I enjoyed the premise of the story, however the pacing was quite fast and I didn’t feel like I got the depth to really make me connect with the characters/story. We get some character development from Aelia, but I feel like that character development was lacking with our MMCs and supporting characters to truly bring the story/emotion to life.

I see the potential for this story and I think many will enjoy this one for a quick, fast-paced fantasy read.

Thanks to the author, Aethon Books and Netgalley for an advanced copy of the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

A Curse of Breath and Blood by K.W. Foster was an enjoyable fantasy read, marked by strong world-building and a compelling romantic dynamic. The author does a fantastic job of constructing an expansive world in a relatively short time, blending humans and fantasy tropes with ease. The depth and diversity of the setting was engaging, and I found myself swept up in the various stages of the quest.

The characters were another highlight. Aelia Springborn, our strong and complex FMC, is a fascinating figure with her past as both a queen and a mercenary. Her internal struggles and growth throughout the book are well-crafted, especially as she navigates the tension between her ex-lover Caiden and the mysterious Tharan Greenblade. Speaking of Caiden and Tharan, the love triangle is wonderfully executed. It's hard to pick a favorite between the two, which speaks to the strength of both relationships. Foster manages to make both options compelling, which made it tough to choose a side, and undoubtedly will keep readers engaged.

The quest itself was full of action and twists, though I would have liked a bit more development on some of the stages of their journey. That said, the wild cliffhanger at the end definitely leaves you hungry for more, and I’m excited to see where the story goes next.

The pacing was mostly strong, but at times, I felt like some plot points were glossed over in favor of maintaining the momentum. Still, it’s a fun read for anyone who enjoys intricate world-building, mature characters, and a love triangle that’s anything but predictable. Overall, I’d definitely recommend this to fans of fantasy looking for an engaging start to what promises to be an exciting series!

I did not love this book! it felt rushed and could’ve used a lot more world building for a fantasy book. I believe that would have helped the audience connect with the characters. In general the book could’ve used development of the character relationships as well!
I did enjoy that the characters were a little older with Aelia being in her 30s!

This book was PHENOMENAL! I typically do not like love triangles but I was thoroughly enthralled with Aelia , Caiden, and Tharan. They kept me on the edge throughout my read. I’m trying to dip my toes into more romantasy, and this has me wanting to add every fantasy I can to my tbr. I can’t wait for book 2!

I originally wanted to read this because it said it had a court of thorns and roses vibes, but it really doesn’t. I loved ACOTAR, but this was nothing like it at all. I was bored and struggled to get through it. The world building isn’t great.

If I’m being honest this one was a little hard to get through. I found myself struggling to find the parts that differentiated the all too familiar storyline from so many other romantasy books. Yet here I am! Curious to see what happens next. Some of it felt a little rushed and the relationship with Caiden seemed robust at times and flat otherwise. The same goes for Tharan. I really enjoyed the mind magic and the world itself seemed to paint pictures easily in my head but I feel like I’d have loved to see more of the rules of magic, more of Aelia revealed…but the epilogue will get me to return for book 2!

3.5 rounded up to 4

Despite an intriguing premise featuring a mercenary queen with mind-breaking abilities and comparing to some of my favorite Romantasy series, this fantasy romance struggled to find its footing, wavering between multiple plot directions and what I felt was an unnecessary love triangle. The chemistry between Aelia and Tharan has fantastic potential and I was rooting for them immediately, but Caiden's presence feels forced (literally haha) and the emotional stakes suffer from abrupt tonal shifts and massively underdeveloped characters. The world-building, though promising, lacks the depth needed to be fully immersive. The story has moments of genuine intrigue, however, for me it ultimately feels like a collection of compelling ideas that never quite coalesce into a satisfying whole.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC copy.

I didn't mind this book, and I definitely thought it had some very cool elements. I was immediately drawn in by the cover. The world building was immaculate and the magic/fantasy system was really nice. I believe it all had the perfect buildup. Very ACOTAR and Six of Crows with the mercenary plot and found family! Would recommend!

It was a solid 3.5 for me! I enjoyed the characters and the story overall and would be excited to read book 2. However, I felt like there was a lot of magical creatures in the story and a lot of them were not explained so it left me a little confused at time. Would benefit from a little more in depth story telling and world building to help the reader fully understand the story.

DNF @ 49%

Thank you so much KW Foster for allowing me to arc read your book. It just wasn't for me and I wish you the best of luck and success with the release!


This book is advertised as Six of Crows x ACOTAR, and honestly, I get none of those vibes. At all. It just feels like calling the book that was a marketing ploy to get more traction to the book... and honestly the idea of that crossover is what drew me in as well so, good job. It worked. The only reference I got from either story is the Scepter being literally Kaz Breaker's cane... really? I kinda :/ 'd irl when I read that bit. Anyways... Aelia was borderline insufferable and I want to strangle and backhand her more than I didn't. I really don't like her/ her character. The overall plot felt weak, where we were given lots of allusions to a tragic backstory, but not going into further detail and it just left me more confused than anything else. Additionally, the timelines were not making sense in my head, having WEEKS go by in a paragraph or so. I hate the overall budding love triangle we have going on with Caiden, Aelia, and Tharan... well, mostly the Caiden and Aelia dynamics. They were supposed to HATE each other. At least, thats the initial vibes I got. They're sneaking kisses, sharing a bed, teasing, HE'S CHECKING ON HER WHEN SHE HAS NIGHTMARES etc. and then moments before/ after all these they're fighting and arguing. Given their supposed hatred for each other at the beginning of the book, they forgave and forget REALLLLLLLLYYYYYYY easy. I don't know, I really didn't like whatever situationship they had going on. And for Tharan and Aelia, I would have thought it would have been better if Aelia went from using Tharan to falling for him, but she kinda just instantly fell for him and the invitation became like an added bonus to being able to ogle him. I liked their potential but didn't like how it was written. The whole courts/ kingdoms, magic, and political systems really confused me, and I felt that there was little to no explanation for any of it (just weak world building in general). I really just was not vibing with this book at all, and its hard to keep going when you don't like the main character or the love interest.

