Thank you to NetGalley for access to the book in exchange for an honest review.

Bottom line: good premise obscured by an over-abundance of detailed lore.

I was immediately drawn to the book by the absolutely lovely cover, the comparison to ACOTAR, and the blurb promising enemies-to-lovers court intrigue with a unique magic system. While the characters of Zaria (captive Chosen One) and Harken (king of a hidden court) had some snappy dialogue and interesting interactions, I felt overwhelmed by the rest of the characters and the lore. There was simply too much: too much Capitalization, too much world history dropped at once, too much telling instead of showing, too many named characters to keep track of... I found my attention wandering more often than it should've. This one simply wasn't for me. If you like lots of detail and history in your epic fantasies, this one might be for you.

Overall I really liked the storyline of this book, however I found it really hard to get into in the beginning. I am a regular fantasy reader so I know there can be a lot of info dumping in the first bit, however I just felt like some of the concepts were hard to grasp in the beginning. I did really like the characters and the story, but thought the world building was a bit hard to comprehend at first. I feel like Zaria is such a wonderful character and I can’t wait to see where the rest of this series goes!

Thank you to NetGalley and Fehu Press for this opportunity to read rage and review this arc which has been available since June 4,2023.

I found many a problematic theme throughout this book. I DNF’d multiple times but forced myself to finish it. I was bored, offended and felt that the writing was immature. I honestly wish they would stop marketing books in comparison to ACOTAR to gain readership. The tropes were forced not organically written. Honestly I would skip this book and save your brain.

Thank you Netgalley for the Arc

I really wanted to love this book so much more than I did because of the intriguing plot and premise and wonderful characters. The story is about a girl who is enslaved along with her four siblings (even though they are not biological siblings). She wants to win the Braid Race so she can buy her and her family's freedom. Well, a Dark Rip steals her brother from her, and along with that, she meets a mysterious stranger who wants to know why there have been an increase in Dark Rips.
So our heroine, Zaria enters the Braid Race, but loses, and none other than the Savage King Harken, who is the mysterious stranger she meets, claims her for his own as decreed in their laws to spare life. Naturally, she's suspicious of him and his also concerned about his reputation, finding out though that he is not quite what he seems. He in turn starts having feelings for her as well despite knowing that he needs to keep those feelings for her at bay because he feels that she is she may be the key of why there are Dark Rips as he is the sworn protector of the Woven Court, now known as the Savage Court after a war that had torn the world apart...
I really enjoyed the romance between Zaria and Harken, but alas, it was buried underneath way too much political intrigue and world building. Lucy Holden can really write good spicy scenes, so it kind of disappointed me that I didn't get more romantic tension between Harken and Zaria, especially when considering the nature of their relationship and what they are: A Savage King and a little Criminal (even thought I didn't really care much for the nickname to be honest). I felt like most of the story was a lot of explanation about the history and politics and yet I still managed to be confused.
This story would have been a two star had it not been for the fact that I really liked the characters and the story premise, though it would have been 4 or a 5 had it focused more on Zaria and Harken's relationship, which in and of itself is an intriguing story, but the opportunity was missed.

Thank you NetGalley for providing a free cope of Woven in Darkness in exchange for my honest opinion.

What an epic story I just read! We begin by meeting Zaria a shadow braid slave living in the seam, the place for all the rift raft of her world to go and rot. She doesn’t know where she came from or how old she is but she does know one thing, above anything else Zaria wants to be freed. And she wants to free her four younger siblings as well. Her chance comes in the form of a race designed to entertain the Indigold nobles where slaves go to die so that one may survive.
On her quest to freedom Zaria is claimed by the Savage King, ruler of the Woven Kingdom who decides to strike a deal with her. He needs her to play his slave so that he can gather the information he needs to protect his kingdom from an old enemy and in return she will obtain her elusive freedom. Zaria knows her best chance at removing her slave braid lies with the Shadow King but what about her siblings? And her heart? Is there more to freedom that just the physical ties that bind us?

