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!

Thank you to NetGalley and Aethon Books for the ARC

This is the first book in a series and I think it has potential. I was very confused by the worldbuilding. I didn't think it was fleshed out enough, but this might be better in the later books as I've gotten more used to it. The pacing was a bit uneven and the characters unlikable. This unfortunately made it hard to stay engaged during the whole story. But I do think it has potential and I'd be interested in reading the next boom as well

DNF'd at 77% - ⭐️⭐️

I was provided with an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Firstly, I enjoyed this book up until about 20%. When I'm reading ARCs, I like to make annotations of things to either provide feedback on or raise in my review. They're colour coded for easy glancing at how I felt about a book while reading this. Unfortunately, in this one all of them were red.

I liked the world, I liked the premise, and it started off strong. The world building was enjoyable and the magic system was unique.

But then it just seemed to feel less polished - perhaps the final published one has some revisions that weren't in my copy.

To start with, I struggled with the pacing. We went from multiple chapters about single days at the start to suddenly she had been "clean" for a week after only a couple pages. The pacing consistently changed throughout the book making it hard to follow smoothly.

Scenes were referenced as occurring that never happened - e.g reminiscing about a kiss the day before, but in the scene from the day before there was no kiss.

Alternatively there are scenes that act like the last scene never occured - she revealed the "secret" of her husband for the first time... two scenes in a row, to the same person. Or when they asked how long someone had been allied with the goblins with shock, as if they didn't get attacked by that someone and the goblins a couple of chapters ago.

Some parts were mislabelled, such as stating Court of Storms when is should have been Court of Sorrow. Names misspelled, pronouns wrong.

There were perspective changes mid paragraph - it was hard to keep up with who was thinking what when it keeps changing.

The fight scene with a kraken was a whole two sentences long.

Characters providing world building information spoke as if they were reading from a textbook.

And finally, the thing that irritated me most and made me decide to stop - characters do not exist outside of the MCs field of vision. She will be in a room full of people acting like she's a badass, then makes a couple self-deprecating comments and suddenly someone is falling to the floor kneeling (literally, always kneeling) in front of her telling her how amazing she is and strong etc as if they're not still in a room full of other people. Every other page this happens.

I very rarely DNF a book, but my curiosity to know what would happen at the end just wasn't enough to push through.

Thank you Net Gallery for the ARC.

I REALLY did not like this book. The characters were in likable. And the whole thing felt rushed and confusing. It just wasn’t good.

First book of The Mind Breaker trilogy! I was so excited for this one, I read it in just a couple days and am ready for book 2 😅

As the first book in the series, there’s a lot of world building and a lot of characters to learn, but I quickly fell in love with Aelia and Amolie’s friendship, and was picking sides in Aelia’s love triangle.. 😏 definitely not mad at how that ended, buttttt I also know not to get too comfortable as the series isn’t over yet, and anything can happen..

2.5 Stars (I did Round Down because I don't think it was living up to potential for 3 Stars)


This book felt more like a sequel than a first installment, leaving me lost and confused. The world-building was lacking, with unclear details about the different regions and the court system, which detracted from the enjoyment. The timeline was also disjointed, with characters traveling across the world too quickly without any magical assistance.

I struggled to connect with the characters, mostly due to the lack of backstory. Aelia, for example, is introduced as a mercenary and addict, but neither aspect is fully explained. Her addiction is resolved too quickly, missing an opportunity to deepen our understanding of her character.

While the story started with an intriguing premise, I found it difficult to stay engaged as it progressed. Tharan was a standout character, but the romantic relationships, particularly with Caiden and Tharan, seemed more lust-driven than based on genuine affection, making it hard for me to invest in them. I did appreciate that the main character was older, though some of her actions felt immature.

The concept had potential, but the execution fell short. The rushed world-building and lack of explanation left me confused. Although the ending didn’t resonate with me, others might find it more engaging. I encourage readers to give it a try and see for themselves.

Thank you to the publisher and author for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The story had an intriguing start, but as it went on, I found it difficult to stay engaged. While Tharan stood out to me, I struggled to connect with the characters. The FMC’s relationships with Caiden and Tharan felt more lust-driven than based on love, which made it harder for me to become invested in them. That said, I did appreciate that the main character was older, even though some of her actions felt a bit immature at times.

The concept of the story has a lot of potential, but the execution fell a bit short for me. The world-building felt rushed, and there were parts that left me confused due to the lack of explanation.

Although the ending didn’t leave a lasting impact for me, I believe others might find more connection with it. While this book wasn’t quite for me, I encourage readers to give it a try and see for themselves!

Thank you to the publisher and author for providing me with this ARC in exchange for an honest and fair review.