Overall this book was not what it was advertised to be, and I honestly was not enjoying it at all. To be honest, I wanted to DNF around 25% but I kept going in hopes it would get better... it didn't.

Unfortunately I didn't enjoy this book. It had themes and tropes I am interested in, but I really struggled with this.

The story is very fast paced to the point you get whiplash. There is almost no backstory or set up. You get a very brief introduction and then the book jumps forward five years and you are not told anything that happens. Just that the character is traumatised from it. Throughout the book you are expected to know why the MMC is the way she is with vague references to her past.

The MMC isn't likeable. She is strung out on drugs and whiney. Everyone dislikes her, but from the vauge introduction its because she betrayed her kingdom. (Other than marrying off to another kingdom in which the groom was the bad guy) you aren't told how she specifically betrayed the kingdom. You don't even get any internal monologue to understand her or her thought processes better and how the trauma is effecting her.

There isn't any character development. There is a weird love triangle that you can't understand how works because why any of the characters like each other is beyond me.

You just jump from person to person, quip to quip and rush through the story without any development or description or anything to make you care what happens. I nearly DNF, then there was the introduction of another character and a bit more plot that held promise very briefly, but again due to the writing it was rushed through and there wasn't much plot or anything to come out of it.

The characters were all really 2D so it was so hard to care about any of them which is really unfortunate. The book has themes of trauma, addiction etc but doesn't actually go into any of it or do it well.

I was a bit wary going in to this one, because I'm not really a fantasy reader. But, Aelia quickly stole my heart and I couldn't help but want more of her story. It had me hooked and I couldn't put it down. It's definitely more of a romantasy, because the plot isn't super heavy on world development, so if you're looking for Game of Thrones, this isn't it. But if you're looking for a romance with fantasy elements, this is your book!

While there were some ideas in this book that had a lot of potential, the finished product didn’t work for me. The plot was all over the place. There is almost no world building and the storyline is erratic. The characters are very two-dimensional and the romance aspect was odd…the FMC seemed to aimlessly bounce around between several characters without feeling a particularly deep connection with any of them. I needed to be pulled into the story.

Maybe the second book will feel more cohesive. I think that this could be a great story if given the right edits.

I received an ARC of this book from Netgalley, and a little help from @authorkwfoster and loved the cover and the story line held so much promise, so I was excited to read it!

I do recommend checking out the author's website for a little more info on the characters and some history of the world of Moriana. The link is in the author's bio.

If you enjoy a fantasy romance with light world building, a rollercoaster of plot twists, lots of unique characters, fairy-tale creatures and a good spattering of spice then this one is for you!

I loved Aelia's (The Traitorous Queen's) character and as our MFC is 30 it gives more credibility to her vulnerability, past trauma and her addiction to dust.

I enjoy a good love triangle and Caidan and Tharan our MMC make the best and yet completely different love interests. I'm definitely team Tharan.

Anyway I don't want to spoil it and give anything away, you'll just have to read it!

A fantastic dive into a beautiful world and plot that had me guessing and second guessing and guessing again! The characters are so rich and it really felt like they could come to life off of the pages!

The concept of this book was so exciting and while there were some good aspects, I really struggled at times - especially around the world building and the writing style. It might have just been me, but it was hard at times to stay in the story and fall in line with the plot.

Overall, it was ok, but nothing that was going to stick with me for a long time.

That said, I truly appreciate the publishers, NetGalley, and the author for providing me with an E-ARC of this book.

#NetGalley #ARC #ACurseofBreathandBlood

Very much enjoyed this book! The writing style was easy to read, I liked the characters and the world. It kept me intrigued throughout the whole book!

The premise of this book really caught my eye, so I was a bit disappointed with the writing and the inconsistent world building. I love so many themes/tropes that were covered in this books, like dual POVs, love triangles, enemies to lovers, and more, but it unfortunately just hit the mark for me. I soft DNF'd this book @ 30% and hope to return to it in the future.

Thank you to the author, K.W. Foster, and her publishing company, Author Books for an ARC of A Curse of Breath and Blood.

A Curse of Breath and Blood by KW Foster is a romantic fantasy novel. This book was so beautifully written. It pulls you into the web of tales from page one. I love a good plot and story with fabulous world building. The characters are brought to life on the page and it’s as if you are living the story with them. There is so much to this wonderful story from action, intrigue, betrayal, love, friendship, magic, and so much more.

Aelia is an amazing character who has endured and lost so much. She is now living quietly until her ex Caiden shows up. He has a plan and needs her help. That plan does not include losing your heart again but…

Seriously this book was so good and intense. If you enjoy romantic fantasy novels go check this one out.

3 stars

A Curse of Breath and Blood is a multiple perspective, adult fantasy romance. When I started reading this book it was very intriguing. I was really excited to follow the main character's perspective. She had a lot of trauma, strength and weakness, which was very captivating. The magic in this world was fascinating, especially some of the unique gifts, but I really wanted more from this story. There were several aspects that I thought needed more flushing out, details and backstory some of which included: magic, world building, character relationships and pasts. I just wanted more information, but I started to lose interest because a number of things still were not coming together. Aelia and Caiden's dynamic and relationship was so chaotic, messy and back and forth on if they were interested or not in each other that it became too much. My favorite parts of this story were the magic and setting, everything's else was fine or lacking for me.
I received an advanced ebook, via Netgalley. This review is my own honest opinion.