A Curse of Breath and Blood by K.W. Foster was such a refreshing take on fantasy romance. The FMC Aelia is a queen turned into a mercenary, but not of her own volition. Secret powers and ruthless husbands led her to become reliant on ways to numb herself.

Her past lover Caiden, finds and convinces her to help him save her sister. But after she is safe, Aelia must wipe his memories of her, and in thier home of Moriana, if a deal isnt fullfilled worse consequences can happen.

Love and resentment. Epic battles and struggles with addiction. This fantasy should be your next read. It was fast and fun ti get through and I cant wait for the next book to come out!

A psychic who struggles with an addiction to fairy dust.

Well, sign me up!

This fast-paced, action-packed book is full of all the fantasy creatures you can imagine!
This book has just enough romance and action to make it a great first installment for this romantasy style book.

This is definitely a deep dive into watching a character struggle with trauma.

#forbidden love
#antihero

I would give this book 3.5

This book felt like pieces of several stories pieced together into one. The world building is lackluster and confusing, and there is a ridiculous number of different mythical creatures for one book. I had no idea what was going on half the time, or why they were doing everything they were doing. It was all quite confusing, then it ended. The epilogue had a twist but that is not how epilogues work.

I thought Caiden would be end game for her because the way the prologue was written totally set it up for a second chance romance. Then they did get a second chance, and it was ripped away. That part made me shed a tear but I also thought it was dumb that it had to happen. THEN while she was devestated and crying, she had the thought that she 'wanted to kiss Theran and never stop.' She was attracted to and in love with everyone, even with a broken heart, and that makes no sense. It made all of the relationships feel inauthentic and not special.

Overall I was invested enough to keep reading as I wanted to know what happened and how it would end, but it ended with almost zero answers outside Aelia choosing someone to be with, so was it worth it...?

3 stars

This book had a lot of potential and many aspects that I enjoyed. I thought that the FMC mind powers were really cool - especially since in romantasy's these days normally powers are more tangible / elemental in nature, so this was a nice change! I also liked Aelia as our FMC - she was flawed, strong and I thought a well developed character!
Unfortunately where it fell a little short for me was the pacing was little chaotic, and I wish there was more world building. Additionally - I'm just personally not a huge fan of the love triangle type plot line - even if this one had a twist. I also felt there wasn't enough time spent to develop one of the relationship and it made things a little confusing.

Offering a unique blend of whimsy and darkness, 'A Curse of Breath and Blood' intertwines high fantasy with a thoughtful exploration of real-world issues.

The narrative centres on Aelia, a troubled psychic battling an addiction to fairy dust. The plot features a richly diverse array of mythological creatures that will delight fantasy readers. However, while the realm’s potential is evident, certain aspects feel a little underdeveloped, suggesting intriguing possibilities for future exploration.

Fast-paced and high-stakes, the writing delivers a compelling and action-packed experience. Although a few scenes may feel somewhat rushed, the prose remains accessible and exciting.

Aelia defies conventional heroic archetypes; she is a mature character grappling with a traumatic past and a turbulent quest for genuine affection. Her morally ambiguous portrayal is both chaotic and authentic, offering a heartfelt exploration of her inner struggles. The fraught romance between the leads is both tragic and compelling, sprinkled with mildly spicy moments while prioritising story progression. The protagonists are complemented by interesting supporting characters, leaving ample room for future developments.

The novel skillfully integrates fantastical elements - such as sylphs, mermaids, and a menacing kraken - with a nuanced approach to more serious themes, such as: trauma, addiction and heartbreak, creating a narrative that resonates on multiple levels.

'A Curse of Breath and Blood' stands out for its unique combination of high fantasy and emotional depth. While the world-building could benefit from further development in future installments, this debut is a strong start to the series. The book offers a fresh, layered story that will appeal to high fantasy readers who appreciate unconventional characters.

"Sometimes it is easier to sink into the roles already given to us than to fight for a new one."

Genre:
-High Fantasy
-Romance

Tropes:
-Forbidden Love
-Forced Proximity
-Fantasy Species
-Love Triangles
-Anti-Hero

Spice: 🌶️

Thank you to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I was really torn about this one because it had all the makings of a great story. It was fast paced, maybe too fast. The characters were interesting but the story didn’t flow for me. The MFC was unpleasant and threw herself at everyone and everything. She was attracted to everyone! I understand that she’s experienced something really awful but it was still hard for me to like her.
What drives a story for me is loyalty and commitment and she had none of that. Who did she love?? And having strong feelings for all of them just wasn’t realistic.
Thanks IBPA via NetGalley.
3.5⭐️

dnf at 10%

It’s another one of those SJM clones… I have nothing against fairy cocaine-fueled readers – I wish for all of us to live our most fullfilling fantasies regardless of favourite tropes and genres – but come one, this is just budget worldbuilding and bad writing. I took the second-chance romance bait and choked on it. Didn’t make it past 10% because the scenes seemed to span mere seconds each, with barely any transitions in between. Pacing? Never heard of her.

