Great narrator for this audiobook!! I thought they were doing an excellent job at bringing to life the characters.

I wish it was a bit more in my realm for reads — I just couldn’t get too into it. I think younger readers (teens) would definitely enjoy it though! There is good humour and good character development. The pacing could have been a bit better.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy of the audiobook in exchange for my honest review.

Goodness gracious, I want to live in the worlds Lex Croucher creates. I loved the band of misfits in this Robin Hood retelling. I loved the queerness and inclusiveness. I loved the wood and Clem’s need to help and the witty banter among everyone. I loved the twists and the intrigue and overall feel to this novel.
The audio book is excellently done! I enjoyed the two POVs and even while the sexual tension was obvious, the blossoming romance was beautiful and really well done with a perfect YA innocence.
Not For The Faint of Heart is not just adventure and love story, but an examination of the concept of “good.” Who’s doing good and are they really and why/why not. It’s historical but also timely.

Lex Croucher absolutely has a talent for queer historical romance and I'm so happy to see that Not for the Faint of Heart is every bit as much fun as Gwen & Art Are Not In Love. This was a delightful twisting book full of intriguing side characters and a unique plot that takes a story you thought you knew and turns it on its head.

Clem has made a life for herself working with the local healer after being orphaned at the age of ten, and everything is going well for her helping the villagers and causing misery among the local wildlife (via attempts to put them in tiny hats). At least, until she's kidnapped by the Merry Men as revenge for her guardian helping the Sheriff of Nottingham. Except, these Merry Men are nothing like the stories that Clem grew up dreaming of; they're fighting wars against the Sheriff and kidnapping folks, after all, which is a far cry from what Robin Hood used to be about. Her kidnapper, Mariel, just so happens to be the granddaughter of Robin Hood, and while she's grown used to following the orders of her father, Clem's doubts might start to take hold.

The slow-burn romance between Clem and Mariel is so trope-y and fun. There's only one horse! There's only one bed! Grumpy X Sunshine! Genuinely, Clem's perky optimism in the face of being kidnapped is just SO funny and plays well with Mariel's permanent grumpiness. But where this book truly seemed to shine was in the secondary characters, especially Mariel's team. Baxter and Kit had my whole heart and I would love to see more of this team in a future book!

The narrators were both lovely and gave their characters such distinctive voices. Really, this is a book that I think is absolutely enhanced by having such talented narrators.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this audiobook.
Thoroughly enjoyed this coming of age story.

This book was extremely fun and full of intriguing plot, hilarious, period-accurate one-liners, and all the yearning and heavy glances that a girl could want. I will devour anything that Lex Croucher decides to give me from this point on.

I had a hard time following Lex Croucher’s second book. I really enjoyed Gwen and Art are not in love but had a difficult time staying interested in this story. The narrators did an excellent job regardless

The romance was so good in this I loved Clem and Mariel dynamic. The kissing scenes were disgustingly sweet. I really enjoyed the main crew and wished we a learned a little more about everyone. But this was such a good time I’m definitely going to recommend it to people.

ahhh so cute!!! i love lex croucher's writing so much. they are so funny and their characters (mcs and side characters) are always so special and memorable. also the audio narrators were amazing!

This was such an adorable audio book. It was written well, albeit a little slow starting. The characters really made the story, and I enjoyed Clem and Mariel with the way their characters developed into a romance. The novel was all about action, adventure and love. The plot line was fun, characters very interesting, and the slow burn romance to top it all off. I will be recommending this book to other readers.

Thank you Net Galley ARC and Wednesday Books.

This book simply didn’t hold my interest.

Not for the Faint of Heart by Lex Croucher is a sapphic dual-POV romance following Clem, a healer who mistakenly gets kidnapped by Robin Hood’s Merry Men, and Mariel, a captain of the Merry Men and Clem’s captor. This book follows the two of them and the eclectic crew under Mariel as they become entrenched in the war against the Sheriff of Nottingham. I liked the first book I read by this author, Gwen and Art Are Not in Love, so naturally I thought this one would enjoy this one as well; however, this just didn’t do it for me. I found myself not really connecting with the characters when I could tell the author was writing them in specific ways to make you care and to make you emotional when bad things happen, but I just didn’t really feel that. I was also kind of bored by the plot, which is unfortunate because a good amount does happen in this book. I don’t think this book did anything inherently bad or wrong, but it just wasn’t for me. I will say that it gave autumnal vibes though.

