This read had all the feels! There was the mystery, fantasy, suspense, and the feeling you were reading a tale from mythology! I adored it!
The slow-burn romance was KILLER in this story! Howard wrote that magnificently, then the mythical creatures threw in! The magic aspect was great; the world she made worked wonderfully and wasn't overpowering with all the secrets! The secrets plus the hidden prophecy wee great, Howard has woven a web so delicately and well that even nonfantasy lovers would get caught in the web.
We start the story with Suraya, who is minding her own business when she receives an invite to the palace to meet the prince as he is looking for a wife. While she is not enthusiastic about the prospect she also knows she has to go. So she goes and they have riddles if the guests do not answer they will be denied food and thrown into the dungeon. Then, they have this kinda battle deal where they are just trying to survive. Suraya does catch the attention of the prince's half-brother Roshan and she falls for him hard and fast! However, the prince has decided he wants Suraya as a wife.
Not everything is as it seems, and she flees with Roshan. Then there are visions and magical powers! I am looking forward to the next installment because this series will be addicting!
I listened to the audiobook, and the narrator fit the story perfectly! The tone was amazing, and the narrator kept me entangled in the story. I was sitting on the edge of my seat, waiting to see how the adventure went! Thank you, Harper Audio and Netgalley, for the opportunity to listen to and review this one! It was a treat!

This book completely swept me up in this tale of danger, love and betrayal. I can not wait to read more after that cliff hanger ending. While this book has mature themes I think the weaving of different mythologies in fantasy and women in different shapes are so important for others to feel seen. I will be recommending this one to my adult students

DNF at 23%

'The Starlight Heir ' has a promising premise and Howard is a writer I've enjoyed before, but I could not get into this story, nor find it in myself to care enough to continue.

The begins with Suraya Saab, our FMC, receiving an invite to the royal palace where she has been selected to take part in a Bachelor-like situation where the Crown Prince will choose his future bride. But Suraya is Not Like Other Girls, and it's known from the get-go. She's illegally making a magical dagger, for one. And her father is keeping secrets and her heritage (very blatantly) that Suraya acknowledges but doesn't examine further.

Add to that the modern language used for cursing, the "girl boss" attitude, "book boyfriends" said on page, and "thick thighs save lives" - I simply couldn't take Suraya seriously. She reads very young - more like a YA heroine than an adult FMC. But I was willing to see where the story went from there.

Sadly, the time at the palace and the competition for the Prince's hand was trite, surface level, and impossible to believe. While the tone of the story is whimsical, or so Suraya's POV comes across, the palace was the site of not one but two harsh and gruesome "challenges" for these women who were selected as possible brides. It just felt so far fetched that Suraya was the outsider even at the palace but made a friend instantly (that I as a reader couldn't pick out of a lineup if you offered me $1 million dollars), insulted the bastard prince (who I'm assuming is the love interest) but don't worry it was also flirty banter, and survives both 'challenges.'

It was after the second challenge - where these high-born women (right - Suraya has high-born blood in her lineage but that's not really explained although with context clues certainly that came from her mother) were set to fight A DRAGON and the 20 who survived moved on - that I said out loud "what is even happening" and put the book down for good.

I will say I liked the narrator, so my dislike of the book does not fall on the production of the audiobook - it came down to the unbelievable plot (even for a Fantasy) and annoying FMC. I feel like this book will easily find its audience within the genre's fans, but I am simply not one of them.

Thank you to HarperAudio Adult and NetGalley for the audio-arc!

I made it to 70% of this book before I decided to move on. There was nothing particularly wrong with it but it felt more like a romance book dressing up as a fantasy book with a lot of smut that felt forced and very insta-love which is just not my thing. I think if you really like the romance genre and want to dip your toe into fantasy this would be the perfect read for you. I would have enjoyed a little more backstory and subplot unfortunately. This story did have really neat ideas and I like the magic system.

DNF @65%

If you're a fan of romantasy and you're really here for the steamy romance over the world-building, this might be a great pick for you. I fear I'm too much of a fantasy reader to fully appreciate this and rate it fairly for the genre so I'm stopping here. The Starlight Heir starts off really strong with the main character being summoned to a competition for the hand of a prince in marriage. But she has a lot more chemistry with his illegitimate brother...

This is very twisty and a lot happens very quickly alongside a high-steam romantic plot arc. For me it was moving a bit too quickly through the plot and I wanted a better understanding of how the world functions, side characters, etc. But I just think that the primary thing here was intended to be the romance, which is totally fine. Check it out if that sounds up your alley! The audio narration is well done. I received an audio review copy via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

4.5 ⭐️

This should be picked up for a show!! I received the ALC, so listening to it really made this come to life for me, and I can't stop thinking about how good of a mini series or movie this would make. 📽📺

Anywayyyyy, a romantasy with a "chosen one" plotline can go either way, but this kept me roped in! The trials were bloody and described so well, so entertaining. The magical elements were so easy to follow but still different enough to make this story stand out. It was an easy read with modern-day dialogue.