This was a fantastic debut fantasy novel. A fast paced fantasy filled with magic, action, twists & turns, romance, and fabulous characters. I am not usually a fan of love triangles but I was ok with this one, but I am definitely team Tharan in the end. I look forward to more of this story especially after that epilogue!!

Please don't let the cover and description fool you into reading. It's a superficial trap.

The cover is pleasing, and the description made me want to read this. I almost longed to read it.

The inside is... not good. There is little to no pace in this novel - there's two speeds of go and go faster. There's no worldbuilding, no character building or design (and what we have is one dimensional), and there's little to no context for the story to happen. It almost felt like a Choose your Own Adventure gone wrong. It was extremely hard to follow at times because it seemed like the author wanted to throw everything into this. Characters just randomly and unnaturally spring up; the action scenes literally just -poof- oh it's here and then -poof- gone.

Was there an editor? Or was it a put up for ARC reading and pushed to publish?

I think there was a disconnect between the concept and the writing. I would advise to delay the novel and flesh out the novel, and bring it back to Alpha and Beta readers until this reads like a book verses a first draft.

Author - if you do end up fleshing this out way more, I would try it again and re-rate. Until then, 1 star / 5 stars, DNF @ 18%.

I went into "A Curse of Breath and Blood" by K. W. Foster thinking I was going to love it, especially after the first 25-30%. The story throws you right into the action with a five-year time jump, so you're immediately hit with a cast of characters who have complicated pasts, fresh wounds, and loads of conflict. All of this should’ve made for an engaging fantasy read, but sadly, it fell a bit flat for me in the end.

What I did love was Aelia, the main character. She’s a flawed, fully grown adult woman, and her journey through addiction, heartbreak, trauma, and redemption is at the heart of the story. Aelia had the most depth out of everyone, which made her stand out. But the rest of the characters? They felt a bit two-dimensional.

One of the biggest issues for me was that everything important was just told to us. We’re told who loves who, but we don’t actually get to see that love on the page. We’re told who the villains are, but they don’t really do much to feel truly threatening or to drive the plot forward.

I also wish the story had started with the events from the five years we skipped over. The characters keep referencing and alluding to things that happened during that time, and I think seeing those events unfold would’ve helped bring their current situations to life.

Despite these issues, it was an easy read that I devoured quickly. I’m still curious to see where the story and characters go, and I’m hoping we get more insight into those missing five years in the next installment. If you’re looking for a quick fantasy read, you might still enjoy this one!

After reading the plot synopsis, I had high expectations for this book. I have a lot of love for the fantasy romance/romantasy genre, and I think that the plot of this book is promising. There were some areas that the book could improve, and I have high hopes that the author will take some of the reviews posted on NetGalley to heart.

To start off with the positives, I really love that the main character, Aelia, is older. Personally, I am tired of the fresh 20-year-old protagonist that we are just supposed to believe is ultra powerful. I appreciate that Aelia had life experience, however negative those experiences may be. Additionally, I appreciated the connections and relationships that Aelia maintained with the other characters in the book.

One major area for improvement would be pacing- the pacing for this book didn’t feel like it progressed naturally. At some points, the story felt like it was moving unnaturally fast, and at other points, it dragged on for a bit. Dialogue was also another are for improvement- some of the conversations felt a little immature for characters that were supposed to be 30s+/several centuries old.

I will be giving the final release of this book a chance in September. I am looking forward to how the story develops after some editing by K.W Foster and team!

I really enjoyed this book and think that this series could be incredibly fantastic. The characters were all easy to like and connect to, and the plot drew me in immediately. As soon as I started reading this, I didn't put it down until I finished it. I was a little bit annoyed with the whole "which love interest will the main character choose". It wasn't overdone, but it was in enough of the plot for me to want to move on to something else.

There were a few parts of the book where things weren't explained well. The two male love interests' names were switched a couple of times, and characters appeared in situations where it was already described as them being elsewhere. These are minor issues for how good of a book this is.

When I first saw this book on my social media feed, I knew I wanted to read it from the cover alone. I really enjoyed the first half of the novel, and loved the main character. I do wish there was more world building, but I’m hoping as the series continues that the author will weave more of that into the storyline!

The ARC I received from NetGalley captivated me with its mind-bending powers, appealing to my interest in romantasy. However, I encountered difficulties with the world-building, as I felt abruptly thrust into various settings without adequate context. Additionally, unexpected facts appeared without prior foreshadowing, resulting in confusion due to insufficient related information.

