I NEED BOOK TWO ASAP! The characters were amazing, the plot was fantastic, and the era the book is written in, EATS!!! I LOVE the Harlem renaissance, so this was right up my alley! Once again, an amazing author who is goals for me!

I really enjoyed this book. Sapphic black enemies to lovers. I need more black lesbian love! I can’t wait for book 2

A huge thank you to the author and publisher for providing me with an arc of this book, in exchange for an honest review. This book was one of my most anticipated books of the year, so many individuals on book twitter have been buzzing about it for a while. As a queer woc, I was so excited to dive into this world! This book had the potential to be amazing but the pacing didn't work for me. The themes were fantastic, and the characters were interesting, but I wanted more going on between our two protagonists. The book is marketed as a sapphic vampire romance but there was barely any romance. I adore friends-to enemies-to lovers, but I just didn't think that there was enough context to believe that they wanted to become lovers. I didn't hate the story, I just think that it could have been executed more neatly. I won't give up on this series or Dennings, I think that This Ravenous Fate was a noble start.

3,5 I was intrigued by this immersive tale of sapphic Black vampires set in 1920s Harlem. The author explores themes of racism, class and wealth, offering a unique perspective.

*Key Strengths*

- Unique blend of historical fiction, fantasy and LGBTQ+ representation
- Thought-provoking commentary on social issues

*Areas for Improvement*

- Editing refinement for smoother pacing and authorial voice
- Potential for further character development

*Overall*

A compelling read with immense potential! With refinement, this book can soar.

Loved these violet girls so much. The writing and story is super exciting, atmospheric, well thought out, and left me excited to continue into book two!!

This is one of my favorite reads of the year! It automatically kept me engaged and on the edge of my seat from the very beginning. Who doesn't love a book about vampires and humans with some romance!

Thank you for this arc!

I absolutely loved this one. The overall setting was so cool because we got so into the history aspect of the 1920s in the United States and we went into race which mixed with the vampire/reaper aspect was done so well. The sapphic romance was also to die for (pun intended).

This was really really good !!

I loved the vampire lore, how it is mixed with Black History, and i am so excited for the sequel of this duology, as we will surely get more 👀

Elise and Layla's emotions really pierced through to me. Especially Elise with her familial issues and anxiety. I actually had to put down the book for a while because of it.

The dynamic between the two is compared by the author to couples like Vi and Caitlin (Arcane), or Catra and Adora (Shera). I definitely saw the latter, as I'm more familiar with them, in Elise and Layla. It was so entertaining, and I will always love an Catadora type couple for sure 🙂‍↕️

For the few negative issues, there was just some syntax that didn't make sense to me sometimes, some moments that were too strechout. Towards the 60-70% mark there was a slow down moment, there was a sort of tangle of plot and emotions that confused me a bit. (Full disclosure tho for the negatives : english is my second language.)


Overall a very poignant and entertaining read, that got me excited for the sequel 🥰

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC, I'm so glad i could read one of my most anticipated read of the year early !

Disclaimer for NetGalley: I will not be posting this review wide, since I didn't care for this book and have no desire to lower the online ratings.

I've been trying to read this book for the better part of three months, and I am simply not enjoying myself. I felt like the very beginning drops us into the story and then delivers clunky backstory for several chapters. I kept having to reread pages to figure out where people were or whether the scene had somehow changed, or what was going on. There would be scenes that felt pointless followed by scenes that seemed important but were so rushed that I had no idea what was happening. To me, it really read like a rough draft, and when I don't care about the characters by 20% of the way through the book, I'm probably not going to.

All that to say, the book clearly wasn't for me. I've decided to fully DNF, but I'm grateful for the opportunity to read this, since a lot of the elements sound right up my alley. For me, there's a clear difference between "I really dislike this book" and "I'm not having a good time, but someone else might." This book falls into the latter category for me, which is why I'm keeping my review limited to NetGalley. Thank you to the publisher, and I wish the best to this author. I would still read her work in the future even though I'm not enthused about this series.

Did not finish at 11%. The story was not holding my attention. I was not invested in the characters.

This Ravenous Fate was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024, but I found myself a little disappointed by it ultimately. I love the vibes SO much, and the first chapter is a work of art, but unfortunately the writing style wasn't to my taste. I think that this book will really succeed among a younger audience. I think I wanted something just a little more out of it and am struggling to identify what exactly it's lacking.

Sapphic vampires will ALWAYS be a win though, so don't forget that.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for a copy in exchange for a review :)

This one was a little bit slow for me, but I was here for the vampire story and the representation within.. I also loved the Harlem renaissance vibes and I am looking forward to continuing the series. I believe this one was the building block to the rest of the series! It was a slower burn for me to build upon the mystery of the story. Hoping the next book in the series is a bit more faster paced.