I really tried for like this one, but it was so slow. The narrator is great, but I couldn't finish it.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending me an audio-arc in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley.

I thought I was in for a cute story, similar to Gwen and Art, but this was so different. Mariel is the granddaughter of Robin Hood, and now she's also a captain of the Merry Men. Clem is a healer who is looked at as kind of weird for her new kinds of cures (modern medicine vs, say, leeches and bloodletting). When Mariel kidnaps Clem for her guardian helping the Sheriff of Nottingham, she comes back to find out her own father and leader of the Merry Men has been captured, forcing Mariel to work alongside Clem. Things get intense, feelings develop, and what you end up with is an adventure full of action and romance.

I really enjoyed this. The group within the Merry Men that we get to know really embodies the found family trope. The side characters really make this book so much more interesting than it would've been, and that's saying something considering we have a few other of my favorite tropes (one bed, kidnapping). But overall, the plot was fun, the characters were well rounded, the romance was slow burn and worth it, and the world building was done in a way that didn't feel clunky. I definitely recommend this.

This book had my heart racing and my jaw dropping throughout. There were very few twists that I could predict were coming, making it into an incredibly fun journey to be taken on. The slow building chemistry between the two main characters felt so natural for them to fall into. While it was obvious what was happening between them I still couldn’t contain my shock when they actually kissed. All of the characters were so strikingly well-written that a reader couldn’t help but root for them. This was a book that I couldn’t wait to come back to each time I had to put it down. The audiobook narrator did an excellent job pulling the reader into the story and conveying the characters emotions. I am a strong lover of the original Robin Hood mythology and thought Lex Croucher did a brilliant job expanding on the world in a way that doesn’t require a reader to have background knowledge going in.

Lex Croucher is rapidly becoming one of my favorite authors for their brilliant characterizations and hilarious dialog. If you’ve ever wondered what happened to the Merry Men after Robin Hood retired, Not for the Faint of Heart offers a satisfying story of what might have come next. It’s an exciting adventure filled with an admirably diverse group of flawed yet lovable characters, many of whom are queer in one way or another.

One aspect of the story is a slow-burn grumpy/sunshine Sapphic romance between obstinate Captain Mariel Hartley-Hood (granddaughter of Robin Hood), and Clem, the irrepressibly cheerful healer that Mariel and her little troop of Merry Men kidnap. I absolutely adored Clem from the moment I met her. Mariel could be frustrating, but as I got to know her better, it was easy to understand why she acted the way she did. And to her credit, she goes through a wonderful growth ARC by the story’s end.

The secondary characters were well developed and memorable, and there’s a strong sense of found family.

I loved the very matter of fact queer representation. This is a world where I did not notice any assumptions about or limitations based on gender or sexual orientation. People simply are who they are and love who they love.

I would recommend this book for fans of queer young adult historical romances, romantic comedies, and adventures. If you enjoy books by T. Kingfisher, Alexis Hall, or Casey McQuiston, you should definitely give this a try.

The audiobook production was good, and the story works well in audio. I generally enjoyed the duel narration by Kat Griffiths for Clem’s point of view and Olivia Dowd for Mariel’s point of view. They both have pleasant voices; clear pronunciation; distinctive voices and speech patterns to suit each character; and the ability to convey humor, mood, and emotion effectively. My only frustration is that Kat Griffiths often used a strange speech pattern… at the start of her chapters… with unnatural pauses… every few words. Once she got going, she sounded great, but then at the start of her next chapter, she’d include the weird pauses again.

Thanks to Macmillan Audio for providing me with a free advanced review copy of the audiobook through NetGalley. I volunteered to provide an honest review.

