Every secret has its price.Beatrice Martel has been hired to track down a secret. Someone has leaked a revelation that could get people killed, and it’s Beatrice’s job to figure out who spilled the beans. That’s pretty standard fare for a witch in her line of work… but this time, the main suspect happens to be her ex.Dorian Moreau is a cold, heartless lawyer with a penchant for collecting … penchant for collecting dangerous secrets from his supernatural clients. More than a decade ago, Dorian crushed Beatrice’s heart with a terrible betrayal. Now, Beatrice has agreed to try and break Dorian’s security. But neither Beatrice nor Dorian are the same people they once were… and when the most dangerous secret of all finally comes out, it will change everything they thought they knew about one another.
The fifth book in the Faerie Lords series is a modern faerie tale romance blended with intrigue. Unravel the mystery with Crown of Whispers, a novel reviewers call a “long-awaited treasure.”
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This is book 5 of the Faerie Lords series. I thought the character work was great and the storyline flowed well. The plot held my interest and the book is well written. I would recommend reading.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
The plot lines in this book intertwine nicely with the previous 4 books in the series. This is a fast, easy read and the characters and dialogue move the plot along without overburdening the reader with a lot of third person narrative. The author takes an interesting approach to the main character’s coping mechanisms, I won’t ruin the fun by describing it here. I enjoyed the embedded bits and pieces of cybersecurity as well. Looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
“Somehow, the idea of a faerie lord drinking out of a Tim Horton’s mug just didn’t jibe.”
As a Canadian who’s been living in Florida for the last decade, it warms my heart to see the frequent mention of a dearly loved coffee chain back home (especially as my own Timmie’s mug is generally resting between my fingers whilst reading a book).
I loved Crown of Whispers. I’ve loved every book that’s been published in this series so far, but learning of the depth of the secrets behind our elusive Dorian felt like a long-awaited treasure. The first quarter of the book was filled with the sort of sensual tension that keeps you glued to the pages, holding your breath. I felt Trix’s hurt. Hearing of her anxiety – her masks – and her stubbornness to simply overcome until the next moment so deeply resonated in me that there were moments that I saw myself there among the words. I longed for Dorian’s explanation of his betrayal, and though I had guessed at some of his motivations, I was surprised at how it all came to light.
This was another fantastic read from Isabella August, and I’m eagerly awaiting the next book in the series.
Enjoyed another installment of the Faerie Lord books! Crown of Whispers did not disappoint.
I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
Beatrice Martel, a Gemini witch, is sent, under the guise of a security review, to find out who leaked a deadly secret. But in this case, the primary suspect is her ruthless ex, Dorian Moreau. He likes to collect secrets from his supernatural clients. She felt magical wards as soon as she entered his office reception area, even though the secretary tried to pretend she had no idea. Finally she told Beatrice that she was a warlock. Unlike witches, who were born with their magic, warlocks sold their souls to powerful supernatural creatures in return for the magic they wielded. She was probably loyal to a faerie lord.
Over a decade ago, Dorian had broken Beatrice’s heart with a terrible betrayal. But both of them have changed over the years. His physical appearance was still much as she remembered him, but he was much more professional, impeccably dressed, and deadly cold. Now he stared at her dispassionately. Dorian had made a name for himself buying and selling secrets of every sort, to every supernatural creature in existence. Almost finished with her review, she opened up her Witchsight senses.
She saw a pulsing web of hungry, bloody briars crawling along every inch of the walls. The wards Zoe had clearly used came from the faerie magic to safeguard the building. The blood on the thorns was a strange touch. The magic was dense around Dorian’s desk chair and she sat there to see what she could discover. She texted her wealthy vampire client, Jean Belmont, to say that there was no evidence the leak of information had come from this office.
The client insisted she come to dinner to report to him what she found. Dorian told him that per his agreement, he would also be included, so he was allowed to come also. As she told him that a name she was to look for was not found in the records, the person herself, a detective, came storming in and made a scene. Jean Belmont was furious. After throwing wine over his head, the detective left. He told Dorian to go ahead and tell Beatrice the secret. Then he left the restaurant.
But the secret that is exposed will change everything . . .
She had glimpsed a moment of intense fear in Dorian’s mind. Will this secret put Beatrice in danger? Jean Belmont is the oldest and most powerful of vampires and pretty much owns the city. Has she gotten in too deep already?
‘Crown of Whispers’ is book five in the Faerie Lords series by the author duo known as Isabella August. The fae fantasy series quickly became a favorite of mine toward the end of last year and I find myself eagerly awaiting new releases to devour. As always, this book did not fail to live up to my expectations.
Beatrice Martel, a tech savvy security expert for hire, is the main character in this story. Like all August’s characters, she’s flawed in relatable ways, and incredibly easy to like. It’s amazing really, it’s uncommon for me to continually love all the characters in a series.. but it has definitely been the case with this one.
Dorian Moreau is her ex. A lawyer with an icy exterior, he deals with highly important supernatural clients, extracting and collecting secrets from them along the way. Known as ‘The Vault,’ he has a unique way of storing and protecting those secrets, that no one entirely understands.
The pair have a complicated history that ended in a vile betrayal. So, when Martel is hired to find a leak in vampire.. Jean Belmont’s close network, neither of them is particularly thrilled to be dealing with the other.
I took to Dorian immediately. I wasn’t put off in the least by his cold demeanor and sometimes biting words. Largely this is credit to August’s ability to give you peeks of the person beneath the surface without actually cracking that facade. The story doesn’t suffer for those glimpses, in fact.. it benefits. I found myself wanting to know what really happened between them all those years ago.. and once I did.. I wanted to know why.
There’s just something about him even early on, that implies no decision is made lightly. Ever. No action, simply without cause. And admittedly, I believed I had a good idea of the reason. I did, sort of. Right idea, not quite the right source.
Which is another reason I love these books. Even though my intuitions are sharp when it comes to storytelling, August can still surprise me with each new novel.
In a previous review, I mentioned loving the magic system. I’m still wild about that. I know all the arguments against the concept of astrology, but even considering that.. I believe there’s something to be said in the study of people who share commonality. Certain times of the year are still prone to certain climates, certain times of the month are still prone to certain tidal patterns, and so on. We cannot live without the nature of our surroundings having some effect on us. That being said.. I love the connections the author has made to the astrological signs.. and as a Scorpio, I was innately pleased to see the witch magic for that sign would hold dominion over blood and darkness.
Even the name Arcadia, the faerie world in this series, is drawn from legends and folktales used throughout history. It’s amazing how richly crafted every aspect is, how much detail and research has to have been necessary to include so much.. and it’s done in a way that seems almost off-handed. And the more I see of the various realms within Arcadia, the more fascinated I become.
It’s pretty apparent that the series is leading somewhere and that too is exciting. There’s a growing collective of Faerie Lords that are referred to as ‘the Infected’ and a collision with the others, at least bit-by-bit.. is inevitable.
I’m already excited for book 6. Get out there and pick this one up!
(More reviews like this at Betwixt The Sheets.)
(I received this title as an ARC. All opinions are mine and freely given.)