I’ve been looking forward to A Song of Ash and Moonlight ever since I read the first book, A Crown of Ivy and Glass. Based on the interactions between Farrin and Ryder in that book alone, I just KNEW this was going to be a fun time. And it was!

In the Middlemist Trilogy, each book is about one of three sisters in the Ashbourne family in a world of magic, mist, and rising evil. They are fun and fast-paced and steamy — brain candy. They’re each also inspired by a classic ballet; SONG is the Firebird. It’s about the oldest sister, Farrin, and gives us a slow-burn, enemies-to-lovers, he-falls-first romantasy adventure. I gobbled it up, even with a 7-week-old baby and very little sleep.

I chose not to reread the first book, even though I didn’t remember the plot in great detail. But I thought Legrand did a good job of reminding us about the most important parts, and I didn’t feel lost. Farrin is depressed and angry and has crippling intimacy anxiety, and it was clear that Legrand handled the writing of her with great care (which made it forgivable that the execution occasionally felt overdone).

If you’re looking for your next fun romantasy fix, Claire Legrand’s books (including this one) are some of my faves. Treat yourself and pick them up.

yet again, got this book when there was no indication that it was a sequel in a series. rating it 3 stars

I really enjoyed this fantasy romance that pulls you in from the first chapter. This is the second in the series and follows a different sister. Farrin and Ryder have amazing chemistry and the world building is fantastic!

I think I loved this book more than book one?? Is that possible??

The characters in this book were so much more interesting and I found myself getting more involved in what they were going to do than in book one. I love Claire's writing style and this new trilogy of hers was so much fun to get into and enjoy. I like the transition from YA to Adult and I found that in this book you can really see the difference in writing style!

I loved Farrin SO MUCH. Everything about her and Ryder was chef's kiss perfection. Give me all the enemies to lovers vibes please!! Claire did such good things when developing the relationship between the two of them. Their smut wasn't anywhere near Gemma and Talan, but I actually enjoyed the fact there was so much more development for Farrin in this book so it made up for the less spice in the book! Overall I absolutely loved this book and cannot wait to read the next book in this trilogy!

Thank you NetGalley for an eARC!

I loved the absolutely bonkers, wild nature of the first book of this series, especially Gemma as a protagonist. This is much more stayed. A classic big, surly guy with black hair, pale skin and scars paired with a woman who is too used to taking care of everyone around her. I found myself less in awe of the audacity of the more is more world building this time, but Legrand is continuing to excel at bringing these very human (sort of) sisters to life, and her writing is always enjoyable. I think many people will probably like this one more than the last, and I wish I could read the third book right now!

This book is a sequel to a previous book I had read on NetGalley. The second in the series focuses on a different sister, which I didn’t realize for about a chapter. I requested this book since it was a sequel and didn’t read the abstract!

The main character is Farrin, who is not a likable character and continues to be terrible through at least 80% of the book. She makes it so hard to actually get through anything because she is so terrible. She is just mean but then is all over the place and it does not make sense.

This book is also entirely too long. Lots of pages to read but not much getting done. I assume the next book would focus on the third sister, which I am curious about and Mara is hopefully a better lead than Farrin.

I had such a blast reading this book, I love her writing and the first book was really engaging and I wanted to follow Gemma's sisters and get their stories! That this story is enemies to lovers, was particularly thrilling to read.

The Ashbourne and Bask families might have put aside their differences and worked together in the previous book, but there still are some hard emotions lingering. Plus the older generation didn't get the memo about peace and are more antagonistic, causing further problems when they are already dealing with this threat that was feeding off of their feud in the first place.

The stakes are high in this book. After the reveal of the Warden's secrets, it becomes clear that the situation is deteriorating at a rapid rate. Which raises some hard questions about what is to be done. The idea of a mandatory recruitment of all girls, regardless of age or if there's magic, well, the Warden was right to question the gods motives. Especially once they learn what's been happening with the gods. Though it's not a great look that all the ones that the gods chose for these roles that are pretty awful, are girls...

So much happens in this book, and so much was revealed. I had a guess about who rescued her from the fire, and I loved seeing that play out. Some big moves were made, and I can't wait to see how things continue on in the sequel, this one was a game changer and I'm so excited to see where it leads!

This was a fantastic read and I can’t wait for Mara's story!

Claire Legrand is a master of fantasy. She continues to write these amazing stories and I will read every word.

A hymn for eldest daughters with the sweetest melody and bold notes of adventure!

