Sapphic fantasy/mystery with vampires in 1920s New York, need I say more?!

I really enjoyed this one! The writing was very atmospheric and beautiful. The pacing was a little slow in certain parts, but overall I recommend checking this one out. I'll definitely be checking out book two.

I loved the unique vampire story featured in Harlem during prohibition. I wish the author had explored the racism more as I felt it fell short, but overall a really compelling and intriguing story that had an awesome cliff hanger!

This Ravenous Fate by Hayley Dennings - eBook ARC

This Ravenous Fate by Hayley Dennings is an engaging addition to the dark fantasy genre, weaving a tale of curses, secrets, and destiny. As an ARC reader, I had the pleasure of delving into this atmospheric world before its official release!

The narrative follows Elara, a young woman burdened by a curse that dictates her fate. Set in a realm teeming with dangerous magic and clandestine societies, Elara’s journey is one of self-discovery and battling against forces beyond her control. As she navigates through treacherous alliances and uncovers hidden truths, Elara must confront her destiny and the dark powers that seek to control it.

Dennings excels at creating a vivid and immersive world. The settings are richly described, transporting readers into a dark and enchanting landscape. The moody, almost gothic ambiance adds a layer of depth to the narrative, making the world feel both magical and perilous. The concept of a cursed fate and the protagonist's quest to break free from it is compelling. This central theme drives the narrative forward, maintaining a sense of urgency and intrigue. The relationships in the story are well-developed and add emotional weight to the plot. Elara’s interactions with other characters, whether allies or antagonists, are filled with tension and complexity, enhancing the overall reading experience.

While the story is engaging, some of the plot twists are foreseeable. Experienced readers of the genre might anticipate certain developments, which can diminish the element of surprise. At times, the plot feels straightforward and could benefit from more intricate subplots or unexpected twists. This added complexity would provide a richer, more satisfying reading experience.

This Ravenous Fate is a solid dark fantasy novel that will appeal to fans of the genre. Its atmospheric world-building and engaging premise are definite strengths, although the predictability and character depth could be improved. Overall, it is an enjoyable read and a commendable effort by Hayley Dennings.

For those who appreciate dark, moody fantasy with a focus on fate and destiny, *This Ravenous Fate* offers a compelling journey. While it may not break new ground, it is a worthwhile read that will keep you entertained from start to finish.

### Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

**Publication Details:**
- Author: Hayley Dennings
- Title: *This Ravenous Fate*
- Genre: Dark Fantasy
- Release Date: [Insert Release Date]

**Reviewer:** [Your Name]
**Date:** [Insert Date]

**Disclaimer:** This review is based on an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) provided by the publisher. All opinions expressed are my own.

Saying "This book proves that a great premise does not make a good story" would be an ungenerous exaggeration. But perhaps not entirely false.

The setting and character concepts of This Ravenous Fate are promising. ("Decadent Fantasy Duology in Jazz Age Harlem"? Sign me up!)
And while I'm neither a regular vampire-enjoyer nor a fan of writers arbitrarily renaming fantasy creatures, (vampires being called "reapers", in this case) I went into this genuinely expecting to be as dazzled by the story as I was by the premise.

And I will say, Layla and Elise oppose each other neatly - in theory, their dynamic makes sense and is sharp enough to set up a good romantic twist.
Where the problems begin is the length and uncertainty at which that dynamic is set up. We spend so much time vaguely sketching out what might have happened between them and Charlotte, I genuinely couldn't tell what their beef was about a third into the book.
There's nothing wrong with teasing a dramatic backstory. But the norm for that in better constructed books (such as Gideon the Ninth or Six of Crows) is to vaguely brush up against it once or twice and then initiate a flashback or recount the conflict in narrative voice. Not to go "and then she got really upset about that thing that happened years ago" literally every time the other character is namedropped and aggressively resist elaborating.
There was, I feel, a more concise and satisfying way to do this. What we get instead draws the mystery out but also takes the wind out of its sails, rendering it less urgent and less tense.

I'm sad to say this is also what kept me from getting immersed in the story. This book is tragically overwritten, to the point that a firm round of edits would probably cut each chapter clean in half.
Genuinely, there is so much needless explanation of concepts that every reader, nay, every human being should have a good idea of already that the writing feels almost deliberately dumbed-down. This is the absolute most common mistake beginner writers make - but in a thrilling murder-mystery romance novel, it kills any and all narrative drive.
Let's use a randomly selected sentence as an example:

"Elise's curls stuck to the back of her neck, where sweat steadily formed with each passing minute she spent outside, a cool breeze being the only respite from the heat."

*Google assistant voice* Try instead: "Elise's curls stuck to the back of her neck."

The relevant rest (she's sweating) is implied and everything that isn't implied (there is a cool breeze) is irrelevant.
I don't mean to be condescending. It's true that this is a common, fixable mistake. But when /most/ sentences in your book are troubled by it, the inflation of volume waters down the genuinely clever writing hidden within.

I don't think I could rank this book significantly higher if the ARC I received is not drastically rewritten before its release. But I see great potential in both the ingenuity of the narrative and Hayley Dennings as a writer. I firmly believe that anything coming from them from this point onward will only get better and better, and that some time from now, I will be able to say that they are one of the most capable authors in the genre.

