With a beautifully imagined alternate history of the Harlem Renaissance, this dark romance kept me riveted the whole time. On every page, I could feel the joy of a super talented debut novelist writing the book they always wanted to read.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for the ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review

The premise of this story absolutely hooked me and I'm not exaggerating when I say I was thrilled to receive an ARC. Unfortunately, life got in the way and slowed me down, but I finally got to it!

This book really shines in the first 50-70%. The pacing is well done, the main characters are solid and well established, and I was genuinely interested in the whole conspiracy plot even though it was fairly obvious but that doesn't matter so long as the execution is engaging. And it certainly was engaging for a time...but towards the last quarter of the book, a lot of the solid aspects sort of fell apart.

First and foremost, Layla and Elise were great. I was listening to the audiobook as I read along during the last half of the book, and the narrator does a great job giving Layla especially a very distinct voice which does come through in her dialogue. Main characters are without fail the most important aspect of a story for me and they did undeniably carry this story. I appreciated learning about their intertwined backstories as I got deeper into the book. There was a very solid foundation for their enemy dynamic at the beginning, and I enjoyed reading them both trying and failing to ignore their feelings for each other. Their relationship arc was the best aspect of this book.

Unfortunately, like I stated earlier, I had a rough time with the last 30%. The pacing suddenly seemed to take off with little to no breathing room between big impactful moments, especially in the last 10%. Massive reveals happened back to back and it was like there were multiple climaxes instead of just one overall which made the story feel a bit disjointed and caused certain character arcs to not be as impactful because it felt so rushed.

I am still a bit confused regarding the motivations of a couple side characters as well but I cannot talk about that without getting into spoiler territory.

Overall, this was a really promising story with solid groundwork and execution for the first ~60% but faltered towards the end. I really think this book would have benefitted from some more developmental editing towards the end because the beginning was truly very promising.

I was very excited for this premise but ultimately very disappointed by the execution. While the idea of a historical fantasy romance is right up my alley, the plot and characters did nothing for me. Elise and Layla are hard to differentiate as none of their individual personalities stand out much. Much of the information about this world is vague and the payoff of finding out information behind the mysteries - namely, the reasoning behind why Layla blames Elise for her parents' deaths and her subsequent reaperhood - is unsatisfying. The writing lacks description and reads very stiff, often getting repetitive to the point where I would have trouble concentrating. I sadly also wasn't convinced by the romance. I felt little to no tension or attraction between the two main characters that wasn't brushed off as a natural vampiristic draw to one another's blood/scent, which had me unconvinced that these two girls really cared for each other on a deeper level. My favorite characters were entirely different people by the end of the book, which also left me frustrated. Overall, I had decent hopes for this book but nothing seemed to hold my attention or make me want to continue reading.

This book wasn't for me. It was very slow eyeball reading and then I switched to listening and it was still slow. I loved the premise of a book taking place during Probation, but the characters weren't deep and the story was dragging. I wanted to punch Layla and Elise both in the face. Elise's dad was a jerk to both his daughters and his wife. Hated everything about this book.

A unique twist to the vampire scene. I loved that vampirism was essentially a plague, and the prospect of having a cure made a unique twist that I feel like I haven’t seen in other vampire stories. This is enemies to lovers at its finest…

3.5⭐️

ARC Review

9hrs and 55 minutes later…

Upon finishing this book, something drove me to skim the Acknowledgments’ Page (which I don’t typically do after finishing a book) and I wish that I hadn’t. My heart is just a little sad and somewhat envious that someone on Hayley Dennings’ team was able to read this entire book in one sitting. When I requested this ARC over a year ago (Yes. I am very much aware that this ARC is THAT MUCH overdue. 🤭🤭🤭) I had high hopes that I would be that type of person too. Unfortunately, it took me 5 whole days to read this one and I really wish in the end that I can say that I fell in love with this. But no. I just liked it. I guess.

This Ravenous Fate is the type of book that one has to be very patient with. While writing this book, Hayley Dennings decided to split this book up into four different ACTS (which I am so thankful for). The Prologue-ACT One (Chapters 1-11) is where this story is at its best. These two sections are fast-paced and this is where a reader finds themselves really curious about the direction in which this story could go. And then you enter ACT Two (Chapters 12-27), where everything just slows down. It might take a reader two-three days to finish this section and one might even find themselves bored and wanting to DNF right here (Reason 1 for why I rated this book a 3.5 ⭐️ read). I recommend that a reader tries to stick things out because ACT Three (Chapters 28-39) kind of creeps up on a person and things start picking up again. It is here that a reader will find themselves falling in with FMC Layla Quinn (if one hasn’t already during their reading journey during ACT Two) and constantly judging FMC Elise Saint (given what this chick was going through, one would think that this chick would have a good heart but NOPE!!! Reason 2 for why I rated this book a 3.5 ⭐️ read). It is also here that a reader will start to wonder: HOW IN THE WORLD DID HAYLEY DENNINGS WRITE A BOOK CONTAINING AWFUL ADULTS?!?! And one might find themselves saying: THANK GOODNESS FOR THE CONTENT WARNINGS AT THE BEGINNING THIS READ!!! Because this book is going to drive a reader insane with how the adults both talk to and treat these young adults in this book. Several chapters were just gross and a reader will find themselves either getting mad, wanting to close the book and throw it at the wall, scream their lungs out, or all three. Once a reader has come up for air, ACT Four (Chapters 40-45) arrives and a reader’s heart warms to the point that they find themselves falling in love with both Layla Quinn and Elise Saint individually as well as collectively. Said reader will find themselves rooting for Layla and Elise to take back everything that was stolen from them and hoping that they work together to take down EVERY. SINGLE. PERSON. WHO HURT THEM. It is within these last Five Chapters where everything comes together and a reader can’t help but become curious about Book #2 (Our Vicious Descent, which I will be reading and reviewing quite soon).

