An engaging romantasy with danger and politics that left me wanting more. Arwen is thrown into a new world, in a foreign land but proves to be brave, clever and determined in the face of obstacles and new discoveries. I loved the world that was built inside and outside of the keep, with magical beasts and intimidating soldiers. There’s a lot that Arwen doesn’t understand about the war and the world but the secrets begin to unravel and it brings into question what Arwen thought she knew about her country and herself. A lot happens towards the end of the book and I can’t wait to see where this series goes next.

I received a free copy of this book. All views are my own.

"Arwen Valondale never expected to be the brave one, offering her life to save her brother's. Now she's been taken prisoner by the most dangerous kingdom on the continent, and made to use her rare magical abilities to heal the soldiers of the vicious Onyx King."

Fantasy romances are slowly becoming my favourite genre and this book did not fail either. The world building wasn't too complicated to follow but painted a good picture, and the slow burn romance was *chefs kiss*.

I really enjoyed the whole story of this and the twist at the end. Enjoyed it so much I couldn't put it down and finished in a day!

I was, very kindly, given the chance to read this through Netgalley and I am so so grateful for the opportunity

This book is high fantasy and romance all wrapped up in a very awesome story. It took me awhile to settle with it but once I
got to know Arwen I was sold. She was scared but she didn't let that fear rule her. She was kind, fun and very bold of heart.
I had to know if she would find her her family how the story would end . It was completely wonderful!

I look forward to seeing what happens next.

OMG! This book had me hooked.

The chemistry and tension between the FMC and the MMC was spicy, without there needing to be any real spice. I am officially obsessed and can't wait for book two to come out.

A Dawn of Onyx is the new and super exciting first book in a brand new romantasy series.

I absolutely devoured this one! I loved the worldbuilding and the characters especially!

With a lot of new fantasy books, the writing can be overwhelming and an "info dump" but this was done so well and in a way that you understood, even if you aren't a fantasy fan normally!

I cannot WAIT for the second book!!

A healer imprisoned in exchange for her family’s sins by the kingdom warring against her own...

Magic, intrigue, a hidden identity and origins unknown - this was a great romantasy read!

I found this book gripping and really enjoyed reading it - Arwen's development throughout the book, as she discovers more and more about herself and her determination.

Not to mention those five words that has ever morally grey mmc loving bookworm melting into a puddle:

"“Who did that to you?”

Eagerly awaiting the sequel to this great read.

I had such a fun time reading this book!!! It was the perfect blend of romance/fantasy with a mmc who has major touch her and die vibes which we all love!

This book boasted amazing world building and interesting characters, with none of the details being too hard to understand. The writing style alone would have made this book 5 stars for me as it was so beautiful and immersive.
It was really fun to watch the character development unfurl, and each character come into their own, whilst at the same time forming new relationships and bonds. Another part that i really really enjoyed was the creatures and animal companions, especially the chimera, because it is something that is rarely included in fantasy romance, but immediately makes the story more interesting and engaging!

This book is perfect for those who love a slow burn, enemies to lovers, with strong characters and an interesting world.

I cannot wait for book 2 to come out, and would like to say a massive thank you to NetGalley and Quercus Books for the opportunity to read this book!

The best arc I’ve read so far! I LOVED this book and devoured it in less than 12 hours. I’m so excited for the next one. It really helped to get me out of my reading slump.

A Dawn of Onyx is the exciting first book in a brand new romantasy series. Kate Golden has woven such a captivating story with the most incredible world building and phenomenal characters.

The writing style was a work of art; it was simplistic and incredibly beautiful. The world building was detailed but easily understood and I wasn't at all confused or overwhelmed by it. The characters were so well written and I completely fell in love with them!

I can't get enough of this world and I can't wait to get my hands on the sequel: A Promise of Peridot. I highly recommend this book to fans of slow burn, enemies to lovers set in a fantasy world!

Book Review 📚
A Dawn of Onyx by Kate Golden - 4/5 ⭐

Goodreads is to blame for this one. I, shamefully, hadn't heard of this until I was scrolling through GoodReads upcoming books, because you know I need to add more books to the never ending TBR, then I saw A Dawn of Onyx and had to read the blurb. Whoops. Now here I am.