The Middlemist Trilogy has been such an adventure for my regency/romantasy loving heart. Farrin will make all of the eldest daughters feel so seen. Ryder will pull at all of your heartstrings. And Book 2 of this trilogy will not disappoint!

Four stars for an overall enjoyable read that I didn't want to put down! I love the world and mythology of the Middlemist trilogy. The team of characters - seeing Gemma and the Basks through Farrin's eyes - and the brewing conflict with Kilraith all kept me hooked from page 1. And like with all of Claire Legrand's books (Middlemist AND Empirium), she's gotten me with the plot twists! Almost to the point where I think she throws the readers a more predictable twist simply to throw them off the scent of the truly BIG twist coming later. Mad respect to Legrand for playing the long game. I didn't see it coming, but when I looked back at everything I'd just read, I could SEE it. When the final picture emerged, I could look back and remember each puzzle piece clicking into place. Beautiful.

But there were still some twists that I thought were a bit predictable. There were times when I sat back and felt the story was formulaic and tropic, and while that ordinarily wouldn't have bothered me, it did feel like the characters were being made to fit the formula instead of the other way around. The "reveal" (no spoilers) between two of the main characters seemed contrived. Even Farrin later reflects on her reaction as possibly an *over*reaction. The "betrayal" really wasn't that at all, and even in the moment of the reveal it was difficult to appreciate the Farrin's emotional turmoil because of that. It didn't feel earned. Also, Farrin herself even predicted this twist chapters before it was revealed, and then it was TRUE and she was STILL shook. I wish I had been standing next to her yelling, "BUT YOU ALREADY FIGURED THIS OUT??!!"

One thing I continue to admire about this series is Legrand's exploration of emotional and mental struggles with the FMCs - the panic, the anxiety, being emotionally overwhelmed and yet feeling compelled to carry on with a stiff upper lip out of a sense of familial duty, continuing to be strong even when they feel like collapsing under the weight of all they've endured. But LORD, every other page Farrin is crying. I think the source of her emotional turmoil could have been explored more, even just one or two sentences. Multiple times, Farrin expresses frustration over the fact that she's crying and she can't help it, and there's something in that, being emotionally out of control. But seriously, she cries at EVERYTHING. Her anger seemed almost childish at times (which she even acknowledges to herself). For someone who in the first book appeared so stoic and put together, the eldest child doing her duty, I loved that we got to be inside her mind and seeing her true emotional struggles...but it also seemed like those struggles were being worn on her sleeve this time. Even other characters remarked on how easy she is to read. Was she always like this? Her characterization at times didn't click with what I remembered of her in ACOIAG even after a skimming reread.

But I also appreciated how quickly Farrin admitted to being wrong in her meanness towards others, as if recognizing when she was lashing out due to frustration or fear. Often she would immediately apologize for outbursts. I found her thorniness relatable as an emotional defense, and appreciated Legrand's subtleties in this particular part of Farrin's personality. It's more shown and not told that she holds everyone in her life at arm's length, both physically and emotionally. Her physical anxieties were especially poignant and relatable to me as a reader, and while we saw similar struggles with Gemma, these were still unique from her sister's in a moving way. I found the exploration of the two sisters similar to ACOMAF and ACOSF by SJM in a very pleasing way - not a replication by any means, but a good connection for fans looking for their next great read. All in all, have already recommended to a friend :)

“Come to the northern stable yard in the morning, read the note. I'll be there at eight. It's time to fight.”

"Moon by day," she said, her voice soft as falling snow, "fire by night. Come and dance. Don't try to fight. The beauty of shadows, the garish sunlight.
Spin for the watchers, their revels so bright."

I have to admit I was much looking forward to this book. The second in the Middlemist trilogy. Each book about a sister and while book one was about Gemma, this one is all about sister one, Farrin. The plot is connected and you won’t be able to understand what is happening if you have not read book one. I have to admit that at the very beginning I remembered little about the first book since it’s been a while since I read it. But when I got into this one and I had time to remind myself of what had happened and what the sisters were facing, I enjoyed every minute of this new adventure. I remember from book one being very intrigued by these characters and while Gemma felt like a character that I could relate to a lot, Farrin completely surprised me. She is the first child. The one everyone relies will do the deeds and will take care of things. After what happened to their mother and what happened to her sister, she now has to face an enemy she doesn’t know anything about, with the help of a boy she doesn’t want as friends but soon enough will realise is so much more. Her insecurities and doubts and fears made her so close to me that I couldn’t help but feel for her. The enemies to lovers part of the story and the fact that their families are rivals and their fathers cannot stand one another was a plus. Did Ryder made me fall very early on, and gave me the vibes of the “first to fall, obsessed with her” boy? Absolutely!! And I loved that!! Plus, the way he loves her … goodness me, I want that!! Once again the author managed to enchant me with the plot and the magic and twists and turns of the narrative while also excite me with the romance story that was blossoming between our main characters. I expected this book to follow once again Gemma to be honest so when I read that the fmc had changed I didn’t know how to feel about it. What I do know is that after finishing it, i won’t be complaining about this change one bit. I loved that, since it’s a trilogy, every book is centred on one sister while also following one plot made of magic, gods, powers and the war. I cannot wait to hear about Mara and get to the bottom of this all story!!

