House of Rising Sands

The Kingdom of Crows #1.5

by Olivia Wildenstein

HOUSE OF RISING SANDS is an origin story preceding the events of HOUSE OF BEATING WINGS, yet should be read after book 1.For five hundred years, my people and I have been locked on a tiny island in the middle of the ocean because of my mother's cruel magic.Although I dreamed of escaping our prison, I never imagined a day would come when I could.But that day came, and with it, a destiny that bound me to a winged beast of a man.A Crow.My Crow.*Zendaya and Cathal's love story was originally published in the Bookish Box's 2022 Holiday Anthology. It's a 10K word novella.

Genres: Fantasy, Romantasy, Romance, Fae, Fantasy Romance, Novella, Fiction

56 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2023

About the author

Olivia is a USA Today best-selling author of romantasy. When she’s not swooning over her characters’ steamy escapades, or plotting their demise, you can find her sipping wine and crafting her next twisted, romantic masterpiece, all while trying to convince her children and leading man that she loves them more than her laptop.

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Reviews

[Olivia Wildenstein]

OOOH. I'm so excited to share this steamy little novella with my Kingdom of Crows readers.

[❀ Rose ❀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

So fun and it’s literally only 50 pages so u can read it in no time! Can’t wait for the final book in this series and for the reunion between not only Fallon and Lorcan but also Cathal and Zendaya.

[Ashley Catelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

"What is the opposite of a moth? For that is what the shifter has turned me into. A creature that seeks out the dark instead of the light."

This was good until the end which made me cringe a bit.

[Kylie ve · Rating 4 out of 5]

actually pretty interesting at first but i wish it showed us more about her parents.

[Michele M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice fun fast read with some nice banter

[Luce · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would highly recommend reading this novella after book 2. I think you'd miss some keys details and spoil yourself if you read before or after book 1.

I love the story and the world but the author has a huge problem with pacing. In her full length novels, the pacing is slow and dragged out. In this novella, it was full speed ahead without giving us time to digest anything. I know novellas are usually fast paced but this just felt poorly written, which is why it dropped down a star. Zendaya and Cathal deserve a better story than this and I hope it is explored more in the series.

I love the world but this novella didn't feel like a must-read to me personally. Definitely for a bit of fun and if you're craving more of the crows!

[Holly · Rating 2 out of 5]

Basically, they meet. Realise they're mates. Avoid each other for several weeks (off page). Have sex. The end.

Picked this up because I wanted to read more about Cathal and Daya's characters and their story, but actually, I think I romanticised it more in my imagination than is shown in this! The super short length just doesn't allow for the author to do their relationship justice at all.

It was...fine. But you could definitely skip it.

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I get why this one should be read after House of Beating Wings now. I really enjoyed this novella. Getting to see Daya and Cathal was fun!! Can't wait to continue this series!

[Jen (jenslostinthepages) ♥Star-Crossed Book Blog♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Frightened of me, princess?
“I’m frightened of nothing, Cathal.”

House of Rising Sands was a steamy, quick read that was so much fun! You definitely need to read this after House of Beating Wings or it'll give away a huge twist! We're told the story from Daya's pov and I was enchanted. I liked her right away and was terrified of the risk she took. And that risk led her to meeting Cathal. The tension between Daya and Cathal was intoxicating and I loved how their relationship progressed. Especially how steamy they were together, they were so hot! But this story also allowed us to see characters we adore, understand their world deeper and left me so excited for what's to come! This is a definite must read if you loved House of Beating Wings!

He may be a beast, but he’s apparently my beast. The surge of possessiveness and desire I feel for this man rocks me.

*I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book, provided by the author. All thoughts and opinions are my own.*

[Silvy (silvylinings) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I WOULD DIE FOR HOT DAD CATHAL.

i read this in april but forgot to add it to my ‘read’ list — but ultimately a short and hot introduction to the man that’s getting his own spin-off book, THANK ALL THE GODS.

cathal and zendaya’s story has a lot of meat, and i’m excited to see where it goes.

[ina.books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wj fajne to było. Kocham tą dwójkę i szkoda, że to była tylko krótka nowelka, a nie normalna książka.

[Dakshayani Shankar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fantastic book!

[nela.reading · Rating 3 out of 5]

takie ok, ale bez szału

[slavic_zelva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Po prostu ok i bez większych emocji.

