I was wanting to read sapphic vampires and this delivered! It was so good and fun to read. I really enjoyed the setting of this being in Jazz Age Harlem as it makes it a little glitzy and I loved having a fancy event. The vibes were excellent, and the plot paired so well with the romance. I love a complicated past childhood friendship where they are on opposite sides of the coin and have to work together and think it worked perfectly in this fantasy settings with the reapers and trying to figure out what was going on. I think this was a great debut and I am super excited to read the sequel!

Thank you so much to Hayley Dennings for putting this up on Netgalley’s Read Now for a couple of days so that I RAN to snag it!
This book is just wow. Dennings’ writing style is so beautiful in craft, and her rendition of vampires - reapers - was fun and interesting! The racial commentary in this required reading also, done so blatantly but thoughtfully. My favourite character shifted dramatically (positively, well…you’ll see ;)) within the first half to the second half, and that doesn’t happen often! I’m very much looking forward to the next one!!

This is a book that fell short of its great set up. The setting and premise is great. The worldbuilding was good but simple enough that it didn't take too much deep thinking. I think that this book could have served to be a bit shorter. I know that obviously it is setting up for the second part in the duology, but it didn't keep me interested enough that I am excited for the second part. Love the vibes. Execution waivers.

This new sapphic vampire fantasy set in Jazz Age Harlem was full of darkness and glamour that made it an immersive read. The world building was accessible, and the tension between humans and the 'infected reapers' or vampires was palatable. Our main heroines, Elise and Layla were childhood friends ripped apart after a reaper attack that killed Elise's sister and turned Layla into a reaper herself. A new sinister threat is ripping through the city that brings the women back together in an attempt to keep their families safe. I really bought into the true 'enemies' nature of this romance plot, and enjoyed the mystery of the novel. The Cotton Club, rival gangs and vampire clans, and evil men trying to use science to influence political aims were exciting themes. However, the plot was rambling in places where I would lose interest. The ending felt rushed, and while I think some YA/NA readers will be excited to continue this series, I do not think I will be picking up the next book.

i thought i would love this book based on everything i heard about it and all the advertisement but the pacing was just too slow for me to actually enjoy it. it’s a good story in theory but it just wasn’t executed well.

thank you netgalley for the e-arc!

Thank you to Net Galley and Sourcebooks Fire for the ARC. While the concept of sapphic vampires in the Jazz Age, I couldn't find the actual story interesting. The pacing was just too slow for me to get invested.

I was very excited for this book, but all the glitz, glamour, mystery and dangerous seductions that were hinted at, fell flat. This is one of those three tropes in a raincoat parading as a fully fleshed out novel. There is much promise in the writing, but I feel as if this is yet another book let down by the editor.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

DNF at 18%. I like the concept of this, but I failed to get invested. Neither main character interested me, and I didn’t feel the chemistry between them.

DNF at 33%

I'm so disappointed to be DNF'ing this book but it just wasn't doing it for me. I adore the premise of the Jazz age vampires, black FMCs, sapphic friends to enemies to lovers romance. I thought this story had a lot of potential. Especially when the prologue also seemed to be leaning towards the reapers being the creation of some medical experimentation which is a premise that unfortunately has its roots in reality. So many aspects of our sordid racial history in this country were laid out to be explored but unfortunately I just feel like the execution fell flat.

I wanted to know why Layla blamed the Saints for her reaper hood but it felt like that fact kept being dangled in our face and not delivered. The main plot action involving the reaper who wasn't a reaper and the murder that Layla and Elise were forced to team up together to solve also seemed to drag itself out. The inner monologues of Elise and Layla seemed very repetitive. I'm not really sure how many more times the same thing could be said without actually advancing the story. If the cyclical nature of their thoughts had been lessened and if the plot had moved forward at a better pace, I think this would have been a much more captivating story.

I like where Hayley's head was at. I like where I think she wanted to take this story. I just didn't like the way it worked out in actuality. I may come back at a later date and attempt to give this another go. But as of right now, I'm going to put this one to rest.

The trope marketing was so on-point with this one. Sapphic black vampires in the 1920s Harlem? Yes. Dagger to the throat scenes? Yes. Childhood friends to enemies to lovers…? Maybe, we’ll see how the story goes in the sequel (which I will definitely be looking out for!).

This is a solid debut. Elise Saint is the heir to the Saint Empire, one that prides itself in reaper-hunting, while Layla Quinn is a reaper betrayed by Elise Saint. Elise and Layla were once childhood friends but are now on opposite sides of a war who must work together to investigate a series of murders.

The vibes are indeed dark and beautiful, as promised. I do have to say, though: the story was predictable to me. The ending as well left me confused because where did all that come from? I know it was to set up for the next book, but there was little to no buildup towards those major plot events at the end. Nevertheless, I had a good time, I was entertained, and I enjoyed reading it. The writing completely hooked me in and that’s all that matters.

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the ARC! :>

I remember when the author first posted about this book on TikTok and I was so stoked to read it. This was definitely worth the wait.

Came for the sapphic vampires and stayed for the plot of 1920s Harlem on the verge of something. In a lot of ways this is an intense book, but a deeply interesting one throughout. The main characters, Elise and Layla feel so strong and end up representing the kind of ‘two-sides’ through that (humans vs reapers). It was personally a little bit hard for me to get into at first, especially because it’s not a short book, but I was really interested in the story throughout, and I’m super interested in seeing how the story continues in the next book!