"Wanting you is not the issue. I want you. I want everything about you."

"Right now," he added, "I'm just glad to be with you. Brave Farrin, in the forest light."

"Every day, every moment. Everything you wear, everything you don't. Every time I look at you, every moment I'm apart from you and have to imagine your face instead." He drew in a breath, let it out. He cradled my face in his hands, his eyes storm bright. "Farrin, you're the most beautiful woman I've ever known. In the forest light, in the candlelight. Star of my life. You're perfect.”

Claire Legrand, you have outdone yourself. This was a phenomenal sequel! I am obsessed with Farrin and Ryder. Please give me bonus content; I need more scenes of them being all cute together.

A Song of Ash and Moonlight picks up where we left off in A Crown of Ivy and Glass, except now we follow the story from Farrin, the eldest Ashbourne’s perspective. And let me tell you, I adore her. Farrin’s childhood ended when she almost lost her life in a fire at the age of eleven; the burdens of adulthood befell her a year later when her mother left. Ever since that day, Farrin has not only been taking care of her younger sister, Gemma but she’s also been responsible for the entire Ashbourne estate because her father lost himself to grief after her mother left. Not only is that an immense amount of pressure for one person, but she’s also never fully dealt with almost dying in the fire. Farrin is haunted by the fire in her dreams every night. She has no one to confide in about it because she’s used to being responsible and put together.

Enter Ryder, our love interest. Not only is he broody with a heart of gold, but he’s also the son of her family’s arch-nemesis. The Ashbourne and Bask families have been rivals and enemies for as long as anyone can remember. Except now. After the events of the first book, Ryder and his sister want to mend the rift between their families. Ryder and Farrin are similar in a lot of ways. He can see when she needs to be pushed and when she is not okay. Have I mentioned how much I adore him?

Legrand beautifully progresses the story from the first book. We’re introduced to new mysteries as we learn more about this world and its history. I love the vibes of this book. It's a romantic fantasy with hints of classic fairytales and stories. The author has stated each book in this trilogy is inspired by a different classic romantic ballet. This book is inspired by The Firebird.

I loved this book from start to finish! I hated having to put it down. Fans of fantasy and romantasy, please check out this series!

Picking up right where book 1 left off, I found this story to be a much smoother read than I was anticipating! To be honest, I feel like it completely exceeded my expectations … and actually surpasses Gemma’s story in world-building, plot and romance!

I loved Farrin’s development throughout the story and truly enjoyed diving in to her connection with Ryder!

Bravo to Claire Legrand and thank you to NetGalley for the e-arc!

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for ARC. I received my copy in exchange of an honest review.

Claire Legrand does it again! What a plot, characters, world building and romance! I just swallowed all of it and now I can't wait for the 3rd book.
One of my all-the-time favorite fantasy series is The Empirium Trilogy which is written by Claire Legrand and now... I am happy that my favorite author is back with another masterpiece.
I enjoyed reading A Crown of Ivy And Glass but I fell in love with A Song of Ash And Moonlight!
This book begins where the previous book ended but this time Farrin is the main character and naratior. Also we have Jemma and all of the pack as side characters too.
There were more notes and details about the world building, Gods and Godesses and magic system in this book that I loved.
Plot was much more interesting than the previous book and those plot twists were great.
And the love interest. Well... I like Jemma and Talan and I enjoyed reading about them again in this book but I stand for Farrin and Ryder. Just look at them? They're beautiful and a lovely couple. Ryder is one of the best male characters among all fantasy books that I read. Farrinryder reminds me of Nesta and Cassian but they had their own chemistry and personality.
I have so many guess about the final book. What's going to happen? Who will be Mara's love interest after all? And please Clair! give us more Farrinryder in the 3rd book.
At the end, I just want to say that I found every trop and janre that I like in this book. Classic Gothic Fantasy with Enemies to lovers trop and Claire Legrand as Author.