Thank you SOURCEBOOKS Fire for an early copy!
This Ravenous Fate was such a compelling read. First of all, sapphic vampires!!! I needn't say more, though I will. The worldbuilding itself was handled nicely, it brought the Golden Age to life on paper and the complex relationship between the two main characters was everything I could ever ask for!!

I really wanted to like this book because the premise sounds so good, but I got about 7% in and I really just didn't care all that much about any of the characters. Something about the concept felt flat to me and I usually have to like at least one of the main characters to keep going. I can tell this book will have an audience, I just wasn't part of that audience. Maybe I would have had a better time if I could listen to the audiobook. I decided to DNF it after losing interest for a week.

This Ravenous Fate is an ambitious sci-fi/fantasy with a slow-burn romance. This book gets a lot of things right, but it suffers from pacing issues and inconsistent side characters. It is at its best when exploring America's history of scientific experimentation on Black people without consent and compensation. The science and the politics are the most beautifully, heartbreakingly written parts of this novel. The cultural differences between racism in America and Europe are brilliantly handled. The parallels of mistreatment and systemic eradication between Black and Reaper minorities horrifying.
The slow-burn romance was too slow for characters with such a life-long background as Layla and Elise. The plot lagged around the 67% mark, and then it felt like things fell apart shortly after. This book will have at least one sequel, so perhaps it was setting up for the next book, but there was not enough resolved here to be satisfying. Still, rounding up from 3.5 stars because the issues presented are extremely relevant beyond the vampiric romance/mystery.
Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Fire for this ARC!

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book! The story of vampires and humans in war in Harlem. The characters are fun and totally bring you in as the writers words make your truly feel the journey of Layla and Elise Saint. Former best friends, enemies and then working together to solve what is happening to the Vamps. Loved the book.

Any book set in the 1920's has me at hello. I am all in! This book was no different. I felt repelled back in time as Dennings brought to life a story set in my most favorite era with such remarkable detail. I could imagine myself on the streets during the height of the age of jazz in Harlem. New York always seems to find itself as a character in books all on its own and never fails to be a tremendous backdrop to the stories set there.

Thank you to the author, NetGalley, & SOURCEBOOKS Fire for the eARC in return for an honest review. My thoughts are my own.

Elise Saint...wow! The writing...lyrical and flowing like a perfectly crafted poem.
You'll enjoy the Murder Mystery aspects of this story that add so much intrigue that, while it might not exactly keep you guessing, you can't wait to be proven wrong or right. Its not as obvious as one might believe.
I wasn't exactly ready for the intensity of the relationship between Elise and Layla, but I couldn't help rooting for them and enjoying the chemistry.

Do I have regrets? No, I do not!

4 outta 5 stars

Queer, Black, and Vampires!? Sign me up! Loved this book amd I am looking forward to reading more by this author.

One of the most fun parts of reading historical fiction is the broad swath of time periods and places one has to pick from! There’s almost always something new, with different places and times presenting a plethora of unique story opportunities. So now you have a book that not only explores 1920s New York City but pairs it with a lesbian vampire romance? Sounds super weird and super interesting!

While this wasn’t a perfect read for me, it still was a pretty good one! First of all, the setting didn’t let me down. I loved exploring this time period and its version of New York City, with its dark alleys contrasted with its vibrant night life. The author definitely succeeded in creating a sense of space with its specific vibe and culture. While I think a bit more could have been done with the world-building on the fantastical side, the author seems to effortlessly capture the essence of a large city.

Part of this comes down to her lyrical style of writing. I loved the turns of phrase and varied word choice the author used in crafting this book. If nothing else, this is a beautiful book to read on its own merits as a written product. I often find that a more lyrical approach to writing often results in a bit of a slower paced story, and so we have here. But like my experience with most books written in this style, I was happy to settle in and enjoy the ride, even if it wasn’t the most action packed at times.

I also enjoyed the characters, for the most part. However, Layla was doing much of the work here. I found her to be an interesting character, a young woman who had gone through much in her short life and was rising to meet the challenges placed before her. Elise was the more complicated one. Part of this is built into her character: she’s lived a very priveleged life and is in the midst of still trying to earn the love of an abusive parental figure. Both of these elements, while interesting, did leave her in the unfortunate position of being a very frustrating character to follow. It would be frustrating how little she recognized her own privilege at one point, and then infuriating not to see her stand up to the abuse in her life, even when she’s beginning to fully understand it. That said, these are complicated issues to write about, and there’s really no believable way to do it that wouldn’t run into the growing pain frustrations we dealt with here.

The romance between these two was also only ok. Unfortunately, I feel like the style of writing struggled most with clunky dialogue, and this impacted my ability to really invest in the love story between these two. On paper, this love story should have been right up my alley, but for some reason, it failed to really land for me.

Overall, this was a pretty fun read. I think it almost succeeds more as a historical book than a fantasy, as I feel like the style of writing was at its peak when it was describing the city of New York in this time period. The lore of the reapers, while interesting, didn’t feel quite fully fleshed out. I also thought some of the mystery aspects were quite predictable, with the villainous characters presenting very obviously as such. If you enjoyed historical fiction and aren’t burnt out on the resurgence of vampire fantasy, than this one might be worth checking out!