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Y'all know how much I'm OBSESSED with Olivia's new paranormal series, The Kingdom of Crows, starting with House of Beating Wings, right? Well, even though this novella is supposed to be its prequel, offering you all the delicious background story setting and other tidbits of Fallon's mother and her true heritage, it's highly suggested to read AFTER you're done with House of Beating Wings. The counterintuitive nature of this short story is just another cherry on top of the already-yummilicious details featuring Fallon's birth parents, which turns out to be quite a huge surprise I never see coming. So yeah, buckle up, folks, and let yourself be carried away with this magical Crows realm!

[Eloise · Rating 4 out of 5]

omg … 😳😳🌶

[Blondreina ✨]

Nie będę tego oceniać, bo tu się nic nie wydarzyło. Powiem tylko jedno. Czy ona serio zdążyła w pięćdziesięciostronicowym opowiadaniu wcisnąć dwie sceny seksu?

[Em · Rating 3 out of 5]

So fun

[Mo · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was nice to get somewhat of a backstory but it left me with more questions or could have easily been a chapter in book one.

[Satchel Paige (Southernbellbookworm) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Daddy Crow!

I was absolutely dying for this novella to release and it did not disappoint! I loved the backstory of Daya and Cathal and how the prophecy for them is revealed. Although a prequel, it definitely fit as a piece to follow HoBW to fill in some gaps and questions on Lore, Miriam, and the others. I absolutely loved their witty banter and Cathal’s dirty mouth! Throw in a “princess” and I’m 🫠! Zendaya’s sassy attitude is just like her daughter’s and I live for it! The “massiveness” of the spice was great 😏! This was a perfect read and I can’t wait for more!

[Marta · Rating 4 out of 5]

miły dodatek, który można znaleźć w 3 tomie polskiego wydania Królestwa Wron, ale nie mogę doczekać się tego magicznego dodatkowego tomu, w którym opisana jest druga szansa Cathala i Dai <3

[Chenay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this novella. As is always the case with Olivia's books its not long enough due to the fact u never want to emerge from these epic worlds she creates. This book is the prequel novella to house of beating wings it takes u right bk to the very start and it was perfect I love this world of fae n shifters

[Tilly · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars

There is absolutely nothing wrong with this little novella but it was TOO SHORT. Olivia! That was mean! I wanted so much more. Let's be honest, i wanted it to be a whole book but even another 50 pages of them together and connecting would have made me super happy.

[Laurence · Rating 5 out of 5]

I needed this to be 200+ pages longer. Not sure what I’ll be doing with myself until the rest of this series comes out.
Loved getting a glimpse of Agrippina rebelling!

[Bookish Heidi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Epic prequel! Now I'm even more excited to learn about Lore's *ahem* gifts... but seriously, it was great to learn about where this all started. Seriously can't wait to get more of this story!

[Brandy {The Review Booth} · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I got to the end of book three and this tasty little tidbit was offered, I couldn’t say no. This novella gives us some background on how Cathal and Zendaya first crossed paths. I didn’t realize how much Lore’s future hinged on Zendaya until reading this.

I look forward to reading the fourth book about Cathal & Zendaya that takes place after the events in the third book. I’m interested in seeing where there story goes and if they recover. I hope that we get more of the history and a possible solution for Aggrippina as well. Same as the other three – this novella is available through Kindle Unlimited. Rounded from 4.5 stars.

[Rebekah · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can read this at any point after House of Beating Wings. It’s a short, steamy story of when Cathal and Zendaya realized they were mates. Since we haven’t met Zendaya yet, I loved getting into her head in this novella. It’s not a required read by any means, but if you have a spare hour while reading the larger series, I recommend giving it a chance. ☺️

Spice; 🌶️🌶️🌶️ (3/5)

[Maggs · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️
This was a nice little story for background knowledge but definitely should be read after book 2, house of pounding hearts, and not after the first book like the author states because something will be spoiled for you and I would have been upset if I read this after house of beating wings.
Nonetheless, I’m glad I got to read about Fallon’s mother and understand where some things came from.

[Collette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun little read. I like getting some back story on Fallons parents. But I do feel like this could have been added to the other books. Or longer since there seems to be so much more about them. But still a fun quick read.

[Wiktoria · Rating 2 out of 5]

I barely know you, we talked for maybe 5 minutes total, we've known each other for a few days, but since we're like magically destined to be together, let's fuck and love each other immediately 'cause that makes sense.