Firstly, the writing style in this book was impeccable. It flows easily, there's amazing detail, world building is phenomenal and the characters are brilliant. Even with things happening left, right and centre, it was so easy to not be overwhelmed. Cannot fault anything about the writing, style or otherwise.

Kane - I want him. He has the whole "touch her and die" vibe that we all crave from a man. The whole character was brilliant and he made the read so much more intriguing. Arwen - it was an absolute joy and pleasure to watch her grow through the book, her personality develops more and more and there was something so enjoyable about her. These charges together simply made the book. You could scrap everything else and the book would still be impeccable.

Thank you to NetGalley and Quercus Books for allowing me to read this ARC - this is an HONEST review from my own personal opinion.

I loved this book. I had heard a lot about it and it truly lived up to the hype. It was an instant five stars for me and I can't wait to continue this series.

The writing style was very easy to read and kept me gripped. I read this book in a couple of days because I just wanted to keep reading to find out what was going to happen next.

The world building was done very well. It was drip-fed to the reader slowly so that you weren't overwhelmed with everything all at once. It also leaves plenty of scope to find out more about the world and it's inhabitants and creatures in the rest of the series. I would love to read more about Acorn the strix and the chimeras; I always love animal companions.

I love the build of the relationship in the book. The banter is top notch and I love the 'touch her and die' vibes from Kane.

I read this as an ARC copy but it has already been released. According to Amazon, the second book A Promise of Peridot will be released in April 2024. I can't wait to find out what happens next. I'm counting down the days already!

Thanks to NetGalley, Kate Golden, Quercus Books and Jo Fletcher Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

A good fantasy romance book. It has its predictable points, but it was well-written, and the main character is very likeable.

I enjoyed reading this one. The sex scenes weren't too over done, which was good. I find that with some romance it's more porn than romance, but this wasn't too bad. I didn't feel like I was getting hit in the face with sex every few pages.

The world-building is pretty good, although I would have liked to see more of the different beasts. I also think more could have been explored with the chimeras and the shape-shifting.

I am definitely looking forward to the next one.

A fun romantacy filled with all the expected tropes, including a morally grey MMC who asks ‘who did this to you?’

This book managed to hold my attention even after reading straight after Iron Flame, which I think says a lot.

Arwen is a gifted healer who ends up behind enemy territory when trying to protect her family, but soon learns the evil king is not who she thought he’d be.

There’s slow burn, there’s tension, there’s hidden magic and of course many a twist and turn. I’m looking forward to seeing where this goes for book two.

Thank you NetGalley and Quercus Books for the ARC.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

"Dawn of Onyx" by Kate Golden is a captivating masterpiece that seamlessly weaves together intricate characters, a gripping plot, and a vividly imagined world. Golden's storytelling prowess shines, keeping readers on the edge of their seats from start to finish. The seamless blend of fantasy elements and relatable emotions creates an immersive experience, making this a must-read for any avid reader. Four stars for a truly enchanting journey that lingers in the mind long after the final page.

Arwen the FMC is such a joy to read, we get to see her grow both physically and mentally in the book from a young and naive girl who hasn’t seen anything outside her small town (only scratching the surface of her powers) - to a badass main character finding out how much more there is in the world and the character really comes into her own

Fantasy elements and world building are amazing but simple enough to get into so you don’t feel completely overwhelmed! But you can fully see the world that Kate is building

Spice levels are good 🌶️ tension is even better and Kane is the perfect morally grey MMC

Thanks to Netgalley and Jo Fletcher books for a review copy of this book. A new adult fantasy that appears to aim for the audience of “The Fourth Wing” it has the attributes of the fantasy novels of that kind that are popular now, though at times I found it a little rough around the edges and so doesn’t quite live up to that of the Fourth Wing, or any Sarah Maas’s novels. The novel is set around Arwen, whose impoverished family live in wartorn Everdell in the Amber territory. When her brother, a drafted soldier returns with a bag of coin solen from enemy Onyx soldiers, her life is upturned and she and her family try to escape to the Garnet kingdom. Before they can board ship Arwen returns to their home to retrieve her mother’s much needed medicine, but the Onyx enemy soldiers are already there and they capture her. In order to save her life and her family’s she offers her services as a healer and they take her to the castle fort where the Onyx king has his headquarters. As she spend more time there, healing the soldiers and negotiating the threats and trials of the court life Arwen comes to realise that the king and the rest of the world of Evendell isn’t what she’d understood and that there were unimaginable threats to her and everyone else.