Rating 8: The lyrical style of writing is at its best when creating this fascinating version of the underworld of New York City in the 1920s!

(Review will go live on The Library Ladies blog on August 2)

I really enjoyed this book. It had everything I adore in a supernatural mystery. And who doesn't love a sapphic friends to enemies to lovers vampire romance to boot? This book really had everything I enjoy about queer storytelling. I am looking forward to seeing more from Hayley Dennings.

Thank you NetGalley & Sourcebooks for providing an e-arc in exchange for an honest review

Unfortunately a DNF at 33% 😔

This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year. I started reading it the day I got the arc and from the beginning, I really struggled to get into it. This book has everything I would normally love, lesbian vampires set in 1920s New York??? With a murder mystery??? Hello??? That sounds amazing, but I was just so bored. I really tried, but I kept picking it up and putting it down. I wouldn’t say it’s a bad book and if it intrigues you I still recommend giving it a try. This is a book that I may come back to at a later date and try again because I really did want to love it, but when you’re 30% through a book and starting to skim it’s time to pack it up 😖

stuff i love:
— vampires
— lesbians
— new york
— great writing

stuff this book has:
— guess

thank you so much to netgalley for the early access <3

Thank you netgalley for an electronic copy in exchange for an honest review!

3.5 stars. I was very excited for this book and had such high hopes for it. Unfortunately, it fell short of my expectations. It makes me upset to leave this review honestly because I think the author is great and the idea has potential, but it just didn’t meet expectations. Maybe to an extent this disappointment is because I went into the book with such expectations, but nonetheless, I think there was missed potential.

First of all, this book is heavily marketed as a romance/romantasy by the author. It definitely has the romance aspect, but it feels more like the romance is a subplot which honestly works in my favor because this is how I prefer books, but I do feel a little mislead. Unfortunately, I think the romance was also the most lacking part of the story. I wanted to be obsessed with Layla and Elise so bad because the setup and tropes for them are perfect, but the delivery fell short. The development didn’t feel natural enough and ended up feeling sudden. The chemistry just didn’t hit the way I wanted. It was also a little predictable at times, which is fine to me, but once again, when you could predict what’s coming I need the delivery to hit stronger.

Aside from the romance, I did enjoy the main plot regarding the reapers. I like how it explored politics and juxtaposed the problems with reapers with the issues of racism and politics while feeling like a good old YA mystery. Even though it’s a historical book, it remains relevant to the present. Also as mentioned, this was the main premise of the book over the romance, so at least this was the majority of it. However, although I enjoyed it overall, I will also say the pacing feels awkward at times and it got boring at other times. The same goes for the romance aspect. Additionally, the dialogue also felt very awkward at times. I tried to be forgiving at points because I figured some of the awkward dialogue was to fit the historical aspect of the book, but it still feels more theatrical at times. I would say this is most prevalent when Tobias Saint spoke, particularly to Elise. I know this was likely meant to be stylistic and to show his personality and status, but I think it missed the mark.

Overall, I do still intend to read the second book, if only to see what happens to the main plot regarding the reapers. I don’t regret reading this book, I just was left feeling unsatisfied with the delivery. Nonetheless, thank you to the author for giving us black sapphic vampires.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.75/5

This Ravenous Fate is an addictive, romantic, and beautifully dark YA historical fantasy with fantastic characters and a delightful plot.

I had a wonderful time with this one. The romance was *chef’s kiss. I loved the diverse characters and stunning writing. The settings, plot, and character development made for such a fun read, though a few parts felt familiar and predictable. The incorporation of vampires in Jazz Age Harlem was so fun. I cannot wait to read the sequel!

Thank you to the publisher for the free ARC!

Best friends become enemies after a tragic incident. Can they leave the past behind to work together? This isn't your traditional vampire story. Overall I enjoyed this story. There were points that I did get frustrated with the relationship between Elise and Layala. You just want them to figure it out. Also there were some points in the book where the story slowed. This is book one in a series. I will be interested to see how the story progresses.

I wanted to enjoy this one. Really, I did. But…I was bored. Maybe it was my mood, maybe it was because I subconsciously found it predictable, but I just couldn’t get into it. It wasn’t connecting for me AT ALL.

It’s not a bad book. It’s well written, and the plot is fascinating, I just didn’t love it, despite the fact that 1920’s and Vampires are two of my favorite things.

If sapphic vampires in 1926 New York sounds like your vibe, I’d definitely recommend giving This Ravenous Fate a try! And hope you enjoy it more than I did. 😅

(I might try to read it again someday, because like I said, it might just have been my mood, idk)

I received an advance copy from the publisher, all opinions are my own, and a review was not required.

The tension. The setting. The characters....so so good. It's also very visually driven and I read this book like a movie, it was very cinematic.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This is the epitome of what I love about the current vampire renaissance! Fierce, bloodthirsty, strong, black vampires in 1920s Harlem...ya'll are gonna eat this book up!