In Croucher's second book, a Robin Hood retelling with queer characters in which Mariel, leading the band of Merry Men as a female, kidnap Clem, a healer in the woods with a sense of humor and a wry outlook. Just because of a connection to the Sherriff, she's now on her way along with Mariel to get revenge for Mariel's father from an ambush gone wrong.

There's a lot to question and with Mariel and Clem sharing a horse and a bed (oh no, whatever shall happen???!?!) that only gets more entertaining as the story goes on with Croucher's unique sense of reimagined history (including plenty of F bombs-- did those exist then?) and humor.

Entertaining in the way Croucher's books featuring queer stories and history are with their fantastically wild imagination and wit.

Audio review: I always love dual narrators when there are dual POVs! I have listened to Kit Griffith before and find their narration can be a little bit clippy, but easy to understand and follow. I haven't listened to any books narrated by Olivia Dowd before, and I enjoyed the portrayal of Mariel. Great quality audiobook!

Book review: This was a fun read! Come for the queerness and promise of adventure, and stay for the vibes. It's kind of slower paced early-on, but the last ~2/3 picks up the action, romance, and more.

Thank you Macmillan audio and NetGalley for the ALC!

A beautiful audiobook version of this wonderful book. An enchanting sequel to the wonderful Gwen and Art, this time following the granddaughter of Robin Hood as she struggles with finding her place in a world where myth becomes expectation. At turns laugh out loud funny with some moments of pure anguish, Croucher has succeeded at something many YA authors fail at and has created genuine, fully fleshed characters who are completely believable. I loved Gwen and Art and thought Not for the Faint of Heart was even better.

I’m a die-hard Robin Hood girlie, so this book was MADE for me! There’s so much to talk about here.

I was really impressed with the interactions with the original lore as well as the updates and plot twists that hit all the harder if you knew it. I think this is a really clever and kind queering, where the souls of known characters are still recognisable, new characters can thrive, and a totally new story is supported from multiple points. Gold star.

The two protagonists have a DELIGHTFUL rapport from jump. I really enjoyed their antagonistic banter. They both feel distinct in terms of both the writing and the jobs the two narrators did. Mariel’s portrayal felt more posh and reserved, while Clem’s frenetic energy suited both her dialogue and background. This audiobook was well-cast and performed excellently.

I loved the supporting characters as well! A solid little rag-tag group of thieves to root for.

I feel like my only hangups come in pacing on this one. At times it dragged to the point I almost gave up, and at others I felt it was moving so quickly I lost the plot. I think this was a solid idea with a solid central point and a solid romance, but it needed maybe a bit of a push to get it to astounding.

Still, will recommend it! Had a great time.

Lex Croucher, how dare you make me cry this much in one book.

Not For the Faint of Heart is a romantic tale of Mariel, Robin Hood's granddaughter, and Clementine, a healer that Mariel and her crew kidnap. Clem has always idolized the Merry Men and dreamed of joining them one day, so when she is kidnapped by them she is not very concerned. Mariel on the other hand is very concerned about pleasing her father- the commander of the Merry men- and kidnapping Clem is just another task on her quest to prove herself. When the band is caught in a deadly ambush and the officers of the Merry Men are captured- Clem's healing skills become very useful and she joins Mariel l and the rest of the band of bandits on the adventure of a lifetime. As the two grow closer throughout their journey, they will be forced to fight for everything they once believed in.

Croucher is so good at creating immersive stories and this was no different. I loved revisiting the tales of Robin Hood but in an entirely new way and I instantly fell in love with every single character in this book. Excellent!

I loved the concept of this book and I'm glad it was well-executed. I'm a fan of YA books that don't baby the reader, and it hit that mark for me (i.e. there are mature themes that the characters, who are young adults, experience). I found it a bit slow to start, but as a reader you're just thrown into the story so I was okay with figuring it out as I went.

The characters are loveable and fleshed-out, but I personally struggle in audio when there are more than 4 names to keep track of so this was right on the edge for me. But man, it would make such a good graphic novel. This author consistently writes really witty/funny moments, which are a highlight for me in their books.