**There will be a few spoilers in this review. I will indicate them with asterisks.**

Let’s start at the world building, which was fantastic. When I received this copy, I did not realize that this is the start of a series that connects with the authors previous works. But when reading this I knew that this world existed, even if only in the imagination of the one who created it. I felt as if I could fall through a rip and be living in the seam. Well done.
Along with the world building is the magic system and let me just give a chef’s kiss (imagine it here). It was so intricate and yet so compelling. I loved the idea of the people of this world being able to literally pull the threads of the world to create and heal. I loved that every person with their needle would be able to access any thread, such as shape shifting or healing and that the magic was not limited by the person because it didn’t so much come from within themselves but from within the actual world they were living. Adding to that, the slave braiding system was just so unique to me.
Excellent political intrigue is also used in this book. It’s just enough to leave me feeling like Im not as smart as I think I am but I was able to follow the scheming. I am not the biggest fan of reading about other worldly politics for the most part BUT when done well and with purpose it feels good.
I enjoyed the love story that was woven as well. The choice of how we get to know the history of the Savage King, that also helped to reveal more of the world we were in and the traditions that they held. I believed the relationship. was fallible because of the characters, not because of outside forces and that makes it work.

***My favorite part is a spoiler so don’t read this if you don’t want an inkling of what happens.*** I LOVED HOW THE CHOSEN ONE TROPE WAS DONE! Zaria BECAME the chosen one. She wasn’t just born amazing and incredible and able to do because of something different about her. Nope. Out of circumstances and stubbornness and a bit of idiocy she is made into the person needed to either save or destroy her world and I loved it. So refreshing and satisfying. 10/10.

Ive already recommended this book to my sister, who is a huge fan of political intrigue. I plan to recommend it to others as well. A solid, interesting and entertaining read. I plan to pick up Lucy Holden’s previous works and to continue in this series as well.

*I received a free ARC copy of this book from NetGalley*

I thoroughly enjoyed Woven in Darkness. While a little slow in parts, the plot is intriguing and the character of Zaria is well fleshed out. It's been a long time since I've truly liked the herione in a fantasy novel.

My only really issue with this book is the passage of time. I couldn't quite put together how long Harken had been around and how long it had been since the Serpent Queen was banished the first time. Other than that, this is an enjoyable tale and I'd definitely read more in this series.

A warning note to other readers for dark themes, including child abuse and allusions to s*xual violence.

🌟🌟🌟🌟.5/5

Thank you NetGalley for this amazing arc.

I have to be honest, going into this book I didn´t know what to expect. The first half was very difficult. The reader is catapulted in a completely new world and it is not easy to follow or understand what is going on, but then, as soon as we start to understand how things work the story becomes beautiful.

<i>In my opinion, struggling with a woldbuilding it´s not necessarely a bad thing. Who read Fantasy knows that time is needed to understand properly what is going on. </i>

Zaira is the main female character and I LOVE her. She was strong, resolute and curious.
The story starts with Zaria brother Doron being lonto into a Dark Rip. Zaria always tried to potect her four siblings and losing Doron made her realize she needed to act and do everything in her power to get rid of the braid which enslaves her and her family.
She soon meets Harken, the dark lord of the Woven court. He is a being with many secrects but their fates will entrwine soon.

I loved their relationship and all the side characters were very interesting.
The romance between Zaria and Harken was very nice, even though I would have liked more pining (from Harken) and general interactions between the two. 🙈

The book doesn´t end with a cliffhanger but I loved the events of the last ten pages.

🎤I read and listen to this book and I´m not sure of it but I had the impression that the reader of the audiobook is the author herself (if so chapeu). 💕

i got access to this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review!
i’m DNFing at 31%. i’m 150 pages in and i’m so confused. this book has a lot of good potential with a plot, but the execution was just not it for me. this author does a lot of info-dumping and telling not showing, which is hard to follow. there are so many characters introduced within the first 50 pages that i can’t keep track of them all. this book may work for some but it just wasn’t for me!
I want to thank Lucy Holden, the publisher and netgalley for giving me access to this story!

Woven in Darkness is the first book in a new fantasy romance series inspired by Persian and Greek mythology.

A wonderful first book featuring a strong heroine, complex characters, found family, rich and complex world building, great banter and magic.
Perfect for fans of slow burn romances and morally gray characters.
However, it does take a while to get into this book, as the beginning is a bit slow.

Thank you Netgalley for the copy.
All thoughts are my own.

