ARC Review - Rise of the Cinder Fae by Whitney Dean

 Thank you so much Whitney Dean for sending me this ARC!

Title: Rise of the Cinder

Author: Whitney Dean

Genre: Fantasy Romance

Series: Dark Hearts Fairy Tales (book #1)

Pages: 680

Synopsis:

Born and raised in the forgotten and broken kingdom of Ashbury, Elora has spent years resenting the royals of Pumpkin Hollow, the kingdom that forced the fall of Ashbury and procured the town as its own. Separated by a mysterious glass bridge, Ashbury is treated as the orphan kingdom, left to squander and starve with only the promise of protection from King Jasper, preventing anyone outside their realm from coming to search for the magic that lay within the ashy valleys and red skies of Ashbury. Because twenty-five years ago, the Cinder Fae arrived. As mysterious as the magic encompassing Ashbury, the Cinder Fae bargained for their lives by promising to keep the entire realm warm with their ability to mine mountainsides into coal. But Elora and the Cinder Fae hold a secret that could bring death to Ashbury and the mysterious winged creatures, who, despite Elora’s best efforts to pry, refuse to share where they came from or why they can’t return. In her desperation to prevent the downfall of her kingdom and the death of her Fae friends, Elora drinks from an enchanted spring, convinced she can make the prince of Pumpkin Hollow fall in love with her and guarantee their safety. But magic takes to give. And Elora didn’t realize her heart would be the sacrifice.

Review & thoughts:

Rise of the Cinder Fae is a Fantasy Romance book and the first in a series of interconnected standalones. It has everything I love in fantasy romance genre and so many of my favorite tropes, I loved it! 

After the death of her father, the Keeper of the Cinder Fae, Elora is forced to live with her stepmother and stepsisters. When an opportunity to restore their fortune arises, her stepmother makes a deal with the cruel king to arrange a marriage between Elora and the prince in exchange for Elora keeping her friends, the Fae, in check. Neither Elora nor the prince want this marriage, but they soon realize they are not what they thought each other to be and when their feelings for each other grow stronger, they have to decide what they are willing to do for love, especially when it might cost them their lives. 

This book is a loose Cinderella retelling and I liked how the author weaved the elements of the original tale into a whole new story. It is a really interesting take on the Fae where they are more of slaves to the humans than their masters and I can’t wait to read more about them in the next book. The whole world building was really interesting and I liked reading about Pumpkin Hollow, the plot started a bit slow but once it picked up, I couldn’t put the book down. Elora and Finnian are amazing main characters, they are both complex and went through a lot, I loved them both and I absolutely loved their romance, they had such a great banter and tension and when they finally gave in to their feelings I loved seeing them together, they were just perfect. And I need to know what happens to them next because I refuse to accept this is the end of their story, I need the next book ASAP. 

Rise of the Cinder Fae is a really great fantasy romance book with great characters, beautiful and spicy romance, plot twists, found family and I definitely recommend it to everyone who enjoys this genre, I already can’t wait for the next book.

Rating:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5