like it dragged a bit, making me feel like I couldn't wait until it was over. This was not a bad book though, I thought it was as mediocre as a lot of fantasy romance I consume a lot of the time. It was entertaining, and to be honest that is all I was looking for in this book. This book is not very unique compared to the others in the genre, it mainly reminds me of What Lies Beyond the Veil (a book that I hate with the heat of a thousand burning suns). The premise is complicated enough to give you a headache, but not original enough to warrant it.

Oo was drawn to this book because of the blurb and man I love the fact I gave this book a chance. It was so good to read. Kept me pulled into it. Couldn't put it down at all. 5 star book. Highly recommend it. Already told a few people that they need to read it

Not a terrible book, but not my cup of tea. For too little plot and far too much steam and sex. I prefer plot to filler. I’m sure this book has its audience though.

This series is missing one thing… A MAP! I’m desperate for a map to keep track of where locations are. Everyone loves a good map at the start of a book, you can’t convince me otherwise.

So with this book, we are reading the POV of Auri’s sister, Tarley. Tarley is deffo more ferocious in spirit and mentality. I wasn’t prepared for this as I don’t like to read the snippets at the end of previous books. This book was probably a lot darker than the first book IMO. There were moments that made me a little uncomfortable. I did enjoy this one, but I have to admit not as much as the first book. The first 52% was ok, a little bit repetitive, but the last 48% were SO good!! I was on edge, but also couldn’t quite tell what was going to happen. More characters introduced that I loved and hated, Nix is still my favourite though.

I’m deffo looking forward to the next book!

I received this book from NetGalley and the publishers to read and review. All statements above are my true opinions after fully reading this book.

I enjoyed the first book so I was quite looking forward to the second one beyond the excerpt from the last one's end.

I was slightly disappointed but not hugely. Where the first book had plot with some steam and sexual tension moments, this one was the opposite. It was steam and sexual tension with some plot sprinkled about. Also, as I said in a text to my friend when describing the book, "What prince in old timey, carts and horses, candles as the only light, magical world says 'So hot' over the female MC touching herself?" And I stand by that statement. Some of the sex scenes and dialogue in them were verging on just plain crass. In the one in the tent I'm pretty sure Maci used nearly every common word for vagina she could write in.

I also have to point out, Lachlan says Tarley's name WAAAAAY too much. We all know the military sir sandwhich, "sir, yes, sir!" and this felt like a Tarley name sandwich. Maybe it didn't start and end each sentence but it really felt like it did.

I did like we saw Nix and Auri again, I'm looking forward to seeing more in their developing relationship in the next book. I also think hearing how Tarley and Lachlan grow in the next book will be good. I liked we got more insight into the red ribbons and I was really looking forward to that in this book when things kicked off but apparently that's a next book subject to cover, so at the very least I have to read no. 3 for that.

I still like that the MCs are in their 20s. Coming up on 30, it's getting a big awkward to read 17-19 year old MCs getting down to business. There are some good aspects of this but I would struggle to say it's as strong as the first book, and unfortunately if the third doesn't pull it back I will probably not continue onto the fourth.

As with Book 1, even though it's a 500-page book, it's surprisingly a pretty fast read.

I enjoyed the plot, it's sort of divided into 3 parts, so I will divide my thoughts in 3.

The first part takes place inside the woods: Lachakan, found by Tarley, almost dead. Tarley takes care of him and saves him. Then they have to cohabitate and deal with each other until he is well enough to travel. This might be my favourite of the three parts. Their chemistry was so good and the tension oof. Also, my favourite quote of the entire book is in this part:

"What's yer relation if I may? Brother?"
...
(Lachlan) placed himself between her and the man. "She's my wife. Now bugger off."

The second part is when they finally leave the woods and go back to Sevens. I enjoyed Lachlan pining for her whilst she's in denial a bit. There was a tinge of a miscommunication trope but thankfully it was done in a way I don't mind. The third part was ok, the only part I enjoyed was the wedding.

Although Tarley and Lachlan are good characters, they're nothing compared to Nix and Auri. I think I much preferred book one even though I gave them the same rating. The romance in this book felt more wholesome than in the first book, which isn't bad. I think it's just personal preference. Nonetheless, I did enjoy the romance, and the smut is one of the biggest pluses of this series. If you like forced proximity, one bed, dual POV, and a marriage of convenience-ish, this is for you

The mystery of the ribbon remains a mystery even after reading around 1000 pages total of this series. I am still confused but hopefully, all will be revealed soon (aka in a year when the next book comes out).

Overall, fun and I'm excited for book 3.

The time has finally come for the next book in this series to be released and now that I've read it I can't wait for the third one.

If you haven't read the first book I'd suggest you do, because while this one can be read as a standalone, you'll miss some pieces of the larger puzzle that has been forming since the beginning.

But if you're not hugely into solving a mystery and just want the romance then you can safely dive right into this book, because there's plenty of it to go around.

It's been a while since I've read In the Shadow of a Wish so I can't accurately say if this one had more romance and steam or not, but it felt that way.

The first part follows Tarley and Lachlan in the woods and it was cute, they do have chemistry and A LOT of angst. They didn't fully click with me though, like Auri and Nix did. But I did like getting to know them throughout the book.