I read this book using both the e-book and the audio book. I started with the audio book, but found the worldbuilding too complicated for me to follow on audio - so I had to switch to e-book. I was able to switch back to audio once I was more comfortable with the world and characters.

My one issue with the audio book - long pauses in-between chapters. I kept thinking my audio book stopped playing.

This book took a little bit to be able to get into (like half of the book) It has complex world building that had me having to stop and go back to read again so that I could try to comprehend descriptions and figure out how the world works. I wanted the world to be more fleshed out and also simplified at the same time.
The book centers in the Magical world of Astria, where our main characters Zaira enters a braid race as a last ditch effort to try and free herself from slavery and save her brother Doran, who has lost into a Dark Rip. Through this event Zaira meets Harken, and he offer’s her a deal that she can’t pass up - And so begins their journey

Good tension and chemistry with witty banter between the MC’s. There’s a dragon!

5⭐️

My goodness did I binge this book!! I had no idea what to expect before I started this, but the characters and wold building captured me instantly.

Zaria is a slave, doing her best to survive and look after her siblings. But when her brother is lost to a Dark Rip, Zaria finds herself claimed by the Savage King, forced to leave her life behind.
The Savage King, Harken, has a dark past and secrets he keeps close to his chest. But when Zaria’s fate falls in his hands, he cuts a deal to expose his enemies in exchange for Zaria’s freedom.

The author did such a great job with the world building in Woven in Darkness, it felt unique compared to others, not too complex, but enough to keep me interested. What really sold me on this though was the plot and the characters. Both were so well done, I truly didn’t want the book to end!

If you’re looking for an epic adventure, full of discovery, magic, and romance, then you need to pick this up!

Woven in Darkness starts off slow. The world building comes at you fast and it’s hard to keep up with all the terminology and follow what is going on. I had trouble grasping what this world was and the societal structure. Once I got passed that I was able to enjoy the book more. Harken and Zaria really carry this book for me. Their relationship is a slow burn, enemies to lovers and I was really rooting for them. Overall this was not the best read for me but the characters saved it and I gave it 3 stars.

Tropes: dark fantasy, morally grey dangerous MMC, Persian and Greek mythology, high stakes, guy falls first, villain gets the girl, fake slave/captor relationship, touch her and you die

Book was a bit slow, world-building was intricate yet a bit confusing, I couldn’t really wrap my head around everything
He calls her my little criminal 🥹 he kinda hot
He wanted to fix her wounds himself, not let the servant do it

This is such good fantasy! With a lil romance, and that slow burn is LOVELY! I recommend if you loved ACOTAR for sure similar vibes but a unique world of its own! The “lil criminal” has me shaking hehehe!

Thank you to Netgalley, Lucy Holden, and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Honestly, I had to dnf this at 46%. This book started off on the wrong foot. Just information bombing at the very beginning that left me confused and unsure of what was going on. This existed all the way until I reached the dnf point. I just found myself bored and procrastinating reading this.

I gave it two stars because some of the dialogue was actually pretty good! I just couldn't get past the info bombs and having to stop and try to recall information thrown at me chapters upon chapters ago. I also found it incredibly irritating that the author clearly had a very close relationship with her thesaurus. I'm all for using different terms and such, but randomly whipping out words like "insouciance", "unctuous", "ebullient" makes it seems like you're just using big words just because.

Can we also talk about the AUDACITY of the MMC Harken? He tells a slave, someone actively in slavery and has been for 15ish years, that he understands slavery better than she ever could. What the fuck? He's a lord. A king for all intents and purposes. That's shitty af and I lost so much of whatever respect I had for him up until then.

Maybe this book just isn't for me, but I couldn't force it any longer.

Zaria and her siblings are slaves owned by a brutal master, and each year enchanted bags fill with coins so that he will keep them in his house. This year though the bags don’t fill. To prevent her sisters from being sold to brutal men, Zaria plans to enter the slave race - if she wins she will be freed and given enough coins to purchase her brothers and sisters, but if she loses she will die. The lord of the woven court has another idea for her, however. If she will pretend to be his slave during the season of rebels and help discover who is behind the plot of raising the serpent queen then he will free her and help her win the maverick race, providing her with lands and a title.

