This was a great fantasy novel! I loved the pacing and the characters so much! I'm so happy that I took a chance on this novel and I look forward to so much more by this author!

I absolutely loved this book! The story was captivating, I loved the growth we see in Veyka, specifically. The magic system was a little confusing, but I ended up really liking it. I very much enjoyed the romance too. Overall, great story. I can’t wait to continue this series!

In Annwyn, there are two races of Fae, the elementals (who control wind, fire, weather, ice, and water) and the terrestrials (divided into flora and fauna, earth magic wielders and animal shifters respectively). Veyka is an elemental princess, never expected to rule but suddenly thrust into power when her elder brother is assassinated. Veyka now finds herself not only taking over the throne, but also betrothed to the infamous Brutal Prince of the Terrestrials.

The most intriguing part of Crown of Earth and Sky for me was the magic system. All magic comes at a cost. It can be anything from a few aches and pains to being rendered unconscious to death to something terrible happening to your property or your loved ones. The fact that the nobles rarely used their own magic and instead required their servants to endure these costs on their behalf was a fascinating detail and it added another level of complexity to the palace culture and politics of this story.

One of the major qualms I had about this book was that Veyka's personality and motivations are all due to the seclusion and torture she endured for the first 20 years of her life, at the hands of her mother. Her mother was even stripped of her powers and sealed within her wing of the palace yet we never find out anything more about what happened beyond that Veyka was secluded and tortured for 20 years. We don't know why her mother did this, why no one came to help, what happened during this time. Veyka is clearly a very haunted person, but without knowing what happened to her and why, she ends up coming across as more unlikable than complex. The other thing that haunts Veyka is her grief surrounding her brother's death. This grief would have had much more of an impact had we seen more of the brother. He was in about 2 chapters before he was assassinated and we never get any flashbacks or memories of him after that. It's hard to feel sympathetic for her grief when I have no attachment to Arthur. Veyka's feelings and actions would have made a lot more sense if her motivations and backstory had been fleshed out.

What really frustrated me was the lack of character development. Multiple times throughout the book Veyka came to the realization that she should be better, do better for her kingdom and for her people. And then she was right back to not caring about anything and distracting herself from doing anything meaningful or taking up any of her duties as queen. Despite numerous wake up calls there was zero growth. The only characters that had any sort of complexity were side characters, Parys and Cyara.

There was a huge plot twist near the end of the book that was so unexpected I actually gasped out loud. And then it was never discussed again or unpacked at all. I wanted to know the motivations and the reason for Gawayn's betrayal SO BAD and we got nothing.

I genuinely loved reading this, the romance, the plot, and the characters were everything! It took a bit to get into I will admit but once I got a third of the way in it really all came together and I found myself struggling to put the book down! The tension between Veyka and Arran was palpable! The politics while heavy didn’t over crowd the rest of the story and overall it was an amazing book!

I wanted to love this one but sadly it was just not good. The writing style was fine I think it was just the story/plot and the characters. This one was just not for me at all. I do hope that it finds its readers.

3.75! I absolutely loved the premise of this book - An Arthurian retelling with fae!

However for the first 60% I was really questioning where or not I would finish. The book claims enemies to lovers but really I would say it’s fated mates, there really wasn’t a lot of the ‘enemies’ and the reasons for hating each other felt quite weak. Building on this the physical desire and connection between the two main characters came on far too quickly for my taste, I wasn’t really invested because it didn’t feel authentic.

The last 40% however… yes!!! Finally we got to see some character development, some world building and the start of an actual plot! & that cliffhanger left my jaw on the floor. I’ll definitely be reading the next one now and I’m hoping for lots more plot based story & magic.

Fair warning this is definitely spicier than I’m used to and I did find some of the descriptions and language were quite a lot for me but it was easy to skim as the book delved more into the main story.

This was my first Arthurian reimagining. Well, the first one I finished. I've tried others and they just haven't stuck yet (though I still have a few on my tbr I'm looking forward to). And I have to say, I am so hooked on this series. Veyka is a badass. She's so strong, so determined, and so incredibly skilled. There was never a moment I didn't love her. And Arran? That man can have me I swear. He was so protective of our girl, but still saw her strength and abilities and respected them, even when he insisted on tailing her everywhere anyway. Their chemistry was palpable and I adored watching them grow—especially Veyka. And let's not forget about our other Round Table Knights. The supporting cast was so great. I loved how they understood Veyka and what she needed and were patient while she worked through what she needed to. She was never really alone, and it was beautiful to see.