This Ravenous Fate is the type of book that works really well during Spooky Season as well as during Rainy Weather. For me, this entire week has been overcast and rainy so reading this piece of literature with the weather beaming through my windows and drinking hot cups of tea, on a daily, made my experience some what more enjoyable. I am really excited to take a mini break from this duology just to gather myself and prepare Our Vicious Descent. No seriously. I really cannot wait to finish these 5 or 6 murder mysteries that currently overdue at the library and then cuddle under my blankets to begin reading Our Vicious Descent (again with my daily cups of tea. 🤭🤭🤭). I may have only liked this book but I am finding myself very curious on how both Layla and Elise have faired since This Ravenous Fate has been both written and released.

Thank you NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for granting my request of an Advance Reader’s Copy in exchange for my honest and personal opinion!!!

3 stars.

I had been anticipating this book since I saw it announced on Twitter. Immediately, the concept of Black sapphic vampires in the 1920s Harlem intrigued me and I was excited to see Hayley Dennings's take on it.

I will say I was such a fan of the setting and time period Dennings chose to set this story in. I loved that even with the story set in the 1920s, there was so much casual queerness throughout the book. Of the two POVs, I really enjoyed Layla's chapters. I found the reapers and their relationships/history to be very fascinating. I specifically really liked Layla's dynamic with Mei. Getting OCD and anxiety rep in Elise's POV was an pleasant surprise. In my opinion, the book was at its strongest when discussing classism, racism, and systemic oppression, as well as the intersections between them. I loved the moments where privilege was called out, especially in scenes between Layla and Elise. One of the recurring messages in the book is that siding with oppressors cannot protect you, which feels very relevant.

With that being said, I feel like this book would have benefited from a few more rounds of editing. I think the pacing really suffered at times. I didn't really care for the main romance and was surprisingly more invested in the friendship angst. I almost wish that the first book focused more on their friendship and reconciliation, as well as the budding feelings that they had, but that they got together in the sequel instead. I also wish that there were less scenes of Elise's father. They became quite repetitive early on because he is only there to emotionally abuse Elise and leave her distraught. Those scenes ran for a little too long and I think we could've got the same effect, with less page time. I feel like the vampire matroness was underutilized. I think she should have been more present and much more of a heavy hitter. I don't think it made sense for Layla to believe the Saint family, especially given her distrust of them and their empire. The ending fell flat for me and was a bit anticlimactic. Honestly, it didn't end in a way that made me believe this needed to be two books instead of one.

Overall, this was an ambitious debut. Hayley Dennings feels like an author with a lot of fresh and interesting ideas. I believe she will only improve with every book and I'm looking forward to see what she puts out in the future.

Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for providing me for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this book! Vampires yes! A great storyline with so much twists and turns, the characters were really fun and likable. I would high recommend this book to everyone!

Unfortunately, I did not finish this. I started it twice, but cannot get very far into it. I enjoy fantasy stories and can't identify just what it is about this one that isn't grabbing me. Perhaps it's a slow start. I may try to read it again at a later date.

Gorgeous prose, dazzling setting, so much blood.
This book is gorgeous, unhinged, and perfect for reader who love a moment to moment read that keeps you immersed in a mystery with a tense sapphic romance that will want you dying for the characters to be together.

Yall don’t want to miss this read!

This is a hard one for me to review because I'm honestly on the fence with my feelings. I think I will need to read the second book to get a feel of the whole story before I can decide. So, this is a YA Sapphic Fantasy, the romance is there at the end, but you don't have a satisfying love story, IMO. This falls into the trope of Friends to Enemies to Lovers. We follow Elise Saint, whose family runs the reaper hunters and basically the Harlem Area of New York. This family is the powerhouse, and everyone fears the Saint name. Layla is a Reaper (vampire) who keeps getting involved in random murders around town, and she is being blamed for the crimes. These two decide to team up to find out who is behind the murders and to help Elise get in the good graces of her father, while Layla wants to look out for the well-being of her reaper family and hopefully find a cure for Reapers. These two reminisce on how they became enemies and how the Saint family destroyed so many lives, and they kind of develop a somewhat friendship/attraction. Layla has the toughest time in this world. Set during prohibition, she has 3 things that society brings her down for being female, being black, and being a Reaper. Though the community is mostly people of color, it is still the white man who offers a lot of harm, as they were the ones who experimented on people of color and created Reapers. I am still unsure if only people of color are reapers or can be turned, or if anyone can be. The whole concept of this is pretty interesting, taking the girls into speakeasies, mob fights, and even a masquerade ball.

