Thank you to NetGalley and Publisher for letting me read this ARC.

I really enjoyed this story. Fern and her family are very unique and entertaining in this type of fiction. The story had a great way of pulling you in and keeping things open for more stories from Fern.

I am left having more questions and I cannot wait to read the second one. I do wish I had more closure on aspects like the alchemist, Eurydice, and all of the magic in general. Knowing that this is a series I know that it will all be understood in due time.

This is a cozy fantasy set in our world but with magic and dragons. My favourite parts were the little dragons Eurydice and Squib, and the carnivorous monster plant. The scenes involving them were the most exciting - however I found the filler in-between to be a bit slow paced for my liking. The dialogue between characters was great, and I enjoyed Ferns little family and the friends she eventually made. I think the writing style had a bit too much telling rather than showing for my taste - we didn't need the breakfast, dressing and nighttime routine every day.

If you are a fan of books like legends and lattes, this will likely be to your tastes.

Thank you to Netgalley and Ribbonwood press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you NetGalley and Tilly Wallace for the e-ARC!

A lovely cosy fantasy set in an alternate regency England. I enjoyed the tie-ins between the history of dragons and true historical events such as Elizabeth I and also the burning of Richmond Palace.

I loved the third person, one POV writing style but felt it could have been a little longer. However, the ending sets up an opportunity for a sequel nicely and I’m looking forward to reading more from this author.

I would recommend this book to those that enjoyed ‘A Natural History of Dragons’.

A charming historical cozy fantasy featuring a confident young woman and dragon companions, The Stormborne Vine sets up a delightful new series brimming with hope and adventure!

This was a nice mix of cute with a stick-it-to-the-man attitude combined with classic animal companions (who, of course, have a bit of endearing snark) and stakes that feel exciting but not too heavy. This story set up a lot of interesting threads and I hope to see them and the characters introduced get even more fleshed out in the next books of the series, as some of them, like the dragon Euyredice, didn't get nearly as much screen time as I was hoping given how important they seemed at the beginning. This was an overall lovely read though, and I'll be looking out for the next story in this universe!

Who doesn’t love a cozy fantasy?! I absolutely loved the story and the characters. I think it’s so important to have strong lead female characters in books. Fern was strong and dedicated and never held back. A true badass. If you are looking for a cozy fantasy book this is your book! I’m looking forward to reading Tilly’s next book! I really enjoyed her writing style.

Be sure to check this out on February 5th 2025!

Thank you NetGalley, Tilly and Ribbonwood Press for the E-ARC!

#NetGalley #TheStormborneVine

While I'm not a huge fan of fantasy, there's something about Tilly Wallace's prose that makes me love her stories. The characters, the plot, and overall coziness of the story were captivating. The botanical aspects spoke to me as someone who loves to garden and the dragons were fun as well.

Thoroughly enjoyed this one. There's a little bit of magic, a little bit of dragons, a murderous plant, a cozy esque feel, and likable characters.

Slightly spoilery content ahead.

While the ending isn't a dramatic cliffy, not everything is 100% wrapped up. But there is a note about an upcoming sequel. I will definitely be reading it when it's available.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

I have been a fan of Tilly Wallace since her exceptional and criminally underrated Manners & Monsters series (which I have queued up for a reread this year). As such, I’ve been looking forward to The Stormborne Vine for a while.

As with Manners & Monsters, there is a really interesting magic/world set up that felt unique, but also accessible. But where Wallace really excels is in creating interesting characters that exist within a cozy familial dynamic.

It took me a minute to get into this book, but once the story got going, I was ensconced. There was some anachronistic and awkward language in parts, and I would like to see some fuller world and character building as the series progresses. But all told, I really enjoyed this. It’s an excellent setup for a promising series to come. I can’t wait to see where the characters go from here, what happens with Squib, and I hope to see a romance develop.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC.

Reviews are linked below and posted on my Goodreads and my Bookstagram account, Trinas.Tomes.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5 stars. Thanks to Netgalley for the free arc.

I absolutely adored this cosy, sweet, cute, historical fantasy. Ugh, baby dragons, pixie paper dragons, carnivorous vines that eat people, a female MC who is in her 30s!, cranky alchemists, sweet Macbeth style witch sisters, the supportive uncle and his very good friend who is surely just a roommate, and the beginning of a lovely female friendship. It's everything.

Not only do we get a fun and interesting mystery for our FMC to solve, we also get tantalising little pieces of mysteries that no doubt will be delved into throughout the series. What happened to her dad? How do you germinate those special tree seeds? (I think I know). Why is magic slowly disappearing from the world? Is she gonna make the cranky alchemist less cranky? 🤨😂

I can't wait to find out. 😍😍😍

A stunning, unique, and beautiful cozy fantasy! I've read a lot of books in the last year, but none quite so charming as this one! with beautiful imagery, an exciting mystery, a touch of morbidity, and a cast of delightfully wonderful characters! the worldbuilding is amazing, and gives off feelings like howls moving castle, or Arietty. soothing, beautiful scenes filled with an array of plants, dragons, and snark mixed in with a surprising amount of low risk action. if your a fan of gardening, dragons, and magical mysteries, this is a book for you!a charming humor, a light hint of romance, and newfound friends, awaits!

Such a delightful cozy fantasy, with a very likeable protagonist and a fantasy world meshed with Regency historical vibes. I was immediately drawn to the main character, and her botanical work and tragic personal history were very interesting.

