A mortal alchemist. A faerie king. A bond that transcends death.Betrayed by a trusted mentor, Sylvie Imanthiya hides on the fringes of society, caring for half-fae orphans and trading her alchemical creations on the black market. She lives for the one night each season when she can see her dearest friend—a man whose destiny is far above hers.King Taylan Ashkalabek knows better than to exchange … than to exchange halayda vows with a mortal. Even their friendship is a risk; love is an impossible dream. Then a brutal alchemical attack poisons his realm, unearthing a dark power within him—and leaving Sylvie with the ancient mark of Faerie’s savior.
Manifesting unpredictable abilities and aided by allies with their own secrets, Sylvie and Taylan journey into the wilds of Faerie to heal the damage and confront Casimir, an invincible star-fae determined to claim the realm as his own. But only their enemy knows Sylvie’s true capabilities—and Taylan’s weaknesses—and how to use them in his vicious schemes.
Her fate is life. His fate is death. With Faerie in the balance, Sylvie and Taylan must stand together before reality as they know it is destroyed.
more
Halayda by Sarah Delena White is an imaginative adult fantasy romance featuring the fae.
A human alchemist has been working with the fae king for some time. There is a little bit of romantic interest, but it’s ridiculous to pursue because he’s immortal and she’s not. Then the annual festival in which the fae world joins with the human world for a brief few hours is sabotaged. Something explodes, and the next thing the very-human-alchemist knows, she is waking up with wings on her back. What? As she seeks out answers, she must also do whatever she can to stop the war that is about to erupt between the fae and the humans.
I really enjoyed Halayda. It was fast-paced and full of interesting characters and an imaginative story world. The plot was somewhat unexpected, which I always love. The main characters were great, filled with depth and development. And the romance was good. It was overall a very interesting book, and I really liked it.
There was a dark tone to the story, and, if I remember correctly, it bordered just across the edge of clean: not too bad, but I’d probably stick to older teens and adults for readers. I didn’t like that one of the main characters was sort of, kind of a demon. He didn’t act evil, but I don’t like when people try to de-demonize a demon, like they’re romanticizing them. It doesn’t sit well with me, which is why I’m not planning to read book two in spite of my next comments.
My favorite part of this story was the Halayda bond, but I shouldn’t spoil it for you by explaining it. Let’s just say that it’s a promise, like marriage, but better and more beautiful. And although this book is in no way Christian at all, it reminds me strongly of the beautiful relationship Christians have with God. I love this book for it, as unrelated as it is.
So if you like a bit of romance, battle, and the complicated immortal fae mixing with the human world, then this book is one you will likely enjoy.
I received a complementary copy of this book from NetGalley. I did not receive compensation for writing a review. All opinions are entirely my own.
KANDFDAHGEIOKAJDFJEAIOHIOEAHKDALFAHIHEANC
(Translation: I JUST EXPERIENCED ALL THE FEELS!!!)
Oh my. This book. Purely amazing. I loved it so much. It will forever be marked as a I-must-reread-this-book-over-and-over-again because of everything it created for me.
Every time I sat down, I was immediately thrown into this incredible world that produced so much awe and wonder. Never was there a moment was I not leaning closer to the book or making some dramatic hand movement because of what came next. (Let’s not forget how I cried-almost-sobbed-but-really-sobbing at the end.)
Just everything. So very good. The message, the feels, the story, the characters (aka TAYLAN *coughs*), the adventure.
I strongly recommend this book to fantasy readers, steampunk, and everything in between because this story is wonderful and you’re going to fall into a world that you may not want to leave. (Of course, as long as you have our special heroes because otherwise things could certainly get ugly really fast.)
Very much eagerly anticipating book two in this series!