Character development varied greatly throughout the story, with most characters, except for Tharan, lacking depth. While the protagonist's journey was well depicted, characters like Aelia and Gideon were only superficially explored. The emotional climax at the end seemed rushed, lacking the relationship development needed to support such a sudden change.

Although the book started slowly, it picked up pace in the final third, becoming more engaging as the action unfolded. Nonetheless, the narrative still felt somewhat fragmented. I am considering reading the next installment to determine if the mentioned issues are resolved. Unfortunately, I rate this book a 3 out of 5.

I wasn't sure from the first ~30% of the book if I would like it or not, but I'm glad I kept reading because I ended up really loving it. This is the first book in The Mind Breaker series and honestly book 2 can't come soon enough. It is a dual POV with our FMC Aelia and Caiden who is Aelia's ex love. But we also have Tharan who I can only imagine we are going to get even more of in the next book, who is the new love interest of Aelia. The cliffhanger from the Epilogue was just not nice to do to us with such a long wait, but I think it will be well worth it.

Thanks to netgally and Aethon Books for the early arc in exchange for my honest review.

𝑀𝓎 𝒯𝒽𝑜𝓊𝑔𝒽𝓉𝓈
I had high expectations for this book as it was my first time reading this author, but it fell short. Here are some reasons why:
1. The world-building is lacking. The setting feels abrupt and underdeveloped, leaving the reader feeling disconnected.
2. Sudden facts and events are not properly introduced or explained, making the storyline difficult to follow.
3. Some characters have depth, but others remain pretty surface-level. The lack of balanced character development affects the overall plot.
4. The emotional development in relationships feels rushed and has no natural progression.
5. The book could benefit from more meaningful dialogue to clarify plot points and an index for species and world systems to aid reader comprehension.
6. The pacing suffers from abrupt shifts in significant plot points, which can be confusing and disrupt the flow of the story.

In conclusion, the book has potential due to its unique premise and older female main character, but it requires significant editing. Although the beginning was slow, the story picked up in the last third despite feeling unconnected. Additionally, including certain tropes, such as love triangles and second-chance romance, did not enhance the reading experience.

However, I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher for an eArc and an honest review.

I love fantasy and romantasy books and I had high expectations for this one. Unfortunately, I had trouble getting into the story from the start and this ended up being a slow read that felt I had to push through to the end just to finish the book. I almost DNF multiple times. Here are things that I think need work to improve the writing, story and characters:

1) I found the first 30% of the book to be fast paced with the characters moving from one place to the next extremely fast. It made it hard to imagine the world around them and the story was confusing at times. The characters go from one problem to the next so quickly, it’s hard to keep up with them. I also found that there was no depth to the characters. At times, it felt like robots were talking to each other, going through the motions.

2) The FMC would have flashbacks to when she was younger, and the author didn’t make it obvious enough. I found myself getting confused where the flashback started and ended, and I often had to backtrack and re-read once I figured out the layout.

3) There were a lot of creatures in the story that I wasn’t familiar with, like “hobs” (mouselike creatures with rabbit ears?). I would suggest adding a glossary with better descriptions of important terms, characters, creatures, etc.

4) The banter between all characters is often repetitive. They seem to always be saying the same things, just in different scenes/places.

I think the story has potential, but there is a lot of work to be done to make it worth my time.

This book started strong and I enjoyed the characters but around 40% it was pretty clear that there wasn’t enough world building or jazz to really hold my attention.

Thank you NetGalley for the opportunity to read!

I started of strong with this book but I found after a while I found it hard to connect with it while trying to finish it. It may just be one of those books that just didn’t click with me but I’m sure there are plenty that will enjoy it more

This has a very high fantasy LoTR feel with an expansive world filled with elves, sylphs, magic, and mythos. You can tell that Foster has created a whole world filled with it's own history as well as deep character histories for all of the characters, even if we only get a glimpse of it on page. Foster has created a high fantasy world and presents it with a low fantasy fast paced story.

There are two primary plots, one is Aelia's quest to save her sister, the second plot introduced focuses on a magical object of great power that speaks to Aelia and gives a similar feel to the one ring to rule them all.

Tharan is by far my favorite character, the rakes elf sylph hybrid, bastard son of the Alder King and Lord of Nothing. His character is so much fun and I love it every time he is on page. He gets a POV toward the end and I hope we get so much more of him in book 2.

Overall there are a lot of interesting ideas and character's in ACBB I only wish we had slowed down a little to really get to explore this world more, particularly in the first 30-40% of the book. That being said I am sure we will get so much more in the books to come!