This urban fantasy was a mixed bag for me. It's a story about three Irish musicians and their encounters with several different Sidhe (fey). Dawn writes well and convincingly about music and gig life, but the characters were a little flat and I struggled to stay engaged until the last 20% or so. There is a lot of Irish culture and language throughout the book, and I would have liked to have more translations along the way for the many Irish words. Apparently there will be a glossary in the final version, which should help quite a bit. Thank you to NetGalley and Arc Manor | CAEZIK SF & Fantasy for a digital review copy.

Arc Manor/CASEZIK SF and Fantasy provided an early galley for review.

This novel had a dark, insidious undertone right from the start, and that wasn't lost on me. It gives the story an uneven keel, keeping the reader as disoriented as the three protagonists. If this indeed was the author's intent, it worked. When the three sidhe begin to work their ways into each of the guy's lives, they tend to take most of it in stride (as if the same "groupies" popping up all over is the norm for a band on the road).

I found that the characters took awhile to become distinctive for me. Their voices were not distinctive enough early on. I ended up associating them more to what their fates were becoming rather than who they were as individuals. That made the earlier portions of the book a bit of a slog. It got better as the book hit it's second-third, so I would recommend readers give this one a bit more time to settle in.

The novel is very steeped in all things Irish, from the language that crops up a lot (not always with any translation, sadly) to the folklore. If one is into all that, this one will have an appeal. For others, it could be a lot to absorb.

Addendum: the author let me know that a glossary of Irish terms will be in the final product. This will be a big plus.

This book’s summary caught my eye and I am glad that I had the opportunity to read it! With the market inundated with books about the fey I was excited to see one that focused on Irish mythology and folklore. This book also incorporated a lot of details about Irish culture and history from the late 1900s. I enjoyed the Irish Gaelic throughout the book and am excited to see it included. However, I was less than thrilled with the phonetic spellings of words (Jaysus) to imply the accent. The plot was exciting in that rock and roll sort of way where you get caught up in the suspense and curiosity of what exactly is happening. However, I felt that the second and third acts dragged a bit. The cover of the book doesn’t quite fit with the story itself - but that is my own pet peeve. This book is difficult because it tilts between unique and tropey, suspenseful and predictable, and was a ride through a book I wasn’t expecting. Thank you so much to NetGalley and CAEZIK SF & Fantasy for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book. This review is my own thoughts and feelings, no one else’s though I hope you enjoy the book - I am willing to give the sequel a chance to see what happens next.

I love the Irish mythology and history and languished in the book! I love the found family and friendship between the boys!
I do think the cover is a a little misleading even if it is beautiful! Well, maybe not misleading but doesn’t necessarily make sense?
The story is beautiful and nicely paced. The characters are well thought and have beautiful development.

I wanted to enjoy this book, but it ended up being a frustrating experience. The writing was confusing, and I felt lost most of the time. The use of Irish phrases and terms without clear context or translations made it even harder to stay engaged. I understand the importance of authenticity, but without a glossary or some explanation, it alienated me as a reader.

The pacing was slow, and the characters didn’t feel developed enough for me to connect with them. I kept waiting for the story to pick up or for something to draw me in, but it never happened. Despite restarting the book several times to try and make sense of it, I just couldn’t get into it.

Unfortunately, this book just wasn’t for me. It might work better for readers already familiar with the cultural and linguistic elements, but I couldn’t find my footing. That's whyI'm giving it 1 aka 0 ⭐.

Randee Dawn wrote a strong story and had that element that I was looking for from the description. The world was everything that I was wanting and thought the characters had that feel that I was looking for. I enjoyed the plot of the book and wanted more in this world and from Randee Dawn.

This book was incredibly hard to follow, unfortunately I couldn’t understand some of what was being said because I don’t know Irish and I didn’t want to stop throughout the book to try and google what certain things meant because it would just take me out of the flow of the story.

It really needs a companion page to go with it that has the translations on it that someone can easily refer to.

I restarted this book about five times at different stages of the book just trying to get a better grasp and understanding of what was going on and to try and get more into it but I really think this book just isn’t for me.

The story moves very slow and it’s hard to connect to the characters, I feel like I don’t even know what’s going on half the time because it either lacks explanation or is written in a way that confuses me further.

Thank you Netgalley and Arc Manor | CAEZIK SF & Fantasy for the arc

Received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I'll give this book a 3.5 (and darn that Goodreads for not having a better rating system).

I was reminded of the Bedlam's Bard series by Mercedes Lackey, which come to think of it was written around the same time frame as this book is set.

I see this is listed as Stories from the Green Place #1, and that makes sense - I could see from the ending a possible sequel, at least for some of the characters.

I just finished my ARC of The Only Song Worth Singing by Randee Dawn, provided to me by NetGalley, and I loved it! There were some rough patches where I came across terms I didn’t know (apparently, Wikipedia doesn’t know Irish either!), which meant pausing my reading to look things up. There were also moments where the pacing felt a bit drawn out, but those didn’t take away from how much I enjoyed the story overall.

I adore books with the fey, and this one was a top contender of the ones I have read thus far. It’s always exciting to learn more about another culture’s magical stories and see how deeply beliefs can shape not just individuals but entire communities. Music plays such a huge role in this book—it’s a powerful force that bridges relationships and builds stories, and it felt so integral to the foundation of the world. The way the author wove music into the magic and the relationships was amazing.

The characters were beautifully flawed, each with their own struggles, mistakes, and moments of hope as they fought against their personal darkness. If you’re into stories that mix magic, redemption, music, and cultural lore, I’d absolutely recommend this book!