This was fun and had a cute ending but for the life of me I couldn’t keep the timeline straight. At some points it felt like the war was a century prior and sometimes it felt like it was 20 years prior. The magic system was really unique but it needed more explanation for sure.

Thank you NetGalley and Fehu Press for granting me access to the book AND the audiobook as well in exchange for an honest review.

Woven in Darkness is the first book in a new "Woven Saga" fantasy romance series that is influenced by Greek mythology. The enticing synopsis and the fact that it was being compared to ACOTAR made reading this a no brainer for me! Is it similar to ACOTAR? Yes, it does have some of the same themes while being completely unique and unlike anything I have ever read. Needless to say, I had extremely high expectations!

In the beginning I struggled with the highly complex world building and terminology. The amount of information and worlds thrown at you all at once was a bit overwhelming. Honestly, about 50% into the book I wondered if it was worth continuing because of the complicated world building and the exceptionally slow pacing. Instead I decided to try the audiobook (a first for me) to see if it would help and I am so glad I did!! What a world of difference it made in my reading experience!! In addition, the last half of the book picked up pace and I found myself immersed in the story! Now on to what I loved about the book 🥰🥰!!!

Welcome to the unique and magical fantasy world of Astria! Zaira is a strong protagonist who is determined to free her siblings and herself from the braid bond slavery. When her brother, Doran, is lost into a Dark Rip, their situation becomes more dire and Zaira knows she must act quickly. Harken is a morally grey savage king who is the protector of the woven court. Learning of Zaire's problem, he offers her a deal that would be beneficial to both of them. This should be easy and nothing could go wrong, right?!?

I loved the banter, tension and chemistry between Harken and Zaira. Harken was all like who hurt you and let me heal you 🔥🥵! The nickname he had for Zaira was just so endearing. The secondary characters were wonderful and I just loved Huxley who is cutest flying dragon!!

The book does not end on a cliffhanger and it can be read as a stand alone. However, I will read the remainder of the trilogy once it is released. I highly recommend this book if you enjoy a mix of Hunger Games and ACOTAR! ✨✨✨✨

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for giving me access to this arc.

4 stars / 5 stars

Things I loved:
Characters are amazing.
Loved all the action.
To ending was great have closure to everyone expect Huxley.
Morally gray character!!!!
Things I didn’t love:
A little confusing at times.
The world is a little complex making it hard to understand everything.

Holden has created such a rich world with her words -- you are immersed in this realm, and the characters come to life around you. Zaria is not a hero, but she is a fighter and a planner and never gives up her hope and will. Harken is a god, a judge, an executioner, but he regains his humanity through Zaria. Their paths cross, and this chance crossing propels them both on their paths toward realized dreams. Zaria enters 2 races that can lead to her freedom from slavery if she can survive, and if she can win. Her challenges are full of excitement and peril. She is cheered on; she is plotted against. Harken must come out of hiding and regain his position among the rulers. He must learn to trust himself and others. There is such magic in this world - Huxley the storm dragon is just one example of the exquisite elements of this tale. I did not just read this story, I stepped into this world and became a spectator in this thrilling adventure! I am so excited to know that there is so much more planned for this word!

Zaria has been planning her freedom for most of her life. Woven in Darkness is a beautifully designed story about her journey from just before the Braid Race begins, a race that could earn Zaria her freedom. One of her brothers is taken through a Dark Rip, she encounters a mysterious stranger, and her sisters and other brother plan their own departure from their current slave master. Zaria is both proud and furious of the lot of them. But the mysterious stranger keeps showing up...

That stranger ends up being none other than Harken, the ruler of the Woven Court, which has been hidden since the war. Their threads of fate are woven more closely than either of them could have ever expected. In a turn of events as Zaria is denied her freedom, Harkan claims her for himself, starting a chain of events that will unravel faster than he expected.

They both come from a background of forced isolation, yet they struggle to see each other and themselves for what they truly are. This book takes us not only on their journey together, but on the journey of the entire kingdom as they fight against enemies far more dangerous and complicated than they expected.

I really liked how the relationship between Zaria and Harken unfolded, but I wish there had been a little bit more between the beginning and the end of that in terms of actual growth between the two of them. The characters were very well designed, and the book itself delivered a complex and entertaining adventure to follow. Despite the focus on death and destruction, it hits on the importance of magic, and love.