4.5 ⭐️

thank you to netgalley and tilly wallace for an e-arc in exchange for an honest review!

in ‘the stormborne vine’ we follow our main character fern oakby , a kind and determined botanist who roots (no pun intended) our story so so well. i absolutely loved all of our characters - fern, millicent, ambrose, george, and the origami-dragon-come-to-life, squib; just to name a few. they were all excellently fleshed out and i can’t wait to see them built upon throughout the books in this series. the abundance of botanical and alchemical imagery made the story all the more immersive, and the addition of dragons and magic is always something i’ll love.

i read this very quickly, and if you ever need a book to just whisk you away and restore some of your faith in humanity, then this is it! a cozy historical fantasy perfect for fans of heather fawcett, caitlin rozakis, and t kingfisher 𓇢𓆸

This book was fantastic. I adored Fern and her head strong personality. There’s dragons, botony, amoral questions, and more. It was cozy and a tiny bit creepy, and a lovely read.

*4.5 stars*

The Stormborne Vine is a wonderfully fun & cozy historical fantasy! The magic system felt unique, Fern (the FMC) was well-written and likeable, and the story was funny and sweet. And perhaps most importantly: there is a tiny dragon, AND a carnivorous plant. What else could you want? I really enjoyed this sweet book, and would recommend it to fans of Olivia Atwater or T. Kingfisher; as well as to readers who enjoy cozy fantasy.

Thank you to NetGalley for the arc! All thoughts & opinions in the review are my own.

A cosy fantasy set in a magical version of Regency England, The Stormborne Vine is a fun quick read that sows the seeds for a series. I enjoyed the majority of the book although I felt there was a lot of telling not showing (and the main character narrating her thoughts aloud to nobody) and a lot of different plot lines established in a relatively short number of pages. There were a couple of plot points that I thought would be resolved in this book that weren’t - hopefully later on in the series. Overall, The Stormborne Vine was a fresh, unique take on a cosy fantasy with a pinch of mystery and some very cute dragons.

Thank you NetGalley and Ribbonwood Press for the ARC.

This was a beautiful book that questions what is life and what makes something worth saving. Fern struggles with this as she fights to save a tiny origami dragon brought to life after a magical storm. The novel is an alternative history (set in 1818 England but magic is real), cozy fantasy, mystery all wrapped up in what should be too much but turns out to be just right. If you are looking for a read that will pull some heartstrings, make you think and still be a cozy fluffy feel good book then this is the novel for you. This is the first time I have read Tilly Wallace but I look forward to reading more by her. This novel is the first in a series but not in a giant cliff hanger way. It looks like it will be set up that each novel is a new mystery but the characters continue their growth and interactions between the novels.

I went into this book expecting a comforting and cosy read. It certainly delivered on that but I was not expecting how totally engrossed I would become that I had to read the whole book at once!

I read an eARC of this book on Net Galley so thank you to the author and the publisher.

I was utterly charmed by this lovely tale of dragons, botany, magic and headstrong heroines. There was so much to love in this book. The plot was tight, exciting and there was real jeopardy as our main character Fern is forced to run between crises, with looming deadlines to try and save two different dragons and learn to solve a magical mystery.

Fern is strong-willed, dedicated to her studies of botany but also kind and pragmatic. She refuses to be held back by the social expectations of her gender and is committed to continuing her late father’s work as a botanist. She’s kind and loving to her household and this is extended to those she believes deserving of her care, whereas the cruel and callous earn her disdain.

Fern’s adventure starts when she is asked to attend a stately home to help with continually dying plants in the gardens. However a ferocious storm will kick up new challenges to solve in said gardens!

I enjoyed this book so much, it was magical, I loved the world building, I loved the gentle inclusion of magic within a specific and recognisable historical period that was done so naturally. I loved the challenge of female stereotypes and the bold nature of our main character. I will definitely be getting and recommending this book and looking for more from this author.

'The stormborne vine' is definitely on the cosy side. The mystery is simple yet entertaining, the alt historical england with magic works well for the story. We also have a protagonist ahead of her time, living with her uncles in a remote area, giving small community vibes. I don't know if I wasn't in the right mood to appreciate the story to its fullest and enjoy it, but I found the historical grounding a bit lacking, more surface level that I prefer.

The plot is quite linear, from a slow beginning setting the contest of the story to the little mystery to resolve. The characters are entertaining, though a bit flat a time. Our protagonist has a tendency to make out loud commentary that could easily been set in the narration. It was a bit perturbing at times, but she is still a good story-carrying character.

All in all, a good read for someone looking for a quick story, without too much happening !

The Stormborne Vine is a cozy historical fantasy with dragons. Highly readable, but it ends rather abruptly.

A bit unusual for her time, Ms. Fern Oakby shuns Society after a disastrous chance at love has left her disgraced. Instead, she makes a living cultivating rare botanical plants for use in both gardens and alchemy potions. She’s called to investigate a garden incident, which quickly turns monstrous after a magical storm leaves a regular ivy turned into a literal man-eating vine. To make matters more complicated, an origami dragon has come to life and seems to be connected to the vine. In order to save the dragon, Ms. Oakby must figure out how to separate the two before time runs out and both are destroyed.

What a delightful little fantasy. It has definite cozy vibes reminiscent of Emily Wilde with a strong female character who does not hesitate to defy Society’s rules. I love the magical realism steeped into this tale with its dragons, witch sisters, and other magical bits and bobs that elevates this story. And if a woman ends up saving the day in the end… well, isn’t that just the cherry on top?

Recommended if you like: cozy fantasies, magical realism, historical fantasy