This book picks up where book 1 ended and was full of drama and plot twists, making for an enjoyable read!

Thank you Dreamscape Select for the ALC.

Absolutely epic!!! This series is a 100% must read! J.M. Kearl had me on the edge of my seat the entire time and I think I have a book hangover!!

Thank you so much Dreamscape Select for sending me a copy!!

please note that the trigger warnings and topes/themes may contain spoilers
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
HEA: yes-ish cliffhanger
POV: multi 3rd person POV
spice: one open-door spicy scene (the slowest of burns)
TWs: war, manipulation, death, cheating, death of family members (recounted), bullying
standalone: book 3 in The Elf Queen series
final thoughts: J.M. Kearl how and why are you invested in ripping out our hearts?! This book was devasting in the best and worst ways. This series has me in a chokehold and I’m eager for what happens next. Silly me... I went into this book thinking it was the end of a trilogy only to be sidelined realizing that there is (at least) one more book in this series coming in Fall 2024.
We once again follow an engaging cast of characters looking to eliminate evil, get back home, and find their place as they uncover memories long forgotten.


read this book if you love

😬 angst
🏝️ forced proximity
🧑‍🤝‍🧑 great side characters
🤐 miscommunication
🤫 hidden secrets
❓ mystery
🌀 plot twists
🤜 friends-to-lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers
🔎 adventure
🧠 “it’s always been you”
🔮 supernatural creatures- fae, dragon shifters
🪄 magic
💖 paranormal romance
2️⃣ 2nd chance romance
☠️ “touch her and die”
🤫 hidden secrets
💓 slowburn
📖 retelling (Hades and Persephone vibes)
🔼 love triangle
👺 secret identity

I have mixed feeling about this book since it's filled with drama. The narration however was very pleasant. All in all, I like the first two books more, but I'm still glad I got to learn more about Layala

I loved the first two books in the Elf Queen series and I could not wait to read this one. I am not going to lie I was unsure how I would like another love interest added to this storyline. Thane and Layala went through so much together in the first two books. Thank you to the author for including a recap of the other books. Fate Calls the Elf Queen finally gives us more information on Layala's past. I did not enjoy this book as much as the others. This was kind of a letdown. The narrator is very good. Thank you to netgalley for an arc.

Thank you Netgalley and author J.M Kearl for the audiobook copy in exchange of my review.

The captivating third book in J.M. Kearl’s bestselling Elf Queen saga is filled with breathtaking romance and heated tension. Layala Lightbringer’s worst fears came true when she woke the wicked Black Mage, Hel. He claims she is a goddess reborn… and his wife. For her, the Elf King Thane is the love she desires, the one she fought for, and the one she wishes to marry. She wants nothing to do with her past. Until their lives are threatened and her relationship with Thane depends on remembering who she was in her previous existence as Valeen. But she can’t do it on her own. To get her memories back she must rely on the one she hates most, Hel, and working with him rather than against him poses its own risks. He is a dangerous temptation, and Layala finds herself pulled between two entirely different lives with two very different loves. Content this story contains violence, death, a villainous love interest, steamy content, and profanity.

I enjoy listening to this book. I love the first 2 books and I also love this one. I love the twist and it keeps me wants to listen more.

Really enjoyed Fate Calls the Elf Queen, the third installment of The Elf Queen series by J.M. Kearl.

I loved the storyline in this title - it's definitely been my favorite of the series so far. I wasn't sure who to cheer for but was happy with the ending! Experiencing Val and Hel find their way back to each other was a lot of fun - the flashbacks to the past were so well done. I'm always here for a tall, dark and handsome, morally grey male.

I've really been pleased the the audiobooks in this series. The narrators do a great job of keeping voices separated for different characters. I could live without Tif's voice so obnoxious, but it fits the character.

Thank you to NetGalley, J.M. Kearl and Dreamscape select for this ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Not a fan of love triangles and the conflict stressed me out. Superb narration made up for the unexpected drama.

2.5 stars
I found this third installment of the Elf Queen series to be super high drama. It was non-stop secrets and arguments between Layala and Thane, plus Layala and Hel as well. If you like love triangles and lots of relationship tension, this will be right up your alley. It’s not my jam, so I’ll be tapping out with the series from here on out.

3.5⭐️

I have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand this book was full of action there was always something happening. I really like the world the author created and the diversity of species interacting with each other. We have the humans, dragons, elfs, gods and demons.

On the other hand I didn’t like that the love interest changed. I enjoy love triangle tropes but in this case I didn’t like it. Why have me invested in a relationship for 2 books when out of the sudden in book 3 boom another guy comes in and the other books don’t matter anymore. Thane was done dirty here he was always looking out for Layala he even waited for her to be his first and now you tell me she is fated to other guy😠.