Tarley is also capable of saving herself, but lets other people save her sometimes too. She's kind of the grumpy in this grumpy-sunshine pairing, and Lachlan is like a golden retriever who has his own insecurities that he hides behind a smile.

So that forest part was a bit slow, I didn't mind, but I was glad that things started moving a bit faster when they made it back to the Sevens.

The end was my favourite however, because so many things happened, parts of the mystery were revealed and I thought that we'd get to hear the full story FINALLY...unfortunately Tarley's mother had other plans so now I have to wait till book three.

The world keeps expanding with each book, with some new creatures, and it seems there are brighter days ahead for the characters, but it'll take them a while to make the changes necessary to get there. As before, I'm definitely in it for the whole ride.

*Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review*

I read the first book a few months ago and was delighted to see I wouldn't have to wait long for the next book. I was immediately reminded of why I liked this authors writing so much. The world building is very deep but you are only getting the tiniest tip as the MC's don't know that much about what is going on. There have been lots of foreshadowing and I think there will be lots of new information in the next book. But the romance in this book was top notch. Maci Aurora is excellent at building the sexual tension. The romance was believable and there are some very spicy open door scenes. I also loved the female MC. She was incredibly relatable.

A wonderful fantasy romance! This book is second in a series, but new readers will be able to jump into this story and still enjoy it. There are a few easter eggs that book one readers will pick up on, plus we see what Auri and Nix are up to. Tarley is a strong, independent woman who guards her heart. Lachlan is patient, understanding, and gives Tarley the freedom to make her own choices. The romance, spice, and worldbuilding are perfection- the only thing that would make me love it more is a map! The mystery of the Fareview family deepens and secrets are slowly being revealed in this second book. I can’t wait to see what more will happen in the next! Thank you NetGalley and Xpresso Book Tours for the arc!

"His honesty illuminated her own struggle. Her weakness wasn't the fear, but her failure to face it. She was always running away. Worse yet, lying to herself that doing so was her being strong & capable, but instead it was just hiding & making herself smaller & invisible."

By law, women in the Kingdom of Kaloma own nothing of their own. After fighting back, Tarley Fareview runs into the Whitling Woods to avoid capture, only to come across a dying man. Unknown to Tarley, he's the Crown Prince of Jast, a nearby kingdom, who was visiting Kaloma in disguise with hopes of brokering a treaty between the nations. Tarley saves his life, unknowingly granting Prince Lachlan a second chance to do right by his father, nation, and Kaloma. Though both are wary to trust a stranger, they quickly become far more; catalysts for change when change is paramount.

Maci Aurora crafted the perfect blend of secrecy, royalty, hidden identities, and an unexpected touch of magic. From the first page and mention of Kaloma's draconian system, I admit I was a bit worried about the direction Tarley's story might follow. Finding such a realistic heroine--a little stubborn, a lot independent, and steadfast in her loyalty toward those she loves--was a pleasant surprise. The chemistry between Lachlan and Tarley is quick to spark without feeling rushed or forced. Having not read the first book of the series, I didn't feel entirely out of place with the world-building; this novel stands alone in its own right. I was desperately interested in the relationship between Nix and Auri, which we catch in glimpses, so I'm eager to rewind and dive into the series' first novel. The author is also careful to give each character their own mind and motivations, which is easier to understand given the dual point-of-views.

However, I do think there's a bit too much focus on the physical aspects of Tarley and Lachlan's relationship, which seems to drive Lachlan's motivations a bit too much once they're (literally) out of the woods. A LOT of unexpected surprises get dumped at the novel's end, leaving readers with more questions than answers (and anticipating the series' continuation with another Fareview sister). I was also a bit bothered by the claim ("Yours") both Lachlan and Tarley make, considering how opposed Tarley (and hopefully, readers) are to the Law of Means.

All in all, this is a great series if you're a fan of fairytale retellings, hints of magic, suspenseful secrets, and shameless flirting.

Major thanks to the author and publisher for providing an ARC of this book via Netgalley. 🥰 This does not affect my opinion regarding the book.

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Maci Aurora’s In the Shadow of a Hoax is the second fantasy novel to her Fareview Fairytales series.

Tarley Fareview is strong and independent so when she protected herself from an assault, she had to run into the woods due to Kaloma law. She then comes across a man at death’s door and helps him in every way she can.

Lachlan Nikolas is the crown prince of Jast and has lived a privileged life. On his way to meet the Queen of Kaloma, a surprise attack occurs and he is nearly killed. Luckily, Tarley saves him. Together, they must survive in the woods and navigate their newfound feelings towards one another.

"I want you, Tarley, just like this. I want your anger, your passion, your stubbornness, your pride, your arguments, your kisses. I want your love. Because that’s what I know-and maybe I don’t deserve it–but I fucking love you."--Lachlan Nikolas

Do I recommend it? An absolute yes! Its setting and characters are interesting. Both main characters were wonderful. I loved the fact that Lachlan was the one depending on Tarley for survival. Also, I liked the dynamics between the two. There is action and political intrigue that kept the plot going.

I did not have to read the previous book to enjoy reading this one but now I would like to continue reading this series. It feels like there is much more to come.