Thank you SMP and Macmillian Audio for the ARC!

This book was so good! Black sapphic vampires? What more could a person want?

Well, you get more. You get a tragic love story. You get an amazing example of world-building and lore. You get complex characters, one you both feel for and feel angry at. You get great examples of friendships. You get loyalty, betrayal, and stabby women.

I loved every aspect of this book, it is exactly what the current vampire renaissance we are living in needs. It offers new perspective and lore to the story, while also keeping some of the original charm of vampire stories (burning in the light). Vampire stories are also tragic and sad, and Caldwell definitely wove that in.

I cannot wait for book 2!

4 stars - Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC! I was fortunate enough to immersive read this story - HIGHLY recommend the audio, the narrators did a PHENOMENAL job.

This story follows three separate characters - so definitely a great read for folks that love stacked storylines! I just want to say, while this story is a sapphic vampire fantasy, it's so much more than that. These characters balance rage, manage grief, betrayal, and so many complex emotions while carrying the fates on their shoulders. They're faced with tough choices, and loss -one while managing a chronic illness.

My only note is that you HAVE to lock in because as someone who isn't great with a ton of POVs, the switching/diff timelines was a bit hard for me to keep up with at times. That being said, I'm excited to see where things go in book 2!

Black and Sapphic! What more can a girl ask for. This a captivating story that intertwines a tragic love story with a dual timeline narrative. The tale of Thana and Favre is both heart-wrenching and intriguing. This dark and compelling origin story sets the stage for a rich fantasy world.
Parallel to this, we follow Leyla and Najja on their journey to find Leyla’s best friend. As they navigate their quest, they begin to fall for each other, mirroring the intense love story of Favre and Thana. The dual timeline adds depth and complexity to the narrative, keeping listeners engaged as they uncover the connections between past and present.
The audiobook features three narrators, each bringing a unique personality and depth to their characters. Their performances enhance the storytelling, although there are moments when the voices blend, causing some confusion during multi-character dialogues. Despite this, the narrators' ability to convey the emotions and nuances of each character is commendable.
Overall, "Where Shadow’s Meet" is a beautifully crafted fantasy audiobook that explores themes of love, sacrifice, and identity. Its engaging plot, well-developed characters, and immersive world-building make it a must-listen.

Thana became the first vampire after killing her father. Favre gave up her wings to be with Thana. But over time with them being amongst the humans Thana turned into something Favre hated. But she still loved her enough to break her out of her prison. But the only thing needs is blood.

Layla is soon to be crowned queen but she sees what her mother is doing. And she does not agree with it. She loves her people and does not wish to kill them as her mother will end their lives over the simplest things.

Najja has to tell the princess of her fate and what she must not do to release the horrible vampire. But after Layla best friend was taken from reapers she has to save her. No matter what.

This was a good read. Full of adventure and determination.

We jump right into the world in "Where Shadows Meet;" this is both immersive and confusing. Still, I think as a combined experience, audio and physical book, this title will capture many romantasy readers' hearts.

A fresh take on vampires and filled with dark secrets, twisted magic and lore, Where Shadows Meet delivered! Patrice Caldwell’s worldbuilding is intricate and epic, weaving multiple timelines to create a rich story. Having a full cast for the audio narration definitely added to the story and helped bring the characters to life.

Where Shadows Meet is perfect for readers who like:
Epic fantasy
Sapphic stories
Vampires
Angels and demons
Magic systems with consequences
Found family
Slow-burn romance
Burn-the-world-down romance

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook ARC. I look forward to Patrice Caldwell’s future projects.

I was really excited to read this based on the description. However, the story was more info dump and the characters just didn't grab my attention. I wanted to love it but I ended up DNF it around half way through.

An excellent addition to the influx of toxic lesbian vampire books that are increasingly popular. Patrice Caldwell is a talented author and the narrators did an excellent job with their delivery.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for an early listening copy.

This book was okay! I loved the premise, but there were a lot of info dumps and the story jumped around a lot. I did love the queer vampire princesses part of the story..

It's a super interesting premise but couldn't hook me. The changes in timeline and POV happened so fast and at times unclear. For now it's a DNF, but I may pick back up at a later date.
Narration was done well.

"I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own."
Leyla has decent character development. There is good world building. The relationships are vampiric but not gratuitous.
There are sections of the book I really liked.
All in all I thought I would have liked it more than I did, but for some reason I just never fully connected to the book. I don't know if it was the narration, or something else but I was never 100% engaged. I liked it enough to read the 2nd book to see what happens, I just didn't love it.