The storyline is interesting and the use of gems and the powers were a nice touch, but the world building could have been stronger and deeper. The dynamics between Arwen and the king were sometimes compelling and other times not as smoothly written as I would have hoped for, with dialogue that occasionally sounded a little contrived. Overall it’s an enjoyable read, and I look forward to reading more from this author in the coming years.

This was one of the basic fae romantasy that has literally million of varietions rn and I wanted to dnf so many times. The story was basic, creatures? typical, characters? bland, mystery? what mystery?

I'd probably enjoy it, if I was 14 reading my first romantasy, but since I've read dozens of books just like that, it was too bland for me. Nothing stick out.

You have another village healer with mysterious powers, who later gonna slay everyone, I guess, who's dumb af and can't lie and so is naive and opinionaned abt things she has zero knowledge, like girl, you're from absolute nowherehole and you're lecturing literal king about ruling?  Just because you were lady of some geese and one cow didn't give you necessary qualifications to even open your mouth. And she's so jealous and he's so beautiful and so handsome, but he invaded her innocent country, but he also has great abs and even injured and in cell he's the most handsome men she's ever seen and he's so tall and- YES I UNDERSTOOD THE FIRST TIME HE'S HANDSOME STFU PLS

And the king pls🙄 he's obv an awful monster, who kills innocent and feeds on flesh of many women he beds. But wait he's actually the good guy, that's so surprising 🙄 and he fell in love the first time he saw her crying in a cell🙄 and later when her childhood crush shows up he's so jealous omg, and he's so dumb and very in love and they're probably mates or something, cus he also has some sus magical powers, I can't

And nothing really happened in this book, she's just going in and out of the apothecary,  talking with 5 people max the entire book and almost getting assaulted every five sec

Thank the author and netgalley for providing a book in exchange for honest review.

I really enjoyed this. I fell in love with the plot, the characters, the world, all of it really! The pacing was just right, it was slow enough to not feel rushed but not too slow that I got bored.

Arwen was so likeable and I loved her growth throughout the book right up to that epic conclusion. And Kane. Oh my!

I loved how things weren’t quite as they seemed and there is a deeper reason behind everything.

I cannot wait to see what happens next!!

A Dawn of Onyx is a really solid and intriguing start to a new fantasy series, and a debut novel from an author I will be definitely following.

Our FMC Arwen is a strong, smart and curious character from a small town in a warring kingdom. Her love for her family gets her thrown into a war, which she has a lot to learn about- there is so much going on under the surface.
The world building is page turning, with a fascinating morally grey MMC, who has a delightful chemistry with Arwen. Creatures, magic and Fae, this story has grabbed me and I can’t wait for the sequel.

🗡️Tropes🗡️
Slow burn
Enemies to lovers
Warring kingdoms
Fae
(And a dragon!)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC- all opinions are honest and my own. .

Mop me up for I am nothing but a puddle on the floor 🫠

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Dawn of Onyx by @kategoldenauthor is SUBLIME.

I have inhaled this entire book in just over 24 hours.

When people ask me for romantasy recommendations, this will be #1.

This delivers everything I need the first of a fantasy series to be: Kingdoms at war, a morally grey king, creatures and shadows in the night, magic, prophecies and an MFC with a spine. I literally couldn't put this down, I fell asleep clutching my Kindle.

If you like reading;

- The Mist King Series
- These Hollow Vows duology
- Adrian X Isolde

then I'd say you'll love this. I'm in no way comparing these series to A Dawn of Onyx, this is based on pure vibes and a good time whilst reading.

Thanks to NetGalley and Quercus Books for an eARC for an honest review. I cannot wait for A Promise of Peridot. You’ll find me staring at my wall until it comes out. Thanks.

Loved it. A small town girl flees with her family to keep them safe but ends up going to an enemy kingdom as a prisoner. Ends up working as a healer and learns more about the so called enemy as she works to escape. I truly enjoyed this book. It had everything you want in a story, action, intrigue, a little bit of romance and people growing and learning as they go. I loved the characters, loved the world building and cannot wait to read the next installment.