The world of THIS RAVENOUS FATE is sumptuous Jazz Age Harlem, with an empire of human hunters and a crumbling hotel of reapers (vampires). Our main characters are childhood friends to enemies to reluctant partners to…maybe something more. But they can’t quite focus on their feelings with something curious happening to reapers around the city, and y’know, Prohibition and all that. There’s family drama, friend drama, potentially mafia drama, romantic drama, and all of the things along with it. And the deeper the reader gets into the book and thus its world, the more complex everything becomes. It’s a bit hard to describe the story that Hayley Dennings has put together because it’s so nuanced, and yet so interesting along the way that I couldn’t really stop reading, even at a slower pace.

I think that this book definitely lived up to my expectations for it while also surprising me along the way. And I will so be back for part two of Black sapphics and vampires in the finale to this duology!

I really like the premise and time period this story is set in, but it just didn't grab me. I felt it was lacking chemistry between characters and there was not much happening. I felt like the world building took a long time. I'm sorry to say it didn't work for me!

This Ravenous Fate is a sapphic fantasy set in Jazz Age Harlem. The regal world-building is intertwined with the threat of vampires and a mysterious affliction that haunts them. Elise and Layla have a very complicated relationship that is slowly revealed. The chemistry between them is intense, especially as the truth of their connection is rekindled. The pacing felt a little off at times, with some reveals being glossed over too quickly or at times lacking momentum. Still, this was an intriguing debut and I’m excited to see what happens in the sequel!

Thank you to Hayley Dennings, Sourcebooks Fire, and Netgalley for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review. The concept was so interesting, but this wasn’t what I thought it was going to be. I felt confused at times and wanted more from the plot, characters, and world. There were some things that happened in the end that I wasn’t expecting.

Thanks to Sourcebooks for an eARC of this book.

What a fun debut! Gangs/Vampires/Vampire Hunters, friends>enemies>reluctant allies, wlw romance, in 1920's Harlem, NY? So much happening.

Elise Saint returns from France to take over her father's vampire (reaper, in this novel) hunting empire. After a mysterious murder, Elise is forced to team up with someone from her past to solve the crime. As expected, things get tense. There is a lot of betrayal, lies and half truths, and ulterior motives from everyone involved.

Overall I really enjoyed this read. I think the 1920's setting was a perfect blend with the more fantastical elements of this book and Dennings used a lot of historical context to propel the plot points of her story.

As other review's have pointed out, the romance aspect of this story felt a little confused for me. There was clearly a strong connection with Elise and Sterling and while Dennings makes it clear that they are just friends, more like brother and sister, there are still a few points where Sterling is talking to Elise and it almost seems like he secretly wishes it were more? Lots of brushing hair from her face or other kind of intimate gestures like this that feel slightly more weighted than a casual touch. It never felt like Elise wanted more/had deeper feelings, but it does beg the question of if he knows she's interested in women? Just food for thought.

I hope Elise continues to grow in book two. She is pretty selfish, if I'm being honest, and we see that in a few key scenes of the book where she either says or does something that she sees no issues with but it really hurts those around her.

SPOILER ALERT: I do wish Elise became a Reaper during THAT scene. It would've felt really full circle but maybe in book two.

This Ravenous Fate is the story of two African American women living in 1920’s New York. One has returned home from several years abroad studying and playing piano in France. The other is a vampire dealing with clan politics and loyalties. These two former best friends are now enemies and must work together to solve a mystery regarding a newly turned vampire who was not a vampire at the time of his death.
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks for the opportunity to read and review this book in exchange for my honest review. Unfortunately, while this book has many things going for it and to support such as a sapphic main couple, a debut author etc, this book fell short for me.
I wasn’t engaged with the main storyline and none of the characters were appealing enough for me to care what happened to any of them. I am giving this book 3 stars and will not be discussing this book on my social media at time of release in August.

Y'all, this was SO DAMN good!! It was a little slow in the beginning for my taste, but it's so worth it!

1920s, women of color kicking ass, sapphic romance, tackling the injustices of the time period, and just beautiful language used throughout. I think the way the author realistically added in what was going on in the 20s was perfect. Even with the fantasy aspect, there was no shying away from how people of color were treated. It grounded the story telling to truly push the narrative in the injustices that were happening outside of people's skin colors. That it just showed how it was if we can't understand how POCs felt we could understand how the reapers felt. Thus helping and teaching with what we could not understand due to the privilege we may possess.

THIS RAVENOUS RATE by Hayley Dennings is set a the world of the 1920’s New York; a world filled with fantasy and mystery

The authors writing was captivating from the very start, absolutely poetic. I found it hard to stop reading.

There was so many deep complex and vulnerable layers to her characters especially Elise and Layla. I loved that we got both of their POV’s and see as they worked through their inner struggles. The backstory of their history was beautifully executed and compelling. I admired both of their growth as the story progressed, it was amazing to witnessed. Despite the years that separated them they had incredible chemistry and passion. They both felt so real and relatable, I felt connected to different aspects of them.

And that ending!!! Despite wanting more world building and the pacing being a bit slow! The ending made me excited to see what the author has in store next for the next book in this series

Great lesbian rep. Sultry and decadent. Black vampires prove that everything is better black. Can’t wait to read more by this author. A dazzling debut.