Tropes:
✨️ Chosen one
✨️ Magic system with magis, gods, and mystical creatures.
✨️ Trials (for a short amount of the book)
✨️ Rebellion, deceit, secrets, political uprising

My only critique is that the romance could have been a little better. I wasn't 10000% convinced of their love, BUT I do realize that there is another book 👀 where things may build up/change, so I will definitely be reading the next book! Highly recommend if youre looking for a fun, quick-paced, romantasy read. ✨️

I didn’t care for this one - it was written as if the reader should already know the back story and like it was obvious. I would’ve liked to see more world building and suspense rather than one thing happening and her asking ‘what am I’ and someone answering ‘starlight heir’…

Book Review: The Starlight Heir by Amalie Howard ★★★☆☆

I would like to thank NetGalley, HarperAudio Adult, and the author for providing me with an audiobook ARC in exchange for my honest review. I was genuinely excited about this new fantasy, and the cover artwork alone is absolutely stunning!

I also thoroughly enjoyed the narration of the audiobook. Overall, I would give this a rating of 3 stars. While the book boasts several strong elements that I appreciate, I ultimately found it difficult to connect on a deeper level.

The story follows Suraya Saab, a blacksmith's daughter whose family operates an inn. Her life takes a surprising turn when she receives a court invitation, summoning her as a potential bride for the prince. Although she doesn’t want to marry him and feels she lacks the qualities of a princess, Suraya sees this as an opportunity to escape her mundane life and embark on an adventure in the capital.

Upon her arrival, however, she quickly realizes that she doesn’t make the best impression on the court or the royal family. Surprisingly, instead of being sent home, she is allowed to participate in a bridal trial that comes with dangerous stakes. As she tries to blend in, she inadvertently draws the prince's attention. But she soon discovers that the true goal isn't to find a bride for him, but rather to identify the Starkeeper—a mythical girl believed to possess the magic of the stars, and they think she is that girl.

Before their plans can unfold, a rebel faction dissatisfied with the royal family attacks the castle, and Suraya escapes with the help of Roshan, the prince's charming illegitimate half-brother. Now, they are on the run from the queen and the prince, who are determined to capture her and harness her uncontrollable magic to awaken a forgotten dark god with sinister intentions for Suraya and her world.

While the book has a strong concept and I liked the characters and plot, I struggled with the pacing and the writing. Initially, the descriptions were quite detailed, immersing me in the setting. However, as the story unfolded, the descriptions became rather simplistic—like stating that the characters were in a red sandy desert without delving deeper. I didn’t feel fully immersed in the scenes, which made it hard to visualize the world.

Additionally, the pacing felt a bit too quick—not rushed, but there were opportunities to explore and engage more with the characters and events. Another peculiar element was the use of contemporary phrases like "toxic masculinity" in a romantasy set in a less modern world; this felt somewhat out of place.

Overall, I believe many readers will enjoy The Starlight Heir, and it has a lot of potential. However, personally, I felt it lacked the depth I was hoping for.

The Starlight Heir

⭐️⭐️⭐️ 2.75 stars rounded up to 3

I was really excited to get into this Persian mythology-inspired romantasy. There was the promise of a contest, a fiery romance, a prince, a rebellion, etc., but unfortunately, it fell a little flat for me.

The book instantly starts out with a massive info-dump of names, place, deities, and the magic system. It was an overwhelming amount of knowledge that I struggled to keep straight in my head. Even with the terms being used frequently throughout the story, I never got a full picture of the geography of the world, how the magic worked, or who was who.

The characters were also unimpressive. I had a hard time connecting with the fmc. The mmc was slightly more interesting but not by much. I didn’t feel the chemistry between the two and struggled to buy their connection. There was a decent supporting cast and an attempt at found-family that didn’t land.

The plot itself felt a little disjointed. It was all over the place. The fmc made a lot of really bad decisions that put herself, her family/friends, and the mmc in unnecessary danger. It was all easily avoidable. It bugged me endlessly when the fmc escaped her rescue party after her father and hometown plus the mmc and his army came to her rescue and managed to get her out of the palace. She ran right back into danger for no reason other than she was angry at the mmc for telling a very necessary lie and had to be rescued again, this time with fatal consequences. It’s hard to root for a character with such horrid decision-making skills.

The language at times took me out of the story. There is no reason why the phrase “thick thighs save lives” should be in a fantasy novel. It makes zero sense in regards to the vernacular of the rest of the story.

We also had these odd inserts from a random god’s POV that were never really explained. The deity system in itself was way too complicated and not described well. I never was able to understand the difference between a star, a god, a guardian, and a starkeeper.

