Faebound offers a unique twist on fae, elves, and humans. The story follows Yeeran, an exiled elf who, after accidentally killing someone, finds her life spiraling into chaos. The novel’s take on elves, who believe they're the last of their kind and are embroiled in a resource-driven war, is fresh and intriguing.

Though the beginning was a bit slow for me, once I got into it, the story became a thrilling, unpredictable adventure. The world-building is rich and immersive, and Yeeran’s character growth kept me hooked. El-Arifi has crafted a fascinating, detailed world that offers a compelling blend of magic, politics, and action. Overall, Faebound is a fantastic read for fans of unique fantasy worlds.

This was a mixed read for me. I loved a lot of the world-building and the idea of bonding with the Obeah. The characters and romances fell a bit short, but I'm rounding up my rating for the parts that captivated me.

Yeeran is an Elven warrior who has known nothing but struggle and conflict her entire life. Her younger sister Lettle is pursuing life as a diviner, telling prophecies in hopes of making a better world. When Yeeran makes a mistake that leads to her exile, Lettle tries to save her; unfortunately they are captured by Fae and held captive in their underground kingdom. Yeeran is saved from her sentence of execution when a magical creature known as an Obeah binds to her soul at the last moment; she cannot be killed lest the Obeah perish with her. The sisters focus on escaping the Elven realm, but both find themselves unwillingly drawn into seemingly ill-fated romances.

I really wasn't rooting for most of the characters in this. They seemed so oblivious to the dangers around them, and to the faults of their love interests.

I absolutely loved the Obeah, and the way they telepathically communicate with their other halves. The descriptions of the underground kingdom were lovely; I found myself wishing i could see it in film. I will absolutely read the next book, just out of curiosity for where the story is going!

Thank you so much to Del Rey and Netgalley for this book!

I enjoyed this book and was in no rush to finish it!

There is so much to draw you in to the story that I don’t know where to start. There’s elves, faeries, and humans. A backstory, a war, and prophecies. It’s every fantasy lovers dream!!!

Another thing I loved about this story is I couldn’t really tell where it was headed because there were so many possibilities. I think it was clear that the origin stories would come into play and that obeah were more than just animals, but the resulting discoveries were not always easy to predict.

There is so much to this world and I feel like this book told such a small piece of it. Of course fantasy always needs good world building and set up but I wanted to know more as soon as finished this book. I think that would be only critique, you get such a small piece of a larger picture that it can feel like the story progresses slowly.

I think this was an amazing book but I seriously cannot wait for the next part of the story to be released!

What an interesting fantasy! I will admit it took me a good minunite to get into this novel but i am SO GLAD I stuck with it becuase it turned out to be really phenomenal. I really loved this take on fantasy characters and worldbuilding.

Took a while to get into this one. I'll admit I was initially drawn into the cover. I read the other series by this author and, unfortunately, didn't like that one very much. The books were long and well thought out, but I also struggled getting into them fully. It's weird because I felt like those had such interesting plots, but that there wasn't really anything going on in them for a long time. And I felt the same thing in this story as well. I feel like Faebound had such interesting lore and magic and the world building was so cool, but it took awhile for me to really get into it. I'm not sure if it was the characters or just the pace of the story, but it was definitely slow moving for me. However, I did like it more towards the end and I am curious about the sequel and if I'll like that one, so I'll definitely read!

This book was an interesting take on fae, elves and humans. The elves think they are the only ones left and are stuck in a war between elven tribes. They fight for resources. Yeeran gets exiled and dropped in the middle of no where. While hunting she kills someone she didn't mean to and her whole life gets turned upside down.

This book gives very much acotar vibes. The whole book feels very much off. It goes fast in some places and slow in others. They way they talk and the narration are very different and can be jarring. And lettle (the sister) is not my favorite. She's 28 and reads like she's 16 at the oldest.
It was OK. I'm interested to see where the story goes from here

*Thank you to NetGalley & the publisher for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review!*

I'm sure that a review for a DNF'd book won't hold the same weight as a finished one but I just could not get through this (DNF at 30%). The writing style was so clunky and and the dialogue and actions of the characters rarely felt natural or well written. I genuinely could not find a bit of this where I understood the hype that it was getting from other reviewers.

