I had the amazing opportunity of listening to an eAudio of this book and WOW! Mary knows how to write and build a world. It was like tumbling down a rabbit hole every time I put my headphones on. I was transported.

If you enjoy books with lies, betrayal, family bonds, magic upon magic and more lies, this is one you’ll want to pick up. The urban fantasy vibe felt new and refreshing. I really liked the way that Mary built the layers of this story. Some of my favourite scenes were the on the training grounds and with the recruits. The vibrant mix of personalities made this book a lot of fun. How you feel about a character will change from chapter to chapter, or at least it did for me. It definitely kept me on my toes.

It does have a slower pace to it. I think the audio book helped to alleviate some of the drag that could have occurred with a hard copy.

Please be advised, this is an Adult Romantic Fantasy. The romance is open door. I’m not opposed to it, but it did catch me off guard a little as I am used to Mary being a YA writer.

At times I was a little put off my the MC, Bristol. She talked herself up as being the strong one in the family who takes care of everyone, but she had some really childish moments. I think the MC’s in Mary’s YA books had more maturity. As a whole though, she is someone I am rooting for. I think I’m was rooting for her to come to her senses now more than anything but I’m still rooting!

It’s going to be a long wait for book 2 in this Duology, but I can’t wait for it and I’m excited to see where the story leads. There’s so much that could happen. I’ve such high hopes for it!

Of course I had to hop on this opportunity, I love Mary E. Pearson. This book had been on my TBR for a while so this was the perfect excuse to get me to bump it up on my list. The book itself was amazing, somehow the audio version improved it. It helped keep my focus in the story. I can't wait to see what happens next.

This book was absolutely just not for me, I did however recommend it to quite a few readers/friends who I think it would be right up their alley.

I so badly wanted to like this one but I’ve given it multiple tries now and I get so lost and confused that. I have no idea what’s going on or what the goal is. I’m so sorry

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - LOVE - Would recommend

The Courting of Bristol Keates is a tale of what one young woman is willing to sacrifice for love.

Bristol Keates had a very unusual childhood. Her parents never stayed in one place long enough to put down roots. They would move the family on a momentary whim. Until they moved to Bowskeep.

Bristol sees this move as her chance to live her own life. That is until her mother disappears and her father is mysteriously killed. She moves back to Bowskeep to help her sisters, but they have difficulties to make ends meet. That’s when she receives an intriguing letter from a long last family member with an offer she can’t refuse.

This book transports you to the romantic fae court where Bristol has to struggle to survive to help her sisters and uncover the truth about her family. If only the frustratingly handsome king Tyghan would stop getting in her way.

Thank you to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for an advanced audio book in exchange for an honest review.

Possibly an unpopular opinion but this was painful. Disjointed story telling, cliche boring characters, and tedious plot that went nowhere interesting. If it were not for the audio version I’d have DNF 100 pages in. For a romance book the actual building of the love story was skipped over and the books ended with an unimaginative sex scene that barely made sense given the chapters previously and the character built up for Bristol. This was really not for me.

Super fun book! I loved the setting - especially of Bowskeep (Star's Hollow, anyone?). The slow burn and tension was perfect. I like the world mechanics. Can't wait for book two! I didn't want it to end! I'm on the edge of my seat waiting to see what happens with Bristol's parents and Tyghan. The narrator was great.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ARC Audio Copy!

This is my first book from Mary E Pearson and I was so excited to read this story, I love the cover and the story matches the cover perfectly.
This book is perfect for fans of The Cruel Prince, it felt like being in the same world at times and I loved every minute of it. Traditional fae and fairyland is always going to be one of my favorite genres and this one delivered on all counts.

I loved the new approach to fae romance. The main character felt strong and I liked her a lot. I loved the art theft elements.

This was well worth the listen!! I'm a sucker for a properly built and thought out Elfame/Elphame saga and I love a duology. This hit everything! Slow burn enemies to lovers with secrets and betrayal in spades, sign me up!!

This book showed some promise but wow, that ending was a choice. Considering it’s over 500 pages, the lack or climax in this behemoth of a book is pretty much unforgivable. I gave it three stars based on my enjoyment of the journey and our main character actually having a brain, but i can’t believe the publishers cleared the last 10% of this

This book was a 4 star book for me. I loved the main character, she was strong minded and sassy. I enjoyed the hidden identities and secrets plot line with Bristol’s parents. I love how descriptive Mary was with the writing because the description of the world of elfhame was done so well. I felt like I could picture the world in my mind. The MMC is dark, broody, and mean to hide his true feelings and who doesn’t love that?! There are CREATURES in this book! I love that cause it makes the story unique compared to other fae/ fairy stories. I also liked the narration. I think the narrator did a fantastic job with giving each character their own voice. Over all I highly recommend this read to everyone who will listen!

3.75 stars - I definitely enjoyed this story and love both the FMC Bristol and MMC Tyghan, but I felt like for a 540 page book, I expected more to transpire plot-wise. That being said, the world building was done really well and had me invested DEEP, so we are definitely set up for the next book and all the activity I hope to see! I was also shocked that the story ended the way it did, and it definitely had me giggling. I am definitely going to read the next book in the series!

I listened to this on audiobook and loved the narrator. She kept me engaged with her inflection and diff voices for characters. I appreciated she didn’t try to go too dramatically deep for Tyghan!

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the ARC audiobook of this book. I am leaving my honest review after listening to the full book.

Review time ✨

I had the pleasure of the reading The Courting of Bristol Keats by @maryepearson and really enjoyed it!

