The story in Faebound follows two elven sisters, Yeeran, a colonel of the Waning tribe, and Lettle, a diviner. As described in the summary, a fatal mistake causes Yeeran to be exiled from the elven lands and determined to stick with the only family she has left, Lettle follows. From there they stumble into the dangerous hands of the fae and the story’s complicated branches begin to grow.

The story covers so much ground in fantasy with prophecies, and magic systems and war politics and fae politics, ancient lore and of course, some romance. I really enjoyed the relationships in this book, even when I didn’t. I mean that I felt with the characters their emotions, Lettle’s jealousy, Yeeran’s longing for a lover that cast her out while fighting growing feelings for another, all while caring and worrying about their people they left behind and the new people that surround them…and the complicated bond of sisters who love each other fiercely but can but heads with all their differences. I also really liked the Obeah, because who wouldn’t want to be connected to a magical beast? Where can I get one of my own?

Over the course of the book I connected with Lettle and Yeeran though I struggled at first to connect with Yeeran in the beginning. The dutiful warrior is not a character type I relate to very well and I found myself much more comfortable with the grumpy and untrusting Lettle. I often found myself frustrated with Yeeran’s longing for Salawa. Every time I heard that name I wanted to smack her! But Yeeran really grew on me once her eyes began to open up to the truths around her.

I am looking forward to the next book after everything that happened in this one. I want to learn more about their world and this magic and how all the discoveries from this book are going to play out into the next. How long will I have to wait?

Beginning of this book was 4 stars, end 3 stars, so I rounded up. I really enjoyed the beginning - interesting worldbuilding and characters. I flew through the beginning. But halfway I felt like we lost some of the characters depth, especially when we went moved more towards the romantic plots. Yeeran starts as such a strong character, but by the end she just seems to revolve around her love interests. I liked Lettle's story more. Quite twisty through and enjoyed the quick moving plot. Overall I am interested in more from this author, but probably wouldn't continue the series.

Also from a medical background, the whole 'collapsed lung' scene really bugged me. (petty)

I know it’s early but I already cannot wait for the next one! Faebound was beautifully written and well thought out. The representation the book showcased was wonderfully done. The characters were fully fleshed out. Finally a fantasy where the main characters are not 17-19 years old! The world building took my breath away, Mosima sounds beautiful. I loved Pila!!! This needs to go to the top of everyone’s list, Faebound is truly a must read!

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing this eARC.

Faebound follows two exiled elf sisters who find themselves hesitantly welcomed into the fae court, where secrets and conflict rage.

This was a really fun fantasy read! It was twisty, it was intriguing. The world was just the right amount of complicated. I particularly enjoyed the time we spent with each of the lead characters, getting to know them individually. I wasn't wholly convinced that these characters were in their thirties -- so much of the general vibe of this read felt more New Adult than staunchly adult. Even so, I found myself enjoying the ride, waiting with bated breath to find out how things would turn out in the end. I definitely am excited for the rest of the trilogy!

Another thing I loved about this book is the way that El-Arifi deals with gender and sexuality, which is to say that these characters are not treated as odd, as outcasts, or othered at all on the basis of their gender or sexuality. Instead, in this world, they just are, and it was beautiful and fun to read about them and to watch them tackle other obstacles. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing how certain romances develop throughout the remainder of the trilogy as well, since this book saw so much early beginnings and not very much in terms of rich, developed, long-term relationships.

In all, this was a really solid fantasy read, and I look forward to more.

Faebound! What a gorgeous title and a very high fantasy book, i did like it i wasnt obsessed with the book, it did feel like an info dump at times but that could be something you really like, 2 povs with 2 different adventures this may be the it book for you!

2.8 stars

I was given this book in exchange for an honest review. This book had so many things going for it, the magic system, the diverse cast of characters, the religion... but it fell very flat for me in terms of the actual story. Not only did I find the story unexciting, it was extremely predictable. There was only one thing in the entire book that I was even slightly surprised about, and even that didn't pique my interest. Needless to say, I think the foreshadowing could have been more subtle, so as to not make whats about to happen so blatant.

Wow. This book was something else. I read the first couple of pages and almost quit but I pushed through and I can happily say that I am glad that I did.
Everything about this book was so well done! Even though I was able to figure out most of the plot twists, they still managed to surprise me with how they came to light.
Each and every character was special in their own way and I was deeply invested in all of them. I absolutely cannot wait for the next book. Very well done.

Thank you so much, NetGalley, Saara El-Arifi, and Del Ray for accepting my request for an ARC.

This book is everything!! So rich in world building and character description and growth. I was absolutely enthralled reading this and I can officially say I am obsessed. The pace is perfection and although there isn’t a lot of spice it is fantastic spice. F/F, M/F, the different species of mythical creatures and the variety of status’ were amazing. Don’t even get me started on the twists and turns. I can’t wait for the next book. I’ll be reading this one over and over again until the next is released. This author is new to me but I’m so glad I found her and now I need to read her other works. Definitely a must read!! You won’t regret it.

When Yeeran, an elven warrior, is exiled, her sister Lettle follows her as they navigate an unfamiliar world together. I enjoyed reading about their sisterhood. The worldbuilding in this novel is amazing! You really connect with the character's settings and their motives, which is really important to me. Also, the author incorporated diversity into the story very well. We see such a diverse cast of characters, including racial, disability, and LGBTQ+ representation. I do think the romantic relationships could have been expanded a bit, but I do like the slow burn aspect. Overall, this is a very immersive story and I'm excited to read the rest of the trilogy!

Oh how I loved this book! I was already a HUGE fan of Saara from the Ending Fire trilogy. This new trilogy is going to be a favorite of mine I can already tell. I wasn't able to put it down. The characters are likeable, relatable and they have common sense! My library has already put in an order of this book for our new books! Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing/Del Ray for the ARC.

