When Yara is stolen from her home and purchased by the trueborn vampirs, her sister Aylin does not hesitate to give chase. She joins a band of hunters with the hope of finding her sister (Yara) However, Yara is drawn in to the vampir count and begins to weave a web of manipulation around the vampires, making promises to whoever will grant her freedom. Both sisters need to decide who they can trust and who they will need to betray if they ever want to find one another, or make it back home, again.

I thought there was an excellent mix of likeable and unlikeable characters in the book and honestly that's what kept me interested. The unique. non-Western setting gave the perfect flair to the story and the author handled it so well. I am looking forward to reading more in this world.

Thank you to the author and netgalley for allowing me access to the e-galley for The Court of the Undead.

Unfortunately, this ended up as a DNF for me. While the premise of the story is interesting and promising, the author's style of "telling not showing" caused my interest to seriously decline. The plot pacing felt choppy and the character POVs would keep randomly swapping, which would jar me out the story. Around 15%, I decided this book just isn't for me.

I do appreciate the world-building the author has done, focusing around the Ottoman Empire and the diversity of that region. It gave the story a unique take that I haven't seen before in a vampire tale. However, the writing just wasn't enough to keep my interested.

I've been loving the resurgence in vampire books we've been seeing in recent years, so I was really intrigued when I came across The Court of the Undead. And while I think this book had a lot of potential, it unfortunately didn't work for me. I think the biggest reason was because I didn't enjoy the writing style. I think this book could've used another round of line edits because there were so many phrases that were repetitive, with some paragraphs repeating a word two or three times. I can normally forgive this, but it happened so frequently that I couldn't stop noticing it. The writing was also very action-based, in that we're told what the characters do and say, but it lacked anything internal. The characters' internal thoughts and feelings were rarely mentioned, so I didn't feel like I got to know them at all. And even though the sisters were supposed to be very close, I still know nothing about their relationship upon finishing the book. I also thought it was strange that the catalyst of the story (Yara getting kidnapped) happened off-screen. It all made for a very slow story with very little action.

I'm giving this book an extra star because I thought the setting was unique (even though there wasn't enough world building or description in my opinion) and because the plot was interesting, even if it wasn't well-executed.

Missing sister, vampires, twin brothers manipulating our main girl? Yes please. This was exactly the mysterious book I needed. I’m a sucker for vampires and dark romance.

While I enjoyed the premise and the characters, the writing style made this a little hard for me to get through. While the romantic portion had a great slow burn and was steady, the plot and storyline itself felt choppy to me. I found it hard to keep my interest and while I really wanted to know what was going to happen to our characters, I struggled to enjoy the journey.

I really liked this book a lot. Vampires, slow burn romance, interesting world building. What’s not to love?

The tension, character development, writing style, and unique take on dark romantasy are what holds The Court of the Undead aside from its similar counterparts. I appreciated the different characters and their wildly opposing views, while having some steam mixed in.

All in all, a great read!

Vampires? Slow burn? Love triangles? Sign me up.

Without giving too much away, anyone who enjoys dark fantasy with multiple POVs, vampires, and a dash of spice, this book is for you. When it comes to theme and tropes, this book includes BIPOC rep, Muslim rep, corruption x redemption, enemies to lovers, political intrigue, and more.

This was a quick read so I'll definitely be re-reading it soon. I'll also be keeping an eye out for this author's future works. Thank you to the author, F.M. Aden, and Northern Light Press for an ARC of The Court of the Undead!

"The Court of the Undead" by F.M. Aden is a captivating and darkly atmospheric fantasy novel that takes readers on a thrilling journey through a world teeming with supernatural creatures and political intrigue. Set in a realm where the living and the dead coexist uneasily, the story follows protagonist Elara as she navigates the treacherous halls of the Court of the Undead in search of justice for her murdered sister. Aden's writing is both lush and haunting, immersing readers in a world of magic, mystery, and danger. As Elara delves deeper into the secrets of the court, she uncovers dark truths that threaten to unravel everything she holds dear. But amidst the shadows and deception, there are glimmers of hope and resilience as Elara discovers her own inner strength and allies who are willing to fight alongside her. With its complex characters, intricate plot, and richly imagined world, "The Court of the Undead" is a must-read for fans of dark fantasy and supernatural intrigue.

Historical vampire romance, yes please! 'The Court of the Undead’ delivers everything you want from a YA - slow burn romance, enemies to lovers and difficult to pronounce names. The narrative weaves romance, and suspense, keeping readers waiting for the next book in this series (which I can’t seem to find any details about yet).

Thank you NetGalley and Northern Light Press for sending a copy of 'The Court of the Undead’ for review consideration.

Thank you NetGalley, Northern Light Press, and F.M. Aden for granting me a copy of this book in return for my honest opinions.

Vampires? Yes, sign me up!
And these vampires? Even better.
Great story, great characters. Solid world building. 10/10 no notes

I got 16% into this book and just lost interest in it. While I was loving the world that was being built and the play on history, it felt too choppy. We were switching back and forth between the characters too much for me to really follow what was happening. Might revisit later.

It was the blurb of The Court of the Undead that first caught my interest. The story sounded very much like my cup of tea, so I decided to request it and give it a try. Fortunately, it lived up to my expectations.

I was so interested in the premise of this book and I think that the series had a ton of potential. Overall, this book fell a little flat for me. The pacing just felt off. There would be action but then times when the book lagged and nothing was really going on. This made it hard for me to stay focused on the book. I do think that this can happy a lot in first time fantasy books so I’m excited to see how the rest of the series plays out.

I liked all of the characters and seeing the different relationships. I liked how there was a focus on sisterhood.

The growth of the characters was enjoyable. There are times that I find myself in need of a good vampire story and this definitely did that for me.

I was not able to finish the book and therefore do not feel that I can give an unbiased review about the book, its plot, characters, or the author's work. I might revisit this book at a later time and finish it then, but not right now.

I forgot to leave a review for this, but I really enjoyed it! It's been out for ages, so I won't say much more than I need to for my star rating. <3

The history and fantasy obsessed girl inside me loved that this was a fantasy set in the Ottoman Empire. The girl in me who hates love triangles struggled a little when Yara was going back and forth between the two men. Although I will say, it wasn’t a bad live triangle.

I loved the inclusivity of this fantasy by using Muslim elements which you don’t see often in fantasy as well as the African main characters. Very fond of the slowburn and the vampire romance(one of my favorites) as well as the bond you see grow between Aelyn and Yara.

the pacing felt a little off in some parts but this was super readable, I definitly was hooked in and read it very quickly!

This book completely swept me off my feet! From the very first page, I was entranced by the vivid characters and immersive world-building. The plot twists kept me on the edge of my seat, and I found myself eagerly turning each page to discover what would happen next. Overall, an absolute masterpiece that I would highly recommend to any reader looking for an unforgettable adventure.