I wish this book had lived up to the hype because the premise of the story and the idea of the magic system seemed so interesting. 1/5 Stars

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publishing Company for this Advanced Readers Copy of Faebound by Saara El-Arifi!

I was really excited to read this new series and I must admit I was a bit let down but not totally. I really loved the world and the unique magic however I instantly felt like I would be more interested in the origin story of Yeeran's parents and how that came along.

This book transports you to an enchanting world that was beautifully built. I enjoyed this book & its plot twists kept me guessing. The romance fell kind flat for me. But overall it was a 4/5⭐️ Thank you Netgalley for this early copy

I became transported into this enchanting world from the very first page. The plot was really intriguing and the pacing was perfect. The world building was excellent, I enjoyed learning about the Elven tribes and customs as well as the Fae history, and language. The idea of bounding with an animal and being able to communicate with them was so unique. Using drums and elements (trees, wind, soil, etc.) to enhance magic was very interesting. There were several plot twists and betrayals that kept me on the edge of my seat. The author was able to weave in the history of the magical world seamlessly with the current time. The writing was descriptive and immersive, I found myself experiencing the events and the emotions that the characters did. I appreciated how diverse and inclusive this book is, the author includes characters with disabilities, all skin colors, gender identities and sexual orientation. The ending was so exciting and shocking! I can't wait to read the next book!

This was not the fantasy romance I was expecting! There was hardly any romance which is very confusing because it was marketed as a Fantasy Romance. The was no world building at all. You were launched into the story. The characters read much younger than they were aged. Writing was also to clunky for my style.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this! I could have sworn I posted a review, but as it seems to not be here again...

Faebound is certainly a different read on fae and elves than I'm used to, in typical Saara El-Arifi manner. Drum magic especially.
Strong and complex familial bonds were the forefront of the story, but I'm not sure that they were enough to pull together the very strong romances which are quickly solidified and made obvious endgame.
I'm not quuite sure if I brought the strength of their connections, but they'll be growing in future books.

I feel the dressing up and make-overs a bit too on the nose (part of the ways we will show our control is give you a gorgeous dress and styling you consent to?) for beauty work, but... makeovers are important, I guess.

I do look forward to seeing how the world will expand!

Thank you for the arc but I'm so disappointed. I was just endlessly bored with it. The characters didn't do anything for me. The romance was the most unbelievable romance I've seen in a while. It was just flat. The coolest part of this was world but still it was lacking so much substance for me I just found it dragging.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review of Faebound. This is the first book that I have read by El-Arifi but it will definitely not be the last! I adored Faebound so much that I immediately went out a bought a physical copy once I was able. Yeeran and Lettle reminded me of my relationship with my younger sibling. I enjoyed the world-building in this novel, the cover was gorgeous, and I believe that the characters were well-written. I can't wait to get my hands on the second novel!

I have had a hard time writing a review for this book because how to do I put into words how amazing it is? I love sapphic books but I LOVE this sapphic book probably most of all! The relationship dynamics the politics and magic system! All of this is just to die for and written so well. I need this book in every single format like yesterday!

This book was AMAZING!! I loved the storyline and the characters were were interesting. The world building was well done, and I can’t wait for the next book!

This was a really enjoyable, easy to read fantasy that managed to be diverse, exciting. an enchanting and fascinating fantasy about the cost the power, family, finding your true love, and courage.

I had a hard time with this one... The premise had so much potential but feel flat for me. I found it hard to keep up with most of the time 2.5 rounded up

This book wasn’t for me. I found the writing to be a bit odd and hard to follow. The storyline was a bit confusing. I had high expectations since a lot of people talk about it. The romance also wasn’t something I’m used to.