Heavenly Bodies

I was so happy to see this book be picked up for traditional publishing!
The romance in this is fantastic, slow burn... I adore them!
Great world building, and I love the lore behind this book!
Can't wait to read the sequel!

Firstly thank you to Netgalley for providing me with an advanced copy.
WOW What an amazing debut by Imani Emu definitely a new addition to my list of favourite authors.
Elara and Enzo our leading characters are so beautifully crafted, the magic is delicious, touch of humour as well as sadness and the ending will blow you away. I simply devoured this and I’m praying it will is the beginning of a series.
Highly recommend.

Thank you NetGalley for this arc in exchange for an honest review.

Heavenly Bodies by Imani Erriu follows Elara, Princess of Asteria, whose kingdom gets overthrown by a Star called Ariete and she manages to escape and the prophecy that links the two to their death. She is kidnapped by the neighbouring kingdom who is her sworn enemy, born to hate one another. She is offered refuge by King of Helios Idris, where she is to be trained to become a weapon if the Stars is to invade and start a war by his son Prince Lorenzo ‘Enzo’, the Lion of Helios. With many training sessions, prophecies, contrasting magic and secrets, they begin to uncover their feelings and realise perhaps they are not enemies after all.

For a debut novel with such amazing world building, magical systems and slow burn between our two main characters, I was in absolute awe. I will admit, I did have a hard time grasping everything at the beginning as I was getting to know the two kingdoms, the difference between Elara’s shadow magic versus Enzo’s light etc, but once my mind wrapped around all the wonderous concepts, I was absolutely HOOKED.

The enemies to lovers, forbidden romance and slow burn all tied together and developed, I was just in love. Elara is a determined, badass fc who wants to reclaim her throne and kingdom from the usupers. She is witty, morally grey yet she does what she can to save and protect those she loves. Enzo is sarcastic with such an arrogance it’s lowkey funny at times. He also isn’t afraid to be a little flirt whenever he wants.

The romance, the magic, the celestial and mythological references, the political dynamics, the twist and turns that keep you on the edge of your seat. There is a lot to take in, but it’s too good and worth the journey and I cannot wait to dive more into this world and after THAT ending? I need to know what happens next !!!!

If you like romantasy and similar vibes to Once Upon a Broken Heart, then I’d recommend this as your next read and to pick it up now !!!

Rated 4.5/5 stars

I’m not even sure I have words right now. Heavenly Bodies takes starcrossed-lovers to a new level, the longing and fate-damned destinies leaving what can only be described as a riot of emotions. Elara is our impulsively feisty heroine, Enzo our arrogant romantic, and I am but a reader weeping on the sidelines of their story.

Guess I’ll go rock in a corner until the sequel :)

*thank you to netgalley and the publisher for an early copy of this book in exchange for an honest review*

Loved it! beautiful written plot and multidimensional characters. I liked the world building and the magic system and thought the enemies to lovers trope was executed very well and I am a big fan of those. Quick and easy to read! So excited for the special edition of this one! 5 stars!

I absolutely loved this book! It was a slow start but the magic system, the scenery/setting and the intricacies of the whole novel were just gorgeous! I loved all the twists and turns in each chapter and Enzo definitely stole my heart very early on. Elara was a beautiful female character and her strength and determination fell right off the page and into my soul.

Absolutely fantastic read, I cannot wait till the next one comes out - enemies to lovers, friendship, loyalty and bucket load of magick

I inhaled this book, INHALED IT!!! Could NOT put it down. The world building was amazing and felt very well thought through, The two main characters, Elara and Enzo are wonderful, their interactions and banter full of chemistry and the slow burn was brilliant, the angst and build up was a sweet torture. The spice, when it finally came to it, was just right and the plot/storyline was super immersive. I am invested in these characters and their love story, I can't believe I have to wait so long for the second book. In a nutshell, from someone who in the last year has been thrown into the romantasy genre and have read SO MUCH of it, it was exactly what I wanted. Very impressive debut. Highly recommend. One of the best enemies to lovers I have read in a very long time.

Immensely enjoyable, if you are a fan of the genre you will LOVE this. Happy reading!

Thank you to the author, the publisher and NetGalley for my review copy, all opinions are my own.

Now this is a romantasy!! Man I’ve been waiting for a book like this! Perfection, I loved the celestial vibes, the worlds, Elara and Enzo’s hate in the beginning and the way they fell and fated together. The ending was epic and I loved every damn second. Cannot wait for book two!