Firstly, thank you for allowing me to read A Song of Ash and Moonlight in advance! Since finishing A Crown of Ivy and Glass I have been impatiently waiting for the release of the second book in the trilogy. As always, Claire is builds vivid and almost cinematic-like worlds. The return to the Middlemist is both familiar because of the known characters and places, and new because of the new POV and Moonhollow. The story is fast-paced and it is easy to read. I did not re-read the first book in the trilogy and still was able to follow along the storyline nicely, which makes me think that this book could do well as a stand-alone or even a starter book. Farrin and Ryder are wonderful, well-developed characters, as were Gemma and Talan. We get to explore more of the lore of Edyn and Middlemist and understand the origin of the three sisters a bit more. I really enjoy that the protagonists are all strong female characters, and yet they are all flawed. None of them is overly strong or powerful in a way that would feel unrealistic (considering the world they're set in and their magic). Reading the second book in the trilogy I got the same feeling as I did reading the first: I cannot wait for its adaptation to screen. Claire's Middlemist trilogy has all the elements that would make a very successful visual adaptation of the world and the characters. Brava, Claire!

A Song of Ash and Moonlight is the 2nd book in the Middlemist Trilogy and reading this book. I was unable to put down this book. Eagerly waiting to find out how the sibling put there difference aside. Seeing how each character grow and developed made my heart grow and i love every second of it. Thank you for the amazing art

So book one was definitely not my favorite as far as fantasy books go. Gemma was not at all likable to me and the sort itself was just okay. This one was definitely better and much more plot and adventure driven, with way less romance. I thought the portrayal of Farrin’s neurodivergence was really well done. Ryder was a perfect MMC, almost too perfect if we’re being honest. I think I’m most excited for book 3.

While I ran into a few stumbling blocks in my read through of the first book in this series, there was still plenty to recommend the series as a whole and to specifically recommend the second book in particular. I struggled with Gemma, but even the few glances we were given were enough to convince me that Farrin sounded like a fantastic main character. With this in mind, I went into this book with high hopes!

I’ll say on the top that this book wasn’t a perfect read either, but it is also a definite step up from the first one. Let’s start, as usual, with the most positives aspects of the story. First of all, the more time I spend in this fantasy world, the more intrigued I am by it! The first book was promoted as a sort of “fantasy/Bridgerton” mash-up. And while that did fit that book in a sort of round-about way, the “Bridgerton” aspects of it all were lacking (if you count having ball scenes as “Bridgerton” and not just any old fantasy book that deals with courts, lords and ladies, etc. ) So I was pleased to see that this second book leaned even more fully into the fantasy aspects of it all.

As the summary hints at, this book massively expands the scope of the world and the brewing conflict. It’s no longer one demon and a mysterious arch villain; now we have gods reborn, complicated linages explored, and long-suppressed secrets revealed. All of these new layers to the world and story were fascinating and used in creative ways. There were a few twists that genuinely took me by surprise. On top of the magical elements of the world, I enjoyed the further exploration of Farrin’s musical magic. In the first book, hers was the sort of magic that felt least approachable and the most foreign. So I enjoyed the deeper dive into how exactly her magic worked and the potential ways in which she could manipuate this particular ability. What seemed like a magical ability that could seem weak in comparison to the other two sisters, by the end of this book, readers will truly appreciate what Farrin brings to this team.

As for Farrin herself, this is where my feelings became a bit more complicated. Something very strange happened as I was reading this book. As I read, I kept having the thought “Gemma? Is that you?” In that, somehow Farrin seemed to have morphed into Gemma between the first book and this, with all of the same character flaws that I found so tiresome the first go around. And on the other hand, Gemma, now a background character, began to read like a fantastic character whom I’d love to read an entire book about!

Now, I’m all for complicated and flawed characters who have to explore challenging inner struggles over the course of a book. The problem here was that Farrin’s voice, Farrin’s personality, and, most notably, Farrin’s inner struggles all seemed to be so, so similar to Gemma’s. It almost began to feel as if Legrand is incapable of writing a main character in different voice, or to explore a different inner life/inner struggle in her lead heroine. Somehow background characters suddenly morph into the interesting ones, while the main character is dragged under by such a mire of anxiety, indecision, and self-loathing as to become tiresome.

