Oh my goodness…it feels like forever since I posted a review of a fantasy novel that was not part of a blog tour! Long story short, I was sucked into buying this trilogy via Kickstarter. If you know me, you know that I am a sucker for collector editions or special editions, especially if they have sprayed edges. What can I say? I love a good-looking book.
I was a little skeptical, never having heard of this author or series before. Nonetheless, I purchased the trilogy and I was so impressed with the packaging and sprayed edges!
Isn’t it gorgeous?! Look at the sprayed edges! I love the animal inclusions here and I think each one hints at a character or supporting character in the story. I will admit though, upon opening the box I was worried. My first thought was how beautiful it was but the immediate second was the possible damage to the books due to the green moss. The author had already thought of that though…each book was individually wrapped and safe.
There were so many extras included as well! Here are a few. I was so excited to receive character cards, I love being able to see what the author envisioned and how each character appears. The second image is a parchment letter, the same one from the start of the book. I was beautiful and I love that little touch of the wax seal.
However, you are not here for the review of the special edition but for the book itself. Let’s dive in and see how much I loved a book from a completely new author!
Of Dreams and Shadows (The Ealdspell Cycle Book 1)
Author: Jesikah Sundin
Publisher: Forest Tales Publishing
Published: August 25th, 2022
Book Length: 253 Pages
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult, Fairytale Retelling
Rating: ♥ ♥ ♥
Buy the book: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Audible, Thrift Books
She is forced to dream while awake.
He must face his nightmare—her.
Something is terribly wrong. What her eyes see conflicts with what she feels. But Princess Aroreh Rosen doesn’t know she is under a glamour, one that forces her to see only illusions of beauty and contentment.
Not how hunger and sickness plague her factory-choked land.
Or how her mother’s cruel, dark magic is amplified when Aroreh is awake and why she’s enchanted to never sleep.
And definitely not how the handsome young man her mother prepares to sacrifice is demonized by her realm.
Not until a rebel sect of faeries, that is, releases her mind and unleashes her magic—the power to weave new realities while dreaming.
Now on the run, Aroreh’s unspooling world collides with Félip Batten McKinley’s, the young man her mother had captured and the surviving heir to the throne of faerie. The very throne the queen maneuvered to annihilate through Aroreh’s magic. And why the faeries hid Félip as a child in the factory slums. But an uprising pushes Félip from the shadows of his life and into the hauntingly beautiful light of Aroreh Rosen—a young woman who represents every nightmare he knows.
Yet only she has the power to awaken a new dream and save their people.
✨ OF DREAMS AND SHADOWS ✨ is a young adult elven fantasy spin on the romantic tale of Sleeping Beauty, blending faerie magic and pagan ritual with an Industrial Revolution meets medieval faerie tale inspired setting. Guaranteed to please readers who love angsty, enemies-to-lovers medium-burn fated romances, twisted fairy tales, and strong found family themes.
Previously published as ÆROREH
I did want to mention the image on the left was the one Goodreads shows but I would much rather have a book with the cover from the right which is what Amazon shows.
The first thing that I enjoyed about this book was the contrasting colored pages! Dark chapter header pages really enforce the fact that you are beginning a new section of the book. This novel also has what every good fantasy book has…a good map!
Before the reader begins the book, they are met with a welcome page. This talks a little bit about the Kingdom of Ealdspell and even gives us an idea of how to pronounce the character names. This was something I referred back to as the names are a little atypical, not in a bad way but it does make the reader take a second to remember to pronounce them correctly. The end of the book provides some historical notes and more books by the author as well as information about their Etsy seller page.
Now, diving into the book we are met with a letter from a character pleading us for help. This I feel was an attempt to pull the reader in, a hook so to speak. It did work for me. I really wanted to know what the heck was going on in the kingdom and learn about the author of the letter.
The worldbuilding was good but I did feel that the author tried to cram a little too much in at times. Between the magick, technology, dream walking, and rune whispering…it became a little too much to keep track of at times. It could have been my ADHD mind wanting to know more about everything but I just was not given enough information about any of these subjects to really feel confident I knew what was happening at all times.
The characters are wonderful. I did want more fleshing out and development but overall I enjoyed them. My only real complaint is the accent Félip spoke in. It was very very thick and took away from the story at times. I enjoy a character where the accent is explained but I am not reading a thick wordy text every time they speak.
The pace felt fast at some points and slower at others, overall not bad. I was able to enjoy the book and finish it in two days. Two days of night reading that is, I am a mom of three boys and a business owner so I do not find much time for reading these days. I am changing that though, slowly.
Overall, I did enjoy this book and I think it is a good foundation that could use some work but it was a wonderful retelling with many historical and magical aspects. I loved the idea of Rune Whispering and hope to see more of that in the author’s other works. I will be reading the second book in the series in the near future and I will post the review when I am finished.
Have you read this title? Would you?
What is your favorite fairytale retelling?
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