Im not sure if maybe I just wasn't in the right mood for this story or what but it really fell flat for me. The whole thing was overly predictable. Outside of the mention of speak easy and illegal alcohol, it could have been written in today's time. There was not much to really tell it was the 1920s. The characters fell flat. There was minimal growth and it was all on the last 50 pages. The main character was irritatingly blind to everything. I wish they delved into the history between Layla and Elise more. Maybe some more backstory all around.

i can usually tell when something is a debut, and this is a debut. it shows promise however which is a good thing.

If you like vampire, time period, romance novels with a touch of old timer gangster feels, you are going to love this book!

For the first several chapters of this book, I was not sure that I was going to like it. I did have a hard time placing myself in the story, because I kept thinking that it should have been further along in time than it actually was. However, as the chapters progressed, the more interested I became. I am looking forward to the next book in the series.

How do you spell intriguing and entertaining. I really love the magical universe. This author created in the book. The storyline was diverse and well thought out it had amazing characters and it also just had a sense of ups and downs that you could never see coming. I really enjoyed every character in this book and not one character sit out but instead they all kind of shocked me with how much I ended up liking them all even the ones that were more on the line of the wrong side.

3.5*

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC of This Ravenous Fate!

If you are a fan of the childhood best friends turned enemies turned something like lovers, this book is for you. It has vampires, sapphics, and a 1920’s Jazz Harlem setting you can sense the music and glamour in every page. I did enjoy this book for the angst, the interesting and complicated relationship between Layla and Elise. While I thought some of the plot was somewhat predictable I did think the execution made this story worth a read.
I am excited to see where this story goes in the next book.

I have been really liking the vampire renaissance lately! Sadly, this book just didn't work out for me. The writing was really beautiful in some sections, but then the dialogue was clunky and scenes were randomly plopped in a chapter. Characterization flip flopped a lot. We investigate the murder... kinda? Elise and Layla mostly just wander to different locations and encounter an event. There aren't that many clues or hints. It ends up being pretty obvious who is behind everything to the reader, but the characters take forever to come to the same conclusion. I despised Elise's father and his wishy washy actions, especially his decisions regarding his 'heir' *eye roll* In what world is a 10 year old child ready to learn how to be an heir to a reaper hunting empire after basically spending all her time dancing? She's 10! And the mother too; she was basically a paper doll? She does nothing and has the most blase reactions to things like finding a half naked man under her daughter's bed or finding that same daughter making out with her 'enemy.' Elise herself was a bit boring and I was hoping we would get more about the whole music is her life aspect, but it doesn't really get weaved in at all. It's just random scenes. Which, actually, is a good description for much of this book. The whiplash of having an emotional scene in one POV with just a line break then a quirky little scene in a different one was really strange. I think this book just suffers from trying to release it in the hype around vampires and not doing enough edits. Some developmental edits would really have helped with the pacing issues, the chronology issues (it was hard to keep track of the timing of things and the history we are being given), and provide more seamless weaving of the different thoughts in the plot. The most successful character for me was Layla, who has a lot of depth with her warring emotions around family and sense of self, and, yet, I was still a little confused by some of her actions because they strayed from her characterization or were not built up enough before we were given the information, for example, the relationship between Layla and Mei. Actually, of the side characters, I feel like Mei had the most development and felt the most like an actual person with a full life. Sterling did at moments, but other times I was confused by his lack of response to things that happened.
I did stay up late to finish the book, mostly to see if Elise's dad got what he deserved (not really imo) but also because I was already 70% in so I might as well have just finished it. I am uncertain if I will finish out the duology because I just don't know that there will be enough explanation or a good conclusion.

A Flawed Debut with Potential
This Ravenous Fate presents an intriguing premise: a love story set against the backdrop of Jazz Age Harlem, with a supernatural twist. The historical setting is well-researched and atmospheric, and the concept of reapers adds a unique element to the narrative.
However, the execution falls short in several areas. The pacing is uneven, with some sections feeling rushed while others drag. The characters, though interesting in concept, lack depth and nuance. Elise and Layla, the central protagonists, are often one-dimensional and their motivations are unclear at times.
While the world-building is promising, the plot is predictable and lacks the necessary twists and turns to keep the reader engaged. The dialogue, though occasionally witty, often feels stilted and unnatural.
Despite its shortcomings, This Ravenous Fate shows potential. With stronger character development, a more compelling plot, and tighter pacing, Dennings could craft a truly captivating story.