I noted in the first book that while Gemma’s struggles were of the sort that often made her a bit unlikable, that didn’t make them not worth exploring. What I definitely DIDN’T want was to explore many of those exact same themes again with Farrin. Farrin is an entirely different character! Why didn’t we learn more into her crippling sense of responsibility? Her inability to trust or rely on others to get things done? Perhaps an unwillingness to work as a team? (To be fair, we do get bits of this, but it falls to the way side with other issues). All of these would be grounded in not only her personal story and history, but would fit by the personality of the character we were originally introduced to. The Farrin of the first book was secretive, but confident. Distant, but sure-footed. There was so much potential here, and to find myself reading another story where our heroine is almost frozen by her own self-loathing and anxiety…it was incredibly frustrating. And, again, made me start to question the author’s ability to write a variety of main characters. Further, I remain very interested in reading the third book in this series, but I’m increasingly worried that I’ll pick it up and find the warrior woman sister I’ve been reading about now in three books to somehow magically turn into yet another self-loathing ball of anxiety.

On another positive note, however, I definitely enjoyed the romance and the romantic lead in this book more. Ryder was a fantastic hero and, if a complaint is to be found, almost too perfect. But as romance readers are not known for whining about perfect leading men, I won’t even bother. That said, I do think this book might have been served better to have strayed further from the structure of the classic romance novel. In that set-up, there’s always the late third act conflict between the hero and the heroine that must then be resolved before the HEA. And this one was just ridiculous.

I don’t want to spoil it (though it’s obvious not only from the beginning of this book but probably even the first, to the astute reader), but Farrin’s reaction to being told one of Ryder’s secrets is so overblown for the actual situation as to be not only ridiculous but to paint in her an unlikable light (again, this is not helped by Ryder’s perfection throughout this book). Yes, she quickly realizes her mistake, but then the final quarter of the story is spent with her waxing on about her fears that he won’t forgive her for this reaction. Again, “tiresome” is the only word that comes to mind. And, frankly, it was totally unnecessary. This book is action packed and built to an excellent climax of magical fighting and wonder; there was no reason to waste page time on a frivolous fight between love interests (seemingly only included to meet this romance novel standard of structure).

This is already an incredibly long review, but I do want to end on one other positive. For all of my complaints about Farrin’s inner life, I did appreciate the way that Legrand explored her discomfort with her body. This isn’t the sort of struggle you often find in romances, and I think it was generally well done. I do wish more time had been devoted to exploring how Farrin developed this particular anxiety, as it was crippling at times and not something one would imagine to pop up with out an instigating event. That said, I still appreciated its inclusion.

So, all my ranting aside, I actually enjoyed this book quite a lot! While I struggled with her more than I anticipated, I still liked Farrin’s story overall. The romance was better than the first, and this book took massive strides as far as the world-building goes and in setting up the third book and its conflict. I’ll definitely be checking out the third (please, PLEASE, don’t let Mara turn into another cut-out of this same character), and fans of the series will likely enjoy this one!

Rating 8: Not without flaws, but an improvement on the first and laying the groundwork for what could be an excellent final entry!

Link will go live on Sept. 4 on The Library Ladies blog.

5/5

Claire Legrand returns to her Middlemist Trilogy and a world on the brink of change as the Ashbourne siblings set aside old grudges and work to rebuild a relationship with their family’s sworn enemies, the Basks. In this brilliant sequel, Claire Legrand elevates her foundations to create a beautiful slow burn enemies to lovers romance between steadfast sister Farrin Ashbourne, and the eldest son of the Bask family, Ryder. A Song of Ash and Moonlight weaves a cunning mythos and romantic arc in a sequel that showcases its characters at their height and brings old gods and new smashing together in cataclysmic ways. The stakes are the highest they can be with old barriers breaking down, and new horrors descending on the Ashbourne family and the world entire. A Song of Ash and Moonlight is exactly what I wanted from a sequel, revealing hidden ancestry and an unexpected connection to the gods while flawlessly merging high-stakes fantasy and devastating romance. The Middlemist Trilogy is an incomparable fantasy series and this sequel only has me more excited for its conclusion next year.

THE fantasy sequel of all fantasy sequels!!! after not being too impressed with the first book, i still had high hopes of this one redeeming itself and i feel like it did justice to not only her writing but to the series as a whole. we follow a different sisters pov and that helped heaps because gemma in the first book…oh boy. the romance was romancing and i love the world legrand has built (very bridgerton-esque, as suggested by the description)