Ancient Gods, vampire queens and princesses, and mythical seers made this one an interesting ride. I loved the characters, world, and preface of the story. What I did NOT love was that I stayed confused the entire book as to who was telling their story and who was who. But overall, the story was as good and kept my interest. I was gifted an ALC of this book by NetGalley and the publisher and these opinions are my own. 3.5⭐️, if the characters weren’t so confusing to keep straight between chapters. The narrator did a great job!

I’ve absolutely been loving the wave of diversity that’s reenergizing the vampire genre lately, and Where Shadows Meet takes that momentum and soars. Marketed as a sapphic YA vampire novel, this debut is so much more—it’s layered with gods, demons, millennia-spanning lore, seers, and rich, atmospheric landscapes that blur the line between the living and the dead.

This book isn’t just about love; it’s about sacrifice, betrayal, grief, and loss—and how sometimes all of those emotions can be wrapped up in one person. The worldbuilding is lush and intricate, and the story completely lures you in. Some of the mother-daughter dynamics hit incredibly close to home for me and added an emotional weight I didn’t expect but deeply appreciated.

I received an eARC from Macmillan Audio, and as always, their productions are stellar. The narration by Alexis Campbell, Khaya Fraites, and Melinda Sewak was top-notch—they truly breathed life into the characters.

With the sprawling mythology and frequent timeline shifts, I did find myself confused at times. But honestly? That just makes me even more excited to reread it—maybe with a physical copy in hand this time—especially once book two is announced.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the free advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

I felt this had an amazing premise, but the way the story is told is everywhere. We’re jumping from too many characters w/ different timelines. The execution was just messy, but I feel if done right- It would have some potential!!

An absolutely deliciously dark & sapphic vampiric fantasy romance. I initially thought this was a standalone, but was pleasantly surprised at the end to find it will get a sequel. Great story, world and character building. I will definitely be looking forward to the next installment! The narrators did an amazing job as

What a wild ride. This book is so fascinating to me in that it has all the elements of a phenomenal five-star read, and just…doesn’t stick the landing. The worldbuilding is so fascinating and unique, the structure is engaging, the characters are dynamic, the prose is…it’s decent. I think where it fails to live up to its promise is in the fulfilment of the narrative arc of some of its characters. We spend SO MUCH TIME in the book setting up Favre as a victim of abuse, and yes, sometimes complicit in the mistreatment of others, but a full, complex being with a deeply sad story, and then we get to the end, and she’s rendered a totally one-dimensional cartoon villain for the sake of Layla and Najja’s arcs. I don’t know, I just really felt let down by that.

In terms of narration, spectacular. All three absolutely killed, knocked it out of the park. I know I have a preference for Favre’s arc over the other two, though if that was because of the narration or the writing is anyone’s guess.

Where Shadows Meet focuses on what is more important: love or power? Different characters are willing to give up one or the other to meet their goals. A Sapphic vampire and goddess story? You have my attention. This is YA, but there are some snippets of spice.

It is an interesting take on vampirism and the logistics of that. The world feels large, and like there is still a lot we don't know about. However, there are a lot of aspects of this book that could make it hard to follow if you can't sit and devour it in only a few sittings (lots of POVs, some time jumping, diary entries). Some of this may be sorted out if the story continues because it could be a case of a book one world building info dump.

The audio version of this book has several narrators, which I love. It would have been helpful if there were more obvious tells between the narrators to help distinguish the character they were reading as.

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for an ALC of this audiobook for an honest review.

I was provided both an ARC and ALC of this book via Netgalley, all opinions are my own.

I really enjoyed this. The audiobook has several narrators, which is helpful as the story is told from Favre, Leyla, and Najja's perspectives. As many of the characters in this book are female and the POVs are female it really helped having a distinct voice as the POVs switched. This doesn't alternate between chapters, though it is mainly told in the present from Najja and Leyla's point of views with sprinklings of the past here and there from Favre's perspective. I also found it helpful to have a copy of the ebook handy as there are lots of characters and new names to keep track of. The ebook also has a handy family tree to look at and an explanation of the vampire bloodlines which are important. The audiobook will come with a PDF of supplemental information, the ALC did not so I don't know what all it contains.