This book was a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 star read

This book had many elements that I loved. Particularly the combination of a modern world and a fae world. I really loved that Bristol comes from a modern world and works as a pizza delivery man and then ends up in a fae world with kings and castles. The author also described these places very well and I felt like I could picture them and see them so vividly.

The magical system in this book was fantastic and I can’t wait to see more of what Bristol Keats can do in the next book, however seeing the variety in her friend’s powers was really neat.

I feel like there could’ve been a little bit more development between Tyghan and Bristol in the beginning. To me it felt like they were just King and recruit one minute and then he was in the love with her the next and I feel like I kind of missed where that relationship changed. They were just not together one minute and in love the next.

I personally loved how the chapters changed character POVs as I’m a sucker for those types of stories however it would be nice to maybe have a title of who’s POV we are reading so things don’t get to confusing. There was one particular moment towards the end where I recall a change from Bristol’s to Tyghans POV mid chapter from one paragraph to the next and I was pretty lost.

Overall I really enjoyed this book and the ending as it ended in a pretty pleasant moment for our characters. I’d recommend this book to anyone to enjoys the tropes listed.

I took me a minute to get into this, but I should have known better than to doubt the writing prowess of <u>thee</u> Mary E Pearson. I really enjoyed this story, and thought it was told in the perfect way. I loved reading all the different points of view, and the pacing of the plot and twist reveals was perfect. And of course, the romance was beautiful. If you're a fan of the Folk of the Air series, you'll definitely enjoy this book. It has a similar set up of a woman from the modern world being whisked away into the alluring, yet dangerous world of Elfhame. I cannot wait for book 2!

I first found Mary Pearson through the Dance of Thieves duology. I absolutely loved them and have been meaning to re-read them. As I was about to, I found this book and jumped right in. The Courting of Bristol Keats had a complex world to be thrown into. I liked the duality of the modern times mixed with a fae world. It almost made the world seem more realistic and like this could happen to you (which don’t we all want 😅). There were a lot of characters and backstory that was covered throughout and though I would have to re-read at times, I felt like it was worth my time to invest in the characters. My biggest criticism is actually the spice and progression of the relationship between Bristol and the MMC. I felt that the intimate scenes felt a bit too forced and while this is more of a personal feeling, I don’t enjoy when the characters profess their undying love weeks into meeting each other. The world building is wonderful and I liked the magic system. I look forward to the next book in the series and look to the further development of Bristol’s magical abilities.

The Courting of Bristol Keats follows Bristol into a fae world after she learns her father might be alive. I spent the first third of this book SO confused. It felt like a lot of characters and info dumping. I also thought the end was a little underwhelming. Despite all of that, I am a total sucker for a fae fantasy and am intrigued enough with the plot and the characters to continue the series.

Narration by Brittany Pressley was outstanding as always.

I received an ALC from Macmillan Audio via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Courting of Bristol Keats by Mary E. Pearson is a fae themed fantasy romance with plenty of intriguing elements, but it didn’t quite live up to all of they hype for me. The tricky, slightly evil nature of the fae was one of my favourite aspects of the world-building (think fae from The Cruel Prince). They added an edge to the story that kept things interesting but the pacing felt slow for a book with a high amount of action, and the ending came so abruptly that it left me a little unsatisfied.

The relationship between the two main characters was different from other enemies to lovers books I’ve read. They didn’t take that long to acknowledge their feelings and it went from distrust, to reluctant allies to lovers pretty early on in the book. The relationship and what other characters in the story thought of it was a pretty central feature of the plot, so much so that I felt other elements were lost. Some plot lines like the training and the overarching mission felt like they took a backseat and were underdeveloped.

The book gives off strong “special girl in a special world” vibes, which isn’t my favourite theme. It can be done well but here it just came off as the main character can do no wrong even though she’s new to the world and magic in general. I felt like a lot of things (besides the relationship between the two main characters) were left undeveloped. To my understanding this is a duology so theres definitely a lot of action leftover for the second book. I’m interested enough to continue the series but its not a priority for me.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this ALC that I chose to read and review.

A new work of Romantasy filled with Fae, romance, betrayal, action and secrets. This is the story of Bristol who struggles to pay the bills after the losing her parents. Bristol and her sisters are barely scraping by when mysterious letters begin arriving promising to help. Bristol doesn’t really trust the sender but she is desperate to help her family and agrees to meet the stranger. When she meets this women that says she is her aunt she is immediately thrust into a world that she only thought existed in fairy tales. As she learns more about this other world full of creatures and magic she discovers secrets about her parents that surprise her and but also give her hope that her father may still be alive.

This was a great story filled with all of the best elements of a Romantasy. I loved Bristol’s evolution as she becomes more entrenched in the other world. The romance was filled with the right amount of tension, spice and swoon worthy moments. The characters were diverse and intriguing. Knowing this is the first in a duology I expected a cliff=hanger but was left scratching my head at the end of this one. It was odd. Regardless I am looking forward to the next book to see how it all ends.

4 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced book in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the copy! I was able to also get an early copy from my library on release day!

The overall story definitely intrigued me in the beginning. The air of mystery lingered over the disappearance of her parents, and their mysterious/ dangerous background, to the sisters trying to survive and move on. As we moved further along, we get the interesting magic school (reminds me of Hogwarts), but with actual fighting/ battle lessons.

I really wanted to like the story, but as an avid fantasy reader, there was a lot of loose ends in this book. The magic system, the characters, and overall flow of the different POVs could have been worked out more. It felt very choppy. The romance in itself was very subpar for my liking. There was no actual build up, tension, or even a traditional enemies to lovers setup. It felt like one minute the characters hated each other, and then the next they loved each other. For a long book as this, my expectations, after reading several long high fantasy novels, is that the story has to flow very smooth throughout.