I feel that the original story was replanted and this outcome was not the original. I just hope that Thane finds his other half. I’m interested to know where this story is going.

And I have just one doubt why these books continue with the title of the Elf Queen if she is not an Elf Queen anymore since she isn’t with Thane nor she is an Elf???? 🧐

I read this book via audiobook format, so let's talk about that first. The Elf Queen series audiobooks do something that I have never seen in an audiobook before and I love it. Most dual pov romantasies employee two narrators: one male narrator for the MMC and one female for the FMC. The Elf Queen series does this, and then elevates the production to the next level but utilizing these narrators across POVs - almost like a graphic audio. The male narrator is extremely talented, and I loved the way he brought each male character alive. Having him voice all male characters, not just Thane was such a treat. He was so dynamic. Unfortunately, I was not a fan of the female narrator. I felt that she did a good job of differentiating between characters, however the voice she used for Layala was so grating. The narrator's British accent sounded false af and the voice used for the gnome was enough to make me want to DNF. (More on that gnome later.) Despite my aversion to the female narrator, I loved the production on this audiobook - it was so dynamic - and I hope listen to more audiobooks with this style in the future.

This book included:
- a centuries old love triangle
- dragon shifters
- cursed gods
- angst
- betrayal and the forging of bonds
- lovers to enemies maybe or maybe its enemies to lovers

In terms of the book, "Fate Calls the Elf Queen" was another disappointing installment in the series. The first book of the series was so good and I was totally invested in Layla's journey. Book 2 was a huge let down and I had to literally force myself to finish it. I had high hopes that book 3 would return to the quality we saw in book 1, especially with the plot twist with Hel and War, but unfortunately it was not enough to re-captivate my interest. Layala was so whiny and weak! She went from someone with so much character to a sniveling loser. Thane turned into the most boring shadow of a MMC, that felt more like a soulless imitation of popular book boyfriends. Ugh.

I recommend this book to fans of Fourth Wing, particularly if you like "Iron Flame" you'll probably like this book because the issues with the two are similar. So if the character building and conflict from Iron Flame worked for you, then "Fate Calls to the Elf Queen" will work for you.

I received this eBook as an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to NetGalley, J.M. Kearl, and Dreamscape Select for the opportunity to review this book. This review has been posted to GoodReads - check out my profile https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/62314863

I thought this audiobook was well performed and fit with the others in the series. However, the book itself seemed like it went in a totally different direction than what the first two books set out for. I understand the addition of characters but the motivations of existing characters started to make no sense. I would still be interested to see where they end up and if this book fits in better as a piece of the story but leaving it off like this felt a bit unfinished or the author decided to change the overall story arc midway through a series.

DNF at 46.6%

Upon waking the Black Mage, the plot of this series gets turned on its head. The world-building and character development of the first two books suddenly don't matter. The plot points were at odds with each other. It felt like this wasn't what the author initially intended to do with the series, and they just decided to flip everything on its head on a whim. If the execution or integration of the overarching plot and the initial one was better, this could have been a great book, but I found it unreadable due to how poorly it was done.

Thane falls victim to character assassination; he is the reincarnated god, War, the Black Mage's cousin. In their past lives as gods and goddesses, he tricked Valeen away from her husband and true mate, Hel. As he has flashbacks of his past life, it is clear that he and Hel were very close, almost like brothers, making this betrayal even more heinous. He goes from being a cookie-cutter love interest to this bland, unlikeable cheater with zero redeeming qualities.

Layala's motivations are all over the place. She claims to love Thane yet doesn't seem to fight for their relationship. The only times they communicate are when Thane is being overbearing and misogynistic or when she is trying to seduce him. She finds herself drawn to Hel but does nothing to try to remember her past life. This book relies heavily on the miscommunication trope because if she and Hel had just discussed what happened with Varlett, she would have never gotten with War.

I understand what the author was trying to do with Hell's character. He was supposed to be dark, dangerous, and mysterious. Instead, we primarily get POVs from Thane and Layala; the only window we have into Hell's motivations is through conversation. We don't get to see any of the pining for his lost love or how he battles being upset with her for her infidelity and still wanting the best for her. His character falls flat because we have no way of connecting to him. There was zero chemistry between him and Layala, and the whole thing felt forced.

Overall, I found this book poorly written, with unlikeable characters and a poorly executed plot. I will not be recommending this book.

The audiobook experience was not enjoyable. While a big part of that was due to the story itself, I found Layala's voice to lack emotion and depth. Thane's voice was supposed to sound regal, but it came off as haughty and one-dimensional. The side characters' voices were insufferable. Whenever I heard Tiffapine or Thane's sister speak, I wanted to rip out my headphones. I don't know what creative direction these voice actors were given, but it missed the mark. Instead of the narration bringing you deeper into the storyline, many moments took me out of it.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to listen to this as an audiobook!