The story did pick up toward the end and became more exciting but not enough to redeem its other faults. All in all, it had the potential to be a very cool fantasy novel but didn’t quite get there in the end. I doubt I will read any other books in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for the ARC.

3.5 rounded up.

The Starlight Heir is a perfect fantasy for someone new to the genre that is worried about being overwhelmed by world building. I appreciate that the novel jumps right into the action. There are enough familiar beats of popular tropes for fantasy readers, but nothing really new or groundbreaking. It’s an enjoyable read, but nothing life changing. I would read the sequel, but won’t necessarily seek it out.

Anais Inara Chase gave it their ALL to the narration and was a delight to read. Ramiz Monsef was fine, but his costar stole the show.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperAudio Adult for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

The Starlight Heir by Amalie Howard

I’ve been getting into romantasy a lot more so I was very excited when I received an advanced copy of the audiobook!

The narrator’s did a wonderful job! They really kept my attention and left me wanting more.

There was so much going on in the story! I couldn’t stop listening. So many twists and secrets!

When Suraya receives the court invitation, she looks at it as a chance for adventure. She ends up being interested in Roshan who is the princes illegitimate half brother. I like the romance between these two! It seemed like Roshan really cared for Suraya.

I feel so lucky to have received an ALC of this book. If you like romantasy, I’d definitely recommend this book! I’m looking forward to the next book! Thank you so much NetGalley, Amalie and HarperAudio Adult | HarperAudio for the ALC!!

Publication Date: January 7th 2025
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

If you like romantasy, I suspect this book will be a hit. It has all the elements of a strong central romance, defying fates, a kingdom on the precipice of war, and evil lurking within those in power. Like much of the romantasy genre, this focuses more on the romance than the worldbuilding. Tried and true fantasy readers may struggle with a lack of coherent magic system and other worldbuilding elements, whereas romance and romantasy readers will enjoy the romantic chemistry and not mind those gaps. That said, Howard's strengths as a historical romance author show through in her romantasy: the background of Suraya's world supports rather than interferes with the plot and romance threads of the book.

I have always found that I prefer listening to Amalie Howard's books, and this is no exception. The audio narrated by Anais Inara Chase and Ramiz Monsef was enjoyable to listen to, and I'd recommend it as you approach to reading this. (Readers concerned with understanding names and places can tandem read the print or download the audio's accompanying pdf for maps and characters.)

DNF at 46%

I was taken in by this gorgeous cover, and my current mood for romantasy. However, this was a disappointment. From my understanding this is the author's first foray into fantasy elements, and I feel that makes a lot of sense.

The dialogue is very much contemporary-based and can be a bit jarring. However, this doesn't really bother me a whole lot. What does bother me is that the characters and the world building feel very flat and uninteresting. The world and the lore that is being built so far feels very cookie-cutter to me. It is very much kitchen sink world building where it feels like a whole lot of elements are just being info-dumped and tossed at the reader, hoping something will stick. We have a chosen one plotline, and it is just not being done in a way that is different or new enough for my taste.

I could have pushed through those issues had I felt like the characters or their romance was compelling; however, I did not. It feels like an insta-lovey yet slowburn setup, which is unusual. While there are some moments of good banter, and some intrigue, it wasn't enough to become invested at this point in the story. The main character feels very much like a run of the mill, YA heroine, just aged up and horny. There isn't enough character building for me to say anything about their personalities either, which is frustrating.

Overall, I can see this working for someone who is new to fantasy-elements in their romance, and perhaps this ends up being more of a slowburn and the characters get fleshed out more. However, for me, this was not working and I am choosing not to push through to the end.

The Starlight Heir
A Novel
by Amalie Howard
Narrated by Anais Inara Chase; Ramiz Monsef

I received an ARC of this audiobook book through Netgalley.

This was an interesting fantasy novel. It had elements that were similar to Hunger Games and Dune and even greek mythology.

As a love story - it could have been better.

I think the character development and secondary characters could have been done better. This audiobook has all the bones of a stellar novel, but it just fell short for me.

I think sometimes authors try so hard to edit out the more mundane scenes, the less action-packed parts, that they end up taking away the parts I need as a readee to connect to these characters. I want more writing. I want more background.

It’s a good book.

An intriguing start to a new romantasy series! I have so many questions and I *need* the next book now. While I devoured the first half, it slowed down for me a bit in the second half, which made the climax a little less exciting? Maybe should have slowed down my read, maybe my feelings all make sense because of where it is building to?

The narrators did a fantastic job, they matched the characters well and kept me interested!

Received this as an audiobook ARC and it went by rather quickly. It was easy to picture the world building and focused more on character description than creating a whole new fantasy world with multiple layers or complicated details to remember.

The story is told almost completely by the FMC, but every few chapters was a secondary character. I wish there was more about them or gave some additional context as who/what they were and their importance throughout the story.