I wanted to like this more because the concept itself is good, and there were great parts but there were a few things that just tripped me up. One was though this setting is 1920s New York it didn't feel like 1920s New York. It felt like it could be set in New Orleans, maybe all of the mentions of France and the folklore of New Orleans makes me thinks this, but also it didn't feel like New York. The language was also very modern, and a lot of actions and reactions were modern and not something we'd see in the prohibition era society. These speakeasies were also not very covert, like they would have been, or maybe I missed that. Another thing I missed was the history of Reapers. We know it was created in a lab by experimenting on people of color because they believed they didn't feel pain, and so would poke and prod people and somehow create Reapers. That was the explanation, like a bio weapon? I don't know, I didn't think that was very clear. There was also a lot of rushing towards the end that made the story not make as much sense. Maybe it will tie up better in book two? The whole first half was slow and didn't go anywhere, then the second was like, let's skip a bunch of stuff to fit the story together. Also, hated the Saint father, what a horrible father, I get he is not supposed to be liked, but man putting conditions of love on your children on what they can do for you, awful, hate it. Then the mom is not seen often, and when she is, she's like a Stepford wife, just going through the motions. So, yeah, I like that this is bringing a twist to vampire lore, and the concept is brilliant, but I think I need the rest of the story to know if the first half makes sense.

As a millennial girlie, any book about vampires immediately piques my interest.

The fact that it is about sapphic vampires set in the 1920s made it that much more intriguing as it felt like a fresh twist on the genre. However, the story felt a little unpolished in a way.

Knowing this is book 1 in a duology, I am looking forward to still reading the conclusion one day in book 2.

Thank you to Sourcebooks for selecting me for this ARC.

This just wasn’t for me, so sorry. The pacing was a bit off, and I just couldn’t get into the characters.

Desire expressed through vampirism or in some cases cannibalism will always be appealing to me. Hayley achieves the very difficult feat of writing a true enemies to lovers tale with stakes (no pun intended)

First off thank you to net galley for choosing me last year to be able to read this title before release. This Ravenous Fate was my first Vampier sapphic read and I throughly enjoyed every second of this novel. As a debut author Haley Dennings definitely earned herself a new fan.

Story/ Plot: 4/5
The premise of black sapphic vampires vs monsters infused in 1920's Harlem Renaissance was masterfully crafted. I do believe the semi YA sexual tension/ enemies to lover troupe in the mid chapters slowed down the pacing just a bit and it went a little to long for my taste. Even though the the pacing was slow, i believe the plot went up a notch became better and better as the story went along. The ending definitely left a lot to be desired but having the sister disappear actually left a lot of meat on the bones to pursue in the next book..

Character's: 5/5
Elise Saint and Layla Quinn are definitely likable characters with trait's that oz we like each other vibes right from the first time they both are in the same room with each other. Elise's family dynamic is very interesting because of the way her father treats her and how she wishes to always please him. I think the death of her sister did a lot of damage to the family dynamic but plays a crucial role in Elise's personality, wants, and needs. Layla on the other hand has lost her whole family and over the years thats she's been turned the reapers have been her community. Id love prequel to learn how the war started with both the reapers and the saints. Layla's mail human friend was a nice side character who wasnt good or bad in my eyes.

Audio Narration: 5/5
Tamika Katon-Donegal as the narrator was top tier for me. I think doing the immersion read with this title actually brought more out of the characters for me. She's fantastic in the Her Name Is Knight by Nena Knight, Book series narrator as well.

Idk this just fell flat for me. Nothing hooked me or drew me in. The characters felt one dimensional. I also don’t like that there’s this ~*secret past event*~ that happened between the two main characters that is mentioned constantly. & there are so many flashbacks even this early in. It makes me not care what the secret event is and just feel over it.

This was a very interesting story with a lot going on and being set up. It also is very interesting in how it talks about racism and mixing it with the vampire aspect. I liked the two main characters. I’m not usually a 1920’s era reading fanatic, but i am interested in what happens next.

When I first heard about this book, it was probably a couple of years ago on the author's youtube channel so when I found out it was going to be published - I was so excited for it.

However, it may be time for me to realize that maybe being interested in a book doesn't always mean I would like it. I think this had huge potential and the concept is really great, but I wasn't able to connect with the writing which made it hard to continue this book further.. Although this was a DNF, I know this book will be a great one for YA readers and I can't wait to see what the author does next!

This book was good and for her first book ever it was a fantastic debut novel. I am excited for this series to continue and the characters were easy to like.

1920s, vampires, lbgtqia representation, what is not to like about this? It is a very layered story with so much going on that keeps your attention at all times! Definitely will need to get the next installment, I need to know what happens!