I received this book for free from The Author in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Curse the Fae by Natalia Jaster Series: Vicious Faeries #3
Published by CreateSpace on December 16th, 2021
Genres: Fae, Fantasy, Fantasy & Magic, Love & Romance, Paranormal, Romance
Pages: 447
Format: eARC
Source: The Author
Goodreads
A monster is holding me prisoner in the land of Faerie.
They call him the lord of the water Fae. I call him a viper.
The tales say Elixir is venomous—and as beautiful as he is brutal. They say he’s a cursed soul who wields dark, sinful magic.
As punishment for stumbling into his dangerous world, the ruler of the river has confined me to an underground realm of serpentine creatures and secret canals.
The key to escape rests with my fatal enemy. To win my freedom, I’ll have to play his wicked mind games—and unlock his greatest weakness.
It’s a risk I must take. Even if it means being trapped alone with my villainous Fae captor. And even if it means fighting off the forbidden heat that ignites between us.
Because if I don’t make it out alive, his sensual touch might deliver the killing blow.
This book. Wow. I’m really not sure how I can convey just how much I loved Curse the Fae – I was expecting to enjoy it because I’ve loved all of Natalia Jaster’s books but this one just blew me away. I am speechless (which doesn’t happen often!)
This one is for sure my favourite in this series so far (and I adored both Kiss the Fae and Hunt the Fae). I actually wasn’t expecting Cove and Elixir to eclipse my favourite-until-now pairing Juniper and Puck – but what can I say? I’m a fickle beast (just like one of those tricksy fae! Only slightly kidding; but it really is a testament to Natalia’s writing that she has such lovable characters that steal your heart).
Before I dive (heh) into my review, first I want to make clear that although I received the book to review directly from the author (I’m on her ARC Team) all views are my own.
my review
Curse the Fae is the third book (but thankfully not final – there is another to come!) in the Vicious Faeries series and the perspective shifts to the eldest (and sweetest) sister Cove. Like her two siblings, Cove has been summoned to the Faerie after accidently encroaching on their lands when trying to escape poachers (this all happened in the first book). All three of them have to undergo a game – where losing means forfeiting their lives. If just one of them fails their tasks they all pay the price.
Lark was called to the mountains and Juniper to the dense forest lands. Cove must brave the deep, subterranean waters of the river fae and their poisonous viper of a leader – Elixir. Known as the most vicious of all the Fae rulers, Cove despairs of ever being able to thwart him.
However, Cove is determined to win her game and she finds inside herself an inner fortitude to challenge this dangerous opponent at every turn. There is nothing she wouldn’t do for her family and she knows the stakes are so very high but she cannot fail as to lose would mean more than just her life.
From the very first, Cove and Elixir clash and there is a battles of wills between these two very different characters. Their interactions are fascinating. Cove practically kills Elixir with kindness and Elixir clearly doesn’t know how to respond to this having never experience much of this in his life.
I think what I love most about this pairing is their inherent vulnerability. Both of them have suffered great loss; Cove her first family, Elixir his parents and his vision (yes, this fae lord is blind but this doesn’t hold him back one jot). It increases the stakes exponentially because as you get to know them you cannot help but feel for both of them and want both of them to come out on top – even if you are not sure exactly how that could possibly work.
The push and pull of their interactions throughout the book are delightful, and when they finally let their guards down their connection is exquisite – dare I say it, but I actually found them to be the most sensual of all the pairings (the steam is quite something else). I’m not always a fan of the smutty stuff but it worked for these characters and made sense as part of their story.
I’m also a sucker for relationships where one of the pair is sunshine personified whilst the other is the grumpiest grump to ever grump and that was Cove and Elixir to a tee! The two of them are the antithesis of the other but it makes their developing bond that much more earned. Cove brings out the lightness hidden at Elixir’s core and Elixir gives voice to Cove’s inner darkness (which is definitely a part of her despite her inherent sweetness).
to sum up
I am such a huge fan of this series and this book was just sheer perfection. I am so fond of both Cove and Elixir and so happy to have been able to share in their story. It was also amazing to get to see the other couples again; feisty Lark and elegant Cerulean, clever Juniper and bawdy Puck! I just love them all so much!
I was super happy to discover the trilogy has been extended to a quadrilogy (or, ergh… however you want to put it!) There is absolutely no way the story could have been wrapped up in this third entry, not without cutting off a great junk of Cove and Elixir’s story, which would have been a great disservice to them. They deserved their chance to shine and shine they certainly did!
Like I said at the start, any of my words are just totally insufficient to describe this beautiful and lyrical story so I’m just going to recommend you check it out for yourself – you will not be disappointed! 5/5 stars.
for more of my reviews, click the below link:
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