I really liked the narrators for this book, they do a great job and bring it to life. I listened to this audiobook in a single day. There was a lot of information and a lot happened at the end that left me with so many questions, it didn’t have a cliffhanger, though I think the story will go in a different direction for the next book. I liked the way the magic within her was explained and can’t wait to see where that goes once Suraya starts to explore it more.

There were some dragon type creatures in here that I am excited to read more about in the next book, and I’m curious about the second POV. In all this story consumed me as I did not want to stop once I started it. The only thing is I wish the trials would have lasted longer and been a larger part of the book since they were a big reason I requested this book, but it didn’t take away from the experience in the end.

The Starlight Heir is a great romantasy read by Amalie Howard. I’ve previously read Howard’s Historical Romance reads and was incredibly excited to have the opportunity to read her debut romantasy early. It had everything I want in a romantasy — solid world building, great banter between characters, surprising twists, and betrayals. There’s plenty to grab your attention and hold it from the first page to the last. I especially loved the first half of the book. The relationship between the FMC and MMC was a little too instalove for my tastes, but I still thoroughly enjoyed the story. Also, everyone deserves a best friend like Laleh. She had me laughing from the very onset. I combo read this between the ebook and audiobook. I really appreciated the choice in using two different narrators for the audiobook as it helped me immediately recognize the shift in the story when Ramiz Monsef stepped in. I also felt like Anais Inara Chase did so well in voicing the vast majority of the audiobook. She brought plenty of depth and emotion to the characters. Overall, I really enjoyed reading via both formats, and I don’t think you’d go wrong with either one. I’m also really excited to see where Howard takes the story next.

I was drawn to the description of this book. It included many fantasy romance elements that I’m a big fan of. A seemingly normal girl with prophetic power and a good guy prince that is on her side. I also enjoyed the world building. The country seemed vast with many different factions, but I was able to maintain clarity even while listening to the audiobook. The magic system was easy to understand.

Suraya was an overall likeable character. She struggled with having her world turned upside down in a matter of days, which was realistic. Sometimes, I really wanted to shake her! She could be a bit too naive and trusting.

I look forward to what the next book in this series will bring. I have so many theories running through my head of what can come next! I am especially interested in what role the gods play in everything that is happening in Suraya’s life. What will be her fate?

4 Stars! 🌟 A huge thank you to HarperAudio and NetGalley for the ALC of The Starlight Heir! This book was SUCH a thrilling, action-packed rollercoaster that left me craving more! At first, I totally thought it was a standalone, but then around the last 20-30%, so much was happening, and I was like, wait… is this part of a series? 😂 But no, it’s a standalone (though the epilogue definitely left me with a huge question mark 💫✨).

Tropes? Oh, I've got them:
✧ Forbidden Romance 💓
✧ Slow Burn 💗
✧ Enemies to Lovers 💘
✧ Dangerous Trials 🏹
✧ Hidden Powers ⚡
✧ Secret Identity 👀
✧ Forced Proximity 🛡️

Suraya Saab is the ultimate badass bladesmith with a starry secret, and her journey? Pure fire. 🔥 She's invited to a super shady competition for the crown prince’s bride, but it turns out, it’s actually a hunt for a girl with magic in her blood—aka the Starkeeper. And guess what? Suraya’s that girl! Oh, and did I mention Roshan? Swoon 😍 He’s the crown prince’s half-brother, and the chemistry between them is instant! 🌠

Can I just say? The world-building had me OBSESSED! The mix of Persian and Indian mythology is chef's kiss. 🫶 At first, all the godly stuff felt a little overwhelming, but once it clicked, I was totally hooked! So many secrets, magical elements, and a creepy god lurking in the shadows trying to steal Suraya’s powers.

Now, the romance was cute, but I felt it could’ve packed more punch. It was a slow burn that didn’t quite reach the fiery level I was hoping for. That said, I LOVED Suraya’s strong personality and her internal struggle. Roshan, though? I wanted to adore him, but I feel like there was something missing with his character—he was sweet, but I needed more depth from him. 🤷‍♀️

The plot though? SO good! I was on the edge of my seat, especially toward the end (still recovering from that twist). 📚

Also, huge props to the narrators, Anais Inara Chase and Ramiz Monsef! They did an amazing job bringing the characters to life. Anais's narration captured Suraya’s strength and determination perfectly, while Ramiz’s voice really brought Roshan’s complexity and charm to the forefront. Their performances were so engaging, making the tension, drama, and romance feel even more intense. 🎧✨

CW:
- Violence
- Death
- Some Dark Themes

Overall, I really enjoyed this book. It’s fast-paced, the stakes are sky-high, and those plot twists? Ugh, so good. If you're into fantasy romance with a sprinkle of mythology and hidden powers, definitely give this one a go!