The writing was wonderful as well! The descriptions of the settings and the details from sparring matches to full-on battles were so immersive. If I had any qualms about anything, it would just be that sometimes it was a bit repetitive. But other than that, I'm completely in love with this world and the fae that live in it.

Amazing author! Great book, wonderful read for any fantasy lover. Highly recommend this novel. I cannot wait to read more from this author.

EN
Veyka, a princess full of secrets, is surprised by the twists of fate and ends up unexpectedly becoming queen. By her side, she will have to deal with the future king, Arran, The Brutal Prince, who is not inclined to make her life easy, being one of the strongest and most aggressive terrestrials in recent millennia.

In a magical world that aims to retell the legend of King Arthur with a new perspective, the author takes us on a whirlwind of emotions and twists, surprising us with the development of the characters throughout the story.

Although the beginning was full of strong emotions, for much of the story, only the more sexy scenes brought some adrenaline. The last part, however, completely compensated for the time invested in the more monotonous parts of the story.

I always enjoy these renewed visions of mythology and history in general, so it was very interesting to read this new perspective, completely different from the original story.

Overall, also considering my personal taste in reading, this was a pleasant read.

I want to express my gratitude to the author Emberly Ash and to the NetGalley website for providing this eBook. The opportunity was truly appreciated. I am very excited to read the rest of the series.

PT
Veyka, uma princesa cheia de segredos, é surpreendida pelas voltas do destino e acaba por, inesperadamente, se tornar rainha. A seu lado terá de lidar com o futuro rei, Arran, The Brutal Prince, que não está para lhe fazer a vida fácil, ou não fosse ele um dos mais fortes e agressivos terrestrials dos últimos milénios.

Num mundo mágico que pretende recontar com um novo olhar a lenda do Rei Artur, a autora leva-nos num turbilhão de emoções e reviravoltas, fazendo-nos surpreender com o desenvolvimento das personagens ao longo da história.

Embora o início tenha sido de fortes emoções, durante boa parte da história apenas as cenas mais picantes trouxeram alguma adrenalina. A última parte, no entanto, compensou totalmente o investimento de tempo nas partes mais monótonas da história.

Gosto sempre muito destas visões renovadas sobre mitologia e história no geral, pelo que foi muito interessante ler esta nova perspectiva, completamente diferente da história original.

No geral, também muito pelo meu gosto pessoal no que toca a leitura, esta foi uma leitura agradável.

Quero expressar a minha gratidão à autora Emberly Ash e ao site NetGalley por disponibilizarem este eBook. A oportunidade foi verdadeiramente apreciada. Estou muito entusiasmada para ler a restante série.

Crown of Earth & Sky
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
🌶️🌶️🌶️

Tropes
‘Mine’
undeniable attraction
Forced proximity
Arranged marriage
King Arthur retelling (done SO well)

Veyka & Arran are from two different territories joined together generations ago by Veyka’s ancestors. Veyka should have never even taken her first breath & unexpected events lead to her seeking revenge with The Brutal Prince by her side.

I loved this book. @emberlyashauthor I am
S H O C K E D that this book isn’t all over Insta. I received an early copy on NetGalley & just got around to reading it. Kind mad I waited so long 😂

I was absorbed by the storyline, the banter, the twists and turns. This has earned a place in my list of top books of the year!! I am determined to convince more of you to read it. Literally have recommended it nonstop since I started & finished it. The ending had my jaw on the floor & had me messaging Emberly because I was kind of mad 😏😏 in a good way of course.
The retelling was super subtle & absolutely so well done. Some retellings are so cringey and this one was not at all.

Add to TBR, put it on your wishlist, tell mom or the
S/O that you need it. Just freaking do it.

I just had a hard time connecting with the FMC, and for me that makes a book hard to push through. plot was good, banter was good - I just couldn't make sense or connect. Will look forward to other works by the author, because I think this type of FMC just wasn't for me.