I read the first two and saw this was available as an audiobook so I decided to take the chance and listen while cleaning. The narrators were amazing and I enjoyed it quite a bit!

I felt like it was taking a very different direction from the first two books but I did enjoy it nonetheless.

While I listened to it really quick I did enjoy it and want to read book 4 now!

I read books one and two of this series on my ereader. When I noticed there was an audiobook option I jumped at the chance to listen. First I prefer audiobooks as I have poor eye sight and already use my eyes too much at work so my preference is audio for that reason. Also if you have not read books 1 and 2 then you will be completely lost in this books. And for all clarity, I got this book as a DRC.

First this story has some twist and turns you just don’t see coming. I’m still trying to process some of them. This books does have flashbacks to why the main 3 characters are “Gods/Goddess” in a previous life. There are still some holes that need filling but I expect in book 4 we might get them answered. The dragons are still part of this story but less in the sense of them being dragons but more as shifters just side characters along for the ride. I was hoping for a bigger role from them since “War” was connected to them.

Second the narrators do a good job. My only complaint of the audio is the normal speed makes the story drag as it felt like the narrators dragged out the words. I listened on x1.25 speed and that made it sound better. But it did take me 3 or 4 hours into the book before I found the option and fixed that. I do like having the female vs male narrators. Especially when the perspective of the chapter changes.

I do think this story is unique in some ways as I really want to know what happens to our trio of reincarnated deities. And now that the trio has had a shift in who the enemy is you kind of just want to figure out where in the realm did things go. The flashbacks are needed to explain the story, but in the audiobook it was sometimes hard to tell when you are in flashback or present time (Maybe add some light background music or o show the difference).

Finally… personally I want book 4 now. Dang cliff hangers and shocking surprises at the end. I had the feeling on one but not the other. So you got me needing an ending. If you like elves, mages, dragons, deities, demons (of yes they make an appearance), and humans in an every twisting fantasy novel then this book is for you. I would even suggest listening to the audio version since the narrators do a pretty good job but maybe listen on a slightly faster speed as it is 20 hrs and it feels like they take too long to say words. Overall a 4 out of 5 stars. I’m not giving 5 stars as I don’t feel like this would be one that I will reread multiple times, but good enough for me to recommend to book club and want to finish the series.

holy shit, this blew me off my feet.

I enjoyed the first two books in this series, but I didn't consider this series to be an absolute must-read. Fate Calls the Elf Queen changed that entirely. There isn't a lot I can say, for fear of spoiling anything from the first two books, but this book took turns I never expected, and I loved all of them so much.

If you've been iffy on picking up Bow Before the Elf Queen, or on continuing the series, let this be your sign to do it - and stick with it because I haven't had such strong feelings from a fantasy romance in a long time. I felt the full range of emotions - I cried, I giggled, I even squealed and kicked my feet.

-4.5/5 stars!

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review,

I have been enjoying this series so far and was so excited to read this book after the cliff-hanger ending to book 2.

I struggled a little for the first couple of hundred pages, but once the story started to move along I was hooked. J.M. Kearl has clearly decided to destroy us all with this love triangle!! After making us all fall in love with Thane for two books I was shook by how much I loved Hel.

The audiobook narrators were fantastic, and I really felt like I slipped into the world of the story - I highly recommend listening.

I really enjoyed the first 2 books in this series and because of a cliffhanger ending, I was looking forward to this book. So when I got a chance to request an ARC I hopped upon it.

The direction in which the story is headed is disappointing and it honestly feels like the writer just decided to dump everything built in the first two books and restart with a different perspective. Another issue was the lack of communication between the two people. There was a lot of speaking in their head and not a lot of actual conversation.

Now this one. THIS ONE was good. I honestly feel like you could just not read the first two and be fine because*cough about 20% in cough* this gets so so good!!!
Very Thor and Loki and I love love love this one and need the next one

Thank you so much to NetGalley for allowing me to review Fate Calls the Elf Queen by J.M. Kearl. Layala Lightbringer has to choose between her love, Thane, and a God, who declares that she is his wife. I had recently finished the second book, but I loved how this next installment drew upon the history, and reminded the reader of what had come before. It was quite sexy at times, and the slow burn is definitely there! While Layala initially believes that Hel is the worst, as he teaches her how to harness her magical powers, it becomes harder to stay away from his allure.

I could not put this down and loved every second of it. There were male and female voices that sometimes were read together, in the same chapter, which was a little disconcerting at times. After the first couple of chapters, however, I became used to it and the narration was wonderful.