This follows Leyla, a vampire, Crown Princess, and descendant of the original vampire. She tries to live up to her mother's expectations but always seems to fall short. When the capital comes under attack by strange monsters and Leyla's best friend is captured, she vows to save her. Her mother forbids her, but she has chosen to take fate into her own hands this time. Najja is a yamaja and her people are the messengers of fate, and her fate is tied to Leyla in some way. They team up to find Leyla's missing friend and possibly prevent the world from ending. As Leyla and Najja are on their quest, Favre a powerful and old vampire awakens from a long sleep and is determined to awake her true love who has also been asleep for very long time. Favre has sacrificed much for Thana and will continue to sacrifice to awaken her again, even if it ends in destruction.

We get some great info about Thana and Favre's relationship in the past and how the vampire bloodlines/classes came to be. We also get some background on the world and how everything works which I appreciated. Favre is on a mission to awaken her love and will do anything to get her back, but I can see the cracks in the foundation starting to form or atleast I hope I do. I'm hoping Favre comes to her senses about how much she has sacrificed for Thana, and Thana hasn't done much but manipulate and take from those around her. As for Leyla and Najja, their relationship is only just beginning to blossom, and I expect it to develop further as the series progresses. There are some more mature themes, but nothing graphic, gory, or detailed for YA readers who are ready for something on the more mature side of the age range.

I am really looking forward to where this series goes. This does end on a cliffhanger but you could see it coming well in advance. I thought the pacing was good, we got good character development, and I love a good YA fantasy that discusses some bigger topics. This does have trigger warnings so make sure you read the author's note before picking this up, she addresses them there.

I would like to thank the publisher for sending me an audio-arc in exchange for an honest review through NetGalley.

In a world where humans and vampires fought against the gods who created them, a girl has to travel to the Isle of the Dead in order to save her friend in the aftermath of an attack. Along with a seer, Najja, the two of them set out on a rescue mission. But nothing is as it seems, for a thousand years ago Favre and Thana set into motion a chain of events that is finally coming full circle. Will Leyla save her friend? Or will she become the catalyst that brings on the end of everything as she knows it?

The whole question of what we would do for those we love is a major premise that is explored in this novel. From Favre and Thana and what they sacrificed, to Leyla now as she travels to help free her friend, the whole idea of sacrifice is prevalent. Let's talk about the characters: I loved the story of what was going on with Favre and Thana. You have Favre cutting her wings off in order to win a battle, but it inevitably changes her. Then you have Thana who pulls a Zeus and kills her father and has a prophecy saying her daughter will end her... just like Zeus is told one of his children would end him (which started the war among the gods but that's not important. Or maybe it is since there's a prophecy and a war. But whatever.). But I loved seeing their story unfold and watching as it came full circle. I could not make myself care about Leyla and Najja. Yes, cool, Leyla drinks blood and is a vampire I guess? But there was nothing interesting about her to me which brings me to my next point: I only cared about the chapters that dealt with the original war and Favre and Thana and what they were going through. For the most part, this book didn't impress me, and I didn't find myself dying to know what happens next. But I will probably read book 2 just to see what the aftermath is after that ending.

Actual Rating: 3.75 stars, rounded up

THIS BOOK WAS SO GOOD! Oh my, where do I begin?

This black sapphic vampire slow-burn romance was the perfect start to my April reading. We have three expertly written POV's that usher us into this world where vampires, gods, and humans exist in the same space, definitely giving a different spin on the traditional vampire stories. The relationship that blooms between Layla, Crown Princess of the Vampiric race, and Naja, a Yamaja, was quite precious. They didn't really know what to make of each other because they were clearly on opposite sides of the conflict, making them understandably cautious in their dealings with each other. Slow burns are not usually my go-to choice of trope. However, I enjoyed this one because it made sense, and the moments of awkwardness did not linger long. This cast of women was written with amazing strength and vulnerability. They were young but not childish, and their issues were valid. The ending left me wanting more, in a good way!

World-building top tier
Character-building top tier
Affection on the page top tier
Multiple POV expertly written
Dual timelines written in a manner that was followable and made sense
Vampires, Humans, Fates, and Witches, OH MY!

I had the pleasure of receiving the ALC of this amazing book. Alexis Campbell, Khaya Fraites, and Melinda Sewak, you ladies did a top-notch job with the voice acting! You really added color to this already exciting story.


I don't have the words to properly express how good this felt, and I am afraid I will begin to spoil it. This was a good time.

Thank you, Netgalley, Macmillan Audio | Macmillan Young Listeners, and Patrice Caldwell for the ALC of this phenomenal book!

I am voluntarily leaving my honest review!