I was a little hesitant going into this one, I'd DNF a few netgalley reads this month and was worried I was in a slump so I slugged through the first 20-30% of this one, I found it strange to refer the m/c as wide throughout the book but that was whatever, I ended up enjoying this in the end, I had a free day where I was able to finish this book uninterrupted and I'm very much looking forwards to the next book soon, I liked both of the main characters and the spin on the King Arthur retelling was interesting and I'm intrigued as to see how the second book goes!

This was a fae retelling of King Arthur and I loved the subtle nods to this classic tale that appeared throughout. This was also so much more than a simple re-imagining, however! Politics and Spice battle for the main points of this book.

This was a really enjoyable fantasy romance read! I was intrigued by the world and the characters, and I absolutely couldn’t put it down.

Veyka and Arran have ✨chemistry✨ and as an absolute sucker for the arranged marriage trope, I ate it up.

While this does have adult content, some of the fantasy plot does read a little bit YA. There was quite a bit of characters noticing very obviously weird things and conveniently not questioning them. Like at all.

The magic system also could have been explained a little bit better. There’s supposedly a cost when magic is used, but we never see it in action to really get an idea of how it works. There are also zero characters other than Veyka who are concerned about it, but it seems like it could be a big deal?

I would absolutely recommend this book to anyone looking for a New Adult romantasy!

Side note: I know this was a King Arthur retelling, but you can’t tell me that Arthur and Veyka make sense as twin names.

*Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

UMMM?!?!?!?!? That ending was crazy, I am speechless.
This story instantly reels you in and has you questioning what will happen next.
I am soo excited and nervous for book two! I need it now!
Veyka is really good at keeping secrets and Arran is good at uncovering them. That leads to a pairing that you can imagine is fell of arguments and banter and a lot of sexual tension.
This story was paced very well and opens up a lot of plot lines for book two and has me very hyped up about it.

Firstly, thank you NetGalley and Emberly Ash for giving me an arc in exchange for an honest review.
Unfortunately, I did not like this book at all. I found the synopsis to be rather deceptive. I admit the book was not badly written at all and I think my dislike of the book is more of a me problem rather then the book itself. The world was interesting alongside the storyline, but I just could not push through. I went in relatively blind for this book so I was not aware as to how spicy this book was, and unfortunately I personally don´t feel comfortable reading such a high level. I Also did not enjoy some of the language that was used in certain scenes. In no means was this a bad book and not hate to the author. I´m going to quote Taylor Swift "Its me, Hi, I´m the problems it´s me"- this sums up my review.
xx
Bex

I’d like to thank NetGalley for approving me for an ARC of this book.

💥 Our story starts with a bang. When Veyka’s twin brother Arthur is murdered she finds herself the new heir to a kingdom she doesn’t want and a marriage alliance she didn’t ask for. I really enjoyed this opening to the story, it really set the scene and got me excited about what was to come.

🧑🏻‍❤️‍💋‍👩🏻The spice hit very quickly with Veyka and Arran infatuated with one another but because they are both very stubborn and strong it takes them a while to admit their true feelings. I personally thought the banter and slow burn between these characters were done really well.

📖There are some subtle nods to the story of King Arthur which were cleverly intertwined in the story. When you add the impressive world building this story becomes more than just a classic reimagined.

🌟I now need book two to be available because this story ended on a cliffhanger that I wasn’t ready for. I need to know what happens next for Veyka and Arran and I’m also adding Arran to my list of swoon-worthy book boyfriends!

thoroughly enjoyed this Arthurian retelling! It has everything: spice, fae of different kinds, shapeshifters, witches and mortals, and lots of action!
I love that Veyka is not a skinny, fragile woman. She’s full figured, strong, and skilled with weapons. Aaran is a huge, threatening- but handsome shape shifter fae.
I loved the twists and turns in this book and I can’t wait for book 2! Oh and did I mention the spice? 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5

This was a fast paced keep you on your toes book from the very beginning. Veyka is the fmc we all wish to be. She’s an independent spitfire and I love that about her. This is the first installment of the series and it did not disappoint. Fae +spice is always a good time! I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait for the next one!

This was a great retelling of King Arthur but make it fae. Flawed characters, varied magic systems, mystery and intrigue, and of course romance. I thought it balanced all of these very well and was incredibly engaging. I can't wait to continue the series!