I absolutely loved this book! First of all, the diversity both in race and sexuality was amazing! Not only was this a black romantasy, but a sapphic one as well! The magic system and the history of this world were enchanting. I loved the relationships between the characters! Prophesy, enemies to lovers, poison, and more are in this fabulous world!

A spellbinding tale of human, fae, and elves, of sisterhood, of lovers, and the fates that connect them all. I especially enjoyed the world building and learning about the culture of the fae presented in this book, and I can’t wait to learn more as the series progresses. Pretty solid queer representation, featuring a nice enemies-to-lovers, sapphic romance, we love to see it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for the ARC!

It’s always been incredibly hard for me to get into books told from a 3rd person point of view. I struggled a bit in the beginning to get into this story but by the end I was hooked! The ending will live rent free in my head until the next book comes out!!!

3.7/5 I loved the magic system and how elf, fae, and humans were all gifted a different kind of magic. The descriptions of magesight and learning to use magic was beautifully written. The settings and world building was also intriguing especially the underground land of the fae.

When it comes to the characters I would have loved to have further character building both within the individuals and between the romantic connections. I loved Yeeran and Furi as romantic interests. I am a sucker for enemies to lovers, especially when it came to a sapphic princess and colonel fighting each other with their magic! I would have loved even further build up of their relationship though! I think the novel could have been lengthened to allow further development of characters, as well as drawn out the slow burn of Yerran and Furi.

There were many twists throughout the novel taking the book down roads I didn’t expect.

Overall this was an novel with beautiful magic systems, normalized queerness, disability rep, a f/f romance and a f/m romance, and beautiful settings.

Definitely will be reading the next book !!

Thank you to Penguin Random House and the author for an arc on NetGalley ♥️

MORE. I NEED MORE.
This book was too short. The characters are so beautifully written I could have easily consumed another 300 pages of their story.
I was captivated by the opening fable and was honestly upset anytime my life interrupted my finishing of this book. The lore surrounding these characters is intriguing and I hope we learn more about the gods in the next book!
I wish there would have been a little more tension built between our main love interests. The quick transition from enemies to lovers made the ending feel slightly rushed in my opinion.
However, the plot twists were impeccably placed.
4.75/5 stars

I had such high hopes for this book, I really did. But it just fell so flat; it was so disappointing. Since the description doesn’t mention it, I will: this book contains a lot of LGBTQIA relationships/people in it. If I had known that I never would have requested this book. There was a lot I had to skip over and that’s not how I want to spend my time reading a book. So if you’re not into that like me, go ahead and skip this book. The plot had a lot of potential but the author just gave too much away; I predicted everything that was going to happen long before each plot point/twist occurred. The book also feels geared towards young adult rather than adult; the characters and the writing seem much more suited for a younger audience. I wanted to like this so much, but I just did not.
This review was published to Goodreads on 1/23/24.

I got about 5o pages into this book before deciding to dnf it. I don't like the story or the writing. So, even if the story does get better, I'm not going to enjoy it enough to give it a high raring. I didn't like The Final Strife either, so I don't think I'll be reading anything else from her again. If you liked the The Final Strife, or like this author's writing, I think you would like this book too.

4.5⭐️

I LOVEDDDD THIS BOOK. The plot was so good had me hooked the whole time!! The lore was so interesting but also wasn’t confusing. I know some ppl find world building to be hard to read but this doesn’t have much of that and the little word buiding it does have is very easy/acessable :).
i didn’t know before hand that this was sapphic romance but nonetheless I ATE IT UP😍😍😍.

The only reason why i bumped it down .5 was because the characters were a little childish. i would’ve thought they were 16-25 but when i found they were 25-35 i was like uhm… why are grown adults screaming into pillows like teenagers 😟? Just a little irritating to me but didn’t affect the book THAT much.

Thank you to netgalley and the author for this arc :) !!!

Faebound is the story of Yeeran, a fearless warrior who is exiled by her lover. Yeeran is determined to return to her people, but she accidentally commits an unforgivable offense to the fae. As Yeeran encounters the mystical fae and faces their justice, she forms a connection to a warrior named Furi. Yeeran’s sister Lettle followed her into the fae lands and is both blessed and cursed with divination gifts. As Yeeran attempts to win their freedom, they uncover secrets about both the elves and the fae.

I loved Faebound! Faebound is a queer-norm fantasy with lovable characters and creative world-building. Saara El-Arifi crafts rich and inclusive world-building in the land of the fae and the elves. I’m curious to learn more about the lore behind the fae and the elves. El-Arifi always creates fantastic LGBTQ+ relationships and Faebound is no exception. The enemies-to-lovers connection that develops between Yeeran and Furi is excellent. There is no reason that there should be more between them and yet against all odds there is. All of the relationships between the characters are deep and compelling.

Yeeran and Lettle in particular have a realistic and loving sibling bond. While they don’t always agree, they are always trying to protect each other. One of my favorite parts was the relationship between the obeah and their chosen partners. Yeeran’s obeah Pila is such a sweet and wise companion. I can’t wait to see where Saara El-Arifi takes the story next! Readers who enjoy Samantha Shannon, S.A. Chakraborty, and Jordan Ifueko will love this book.

Thank you to Saara El-Arifi, Del Rey, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

For publisher: My review will be posted on Instagram, Goodreads, Amazon, Storygraph, and Barnes & Noble etc

I absolutely adore the story. The fantasy elements. Keep you guessing and you love the story. The development of the characters go through is beautiful. I love the representation. This book has for some disability as well as sexuality. This book will definitely be a top fantasy book of the year.